3 days Splits or 5 days?

Bodybuilding

Are 5 day Splits More or Less Effective than 3 Day Splits ?

This will depend on the trainee. For some, training 5 days a week is too much while for others it's too little. But for most people whose goal is to increase mass, 5-day splits are far superior.

3-day splits are mainly used for strength training, where the trainee wants to be able to have plenty of recovery time to fully recover their muscle and nervous system because their workout consists of lifting heavy reps and high intensity training.

5-day splits, on the other hand, allow trainees to consistently work on their muscles and exert stress; therefore stimulating more muscle growth. In addition, working out five days a week will burn more calories than three days a week.

On the other hand, 3-day splits can be beneficial to someone who is new to weight training. However, that can only be made possible if those three days consist of light and total body training. That will prime the new trainee's muscle and nervous system for harder workouts. A new trainee can still benefit from 5-day splits as well. Working out 5 days a week will keep the new trainee motivated and teach them the proper dedication bodybuilding requires.

Almost all trainees whose goal is to gain mass can benefit from using this type of training. However, the 5-day splits will probably benefit a more experienced trainee than one who just started because an experienced lifter is more primed to handle the amount of workload 5-day splits impose upon the body.

Trainees who will benefit the least from this kind of training will be those whose aim is only to gain strength, such as the power lifters. Working out five days a week is calling out for overtraining for power lifters since they will not have enough time for recovery.

For those whose goal is fat loss, 5-day splits are definitely a good choice. By training five days a week (along with cardio), trainees will lose a lot calories and thus priming for fat loss.

The 5-day splits can be used for both mass gaining and fat loss training. As you can see, it is versatile as it allows many different training techniques and exercises to be chosen from. Try it out and see how it goes!

What muscles are made off?

Bodybuilding - What are Muscles Made Off ?

Muscle is composed of bundles of muscle fibers or myofibers. Each fiber is composed of myofibrils, which, in turn, are composed of myofilaments. The myofilaments are made up of two proteins called myosin and actin. The myosin and actin act within the smallest functional unit of muscle, the sarcomere, to produce a contraction.

It is the myosin protein, however, which holds the key to the differences in muscle fiber types. In general, there are four different fiber types in skeletal muscle. These four include:

- Type I, also known as slow-twitch or slow fibers
- Type IIA
- IID
- IIB, also known collectively as fast-twitch or white fibers

Speed, Size & Endurance:
Type I are the slowest, smallest, and have the highest level of endurance of all the fibers. Next come the Type IIA, IID, and finally the Type IIB, which are the fastest, largest, and least endurance oriented in the group.

Muscle Contraction:
As you contract a muscle, you'll recruit those muscle fibers in a specific order. The smallest (lowest threshold) fibers, the Type I, are recruited first. As the speed or force of contraction is increased, you will sequentially recruit the Type IIA, IID, and IIB muscle fibers. However, to recruit the Type IIB fibers it may take over 90% of a maximal contraction!

Fiber Concentrations:
All people are born with these muscle fiber types. Most muscles contain almost an even split of slow (Type I) and fast (Type II) fibers. There are a few exceptions, however, as the soleus muscle of the calf is prominantly slow twitch, while the gastrocnemius muscle and the hamstrings are prominantly fast twitch.

Also, individuals on opposite ends of the athletic spectrum like sprinters and marathon runners for example, may possess a higher percentage of one fiber type.

Well, in order to obtain maximal muscle size we must regularly train all of our muscle fibers. A combination of bodybuilding (higher and lower rep), powerlifting, and even a little Olympic-style lifting may be best. Bodybuilding seems to stress the Type I and IIA fibers, while the IIB fibers may be best stimulated through powerlifting and Olympic lifting.

The IID fibers are perhaps stressed equally by all three forms of training. 

The key to long term progress in bodybuilding can be summed up by one important word: Variation!

Squats

Bodybuilding - King of all Leg Exercises : Squats

 

The king of all leg exercises. This movement is the number one mass builder for legs. If you want to build massive wheels... you will have to squat. And squat with good form. When performing this exercise... check your ego at the door.

Take some weight off the bar and perform them correctly. That means arch your back and squat deep. The top of your thighs should be parallel with the floor (or below)! This will ensure a full range of movement - which means maximum stimulation (and maximum growth).

I see way too many people load the bar up to 405 and move the weight 4 inches up and down. What are they really trying to achieve? Perform slow, controlled reps. Do not bounce the weight back up or you will damage your knees.

Stick your butt out - as if you are sitting down into a chair. And remember to spend plenty of time warming up! Do a high rep set of 20 to 25 with very light weight before doing your working sets. I typically perform 4 to 6 sets of squats - as I like to pyramid up the weight. When performed correctly, this exercise will hit the Quads, Hamstrings, and Glutes!

Calf workouts

Bodybuilding - Mass Building Calf Muscles' Workouts

It is important to know that for many people the calf responds to higher reps. See what works for you but for most you need to be doing at least 15 reps per set. You want to concentrate on really feeling the calf contracting during the set and get a good stretch at the bottom of the movement and a hard contraction at the top. Do not bounce during the movement. You want to make sure that during both the concentric and eccentric part of the movement is nice and slow and controlled.

Workout #1:
Standing Barbell Calf Raises 4x15
Seated Barbell Calf Raises 4x15
Donkey Calf Raises 4x15 

Workout #2:
Standing Barbell Calf Raises 4x15
Standing One-Leg Dumbbell Calf Raises 4x15
Seated Dumbbell Calf Raises 4x15

Workout #3:
Smith Machine Standing Calf Raises 4x15
Standing One-Leg Calf Raises 4x15
Donkey Calf Raises 4x15

Workout #4:
Calf Press on Leg Press Machine 4x15
Machine Standing Calf Raises 4x15
Machine Seated Calf Raises 4x15

Workout #5:
Calf Press on Leg Press Machine 4x15
Standing Barbell Calf Raises 4x15
Machine Seated Calf Raises 4x15

Workout #6 (Smith Machine):
Smith Machine Reverse Standing Calf Raises 4x15
Smith Machine Standing Calf Raises 4x15
Smith Machine Seated Calf Raises 4x15

Workout #7 (Bodyweight):
Standing Bodyweight Calf Raises 6x15
Standing One-Leg Bodyweight Calf Raises 6x15

Overload - Force your Muscles to grow

Bodybuilding - Overload and Force your Muscles to Grow

A muscle must be subjected to a stimulus that compels it to adapt and grow. If there is no reason for a muscle to grow, no hypertrophy will occur. Muscles increase their strength and size when they are forced to contract at levels close to their maximum.

Much more weight can be lifted with compound exercises than isolation movements. More weight, more overload and in turn more muscle. A compound exercise is a movement that involves more than one major muscle group. It involves a primary muscle and one or more secondary muscles.

An example of a compound exercise would be the barbell squat. The primary muscles are the quadriceps and the secondary muscles are the gluteus and hamstring muscles.

An isolation exercise targets just one muscle. Isolating a muscle during resistance training limits overload and muscle fiber stimulation, therefore it limits growth. Dumbbell flyes are an isolation movement for the chest, removing the shoulders and triceps out of the movement.

A common reason people do flyes is to shape the muscle. This is impossible to do- you cannot change the predetermined, genetic shape of your muscles. You can, however, make them bigger which may appear to change the shape.

Isolation movements require less weight and limit overload. They have their place in any training regimen, but not to increase muscle size.

Overload is the primary objective when muscle hypertrophy is the goal. Going through the motions will not produce results, you have to push your body to new limits in order to see increased development. Since heavy weight is the most influential stimulus for muscle growth, you must continue to strive for greater overload.

Muscle Growth = Intensity

Bodybuilding - Intensity, the Key to Muscle Growth

Intensity is defined as exceptionally great concentration, power or force. It is what separates those that make modest gains over the years from the ones that make massive gains year in and year out. If you look around the gym, it is easy to spot the people that train with a lot of intensity.

Training with maximum intensity will literally force your muscles to grow, it leaves them no choice. They have to adapt - they have to grow. Intensity and overload is the key to muscle growth. Don't expect to see gains if you spend your time in the gym socializing, reading, or watching television.

The amount of stimulation you are able to deliver to your muscles will effect how much they respond and develop. It is not enough to simply put in intense effort and try harder by going through the motions and using momentum. Increasing the weight without controlling the movement will not produce results.

Intensity is almost more of a psychological factor than a physiological one. It is generated from the degree of your motivation. How badly you want to see gains. When your body screams "stop!" and you ignore the ache and keep going, you force your muscles to grow and respond. Intensity will be your key to success, regardless of what muscle group you are training.

The mental intensity you are able to generate will cause physiological effects. Muscle protein accumulation and repair occurs when the rate of protein synthesis increases.

The rate of protein synthesis in the muscle depends on the rate of entry of amino acids into the muscle cells. And the intensity and duration of muscle tension directly influences amino acid transport into the muscle cells.

As the intensity and duration of muscle tension increases, amino acid uptake and the rate of protein synthesis increases. So protein synthesis is the basis of building muscle and can be increased by training with high intensity.

Time and workload are two factors that can be manipulated in order to increase intensity. Doing an increased amount of workload in the same time will surely make your workout more intense. You could also do the same amount of workload in less time.

So add more weight to the bar, take shorter rest periods or do both to increase intensity. Again, do not do this at the expense of jeopardizing your form and concentration. Remember, motions mean nothing.

Squats

Bodybuilding - Squat Supplements

Squats are the main diet for the powerlifter, Olympic lifter, football player, track & field competitor and every other competitive athlete. But there are many assistant exercises that deliver that extra for squat strength and quad development. These assistant exercises offer coordination and balance to specific muscle groups to execute squat performance and quad development. So, whether that boost is strength, power, size, or a combination of them all, assistant exercises play a very important factor in the squat.

The squat is a strength and mass builder. Squat assistance exercises are done for shaping, and also strength. Let me explain. Bodybuilders are not interested in getting their squat to an all time max as a powerlifter is. Not all of them anyway. The competitive bodybuilder uses squat assistance exercises for shaping. But, the powerlifter is more interested in serious strength gains.

Assistant squat exercises give an extra boost on all strength levels. Absolute strength, limit strength, starting strength and explosive strength. For those of you who are not referenced to these terms and those of you who need "strength" defined let me explain. Strength is the ability of the muscle to exert maximal force at a specific velocity.

There are many assistant exercises that can imitate the squat itself. Like placing your legs on the leg press or a hack machine with the same feet spacing you would for squatting. Assistant exercises can be box squats or reverse-hyper extensions, famed exercises performed by Louis Simmons students, step-ups, single leg presses, and many others. This is all good, but you ask why step-ups? Well, think about it. Step-ups are in all conventional terms a one legged squat. This specific assistant exercise will benefit you in gaining leg strength, the same as the single legged press would but with the added benefit of balance. Any individual who desires a good assistant exercise for squats should give single leg presses a try.

I hope you realize that one leg can't press what both can, so, start off light increasing your weight each set until you get to a good working weight performing 6-10 reps on each leg. When doing leg presses or hack squats place your feet together and try 20-reps for each set. I recommend only 2-3 sets of those. They're pretty grueling! I am sure your legs will be ready to explode after all that. If those of you whom have access to a "Reverse Hyper" - I highly recommend whole-heartedly to do them. Do reverses about 3 times a week, 2 sets of 15-20 reps each. Remember, start out slow and light and then add on 5 to 10 lbs. a week.