Q: I just started reading up on your [Positions-of-Flexion] mass-building method. The full-range hit on each muscle makes so much sense that I can’t wait to try it.
Q: Now that it’s spring, what are the first things you do to start ripping up quicker? I want to see my abs before the end of summer this year.
Q: I love the Super-TORQ mass method you outline in the Power-Density 2.0 e-book. I’m 55 years old, so moderate weights are great for me, but I can’t quite wrap my head around doing such high reps at every workout. I alternate with heavy workouts as you suggest in the e-book because I’ve brutalized my joints over the years (screw you, heavy benches–Lol). Is there a MODERATE-power/Super TORQ workout I could use instead?
Q: I’ve been training like a madman for six months, but my arms haven’t budged. I’m getting stronger, and I do see my biceps vein more, but my arms are still skinny. A guy at the gym told me it’s because I have small bones. My wrists are under 7 inches around, and he said I can’t expect much size with small wrists. Is that true?
Q: Doug Brignole’s high-rep method [explained in his interview in The Ultimate Power-Density Mass Workout 2.0] sounds interesting. I’d like to try it once a week for upper body. Do you think it would be okay to do an entire workout with his "Super TORQ" for chest, back and arms, and at the other workouts that week do standard training?
Q: I’m torn between heavy training and higher reps [TORQ]. I like ending bodyparts with lighter-weight, high-rep sets for longer tension times and more pump, and now I’m hearing that ALL-high-rep workouts are best. I’m almost 30, but I want to grow as fast as possible. Should I try all-high-rep training for a while, or is that more for when I’m older and can’t train heavy anymore?
Q: You guys have opened my eyes to new ways to grow muscle. Your explanation of the myofibrils (force generation) and sarcoplasm (energy fluid) and how they both contribute to size is excellent. To build both of those fast, I want a simple, no-bells-and-whistles heavy-light program. What would you suggest?
Q: I need some forearm mass. In a short-sleeved shirt I’d rather have some beef hanging out rather than my twigs. What is a good routine to pack on some mass on my front and back forearms? And I need some veins too.
Q: I’m ready to start the four-days-per-week Fat-to-Muscle Workout. I like training each muscle only once a week, and I think the heavy work combined with negative-accentuated (X-centric) sets is just what I need to rip up and build up at the same time. However, I’m interested in your new TORQ technique. High reps with short rests would give the workout an interesting new dimension. Should I use it, and, if so, where should I put it in the routine?
Q: I got your updated 4X Mass Workout 2.0. I love the [higher-rep] TORQ method and 4X combo workouts. I feel it working already–the burn is intense. Question: I’m now trying to drop fat and build muscle, so will those [higher reps] help or should I include negative-accentuated [X-centric] sets too?
Subject: IRON MAN E-Zine: Issue #724: Muscle Size and Cuts: Go Slow to Grow and Burn Fat ========================================== TRY THIS … continue reading
Q: I’m sick of being soft and blubbery. I want to see abs, but I’m not sure where to start. Do I just start working out harder and wait for them to appear? Help.
Q: I know you suggest one second to lift and three seconds to lower. Do you ever use a slower lifting cadence, like lifting in three or four seconds instead of only one? Wouldn’t that produce more tension time for unique muscle-growth stimulation?
Q: I understand that heavy weight isn’t important for maximum muscle growth. Can you tell me what I should include in my workouts to build the most mass possible in the shortest time. I want to get bigger.
Q: In the new Size Surge 2.0 e-book,Phase 1 is all heavy sets. I don’t have any joint problems, but I love [moderate-weight, growth-threshold] 4X training. I’ve gained over 5 pounds of muscle in 6 weeks with it. I don’t want to give it up completely now, but I do want to go on the 10-week Size Surge program. Can I use the same combination approach in Phase 1 that you outline in the new Phase 2 chapters; that is, heavy work on the big exercises and 4X on the more isolated ones?
Q: I noticed that you do the isolated [contracted-position] exercise first in your biceps and triceps routines. In most of your Positions-of-Flexion mass programs you put the big midrange exercise first. I have the POF 3D Muscle Building e-book, and that’s how all the workouts are structured in it. Is isolating the muscle first better? I need more biceps peak, so will that help?
Q: In the Positions-of-Flexion exercise matrix [in 3D Muscle Building] you don’t have any midrange moves listed for midback. Instead you say, “covered with lat midrange work.” But I know I’ve seen behind-the-neck pulldowns in some of your workouts as a midrange exercise. Should I not use it? Is it dangerous?
Q: I’m new to your Positions-of-Flexion mass training, but it makes a lot of sense. I just got the POF e-book 3D Muscle Building, and I’ve tried most of the bodypart routines. Maassive pump. Should I always use that exercise order–midrange, stretch then contracted–for best muscle-size gains?
Q: I see workouts with only one exercise per muscle group. Can you really get big using those?
Q: I gained 5 pounds of solid muscle when I moved to mostly 4X mass training for every bodypart. Then I shifted to Pre-Ex 3X whenever I could, or modified pre-ex when the gym was crowded, and I put on another three pounds with more vascularity. I’m loving your density methods. What can I do now for another change? I don’t want to go back to heavy training but I will if you think it’s a good idea. I’m just looking for more crazy muscle mass.
Q: I just started using The 4X Mass Workout, and I can feel it working already. I even look bigger, but that could just be positive thinking. Lol. I want to grow as quickly as possible, so what are the mistakes people make with the 4X method? Are there any tips you can give me so I can gain 10 pounds of muscle?
Q: I want to thank you for the great programs and excellent tips, like X-Reps. My background is in Olympic lifting, but I have been into bodybuilding lately. I made some okay gains training heavy, but I’ve made much better and faster progress training heavy one week and using an all-4X program the next.
Q: I get really winded on some exercises, like squats and rows, with only 35 seconds between 4X sets. I’m still sucking air when it’s time to start my next set. Is it okay to take more time?
Q: I’ve been using the 4X mass method for five weeks and have gotten noticeably bigger and leaner. Abs are … continue reading
What do I do about supersetting the exercises that are stationed far apart, like leg extensions and squats?
STEVE HOLMAN: BUILT FOR LIFE
LONNIE TEPER: NEWS & VIEWS
DOUG BRIGNOLE: BIOMECHANICS
JOHN M. ROWLEY: LIFESTYLE STRATEGIST
ZACH EVEN-ESH: BODYWEIGHT BODYBUILDING
JON BENSON: FIT OVER 40
NICK NILSSON: MAD SCIENTIST OF EXERCISE
SHAWN PHILLIPS: THE FITNESS PHILOSOPHER
TOM TERWILLIGER: ACHIEVEMENT MENTOR
TOM VENUTO: BURN THE FAT
VINCE DELMONTE: MUSCLE BUILDING
HOLLY RIGSBY: FIT YUMMY MUMMY
MIKE GEARY: TRUTH ABOUT ABS
RUTH SILVERMAN: PUMP & CIRCUMSTANCE
JOHN HANSEN: NATURALLY HUGE
SEANZILLA: HARDCORE POWERLIFTING
DAVE GOODIN: 40+ TRAINING & MOTIVATION
JOE WHEATLEY: MUSCLE BEACH VENICE
JERRY FREDRICK: HOT SHOTS
Gregplitt.com – Iron Man Magazine Cover Shoot Preview
Jen Jewell: IM 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular Video
Taylor Matheny: IM 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular Video
IRON MAN’s 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular Video
Optimum Nutrition Athlete Nicole Spitzack – Interview
Jen Aragon – Asian Sensation [Insider Preview]
Federica Bellli Hardbody [Insider Preview]
Lauren Abraham: IM 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular Preview
Jen Jewell: IM 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular
Loni Willison: IM 2013 Swimsuit Spectactular