The Dangerous Secret to Massive Muscle Growth

You’ve decided to join a gym, but you’re not sure the best way
to work out, and don’t want to pay for a personal trainer who
may not really know what he’s talking about? Or maybe you’re
experienced, but aren’t getting the results you want? Read on
for the best tips for working out if you have a full gym
facility, including the secret that no one will tell you about
extreme muscle growth, because it is so dangerous.

Before and After You should always warm up before lifting any
weights. This means a light jog or other low-impact activity
that will raise your heart rate and raise your core temperature
by a few degrees. This should last at least 5 minutes,
preferably 10 or more. After this, you should do joint
rotations. This is not a stretch, it is preparing the joint for
work by encouraging blood flow. Then, do the resistance
training. At the end, stretch all of the joints you have worked
that day. Studies have shown that stretching before weight
training actually reduces the muscle’s capacity, and does not
prevent injury as was previously thought. Stretching after the
work out will protect the joint and prevent cramping.

After working out you will also need an increased intake of
protein because that is what muscles are made of.

Length of Time The resistance training part of your workout
should not last longer than one hour. After a warm up, your body
is in an anabolic state, meaning that it is ready to “build up”
or repair any damage you do to it by running hard or doing other
hard work. However, after 45 minutes or so (again, this varies
by individual), your body goes into a catabolic state, meaning
that your body is ready to “break down” or eliminate anything
that may threaten your survival. Entering a catabolic state is
good for breaking down body fat and eliminating lactic acid from
your muscles, but other tissues are equally damaged by being in
a catabolic state. You should be mostly concerned about your
kidneys and your muscle fibers that will be compromised if you
continue to push yourself. Let me repeat that: if you work out
for more than one hour, you will hurt your muscles, not help
them.

The Isotonic Workout Isotonics is a fancy word for what
traditional bodybuilders do: contract the muscle in order to
move a load. In other words, lifting and lowering weights.

As for the weight training itself, free weights are excellent
because they make your body balance while lifting them. However,
many people prefer nautilus machines for exactly the same
reason: they feel safer not having to balance the weight. I will
not give you weights, sets and reps to do, because there are a
myriad of sources of routines written by all sorts of experts. I
recommend you experiment with various programs, because although
all muscles fundamentally work the same, everyone has different
levels of hormones, different metabolism, and different levels
of comfort. Pick up the latest fitness magazine of your choice
for current work outs.

The key to remember when following a routine is this: If you are
told to do 10 reps for 3 sets, this means that you should select
a weight that allows you to do only 10 in a row, but not 11. You
will feel tired at around 6, maybe shake a little at 8, and just
pump out the 10th rep with no energy left to do even one more.
If you can do 11, then you shouldn’t stop just because your
routine says 10. Do the 11th and 12th if you can, knowing that
you should be using slightly more weight the next time. At the
end of each set, rest for about 2 minutes (unless your workout
specifies something else) and then do your second set.

The Eccentric Contraction Most people who write workout routines
emphasize that you lower the weight slower than you raised it.
This is partly for safety. But there is a big secret! Let’s
back-up a little. Concentric motion is flexing the muscle to
SHORTEN it under load, and Eccentric motion is flexing the
muscle while LENGTHENING it under load. As your arm moves up in
a bicep curl, that is concentric, as your arm moves down,
eccentric. Here is the secret: Your muscle can create more power
in eccentric motions than in concentric ones. So always lower
weights very slowly, to keep the maximum tension while lowering
weights!

But we can take that discovery one step further for ultimate
results. Skip the concentric motion because it’s holding you
back! If you’re only working out with weights that you can lift,
you’re not using the maximum power possible in your muscles.

Warning: the majority of muscle injuries happen during the
eccentric phase of motion, and by trying this exercise, you are
exposing yourself to risk of injury. So be careful.

You absolutely need a spotter for this, because you will need
help to raise the weight. Load a bar with a bit more than you
can lift. (If you can do 3 curls with 100 lbs, load the bar with
120 lbs.) With the help of your spotter, raise the bar to the
top position of a bicep curl. Both of you will likely have to
work a bit at this. Then, as slowly as you can, lower the weight
to the normal starting position of the curl, with your bicep at
full extension. This should take about 3-5 seconds. If your
muscle goes slack or you drop the weight, you’ve put on too much
weight. But if you’ve got the right amount, you should feel a
burn like never before. After recovering for 2 minutes, you may
want to do a second rep, but you probably won’t need it.

And that’s it. One rep per exercise. One controlled eccentric
rep will stimulate your muscle to grow more than 3 sets of 10
reps because you’re using the maximum overload possible.

Why? Muscle overload is key to adaptation. When you’re using the
absolute peak muscular output, it doesn’t have to last long. And
since the peak is only possible during eccentric contractions,
only do eccentric contractions.

I feel obliged to repeat the warning: always use a spotter, and
only use weights that you can manage. If you are working out for
the first time, get used to good form by doing traditional
isotonics, and learn how much you can usually lift to determine
your baseline. Some exercises are more dangerous to do
eccentrically, because the bar may crush you if you overload it:
bench press, squats, military press, etc. For these, use a
“Smith Machine” where the bar travels on vertical tracks and you
can set safety stops to stop the bar from falling below a
certain mark.

Hydration Always remember while doing resistance training that
water is your best friend. Drinking water will keep you from
dehydrating, will keep your energy high, will encourage your
body to cycle water and fluids throughout your body, and keep
your joints healthy while exercising. The main cause of muscle
cramps is insufficient hydration. For more information on the
importance of water, read the Water article.

Caution For the beginner: start easy. Start at your core and
move outwards. Work big muscles before small muscles. Fat
burning happens most in the largest muscles, so encouraging them
to grow will give you the fastest fat-loss results. After your
first workout, you will be sore. It would be best to avoid going
to your full overload potential the first week, to allow your
joints time to adjust to your new activity. However, soon you
will see growth, and best of all, you’ll see the fat start to
melt.

The second-best resistance training (after eccentric
contractions) does not even require weights, so you can do it at
home without a gym membership. Read my article on the Weightless Workout.

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