4X Finisher

Q: I’m using the Power Pyramid Program [in X-traordinary Muscle-Building Workouts]. I like that basic Positions-of-Flexion layout with a pyramid on the big exercises followed by stretch and contracted moves. My problem is that a few bodyparts don’t feel completely worked after that and don’t pump up very well. I don’t have a lot of time to add sets, so what would you suggest?

A: Everyone has stubborn muscle groups, which are usually the result of crappy nerve-to-muscle connections—low neuromuscular efficiency—and/or a low percentage of fast-twitch fibers.

You can’t do much about the low percentage of fast-twitch fibers, but the best exercises for improving low nerve force are the continuous-tension contracted-position exercises—for example, pushdowns for triceps and leg extensions for quads.

The reason you get better nervous system activation is that you isolate the muscle to a great degree and have resistance in the contracted position, where you can flex and feel the target muscle contracting.

Now for the four-minute fix: For any muscle that you’re having trouble with, simply end with 4×10 done in 10×10 style on the contracted-position exercise. Pick a weight that you can get about 15 reps with, but do only 10. Rest 30 seconds, and do 10 more, and so on until you complete four sets of 10 reps.

If you get 10 reps on the fourth set, however, you need to go up at the next workout. As you use the same weight on all four sets, “going up” on 4×10 means you’ll be adding weight on every set, so make it a small increase.

Incidentally, if you’re doing a one-arm exercise like concentration curls, just go back and forth from one arm to the other with no rest. One arm rests while the other is working.

The 4×10 technique takes only about four minutes, but what an incredible growth ache and burn. Take 4×10 for a size-building spin. You’ll feel it working and see results in about two weeks—as in more muscle on your physique.

—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com