So in the previous post about bulking we touched on what determines whether or not you should consider doing a 'bulk' (I really dislike this word by the way), or not. Again, let me just say to drive the point home, that bulking is not an excuse to get fat, get sloppy, etc. The point to a bulk is to simply gain muscle - obviously. However, a free-for-all caloric onslaught is a quick way to unnecessary fat gain. An effective bulk is characterized by an attempt to maximize the muscle-to-fat-gain ratio, all the while understanding and accepting that yes, some fat is going to come. I get asked questions like these quite often: How long should I bulk? How long... read more 2 comments

I get asked a variety of bulking-type questions a lot – mostly from females – so I thought I'd just cut and paste a question and answer it here for reference. My opinions here would not be gender specific, applying both to males and females. Q: Still tossing around the idea of doing a figure competition. Would I have to do a bulk and how long would I bulk for? A: Ok, just to put some context to the term 'bulk' here, it simply means eating at a caloric intake that is above your assumed maintenance calorie requirements for an extended period of time – with the obvious goals of adding some size and strength to your physique. It is... read more 2 comments

Last week I wrote up a post called Spotters: You Don't Need One where I explained why 9.9 times out of 10, they're a waste of time and how their biggest 'use' is to stroke your ego and somehow have you believing you actually lifted that weight - when they said "it's all you, come on, it's all you!" Well, rather than just leave that as my opinion - a very sound a logical one at that, here's some scientific support to go along with it. Increased number of forced repetitions does not enhance strength development with resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2007 Aug;21(3):841-7. Increased number of forced repetitions does not enhance strength development with resistance training. Drinkwater EJ, Lawton... read more 1 comments

Ok, I better qualify that to ensure that what I'm saying is very clear - 99% of the time and 99% of you, do not need to use a spotter - ever! Who and when would the 1% be? Someone like a powerlifter going for a big 1RM on the bench or the squat for example. BUT, the spotter would be doing what a spotter is supposed to do - be there just in case. A spotter's job is not to help you do the lift. Another example where I can see the use of a spotter - again, doing what they're supposed to be doing, which is not helping you complete reps - is getting a hand off when... read more 8 comments

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