The T in T-Nation stands for testosterone -- not steroids, but the natural male hormone -- so be prepared for the usual humor one might expect from really smart gym rats.
1) Total Body Split Training: When Two Methods Are Better Than One by Chad Waterbury.
My two most popular training articles have been the Anti-Bodybuilding Hypertrophy Program (ABBH) and Total Body Training (TBT). Both programs have helped thousands of lifters build more muscle and strength while staying lean. Without a doubt, they both work. But why do they work so well?The two most effective training structures are total body and upper/lower splits. An upper/lower split is pretty straightforward. In one session, you focus on upper body lifts, and the next session consists of lower body lifts. Monday might include rows, presses, curls, and external rotations. Wednesday could have deadlifts, pistols, calf raises, and ab work.
A total body session, in my world, consists of at least each of the following lifts in every session: compound upper body push, compound upper body pull, and a squat or deadlift. The dip/chin-up/deadlift is a good example of the minimum required for a total body session. Of course, you can throw in whatever other exercises you desire, as long as the big three are involved.
Read the rest. Chad is my weight training guru. I always end up tweaking his programs a little to fit my needs, but his programs have given me the best results over the years. He totally disabused me of the notion that I was a hard-gainer and had to do lower volume work. Thanks, Chad!
2) 28 Days, 14 Missions, 1 Ripped Physique by Chris Shugart.
I'm going to give you 14 little missions — one thing to accomplish every two days for the next month. Each of these actions or assignments will better you in some way, especially if your main goal is dropping body fat.
These missions may expose you to something new in the gym or help you to tighten and dial-in your diet. A few of these missions are psychological, designed to make you think or evaluate something. Some of these mini-missions may not apply to you. Maybe you've already accomplished them. No problem, just skip to the next one and checkout the bonus missions at the end of the article for more options.
The idea here is that in about 28 days you'll have learned something new or acquired a new skill that'll help you get a step closer to your ideal physique. Many of these things will become permanent, and they'll help you not only find those abs but keep them.
But to really get this accomplished, you need a deadline (see bonus mission #4), some positive pressure to keep you focused, hence the "one mission every 48 hours" plan. You have two days to perform each mission. Commit to the program and in about a month you'll be leaner, maybe even more muscular, and better psychologically equipped to continue your physique transformation.
Ready? Let's get started!
Read the rest. Chris used to be fat, once upon a time. Because of his past, he knows all the tricks.
3) 5 Programming Strategies for Quick Results by Eric Cressey.
I'm a simpleton. When I do my laundry, there are no whites, colors, permanent press, or whatever — just "clean" and "dirty."In short, I like easy, quick solutions to problems whether they're simple or complex. This is largely a function of my experiences with lifting enthusiasts on the Internet. You see, while the Internet has given rise to a tremendous sharing of knowledge, it's also led many people to (for whatever reason) insist they're inherently special.
I'm sorry to say, you aren't.
Remember those finger paintings you made in preschool? They weren't special. Your mother was just lying to build your confidence.
And the little league trophy everyone praised you for? That worked out really well for you, Junior. Why aren't you playing pro ball now, Mr. Special? Maybe because you were slow, uncoordinated, and couldn't have hit the backside of a barn door if it fell on you?
To that end, you likely don't need anything remarkable on the programming front. The name of the game is subtle adjustments. With that in mind, here are a few to try out.
Read the rest. If you take nothing else from this article than the suggestions on improving your ab routine, you will have gained a lot. But try the other stuff, too, Eric is a really smart guy.
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