Saturday, December 6, 2008

Armed Repsonse (How I Built "19" inch Biceps)

Biceps were one of the hardest muscles for me to build. As a young fitness enthusiast, I tried everything I could think of including copying what I saw all the big guys doing in the local gyms. Nothing seemed to work for me. It wasn't until I learned how to harness the mind-muscle connection to ecourage the recruitment and firing of the muscle fibers that I finally began to reap the true benefits of exercise. The mind is a powerful tool and can do wonderous things when we implement it's concentrative powers. The next time you workout try blocking out everything around you. Get rid of the ear phones and the music. Nothing to interupt your mind to muscle thought pattern must exist. Focus your mind on the muscles that are performing the movement. You can actually produce a double fire of the active muscle tissue with deep subliminal concentration. Once you are capable of achieving this technique, I guarantee that you will see and feel the difference in your arms.
To further enhance my progress I educated myself on biomechanics and how they play a major role in how our muscles react to stress from different angles. Training with the same traditional ho hum movements each workout actually handicaps your progress as the muscle adapts to this one dimentional method and cease to further respond. Using a variety of different angles and exercises enable muscles to continue their positive adaptations. This method of training is commoly known as the "Confusion Principle", where the muscles are constantly being subjected to new and different techniques to enhance increased lean muscle fiber size.


Now for my arm workout: First of all I dedicate one full workout to arms only. Separating them from other bodyparts, and trainng bi's and tri's together in a single workout made a big differnce because I could achieve greater intensity. When you train arms after other body parts like chest or back, you just can't get the same degree of intensity or pump as when you train them on their own day.


I generally perform 3 sets of 4 exercises using heavy weights. Heavy means using a weight with which I'd do no more the 8-10 reps and periodically throwing in a set of lighter weights and performing 12 reps. For triceps I would basically follow the same format but increase the reps to 12-15. Adjust your poundages to accomodate the rep range so that the last 2 or 3 reps are challenging to complete. The following is an example of what one of my arm workout routines would look like.
* Note:
Proper form and execution of each exercise is paramount. Stand tall, retract your shoulders and engage your core by drawing in your belly button. These simple techniques will ensure neutral alignment and proper posture minimizing any chance of injury while producing the best results.



Biceps

Standing barbell curl - 3 sets-8 reps - 100 lbs

Preacher curls - 3 sets-8 reps - 90 lb dumb bells

Concentration curls - 3 sets - 10 reps -40 lb dumb bells


Triceps

Lying tricep extentions - 3 sets - 10 reps - 100 lbs - barbell or e-z curl bar

Standing cable extentions - 3 sets -12-15 reps - 120 lbs

Dips - 3 sets - 12 reps - Bodyweight or with weighted belt
Live with Passion!
Malcolm Roberts, CFT-ACE, CPT-NFPT






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