Listed by topic:
- Basic Info
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Abs
- Cardio
- High Intensity Training
- Bodybuilding and Hypertrophy
- Injuries and Sports Medicine
- Testosterone
- Nutrition and Diets
- Miscellaneous Topics
- Olympic weightlifting
- Periodization
- Plyometrics
- Powerlifting
- Sports-specific
- Stretching and flexibility
"Welcome to Exercise 101. I will be your instructor. Class is now in session."
I will be starting at a very basic level for the first few posts in
order to define some key terms involved. In this post, I will adress
certain basic principles involved in all types of exercise (no, not the
damn Weider principles).
This is the second part of my intro to basic exercise.
Today, I will focus in a little more specifically on weight
training and on some of the terminolgy involved.
Now that I've sort of covered most of the necessary
info to start a program of aerobic exercise, let me turn my
attention more toward resistance training.
This time, I will be continuing my
intro to weight training with a further discussion of optimal
rep ranges having laid the groundwork with a rather boring
discussion of muscle fiber types.
This time I would like to address the choice of machines
versus free weights for the beginning weight trainer.
In this section, I will try to bring everything together by
discussing exercise selection, order, and how to design a workout.
So, let's put it all together. A possible workout routine might look like this.
The intention of this article is to present the most effective training principles in a simple and clear fashion. Ideas presented include progressive overload, nutrition, and much more. You will see results by following these basic concepts.
Frequently Asked Questions file from the usenet newgroup misc.fitness.
Frequently Asked Questions file from the usenet newgroup misc.fitness.
Frequently Asked Questions file from the usenet newgroup misc.fitness.
Frequently Asked Questions file from the usenet newgroup misc.fitness.
Everything you ever wanted to know about abs training.
After one too many questions I have decided to put together a
plyometrics FAQ. All information is for information purposes only.
As posted to misc.fitness.weights newsgroup.
This is the only version ever posted to usenet. Another web site has an updated version with a higher version number, but it contains only very minor differences.
By Steve Kidwell, 1998 Mr. USA AAU Overall Winner.
"What the heck is a kettlebell? The ultimate hand-held gym!"
"Everything you never wanted to know"
Brief FAQ from bionet.metabolic-reg newsgroup.
A draft diet FAQ from uk.rec.bodybuilding.
From uk.rec.bodybuilding newsgroup.
Info on high protein, low carb diets including Atkins and others.
A philosophy of bodybuilding that claims to be best for those who are less genetically gifted.
Everything you ever wanted to know about abs training.
I realized after posting the list of general
exercise terms that I had failed to explain a few things
adequately, like heart rate reserve and VO2 max. So, in
this post, I will delve further into determining exercise
intensity for aerobic exercise.
The 8 x 8 system is a very unique, and highly
productive training program devised by legendary
trainer Vince Gironda, that will help you quickly
build muscle and lost fat without aerobics.
Everyone knows what a muscle is, right? Hmmm…or do they? Muscles comprise the majority of our body weight, and are responsible for all body movement. In fact there are approximately 650 muscles in your body.
If you have minor hand or wrist pain there is the possibility of it being alleviated. And this can be done for roughly one cent!
A discussion on usenet about the safety of explosive weight training and the olympic lifts. You can see the two predominant viewpoints represented in this posting.
What turns out to be a small, yet annoying pain in your joint, can quickly turn into something much more debilitating. At first, you just think it might be a pulled muscle. Maybe I did a bit too much…
Researchers in Greece have shown that ordinary baking soda may neutralize the
acid in muscles during intense exercise and helps athletes to exercise longer. Should you apply this idea to your exercise program?
Have you heard about testosterone replacement as a treatment for andropause? Andropause, or male menopause, is caused by low
testosterone levels in men. Testosterone levels decline in men beginning about age 27 and low testosterone levels can be unhealthy
in men. Men with andropause have many of the same symptoms as…
Have you heard about testosterone replacement as a treatment for andropause? Andropause, or male menopause, is caused by low
testosterone levels in men. Testosterone levels decline in men beginning about age 27 and low testosterone levels can be unhealthy
in men. Men with andropause have many of the same symptoms as…
As you explore the various supplements designed to help you achieve greater results with your bodybuilding efforts, you are sure to be
confronted with the great testosterone supplement debate. Do you need testosterone supplements? Are testosterone supplements safe?
If you're an athlete, you're accustomed to watching what you eat. But you may not know what to eat before an event to optimize performance and send your energy levels soaring through the roof. Supplements can certainly help with this effort, but without satisfying crucial dietary needs, the foundation upon which you base everything else will crumble. At that point, you can forget about being at the top of your game.
Following the Atkins Diet rules helped me to lose 120 pounds in about eighteen months. While I am thrilled with the results, I found that when I first started the hardest part was sticking with rules until I got a real feel for what I could and couldn’t do as I went through the four phases.
Doctors who specialize in weight loss are using proven techniques to help their patiets lose weight and burn fat more effectively than ever before. Now you can apply these clinically proven methods and the latest food reseach discoveries to any diet, exercise, or weight loss program for faster, easier results.
A step-by step guide to creating your own weight loss plan form the ground-up. lose weight while building muscle and shedding body fat; keep the muscle, lose the fat.
In order for a weight loss program to be successful, the end product should be a "transformed" physique; drastic decreases in body fat accompanied by visually lean, toned muscles. Unfortunately, most weight loss programs fail; the dieter either gives up, eating everything in site and gaining all the weight back or they starve themselves, shedding muscle mass and essentially ending up with a scaled down -
Is the Atkins Diet Safe? Is ketosis dangerous to your body? The final verdict on low carbohydrate diets.
This "French paradox" was the subject of a study widely publicized by its coverage on 60 Minutes. That study identified resveratrol as the active ingredient in red wine responsible for protecting the heart. As a result of that study and others, the scientific community began taking resveratrol seriously. Venture capitalists have even invested in further research to find a longevity pharmaceutical based on resveratrol.
This very old newspaper article talks about the Banting Diet, famous for being the first diet book in history and related high fat diet invented by a German professor around 1883.
A new study says that "… eating fewer calories leads to weight loss, regardless of where those calories come from." But what about other health factors?
Negatives
Well, if I wanted to make this essay really short, I could sum up muscle
growth in one word: NEGATIVES.
Last time I talked about some of why negatives seem to be
very imprtant for muscular growth. This time I will start with some
real world application of this and (hopefully) segueway into a discussion
of power training.
In this third and final part on negatives, I would like to discuss the
differences between power training and standard mass/strength training.
I wrapped up last time with some preliminary comments on the
generally female idea of "I don't want to get too big from weights". Well, I
would like to expound on that a bit further.
Singles
What have you heard about single rep training?
Does the following sound familiar?
"Singles are dangerous and a great way to get injured."
"Singles are great for strength but don't build muscle."
"Singles are for powerlifters, not bodybuilders, and definitely
not for 'regular' weight trainers trying to build some muscle
and burn some fat."What if I told you that none of this is true?
While there are many so-called 'experts' who would tell you that singles don't really build strength, or that you must train with higher reps to gain size, the results will speak for themselves if you give singles training a try…
Sport Psychology
The intention of this article is to share some of the basics of exercise and sport psychology and to illustrate the importance of our thoughts and emotions relative to our physical goals. I will also describe some simple techniques that you can use regularly to improve you performance. This information is directed to those readers who are already participating in a regular bodybuilding or strength training program and are motivated to achieve greater results.
Strength training and power training are critical components to the success of any athlete competing in sports that rely on speed and power for success. More specifically, the proper use of the Olympic lifts (the snatch, clean and their variations) facilitate improvements across a variety of modalities. When learned and executed correctly, Olympic Lifts increase and improve strength, power, speed, coordination, balance, flexibility, as well as overall conditioning. As a coach, you understand the role that all of these functions play in developing competitive and successful athletes.
As an Olympic lifting coach, I've always felt that the best way to teach an Olympic lifting movement is the dissect the lifts into segments. When doing so with a clean, I've found that using Romanian Deadlifts, Clean Pulls, and Front Squats to be the best three exercises for this purpose.
The Snatch is essentially three movements run together, one after the other, into a competitive lifting event.
If one really, truly, and honestly thinks about it, one can NOT really call them self a COMPLETE strength athlete, unless one meets that main prerequisite of being able to lift objects proficiently from the floor all the way to arms' length overhead. Thus, when performing your weight training exercises in the gym, the Power Clean and Push Press should probably be one the main staples of your training. In short, if you're not doing these exercises, get off of your back and back side and start training while standing on your own two feet with the bar in your own two hands.
Unfortunately, finding good instruction in the sport of weightlifting in the early 21st century can be tough. That said, it is far from impossible. To be honest, I had wanted to 'be a weightlifter' for a long time. While competing in powerlifting and strongman was fun, I always wanted to be one of the guys who was not only super strong, but fast, coordinated and lean. The Olympic weightlifters that I saw were not just 'lifters,' they were 'athletes.' Also, I have always felt that the lifters like Chakarov and Arranda (and guys like Pisarenko and Blagoev before them) were the strongest squatters on the planet with their rock-bottom, vertical torso, no recoil gear triples done with triple bodyweight.
Almost every weightlifting text has a sequence on how to perform the lifts, and usually they have a section outlining 'common mistakes'… the problem is that while most of these texts tell you 'what is going on' during the lift ("the acceleration phase begins with a knee angle of 80 degrees, and ends with a knee angle of 150…"), they often don't do a very good job of practically explaining how you can get your body to do those same things. The following are some things that I think can be of help to a fairly inexperienced and/or self-taught trainee, largely in the areas of set-up and positioning.
For those who don't know, Canadian born Doug Hepburn was one of the strongest men to grace our planet with only Paul Anderson being stronger at the time.
An interview with the coach who developed what has come to be known as the Bulgarian method.
This article was written for the single purpose of exploring Bulgarian training methods as they can and should be used by your run-of-the-mill American weightlifter. Well, that and for the purpose of firing off a little rant. But, if you can get through the ranting, I promise there will be some training stuff somewhere in there…
Basically, periodization provides a method by which the dreaded plateau can be avoided.
Having outlined strict periodization last time, let me
describe the modified periodization that is aimed more at the
non-competitive exerciser
Periodization. I've written at length about this concept and it has sort
of become the training buzz word of the 90's. However, if you've read
my previous articles about periodization, I've only ever dealt with
one type of training (strength or endurance) at any given time. So, how
does one go about combining the two into a periodized routine.
You have witnessed individuals following the same initial strength conditioning program month after month, year after year, using the same weightloads, exercises sets and repetitions, trying to lose those extra 10 pounds or improve their strength to no avail. There is a prime reason these people no longer see results in their strength conditioning program or their health and fitness goals… They fail to utilize periodization in their training program.To keep your workout primed and progressive, you must follow a few simple variables of periodization training…
I would to fill everyone in on just what true periodization is and what it
isn't. I certainly isn't what Leo Costa presents in his book "Big Beyond
Belief".
After one too many questions I have decided to put together a
plyometrics FAQ. All information is for information purposes only.
Aleck summarizes an article by Eric Zorn who was writing for The Chicago Tribune that talks the use of plyometrics, olympic lifts, and other techniques to increase verticle jump.
Guidelines for the (hopefully) safe and effective use of plyometrics (2)
At the risk of kicking up the whole explosive movement, plyometric arguement again, I really would like to make a couple of points about specificity as I think it's being mis-used somewhat.
One obvious difference between weightlifting and powerlifting is the fact that weightlifting is an Olympic sport while powerlifting is still fighting it out to enter the Olympics.
This is the only version ever posted to usenet. Another web site has an updated version with a higher version number, but it contains only very minor differences.
Fitting a heavy lower body strength workout into your strength training program is usually the last thing on a wrestler's mind, especially in season. With all the practicing and running to make weight, who can blame them?
"Everything you never wanted to know"
Listed by author:
- Aleck H Alexopoulos
- Brad Appleton
- J. V. Askem
- Patrick Beith
- Charlie Bender
- Tom Bomar
- Brian Carson
- Jerry Connelly
- Marc David
- Robert DiMaggio
- Dane Fletcer
- Gregg Gillies
- Josh Hewett
- Jason F. Keen
- Katrina Kern
- Steve Kidwell
- Matt Mc Dermott
- Lyle McDonald
- Ken Mannie
- Tim Mansfield
- Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
- James Monahan
- Michael Smith, MD
- Mel Thompson
- Kevin Urban
- Bill Willis
- Yelena Vaytsehovskaya
- Dickie White
Aleck summarizes an article by Eric Zorn who was writing for The Chicago Tribune that talks the use of plyometrics, olympic lifts, and other techniques to increase verticle jump.
"Everything you never wanted to know"
A selection of articles by the "Cable/Bar Guy". For more of his articles, see the links page.
As an Olympic lifting coach, I've always felt that the best way to teach an Olympic lifting movement is the dissect the lifts into segments. When doing so with a clean, I've found that using Romanian Deadlifts, Clean Pulls, and Front Squats to be the best three exercises for this purpose.
The Snatch is essentially three movements run together, one after the other, into a competitive lifting event.
If one really, truly, and honestly thinks about it, one can NOT really call them self a COMPLETE strength athlete, unless one meets that main prerequisite of being able to lift objects proficiently from the floor all the way to arms' length overhead. Thus, when performing your weight training exercises in the gym, the Power Clean and Push Press should probably be one the main staples of your training. In short, if you're not doing these exercises, get off of your back and back side and start training while standing on your own two feet with the bar in your own two hands.
Strength training and power training are critical components to the success of any athlete competing in sports that rely on speed and power for success. More specifically, the proper use of the Olympic lifts (the snatch, clean and their variations) facilitate improvements across a variety of modalities. When learned and executed correctly, Olympic Lifts increase and improve strength, power, speed, coordination, balance, flexibility, as well as overall conditioning. As a coach, you understand the role that all of these functions play in developing competitive and successful athletes.
After one too many questions I have decided to put together a
plyometrics FAQ. All information is for information purposes only.
You have witnessed individuals following the same initial strength conditioning program month after month, year after year, using the same weightloads, exercises sets and repetitions, trying to lose those extra 10 pounds or improve their strength to no avail. There is a prime reason these people no longer see results in their strength conditioning program or their health and fitness goals… They fail to utilize periodization in their training program.To keep your workout primed and progressive, you must follow a few simple variables of periodization training…
For those who don't know, Canadian born Doug Hepburn was one of the strongest men to grace our planet with only Paul Anderson being stronger at the time.
I would to fill everyone in on just what true periodization is and what it
isn't. I certainly isn't what Leo Costa presents in his book "Big Beyond
Belief".
What turns out to be a small, yet annoying pain in your joint, can quickly turn into something much more debilitating. At first, you just think it might be a pulled muscle. Maybe I did a bit too much…
Everyone knows what a muscle is, right? Hmmm…or do they? Muscles comprise the majority of our body weight, and are responsible for all body movement. In fact there are approximately 650 muscles in your body.
If you're an athlete, you're accustomed to watching what you eat. But you may not know what to eat before an event to optimize performance and send your energy levels soaring through the roof. Supplements can certainly help with this effort, but without satisfying crucial dietary needs, the foundation upon which you base everything else will crumble. At that point, you can forget about being at the top of your game.
What have you heard about single rep training?
Does the following sound familiar?
"Singles are dangerous and a great way to get injured."
"Singles are great for strength but don't build muscle."
"Singles are for powerlifters, not bodybuilders, and definitely
not for 'regular' weight trainers trying to build some muscle
and burn some fat."What if I told you that none of this is true?
The 8 x 8 system is a very unique, and highly
productive training program devised by legendary
trainer Vince Gironda, that will help you quickly
build muscle and lost fat without aerobics.
The intention of this article is to present the most effective training principles in a simple and clear fashion. Ideas presented include progressive overload, nutrition, and much more. You will see results by following these basic concepts.
The intention of this article is to share some of the basics of exercise and sport psychology and to illustrate the importance of our thoughts and emotions relative to our physical goals. I will also describe some simple techniques that you can use regularly to improve you performance. This information is directed to those readers who are already participating in a regular bodybuilding or strength training program and are motivated to achieve greater results.
Originally posted to Jason's University of Minnesota pages, his articles have been posted other places on the internet, often with no attribution. His original pages have been taken off the University of Minnesota site.
This article was written for the single purpose of exploring Bulgarian training methods as they can and should be used by your run-of-the-mill American weightlifter. Well, that and for the purpose of firing off a little rant. But, if you can get through the ranting, I promise there will be some training stuff somewhere in there…
Almost every weightlifting text has a sequence on how to perform the lifts, and usually they have a section outlining 'common mistakes'… the problem is that while most of these texts tell you 'what is going on' during the lift ("the acceleration phase begins with a knee angle of 80 degrees, and ends with a knee angle of 150…"), they often don't do a very good job of practically explaining how you can get your body to do those same things. The following are some things that I think can be of help to a fairly inexperienced and/or self-taught trainee, largely in the areas of set-up and positioning.
Unfortunately, finding good instruction in the sport of weightlifting in the early 21st century can be tough. That said, it is far from impossible. To be honest, I had wanted to 'be a weightlifter' for a long time. While competing in powerlifting and strongman was fun, I always wanted to be one of the guys who was not only super strong, but fast, coordinated and lean. The Olympic weightlifters that I saw were not just 'lifters,' they were 'athletes.' Also, I have always felt that the lifters like Chakarov and Arranda (and guys like Pisarenko and Blagoev before them) were the strongest squatters on the planet with their rock-bottom, vertical torso, no recoil gear triples done with triple bodyweight.
While there are many so-called 'experts' who would tell you that singles don't really build strength, or that you must train with higher reps to gain size, the results will speak for themselves if you give singles training a try…
Doctors who specialize in weight loss are using proven techniques to help their patiets lose weight and burn fat more effectively than ever before. Now you can apply these clinically proven methods and the latest food reseach discoveries to any diet, exercise, or weight loss program for faster, easier results.
Jason's web site Natural Physique Systems web site has disappeared from the internet. Jason authored the Bodybuilding Competition FAQ.
If you have minor hand or wrist pain there is the possibility of it being alleviated. And this can be done for roughly one cent!
"Welcome to Exercise 101. I will be your instructor. Class is now in session."
I will be starting at a very basic level for the first few posts in
order to define some key terms involved. In this post, I will adress
certain basic principles involved in all types of exercise (no, not the
damn Weider principles).
I realized after posting the list of general
exercise terms that I had failed to explain a few things
adequately, like heart rate reserve and VO2 max. So, in
this post, I will delve further into determining exercise
intensity for aerobic exercise.
This is the second part of my intro to basic exercise.
Today, I will focus in a little more specifically on weight
training and on some of the terminolgy involved.
Now that I've sort of covered most of the necessary
info to start a program of aerobic exercise, let me turn my
attention more toward resistance training.
This time, I will be continuing my
intro to weight training with a further discussion of optimal
rep ranges having laid the groundwork with a rather boring
discussion of muscle fiber types.
This time I would like to address the choice of machines
versus free weights for the beginning weight trainer.
In this section, I will try to bring everything together by
discussing exercise selection, order, and how to design a workout.
So, let's put it all together. A possible workout routine might look like this.
Well, if I wanted to make this essay really short, I could sum up muscle
growth in one word: NEGATIVES.
Last time I talked about some of why negatives seem to be
very imprtant for muscular growth. This time I will start with some
real world application of this and (hopefully) segueway into a discussion
of power training.
In this third and final part on negatives, I would like to discuss the
differences between power training and standard mass/strength training.
I wrapped up last time with some preliminary comments on the
generally female idea of "I don't want to get too big from weights". Well, I
would like to expound on that a bit further.
Basically, periodization provides a method by which the dreaded plateau can be avoided.
Having outlined strict periodization last time, let me
describe the modified periodization that is aimed more at the
non-competitive exerciser.
Well, having covered periodization in adequate detail, I would
like to say a couple more things aimed at the intermediate weight
trainers out there. At this point, the waters get a bit muddy regarding
what is "right", "best" or whatever.
Ok, having outlined a basic three day split last time, let me describe
another common split. This one is a four day push-pull split.
Periodization. I've written at length about this concept and it has sort
of become the training buzz word of the 90's. However, if you've read
my previous articles about periodization, I've only ever dealt with
one type of training (strength or endurance) at any given time. So, how
does one go about combining the two into a periodized routine.
Guidelines for the (hopefully) safe and effective use of plyometrics (2)
At the risk of kicking up the whole explosive movement, plyometric arguement again, I really would like to make a couple of points about specificity as I think it's being mis-used somewhat.
A discussion on usenet about the safety of explosive weight training and the olympic lifts. You can see the two predominant viewpoints represented in this posting.
Everything you ever wanted to know about abs training.
Researchers in Greece have shown that ordinary baking soda may neutralize the
acid in muscles during intense exercise and helps athletes to exercise longer. Should you apply this idea to your exercise program?
One obvious difference between weightlifting and powerlifting is the fact that weightlifting is an Olympic sport while powerlifting is still fighting it out to enter the Olympics.
Is the Atkins Diet Safe? Is ketosis dangerous to your body? The final verdict on low carbohydrate diets.
This "French paradox" was the subject of a study widely publicized by its coverage on 60 Minutes. That study identified resveratrol as the active ingredient in red wine responsible for protecting the heart. As a result of that study and others, the scientific community began taking resveratrol seriously. Venture capitalists have even invested in further research to find a longevity pharmaceutical based on resveratrol.
Following the Atkins Diet rules helped me to lose 120 pounds in about eighteen months. While I am thrilled with the results, I found that when I first started the hardest part was sticking with rules until I got a real feel for what I could and couldn’t do as I went through the four phases.
A step-by step guide to creating your own weight loss plan form the ground-up. lose weight while building muscle and shedding body fat; keep the muscle, lose the fat.
In order for a weight loss program to be successful, the end product should be a "transformed" physique; drastic decreases in body fat accompanied by visually lean, toned muscles. Unfortunately, most weight loss programs fail; the dieter either gives up, eating everything in site and gaining all the weight back or they starve themselves, shedding muscle mass and essentially ending up with a scaled down -
An interview with the coach who developed what has come to be known as the Bulgarian method.
Fitting a heavy lower body strength workout into your strength training program is usually the last thing on a wrestler's mind, especially in season. With all the practicing and running to make weight, who can blame them?