How often in real life are you pushing forward with your hands with your back braced off a flat surface? My guess would be, probably never. So, if that’s the case, why do so many people put so much emphasis on the bench press? In real life power is gathered from the ground, and is very rarely done straight out perpendicular to the body. Taking the example of an NFL lineman, when pressing with his arms, he’s doing it at an incline angle. Also, if he’s completely upright he’ll most likely end up on his back. He gathers power through his feet and transfers it through his body. Training should reflect this where the majority should be done standing, with seated or lying down being more secondary or supplemental options.

Jaime Gamache M.Ed., CSCS, is Owner and Head Strength Coach of The Way Human Performance Institute ( www.thewayhpi.com or on Facebook, www.facebook.com/pages/The-Way-Human-Performance-Institute/117742824954659 )

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Whether you believe in evolution or creationism, one fact remains: human beings were designed to move from the ground up.

In the health club/nautilus culture, machines were designed with the intention of working every major muscle group in an isolated way with the theory that fitness is achieved by the collective summation of the parts of the body. Functional training takes an oppositional stance of the body acting as a whole and disregarding the strength of a single muscle group over others.

The invention of these machines has led to a host of exercises where the feet are no longer in contact with the ground (ie. leg extensions and leg curls). Excessive use of these machines creates strength where the focus of that strength is not at the point of contact with the ground, but at a point around the ankle. This creates unnatural or unbalanced torque on the knee. Exercises of this type are called “open chain” because the direction of force is not at the farthest point of the lever arm (ie. hand or foot). ”Closed chain” exercises are by definition the opposite, and maintain the foot in contact with the ground. Squats, lunges and even leg curls on a stability or medicine ball are all examples of closed chain exercises.

Jaime Gamache M.Ed., CSCS, is Owner and Head Strength Coach of The Way Human Performance Institute ( www.thewayhpi.com and www.facebook.com/pages/The-Way-Human-Performance-Institute/117742824954659 )

We would like to introduce our newest contributor Jaime Gamache M.Ed., CSCS. He is Owner and Head Strength Coach of The Way Human Performance Institute www.thewayhpi.com located in Cranston RI.

“Toning” is a myth.

Repeat, it doesn’t exist.

Toning only happens in printers.

It’s a word made up by the fitness industry to trick uninformed women (which I’m sure there are none of reading this) into believing that strength training using the same methods as men will cause them harm or to blow up like bodybuilders (which is such and easy process, why wouldn’t everyone do it?)

Well, to put the cart before the horse, as most of you know, putting on quality muscle takes years and years of training. Professional bodybuilders spend most of their lives in the gym and female bodybuilders are no different. The average woman walking into the gym will never even change their muscular circumference, never mind adding bulk.

The reason for this is that when women strength train, at a muscular level they perform a process called “Enervation”. In simple terms, this means that women develop neural pathways that allow them to access and activate muscle cells they already have.

The average person only effectively uses about 30% of the muscle in their body, pro athletes have been found to use up to 50%. The theory for this is that while adrenaline allows women to lift cars off their children, repeated occurrences of that magnitude would have devastating effects on our bones and ligaments. Men and women are born with a certain number of muscle (and fat) cells. This number never changes, regardless of training. While women enervate, men’s muscle cells get thicker. The key ingredient in the difference is testosterone. Testosterone is what allows men to create more muscle mass and while women do have some testosterone in their bodies, most don’t have enough to allow for bulky muscle to develop.

In a practical sense, this means that while on the average, women will not generate the same force that men will. This is more true for upper body strength than lower body strength where it has been shown that women display proportionate strength to mass ratio in the lower body. But, from a tactical standpoint, women can generate considerable force and power when performing the same type of functional training as their male contemporaries.

Jaime Gamache M.Ed., CSCS, is Owner and Head Strength Coach of The Way Human Performance Institute ( www.thewayhpi.com and www.facebook.com/pages/The-Way-Human-Performance-Institute/117742824954659 )

In strength-coaching circles, this method is often called the “ten sets method”, “German volume training” or “10×10”. Olympic athletes and bodybuilders have used it in one form or another since the forties. European countries used the 10×10 method in the off-season to help weightlifters gain lean body mass. It worked so well that lifters routinely moved up a full weight class within 12 weeks. Gains of 7-10lbs are average for a six-week training cycle. No one is sure who actually invented it or what the true name is but everyone agrees that it produces big gains.

        The objective of the program is to do ten sets of ten reps with the same weight for each exercise (sounds easier than it is). While the first two sets might seem easy, most will start falling short of ten reps after about five sets, just think of the ten reps as a goal to shoot for over the six week training cycle. You determine your starting weight by choosing an amount of resistance that you could perform 20 reps with (roughly 60% of your one rep maximum).

        It works by exposing one group of motor units to a high volume of repeated efforts. The body adapts to the incredible amount of stress by growing the targeted fibers at an extremely quick pace. This program mainly uses multi joint lifts and will require an exhaustive amount of work and recovery from large muscle groups so make sure you have proper pre and post workout sups as well as a creatine product like ANS Diesel Fuel to help you get the most out of your hard work. 

Day 1- Chest and Back

                                        Sets          reps         rest interval

A-1 Incline Barbell            10            10            90 sec

        Press

A-2   Chin-Ups                  10            10            90 sec

        (Weighted if needed)

Day 2 – Legs and Abs

                                        Sets          reps         rest interval

A-1 Front Squats              10            10            90 sec

A-2 Prone Leg Curl           10            10            90 sec

        Machine

Day 3 – off

Day 4 – arms and shoulders

                                        Sets          reps         rest interval

A-1 Dips (weighted if needed) 10            10            90 sec

A-2 Seated Dumbbell        10            10            90 sec

        Curls               

B-1 Military Press             10            10            120sec

Day 5 – off

Repeat

                                                                                    Note: “A1” and “A2” indicate that the labeled exercises are to be performed together as a superset with the rest interval between them.

Pre and post workout nutrition are crucial especially when taking on a workout with this much volume.  Pre-workout try mixing MSI Lean Revolution with Intek BCAA’s and for Post Workout Recovery mix 2 scoops of Bio Rhythm After Glow with 1 scoop of ANS Diesel Fuel.

Tired of seeing all those guys at the gym pushing fully loaded barbells?  Trying to join that elusive 300lb club?  Than this 8 week routine may be for you.  This workout plan is designed specifically for increasing your maximum poundage on any of the power movements.  I would suggest concentrating on increasing your max lift one movement at a time so as to get the best results. 

Week 1.  You’re going to want to start this program by testing your single rep max.  Start off with a warmup set and increase the poundage until you get to your single rep max. 

Week 2.  This week you are going to be doing triples, or sets of three.  Start with a warmup set and then do three working sets with a weight that you can get three repititions with.

Week 3.  Next you will be using a weight that you can get six reps with; one warmup set and three sets of six reps.

Week 4.  This week you will be doing sets of ten reps; one warmup and three sets of ten reps.

Week 5.  Increase the rep count to twelve reps this week; one warmup and three sets of twelve.

Week 6.  The rep count is now up to fifteen this week; one warmup and three sets of fifteen.

Week 7.  This is an active rest week.  This week you will be skipping the movement that you are concentrating on.  You will still work out that particular body part only you will be doing other exercises.  This gives your body a chance to “catch up” and recover for week 8.

Week 8.  This is basically Week 1 revisited.  Its time to test that single rep max again.  Your max lift should be increased by 10 to 20lbs.

This training cycle works well for most people and I utilize it often. 

Schedule

Schedule Explanation: This workout program is done on the same days of each week on the schedule shown above. The blank days are OFF days.

Workout #1

Workout #2

There are several exercises you can do for abs. Many of the people I work with don’t realize that most abdominal exercises are either ineffective or not needed. To set the record straight on which work and which don’t, I have listed five noteworthy abdominal exercises.

Crunches

Most already know how to perform this upper abdominal target exercise. It’s basic, yet highly effective. Perform crunches by lying on a flat surface with your hands either across your chest or behind your head. Contract your abs. Hold for 2 seconds, then return to the starting position. Crunches should be performed in a continuous and controlled fashion.

Side Crunches

Side Crunches are basically the same as regular crunches, except the main focus is on the oblique muscles (love handles). The same technique applies, only your crunching to either side of your abs. You should feel the burn of the sides of your abs.

Lying Leg Lifts

This exercise targets the lower abs. Use the same position as crunches. Lying flat on your back, lift your legs 6 – 12 inches off of the ground. Perform repeatedly until you feel the burn in your lower abs.

Tip: Place your hand under your buttocks when performing lying leg lifts. It adds leverage and helps you get your feet elevated. It works!

Hanging Leg Raises

This exercise is another good lower ab target. It’s a little more of an advanced exercise because it requires a strong back, shoulders, and chest (secondary muscles) to prevent swinging on the bar. Start hanging from a bar with your feet dangling freely. Pull them toward your chest in a slow and controlled manner. Repeat until you feel the burn. This exercise may be hard at first, but if you can master the technique, you can get awesome results!

V-Crunches

The V-crunch is best when performed on a flat bench. It’s another lower ab target. It’s almost like lying leg lifts except your chest is at a 45 degree angle starting out. Sit at the edge of a bench and reach back just enough to support yourself from completely lying on the bench. Once you’re stabilized, bring your knees toward your chest. You basically want to create a V motion when you perform them. For example, one end of the V is your head, the other is your knee. The base of the V would be your abs.

4 Day Advanced Workout

Schedule

Schedule Explanation: This workout program is done on the same days of each week on the schedule shown above. The blank days are OFF days.

Workout #1

Workout #2

 Straight Powerlifting Workout

Schedule Explanation: This workout program is done on the same days of each week on the schedule shown above. The blank days are OFF days.

Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3

Workout #4

Strength Building Workout

Schedule

Schedule Explanation: This workout program is done on the same days of each week on the schedule shown above. The blank days are OFF days.

Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3