How to build every muscle - tips and tricks

How to build every muscle

When you hear the word science, what does it mean to you? I'm guessing that when you hear the word science, you have an image of a nerdy-looking guy in a lab coat holding a petri dish filled with bacteria.

And when it comes to building muscle, we all know that science often fails to give us the best solutions. This is due to the fact that there is very little funding for studies that focus on finding the best way to turn little Henry into the Hulk.

Computer technology has advanced at an astonishing rate because there are so many resources available and because the financial equivalent is so enormous. This is not the case in the world of muscle building.

Yes, if you have a burning desire to build muscle in a stubborn muscle group, you're not going to have any luck looking for answers on Pubmed - even if you work all night.

So where are the answers?

When I was still at university, one of my professors made a statement that I have never forgotten over the years. The good doctor's quote was "science is about observing the world around us."

If you z.B. Alzheimer's, then it makes sense to investigate cultures where this disease is practically non-existent. Then you try to find out what the members of these cultures do that the rest of the world does not.

And if you want bigger quadriceps, then it makes sense to look for a sport where the athletes have a disproportionately strong quadriceps development and try to find out what these athletes do that you don't do.

This is intelligent science.

What qualifies a muscle group as a stubborn muscle group?

Before I go into the details of how to build muscle where you need it most, it's important to understand what really deserves the title of a tough muscle group. Your proportionally challenged biceps may not be a tough muscle group at all. For this reason, you should first consider two points:

Be honest with yourself. Is the muscle group in question simply too small because you don't train it more than once a week or every fortnight? Many exercisers have puny calves because they rarely train them. There are no great mysteries or secrets here.

You should understand that muscle growth takes months. If you just started training three weeks ago and you're frustrated with your upper arm development, join the club that everyone has joined. No one has ever complained about building muscle too quickly. You have to be patient - even when you've found the training method that works best for your body type.

Now that we've got those two points out of the way and you've been training a stubborn muscle group consistently for a few months without seeing significant results, it's time to do something to solve this problem.

30 repetitions for larger muscles

Firstly, you should reconsider the training parameters you have been using. 3 sets of 10 reps is not the ideal way to build muscle - not even for muscle groups that grow easily. For this reason, the initial approach to training a stubborn muscle group is to use a less traditional method that works better for building muscle.

The 30 repetition method is an effective modification of the 10 sets of 3 repetitions method that I have been promoting for a decade. Instead of performing 10 sets of 3 reps, you start with a weight that allows you to perform 6 reps on the first set.

Next, perform a second set with as many repetitions as possible (usually this will be less than 6 repetitions). Then perform a third set with as many repetitions as possible.

You continue this for as many sets until you have reached a total of 30 repetitions.

You will use the same weight for all sets and the number of repetitions will decrease from set to set. This is an ideal way to train as you never skip a repetition. This is also the way I approach muscle growth in my book "Huge in a Hurry".

Here is an example exercise pairing for the upper arms:

* A weight with which you can perform no more than 6 repetitions on the first set

* * Until you reach 30 total repetitions

This is an example of a training session. You only use one exercise per muscle group and you put all your energy into this exercise until you reach 30 total repetitions. Perform the 30 repetitions method three times a week with a different exercise for each training session of the week. You can use the same three exercises for all four weeks.

Of course, the 30 repetition method can be used for any muscle group that requires more mass without sacrificing maximum strength. You can do straight sets with 60 seconds rest between sets, but I have found that it is more effective and efficient to alternate between exercises for different muscle groups.

You don't have to use an antagonistic exercise pairing. If z.B. If your calves and triceps need help, you can switch back and forth between calf raises and tricep presses. The options are endless.

Here is an overview of the parameters of the 30 repetitions method

Duration: 4 weeks

Number of exercises per muscle group per training session: 1

Total repetitions per muscle group: 30

Exercise selection: Use a different exercise for each training session during the week

The 30 repetition method is my first line of attack when it comes to building a lagging muscle group. Try it out for 4 weeks and I would bet you will like what you see. It's important to understand that you don't have to do the whole session using this method, although it is an excellent way to train.

You could z.B. you may be happy with your current programme, but you feel like it's neglecting a muscle group that you need to make scary enough to scare the neighbours. Use the 30 repetition method three times a week for four weeks to get things going.

Back to science from the real world

At this point, you may be wondering what my digression at the beginning of this article was about when I talked about the relationship between science and real-world observations.

Let's take a look at the shoulder muscles and the quadriceps. These are two muscle groups that are sometimes underdogs. They can be problematic with many good muscle building methods, which can even apply to the 30 repetition method. Yes, sometimes you need to break the rules and look for guidance. Sometimes multiple sets of heavy reps are not the best approach.

If ever there was a muscle group that has grown well with high repetition training and lighter weights, it's the shoulder muscles. You only have to look at the shoulder muscles of professional boxers for proof.

The quadriceps can be more complicated for another reason: it is extremely demanding and exhausting to perform 30 total repetitions of a quadriceps multi-joint exercise three times per week. Elite-level Olympic weightlifters may have the best quadriceps development of all power athletes, but we all know how impractical and time-consuming it would be to train at the frequency and volume of these athletes while keeping your joints intact.

So we need to look a little further afield. Which other athletes have a quadriceps development with proportions that would make even Tom Platz envious? Professional cyclists.

When you think of professional boxers or professional cyclists, it's easy to hypothesise that any muscle group can grow if you stimulate it with enough volume and frequency. However, while this may sometimes be true, it doesn't seem to be accurate in all cases.

Take the biceps as an example. If the amount of volume from boxing or cycling could be transferred to other people's head-twisting biceps, then elite rowers would have the best biceps on the planet. But that is not the case.

Gymnasts who train on rings hold the title for the best pound-for-pound biceps development on the planet. This is because the biceps require high tension exercises for growth - unlike the shoulder muscles and quadriceps, which contain a higher proportion of more fatigue-resistant motor units. These more fatigue-resistant motor units love high repetition training like a fat kid loves cake.

If you need to build more muscle mass in your shoulders and quadriceps to avoid looking ridiculous on the beach, here's your solution.

5 minutes in hell

The two exercises I use to build quadriceps or shoulders when traditional training methods don't work are the mountain climber exercise and the boxer drill. Both of these exercises induce a lot of fatigue, which is why you should do them at the end of your training sessions or on a day when you're not training with heavy weights.

As an added bonus, the following two exercises will help you burn more fat.

Mountaineering exercise

Adjust the saddle of an exercise bike/ergometer so that you can only extend your knee joint to 160 degrees when pedalling. Basically, you just need to make sure that you can't fully extend your knees during each revolution to maintain tension on the quadriceps. Next, set the resistance high enough so that you can do no more than 60 revolutions per minute when pedalling at maximum intensity.

Pedal at maximum effort for 5 minutes. As your quadriceps fatigue you will need to reduce the resistance of the ergometer. The ideal range you should be moving in is between 45 and 60 revolutions per minute. For the entire 5 minutes of this exercise from hell, do not let the speed drop below 45 revolutions per minute and do not exceed 60 revolutions per minute.

Do the mountain climber exercise every other day or three times a week until you have built up enough muscle mass.

Here are a few tips for the mountaineering exercise:

Remain seated throughout the exercise. If you stand up and pedal standing up, this takes the strain off the quadriceps (as your body weight can push the pedals down).

Do not grip the handles of the "handlebars" as this will accumulate unnecessary fatigue. Keep your hands relaxed. It is best to let your arms hang down at the side of your body or tuck your fingers behind your head.

Keep your chest up throughout the exercise. It's easy to slouch forward when you're contorting your face in pain, but this can lead to disc problems.

If your cardiovascular system is not used to high intensity exercise, start with 3 minutes and add 30 seconds of exercise every other day until you reach 5 minutes.

Boxer Drill

The boxer drill is very straightforward and difficult to perform incorrectly as long as you put in 5 minutes of continuous effort. Simply grab a pair of 2.5kg dumbbells and do your best to mimic Arturo Gatto. Hit straight punches, hooks and uppercuts for five minutes without a break.

Perform the Boxer Drill every other day or three times a week for as long as you wish. Here are a few tips for the boxer drill:

Keep your hands up throughout the exercise. You should never lower your hands during a fight and you should never lower your hands during this exercise, as this would relieve the shoulder muscles.

Move back and forth as much as possible while you are hitting and change your stance from right to left every 30 seconds to keep the movements of your spine in balance.

If 2.5 kilos is too heavy, start with 1.5 kilo dumbbells

In order to get the most out of this exercise, you should be able to deliver useful punches. If you have absolutely no idea how to hit a hook or an uppercut, you should ask someone who is familiar with the subject for advice.

If your cardiovascular system is not used to high intensity exercise, start with 3 minutes and add 30 seconds of exercise every other day until you reach 5 minutes.

Concluding words

One of the best ways to build a lagging muscle group is to use the 30 repetition method. This can work for any muscle group. However, if you want to mix things up, or if a traditional approach hasn't worked for your quadriceps or shoulder muscles, you now have a few solutions that will also help you burn more fat.