Is Bodyweight Training Effective for Building Muscle? - How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet | How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet

Is Bodyweight Training Effective for Building Muscle?

Bodyweight training is incredibly effective for building muscle.

Some would even argue that it’s better than free weights.

Bodyweight exercises don’t beat up your joints as much as traditional weight training exercises do. They allow for a more natural range of motion and improve your overall athleticism quite effectively.
Advanced bodyweight exercises require unmatched levels of full body tension. This is what leads to incredible strength gains.

However, there are still those who  argue that bodyweight training isn’t as effective as weight lifting when it comes to building muscle.

That’s because it’s often associated with high reps, endurance and the military.

But if you look at the muscular upper body development of male gymnasts it kind of paints a different picture.

The problem is that most people don’t know or utilize proper bodyweight progressions.

So they never really increase the resistance.

They just do basic variations of pushups or inverted rows and then think to themselves, “This is too easy to build muscle.”

And they’re right. Those two exercises, in their most basic form, would be too easy and wouldn’t provide enough tension or overload to build muscle.

But what about if you worked up to one arm pushups?

Or one arm inverted rows?

Jungle Gym XT steep incline pushups?



Ultra wide grip inverted rows to the neck with the elbows flared and a 2-3 second hold at the top?
Then you get to the point where you’re adding chains or weighted vests to those exercises?
Now, technically that’s not strictly bodyweight training anymore. In that instance it becomes bodyweight plus resistance.

But it’s still a variation of bodyweight training and is still highly effective.

Bodyweight Training Requires Patience & Dedication

Another reason people think you can build muscle more effectively with weight training is because it’s a lot easier to grab a heavier dumbbell than it is to progress from a crow stand or frog stand all the way to a planche pushup over the course of 18-24 months.

That takes a LOT of patience and discipline. The other problem is that as you’re getting bigger and as you gain weight through proper nutrition, the bodyweight exercises become more difficult so then you can’t progress as quickly. Or you perceive a lack of progress and give up.

Most intelligent coaches would argue that a chin up is superior to a pulldown for building muscle. So why wouldn’t other bodyweight exercises be effective?

Why wouldn’t l-sit ring dips with a forward lean be more effective than a bench press?
Why wouldn’t glute ham raises be more effective than leg curls?
Why wouldn’t front levers be more effective than stiff arm pulldowns?
Why wouldn’t Power Wheel Rollouts be more effective than an ab machine?

I’d argue that they are.

The lack of knowledge regarding bodyweight training and its proper progressions is what prevents more people from getting the results they should from it.

Bodyweight exercises can build muscle rapidly, especially if you keep progressing to more difficult variations of each of them.

Simply doing tons of reps, as most people do, won’t help you build muscle at all.

What Builds Size and Strength?

To gain muscle and strength you need significant loading and tension. Ultra high rep work provides neither.

It does very little to activate the fast twitch fibers either, and those have the greatest potential for growth. So you need to keep that in mind and stick with reps in the 5-12 range, predominantly.
For lower body exercises you can go a bit higher. Twenty rep pistol squats, for example, will force some pretty good leg growth.

At the end of the day the most effective combination for building muscle is a mix of weights, strongman implements and bodyweight training.

The weights give you the benefit of easily trackable progress, the bodyweight training gives you a myriad of other benefits and keeps you healthy.

It’s the best of both worlds and the basis for all Renegade training programs.
Now go get after it!

PS. For an awesome program with some killer bodyweight progressions check out Uncaged: 16 Weeks to Animalistic Size, Strength & Power by clicking HERE now.

Top 10 Ways to Improve Your Pull Ups

Top 10 Ways to Improve Your Pull Ups - How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet | How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet

The pull up is one of the greatest muscle building exercises in existence, which is precisely why it’s been called the upper body squat.

If you’re a man and you suck at them people will laugh at you.

Lat pulldowns can’t even come close to comparing. Whenever you move your body through space the level of neuromuscular activation is dramatically higher.

People all too often ask, “How much can ya bench?”

A more appropriate question would be “How many pull ups can you do?”

The pull up measures your strength to weight ratio better than almost any other exercise known to man.

Don’t Be the Guy Who Can’t Do Pull Ups

To this day I am still haunted by the image I witnessed in a local park a few years ago when I was there training. A man in his mid 30′s was there with his wife and son.
He was shooting some hoops, watching his kid play, and basically just enjoying the beautiful July weather.
At one point he wandered over to the pull up bar and got on it. He then proceeded to twist and squirm and strain for the next 10-15 seconds as he attempted and failed to do one pull up.
ONE PULL UP! Now mind you, this guy was not obese. He probably weighed around 170 pounds.
The second hand embarrassment was enough to make me want to dig a hole and jump in it.
“Look at the man you married, honey. I can’t do a single pull up.”
“Hey buddy, watch how strong daddy is. Don’t you want to grow up to be just like me?”
A real man can do pull ups. It’s as simple as that.
Below are the top 10 ways to improve your pull ups.

1) Don’t go to Failure

This is the biggest mistake you can make with pull ups.
As soon as a single rep does not look exactly like the previous one and you can’t get as high, the set is over.
If your speed slows down noticeably the set is over.
You would never continue a set of squats if you could no longer lock out the weight. If you got all the way up on rep five but were only able to get up ¾ of the way on rep six you wouldn’t proceed to do four more reps of partials until the set ended with the weight crashing down on you and crippling you.
But that’s exactly how people finish their sets of pull ups. The form gets worse and worse and worse, and they keep going and going and going, climbing up the invisible ladder, swinging and kipping.
When you do this you get no stronger. And most of the time you get weaker. The negative effect of training to failureis seen more on chin ups than any other exercise. No one knows why this is, but trust me, that’s how it is.

2) Lose Excess Body Fat

If you are carrying excess body fat your ability to do pull ups will be greatly reduced. Extra body fat is good for lifting more weight in certain exercises that require greater leverage like the squat and deadlift. But that’s all it’s good for. Other than that it’s unhealthy and unsightly.

3) Start in the Proper Position

All too often people start in the dead hang position with their scapula elevated and their shoulders touching their ears. This is dangerous and incorrect.
When you do this all of the tension is placed on your tendons and ligaments instead of your muscles.
When you get on the bar you want to pull your shoulder blades down and lock your shoulders into their sockets. This is a far safer position and ensures that the stress will be placed directly on the muscles and not the tendons and ligaments.

4) Maintain a Slight Elbow Bend Throughout the Set

This goes hand in hand with the above tip. Before starting your set you want to bend your elbows ever so slightly.
This bend should barely be noticeable, but it will have a huge impact on your elbow health.
Do not start with your elbows completely locked. This, again, places all of the stress on the tendons and ligaments instead of on the muscles. On each successive rep you should lower yourself until your arms are nearly straight, stopping just shy of lockout.
But don’t use this as an excuse to cheat. Just shy of lockout means that your elbows are “99% locked out;” you just don’t want that complete extension.

5) Initiate With the Lats

When you start to pull, be sure that you fire your lats first; not your biceps. If you have trouble feeling your lats, as many newbies do, have someone poke or slap your lats a few times before you start pulling. Even having a partner keep his hands in contact with your lats throughout the set may help. It may also look a little strange to other members of your gym.

6) Drive Your Elbows Down

To get the most out of your lats when you chin you should think about driving your elbows down and back. Don’t simply pull with your biceps.

7) Pull Your Chin Over the Bar

I used to be a stickler for having people pull their chest to the bar. I still instruct beginners to do that, knowing full well that they won’t be able to, but that it will at least instill the importance of getting high.
You really only need your chin to clear the bar. That last few inches does very little for you lats and instead focuses the stress on the smaller, weaker muscles of your upper/middle back.
The pull up should be used to target the lats, first and foremost. Don’t waste energy struggling with that last few inches at the top. Get your chin over while keeping your back arched and then lower yourself.
Use other rowing exercises to target those smaller upper back muscles and use the pul up to smoke your lats completely.

8) Use a Variety of Grips

There are countless ways to pull your body up. You can do chin ups with your palms facing you at a number of different grip widths.
You can also do chin ups with your palms facing each other, or pull ups with your palms facing away at multiple grip widths.  You can pull up on bars, rings, Fat Gripz, ropes, towels, suspension straps, beams, Eagle Loops, and even baseballs or softballs hanging from a chain.
The variations are endless. Use as many different chin ups as possible to avoid burnout or overuse injuries.

9) Use a Variety of Rep Ranges

To do a lot of pull ups you need strength and you need endurance.
Strength is built with low reps. You can do low reps with a weighted vest or dip belt or you can simply perform more difficult variations of pull ups.
Endurance is built with high reps. This is where the use of bands comes in handy.
Having a few different levels of band tension will allow you to vary your rep range greatly. This will help you boost your chin up numbers a lot faster.
Some days you train in the range of 3-6 reps for maximal strength. Some day you train in the range of 7-12, and others you train in the range of 15-30, with a band, to improve your endurance.

10) Strengthen Your Grip

The stronger your grip is the easier pull ups will feel. I suggest getting a Captains of Crush Gripper and using it a few times per week. You can also add in some more specific grip work at the gym like fat bar holds, hexagon dumbbell holds, as well as various pinching and crushing exercises. I highly recommend investing in a pair of Fat Gripz and using them for a large majority of your exercises.
Start using these top 10 ways to improve your pull ups today and drop me a line to let me know how they’re working out for you.
In the meantime if you could hit the Like button I’d really appreciate it.
 
PS. Wanna take your pull ups to the next level?
Then you need to check out Al Kavadlo’s awesome book, Raising the Bar.
You’ve seen the incredible masters of the pull up bar on Youtube.
Now Al takes you to the very New York City parks where it all goes down and teaches how you too can become a master of the bar.
In addition to pull ups Al also covers handstands, dips, l-sits, muscle ups and numerous other bad ass bodyweight exercises.
Click HERE to check it out now.

Chin Ups - Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet | How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet

Chin Ups - Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet | How to Build Muscle | Strength Training Workouts | Mass Gain Diet



The straight bar chin up with your palms facing you places too much stress on the wrists, elbows and shoulders and should be eliminated from your program.
Even if you haven’t experienced it yet chances are good that a steady diet of supinated (palms facing you) straight bar chin ups may come back to bite you in the ass… or elbow, eventually.
Pull ups (palms facing away from you) on a straight bar are a bit safer but could also be eliminated if you want to be ultra conservative or you have any shoulder problems.
The simple solution is to stick with neutral grip chin/pull ups with your palms facing each other. You can mix up the grip width and have numerous options to play with.
Another great option is a chin up or pull up done on an angled or EZ/zig zag style chin up bar.
That should be a staple in every gym and should replace the straight bar on the top of all power racks and on all wall mounted chin up bars.
These are far less stressful on the wrists, elbows and shoulders than the straight bar.

The Best Way to Do Chin Ups

The best option is chin ups performed on rings. With rings you can use any grip you want.
You can start with your palms facing away and finish with your palms facing your or you can keep a neutral grip the entire time. It’s up to you and can be dictated by what feels safest and most natural for your body.
When you’re on a fixed bar you can’t move naturally and that’s what leads to problems.
That’s why for a lot of individuals with shoulder issues, including myself, pushups on rings feel better than pushups on the ground; because you can move more freely and naturally.
If you choose to start doing your chins on rings you should be forewarned that a ten rep max may quickly become 3-4 rep max. This is normal so don’t be frustrated.
One quick solution would to attach a band to each ring and put your feet in them while doing your set. When your strength comes up get rid of the bands.
The other solution is to just do a bunch of low rep sets until you are strong enough to rep out on the rings like you can on the bar. When you do that you will end up far stronger and have more well developed stabilizer muscles than if you had just stuck with the straight bar the whole time.

What if You Only Have a Straight Bar?

It’s not the end of the world. Do pull ups (palms facing away) instead of chin ups (palms facing you) and choose the least stressful grip width (usually about shoulder width).
Another option is to do mixed grip chins with one hand facing away and the other facing you. Obviously, you’ll want to change your grip each set.
You can also do parallel grip chins by getting sideways under the bar and gripping it with one hand over the other or by placing a V-grip cable attachment over it.
But in my mind it’s worth the investment to find a gym or rack with neutral grip chin up bars or grab yourself a pair of rings.
You’ll pay far less for them than you will for the doctor’s bills later on down the line.
One final note I should make is that the amount of chins you do should be evened out with an equal amount of rowing motion exercises (face pulls, band pull aparts, inverted rows, etc.) for the upper back.
If you don’t do that you could end up with internally rotated shoulders and a host of other problems you’d want to avoid.
Chin ups are one the absolute best, most badass muscle building exercises you can do and they should be a regular part of every program.
If you can minimize the nagging injuries that may come along with them then you really have a win-win.
To order a pair of rings click HERE.

Of Whooshes and Squishy Fat | BodyRecomposition - The Home of Lyle McDonald

Of Whooshes and Squishy Fat | BodyRecomposition - The Home of Lyle McDonald

A few weeks back I answered a question about Not Losing Fat at a 20% Deficit, What Should I Do? and among other things, one comment I made had to do with a water retention that often occurs during fat loss which can mask fat loss and make it appear as if the diet is not working.  I also mentioned specifically that I had written (with a straight-face no less) about whooshes in The Stubborn Fat Solution, along with a related phenomenon which I call squishy fat.

In any case, to expand on that issue, I’m going to excerpt the chapter section from The Stubborn Fat Solution dealing with both phenomena.  With that introduction, I give you (again, with a straight face)…

Of Whooshes and Squishy Fat 

Before you freak out and think you’ve entered some weird Internet forum where people talk about stalls and whooshes, please bear with me; there’s actually some physiological rationale to what I’m going to discuss.

Many people have noted that fat loss is often discontinuous, that is it often happens in stops and starts.  So you’ll be dieting and dieting and doing everything correctly with nothing to show for it.  Then, boom, almost overnight, you drop 4 pounds and look leaner.

What’s going on?  Back during my college days, one of my professors threw out the idea that after fat cells had been emptied of stored triglyceride, they would temporarily refill with water (glycerol attracts water, which might be part of the mechanism).  So there would be no immediate change in size, body weight or appearance. Then, after some time frame, the water would get dropped, the fat cells would shrink.  A weird way of looking at it might be that the fat loss suddenly becomes ‘apparent’. That is, the fat was emptied and burned off days or weeks ago but until the water is dropped, nothing appears to have happened.

For nearly 20 years I looked for research to support this, I was never sure if it was based on something from the 50’s or he just pulled it out of thin air as an explanation.  Recently, one paper did suggest that visceral fat can fill up with water after massive weight loss but that’s about it.

Somewhat circumstantially, people using Bioimpedance body fat scales (which use hydration to estimate body fat levels) have noted that body fat appears to go up right before a big drop.  This implicates water balance as the issue here.

As well, women, who have more problems with water retention, seem to have bigger issues with stalls and whooshes than men.  Further, some individuals who have done dry carb-loads (high carbohydrate refeeds without drinking a lot of water) have seen them occur; presumably the body pulls water into the muscles and out of other tissues (fat cells).  In lean individuals, appearance is often drastically improved with this approach, it doesn’t do much for those carrying a lot of fat.

I’d note that dry carb-loads suck because you’re so damn thirsty.  Interestingly, even normal refeeds often work in this regards, perhaps the hormonal effect ‘tells’ the body to chill out and release some water.  So not only do refeeds seem to improve stubborn fat mobilization the next day (as discussed above), they may help the body drop some water so that you can see what is happening.

Finally, many have reported whooshes following an evening which included alcohol. A mild diuretic, this would also tend to implicate water balance issues in the whoosh phenomenon.

I’d also note that this isn’t universal, lean dieters often see visual improvements on a day to day basis; a lot seems to depend on whether or not they tend to retain water in general.  Folks who do have problems with water retention tend to have stalls and whooshes, those who don’t show nice consistent visual changes.

On a related topic, I wanted to discuss something else that often happens when people are getting very lean and dealing with stubborn body fat: the fat gets squishy, feeling almost like there are small marbles under the skin.  Yes, very scientific, I know. That’s the best I can do.
As folks get very lean, down to the last pounds of fat, the skin and fat cells that are left will often change appearance and texture.  It will look dimply (as the fat cells which are supporting the skin shrink and the skin isn’t supported) and feel squishy to the touch. This is bad in that it looks really weird, but it’s good because it means that the fat is going away.  I have nothing truly profound to say about this topic, just realizes that it happens and usually indicates good things are happening.

Tired of Dealing with Stubborn Abdominal and Lower Body Fat?

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Learn more about The Stubborn Fat Solution

The Importance of the Respiratory Exchange Ratio in Fat Loss

The Importance of the Respiratory Exchange Ratio in Fat Loss

The Respiratory Exchange Ratio (RER) is one of the most fundamentally important principles for anyone interested in fat loss.

As you know, we inhale oxygen so our bodies can (among other tasks) metabolize glucose, fats, or both to use as fuel. We then exhale carbon dioxide and the process starts anew. RER is calculated by the ratio of oxygen consumed and the carbon dioxide expelled. The method is known as indirect calorimetry.

Simply put, the greater the physical exertion, the higher the RER.
Okay, you're asking. Just how does this help me burn as much fat as possible while retaining the lean muscle tissue ( which you want to preserve because you don't really want to look like an emaciated zombie - regardless of what some fashionista may tell you).
Below, courtesy of NASM, you will see a chart detailing the RER and the percentage of calories derived from carbohydrates, fats, or a combination of the two.

Let's put this into perspective. The body utilizes the highest percentage of it's caloric needs from fats when the RER is at 0.71. The logical conclusion is that we should then exercise at that level to get the most from our efforts.
Unfortunately, a RER of 0.71 is attainable when it is at complete rest when we're sleeping or doing very little on the couch or in bed.
Does this mean we should cancel our gym memberships and find the best deals on down comforters and Lazy Boys? Again, the unfortunate answer is 'no' (you didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you?). Obviously quality sleep is an important part of overall health. However, nothing worth having is possible without a certain amount of effort.

Although you burn 100 percent of calories from fats when the at RER of 0.71, the overall QUANTITY of calories burned is very little. Just how little...? That varies from person to person based on her basal metabolic rate, how active she is, and several other factors. So anyone reading this who is entertaining the notion of having a slice of cheese cake (or two) and going immediately to couch potato mode will be dissapointed.

When walking or jogging, the RER is at about 0.80 to 0.90. This equates to approximately 65-75% of your max heart rate. You should be able to hold a conversation at this pace, although it may become somewhat difficult as you reach the 75% rate.
Please note: I strongly believe jogging is one of the most over rated activities people can do if their main goal is to lose fat; however, I chose it as a reference point since it is something most of us have tried at one time or another.
When engaged in an activity in which you can just barely complete a sentence but need to catch your breath afterwards, the RER is at about 0.91 to 0.95. This equates to approximately 80-85% of your max heart rate.

When engaged in an activity in which you are exerting so much effort that you can't utter one single word (imagine being chased by an angry dog), the RER is at 1.0 or slightly less. This, obviously, is at 100% of your max heart rate.
For those who've stayed awake to this point (I commend you), you may be thinking to yourself: "This ain't so bad. I'll just work at a RER of about 0.80. It's a fairly challenging pace and I won't have to suffer."
That's not a bad game plan. However, in order to sculpt the best physique your genetics will allow, chances are pretty good that you'll have to exercise at a slightly higher level.

And even if you don't plan to grace the cover of a magazine or win a physique contest, the body does need to be challenged - gradually and intelligently, of course.

Yes, this means an intelligent strength program.

A universal truth in physiology is that lean muscle tissue is metabolically expensive; this is a fancy way of saying that you if you increase the amount of lean tissue your metabolism will be higher (which equates to more calories burned).

And please don't worry - most women simply cannot look like some of those steroid-injected men you see all oiled up and flexing in a banana hammock. As I stated in another article, the chances of a woman looking like that as the result of an intelligent strength and conditioning program is less than getting struck by lightening while relaxing inside your favorite coffee house.

Also factor in that, the day after a challenging strength workout, your body's metabolic demands are higher because of the repair process it must go through. Indeed, within hours of a challenging workout, the body burns more calories IF the RER was sufficiently high enough during the workout. The process is called Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC).

Does this mean I expect all of your workouts to make you feel as if the grim reaper is hovering above you? Absolutely not. Any idiot trainer can make her client sweaty and tired at the end. It's the rarest of trainers that can design and implement a program that is challenging, safe both short and long term, and enjoyable (well, as enjoyable as exercise can be).

This is a simplified version. I can bog things down by going into further detail about the various energy systems involved but, for better or worse, most people are not interested (of course, I'll be happy to discuss the matter in greater detail in person with anyone who is). The bottom line is, the information presented should be sufficient to nudge a paradigm shift in how you view exercise and caloric expenditure.

So how does one juggle the strength training with the challenging cardio with the the moderate to easy sessions...? There is no one-size fits all approach. Those who ignore this and purchase the latest Wii or dvd are setting themselves up for frustration and possibly injury.

This is where I come in. Meet me for a free introductory session and see for yourself how I can custom design a program that will give you results and keep you safe in the process. Furthermore, let's talk about how I can teach you to be self reliant so that you have the knowledge to be your own Personal Trainer. (what's that saying about teaching someone to fish...?)
And for those who aren't convinced, well I'm sure there's sale somewhere on a Lazy Boy.