A season to change - New Programme

Writing a new programme

With the summer holidays now over for me looking lean and in shape like I actually attend a gym is not such a priority. This means new goals and objectives within my training are to be made, keeping my motivation and somewhat desire to staying fit. This is the fundamental factor in your training because everything will come together to achieve this end goal. Now for me this is to get the scales to read the grand total of 100kg, yet still be under 12% BF. I've never quite achieved this so this is the main goal along with a few other minor goals such as:
- 180kg Back Squat for 10
- 160kg Bench Press for 5
- Strict Overhead Press 100kg for 5.
I can't stress enough how vital it is to have these in place. When you get to that manic day at work and you realise that you've got to go a train legs that evening, the goal for back squats will force you to get under that bar, squat down and get back up again. It's that motivation that you need when you're just not feeling it.

Now just a quick few pointers when it comes to writing your programme:
1. Don't include too much. Volume has its place in any programme but often when writing workouts people tend to include way to much. Aim for no more than 20 sets, if you're struggling with that add in a superset, mini circuit at the end or even add in a second day into your programme. I'm currently doing this for back as I really want to try and create more width.
2. Set all your weights and reps. I am one of the worse for this myself in that I often end up going into the gym and roughly following what I've written down so this time I've written everything in detail and really follow it to the very last rep. Also ensure you keep slightly adjusting things such as weight to keep pushing yourself and become stronger.
3. Add in a test! Try to include in each workout something that will test you that little bit more, a mini challenge just for that workout. A timed circuit or max weight for reps, just something that will fire you up for that session.
4. Always have you're main objective in mind. Don't go off on a tangent when writing out these plans and remember how you've always wanted big arms so you're going to include them in every workout. Take a step back and think about how you're going to achieve that main goal.

So there you have it. As the sunshine is turning to rain here in London, with the seasons changing its time for you to change. I'm currently running a 8 week strength based programme for a one off price of £50. If you're interested in this or any programmes solely catered to you send me your details at jcdpersonaltraining@gmail.com.

Happy Training

Jack

Sleeve bursting arms!!

Sleeve bursting Arms

With the summer now well and truly upon us everyone is changing jumpers for t-shirts and all that hard work you've put in over the winter months you really want to show off. The first thing that draws any attention when it's t-shirt weather is your arms!! Here are a few last minute training tips to really get your arms bursting out of your sleeves.


Add more volume to your triceps!!
Triceps are often neglects when it comes to training arms purely as they're never seen but they take up two thirds of your upper arms, it's not all bicep you know!!! These as a muscle I have found can take a lot of volume as they're used in every pushing motion you do so in order to force them into growth you must train them many different ways to shock the muscle. Train them through different rep patterns with a low rep, high set day on your chest day with a high rep, low set day following shoulders. Focus on tempo and contraction of the muscle and then other times just overload the tricep as much as possible. These methods will stun the muscle, forcing it to grow. Mix the exercises up in your routine adding in reverse push downs, reverse bench and cable skull crushers as oppose to the normal exercises you may do. Lastly over work the lateral head of the tricep which runs from your deltoid, the outer part of the tricep. Kick backs and over head extension are great in isolating this head as the others are often used more in the pushing exercises. This will bring greater depth to your arm size thus create that sleeve bursting look.

Tempo and good form when training biceps!!
So many people now see the top guys in the industry curling heavy weight and automatically employ this type of training into their routine with horrendous form and are not stimulating the muscle at all. This is unless they are curling to gain bigger traps and back. Yes use this shock tactic at the beginning of the workout but don't comprise form for it, as soon as you feel your form is going maybe get one or two cheat reps in but then stop. Move on to an isolation exercise such as a preacher, concentration or incline bench curls where form is a great deal harder to cheat on. Drop the weight down slightly and focus on really tempo and squeezing the muscle at the top of the movement, pushing blood into the muscle. You can add a few force reps in when you're fatigued through either help from a partner or if you're performing a single arm curl get the other hand involved, exhausting the bicep and pushing for growth. Much like the tricep train both heads of the muscle, wider than shoulder width for the short head and closer grip for the long head. I like to include rope hammer curls, lying wide  cable curls and reverse dumbbell curls to really hit both heads.

Train your forearms!
Many people when training arms neglect the forearm but they're still part of the arm. With people wanting to more and more lift heavier weight they opt for straps, meaning their grip strength is poor this never really training forearms. Larger forearms automatically give a more atheistic look to the arm and stronger forearms will help assist when you're looking to move more weight as they act more often than not as a fixator, allowing you to squeeze the bar harder, engaging more muscles. Reverse curls and wrist curls are the two I like to use and get rid of those straps!!!!

So there are three easy tips to add into your programme in order to see results and have sleeve bursting arms.

Jack 

Where is the nearest Vets as these swans are sick!!!- Chasing big arms

Everyone is chasing big arms for the summer, me being one of them. There is nothing like filling out you sleeves with bursting arms. However, arms is where so many people struggle to put on mass in the gym, even when they train theme week in week out yet still see no growth. I was one of these people until I looked more into what the muscles do and how you can then get the most out of it when training the upper arm. 

The muscles in your arms are used when training ever other upper body muscle group, this being through either pushing or pulling exercises. The secondary muscles (Bicep and Triceps) are used through the contraction phase. When perform a chin up for example and your back is at full contraction so are your biceps. The slower and more controlled you perform these reps the greater you hit the back but also the biceps. This applies exact the same to the tricep in a press ups. So use these workouts to your advantage hitting secondary muscles such as arms without perform a single isolated exercise. 

The make up of the upper arm is a third bicep to two thirds tricep, so pay more attention to the tricep. This particular muscle is used for the straightening of the below and as seen in the title is made up of three heads. These being the long, lateral and medial heads, hitting all these three are crucial in developing mass to this area. You're long head also referred to as the belly is the bigger part of the tricep and is where you should start, working down to the lateral head. Any movement over the head will hit the long head, with the other two parts will also be partially used. Skull crushers, tricep extensions and narrow push downs shall hit the long head, with these you can go heavier thus putting them at the beginning of the workout. The medial head is stimulated often when performing exercises for the long head but a reverse grip push down I feel really hits it. Greater isolated exercises such as kickbacks and drop extensions shall hit the lateral. I like to do these with high volume towards the end of the workout as a burnout, sometimes drop set. 

The bicep is formed of two head, the short which runs closed to your chest whilst the outer is the long head which forms the peak to the muscle. If you were genetically gifted then you may be able to see a clear different between the two. Anyway, hit both if these heads when training and you will notice a difference to the size of your bicep!!! A normal standing barbell curl is great for hitting the long head, these i like to perform heavy however never comprise form and like I mentioned earlier pay attention to the tempo. If done correctly your biceps shall be screaming at you, don’t just pile on the weight. The best exercise for this I have found is the preacher curl, I personally love this when performed single with a dumbbell into a slow bar curl each set, focusing on the contraction. These are two exercise I would perform at the beginning, the rest of the workout should really be looking at fatiguing the muscle and achieving the best contraction. Use drop sets, supersets to achieve this.

Lastly arms are one of the most visual muscles when training so use this to your advantage when training them. The contraction and squeeze of the muscle is what causes it to grow. So look at yourself when performing the exercise, making sure you get a full range of movement along with a full contraction of the muscle. The tempo of the rep, even more so when performing something with cables can also help in gaining the best contraction. Take the weight pin down and look at the muscle working, see how it recruits the fibres in order to perform the rep. Due to the constant tension on the muscle and with a slow tempo you won’t need a lot of weight but man will your arms be pumped at screaming in pain. The reverse arm push down for tricep is a killer for this along with the rope curl laying on your back to avoid your back lift the weight is a great demonstration of this. 

Check out Joe Donnellys' to use next time you want to train arms. 

1) Concentration curl warmup 4x15 each arm

2) EZ bar curls 4x8 last set dropset burnout 20 reps

3) Seated hammer curls 4x6, superset alternating dumbbell curls 4x10

4) Hammer strength preacher curl machine curls dropset 8 reps, dropset of 15 (4 rounds)

5) Reverse curls 4x10 thumb over grip, superset rope curls 4x15

6) Standing double front bicep cable curl 4x15, after last set do a cable 21’s

7) Strait bar curls 7x12 (45 seconds between sets

8) Heavy tricep pushdown dropsets 6-8 reps, dropset 15 reps (4 rounds0

9) Rope pushdowns 4x12, superset rope overhead extensions 4x10

10) Close grip press on smith machine 4x12 with a dropset of 8 reps on each set

11) Single armed rope kickbacks 4x15 each arm

12) Overhead dumbbell press 7x15

And next time the “suns out” I can guarantee so will the guns be out.

Jack

Steve Cook - hypertrophy training

I was recently on youtube just having a little browse when I came across a video from Steve Cook on hypertrophy training, to which I thought I'd share with you. Steve Cook is very popular in the fitness industry after becoming an IFBB pro Men's Physique Competitor, Optimum Nurtition and Bodybuilding.com spokesmen and of course the founder of Swoldier. Swoldier nation is Steve Cook's ethos on training in the gym but furthermore in life. Doing things the right way. This could be through setting goals to achieve in the gym but basically it underpins the drive that causes you to succeed in life. This has become massive with many followers and has really started to bring a different light on the muscle building community.

Back to hypertrophy training. You may ask what is difference between strength and hypertrophy training well, firstly hypertrophy training is a method of strength training and is intended to induce the fastest muscle growth in the shortest period of time without the use of anabolic steroids. There are four different principles to this type of training. Mechanical load is the first, meaning tension loading of the muscle through an exercise. Chronic stimulation which is the theory that a muscle does not need more than 48 hours to recover because within that 48 hours window recovery can still take place with the correct rate of protein and nutrition. Progressive load is also a principle through over time the tissue adapts and becomes resistant to the effects of the first principle, mechanical load. Therefore the load must be increased to overcome adaptation by the body thus, causing growth to occur. Strategic Deconsitioning or in other terms a rest week is where the body has reached a point at the end of a cycle where it can't tolerate more weight, therefore a set period of rest must be take, allowing for the muscle to grow. These are the basics to hypertrophy training, boring stuff out the way now how to put it into practice.

Now as I mentioned early Steve Cook has recorded numerous videos of him doing this type of training online and it is really interesting, where you shall defiantly see growth. He overloads the muscle through 8 reps for 8 sets of the same exercise only allowing for 30 seconds of rest between sets. This therefore allows very little rest for the muscle to recover in anyway, and depending on which exercise your performing can really get the heart pumping. The weight used would not be what you would normally use for an 8 rep set otherwise you will not be able to last for all 8 sets so bring it down by about 30%. He thens pushes it further through either superseting or tri-setting exercises later on into the workout. This becomes really difficult after the muscle is already quite fatigued. With the additional volume in your training hypertrophy will definetly bring about growth. Also if your someone that goes to the gym and just goes through the motions this will bring a stop to that and keep the body guessing of what might be coming next causing it to adapt and grow. I personally tried the 8x8 with arms at the end of my session today and I usually get a burn through supersetting on my arms but this just brought an all together different burn more of any ache, so you should definetly give it a try if you want something new with any workout.

Try this link to see his workout http://bit.ly/1fZhrca

Remember diet 70%, gym 30%

Jack