Showing posts with label hypertrophy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hypertrophy. Show all posts

Saturday, 27 August 2016

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

Wednesday, 26 August 2015

Leg Workout 26th August

Today was legs and it's a day I always look forward to. The problem with legs is you either have an amazing workout or a really lacking one. Today was one of those amazing ones. 

I've recently started my leg workouts with a barbell hack squat to warm up the legs, into 5  increasing working sets of front squat then moving onto 5x5 of back squat. Seems to really work. I managed to max out at 150kg for 5 reps which with my weight currently at 86kg, I'm really pleased with. I believe this is all down to the hack/front squat prior which ensures my body is fully warmed up. I then move into more isolation of the legs with a much higher intensity, my workout is as follows.

Warm up
10 minutes cross trainer
Thera-band kicks both frontal and lateral. 
Hip bridges. 

1) Barbell Hack Squat 3x20 reps. Lower the weight slowly under control. 

2) Front squat 5x10. Increasing the weight by 20% each set.

3) Back squat 5x5. Focus on power out of the movement.

4) Walking Barbell Lunges, 5x50m. Increasing weight each set.

5) Own bodyweight legs curls superset leg extension. 6x12. 

6) Leg Press 50 reps superset DB Romania Deadlifts 20 reps. 3 sets. 


My legs were on fire after this, concentrate on:
- Tempo of each rep.
- Contraction and stretch (especially hamstrings).
-  Power on compound exercises. 

So there you have it, my leg workout. Give it a go and let me know what you think!!! 

Jack 


Thursday, 13 August 2015

3 Fitness Gurus to check out!!!!!

The fitness industry is evolving at such a rapid rate, this being mainly down to the growth in social media. For all those of you who are looking to improve your fitness then social media is an excellent way to go. Top fitness individuals are always posting useful tips up on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and snapchat, all to help you!! I use all of these sources, but I find the best is YouTube and these fitness gurus are who you should take a look at.

Steve Cook is a great guy to check out. He was pushed to stardom when he won the 2010 Bodybuilding.com Fit Body Competition and has gone onto reach 5th at the Olympia. This year that will be a first!!!! He is now a professional physique competitor and along with being an Optimum Nutrition athlete. This involves Steve traveling loads around the world, which he often makes vlogs from. This is a great way to see how he trains, eats and has just an amazing time whilst on the move, plus meeting loads of celebrities!!!! He is also a huge ambassador for Bodybuilding.com, gym sharks, Nike, basically everything. Check him out, you won't be disappointed. 

Bradley Martyn is a beast!! 6'3 and 260lbs!! Who would not want a body like that!!! He is a huge inspiration to people who are inspiring to look like him, always giving you tips to help you out. He gives you full workout videos on YouTube explaining every detail that you need to yield results. He is the owner of BMFIT which if you're serious about training you defiantly need to check out. I've got a few tops from there and they're so good, couldn't recommend them more. The best thing of all is he is the most approachable on social media, regularly doing Q&A's over snap chat and will always answer your questions on Twitter, so defiantly get following this man!!!

Now after two Americans I've got to include an English man who comes in the form of Ryan Terry. This man just gets so shredded, it's insane!!! He is known for winning 
Mister International 2010. He is a spokesman for USN and regularly appears as underwear model for Calvin Klein. He started training from the age of 15 and ever since then has just built an incredible physique, especially his shoulders. He again gives a lot to fans, regularly updating social media with what he is up to, along with his website where he posts all of his training gearing up for the 2015 Olympia. (www.ryanterry.co.uk). Where else would you find the workouts that a soon to be Mr Olympia is using, you'd be insane not to take advantage of this resource. So Good Luck Ryan at the Olympia, 38 days and counting!!!

So there you have it three guys you need to check out on social media which will give you all little tips to push you even further and reach the goals you've always wanted.

Jack 

Wednesday, 5 August 2015

Rest Week, MyProtein BCAA and Smartshake

This is my last day in Oman, which means my rest week is coming to an end and it's back to the grind. I am literally craving the gym right now. My body feels well recovered especially after the Thai massage I received yesterday. I would recommend this to anyone that is feeling sore. No more knots in my back!!!!! Yippee!!! One thing I've kept with me all week to aid this recovery however is my BCAA's from MyProtein and of course my smartshake. Two things I can't live without!!!


I am a huge ambassador of MyProtein and all their products. Since I started using them around 3 years ago  they have made huge advancements in the fitness world, recently sponsoring FC Porto. The only supplements I use are MyProtein, which can never be faulted. Now back to the BCCA. 

Branch Chain Amino Acids are the building blocks to protein, known as the essential amino acids. The body needs these for protein synthesis to occur, repairing and building muscle. 8 of the 16 amino acids are produced by the body with the remainder coming from diet. BCAA are even better as they metabolise through the muscle tissue and not the liver therefore arriving straight at the source, this is only unique to BCAA. The main three BCCA are leucine, isoleucine and valine.

So why do I take BCAA? The most overwhelming reason for it is catabolic crisis, losing muscle mass. When the body is running low on energy it starts to break down muscle tissue, targeting amino acids to use as fuel. However through the additional supplementation of BCAA this won't occur as they decrease the activity of the components of protein breakdown . This is the reason why I packed my BCCA to aid recovery and prevent breakdown of the muscle.

When and how should you take this supplement then. I personally in a normal week take a 5 gram scoop in my water whilst training as this is when muscle breakdown is most likely to occur and further taking one before bed as through the night recovery is the main aim in which this will aid in. In my rest week I have just taken some upon waking and pre bedtime. This is £13.29 on 
MyProtein, with an exclusive offer of 2 for 1 so get on there!!!

Smartshake is my shaker of choice wherever I go, I just love them!!!  The shaker has a stack based system on the bottom to hold supplements, nuts, just about any small snack. The filtering system which comes with the shaker also means you don't have to worry about any lumps, however this also depends on what powders you use. Microwave safe so you can even warm meals up in them. The last important thing of all is the longevity and how easy it is to wash. For some reason you never seem to get the smell like from others once you've used them a while. If it does just whack it in the dishwasher, yes I forgot to mention that. Plus you drop them and they never break. I'm always dropping stuff!! They have a carabiner on the shaker as well which means it's easy to transport, just attach it to a strap on your gym bag. 

So there you go my rest week is coming to a end, but this two things I defiantly can't live without. Back to the grind tomorrow, can't wait!!!

Jack 

Saturday, 1 August 2015

Oman and Glen Valley Paddle

Greetings from Oman. Wow is it a hot one. Even at 0700 in the morning the temperature out here is often around the upper 30's. I'm not really getting any training done opting more for a rest week. This allows my body to recover so when it's time to get back in the gym I can hit it harder than ever with a added motivation.

Many people think this is too much, having a whole week off with their hard earned muscle wasting away but you really can't think like that. It won't go anywhere!!! Keep on track with your nutrition, promoting recovery and you'll be just to fine. I've done a quick morning stretch of areas, particular attention to the shoulders with Thera-bands, but other than that I've stayed rested. My friends, who I'm so fortunate to stay with have three lovely children who keep me very active, resorting me even to afternoon naps!!!! So I think I'm getting plenty of exercise done. 

Now the main reason I'm writing this is to raise your awareness and to get you donating to a wonderful foundation called the The Matt Hampson Foundation. Matt was playing for England under 21's rugby team when he suffered a serious spinal injury. This brought about the foundation being set up in order to inspire and support young people who have suffered a sporting injury. This was all brought to my attention by Laura Wright, a classically trained Soprano who I recently performed with at a concert in Liverpool. I now follow her on various social media platforms where I came across a challenge she is doing which involves paddle boarding across the Glen Valley. Now this is a tough challenge by any means, Laura is massively into her fitness mainly through rugby. All my lady followers and obliviously male followers I urge you to check out her blog for some great little tips. But the main reason is to get sponsoring her via her just giving page I've linked below. Get donating, no matter how big or small. Follow her on social media for all the trail and tribulations that come from such a tough challenge. 

Good Luck Laura!!!!!!!!!!

Jack

Wednesday, 8 July 2015

New Push, Pull, Legs routine!!!

This week I have decided to split my workouts in a different manner. As oppose to doing the normal split of chest, back, legs and shoulders with a few additional areas covered, I have decided to op for the push, pull, legs followed by a further push, pull day, after watching a Michael Kory routine. Wow does it make a difference!!

The first push day was very similar to a chest workout however I included a few lateral raises which is a weak area of mine, with incline DB press at 45degrees bring more shoulders into the movement. I finished with a favourite of mine which is standing DB press which I find recruits the core so much and makes the movement much more of a rounded exercise. I felt like I hit this area as a whole a lot more effectively then just solely focusing on chest. The pull day saw me focus on both bring depth and width to my back, but as oppose to super setting a lot of my exercises I concentrated on going heavy, with fewer reps and sets. This worked a treat as my posterior chain rarely gets worked like this, with me waking up the following day with huge DOMS. This had quite an effect on my leg day for some reason. I just didn't feel as strong front squatting, so opted for a high rep day which wasn't pretty with my quads now crying out in pain 48 hours later. 

Now with the second push and pull days I broke my shoulder routine in half. My push routine I started off with push press getting up to 90kg for 5 which I was really pleased with and from then on hit the anterior and lateral head of the shoulder. A point to note with lateral raises don't go to heavy!!! If you're swinging them up than they are to heavy. I avoided this by doing them on a seated bench, super setting them with a incline press, this got a almighty pump going. I also used the cables for lateral raises which keeps a constant tension on the muscle fatiguing that head of the shoulder. Cables also featured with a Steve Cook inspired frontal raises with a rope through the legs, making sure you pull the rope apart at the top of the movement. Along with pronated incline flies which stretched the whole area out, my chest and shoulders were in bits, I couldn't even lift my water bottle up!!!! 

Second pull day I really wanted to focus on width with my back and include rear portion of the shoulder along with traps. These all blend well as along as you're contracting your back correctly when trying to build width your rear delts and traps are getting a good workout as well. This is exactly what I done with lat pulldowns to begin with, pausing slightly at the bottom of the movement for a full contraction. I targeted the rear delts much like the push workout the day before through DB reverse flies super setting with DB rows off of a incline bench. Performed correctly the upper back around the rhomboids will really be working hard. My favourite super set was using cable bent over rear flies along with cable face pulls. A full stretch of the muscle, along with a pause when fully contracted and this with build a V-shaped back that everyone wants. I finished this off with high single arm pull downs and boy did they finish me off!!

So there you go a new routine that I'm bringing in to my workouts. Always great to mix it up and if you train with a lot of volume, 5-6 times a week it's great as it allows muscle groups that all important 48 hours off. Give it a try and let me know how you get on.

Be sure to check out Michael Kory as this is who I thought of using the idea off of. Plus be sure to follow me on Instagram at jacksfitnessforyou for lots of motivation and recipe advice. 

Friday, 21 February 2014

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