| |
| |
|
Muscle Building Information |
|
|
|
Re-ignite Your Chest Training Progress
Effective Chest Training, Like Everything Else, Begins With The Proper Mindset An attitude of always wanting more, never being satisfied, is a key element in becoming successful in whatever you do. There's always a higher level of development to achieve-if you're constantly searching for it. Having that mindset is essential to lasting success. It's also the cornerstone of the habits you need to develop if you want to maximize your chest training. You'll also need to cultivate such winning characteristics as optimism, patience, perseverance, determination and flexibility. A number of physical factors can also affect your mental attitude, including the frequency of your chest workouts, the number of sets you use, the number of repetitions you set out to perform on every set, the amount of weight you use and the length of time you spend in the gym. When you overtrain physically it gives your mental well being a serious blow, too. Train to Absolute Failure The ultimate goal of every single set in your chest workout must be to train to absolute failure. By that I mean you must give 100 percent effort during every set. You shouldn't have anything left in reserve at the end of the set. This is very taxing, mentally and physically, which is why you can't withstand many sets and why you need to work on your mindset. You need to control or get rid of that litte voice in your head that is always telling you to settle. That requirement is crucial to efficient chest training. Obviously, you'll need a training partner, or the proper equipment such as a power rack, a machine, or using dumbbells, if you're going to train to absolute failure and train safely. For now, let's throw out any well-known, legitimate reason you could come up with that takes your training success or failure out of your own hands. Whatever program you use, the important thing is to put all the effort you can into your training. One thing that is very important is to go over what it is you are trying to accomplish. I briefly review in my head what I want before I do each set of my workout. What's my goal in the set? What will accomplishing the set goal mean to my other goals? Now, about that intensity - you probably think you know what intensity is,right? You train hard, right? But is training hard the same as training with 100% intensity of effort? If you polled the people in your gym, 99% of them would tell you they workout extremely hard. I'm the same way. And yet when I look back on my workouts, I always realize I could've trained a little harder. But that's okay, because I am constantly improving my effort every time I workout. I'm always striving for a higher level of effort and increasing the quality of each workout. You Can Increase the htensity of Your Chest Training Now Before we can achieve more we must constantly be raising our own standards. Train Your Chest Less Frequently I know, the thought of training less worries many people that they will not only stop progresssing but will lose what they have. This just isn't so. Use it as a powerful motivating tool. The thought of training your chest less frequently creates a feeling of uneasiness, or what I call a sense of urgency. It dramatically increases the magnitude of every workout. The benefits have a far greater effect than just bolstering my mindset. Training less gives you adequate time to recover from your intense workouts. Use Fewer Sets Knowing that you're going to do only a few sets in your chest workout creates this same sense of urgency, allowing you to bring a lot more focus into each rep and set that you do. Although I always change things up from time to time, a typical chest workout for me is as follows: After warming up sufficiently and doing two heavy sets of bench presses, I complete my chest workout by doing one set each of three different chest exercises. Many lifters give themselves two, three or even four sets of a particular exercise to get it right. If you give yourself four chances at anything, you'll have less of a sense of urgency to get it right the first time. You will pace yourself and hold back for those other sets. It's only human nature. Anything less than 100 percent effort is a wasted set in my opinion. Have you ever noticed that when you get yourself in the right mind-set, you can pump out more reps on the last set of an exercise than you did on the first one? It should be just the opposite. If you were really giving your all during the first couple of sets, you wouldn't have nearly as much energy left to meet or exceed that rep range on the last one. If you truly train with the proper mindset, then you'll need less training to build your chest. If your training is less than animal-like, you'll need more sets. Be honest with yourself. Only you can determine what's best for you. Spend Less Time in the Gym on Chest Training The ability to focus and put forth your best effort in chest workout after chest workout, month after month is what will bring you results. The less time you spend in the gym, the easier it becomes to focus, and because you're training chest less frequently, using fewer sets and fewer reps, your time in the gym will be much shorter. It will surely make it a lot easier to focus on building an awesome chest. Now, all you have to do is shut up and train! Proper Recovery Is Critical Recuperation is probably the most important yet most-often-neglected component of building muscle efficiently. Recuperation means to recover fully from your intense workouts. Only when your muscles have fully recuperated are they ready to grow larger and stronger. If you train again before this process is complete, you will short circuit the growth/recover mechanism and your gains will come to a screeching halt and that's exactly what you want to avoid. Develop your new chest routine with these steps in mind and see if you don't ignite new growth and more strength in your chest. Written by: Gregg Gillies, www.buildleanmuscle.com Gregg Gillies is the founder of http://www.buildleanmuscle.com where he publishes a free newsletter available. He is the author or two books, as well as being a regular contributor to Body Talk magazine. His writing has also appeared in Ironman Magazine.
MORE RESOURCES:
Build-Muscle - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Know Your Muscles - The Mid-Section Becoming familiar with the muscles that make up your body has more benefits than simply allowing you to talk shop with your training partners. The more familiar you are with the muscles you're working, the better you'll be able to judge what's needed to make improvements. Dorian Yates Secret: What Lean People Are Doing To Get That Way A consensus has arisen within the bodybuilding world over the past twenty years regarding the exact modes and procedures needed to become lean as humanly possible while retaining muscle mass. Across the nation and the world, bodybuilders are lifting weights, hitting aerobics and eating with discipline in order to melt body fat. The Importance Of Creatine In Building Lean Muscle Creatine monohydrate can rightly lay claim to being the most popular and arguably most effective bodybuilding supplement currently available. The beauty of creatine is that it is 100% natural and occurs in many foods so it's unlikely to be banned from any sports or competitions. The Default Rep Range I had an hour long conversation with Pavel Tsatsouline on Sunday and per usual his probing questions churned up some things that I had forgotten. One thing that he asked was, "Over the years, was there a single repetition range that you preferred?" What was 'normal' for me? Put another way, what single rep range did I use most often in my weight training and why? Without hesitation I said 5-rep sets. But I Dont Want Muscles! Part 1: What Muscle is, and how to Build (or Avoid) It One of the common comments I hear from my female clients is, "Please don't give me any weights work - I don't want any muscle, I just want to tone." The reasons differ from client to client, but it most often they seem to be based on a misunderstanding of what muscle is, how we build it, what it has to do with weight loss - or some combination of the above. Exercise The Right Way - The Hammer Curl Other articles in this series looked at a number of exercises, mainly from the perspective of developing a comprehensive muscle building program. Sometimes we take things for granted, especially when it comes to performing the basic exercises that constitute the core of most bodybuiders' training regimes. Successful Body Building Routine There are some major key parts to a successful body building routine. I will go over a routine that was created by a personal trainer for me, and it worked wonderfully. Arm Training - Building Muscle for Bulging Bis and Tris Let's face it, most guys who start lifting want two things - a big bench and big arms. So in this issue we're going to talk about bi's and tri's and I'll share a very effective routine for adding inches to your arms in a very short amount of time. Most Amazing (and Ridiculously Simple) Trick For Stiff-Legged Deadlifts You Will Ever Read In Your L The stiff-legged deadlift is one of the best exercises you can do for your hamstrings. The only problem is, it can also be one the hardest exercises to perform properly. Targeting Those Trouble Spots Wouldn't it be great if you could get rid of that excess fat on your stomach or tighten up those hips and thighs? How many times have you tried diet and exercise to target your trouble spots only to see slow or no progress? How many people do you know that have been down that same path, probably multiple times?Having worked with hundreds of individuals, mainly women, the two things that I found with almost every client was that they ALL had specific areas of their body that they really wanted to change.For some it was the back of their arms and for others it was their rear end. Personal Trainers with Real People, Real Situations TO DO OR NOT TO DO? ? ABSTWO WEEKS PRIOR TO WRITING ARTICLE:Jeanne is a client I have worked with for a number of years, and through a couple of births with very quick recoveries. She is naturally tall and thin with wide hips and very flat abs. Before and After Photos in Fitness Magazines Some supplement companies will go to any lengths to prove their products' effectiveness. But sometimes the evidence isn't quite what it's cracked up to be. Exercise The Right Way - The Seated Row Other articles in this series looked at a number of exercises, mainly from the perspective of developing a comprehensive muscle building program. Sometimes we take things for granted, especially when it comes to performing the basic exercises that constitute the core of most bodybuiders' training regimes. The Health Risks Associated With The Use Of Anabolic Steroids Anabolic steroids are classed as illegal drugs and are banned by most legitimate sports organizations. There can be no disputing the fact that testosterone boosts the development of muscle mass and aids sporting performance. 5 Familiar Bodybuilding Troubles...Which Do You Want To Overcome? In my 3 decades of training experience I have identified 5 major bodybuilding troubles or problems. These are:-1 Overtraining. Train for the Look You Want So the Olympics are almost upon us. While you have the chance, compare the differences between a marathon (long distance) runner's body and a sprinter's body. Maximize The Windows of Opportunity For Explosive Muscle Growth You have two main windows of opportunity when your training. One is 30 minutes before you train (pre-workout meal) and another comes about 30-60 minutes after your workout is over (post-workout meal). What Causes Muscle Growth? In order for muscles to grow, three things are required: 1. Stimulus - exercise is needed to make the muscles work, use energy and cause microscopic damage to the fibers. Fitness & Muscle Building Know How for Hard Gainers Hard gainers are individuals who train equally hard as other people but somehow fail to make any gains comparable to others. They need a lot more than hard training. Scientific Principles For Effective Muscle Gain It's an unfortunate reality that throughout the years there has been a growth of strength training techniques that have no scientific proof to back them up. Have a look at the facts presented in this outline of muscle gain principles and make up your own mind.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2008 |
