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Are You Living In Your Comfort Zone?
November 25, 2008
So at 11:16am on November 26th, I turn 29 years old! By the age of 1, my Dad dropped me down the stairs and I broke my leg and I was dropped to the pavement by my Aunt after I peed on her. Maybe that’s why I’m a little slow but I think I’ve figured out one thing I want to share today…
I was going to say, “Wow, where has the time gone?” but I don’t really like that saying (even though I’m guilty of saying it sometimes), because of what I believe it represents.
I have concluded that people who state, “Where has the time gone?” repeatedly might not have figured out what life is all about. Yesterday, while I was sitting in Central Park in New York City I started doing some reflecting on where I am at in life.
What is one of the best pieces of advice I could give you from being on this earth for 29 years? Here it is…
Life is not about being comfortable.
Ask yourself, “Does pursuing comfort and security and trying to minimize problems and stress and maximize safety and security make your hear beat faster?”
Does seeking a life of comfort motivate you to get out of bed each morning? I think this life can be associated with the most dangerous object in your house. It’s a back-reclining, deeply cushioned, foot-resting death trap called the easy chair (usually spelled EZ because using only 2 letters takes less effort).
You don’t buy these chairs because of their beauty. And they are not called “challenge chairs” or “adventure chairs.” They’re called EZ, and you buy them for one reason: comfort.
I hope my life never represents a EZ chair.
What’s so dangerous about this EZ chair is not the things you do while you are in it but the things you don’t do. The relationships you never deepen, the risks you never take, the adventures you never go on, the races you never run, the battles you never fight, the laughs you don’t laugh and the tears you don’t cry. The best present I ever received that I want to share with you is this:
“You were made for something more than life in a chair!”
So let me ask you…
What challenges, risk and adventures are you taking today?
I’m not talking about going over Niagara Falls in a barrel or betting your life saving on the Toronto Maple Leafs but I’m saying that if you really want to grow up and experience life, you need to leave your comfort zone.
I don’t believe anybody who lives a comfortable life is truly living and I believe that only people who say yes to challenge, demand and risk are ever fully alive.
Even from my own experience, every time I decide to stay in my comfort zone, I change a little and so do you. Your heart and spirit starts to die and your addiction to comfort gets a little stronger.
In my 29 years, all positive change in my life has happened outside of my comfort zone. The next level for you, whether it is physically, intellectually or spiritually, will be outside of your comfort zone.
A good sign that you’re out side of your comfort zone is when you ask, “Am I going to be able to finish this?” Yes, it’s going to hurt a bit.
This email was not written to be forwarded to your friends. It was written just for you. I actually wrote this for myself as a little birthday present. I need to be reminded of this message equally so.
Have a great day jumping in the fire!
Vince DelMonte
Are You Built For Show?
November 16, 2008
I was out with one of my close lady friends on Friday night and she was telling me about a recent trip to Chicago where two guys tried to pick up her and her friend in an elevator. I said, “So what happened?”
I realized that was the end of the story.
She stares me right in the eye and slowly shakes her head in grave disappointment and finally says, “You men need to learn how to step up your game!” I actually burst out laughing, probably because I thought to myself, “It’s so true.”
That conversation could not have been more timely because I’m in the middle of reading my buddy, Nate Green’s book called Built for Show that was just released today on Amazon. Built for Show is the first book to address young men on the prowl and it’s not only written for them but it’s written by one.
I always took pride in being one of the “young gun” fitness professionals on the scene but Nate takes the crown. He’s only 23 years old and has been quoted in Men’s Health, and Stack Magazine and a regular contributor to Men’s Fitness and T-Nation.com.
Before you read any further, check out this 60 second video Nate did in the Las Vegas airport with a bunch of young ladies after he asked them, “What’s your favorite body part on a man?”
I talked to Nate on the phone the other night and I asked him why he was inspired to write this book and he said, “Guys work out to get girls, but most fitness media focus on building body parts women don’t respond to. So, really, most guys are training to impress other guys. Which is fine, if that’s your thing—you know, I have an ego, too. But there’s a whole different set of rules to play by if you want to build a body that automatically flips a girl’s attraction switch. And what guy doesn’t want that?”
I would agree. Take a look at the current men’s magazines and notice what’s on the covers – not just the “muscle rags”, but all of them. You’ll see a ton of references to biceps, ripped abs, and a bigger chest. But those are three body parts women don’t really care about. Nate will tell you that if you go back in time, you’ll find that women are biologically programmed to be attracted to men who show more status and dominance. One way to show that dominance is to have an imposing, strong body. But the cornerstone for this physique starts with the Goods. If you get the Goods, you can get the girl.
So what are the Goods?
“Biologically, the impression of strength…evolved from a verebrate-wide dominance posture used by fish, reptiles, mammals, and primates. To appear physically powerful, men and other males with backbones display expanded versions of themselves to loom larger than they truly are,” writes David Givens, Ph.D and author of Love Signals: A Practical Field Guide to the Body Language of Courtship, “Their size and silhouette when squared define a physically commanding posture called the broadside display.”
I decided to do some research on this myself and found a recent study in the Archives of Sexual Behavio also reveals that women are most attracted to mesomorphic men who have a hip-to-waist ratio of 0.9 and shoulders that measure 1.6 times the size of their waist; the classic V-shape.
And a study of thousands of women by psychologist David Buss confirms that women are universally attracted to men who offer physical protection.
So what is Nate trying to tell you?
Take a look at your training and ask yourself why you’re doing what you’re doing. I know this might sound sacrilegious, but maybe your quest for the ultimate six-pack, biggest guns, or becoming so big that you frighten small children aren’t the greatest goals for you after all. If you want girls, and you want a capable, athletic, muscular body, then Built for Show was written for you.
Get your copy of Built For Show at Amazon for only $17 bucks
–> http://www.amazon.com/Built-Show-Nate-Green/dp/1583333193
Since Nate is an up and coming super star (IMO, he already is), I wanted to help him out and give his book as much exposure as possible since his program is so closely related to mine. Nate is huge believer in “classic bodybuilding” with full boy routines before the sport got contaminated with steroids.
I spoke with Nate and we agreed that in a few weeks, after you get a chance to read the book, we’ll have a 60 minute teleseminar and both weigh in on some fun topics like:
- Muscle growth for skinny guys.
- Body parts girls like most and Nate’s results after interviewing a bunch of girls on this.
- “Hook up” tips - we’re not dating experts but I’ve got a few “deal closers” to share.
- Realistic nutrition and supplementation tips.
To get in on the call, YOU MUST, send an email to nate@thenategreenexperience.com with your Amazon order - this is a private call as a bonus gift from Nate and I for supporting his new book.
We’ll probably unmute the lines and take a few questions too so this will be a pretty fun conversation we have that you’re not going to want to miss.
For now, grab your copy of his book. Nate even talks about how to pick out the right clothing to show off your body and includes a fall, winter, spring and summer training program.
Get your copy of Built For Show at Amazon for only $17 bucks
–> http://www.amazon.com/Built-Show-Nate-Green/dp/1583333193
How To Fast The Fat
November 12, 2008
There has been a lot of blood stirred up since I posted an interview i did with author, Brad Pilon, as we discussed his “anti diet” program called Eat Stop Eat. I’m sure you’re initial reaction to his program was, “This guy is crazy…”
If you’ve read the book, you’ll discover how brainwashed we’ve become by misinformation and Brad’s ESE book is one of the best nutrition resources I’ve ever read. I read the entire booklet on Sunday afternoon and was fascinated by the science, most of all by the dieting myths he destroyed. If you want to see the book we’re about to discuss
I got a chance to email Brad with some questions I wanted him to touch on before you follow his plan:
Vince: Are you sure fasting will not cause me to lose muscle mass?
A: No, short term flexible intermittent fasting like the kind I recommend in Eat Stop Eat will not cause any muscle loss for two reasons. First the fasts are very short and aren’t long enough cause any muscle loss. Second, I always recommend some form of weight training that will ensure you never lose muscle. As a matter of fact you can build muscle while fasting if you are following a good muscle building program like Vince’s.
Vince: Can you reassure my skinny guys that you can’t lose muscle? I know that people are so afraid to “lose muscle” so share the truth on how to avoid losing muscle.
Brad: Your body burns muscle when you are inactive so if your arm were put in a cast, then you would lose muscle in your arm. Similarly if you were to be in a situation like a famine where you have had so little food for so long you can barely walk or stand, that’s when you start losing muscle because the lack of food has forced you to become inactive.
Its all dependent on your activity levels. So it’s exactly the opposite of what most people think - being active while dieting is how you save your muscle, doing nothing is how you lose muscle.
Vince: Why is fasting such a powerful way to lose body fat?
Brad: When you don’t have any food in your system to burn as fuel then your body shifts to burning fat as its primary fuel source, this is the whole reason your body stores fat in the first place. When you eat your body prefers to burn the fuel you ate first, but if you don’t have any food in your system your body still has to burn something, and it chooses to burn fat first.
Vince: Is this a detox plan or fat loss plan?
Brad: If detox can be taken as a simple statement for helping balance the system and rejuvenate your body, then I would say it does have some benefits like that. However it is first and foremost a plan for losing weight with minimal rules that still allows you to eat all the foods you like without feeling guilty. So I think you can call it a simple effective weight loss program that also promotes overall health benefits.
Vince: What did you talk about on the Mike and Juliet show?
Brad: We covered a lot of topics in a small amount of time. Firstly we talked about the three major misconceptions about short term fasting (that your metabolism will slow down, that you will lose muscle and three that you will go hypoglycemic).
Secondly and probably most importantly, we talked about how dozens of cultures and hundreds of millions of people around the world already do short fasts as part of their culture, and have been doing so for centuries. This is important because it proves that flexible intermittent fasting can be part of a healthy lifestyle.
Vince: How can this help my skinny guys muscle up?
Brad: The Eat Stop Eat style of eating has been scientifically shown to increase growth hormone. And I mean a lot, by the end of a 24 hour fast research shows growth hormone can increase as much as 10 fold! This is the same growth hormone that so many celebrities and bodybuilders are taking to build muscle mass. The only difference is in this case you are using a special eating technique to coax your body into increasing its own growth hormone levels instead of buying it on the black market and injecting it into yourself every week.
Growth Hormone is important for muscle building because along with testosterone it is one of the most potent muscle building hormones in your body. For anyone looking to build muscle, Eat Stop Eat is a great way to spike your own natural growth hormone to get a muscle building effect.
Vince: How can this help me get a six pack faster?
Brad: In order to let your abs show through you must burn all the fat off of your midsection. One of the best ways to boost fat burning is a short term fast. It shifts your metabolism to burning mostly fat. During your fasts your body is burning a very high percentage of fat and one of the places it preferentially burns it from is your belly/stomach area.
Another way Eat Stop Eat can help get your six pack faster is through portion size control. We’ve noticed that after a fast it takes less food to fill you up and feel satisfied, some people even report they have less cravings for sweets and fatty foods. In a sense it trains your body to learn to eat just the right amount of food and no more.
Vince: What are the major health benefits and risks with your program?
Brad: Fasting has many health benefits from increasing growth hormone and fat burning to lowering your insulin levels, it also helps to reduce chronic inflammation. In a way it’s a good strategy for giving your system a break and letting it reset and refresh.
I actually went back to university to study the effects of short term intermittent fasting on the human body with a specific eye towards fat loss. I can honestly say when done correctly I can’t really find any risk involved with short term fasting, and there is a host of beneficial effects.
On that note I would like to point out that all the research I reviewed was in healthy people at varying body weights (normal to obese) with normal blood sugar regulation. So I cannot technically recommend this program to diabetics or people with a diagnosed blood sugar problem, in these cases I always recommend you check with your physician or health care provider before starting any new diet or exercise programs. However with that said I have received emails from diabetics who have used Eat Stop Eat with good success.
You’ll really love his program if you hate the “bodybuilding lifestyle” of six small meals every 3 hours. Overall, I think you’ll find his 24 hour fasting method much easier than you think and it might improve your productivity too.
Personally, I probably won’t use Brad’s plan every week because I have a hard enough time gaining muscle weight but I know his plan will be a part of my lifestyle if and when I need to lose any belly fat without having to suffer through it. I think you’ll appreciate Brad’s refreshing take on dieting and weight loss.
Vince
P.S. The whole point of this program is to take the stress of eating and not obsess about the clock every 3 hours so make sure you add this to your arsenal for fat loss:
Why Diets Stop Working
November 11, 2008
Have you ever wondered why diets stop working? Tell me if you’ve ever heard someone talk about their diet going something like this:
“I dieted and dieted and dieted and then all of a sudden I stopped losing weight, my metabolism slowed to a crawl and I actually started getting fatter, so then I started eating again and I all of a sudden I started losing weight again.”
This is a common story from people who follow strict diets, and it fuels the fire about the ‘metabolic damage’ a diet can do. And because of this everybody jumps on the “fix your metabolism” bandwagon, treating your metabolism like it’s a physical thing that can be broken or fixed (like the parts of a car).
This however does not happen because we know from scientific research that weight training while dieting preserves metabolic rate.
I decided to ask my buddy, Brad Pilon, who was recently on the Mike and Juliet show discussing this topic and his new book
Brad went on national television and gave the scientific explanation of this phenomenon - the idea of metabolism slowing down to a point where massive caloric deficit doesn’t cause weight loss - is incorrect.
I decided to call him up because I had some questions of my own:
Vince: So what’s happening here?
Brad: What we have here is a situation where something is obviously happening to affect weight loss progress, but the explanation for why it is happening is wrong. People are under the false assumption about what is really causing their impaired weight loss.
Vince: I know lots of personal trainers who train bodybuilders and fitness models who experience a slow down in their fat loss as they get closer to contest time. From what you’re saying so far it sounds like people must sporadically increase the amount of calories they eat to keep the weight loss progressing because of metabolic slow down, is that right?
Brad: From all my experience and education, the metabolism is not slowing down. These trainers are obviously seeing this happen again and again with their clients so there is definitely something happening that is causing the slow down in weight loss, metabolic slow down is just the most common and in vogue thing to blame it on at the moment, however this is scientifically incorrect.
Vince: So what is going on?
Brad: Whenever faced with a problem like this, I do what any good scientist would do, I investigate it. From my research, I knew that with Eat Stop Eat that metabolic rate wasn’t the culprit here. Your metabolism isn’t slowing down, and it’s not getting damaged, so something else must be going on.
So I dug deep into the research and by deep, I mean I went way back into the research. What I uncovered is probably one of the biggest oversights in weight loss history, one that I think will absolutely revolutionize the way we view weight loss. What I found was a very simple and well researched explanation to this phenomena and it doesn’t include anything nearly as complicated and mysterious as metabolic slow-downs or metabolic damage, or down-regulation of fat-burning enzymes. The real answer has to do with the way your body handles water!
Vince: Water? But aren’t we talking about fat burning?
Brad: Yes, but the huge thing that is being overlooked is water. Let me explain. The largest component of your body is water. Water makes up between 45% and 75% of your body weight, just rough numbers, and the variability between 45% and 75% is primarily due to differences in body fat. Most tissues like muscles, skin, and your organs are all over 70% water, even adipose tissue, which is almost all fat, is still 10% to 14% water in healthy people.
Vince: Does this explain why people can lose body fat without losing weight? Can body water be hiding the changes?
Brad: Yes, that is exactly what it means and that’s worth repeating. The retention of water has been observed to conceal the loss of body fat repeatedly throughout the course of obesity treatment. As you lose fat from your fat cells, the fat being lost is replaced by a water-like fluid. As fat leaves your fat cells, it’s replaced by water.
Remember I told you that a typical person’s adipose is about 10% to 14% water? Well when we’re looking at people who are in a semi-starvation state, it could actually be much, much higher. And remember a strict bodybuilding competitive diet is very similar to the clinical definition of ’semi starvation.
The key factor here is that your fat is being replaced by water in the areas where there was fat. This effect is hard to detect because this wouldn’t be noticeable using traditional methods of measuring body fat like skin fold calipers. It would take some pretty sophisticated measurement and tools to be able to see through these changes of where that water is being positioned. Again, this isn’t new research. If anything, this was lost research.
Vince: So while other areas of your body are shrinking, the amount of body water that you’re carrying isn’t shrinking?
Brad: Yes. It gets to a point where it starts to hide weight loss even though the body water isn’t going up, you’re body is getting smaller because your burning fat but you will get to a point where you aren’t losing any more water to go along with your fat loss; so your percentage of total body water might actually go up and it localizes itself where your fat used to be. Not a good thing. It also occurs very gradually.
Vince: Is there a scientific name for this phenomenon?
Brad: It’s known as dieter’s edema, or swelling. Dieter’s edema usually starts after the first month of semi-starvation, (and like I said earlier, any strict weight loss diet is similar to semi starvation). At first the swelling is very transient, it comes in later in the day, and it’s gone by the morning. As semi-starvation continues, this edema becomes more apparent and more massive. So the longer you diet, even when your weight loss starts to plateau, you’re still losing fat, but it’s being hidden by this edema (swelling).
Vince: That’s great that we finally have the answers to why this happens and we know it has nothing to do with some metabolic loss slowdown or malfunctioning enzymes, but it doesn’t change the fact that it happens. If you’re someone who is trying to get a six pack and get really lean, how do you prevent this? What are your options?
Brad: Well, first, as I told you, if you’re going to follow a traditional diet which is the same as clinical semi-starvation to get ultra-lean, it looks like you’re going to have to do periodic periods of re-feeding (eating more). Because there’s not a lot of new research on this we really don’t know how long you have to re-feed for, but it seems like the effect is fairly quick. Once you start eating a larger amount of calories, your edema will quickly go away to the point where it looks like you’re starting to lose weight again.
Vince: And what is the option you suggest in your new book?
Brad: I suggest another option in my book, and this option comes from research published as early as 1890.
The research I dug up showed that a full-day fast did not result in edema. That’s right, while semi-starvation causes dieter’s edema, total starvation or fasting, does not.
So you could use the ESE protocol of flexible intermittent fasting and weight training and you would not get dieter’s edema. What you’re essentially doing here is periods of complete starvation (fasting is a better word), which doesn’t cause dieter’s edema, followed by periods of re-feedings. Even if, for some weird, crazy reason, you did get a little bit of edema, it would go away very quickly with this system.
So ESE solved the dieters edema problem even before I knew the problem existed. The Eat Stop Eat lifestyle is meant to be used as an easy and effective weight loss strategy but it ended up fixing this other major problem with dieting too. I guess I kinda lucked out on that one!
Vince: Final comments?
Brad: Do you understand why diuretics, steroids, weight loss supplements, cutting carbs, avoiding creatine monohydrate (before a contest) and caffeine are so popular in the bodybuilding and fitness world?
Vince: Yes and it appears that body water is a poorly understood area of human physiology when it comes down to weight loss or specifically changing the way you look. There’s not much research on it lately, but it’s an area that we know is something we have to pay special attention to when we’re trying to get very lean.
So there you have it. If you’re following a traditional diet, you’re probably gonna need periods of sporadic higher calories if you see a slow down in your weight loss.
If you just ditch the traditional diet, and follow ESE using periods of fasting combined with periods of normal eating you can ensure that you will never suffer from dieter’s edema.
Learn more about Brad’s Eat Stop Eat program
Vince DelMonte
The Master Cleanse aka “Lemonade Diet” Experience
November 8, 2008
if you’ve ever read my Your Six Pack Quest e-book, you know I’m a big believer in detoxing your body and if you think your body is due for a detox or cleanse then this is a very important for you to read.
Specifically, the world famous lemonade diet by the late Stanley Burroughs. In my opinion, all other cleanses are bogus and noneffective and I believe the lemonade diet has earned it’s name, “The Master Cleanse” rightfully so. The current version was published in 1976 and continues to be popular to this day. You can probably find a copy of the 50 page booklet by doing a google search but I would personally recommend reviewing this site before you make your final decision
– http://www.MasterCleansePlan.com
Weight loss WILL occur, but do not equate this with a FAT LOSS PROGRAM. Last year I lost almost 15 pounds in 10 days and this year I lost 8 pounds in 3 days. I took pictures each day and looked identical on day 1 and 2 and seemed to lose some mass on only the 3rd day. The majority of weight I lost was water and glycogen and a bit of fat (I was actually very lean and tight at the end of the 3 days) and I’m sure I lost a bit of muscle but you gain it almost immediately upon returning to the gym.
Again, do not use this as a FAT LOSS DIET. This is not what it is intended for and you will gain back about half of the weight you lose, but it will be in the form of water and glycogen.
Let me warn you that The Master Cleanse is NOT for the weak of body or mind. It is VERY difficult to follow (the first day is the hardest) and it’s an amazing experience to see how addicted you are to food.
The longer you have been alive and the longer you have exposed yourself to toxins in the air, chemicals in our food, abuse of alcohol, stress etc, the more toxicity in your body and the more qualified you are for a cleanse.
And most importantly, it will make combating fat more difficult, especially the last 10 pounds.
I didn’t experience any severe side effects while on the cleanse but my diet is pretty clean 80-90% of the time and I am fairly careful about what I put in my body. The best benefit for me is my sleep quality while on the cleanse. I woke up 1-2 hours earlier each morning because my body was not busy digesting food so my energy levels, surprisingly, we’re very high for the entire 3 days - I was even tempted to do some brisk walking but exercise should be avoided.
Also, I don’t experience any gas (sorry) for weeks after I am finished the cleanse and when I go back into the gym to train, my body makes very quick gains and I notice my recovery time between workouts to be quicker (probably because my body is absorbing a higher percentage of nutrients).
Consider a cleanse like resetting or refreshing your body back to “normal.” Mentally, craving for bad food choices are gone for awhile and you’ll be extremely motivated to maintain the “cleanliness” inside your body.
Here are some of the benefits you’ll experience:
- Flushes out toxins that have formed in any part of the body.
- Cleanse of your major organs i.e. kidneys, digestive system, liver.
- Eliminates waste in and around your joints and muscles.
- Relieves pressure on your cells, nerves, blood vessels and arteries.
Personally for me, here’s how I benefited:
- Better quality sleep. I actually slept 1-2 hours less each night because of the energy saved from digestion.
- Accelerated muscle gains when you return to the gym.
- Improved alertness and mental clarity.
- No gas for about a month!
- Unhealthy food choices become far less attractive.
Here’s what I lived on for the 7 days last year and 3 days this year:
*Grade B Organic Maple Syrup
*Lemons
*Organic cayenne pepper
*Filtered water
This forms your “lemonade” and you can drink as much of this as you wish all day and all night long.
In the morning you flush your body out by shot gunning a glass of sea salt mixed with water (and then spend about 45 minutes in the washroom which is the worst part). In the evening you drink a laxative tea to avoid constipation because of the lack of fiber.
I would recommend you do The Master Cleanse at least 1 or 2x a year, preferably with the change of seasons. In the end, you’ll read lots of research on how you don’t need to cleanse your body if you get enough fiber, fruits and vegetables (which I doubt you do) and that there is no science that supports “cleansing” your body but no scientific study can dispute your own experience, which I believe is the true test.
I personally feel completely clean and brand new and know of no better way of detoxing my body other than The Master Cleanse 1-2x a year. Forget about all the super expensive pill form detox plans and imitation detox plans. The Master Cleanse is the real deal that has stood the test of time.
Want to join me on the Master Cleanse?
Read more: http://www.MasterCleansePlan.com
Have a great day,
Vince DelMonte
Hardgainer Secret Weapon: Strength Training
November 3, 2008
Yesterday we discussed how volume training plays a role in building muscle mass and today you’ll learn how strength training is just as important to build muscle mass fast.
Without a strength training phase, muscle would grow but never as a result of actual muscle fiber growth - only as a result of intracellular fluids such as creatine phosphate (CP), glycogen, water, etc.
In addition, your muscles would never be as strong as they look due to the fact that strength training phases are designed to teach the nervous system to recruit your fast twitch (white) muscle fibers which are in charge of massive strength.
Therefore, if you’re a struggling hardgainer, I trust you see the importance of incorporating strength training cycles into your muscle mass program for optimal muscle growth.
What are the characteristics of a common strength training workout?
- Rep ranges would be lower and consist of 1-6 reps
- Rest ranges would be longer and consist of 2-10 minutes
- Weight selection would be 80-100% of your 1 rep max
- Volume would be lowered to typically 8-10 total sets
- Lifting speed is far more explosive
- Compound movements are first and only option
- A strength phase could last for 3-12 weeks
Spoken simply, this is the phase you’ll be lifting your heaviest weights ever and you will be getting stronger each and every week. The total focus of a strength training phase is the amount of weight lifted.
In my Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain book, I teach you a unique, and never before seen way, of doing strength training that is completely designed for the struggling hardgainer.
I have you cycle my strength training phase every 3 weeks with my volume training phase for 3 weeks. Here is how your body increases muscle mass in response to a strength training phase:
- Testosterone, one of the most anabolic hormones in your body, levels increase from the longer rest periods and heavier weights.
- Muscle growth accelerates when the actual protein content of the cell increases, as does the thickness of the muscle filaments. As discussed a few posts ago, strength gains come first and muscle growth occurs second.
- From your abilities increased recovery ability from the volume training phase, you are able to increase strength and build muscle mass quicker and will more efficient at repairing it self and getting you ready for another high intensity workout.
Train hard and train even smarter,
Vince
Hardgainers Secret Weapon: Volume Training
November 2, 2008
What exactly is a hardgainer? In my definition, it’s someone who works out hard with weights but has a difficult time putting on muscle. Five weeks could fly by without any significant changes in muscle size or definition.
I like my definition because you don’t have to be ultra skinny to be a hardgainer to follow my systems. The majority of hardgainers will be skinny guys who can eat anything and everything and still have a hard time gaining any sort of weight, whether it’s in the form of muscle or fat.
Maybe you don’t have a hard time gaining fat but you have a hard time gaining muscle (which is not an easy endeavour for anyone), so in my definition, you’re a hargainer and the following advice applies.
If you’re a hardgainer and desire to become a bodybuilder or resemble someone who body builds than don’t believe you’ve been born with a curse. That is why I wrote my book, Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain, which allows you to break away from your current physique and put yourself on the fast track to serious muscle growth.
Will it be easy? Maybe, maybe not. Today, lets’ talk about the first of two secret weapons that muscle growth can be stimulated: volume training.
Volume Training
Volume is the number of sets multiplied by the number of reps per set. If you’re doing a 10 x 10 routine than you’re total volume would be 100 reps. What kind of benefits would occur from a volume style workout?
- Growth hormone output is increased from the short rest periods that are prescribed during volume training. I would recommend no more than 60 second rest. Growth hormone is one of the most important hormones in your body to assist in creating more muscle tissue.
- Muscle growth (hypertrophy) occurs from increased levels of creatine phosphate, water and carbs inside the muscle cell. The short rest periods don’t allow your muscles to fully recover which creates cumulative fatigue. Over time, your body becomes more efficient and your work capacity increases because you create increased creatine phospate and glycogen (stored carbs) inside the muscle. The result is that your muscles get bigger.
- Your body’s recovery capabilities improve due to the extra stress imposed by the high work load coupled with the short rest periods. This means you’ll be able to train more frequently and more often which leads to more stimulus on the muscle over the course of the year, meaning bigger muscles faster.
Even though volume training works very well, it can not be used all the time because of the high energy demand that can lead to burn out. In my 29-week advanced program I cycle volume training and strength training (which we’ll discuss in the next post) every 3-6 weeks to make sure your body does not adapt to anything creating a plateau.
Don’t forget, if you’re skeptical of incorporating volume training into your program, you can always try out my 21-day risk free trial, for only $19.95.
Vince