So to use them for strength training you need to do them to failure – the last few reps produce enough tension. But there is an easier way. A modified push up, such as the hip pushup which will be described in this article, is substantially harder and can be used for strength training even by more experienced athletes.

The cool thing is that the hip push up can be done anywhere, and will strengthen your wrists and fists. Last but not least – it is great way to work towards a planche push-up, where you support a hundred percent of your bodyweight.

Athletes such as gymnasts and b-boys like the guy above have a ridiculous strength to body weight ratio. Their great relative strength allows them to perform amazing moves. The hip push-up will help you increase your upper body relative strength.

So What Exactly Is the Hip Push-up

This is simply a push-up variation done on your fist, in which you lean forward as far as you can. This greatly overloads the movement so you are able to use the push-up as a strength training and muscle building tool and thus get bigger and more defined muscles.

Here’s how to do the hip push-up effectively for maximum strength training and muscular density benefits. Once you get past 12 reps, those benefits subside. You can still exploit the movement though – by going to complete muscular failure. However, if you can do under 6 reps, don’t go to failure.

Hip Push-up Technique

• Stay rigid. The first thing in any gymnastic, strength or calisthenics move is muscular control. You want to keep your body tight. It is always easier to control it this way.
• Stay on your fists. Ideally you want to do the hip pushup on your fists. Another option is to use push-ups stands. Doing these pushups on your palms is not really an option as you are likely to hyper extend your wrists and hurt them.
• Lean forward. The next step, after getting into a push-up position on your fists is to lean forward as far as you can. This shifts a much larger percentage of your bodyweight to your arms and you actually will be able to do 1-10 of these instead of 30-50+.
• Pick a spot. Simply pick a spot on the ground after you have leaned forward as far as you can. Now look at this spot and go straight up and down. By looking at this spot you will be able to self-spot yourself so that you don’t cheat on the movement.
• Stay in the hollow position. The gymnastic hollow position in which you tighten your but and abs, is once again key as in most bodyweight exercises.

Action Plan

• Volume is your friend. High volume of training brings success with such strength/skill moves.
• Don’t fail. With low reps stay away from forced reps. They don’t help; but only rob you of energy.
• Track daily or weekly volume. Come up with some way to measure your progress and make sure you do more reps either daily or weekly
• Three weeks on, one off. Train hard for 3-4 weeks, than back off. I learned this little trick from Vince Gironda – it helps bust plateaus and avoid injuries.
• At least one day par week off. You can train every day, or just 3 times per week. But make sure to rest at least one day per week. Your motivation will stay up and your body will thank you.
• Listen to your body. Back off on the training if you need.

Speaking of Strength Training…

Here is one of my favorite quotes from the book by Zatsiorsky and Kraeme, Science and Practice of Strength Training. This is the best explanation I know on how to achieve maximum muscular tension using various methods:

There are three ways to achieve maximal muscular tension:

• Lifting a maximum load (exercising against maximal resistance) – that is, the maximal effort method
• Lifting a nonmaximal load to failure; during the final repetitions the muscles develop the maximum force possible in a fatigued state – that is, the repeated effort method
• Lifting (throwing) a nonmaximal load with the highest attainable speed – that is, the dynamic effort method

Hip Push-up Instructional Video

Here is the video on how to use the hip push-up for strength training. Remember to stay tight, lean forward as far as you can, then pick a spot on the ground and watch it to make sure you only go up and down.

Your Daily Routine

I like to train the hip push-up with a ladder. I do one rep, rest some time, do two reps, rest, etc… Once I reach the highest number of reps I cand o with good form, I start from one again. This kind of training is inspired by Pavel Tsatsouline’s article on pullup ladders in the in the December, 2000 issue of Milo magazine. Here are a few articles that talk about ladders:

• Pavel’s Ladder. This is the original article that introduced me to the ladder principle. Clarence Bass does a good job explaining it.
• How to Get Stronger at Push-ups and Pull-ups Using a Soviet Special Forces Technique. In this Article Rusty Moore does an excellent job of explaining the ladder fundamentals – volume, specificity and no failure.
• Do More Pull Ups – How a Navy SEALs Program Helped Me. In this article Dan from Zenvigorate explains pyramids for pullups – they are just like ladders,e xcept you go both up and down. So it looks like this: 1-2-3-… then …3-2-1

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Pushup Fitness Tests… Or How I Schooled The Competition and You Can Too Pushup fitness tests and competitions are a great way to...
2. Handstand Pushups: How To Make Them Easier And Get Super Hero Shoulders In The Process (Video) The reason I’m writing about handstand pushups is that recently...
3. Beginner Strength Training – Build Bigger Muscles Fast With The Strength And Size Full Body Workout I will be real here. This is not the only...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

People from all over Bulgaria were invited to join the competition. Many enthusiasts came – some were professional athletes, others were just fitness buffs or amateur bodybuilders. The competitors from our gym won most of the disciplines as well as the overall title.

I was the winner of the pushup contest, even though I wasn’t the strongest or most athletic one. Just to give you an idea – some of the athletes I was up against were Milko, Vasko and Nino. In this article I will share my secrets to pushup greatness

Here is Why the Push-up is a Great Exercise

Push-ups often get neglected as a valuable exercise because once you start working out regularly, they become easy. The push-up, however, is still a great choice because when performed with proper form it is a great tool to build up your upper body relative strength – the ratio between your body weight and your strength.

Push-ups can be performed anywhere – you only need some space and the desire to get better. Another reason I’m writing about this exercise is because I see a lot of videos of people doing the push-up incorrectly. Although this is a fantastic exercise, when performed improperly it can harm your shoulders. In this article I will explain how to perform the push-ups safely and what one mistake we need to avoid.

Here is the Correct Way to Do Push-ups

The push-up is the exercise of choice in places where a lot of people are trained at the same time – for example in the army or in martial arts classes or bootcamps. It is at these exact places that I see the worst push-up technique.

Here is a quote from the Official Guinness World Record book on proper push-up form. If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for us too:

The body must remain straight throughout, i.e., no bending at knees or waist. The body must be lowered until at least 90 degree-angle is attained at the elbow. The body must then be raised until the arms are straight. This equals one push-up.

Keep the Body Straight

The correct way to do push-ups is to keep your body straight – either in a neutral position or (and this is one of my secrets) in the hollow position. When you are in this gymnastic position, you can squeeze extra reps on the final part of the test by tensing your glutes, abs and lats. Here is how to do it:

• Rotate your pelvis forward – this shortens the distance between your chest bone and your hip bone and allows you to contract your abs hard.
• Tense your glutes – by tensing the butt, the nearby muscles can contract harder and thus get stronger. On the final reps you can squeeze a few extra reps.
• Tense your lats – the lats, the armpit muscles, can act like a spring board for your arms on push-ups. This way you can use this lat contraction to initiate the movement when you press up from the ground.
• Grab the ground – this is another technique for those last reps. Spread out your fingers and try to “grab the floor.” This will add a rep or two to your total.

On the photo above I am using all of these techniques, including grabbing the floor.

How to Get Really Good at Push-ups

Before giving specific training tips I will introduce two types of pushups that I find valuable for the purpose of increasing your push-up performance and will also show you what NOT to do.

In the photo above you can see two hand positions that are great for push-ups. Fig. A shows a wider grip push-up that is great for chest development, but is useless for the advanced irradiation and tension techniques we discuss here. Note however that the shoulders stay down and the elbows are not directly out to the sides, but point slightly downward.

Fig. B shows a shoulder width grip push-up position which is great for using whole body power and tension for those last reps. I suggest using both of these pushup positions in your training. On the actual test, assume a position somewhere in the middle between these stances. This way you can use both your chest and the tension techniques.

What NOT to Do

On Fig. C below you can see a push-up variation with the elbows straight out. This is how most people do push-ups and it’s wrong. It endangers the shoulders (every time you elevate the shoulders, you put them in a weak position) and doesn’t allow you to use tension techniques.

Video Demonstration and Push-up Action Plan

Here is a video we shot showing the first two push-up positions that you can use in your training. You can also see the elbows out push-up. Again – avoid this one.

Here are my top tips to increase your push-up performance.

• Get your body weight down – this one is obvious. If you are lighter, your relative strength is greater and push-ups are easier.
• Increase your max strength – keep the body weight the same but get strong at an upper body pushing move like the bench press or the weighted dip. For push-ups the bench press is a better choice as it is in the same plane of motion.
• Train with volume – the more push-ups you do, the better you will get.
• Practice proper form – practice the straight body position as well as the tensing techniques.
• Do 1 set to failure per day – this one works for 2-4 weeks and then you need to take a week off. You basically do one set of max push-ups and add a rep every day.
• Do many sets but not to failure – this is a technique that will add 20+ percent to your push-up performance in as little as a week. I read the specific routine in Pavel Tsatsouline’s book Beyond Bodybuilding. You do many sets throughout the day (sometimes 500+ push-ups per day) and vary the volume every day.

Here’s how to create your own high volume push-up routine according to Pavel’s book:

• Never come close to failure except when testing your max.
• Vary the reps and the rest periods between the sets daily.
• Adjust the load to your recovery ability.
• Build up cumulative fatigue.
• Taper down before a peak.

Other Push-up and Fitness Test Resources

Here a few articles from some of my favorite sites on push-ups and fitness tests in general:

• Take the 100 Pushup Challenge….if you dare! – in this article, Mike O’Donnell from Fitness Spotlight outlines a great progression for push-up training – both for beginners and advanced athletes.
• Better Strength Reps and Mastering Irradiation – in this article, Craig Avera from Hollywood Body Fitness explains the irradiation technique, a concept popularized by Pavel Tsatsouline. This is my secret weapon to squeeze more reps on the final repetitions of a pushup test.
• Explosive Pushups to Increase Your Bench Pressing Power and Pectoral Definition – in this article Rusty Moore from the Fitness Black Book explains how to increase your power (how fast you move a certain weight). This helps with the first one 30-40 push-ups.
• Modern Fitness Standards: How Do You Measure Up? – here Mark Sisson from Mark’s Daily Apple has outlined a very comprehensive piece on fitness standards in general. A must read.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Push-up Strength Training: A Guide to Using the Hip Push-up for More Muscular Density and Definition Push-up strength training? How can the hip push-up help with...
2. Handstand Pushups: How To Make Them Easier And Get Super Hero Shoulders In The Process (Video) The reason I’m writing about handstand pushups is that recently...
3. Using the Lat Pull Down Machine to Get Strong for Your First Pull-up The lat pull down machine is a great way for...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

High Bar Get-ups Burn Fat and Build Six-Pack Abs

The high bar ab get-up is a very exhausting move and burns a ton of calories. Its difficulty level, as far as energy requirements go, are right up there with the power clean from the hang.

Because one of the main movements in this complex exercise is the lifting and swinging of the legs upward, the high bar get-up is an excellent abdominal exercise. In fact, you can base your whole routine on this drill, provided that you dedicate yourself to getting really good at it – which means being able to do 15+ reps.

A Great Measurement of Relative Strength

You cannot be fat or weak and be good at this exercise. As a bonus – the better you are at the high bar get-up, the better you will look. You will have a defined six pack, a small waist, a developed v-shaped back and powerful shoulders and traps. The get-up also trains your grip and makes you mentally tough. Can’t beat that.

What is the High Bar Get-up

This is a gymnastics move that involves all your upper body pulling muscles as well all your abdominal muscles. You basically will do a half pull-up, then raise your legs and swing them up.

At this point you will continue pulling with your back muscles until you reach an inverted position. Finish off by shrugging so that you are able to clear the bar. You will find yourself with your arms extended at the top of the bar.

How to Get Good at High Bar Get-ups

The simplest answer of course is to repeat the exercise lots and lots of times. That being said, getting stronger at the individual elements that are involved is another way to ensure success. This means getting stronger at pull-ups and hanging leg raises.

• Start in a pull-up position. The beginning of the movement is just like a regular pull-up.
• Do a half pull-up. Start by contracting the lats and pulling yourself up a bit.
• Lift your legs up and look back. At this poing hold the half-pull-up position and contract the abs thus lifting the legs. Don’t look at your legs! It’s impossible to do the get up this way, because this is a rotational move – you swing around the bar. So you cannot swing your legs up AND look at them at the same time.

• Continue lifting your legs and pulling. You need to exert more force her. Pull.
• Pull and shrug to pass the bar. You will find yourself in an inverted position with the legs almost ready to pass the bar. Use all your force – pull and shrug so your waist reaches the bar.
• You will find yourself on top. You did it! Now carefully slide down OR reverse the movement.

Video Demonstration

Here is a video we shot of the high bar get-up. The move is simple really, once you have basic strength. Pull-up, lift the legs, look back, pull more and finish.

Action Plan

The key to getting good at a complex move like this is a high training volume and an avoidance of forced or “failure” reps. The exercise involves a lot of muscles – basically all the pulling muscles and the whole abdominal wall.

Because of this, forced reps only tire the muscles that work in the final portion of the move. This is a poor trade-off, because those “failing” reps exhaust the nervous system and you cannot perform more sets or recuperate well enough.

Other Ideas for Abdominal Training

Getting stronger abs will greatly aid in getting better at the high bar get up. Here are a few ideas from some of my favorite blogs:

• My 5 Favorite Fat Burning Exercises Vic Magary from Gym Junkies gives a solid list of abdominal training ideas.
• Hollywood Abs: The Best Exercises for a Six Pack Craig Avera shares the strategies he personally uses to get a set of film-ready six pack abs.
• Ditch The Crunches And Learn To Really Work Your Abs Scott Kustes from Fitness Spotlight shares 2 new cool static hold ab exercises.

image credit

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...
2. Lower Ab Workouts – A Waste of Time? Lower ab workouts are often the subject of infomercials trying...
3. How to Increase Biceps Strength without Biceps Curls Biceps strength can be greatly increased with any pull-up &...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Why the Lat Pull Down Machine?

The reason why you should start with the lat pull down machine if you are unable to do a single pull-up or chin-up is that this is the best way to learn proper technique for the pull-up. While you are working on perfecting your form, you will also improve your strength and will be soon ready for the real deal on the pull-up bar.

And the reason I’m writing about the lat pull down machine in this article is that most demonstrations you can see online suck – the same way that most people are pathetic at chin-ups and pull-ups, because they don’t know how to engage their back in the movement.

An Exercise Machine That Actually Works?

Most machines in the gyms seem to be a good idea for a workout for somebody who is inexperienced. Problem is, if you never graduate past a “machine user level” you will not learn how to apply the gym strength in the real world.

Cable machines however are the “good guys.” They don’t stabilize the weight for you and also provide constant tension – something that even free weights can’t accomplish all of the timee.

Using the Lat Pull Down Machine Properly

• Use pronated grip – hands on top. Pronated just means with your palms facing down. The other grip – with your palms up, is called supinated. If you need help remembering which is which, just make a mental note that supinated is the grip you’d hold a cup of soup with. So the pronated grip is the other one. The reason for the pronated grip recommendation is that this is the better position for learning how to use the back. The biceps muscle is weaker here so you are forced to use your back muscles – the lats.
• Grab shoulder width apart. This is the most natural movement and will be a great aid in learning the pull-up & chin-up, as well as the muscle-up later.
• Pull down the shoulders with straight arms. This is the key to all pulling movements. Just lower your shoulders without bending the elbows.
• Next pull with the back and arms. Flex your armpit muscles – the lats, as well as your biceps simultaneously and pull the bar down.
• Pull the elbows back and touch the chest. When your upper arms become parallel to the ground, start pulling back with your elbows and the muscles of your mid back and touch your chest with the bar. Finish by pushing your chest out.

Lat Pull Down Video Demonstration

Here is a video we shot of the lat pull down in use. The cool thing about this particular machine is that the weight that you lift corresponds to the real force you exert. Sometimes machines use complicated pulley systems that actually halve the weight being lifted. This is not the case here.

Action Plan

• Train 3x per week. This is the recommended training frequency when training to acquire a new skill like this. If the stimulus is any less frequent, chin-ups and pull-ups will not happen any time soon.
• Do 3 sets of 5 reps. Try to do the sets with proper form. When it becomes easy to do the third set of five, it’s time to add a little bit more weight. Go for the smallest increment possible that the lat pull down machine allows. Even better – if there are small weight plates or dumbbells at your gym, put them on the stack of weights of the machine so that you achieve gradual increases in resistance instead of jumping from one plate to the next.
• Alternate with 8-12 reps. If you hit a plateau, start alternating those 3 sets of 5 with 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps. So every 3-4 weeks switch between sets of 5 and sets of 8-12.

Where do you stand? Can you do chin-ups and pull-ups easily with proper engagement of the back? Or do you still need to master the lat pull down machine?

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...
2. How to Increase Biceps Strength without Biceps Curls Biceps strength can be greatly increased with any pull-up &...
3. How To Get Insanely Good At Chin-ups And Pull-ups Chin-ups and pull-ups for me are the most intense upper...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Bruce Lee was not a “fitness freak” just for the sake of it. He had a definite major purpose –an idea he got from Napoleon Hill’s book Think and Grow Rich. His supreme physical shape is a manifestation of his pursuit of excellence in order to achieve the life he wanted for himself and his family. He actually achieved his dream goal of being the biggest Chinese Star in the world.

The Wrist Roller – Fantastic for Forearm Strength

I believe using wrist roller because is one of the best ways to train your forearms. First, you get to train with a fatter grip which always makes the exercise harder and allows for more work to be done by the gripping muscles in the forearm.

Second, both the extensors and the flexors of the wrist get to be worked in a single exercise. But the best part is that you are not simply flexing a muscle and trying to keep tension on it. You are doing real work so your muscles can’t help but work at full capacity.

What Is a Wrist Roller

The wrist roller is a simple device that you can create yourself very cheaply. It’s basically a piece of PVC piping to which you attach a rope. At the end of the rope hangs a weight plate.

You can attach the rope to the pipe by drilling a small hole, guiding it through and tying it. A karabiner at the other end of the rope allows you to slide it and clip it to secure the weights. In this way adding more weight is fast and easy.

How to Train With the Wrist Roller

Take a look at this video we shot at the awesome terrace of our gym. The exercise is simple – you hold the wrist roller in front of you and roll under control up and down. Make sure to roll in both directions – to work both the flexors and extensors of the wrist.

Also control the lowering portion of the move. Generally beginners don’t need direct forearm training. Once you are past beginner stage however, and especially for folks with skinny forearms like me, it’s forearm workout time.

The forearms can be trained very heavily. Work them out with the wrist roller at least 3 times per week with at least 3 sets of flexion and extension. The weight and reps depend on your choice – both high and low reps work – just make sure to work at your limits in order to make the forearms grow.

How to Create Your Own Wrist Roller

It is actually very easy to create your own wrist roller. All you need is a thick PVC pipe, a rope and some weight. Here are a few tutorials on how to create a sturdy axle mounted wrist roller so you are not limited in the weight you can use:

• DIY Wrist Roller Ross Enamait posted a new tutorial on his blog on how to create your own wrist roller and mount it on a squat rack.
• Axle Mounted Wrist Roller This is the original thread on Dave Draper’s site. This particular page is a fantastic resource for all sorts of DIY home equipment.
• How to Make a Rack-Mounted Wrist Roller Here is another tutorial on a rack-mounted wrist roller.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. How to Squat Correctly for Size and Strength The barbell squat is the first exercise in the Strength...
2. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

One solution is to start heavily relying on direct arm training with barbell and dumbbell curls. Although this is a great approach, there is yet another way to train with a compound exercise for greater biceps strength. Compound moves allow for a more natural loading of the muscles.

Enter The Mix Grip Chin Up

Most demonstrations you will see of the mix grip chin-up online just show the regular variation where you simply grab the bar with a mixed grip and pull yourself. While this style of pull-ups is ok, it won’t bring the benefits of the style I’m about to teach you.

• One hand palm up, one hand palm down. Get a strong grip and make sure to place the bar in the top one third of your palm.
• Shoulder width apart. This grip is the most natural one and allows you to emphasize one arm without causing an injury.
• Pull with the under grip hand. Lean towards your hand that’s in a chin-up position and pull.
• Use the lat (back muscle) of the under grip side. Start the move by pulling down your shoulder with a straight arm towards your body. Then contract your lat and finally flex the biceps and chin yourself up.
• Lower under control. Make sure to lower slowly, feel the muscle gradually relaxing and avoid just dropping down. This way you will avoid elbow injuries from dropping too fast.

Benefits of Training with the Mix Grip Chin-up

• Smash plateaus. Adding a new movement and emphasizing one arm will allow you to gain more muscle and strength
• Serious workout with pull-up bar only. You only need a pull up bar to train anywhere with quite a large resistance – which means more strength.
• Simple fitness. Summer is a time to enjoy life and not hide away in a gym. Armed with this move you can enjoy the benefits of the sun.
• Increase biceps strength with added resistance. You will increase the size and strength of your arms in particular without having to carry weights, belts or backpacks.
• One arm chin-up preparation. Mastering this move will put you on the road to achieving the one arm chin-up.

How to Incorporate Mix Grip Chin-ups

• Rotate between strength and size. Every 3-4 weeks, alternate between heavier lower reps (3-6) and higher reps (7-12). This will ensure constant progress.
• Avoid failure on the strength phase. When doing heavy low reps, don’t force the last rep. Instead leave a few reps in reserve and add more sets. You can train 3-5 times per week with the same or similar move or muscle group.
• Train less often on the size phase. When doing slightly higher reps, make every set count and train hard. You will need more rest between such workouts. You will be able to train 1-2 times per week per muscle group in this way.
• Alternate with a pushing move. Couple the exercise with a vertical push move like the handstand push up, the military press, or a dumbbell press variation.

A Video of the Mix Grip Chin-up

Here is a video we shot in the backyard of a nearby school of the mix grip chin-up. Notice how I am leaning towards the under grip arm and trying to pull with this side of my back. Don’t just pull yourself up. Instead use the muscles of the under grip side of the body.

Other Summer Workout Ideas

• Chris from Zen to Fitness writes in this article about the benefits of getting sufficient Vitamin D from the sun.
• For more information on Vitamin D and its effect on health you can check out the website and newsletter of the Vitamin D Council.
• Rusty from Fitness Black Book also shares a bunch of summer time tips here
• Finally Craig from Hollywood Body Fitness has a take on the gym-less workout.

What are your summer workout ideas? Share them below.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Beginner Strength Training – Build Bigger Muscles Fast With The Strength And Size Full Body Workout I will be real here. This is not the only...
2. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...
3. Using the Lat Pull Down Machine to Get Strong for Your First Pull-up The lat pull down machine is a great way for...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We want to burn the fat around our bellies. We want it easy and we want it fast. So the marketing geniuses brainstorm and come up with an idea that *seems* to work the lower ab region. Then they get sweaty and fit fitness models to demonstrate the gadget and flex their six pack abs – and this is where the scam happens.

The Lower Six Pack Abs Myth

There are two people who ask for a lower ab workout. The first kind want to know how to burn off body fat specifically from the region below their belly button. If you’ve been reading fitness sites on the internet for any length of time, you already know that generally you burn off the excess energy from your whole body.

If you compare all your body fat storage areas to a fish tank, you’ll understand why you can’t just lose weight from one place (is it possible to empty just the bottom half of a fish tank?). The second question I get asked is by people who are sort of lean and want the bottom 2 or 4 parts of their six pack abs to ‘pop.’

There Are No Lower Abs!

So the general answer that most Joe Blow type of ‘gym instructor’ trainers give is that if you want the bottom ‘buttons’ of the six pack (or eight pack) to come out, you need to do some type of reverse crunch move. Lift your lower body towards the chest bone.

While the movement they prescribe is the right one, you can’t actually make the bottom half of a muscle grow, without it growing as a whole. The six pack abs are in actuality one muscle – the rectus abdominis.

There Are Lower Abs!

At this point the new wave, functional training coaches slam the old school gym instructor bodybuilders for thinking it was possible to train the ‘lower abs’. You just can’t isolate a muscle portion in this way. Right?

Turns out however, both groups were right and wrong at the same time. While you can’t train or isolate the bottom half of the six pack only, you can stimulate the v-shaped muscle that fitness models and life guards are famous for – the internal oblique muscle. If you insist on calling a muscle with the name ‘lower abs’, I suggest picking the internal obliques.

How To Train The “Lower Abs”

Any type of training that either stabilizes the abdominal wall or dynamically engages it, will train those muscles (as well as all the rest).

Stabilization Training

Here are a bunch of exercises that train your whole abdominal region, “lower abs” included, through stabilization. This means that the movement forces you to maintain a rigid torso – with no movement of the spine (especially in the lower back region). This type of stabilization is best explained when you imagine bracing for a punch in the stomach.

• Barbell Deadlifts
• Barbell Squats
• Military Press
• Renegade Rows
• L-Sit
• Pull-ups & Chin-ups

Dynamic Training

Dynamic training for the abs can mean maintaining tension while rotating your body – imagine the movement of a boxer delivering a punch, or you turning around while sitting in your chair. A great exercise for this movement is the Full Contact Twist.

The other type of movement is flexion – shortening the distance between the hips and the chest. A great choice is the hanging leg raise which is shown in the video below.

Evolution of Hanging Leg Raises Video

Here is a video we shot, showing a progression for the hanging leg raises. When performed correctly, this can be one of the best exercises for the abdominal muscles, and for the lower abs in particular.

The important thing to note is that you don’t want to just lift your knees or legs. This is useless and only works the hip flexors – the muscles on the top of the thigh that lift your leg.

What you want to do is actually rotate your pelvis forward. This curling motion will shorten the distance between the hip bones and the chest and thus work all the abdominal muscles. So think of initiating the move with an abdominal contraction and lifting/rotating of the pelvis up. Then proceed with lifting the legs.

A good training scheme is to do the leg raises 3x per week for high reps (20-30). Once you get good at the easiest version – the knee raises, switch to bent leg raises, and then to straight leg raises. For a solid example of an ab training routine you can check out Craig Avera’s post on Hollywood Abs

So which road are you on? Are there lower six pack abs or aren’t there lol?

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Core Training – The Arch Position Gives You Strong Core Muscles and a Healthy Back Have you ever had lower back problems? Like some sort...
2. Calf Workouts – The Secrets of Successfully Training Your Calves I think I became obsessed with basketball during the freshman...
3. The High Bar Get Up: Finally an Ab Exercise that Works! I chose this picture from Bondi Beach in Australia for...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Even worse, on my first PT test as high school fresh man I still couldn’t do a single pull-up or chin-up. This was one of the reasons I started working out (managed 10+ chin-ups at the end of that freshman year). This, and the goal of getting a v-shaped back.

On a side note – Tony Jaa, pictured above, is an excellent example of an athlete with a great v-shaped body. He has a very wall percentage of body fat which accentuates the small waist. At the same time his back, the latissimus dorsi is very developed and creates the appealing v-shape.

Tony is a martial artist, stuntman and actor from Thailand who has starred in a few explosive action movies already. If you are going to see a film with him – check out Ong Bak. My friend Rusty Moore has gone into great detail in his article about him ==> Is Tony Jaa the Next Bruce Lee?

1. Close Grip Chin-Up

Grab the bar with your palms facing up. Either place your hands right next to each other or space them one fist apart. Just pick whatever feels most natural to your body – this rule of thumb will give you more strength and less injuries on any exercise you do.

Pull yourself up using your back and finish with a strong biceps contraction. Lower under control. Do not make the mistake of just letting your body drop. This is very taxing on your elbows and you may soon develop tendonitis (pain in the elbows that can only go away with rest).

2. Close Grip Pull-Up

Grab the bar with your palms facing down this time. Again – either place your hands right next to each other or space them one fist apart.

Pull yourself up using your back (armpit muscles) and finish with a strong a contraction of the muscles on top of your arm – the brachialis (the muscle beneath the biceps), the brachioradialis (the one that goes from your forearm to your upper arm as well as all the little extensor muscles on the back of your forearm.

3. Parallel Grip Pull-Up

This time your palms will be facing each other. This position is anatomically the easiest on the joints and also the most natural one for your shoulder, elbows and wrists.

The parallel grip pull-up is the best position to add additional resistance for weighted pull-ups & chin-ups.

4. Shoulder Width Grip Chin-Up

The shoulder width grip chin-up is fantastic for involvement of both your upper back and your arms. You can add a lot of resistance here too. Just be careful – the biceps is a relatively small and weak muscle compared to the latissimus dorsi (the upper back) and you should add resistance here gradually.

Sudden jumps in weight may find your arms unprepared and cause an unnecessary injury – such as the one I had a few years back when training for a maximum attempt on weighted chin-ups. I managed to chin myself up with 42.5 kg in addition to my 80. However I had to take a month or two off from the exercise after that because my biceps got a minor injury.

5. Shoulder Width Grip Pull-Up

Shoulder width grip pull-ups are the best overall position to train with. They are a natural position, allow you to feel the engagement of the upper back and allow additional weight without stressing the biceps too much.

As an added benefit – if your next goal after mastering pull-ups and chin-ups is the muscle-up, this position is the way to go. The muscle-up starts with the same movement as the shoulde width grip pull-up.

6. Wide Grip Pull-Up

The benefit of doing wide grip pull-ups is that they partially isolate the upper back. This way you can learn to contract the lats and initiate the pull-up with them. In fact this is how I started training them.

The disadvantages however are numerous. For one, there is a decreased range of motion. This means your muscles do less work. Second, you are limited in how much weight you can add. Again – less work.

Pull-up Exercise Variation Video and Action Plan

Whatever variation you choose, make sure to stay away from failure, vary your reps (low, high, medium) and switch things up every month or so. Mastering the pull-up is rewarding both as a goal and because it will give you a cobra-like v-shaped body.

Here is an older video we shot which shows six types of pull-ups and chin-ups. that you can use in your workout along with the main benefits or emphasis of each type that we just discussed.

Note: Make sure to balance pull-up training with an exercise that trains the opposite movement in order to avoid muscle imbalances and injuries. Good choices are the military press and the handstand pushup.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Using the Lat Pull Down Machine to Get Strong for Your First Pull-up The lat pull down machine is a great way for...
2. How to Increase Biceps Strength without Biceps Curls Biceps strength can be greatly increased with any pull-up &...
3. Beginner Strength Training – Build Bigger Muscles Fast With The Strength And Size Full Body Workout I will be real here. This is not the only...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I train with handstand pushups and dumbbells at home and do various pull-ups, chin-ups and dips at the playground in front of my building when I’m walking my lab Lucky in the evening.

Speaking of super hero shoulders, this weekend we went to see the new Prince of Persia movie. Jake Gyllenhaal really trained his ass off for the role and got into amazing shape. Actors tend to do two things for roles like these – they get to a really low body fat percentage and get very developed shoulders. Anyway – the movie was fun – I was afraid I would be disappointed because of the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels, but luckily I was wrong.

What Is The Handstand Pushup?

The handstand pushup is an exercise for your upper body where you press your full body weight from an inverted position. You either lean against a law or do them without support – something I aspire to learn soon.

The great thing about the handstand pushup is that you need zero equipment- just an empty wall and a stack of books (to decrease the range of motion) when you are starting out. After a few short weeks you will notice your shoulders getting visibly more muscular.

Proper Technique for the Handstand Pushup

One thing you should definitely watch out is the placement of your arms – this is something I read about in the book Convict Conditioning. Basically the arms mustn’t go to the side of your body like in a press behind the neck, but follow their natural position, similar to how you would perform a military press, with your elbows pointing forward.

Trust me, you don’t want to make the mistake of doing handstand pushups with your arms to the side. Although I knew it wasn’t a good idea and despite the fact that I also read it in the book, I proceeded and trained with a wide stance (it wouldn’t happen to me – yeah right!). The result – nasty pain inside the shoulder from the injured rotator cuff. Here is an example (video) of wide stance handstand pushups. Again – don’t do those. One final tip is to look forward instead of at the ground. This will align your body right for maximum strength.

How To Get Into A Handstand

• Put your palms on the ground 1-2 steps away from a wall. You want to place them roughly shoulder width apart. A good idea is to put them wherever it feels the most comfortable for your body.
• Kneel with one leg below your body. This leg will be just below your rib cage.
• Extend your other leg behind you. Keep this other leg relatively straight.
• Press with the leg that’s below you. You want to press up just a little bit.
• Swing the trailing leg up. The swinging of your rear leg will do most of the work.

Handstand Pushup Instructional Video

Here is a video we shot at the terrace of our gym of the handstand pushup. There were two trainer chicks who were peeking from the door to see what the hell the crazy Yavor was up to lol. Watch and note the four simple steps for learning the exercise.

How To Make Handstand Pushups Easier

There are two ways you can make the exercise easier. One is to get stronger which will happen with this program after 6-8 weeks. The other way is to start with a very limited range of motion. I recommend putting a stack of books that you don’t use and limit the range of motion as much as needed so you can get at least 12 reps the first time you train the handstand pushup.

You will start training with this huge stack of books (or pads). Adding a rep every day you will soon hit 20 reps. The next step is crucial. Decrease the stack of books by the smallest increment – for example an inch is a good increment.

Here Is Your Action Plan

• Train often. You need to train the handstand pushups very often – this is the only way to get good at them. I recommend doing them 5-6 times per week.
• Rest. At least once per week take a day off completely from training.
• Do at least 3 sets. You need volume so the stress is enough for your muscles to develop.
• Alternate between repetition ranges. Mix it up between 13-20 rep sets, 8-12 rep sets and 3-7 rep sets.
• Add reps. For 8-12 and 13-20 reps sets the best way of progress is to add at least one more repetition every workout.
• Add sets. For heavy 3-5 rep sets, add sets instead of reps.

Freestanding Handstand Pushups

As I wrote, one of my goals is learning the freestanding version of the handstand pushup. Here is a video of ana amazing young athlete, who teaches the freestanding handstand pushup. His channel has videos of breath taking feats, such as jumping over 6 people. And, the guy seems to live in a super exotic place, straight out of an Indiana Jones movie.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...
2. Pushup Fitness Tests… Or How I Schooled The Competition and You Can Too Pushup fitness tests and competitions are a great way to...
3. Push-up Strength Training: A Guide to Using the Hip Push-up for More Muscular Density and Definition Push-up strength training? How can the hip push-up help with...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The cool thing is that by doing this you are simultaneously improving your looks. As I wrote in a an earlier post, the way to get a great body is to get strong and keep the bodyweight down so the waist stays small and the shoulder area gets bigger.

Plus, for both guys and girls, a chin-ups, pull-ups and dips work the muscles of the upper body in such a way that they create an athletic look – improving the waist to shoulder ratio for men and hips to waist to shoulder ratio for women. So here are the top 7 ways you can use to add resistance to pull-ups, chin-ups and dips.

1. Put A Dumbbell Between Your Feet

This is pretty self explanatory. You place a dumbbell and slide your feet just underneath its top. The benefit of doing this is that it this is the easiest way to add resistance. Also, placing the dumbbell in this way works the muscles of the front of your lower leg.

However, this method has its limitations. Your feet cannot carry too much weight in this way so you will soon outgrow the technique. But as a start it really is the easiest way.

2. Cross Your Feet And Put A Dumbbell On Top

This really is the best way to use a dumbbell for additional resistance on pull-ups, chin-ups and dips. Cross your feet just above your ankles and have a friend or a training partner help you put the dumbbell there. In fact, for lighter dumbbells you may be able to put it yourself.

If you train alone at a gym, don’t be shy to ask somebody to help you put the dumbbell there. Gyms can be intimidating, but this is mostly a perception. In fact, I’ve found that the biggest and most bad-ass looking guys at gyms are most often the most humble and helpful.

3. Use A Belt And Chain And Add Weight Plates

This is my preferred method when adding weight to bodyweight exercises. You can do it alone and you can really stack the plates here. Just a note of caution – make sure and put the belt just below your hip bones. This way the heavy weight will not suffocate you when do the exercise.

The drawback here is that it can be sort of awkward to remove the belt between sets, etc. However it is worth it – dips, chin-ups and pull-ups really pay off when you add weight to them and this is the way to go if you or your gym has a dipping belt.

4. Use A Backpack Full Of Something Heavy

This is how I started getting really good at pull-ups & chin-ups. Initially I trained using ladders, but this got me to around 12 pull-ups. Then I figured that if I increased my strength (maximum weight I could lift) on these lifts, it would be a breeze to do them with bodyweight only.

It was the perfect timing – spring had just begun. I filled my old high school backpack with a bunch of heavy books I no longer needed and started training at the playground in front of my building. I soon had to switch to rocks instead of books (very uncomfortable but effective) and later got a set of adjustable dumbbells and used their plates.

The biggest drawback is that a backpack will only allow up to around 30kg (65lbs). More than that and the thing tends to fall apart. I had to stitch my backpack quite a few times. The biggest plus is that doing any kind of training with a heavy-ass backpack makes you feel like a ninja. Or a Jedi. I mean – look at Luke!

5. Leverage By Putting Priority On One Of Your Arms

The idea here is to make the exercise harder by shifting the effort towards one of your arms. This is a photo from one of the variations of leveraging the pull-up found in Convict Conditioning. The book has a nice progression from a beginner to a one-arm pull-up expert and this is one of the stages.

Another variation I like (and currently use) is to put one of your hands in an underhand grip and one in an overhand grip. Then try to chin yourself up towards the fist of the hand in an underhand grip. This puts great emphasis on this side of your upper back and increases the difficulty a few times so you don’t need added resistance.

Leveraging the pull-up is great because this way you can train (and I mean really train heavy and not just monkey around) anytime you are near pull-up bar or dip station without the need for any equipment (weights, belt, backpack, etc). For example I walk my lab Lucky when I get home in the evening and I go with him to the playground where I do my dips and leveraged pull-ups.

6. Use A Weighted Vest

I’ve never really tried this method because these vests are not available here and it would be super expensive to get one, but I always imagined putting on a vest would make you feel like a super hero robot. Robocop or Iron Man.

The closest I’ve been to wearing such a vest is when I bough my first adjustable dumbbell – 40 kilos divided between my backpack and my arms. Trust me, getting home from the free weights shop was the workout of my life.

7. Use A Combination Of The Above

Some ways that I’ve personally combined these methods are to use a belt with a few plates on it and also put a heavy dumbbell on top of my crossed lower legs. This setup might sound a little weird, but there is great benefit in it because by dividing the resistance between a belt and your feet you can actually. I’ve done a 47.5kg dip with only a belt but am confident that I will be able to do much more than that by dividing the weight between my feet and a belt.

Note: I would like to thank Geoffrey, a reader of the site from the Netherlands, for giving me the idea for this post. I would also like to thank my friend Spas for modeling for some of the photos.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. How To Get Insanely Good At Chin-ups And Pull-ups Chin-ups and pull-ups for me are the most intense upper...
2. Using the Lat Pull Down Machine to Get Strong for Your First Pull-up The lat pull down machine is a great way for...
3. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We don’t want to hurt ourselves. What follows is a selection of videos I found online with people demonstrating the drill. If one of these videos is yours, apologies for using it as a *bad example* – I only want to help people get strong and stay safe.

Mistake #1 – Extending The Arms

This video is a good example of someone overcompensating his lack of strength with bad form. Remember, the weight you use is not important. What matters is that you use perfect technique and gradually increase the weight over time. This ensures strength and lack of injuries.

In the full contact twist, the arms should remain locked or almost locked and no movement should come from them. Pushing with your triceps makes the exercise easier and thus less effective. Here is a screencap from the above video showing how the instructor pushes with his arms:

[Note how he is using the strength of his tricep to overcome a sticking point in the movement. Cheater, cheater ]

Mistake #2 – Using Restricted Range Of Motion

Using the full range of motion for the full contact twist means to always let the bar touch your thigh. There are two reasons for this, but before this – check out our cute model demonstrating crappy form. Now, let’s continue:

First, all natural full body movements need to be done with full range of motion in order to gain strength throughout the whole movement path that the joints allow. This results in both strength for your muscles and health for the joints.

Second, when you do the FCT and finish mid air, this means that your body, or center of gravity, is too distant from the weight. Which results in a long lever (or torque) acting on your spine. Ouch! If you still remember your physics, the longer the lever, the bigger the force it exerts. So keep your body close to the bar.

[Take note how this cutie here finishes the movement in mid air. Actually I’d say she doesn’t finish the movement at all – instead decides she’s had enough of the rep and just reverses it lol! If the bar were loaded with a few plates, it would pull on her spine!]

Mistake #3 – Staying In The In The Arch Position Instead Of The Hollow Position

An example for this mistake can be seen in two of the videos I shared with you above – check them out again if you like here and here. Basically these folks are tilting their pelvises back. This position activates the lower back but actually relaxes the abs. And, because with the FCT a heavy bar is trying to push you back, the last thing you want to do is extend backwards even more.

This mistake both severely restricts the amount of force you can exert, and makes the exercise unsafe, as the abdominal muscles are strong in the hollow position and weak in the arch position

[Check out how there is an exaggerated curve in their lower backs. This is a great example of proper form for the arch position. Problem is – the full contact twist needs to be done in the hollow position or you risk hurting your lower back. Ouch again!]

Mistake #4 – Not Rotating The Hips And The Trailing Foot

Here is a video showcasing this mistake. The guy has planted both of his feet and doesn’t rotate them. The hip is also almost stationary. This creates unnatural tension in the hip and knee joints.

The different joints of the body are created for different function. Without getting into too much detail, the hips and ankles need to be mobile and the knees need to be stable. The knee is a hinge joint – just like the hinge of a door it goes only in one plane – back and forth.

The mistake here is that by keeping the hips and ankles stable, the knee joint has to compensate with rotation. So the result is loss of strength because of the inefficient and unnatural movement as well as potential danger for the knee.

[Couldn’t come up with a funny comment here lol!]

Unrelated note: the past couple of weeks I’ve discovered a ton of new and very exciting fitness blogs. I will attempt to share with you some of them in the upcoming posts so both you and I can get to know them.

One of the new fitness bloggers I got to know is Charles Malina. He is a college student with a gymnastic background (he’s got what I call a ‘compact athletic/gymnastic look’) who stays in killer shape. Lets hope Charles shares some of the gymnastic training secrets.

Another new blogger I found is David Grim, a fellow basketball fan and player too. He used to be in top shape but after college basketball let himself go. Now at 37 he regained the physique of his youth. I’m looking forward to reading more practical tips from him.

Image credit

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Full Contact Twist For Samurai Abs Of Steel The full contact twist, the way I am going to...
2. Fat Loss Mistakes – 7 Ways People Mess Things Up and How You Can Avoid Sabotaging Your Fat Loss Progress The number one way to look better is to lose...
3. Renegade Rows – Do You Make These Mistakes? Part II A reader of this site, Andy, asked me in Part...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

You see, when you do crunches or sit-ups, you have to do countless reps, until you fatigue the muscles and finally start feeling them working. This is not the case with this drill. Here you feel the abs right away and this is part of the reason I like the full contact twist so much.

What is the Full Contact Twist

I first learned about this exercise through Pavel Tsatsouline’s book Bulletproof Abs around seven years ago. Basically, after learning how to contract and strengthen the core muscles, we were introduced to an explosive twisting abdominal/oblique drill that mimicked and reinforced movements used in explosive sports such as boxing (hence the name Full Contact Twist).

Given its explosive nature however, the exercise was more useful for advanced trainees or even professional fighters, than regular people that just want to be strong and look good. So this excellent exercise was doomed to be overlooked by many people who would otherwise greatly benefit from it.

Explosive Full Contact Twist Vs. Heavy Full Contact Twist

Because of Pavel’s book, most people that actually do it, are executing the exercise as described above – explosively. As I stated however, explosive exercises are not good for a beginner.

I was introduced to another, more practical variation of the full contact twist by my colleague Milko Georgiev, a visionary who introduced modern personal training in Bulgaria. Because we need to first learn proper form and build strength with controlled exercises, he simply switched the nature of the drill. So this explosive (meaning moving at fast speed) exercise became a slow, strength – based one. Enter the heavy full contact twist.

Instructional Video

To do the exercise, you need to hedge one end of a barbell in a corner or under something that keeps it from slipping. Then load the other end of the barbell with a weight plate, squat down, grab it with both hands and then stand up and extend your arms forward.

Now the movement starts – twist from side, moving the bar in an outward arc until it touches your thigh. Rotate the hips and torso as well as the trailing foot in the direction that the bar goes. Watch this instructional video below so it becomes clearer and then take a look at the technique tips below.

[Here I'm demonstrating the full contact twist with just 15kg on the barbell. This weight is a good start if you consider yourself strong, but haven't tried this drill. If you are new to training, don't hesitate to start with an empty bar for a set or two and gradually increase the load.]

Technique

• Stay in the hollow position. This means basically to keep tension on the abs and never ever hyper-extend your lower back.
• Keep your shoulders down. For strength and safety pack the shoulders down and tighten the lats – the muscles of your armpits.
• Grab the bar near the top. Place the hands on top of each other
• Twist the hips. You need to rotate the whole body, leading with the hips.
• Twist the rear leg. The trailing leg rotates as well. This mimics how boxers rotate their rear leg when doing a punch in order to transfer the power.
• Flex the abs hard. As well as maintaining the hollow position, you will need to actively engage or flex (meaning tighten) the abs as if preparing for a punch.
• Squeeze the bar as hard as you can. This little detail adds significant strength to you lifts. Plus, the exercise is impossible to do at heavier weights unless you involve you whole body in it.
• Lock the arms and do NOT change the position of the elbow joint.

Progression

For a healthy woman a 15kg full contact twist is an excellent goal to shoot for in the long run. For a man, these are the strength milestones:

• Gold level 45kg for 5 reps per side with perfect form
• Silver level 30kg for 5 reps per side with perfect form
• Bronze level 15kg for 5 reps per side with perfect form

Action Plan

As we’ve already discussed, to quote Pavel, “strength is a skill.” So in order to improve at something it makes sense to practice it often. do the heavy full contact twist 2-3 times per week for 3 heavy sets of five reps. Execute with perfect form and gradually add weight. Do the drill last thing in the workout if you are doing other demanding exercises like barbell squats and barbell deadlifts.

[Here you can see one of our gym's strongest athletes, Vasko, demonstrating elite levels of relative strength worth of a Gold Level status with 45kg on the full contact twist.]

On an unrelated note, I want to introduce you to a great blog I recently found. Craig Avera is an actor who lives in Hollywood and enjoys the fine Cali weather most of the year (damn you Craig lol!). On his site he shares how he achieved and maintains a body that looks good on film. The thing I like about his blog, and I hope he does more of it, is that he shares practical tips that actually come from his own experience – specific workout routines and recipe tips.

Image credit

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. 4 Dangerous Mistakes People Make With The Full Contact Twist In the last post I introduced to you the full...
2. Renegade Rows – How to Get Ridiculously Hard Abs, Part I The renegade row, developed and named by coach John Davies,...
3. Renegade Rows – Do You Make These Mistakes? Part II A reader of this site, Andy, asked me in Part...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Boxing Workouts to Shed Body Fat

Mario Lopez would spar all the time to burn body fat and keep his conditioning up. He would often fight with amateur fighters trying to make it in boxing. He claims to have sparred with Oscar De La Hoya, James Toney and Shane Mosley.

Lopez wrote a workout book called, Mario Lopez’s Knockout Fitness, obviously inspired by his boxing hobby. In his book, Mario admits the hard truth that getting in shape is hard work. If it were easy, everybody would have a killer bod.

Mario Lopez’s Workout Plan

The actor changes his workout approach constantly. The reason for this is that he is in ‘maintenance mode’ in regards to his muscle mass. Now he just trains to burn fat and keep the size of his muscles.

However, in order to build to this size, you need a balanced muscle gaining workout approach that is focused heavily on achieving a v-shaped body with a low body fat percentage. Here are two workouts that are specifically aimed at this look:

• Adonis Effect. The focus of this workout system is on achieving wide shoulders, chest and upper back and a small waist – the so-called v-shape body.
• Visual ImpactHere the emphasis is on achieving a balance between muscular development and muscular hardness and density. A cool trick that is revealed in the workout is how to make your skin super tight around your muscles.

You must also realize that he has two advantages. Mario has a natural v-shape frame (small hips) so he can focus on building up the chest and shoulders. He also has relatively short upper arms (he is 175 lbs and 5’10’’) so it is easy for him to build impressive looking arms.

What is the Diet that Mario Follows?

Mario Lopez published another non-fiction book, called Extra Lean. This one is a cookbook. The actor acknowledges the importance of diet when trying to achieve or maintain top shape. Attempting to lose body fat just through exercise alone, even if you workout as much as he does, is an uphill battle.

In his book, he has provided over 40 recipes as well as 1200-1300 calorie meal plans based on lean meats and vegetables. This is a solid diet approach – the reason being that we dramatically over estimate how little we can eat if we are to lose bodyfat.

Lopez admits that he likes to eat. In order to maintain a low body fat percentage we need to eat a very low calorie diet. Either that – or we can exercise a lot like Mario. Another way to decrease the weekly calories is to do one or two days of fasting per week. This approach is explained in nutritionist Brad Pilon’s book Eat Stop Eat. The cool thing about this book is that this is the only so-calledd ‘diet’ approach that allows you to eat every single one of your favorite foods and still lose weight.

Here’s Mario’s typical daily menu:

• Breakfast: Fruit, yogurt and Granola
• Lunch: Chicken and Rice
• Dinner: Sushi
• Splurge: Chocolate-chip cookies or Rocky-road ice cream

Spending a Lot of Time in the Sun

Whether he realizes it or not, he has struck gold by working out outdoors and spending time in the sun. Walking around shirtless is a great motivator to keep in top shape. This also works the other way around.

As you can see, he does some of his workouts, such as sprinting outside. Training outside of the gym, and especially at the beach, is simply way more fun. It doesn’t hurt to have a cute babe by your side too. Also, the natural vitamin D that is produced by the sun is responsible for our overall health. It is a mistake to avoid the sun altogether.

It’s a Lifestyle

In his own words, Mario is addicted to exercising. He’s been consistently in top shape ever since he starred in the TV show Saved by the Bell as a teenager. As you can see from the photo above, now (left) he’s maintaining the body that he used to have as a teenager (right). Staying active has enabled him to preserve a youthful appearance. Many people age themselves prematurely by getting fat as early as in their 20′s!

In order not to get bored he likes mix up his training. In addition to lifting weights and boxing three times per week, Mario would bike, run, swim, do yoga and also play basketball. This activity level adds up to a high level of caloric expenditure. So he’s able to maintain a very lean body.

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Linda Hamilton’s Terminator 2 Workout – She’s An Amazing Fitness Role Model For her role in the movie Terminator 2 Linda Hamilton...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

What is your training experience?

Well, like many things in life, we experience something we don’t like before we decide that we MUST have its opposite. I was no exception. It was a feeling of being too skinny that drove me to want to start building some muscle.

My training system (called THT training) is built around the most fundamental principle of building muscle – Progressive Overload. Basically this means that you must increase the weight lifted and/or the reps completed on as many sets as possible on successive workouts. Building muscle needn’t be as complicated as some people make out – obedience to this principle WILL bring success, you just have to learn how to OPTIMIZE it – that’s where the other THT principles come in.

The WHOLE system is completely free and can be picked up at my sites Free Weight Training Program or Free Bodybuilding Workout Program.

Why 8 to 12 repetitions for muscular growth?

This is one part of the optimization I’m talking about. Getting stronger through progressive overload is the key, but what rep range should we reach ‘muscular failure’ in? My research would indicate that failure on the 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th or 12th rep in EVERY set produces most growth. So in each set you may have to adjust weight to achieve failure in this anabolic rep range.

Lower rep ranges work best for those prioritizing strength gains as opposed to muscle size. Higher rep ranges activate the aerobic pathways (rather than the desired anaerobic), and also ensure that successive sets are less than optimal due to the rapid fatigue they produce.

8-12 reps produces more structural adaptations over neural ones. I want to train to be bigger and look better naturally, so this is where I stay.

Why ‘Go To Failure?’

The necessary muscle stimulation to FORCE muscle adaptation occurs in the last few reps of a set. You have to give your muscles a reason to grow. Continually reaching failure at higher and higher weights ensures that you are providing the MAXIMUM anabolic signal to the muscles worked.

Which exercises do you recommend?

Man, there are some really silly exercises out there, I stick to the basics. I’m sure some of your readers will have experienced the following scenario…

You begin working out and follow the basics i.e. basic exercises and working on beating your last performance every time – you’re building muscle at a good rate.

Then as time passes, you meet some gym rats and/or buy some muscle mags (rags) that convince you that you’re doing it all wrong and need to follow a more complex routine and weird exercises. You’re convinced they’re right and start changing things up; it’s just then you’re results stop coming. Of course you tell yourself it’s because you’re no longer a beginner and can’t expect new gains every month or so. Well, in my opinion, you just made a BIG mistake.

The basic exercises and progressive overload will force a muscle to continually grow so long as you get your diet right. I recommend a combination of heavy compound lifts for larger muscle groups and also some compound movements for smallers muscle like triceps. I only think a few of the ‘isolation’ movements are worth doing.

However, it must be stated that I have a different definition if what constitutes a compound or isolation movement. I agree with what IFBB pro Jeff Willet said in this interview I did with him,

I would consider barbell curls a compound movement as compared to something like concentration curls or preacher curls because barbell curls are a multi-joint/multi-muscle movement. This makes it a superior bicep exercise because the compound nature of it allows you to handle more weight through a more natural range of motion. Same is true for French Curls.

Jeff here is talking about performing these exercise with what is sometimes referred to as Biomechanically Optimized Form. This involves using the body’s natural biomechanics when lifting to MAXIMIZE the load that can be placed on the intended muscle and help ensure that you stay injury-free.

[Mark in 2006, after his first successful cutting cycle. He felt he was quite skinny back then but had a good foundation to build on. Had ripped abs but needed more muscle. He used the system he later outlined in the book Total Six Pack Abs.]

Lets talk about six-pack abs

There is so much misinformation about abdominal development. Abs are to built like any other muscle i.e. progressively overloading them with weighted resistance. 2 exercises I especially like to get the job done are weighted decline sit-ups, and weighted lying leg raises.

However, building abdominal muscle is only one aspect of attaining the elusive six-pack. The majority of work goes into getting your body fat low enough to see those sculpted abs. This is done with diet and cardio.

My book ‘Total Six Pack Abs‘ is a FULL six-pack system i.e. it covers the following areas thoroughly…

• Nutrition – The BEST fat-burning diet
• Weight Training – Essential! Based on my THT training but tweaked a little for cutting purposes
• Cardio – Cardio is an essential part of cutting. However, no marathon sessions are needed! Short, intense bursts work best – you’ll discover why and HOW to do it.

What makes Total Six Pack Abs superior

Each one of the 3 factors above actually INCREASES in intensity throughout the program.

• The diet actually INCREASES in its fat-burning potential
• The weight training INCREASES in its muscle-building and fat-burning potential
• The Cardio INCREASES in its fat-burning potential

This is the secret of those who KEEP losing fat week on week VS those who stall, lose motivation and QUIT! Abs can be attained quite quickly if the fat keeps coming off week on week!

There are formulas in the book which will reveal the EXACT cutting macro nutrient grams based on YOUR OWN body. Grams of carbs, fat, and protein are tailor-fitted to the individuals current body make-up.

[Comparison between Mark's his first cut and his latest fat loss cycle from the summer of 2009.]

You may also find it surprising that the Total Six Pack Abs program actually allows for sweet treats every week! Inside the book you’ll discover the science of why this is the case and why it’s surprisingly BENEFICIAL for torching unwanted body fat.

Thanks for the interview, Yavor. Keep up the good work at your site!

Incoming search terms for this article:

Related posts:

1. Building Muscle – Consistency And Intensity Are Key When It Comes To Gaining Muscle Mass Lots of programs and approaches exist when it comes to...
2. Building Muscle – The Top 7 Secrets of Gaining Lean Muscle Mass 1. Progressive Overload This is probably the most important thing...
3. Building Muscle – Alternate Training for Size and Working for Strength And Never Hit a Plateau Again "The greatest art is to attain a balance, a balance...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I Was Chilling After A Nice Walk In The Saturday Sun

…when I felt like I was in the mood for some mindless fun. So I popped a DVD with some flick called Mindhunters. It starred LL Cool J, Christian Slater, Val Kilmer and two hot girls whose names I couldn’t remember. The movie was pure brainless b-movie/slasher fun, and I enjoyed every second of it, though I’m sure the director wouldn’t like me calling his masterpiece a B-movie. Anyway, you maybe asking yourself what this movie could have to do with getting insanely good at chin-ups and pull-ups. Well…

LL Cool J Was A Ripped Bad Ass In The Movie

In one of the scenes one guy was hanging off some bar (falling was not an option because the floor was flooded and the killer had rigged the water with electricity). LL came to the rescue, swinging, climbing and pulling himself up various ledges, bars and walls. And the first dude was waiting for him and hanging for dear life. Naturally, I thought to myself – if only this guy had gotten his pullups in check BEFORE getting himself in a life and death pullup bar situation. Now LL Cool J, on the other hand, was having a breeze because he always keep in shape.

Here is the tutorial this poor guy probably wished he HAD read lol:

The Perfect Pull-up and Chin-up

• Watch your grip. Make sure to grip the bar towards your fingers. Basically, it should rest on the soft part just below your fingers. Avoid pinching your skin there. Pull-ups will cause callouses but they will actually make the exercise easier. Pinching the skin, on the other hand, will cause you unnecessary pain.
• Pack your shoulders. Always start the chin-up from a dead hang position. From there the first thing to do is, with straight arms, to pull your shoulders down toward the body and pack them into your torso.
• Use your back. The pull-up or chin-up is primarily an exercise for your back muscles. Those are the lats – the muscles of your armpits. You will fail to get good if you can’t feel and use your lats. It’s just that the biceps is too small and too week, no matter how well developed, to allow you chin-up mastery. Here is quick drill to feel those muscles. Extend your arms forward and ask a buddy to exert upward pressure on your arm. Now, try to lower it in spite of his efforts. Feel those muscles working? Good – use them in the pull-ups.
• Cross your legs. The phenomenon called irradiation allows neighboring muscles to make each othe stronger when contracting harder. So by crossing and flexing your legs against each other, you become stronger.
• Bend the bar. By attempting to twist the pull-up bar downward (your left hand will twist counter-clockwise and your right hand will twist clockwise) you will achieve a greater contraction in your upper body.
• Squeeze your butt. Same as crossing your legs and gripping hard, squeezing the glutes will give you an instant strength boost.

[From left to right: sternum chinups, sternum pullups, wide grip pullups.]

Mix Up Your Pull-up Training

• Regular chin-ups – these are done with an underhand grip. Pull yourself up until your chin clears the bar. They are excellent for biceps development and for overloading the exercise using additional weight.
• Regular pull-ups – same as chin-ups, except done with your palms in an overhand grip. They are also excellent for overloading with additional weight using a belt, a backpack or a dumbbell between the legs. They target the biceps less and the upper back as well as the brachialis (muscle below the biceps) and brachioradialis (muscle on top of the forearm) more.
• Wide grip pull-ups – these target the arms less and the upper back more. They are useful for learning to use the back muscles for chin-ups and pull-ups.
• Sternum chin-ups/pull-ups – these are the same as the regular chin-ups and pull-ups, except that they are done until the bar touches the chest bone (sternum). Sternum chin-ups and pull-ups are harder, but they work the mid-back and rear deltoids more.

How To Get Better At It

The way to get better is to practice often (3 or more times per week), do a relatively high volume of training (25-36 repetitions per workout is a great goal), use progressive overload, and focus on strength training repetition ranges (doing 3 reps with a weight with which you could do a total of 5 repetitions is good rule of thumb).

[Lat activation, or simply put using your back, and NOT your arms, is the key to pull-up greatness. Note how the shoulders go down and are packed into the body. Not using the lats - the armpit muscles properly, is the number one mistake people make on chin-ups.]

These Mistakes Sabotage Your Progress

• You are not using your back. If you don’t learn to use the back muscles to initiate the movement and do most of the work on chin-ups and pull-ups, you are never going to get good at them. The upper arms are simply a small muscle and cannot compete with the big and powerful muscles of the upper back.
• You are training to failure. When doing complex movements like this, always stop 1 or 2 repetitions short of failure. This means to do 8 reps when you are capable of doing 9 or 10. Training to failure is a viable tool when it comes to breaking down a muscle so it can recover and grow bigger and stronger. Pull-up and chin-up performance, however, comes down to learning to use your back and getting more efficient at it.
• You aren’t using full range of motion. If you don’t go all the way down on chin-ups and pull-ups, you won’t be able to powerfully activate the back muscles.

Your Weaknesses Are Killing Your Performance

You are as strong as the weakest muscle that takes part in the exercise:

• Train your grip. You won’t be good at pull-ups if you can’t stay on the bar long enough. You need a strong grip. Train by hanging off the bar for time with two arms (eventually try hanging off one arm). Barbell holds with heavy weights for time also will help.
• Develop your forearms. Training your forearms with wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, reverse bar curls and pinch gripping (holding two weight plates together and lifting them off with one hand) will also improve your grip, thus your chin-up performance.
• Strengthen the mid-back muscles. The mid back muscles are responsible for the hardest part of the movement – the finish. Strengthen them with dumbbell, barbell or cable rows.
• Strengthen your upper arms muscles. Your upper arm muscles – biceps and brachialis, are also responsible for the finishing part of the movement. Improve them with barbell and dumbbell curls and reverse curls (like the regular curls but with your hands on top of the bar).

[Here's me doing 16 pull-ups. Notice the grip and the full extension at the bottom.]

So there – use proper form, activate the back, train often, use low reps and progress in weight (either with a weight belt, a backpack with weight plates or a dumbbell between your feet) as soon as it gets easier and you will be on your way to chin-up mastery.

Note: A reader of the site pointed me to another useful pull-up training method, Pavel Tsatsouline’s Fighter Pull-up. You can download the file here.

Related posts:

1. 7 Easy Ways To Add Resistance To Pull-Ups, Chin-Ups And Dips Pull-ups, chin-ups and dips are among the best exercises you...
2. Using the Lat Pull Down Machine to Get Strong for Your First Pull-up The lat pull down machine is a great way for...
3. Pull-up Exercise Variations: 6 Essential Exercises for a V-Shaped Body (Video) The pull-up – an exercise that is possibly the most...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.