Need a reason to start weight training? I have put together a comprehensive list of the benefits of weight training. I have always said on this blog that everyone should be weight training, no matter what your goals.

Weight training helps you both lose and gain weight. Think about it like this, humans were not meant to be sitting in offices all day on computers. If you go back to our roots we had to hunt and gather food. Our bodies are build for exercises and strength, we just don’t use them in the right way. Weight training and cardiovascular training emulate what our bodies were build for.

» Read more after the jump →

Just a quick post today to let everyone know that I added a new tips section with a whole bunch of solid tips to help you achieve your goals!

I’m sure there are plenty more tips that ya’ll know so leave them in the comments at the bottom of the tips page.

Click here to view the new tips page!

Today I’m going to talk about beating plateaus and bringing up lagging body parts using pre exhaust training. Lagging body parts, we’ve all got them. Plateaus, we’ve all experienced them. Both these situations require that your training be that bit more intense, to stimulate more muscle growth. Enter, pre exhausting!

What is pre exhausting?

Pre exhausting involves exhausting a muscle with an isolation exercise, then hitting it with a big compound exercise with no rest in between sets. Sounds hard? It is, and it needs to be. Pre exhausting is often used by professional bodybuilders to bring up lagging body parts in the lead up to shows, and as I mentioned above, it’s great for busting through plateaus where your muscle either hasn’t increased in size, or strength.

» Read more after the jump →

Muscles can be stubborn bastards! The human body is very adaptive, it can quickly adjust to stress and changes. This applies to bodybuilding and and form of resistance training.

Seasoned lifters will know that sooner or later you’re going to hit a sticking point. You won’t be able to gain any weight or strength. This is commonly referred to as a plateau. Everyone gets them, and experienced lifters know what to do. You need to change.

There are countless ways you can change your workouts to get your body growing again but today we’re going to look at ways to change your lifting to get that little bit more out of your muscles, make them work harder, shock them into growth!

Just a quick note, these techniques should not be used every workout. Using them too often defeats the purpose. Only shock a particular muscle group once every 3-4 weeks.

» Read more after the jump →

Today I thought I’d post up a few of the muscle building resources that I use from around the web! So here’s the list:

•  Workout Routines over at Muscle&Strength. Loads of sites have routines, but the ones on this site are well thought out and tailored for different goals, experience etc.
• For calorie tracking I use FitDay (not always the most accurate, but their tools are easy to use). I’d definitely check them out if you’re losing weight especially.
• I read the Natural Bodybuilding Forum at Muscle&Strength every day. A bunch of really good guys there with a no BS attitude to getting bigger and fitter.
• 4 Supplement Reviews has decent reviews of different bodybuilding supplements which I read via RSS. They have also launched a new section where users can post their reviews as comments which is usually pretty interesting.
• Dave Draper’s blog - there’s usually something interesting to read here. Again, I use RSS to keep up with posts easily.
• Joe DiAngelo is a personal trainer from NYC who gets awesome results with his clients. His blog is always a good read.

That’s about it. If you want to add any sites to this list leave them in  the comments!

Weight training and building muscle is all about intensity. Unlike other disciplines that require hours of training in order to progress, weight training requires increased intensity and short training sessions. There are many ways you can increase the intensity of your sessions…drop sets, supersets, short/long rest times, forced reps etc. But what most lifters do not focus on is mental intensity. Your mental state before and during your workouts is crucial to having a good session.

» Read more after the jump →

When I first started training I was clueless. I didn’t know anyone that worked out, I didn’t have the cash for personal training sessions and the only information I had access to was in bodybuilding magazines. Now days new lifters have the internet. The internet is the best resource for bodybuilding and weight training information. Not only can you read expert articles for free, you can interact with experienced trainers on forums.

That being said, there’s no reason why beginner lifters should make the same mistakes I did. The information is there, all you have to do is a little searching. So today I’m going to list 5 common mistakes newbies make and why they’re mistakes. Enjoy!

» Read more after the jump →

You’ve probably heard the term on bodybuilding sites and magazines, but what exactly does hypertrophy mean? Muscle hypertrophy is a scientific term for the growth and increase of the size of muscle cells. Hypertrophy is what we train for, to grow new lean muscle!

Natural hypertrophy is at its peak during puberty, and usually stops in the late teen to early twenties. Muscle hypertrophy can be increased with the use of weight training. High intensity anaerobic exercise has been shown as the best type of exercise for hypertrophy.

» Read more after the jump →

I have been getting several requests via email for a good hypertrophy (muscle growth) workout. So I’ve put together a 4 day split workout aimed at muscle building and weight gain. This split workout hits each muscle group once per week. I have given this workout to many people who have achieved excellent strength and size gains.

» Read more after the jump →

We’ve all been there…reading through articles and coming across words and thinking, “what the hell does that mean?”. I’ve created a list of popular bodybuilding and fitness terms and slang and I explain the meaning of each one. Enjoy!

» Read more after the jump →