Mark, tell the readers of Relative Strength Advantage a bit about your training experience and how you came up with your system of training? You have systematized your approach to building muscle in a free downloadable book. How can people get a hold of it?

Well, like many things in life, we experience something we don’t like before we decide that we MUST have its opposite. I was no exception. It was a feeling of being too skinny that drove me to want to start building some muscle.

My training system (called THT training) is built around the most fundamental principle of building muscle – Progressive Overload. Basically this means that you must increase the weight lifted and/or the reps completed on as many sets as possible on successive workouts. Building muscle needn’t be as complicated as some people make out – obedience to this principle WILL bring success, you just have to learn how to OPTIMIZE it – that’s where the other THT principles come in.

The WHOLE system is completely free and can be picked up at my sites Free Weight Training Program or Free Bodybuilding Workout Program.

You advocate the use of 8 to 12 repetitions on each set when prioritizing muscular growth? Please explain why lower or higher repetition ranges are not optimal?

This is one part of the optimization I’m talking about. Getting stronger through progressive overload is the key, but what rep range should we reach ‘muscular failure’ in? My research would indicate that failure on the 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th or 12th rep in EVERY set produces most growth. So in each set you may have to adjust weight to achieve failure in this anabolic rep range.

Lower rep ranges work best for those prioritizing strength gains as opposed to muscle size. Higher rep ranges activate the aerobic pathways (rather than the desired anaerobic), and also ensure that successive sets are less than optimal due to the rapid fatigue they produce.

8-12 reps produces more structural adaptations over neural ones. I want to train to be bigger and look better naturally, so this is where I stay.

Why ‘Go To Failure?’

The necessary muscle stimulation to FORCE muscle adaptation occurs in the last few reps of a set. You have to give your muscles a reason to grow. Continually reaching failure at higher and higher weights ensures that you are providing the MAXIMUM anabolic signal to the muscles worked.

Which exercises do you recommend to stimulate muscular development?

Man, there are some really silly exercises out there, I stick to the basics. I’m sure some of your readers will have experienced the following scenario…

You begin working out and follow the basics i.e. basic exercises and working on beating your last performance every time – you’re building muscle at a good rate.

Then as time passes, you meet some gym rats and/or buy some muscle mags (rags) that convince you that you’re doing it all wrong and need to follow a more complex routine and weird exercises. You’re convinced they’re right and start changing things up; it’s just then you’re results stop coming. Of course you tell yourself it’s because you’re no longer a beginner and can’t expect new gains every month or so. Well, in my opinion, you just made a BIG mistake.

The basic exercises and progressive overload will force a muscle to continually grow so long as you get your diet right. I recommend a combination of heavy compound lifts for larger muscle groups and also some compound movements for smallers muscle like triceps. I only think a few of the ‘isolation’ movements are worth doing.

However, it must be stated that I have a different definition if what constitutes a compound or isolation movement. I agree with what IFBB pro Jeff Willet said in this interview I did with him,

“I would consider barbell curls a compound movement as compared to something like concentration curls or preacher curls because barbell curls are a multi-joint/multi-muscle movement. This makes it a superior bicep exercise because the compound nature of it allows you to handle more weight through a more natural range of motion. Same is true for French Curls.”

Jeff here is talking about performing these exercise with what is sometimes referred to as Biomechanically Optimized Form. This involves using the body’s natural biomechanics when lifting to MAXIMIZE the load that can be placed on the intended muscle and help ensure that you stay injury-free.

[Mark in 2006, after his first successful cutting cycle. He felt he was quite skinny back then but had a good foundation to build on. Had ripped abs but needed more muscle. He used the system he later outlined in the book Total Six Pack Abs.]

Lets talk about six-pack abs. The main function of the abs is stabilization. How should we train them if we want them to not only be rock hard, but also to show prominent development. You are one that certainly walks the walk when it comes to six-pack abs training. Tell us a bit about your book Total Six-Pack Abs.

There is so much misinformation about abdominal development. Abs are to built like any other muscle i.e. progressively overloading them with weighted resistance. 2 exercises I especially like to get the job done are weighted decline sit-ups, and weighted lying leg raises.

However, building abdominal muscle is only one aspect of attaining the elusive six-pack. The majority of work goes into getting your body fat low enough to see those sculpted abs. This is done with diet and cardio.

My book ‘Total Six Pack Abs‘ is a FULL six-pack system i.e. it covers the following areas thoroughly…

• Nutrition – The BEST fat-burning diet
• Weight Training – Essential! Based on my THT training but tweaked a little for cutting purposes
• Cardio – Cardio is an essential part of cutting. However, no marathon sessions are needed! Short, intense bursts work best – you’ll discover why and HOW to do it.

What makes Total Six Pack Abs superior to other programs is that each one of the 3 factors above actually INCREASES in intensity throughout the program.

• The diet actually INCREASES in its fat-burning potential
• The weight training INCREASES in its muscle-building and fat-burning potential
• The Cardio INCREASES in its fat-burning potential

This is the secret of those who KEEP losing fat week on week VS those who stall, lose motivation and QUIT! Abs can be attained quite quickly if the fat keeps coming off week on week!

There are formulas in the book which will reveal the EXACT cutting macro nutrient grams based on YOUR OWN body. Grams of carbs, fat, and protein are tailor-fitted to the individuals current body make-up.

[Comparison between Mark's his first cut and his latest fat loss cycle from the summer of 2009.]

You may also find it surprising that the Total Six Pack Abs program actually allows for sweet treats every week! Inside the book you’ll discover the science of why this is the case and why it’s surprisingly BENEFICIAL for torching unwanted body fat.

Thanks for the interview, Yavor. Keep up the good work at your site!

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Why I LOVE Asian Cinema

If you haven’t been watching Asian movies, I got news for you – you’ve been missing out on a lot of cool flicks. Before I finish my next post about this new killer movie that is coming out and the physical training that went into it, here is a quick little non-fitness post. I want to tell you why I love Korean, Japanese, Cantonese, etc. movies… Here is the reason why I included many Asian movies in my post 25 Movies That Motivate Me To Train Hard. Also – this story was somewhat inspired by Chris McCombs recent post on his favorite books in different fields. So here is just a small selection of some of my favorite Asian flicks:

Hana-bi Another one from Takeshi Kitano – and possibly even better than Sonatine. Among beautiful music and cinematography a tired and sad cop chases his inner demons by killing off Yakuza thugs…

3-Iron 3-Iron is is basically a movie about feelings I guess. A loner goes around the empty houses of strangers and spends the night there. In exchange he fixes stuff around the house. Until he meets a woman in one of the houses…

Sonatine An ultra-violent film preaching against violence. Tired Yakuza is sent to settle a gang war. He instead flees to the beach to wait for things to settle down. What follows is a mix of heart crushing violence and meditative introspection on seizing the day and living to the fullest. Brilliant Takeshi Kitano – the ultimate bad ass without trying to be one…

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon This is basically a Chinese fantasy about the coming of age of a young princess. And of course we see her and a bunch of other guys (all of whom cinema giants) kick ass in gorgeous wire- and choreography- embellished martial artistry

Hard Boiled A cheesy plot serves as a vehicle for one of the best action movies of all time. The gun fights here are a thing of beauty – delivered here by the action duo Chow Yun Fat and director John Woo.

Iron Monkey This is just a kung-fu version of Robin Hood. Set in China. The action scenes are ridiculous – have to be seen to be believed. Donnie Yen and Yuen Woo-Ping (choreographer of the Matrix movies) are a lethal team!

My Sassy Girl A drunk girl almost falls off the ledge at a subway station. A goofy guy saves her but gets into a series of troubles because of her – turns out there is something she is not telling him…

Oldboy A man finds himself a prisoner without knowing why. He is kept in a locked room for 15 years. During this time he tries not to go insane and plots his revenge. Suddenly he is released without explanation. And the film is just beginning…

Shaolin Soccer A bunch of kung-fu monks play soccer using their kung fu skills. Stephen Chow is a comedic genius and a decent athlete – he pulls off all the stunts (with CGI of course). He is also hilarious – playing his usual goofy screen persona.

The Killer Another John Woo / Chow Yun Fat collaboration. A gun for hire makes a fatal mistake, hurting an innocent girl in the process. He starts his own private war against a ton of bad guys. One of the movies that inspired the matrix – the gun fights have to be seen to be believed…

So – any Asian cinema junkies out there?

I had almost forgotten that I loved those movies. Glad the new movie that I’m writing my next post about reminded me about Asian flicks. Anyway – what would your list look like? What did I miss? Share in the comments below…

Pic by jeremybarwick

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I Was Chilling After A Nice Walk In The Saturday Sun

…when I felt like I was in the mood for some mindless fun. So I popped a DVD with some flick called Mindhunters. It starred LL Cool J, Christian Slater, Val Kilmer and two hot girls whose names I couldn’t remember. The movie was pure brainless b-movie/slasher fun, and I enjoyed every second of it, though I’m sure the director wouldn’t like me calling his masterpiece a B-movie. Anyway, you maybe asking yourself what this movie could have to do with getting insanely good at chin-ups and pull-ups. Well…

LL Cool J Was A Ripped Bad Ass In The Movie

In one of the scenes one guy was hanging off some bar (falling was not an option because the floor was flooded and the killer had rigged the water with electricity). LL came to the rescue, swinging, climbing and pulling himself up various ledges, bars and walls. And the first dude was waiting for him and hanging for dear life. Naturally, I thought to myself – if only this guy had gotten his pullups in check BEFORE getting himself in a life and death pullup bar situation. Now LL Cool J, on the other hand, was having a breeze because he always keep in shape.

Here is the tutorial this poor guy probably wished he HAD read lol:

The Perfect Pull-up and Chin-up

• Watch your grip. Make sure to grip the bar towards your fingers. Basically, it should rest on the soft part just below your fingers. Avoid pinching your skin there. Pull-ups will cause callouses but they will actually make the exercise easier. Pinching the skin, on the other hand, will cause you unnecessary pain.
• Pack your shoulders. Always start the chin-up from a dead hang position. From there the first thing to do is, with straight arms, to pull your shoulders down toward the body and pack them into your torso.
• Use your back. The pull-up or chin-up is primarily an exercise for your back muscles. Those are the lats – the muscles of your armpits. You will fail to get good if you can’t feel and use your lats. It’s just that the biceps is too small and too week, no matter how well developed, to allow you chin-up mastery. Here is quick drill to feel those muscles. Extend your arms forward and ask a buddy to exert upward pressure on your arm. Now, try to lower it in spite of his efforts. Feel those muscles working? Good – use them in the pull-ups.
• Cross your legs. The phenomenon called irradiation allows neighboring muscles to make each othe stronger when contracting harder. So by crossing and flexing your legs against each other, you become stronger.
• Bend the bar. By attempting to twist the pull-up bar downward (your left hand will twist counter-clockwise and your right hand will twist clockwise) you will achieve a greater contraction in your upper body.
• Squeeze your butt. Same as crossing your legs and gripping hard, squeezing the glutes will give you an instant strength boost.

[From left to right: sternum chinups, sternum pullups, wide grip pullups.]

Mix Up Your Pull-up Training

• Regular chin-ups – these are done with an underhand grip. Pull yourself up until your chin clears the bar. They are excellent for biceps development and for overloading the exercise using additional weight.
• Regular pull-ups – same as chin-ups, except done with your palms in an overhand grip. They are also excellent for overloading with additional weight using a belt, a backpack or a dumbbell between the legs. They target the biceps less and the upper back as well as the brachialis (muscle below the biceps) and brachioradialis (muscle on top of the forearm) more.
• Wide grip pull-ups – these target the arms less and the upper back more. They are useful for learning to use the back muscles for chin-ups and pull-ups.
• Sternum chin-ups/pull-ups – these are the same as the regular chin-ups and pull-ups, except that they are done until the bar touches the chest bone (sternum). Sternum chin-ups and pull-ups are harder, but they work the mid-back and rear deltoids more.

How Get Better At It

The way to get better is to practice often (3 or more times per week), do a relatively high volume of training (25-36 repetitions per workout is a great goal), use progressive overload, and focus on strength training repetition ranges (doing 3 reps with a weight with which you could do a total of 5 repetitions is good rule of thumb).

[Lat activation, or simply put using your back, and NOT your arms, is the key to pull-up greatness. Note how the shoulders go down and are packed into the body. Not using the lats - the armpit muscles properly, is the number one mistake people make on chin-ups.]

These Mistakes Sabotage Your Progress

• You are not using your back. If you don’t learn to use the back muscles to initiate the movement and do most of the work on chin-ups and pull-ups, you are never going to get good at them. The upper arms are simply a small muscle and cannot compete with the big and powerful muscles of the upper back.
• You are training to failure. When doing complex movements like this, always stop 1 or 2 repetitions short of failure. This means to do 8 reps when you are capable of doing 9 or 10. Training to failure is a viable tool when it comes to breaking down a muscle so it can recover and grow bigger and stronger. Pull-up and chin-up performance, however, comes down to learning to use your back and getting more efficient at it.
• You aren’t using full range of motion. If you don’t go all the way down on chin-ups and pull-ups, you won’t be able to powerfully activate the back muscles.

Your Weaknesses Are Killing Your Performance

You are as strong as the weakest muscle that takes part in the exercise:

• Train your grip. You won’t be good at pull-ups if you can’t stay on the bar long enough. You need a strong grip. Train by hanging off the bar for time with two arms (eventually try hanging off one arm). Barbell holds with heavy weights for time also will help.
• Develop your forearms. Training your forearms with wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, reverse bar curls and pinch gripping (holding two weight plates together and lifting them off with one hand) will also improve your grip, thus your chin-up performance.
• Strengthen the mid-back muscles. The mid back muscles are responsible for the hardest part of the movement – the finish. Strengthen them with dumbbell, barbell or cable rows.
• Strengthen your upper arms muscles. Your upper arm muscles – biceps and brachialis, are also responsible for the finishing part of the movement. Improve them with barbell and dumbbell curls and reverse curls (like the regular curls but with your hands on top of the bar).

[Here's me doing 16 pull-ups. Notice the grip and the full extension at the bottom.]

So there – use proper form, activate the back, train often, use low reps and progress in weight (either with a weight belt, a backpack with weight plates or a dumbbell between your feet) as soon as it gets easier and you will be on your way to chin-up mastery.

Insane Photo by Digital Sophia

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[Working the stairs makes girls trim and sexy and the dudes lean and mean. This is why bodybuilders, soccer players, Shaolin monks and even Victoria's secrets models keep their conditioning up with this drill.]

But many athletes such as basketball and soccer players, track athletes and martial artist include this drill in their conditioning. And for good reason. Running stairs kicks ass! It melts fat and conditions you to be efficient at short distance sprinting such as running to catch the bus, scrimmaging on the basketball field, or rushing to get to class on time.

Running Stairs Technique

• Step on every other step. I’ve found that it’s best to run stairs by skipping every other step. This manner of running ensures proper stride frequency and speed of running
• Use your whole body. running and climbing are whole-body movements. Engage all your muscles – not just the legs.
• Use the quads. Climb stairs by pushing with your thighs. Make sure not to completely extend your legs – this puts too much strain on your knees. Instead, run by keeping your legs semi-flexed throughout.
• The role of the posterior chain. The muscles of the back of your legs – calves, hamstrings (back of your thighs) and glutes (your butt) are responsible for most of the movement that occurs in running and jumping. Don’t make the mistake to push through your knees only. Instead, try to use your posterior chain and extend your hips. Here is a post I wrote on this subject: Glute Activation.
• Run on your toes. Just a quick note here – when running try to step on your toes or more specifically the place between your toes and your mid foot. That’s how all animals run – they step on their paws and on NOT their heels.
• Use your arms. Make sure to use your arms to help you with the movement. Keep your elbows in, shoulders down (not shrugged) and your arms semi-flexed (like a sprinter).

Progressive Overload

• Climb more stairs. The simplest way to increase the difficulty is to climb more storeys.
• Run more rounds. A better option is, instead of climbing more storeys, to increase the number of times you climb the stairs.
• Climb faster. Still better is to increase your speed. This will not give you more fat loss benefits, but will improve your conditioning level.
• Climb slow but with a backpack. Another option – for hardcore guys or gals only – is to climb slowly but with a weighted vest or backpack on.

Stair Climbing Action Plan

• Start small. Don’t rush it. Start with onle a few stairways and gradually increase your speed.
• Increase difficulty once you get fitter. You will soon adapt and climbing the stairs will get easier. At this point increase the difficulty so that you continue getting fitter.
• Add climbing stairs to your daily routine. I like to focus my training around my life and not the other way around. So evening when I get back from walking my Lab Lucky we sometimes go for a sprint up the building stairway. I don’t think he appreciates having to climb a nine storey building LOL.

[Here's a documentary showing the hard training Shaolin monks have to go through every single day. Running stairs is a staple of their routine.]

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Here Is the Quote From the Movie that Made Me Write This Post

Professor Barnhardt: There must be alternatives. You must have some technology that could solve our problem.
Klaatu: Your problem is not technology. The problem is you. You lack the will to change.
Professor Barnhardt: Then help us change.
Klaatu: I cannot change your nature. You treat the world as you treat each other.
Professor Barnhardt: But every civilization reaches a crisis point eventually.
Klaatu: Most of them don’t make it.
Professor Barnhardt: Yours did. How?
Klaatu: Our sun was dying. We had to evolve in order to survive.
Professor Barnhardt: So it was only when your world was threatened with destruction that you became what you are now.
Klaatu: Yes.
Professor Barnhardt: Well that’s where we are. You say we’re on the brink of destruction and you’re right. But it’s only on the brink that people find the will to change. Only at the precipice do we evolve. This is our moment. Don’t take it from us, we are close to an answer.

Looking Forward to Your Reflections on the Movie

Hey, what did you guys think? Do you join the bashing and think it is Anti-American movie lol? Speaking of this, I just think some people can’t handle the truth. Or did you watch just to enjoy Jennifer’s performance? Maybe your are a special effects guy or gal? Share you thoughts.

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[Our lady visitors were starting to complain of too much hot girl coverage and practically no dudes. So here is a fit good looking guy... under another hot girl lol. Ok, I couldn't help it! Can't blame a guy for sneaking in pics of gorgeous girls... Plus, I know most... ok practically ALL guys actually workout because they want to hook up with beautiful women. Just reporting on a fact lol]

I Was Pleasantly Surprized

Rusty Moore, author of one of my favorite fitness blogs, came up with a free e-book in which he basically interviewed two top nutritional scientist about the truth behind the whole supplement industry. I quickly snatched the book and read it in one sitting. It was an eye opening and enjoyable read in Rusty’s usual entertaining style. But what was most important about it was the information in it.

You Need To Get Your Hands On This Information

So I shot an email to Rusty and invited him to write up a quick post and present his e-book here. Well, turns out he had an even better idea – he put together a quick little video just for the readers of Relative Strength Advantage. Watch it below

Rusty Moore’s Guest Video Post

[Rusty is a really cool and modest guy. Even in this vid he mostly talks about my site LOL. So don't get distracted and make sure to check out his site and grab his free e-book for a dose of ethical, highly entertaining and last but not least controversial information on the subject of bodybuilding and fat burning supplements.]

Here Is How To Get It

Here is the post where Rusty introduces the e-book in which he exposes the supplement conspiracy ==> http://fitnessblackbook.com/diet-tips/the-supplement-conspiracy-by-rusty-moore-exposing-the-supplement-industry/. So just go ahead and snatch it, and if you are new to his blog, I promise you are in for a real treat!

Kickass photo by Digital Sophia

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[She wanted to know if getting that tat was a mistake. Hm, let me think, girl... Tell you what - I like the ink, but all this other extra stuff covering your body needs to go LOL!]

The second issue is whether you do the renegade rows with proper form to ensure that your core gets maximum stimulation. So in this article I will address the issue of proper form in more detail.

Here Is A Video With A Good Explanation Of The Proper Form For Renegade Rows

[This video is very helpful in understanding how to transfer the weight between your arms so that you can row with the free arm. Just watch it and you will see what I mean.]

Here Is My Buddy Vasko In Our Gym Doing The Exercise PERFECTLY With 40kg Dumbbells

[Vasko is very strong for his size 6'2'', 190 lbs, can deadlift 200kg+. Note that he is an athlete and needs his body weight to stay down, yet his strength needs to be as high as possible to be fast and explosive. This is what the relative strength advantage is all about.]

Here Are 3 Examples Of How NOT To Do It

[This guys is twisting like mad. Remember, this is an exercise in stabilization. It is NOT a back/rowing exercise]

[This guy is a little better, but still, almost no stabilization, his hips are lifting off, he is doing way too many reps.]

Renegade Rows are done to teach and enhance core stabilization. Low reps are the only option here. Sets of 10 while good for fatiguing the muscle and building it up, are USELESS here. Maximal contraction is the goal when training for stabilization.

[This guy is actually walking around with the exercise. He is not getting the core strength benefits from this exercise.]

It is true that he is burning some calories – but again the renegade row is NOT a fat loss or general physical preparedness exercise. It is a drill that makes your abs freaky strong and rock hard. If done correctly!

To End On A Positive Note – Here Is My Good Friend Val Doing PERFECT Renegade Rows With 16kg Dumbbells

[That's one tough chick right there!]
Photo by Digita Sophia

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1. Technique

• The hollow position is key. You need to stay as rigid as possible. Tuck in your butt and squeeze the abs hard.
• Transfer weight between the arms This the key to the exercise. If you don’t transfer your weight to one of the arms, you cannot lift the other one AND still maintain a rigid body parallel to the ground.
• Squeeze your but hard Tightening all your muscles is important, but squeezing the butt is especially helpful.
• Tighten the supporting side leg You want to establish a firm support from which to row.
• Don’t twist the hips Most of the videos you will see on the web show people performing the exercise incorrectly. Twisting the body or hips makes the exercise easy and ineffective. Avoid this mistake and keep the body parallel to the ground!
• Row the weight using your back. When doing a rowing motion, always rely primarily on your back muscles (try contracting your armpit muscles) and NOT your biceps. Try leading with your elbow as if your arm was just a hook to which the weight is attached.

2. Renegade Rows Instructional Video

Here is a video of the renegade row. Watch and note the three main keys to the proper execution of the movement.

3. Progression

• Low reps are the only option This is not a bodybuilding exercise. It is not meant to fatigue the muscle. On the contrary – it is meant to teach you how to contract your whole body as hard as possible. So perform low reps with 100% focus.
• 3 sets of 5 are enough Beginners will do fine with just 3 sets. They will progress easily this way while also learning to contract the body and execute the exercise properly.
• 5×5 also works for advanced athletes Once you get good, you can add a few more sets for more stress on your body.

4. Action plan

Here is how you can introduce renegade rows in your workout. You have a few choices.

• Once per week for multiple sets of 2-5 reps. This option is for those who are short on time, but still want to get massive results from the exercise.
• 3-7 times per week for 2-3 sets of 2-5 reps. This is the best way to get GOOD at doing a certain skill.
• Once per week for 2-3 sets of 2-5 reps. This option allows you to add other core conditioning drills such as the L-Sit.

Note, go read Part II of the renegade rows series to discover how people mess up with renegade rows.

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So yeah, the reason I am writing this quick little post is cause I got this great vid right here for you. There you go, Sly busting his ass in the gym for the upcoming movie The Expendables.

Here is some of the gut busting exercises he’s doing:

• Some kind of stroll or run lol
• Machine squats
• Machine lateral raises to burst those shoulders
• Full body core woodchop twists to kill the asb and obliques
• Shadow boxing
• Bodyweight stretches
• Machine ab curls
• Ab posing lol
• Triceps skull crushers
• Dumbbell hammer curls
• Some kind of machine based cycling HIIT down with the arms instead of the legs
• A bad ass goatie

[That's the real deal folks. This movie gets to be better and better.]

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[You are a stud if you can hold this position for 90-120 seconds.]

1. Variations

• With bent knees. You can start with this version if you feel you are lacking the strength or hamstring flexibility to do the movement with straight legs.
• With straight legs. Once you are comfortable doing the L-sit with your knees bent, try the straight leg version. The farther your legs are from your body, the tougher it is.

2. Hand Positions

• On parallellets or parallel bars. This is the easiest version, but requires equipment. You can buy a set of parallellets to train at home.
• On your knuckles. This one will strengthen your wrists and knuckles. Good for martial artists.
• On your fingers. Probably the easiest version. See the image above.
• On your fingertips. A slightly different version. Good for martial artists and wrestlers.

3. Progression and Workout Frequency

• Change the variations or hand position. This one is self explanatory. Just go to a different variation or hand position to challenge yourself when it gets easy.
• Progress in time. This is the real deal. Get to one minute non stop in the L-Sit and you will be core bad ass. The way to do it is to do several sets that add up to your total goal time each workout. For example if your goal is 1 minute, do as many sets as it takes you until you reach a total of 60 seconds. So a typical workout could be 12 secs – 10 secs -10 secs – 8 secs – 7 secs – 7 secs – 6 secs.
• When training a skill, it is best to train as often as possible, as fresh as possible. So an ideal variant to train every day and do multiple sets – say after you wake up and before you go to bed, that add up to your total goal time each day. You could do these sets between household chores – say do a set, brush your teeth, do another set, do the laundry or whatever.

There you have it. There are now no excuses not to build yourself a brick breaking set of abs. Even if you don’t have an access to a gym. Even if you have no equipment at home. Even if you have no spare space to train in. And, as a bonus you can’t avoid getting pretty damn strong overall, not just in your abs, when you master the L-Sit.

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[Sly hasn't looked this good the last 15 years. And, get this, he is 62 now. O, yeah!]

And If This Wasn’t Enough, Here Are Some of The Other Action Stars Who Signed Up For The Expendables

• Mickey Rourke. Nice. I loved him in Bullet – probably one of his best roles.
• Jason Statham. Hell yeah. I’m psyched for the new Transporter 3.
• Arnold Schwarzenegger. Rumored to play himself! Ha! This will be a second after Last Action Hero (sorta).
• Jet Li. This keeps getting better. I already recommended Fist of Legend. Probably his best.
• Dolph Lundgren. OK, wake me up, cuz I must be dreaming now. Him and Sly haven’t been together on screen since Rocky IV.
• Forest Whitaker. The dude is great. Have you seen
  Ghost Dog, Way of the Samurai?
• Eric Roberts. The All-American hero from Best of the Best.
• Randy Couture. Former UFC killing machine turned actor. You can check him out in The Scorpion King 2.
• Sandra Bullock. Speed. Nuff said lol.
• Danny Trejo. The ultimate Mexican bad-ass. Check him in the short Machete.

So yeah, this will be a crazy 80’s/90’s action extravaganza. Can’t wait. This will be like the Ocean’s 11 of action movies. Anybody else as excited about this as I am, or is it just me lol?

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[This is one of the coolest shows on the tube, at least the first couple of seasons will have you hooked. What is cool about the show is it gives a realistic image of getting a lean and attractive physique. That's what I always stress - get lean first!]

By the way, don’t watch it on cable. Just get the DVD’s. It’s way more fun this way cause you get to skip the cliffhangers and go directly to the next episode. And, it’s commercial free.

Fit, Young People Beautiful People And Basketball

I can’t ask for more from a show lol. Anyway, what inspired me to write this is that I wanted to emphasize my point once more – lean down fast. You will get tired of hearing this from me, no doubt. The fitness industry doesn’t seem to get it. Or they just don’t want you to know. Being trim is where it’s at folks – period.

Muscles Are Just An Embellishment

You see, young folks look good enough without having to train for years or whatever. They just have the right weight for their height. That’s it. So do what it takes to lean down. The easiest way in my opinion is to just eat less.

This Is What Ticks Me Off With The 6 Meals Per Day Thing

How can you lose weight by eating all the time. Isn’t it more logical to take a break from all that food once in a while?

It sure is. Check out my post on intermittent fasting

What they don’t tell you is that the 6 meals approach is for fitness competitors and body builders in order to get them to unnatural low levels of body fat so that they look the way the judges want them to look on stage.

It Is Not For Regular People

So find a way to consume less food and get trim. It can’t be that hard. Just give yourself a powerful reason why and you are set.

[Here is a way cool clip made from the show. Enjoy!]

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American History X
We got Edward Norton. Personal trainer Anthony Cortés got him so buff and the change was so dramatic, that Arnold Schwarzenegger himself supposedly thought Edward was on steroids. Norton’s comment – he says he just are like hell and trained like it was going out of style.

Terminator 2 – Judgment Day
We’ve got not one, but two actors in fantastic shape in this movie. Arnold Schwarzenegger is in his usual muscular top shape but the real surprize is Linda Hamilton. Having undergone a strict workout and diet regimen, she displays her rock hard body fighting the evil T-1000 and doing chinups in her room in a mental asylum.

Enter the Dragon
Bruce Lee’s last movie was also his most polished one. He trained vigorously so that his on screen appearance would be visually as impactful, as much the speed and accuracy of his punches and kicks were technically impressive. He looks like someone carved him out of a marble block. Plus, his on screen persona exudes raw and powerful charisma. Highly recommended.

Fight Club
Such a list can’t go without mentioning this one, right? Both Ed Norton and Brad Pitt are very lean in the movie. To match their characters, they have trained to enhance their movie persona. Edward Norton’s guy looks more like a weakling though – lean but not muscular, while Brad’s Tyler Durden is a Bruce Lee-like ripped bad ass. A note here – if you want to look muscular, get some muscle mass and then strip as much fat as possible. This is the secret to looking so muscular.

American Psycho
The self-obsessed and narcissistic psychopath played by Christian Bale takes great pride in every detail of his life. He is constantly on a diet and exercises religiously. The ironic thing is that although Christian Bale got into fantastic shape for the movie, the message of the film is that this level of body consciousness shows an unhealthy mind, obsessed with vanity. He is still a great physique role model though LOL.

I Am Legend
What better way to portray the solitude of the man dedicated to his training than to feature it against the backdrop of an empty city. Will Smith purposefully leaned down quite a bit in order to be convincing as a man fighting for his survival. Plus a real fun movie, folks.

Gladiator
A brilliant portrayal of honor and manhood. Russel Crowe’s character is powerful and stoic, exuding calmness and rage, resolution and obstinacy.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
I have featured numerous Kung Fu movies in the list. They represent the pinnacle of what the human body is capable in terms of movement and they showcase martial artists who sport top level physiques. This movie in particular is worth watching for the now classic scenario where a hero has to go through a series of training obstacles to achieve mastery. Boot camp Shaolin style – bring it on!

Blade – Trinity
First things first – this is the third installment of the series and as such is the worst one of the three Blade movies. In all three of them Wesley Snipes is in fantastic shape. The first movies is a good one overall, while the second one benefits from the gloomy imagery that only comes with a Guillermo del Toro flick. I chose the third movie because in addition to the bad ass Blade it has a (almost) no more wimpy looking Ryan Reynolds and a buff and sexy Jessica Biel. So there – style over substance lol.

Brotherhood of the Wolf
I can’t recommend this movie enough. First, Mark Dacascos gets to show off his fantastic fighting skills and top physique. Second, the movie is the perfect adventure story, if you happen to like these kinds of stories like I do. Third, but definitely not last, there are two VERY cute ladies right there – Émilie Dequenne and Monica Bellucci. Can’t lose with this flick.

Drunken Master 2
Even if you are not into martial arts movies, you’ve got to give it up to Jackie Chan. In his movies he demonstrates two things. The first one is how much abuse the human body can take. He does pretty much all of his stunts. The other thing is what fantastic feats and acrobatic a trained martial artist of this caliber is capable of.

Elektra
Most comic book movies turn out lame or corny, but I keep on watching them any way lol. This one is no exception (as in it is quite lame unfortunately). It made the list however, because it has a uber athletic looking Jennifer Gardner. Body Courtesy of celebrity trainer Valery Waters.

Fist of Legend
Jet Li, a martial artist, is surprisingly also a solid all around actor. He never got a big break in an English speaking movie. Unleashed (also known as Danny the Dog) is one of his best. Fist of Legend however is worth just for the martial arts – no acting accolades here. The action sequences, choreographed by Yuen Woo Ping, are so spectacular that they inspired the Wachowski brothers, to hire Yuen so he can bring this level of movie awesomeness to the Matrix series. Of course, Jet Li does it better than the white boys. Note that Fist of Legend is a remake of Bruce Lee’s hard hitting classic Chinese Connection.

Commando
A typical high-body count 80’s action extravaganza. Plus, can’t deny the fact Arnold’s arms look damn good while he harvests through wave after wave of baddies as if he was playing a video game. Gotta love the 80’s lol.

I, Robot
Every movie with Will Smith is worth watching so that you can nourish on some of his contagious energy. He always gives it all. Because of the physicality of the movie Will Smith opted to present a powerful looking physique. So he made the list.

Batman Begins
Christian bale is in quite a muscular state in this one. Well, when you play a super hero, I guess it’s a must to look the part. The remarkable thing is that prior to filming this movie, Christian Bale worked on another movie – The Machinist. For that one he purposefully lost a whopping 63 lbs by starving himself on a diet of a can of tuna and an apple a day. After the movie, he hired a UK celebrity trainer and quickly regained the lost muscle. Note that we are talking about muscle memory here. This means regaining your muscle mass as opposed to building size from scratch.

The Hurricane
This is the captivating story of the wrongfully accused boxer Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter. I feature it here for two reasons. First, this movie is the perfect example of the get in shape behind bars movie. Denzel is ripped. Second, this movie talks about one of my favorite concepts – inner strength. The Hurricane turns into a warrior/scholar in prison. He studies law books and trains like a madman for his fight outside.

Ali
I’ve got another boxing heavy weight of a movie right here. Prepping for the role, Will Smith decided not to try to look like a boxer, but to become a boxer. He ran the distances that Ali ran and sparred with hard hitting real boxers to bring believability to director Michael Mann’s movie. Incidentally, Robert De Niro also underwent real life boxing training for his award winning performance in raging bull some 20 years earlier.

Million Dollar Baby
These boxing movies just keep on coming. A fine, fine flick from another one of my favorite directors – Clint Eastwood. As an actor, he has a powerful and charismatic don’t-mess-with-me-punk presence. As a director he shines even more. In this movie Hilary Swank not only learned to move and box like a real fighter, but also dramatically altered her physique by adding significant muscle bulk via weight training and a protein rich diet. And, she got her Oscar.

G.I. Jane
At age 35 Demi Moore really started showing she was taking great care of her body. Ridley Scott cast her in the role of a woman training to be a navy seal. What follows are some of the best training sequences captured on film, including Demi doing one arm pushups. Note – Demi also shows off a fantastic physique in 2 other corny but fun movies – Charlie’s Angels 2 and Striptease.

Mad Monkey Kung Fu
I love martial arts movies and I couldn’t miss out on the chance to sneak in another one of those here. The spectacular thing about this movie is how the fighters flawlessly and fluidly execute the choreographed primate acrobatics. No substance here folks. Just a visual fest of the boundless potential of the human body.

Ong-Bak – The Thai Warrior
Tony Jaa, a stuntman, martial arts, actor and fight scene choreographer. This is his first big movie and he shines in it. Fantastic acrobatic skills, break dancing movies used to hurt the bad guys, bone cracking Muay Thai elbow and knee strikes. The movie has it all. This guy seems to take the best action parts from Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. He still lacks Lee’s charisma but the future is ahead of him.

Rocky
The ultimate story of loss and redemption. It’s us against the world, ain’t that right Rock? The movie is choc full of so many memorable moments. If you can’t be motivated by a rocky movie, better check that pulse of yours lol.

Iron Man
Trainer Brad Bose got recovered addict Robert Downey Jr.’s less than trained body to an Iron Man – worthy level. Apart from this, the movie is one of the best super hero movies of all time. Just watch it for enjoyment’s sake if you haven’t done so.

Kung Fu Hustle (Axe-Kickin’ Edition)
I have made sure that the bulk of the movies I recommend in this list are not only highly motivational, but also of high quality and plain old fun. King Fu Hustle is no exception. Stephen Chow, aged 42 in this movie, puts most 20 something’s to shame when it comes to being in shape. Add to this the fact that his comedy style will make you piss your pants. Now top that off with the fact that he is a real-life martial artist (like Wesley Snipes) so his moves are authentic. And, his Bruce Lee impersonation is impeccable. You just gotta see this one folks – a killer flick.

And now I’d like to extend the challenge to Kaiser Serajuddin, Mark McManus, Chris McCombs, Rocco Castellano and Zach Even-Esh. Share 25 random things about yourself guys!

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January comes and it is a time when many people decide that they are going to change their lives. We have all heard it and we have all done it. You know the kind of resolutions I’m talking about. From next year I’m going to train or starting next month I won’t eat junk food anymore. Or how about from next week I will start saving money. Starting tomorrow, I will drink more water. Blah, blah, blah. Well guess what?

There Is No Tomorrow


[Rocky III. Some people think the Rocky movies are corny, but you just need to see the powerful message of this video.]

Tomorrow does not exist. All you have is the now. The next day? It won’t be much different than today. One more day of delay on what you want in life is one less day not living your life the way you are supposed to.

Ultra Ambitious Plans Fail

We have this unique ability to deceive ourselves. Have you ever been extremely motivated to do something? Let’s say you watch a movie and there is an actor in it, who is in top shape. I don’t know about you, but I get very motivated when I see someone in top shape. Thoughts start running through my head. I am going to train like a madman. I am going to eat ultra clean and run an hour every day, etc. Guess what happens with this kind of ultra ambitious I’m-gonna-be-the-next ninja-Rambo plans? Most of them fail and there is a reason for this.

Procrastination Is Self Deception

We have this tendency to justify things in our heads. You see, there is this internal dialogue going on inside our mind. More often than not, the side that emerges victorious in this debate is the one that justifies procrastination and laziness. It is easy to tell yourself that starting tomorrow you are going to do all the things you want to do. But when tomorrow comes, the internal dialogue starts all over again. And there goes the self deception again.

You Snooze, You Lose

The big secret is that nothing really different will happen if you sleep a few hours more, watch TV instead of train, eat that piece of cake, instead of some fruit, etc. That’s right, nothing happens.

You will not feel much more rested if you sleep one more hour. On the contrary, you may mess up your ultradian rhythms if you wake up in the middle of an REM cycle and thus sabotage your energy levels. As far as that cake goes, the sugar rush lasts for only a couple of minutes. Is it really worth it, considering how it will affect your energy levels for the next couple of hours? But I digress…

Finally, skipping workouts is clearly the easiest way to make sure that you don’t progress at an optimal rate. Or much at all.

Carpe Diem

[Dead Poets' Society. The ironic thing about the video is that the boys from the movie are no longer here. It’s now 20 years later and I hope they’ve seized the opportunities that life has thrown their way.]

Most seniors get this message when they are graduating from high school. It used to be that I didn’t exactly get it. How do you mean seize the day, I was wondering. Here is the deal – once you leave school, you are now in charge of how your life will develop. There is no schedule, no curriculum.

You are responsible for putting to action a plan of long term success. At the same time, you need to try and live each day to the fullest.

[Groundhog Day. Bill Murray's character is trapped in the same day and is cursed to relieve it over and over until he decides to make the best of it and execute every tiny detail of his day perfectly.]

The days pass, no matter how you live them. You might as well give it your best. What would your perfect day look like?

Image: Bengt E Nyman

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[Will Smith transformed his body from the skinny teenager in "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" to a muscular athlete for his powerful impersonation of the greatest boxer who has ever lived in Ali.]

The Worst Workout Program In The World Will Give Results If You Stick To It

That’s right, no matter how lousy or ‘unscientific’ your routine is, if you stick to it and don’t miss workouts, you will succeed. Mark McManus alluded to this in this post. Progressive overload, the key to muscle building success, is all about making continuous small incremental increases. Little by little, you are getting closer and closer to your goal.

Do you know the kind of bozos at the gym that lift with atrocious form and dismal selection of exercises? Well those ‘bozos’ will make bigger gains than you, if you miss workouts, because they won’t skip training. Who’s the bozo now?

When You Are Not Being Consistent, You Are Actually Regressing, Not Progressing

No wonder you don’t have the body you want if you have to start from scratch every time you restart your training. This is like the difference between TRAINING and WORKING OUT. People TRAIN for a specific outcome, a specific result or goal. It’s a plan spanning over a number of weeks or months. Even years. This consistent approach will give significant results when it comes to transforming your body. Now, WORKING OUT, on the other hand, means to me a sort of ‘in the moment’ approach. It’s like being on maintenance mode. Maintaining and gaining are obviously different and this inconsistent, on and off approach will simply not give long term results.

The More Advanced You Are, The Less You Can Progress

It’s simple really. We all have our genetic potential for physical development. The closer we get to fulfilling it, the harder it gets to progress forwards. This brings me to the last point.

Intensity, Hustling, And Busting Your Ass

[The whole vid is golden, but watch it after 4:00 - for these powerful words: "I will not be outworked. Period.”]

Things that are worth getting don’t come easy. When it comes to getting lean and muscular, this is also true. Listen, you have to be willing to push yourself. Make every rep, every set, every exercise, and every workout session count. The intensity of your workout – how much you bust your ass, is what can make a lousy program work for you. People have been getting results since forever. And their secret? The will to hustle in order to get what they want.

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