 
Muscle Training Program, Part 11Our Muscle Training Program focuses on topics critical to proper natural muscle growth. Focus Topics include:
Failure is defined as the point at which a muscle is so fatigued it can no longer support a full contraction. There is nothing sacred about working a muscle to failure. Muscles will hypertrophy as long as the load they have to work against is increased. Failure is, however, a particularly good indicator of exercise intensity, and many experts believe that as a muscle begins to fail certain growth factors are released that accelerate the hypertrophy process. Hence, working to failure is an advanced technique and should be used only by experienced bodybuilders as the chance of injury increases. Positive failure means the muscle can no longer support another full contraction. Since a muscle's strength is maximal when it is fully contracted, a muscle is not fully fatigued when it reaches positive failure. It has simply become fatigued at its weakest part of its range of motion, making another complete repetition impossible. To add intesity and more fully fatigue the muscle in its stronger ranged, Advanced Bulk & Muscle Training uses a combination of two techniques: partial contractions followed by holding the weight isometrically at full contraction to failure. These are used only at the end of the final set of each exercise to ensure total, positive failure of the muscle. Since the weight is controlled, these techniques add intensity without increasing the risk of injury. Two other techniques, working to negative failure and using assisted repetitions, are also intensity enhancing but can strain the muscle in its weaker ranges. Because the muscle is exercised beyond its range of control, these latter techniques increase the chance of injury and are therefore not recommended. Overtraining occurs when the body is exercised at a high-intesity level and not given adequate time to rest and recover. Workouts stress both the system as a whole and the individual muscle groups exercised. Both must be given time to recover. For this reason high-intensity workouts should not generally be performed on successive days. The body, in addition to the individual muscle groups stressed, needs a chance to recover. Symptoms of overtaining include fatigue, lack of energy, poor sleep habits, unexplained weight loss, loss of motivation, prolonged muscle or joint soreness, recurrent injury, frequent colds and failure to progress. Overtraining is one of the most common bodybuilding mistakes and occurs much more often than suspected. It should be studiously avoided. If you are training hard and not progressing, you are probably overtraining not undertraining. More rest, not more exercise, is recommended.  Cardiovascular, endurance or aerobic training like jogging, stair stepping, swimming, etc., is high-volume, low-intesity exercise that increases metabolic rate and improves endurance and cardiovascular conditioning. It is not the type of exercise that leads to muscle hypertrophy, and may even be counter-productive because long bouts of aerobic exercise deplete muscle glycogen stores. The body then must use muscle tissue to generate some of the energy needed for further muscle exertion. Although it is wise to include moderate aerobic exercise in your fitness program, this type of activity should be kept to a minimum when the goal is maximizing muscle growth. Most experts recommend two sessions weekly of 20 minutes duration on days when weights are not used. A particularly promising endurance-type exercise for bodybuilders is high-intensity, interval training. Wind sprints are an example of this type of training. Excellent cardiovascular and body-fat control results can be achieved with two to three, 15-minute sessions weekly. Increase aerobic activity and decrease resistance workout intensity when the goal is reducing body fat or increasing endurance. If your fitness goals do not include maximizing muscular growth, you should not be considering the Advanced Workout. Instead, use the Beginning or Intermediate workouts two or three ties weekly to maintain muscle conditioning and improve sports performance. Adjust your endurance training to fit your individual needs and goals. Cycling your routine, alternating heavy- and light-weight workouts, is a means of avoiding overtraining. It implies that your heavy workouts are too intense or too frequent and can't be maintained without a break. The Advanced Workout described here does not require cycling because emphasis is placed on avoiding overtraining and strain. It is recommended to vary workouts by cyling or rotating different exercises so that your routine doesn't become boring, and different auxiliary muscles are stimulated. About once every 10 to 12 weeks allow for a full seven to 10 days without weights to give the body a chance to completely rest. This has both psychological and physiological benefits, and helps reduce the slow buildup of both catabolic stress and microinjury while promoting a high level of motivation. Workout cycling may be used in preparing for a contest. During your growth phase, used Advanced Bulk & Muscle Traiing in conjunction with Herbalife's Bulk & Muscle Formula drink mix and sufficient calories to maintain a positive energy balance adequate for muscle growth, but not so much that excessive fat stores are added. About six to eight weeks before a contest, switch to a lower intensity level of workout, increase your aerobic exercise and reduce calorie intake to create a negative energy balance necessary to reduce body fat to achieve a "cut" or "defined" look. Continue to use Herbalife's Bulk & Muscle Formula to keep your nutritional status high while you are reducing body fat. The workouts in Herbalife's Bulk & Muscle Training use exercises that will produce a high level of natural muscle growth. At the Advanced level, the basic workout pattern is a compound exercise followed by an isolation exercise. Compound exercises have the advantage of allowing higher weights to be used which means higher loads and greater hypertrophic response. Isolation exercises allow the specific muscle to be fully fatigued and maximize the results which come from working to failure. One of the common misconceptions that has developed in the bodybuilding culture is that a muscle must be worked with several different exercises to achieve full-growth potential. This is why traditional high-volume workouts often recommend four to five exercises per body part. Routines of that sort are not based on a scientific understanding of the biomechanics of muscle action. Each muscle of the body has a specific mechanical action in which it predominates. For example, the specific action of the biceps muscle of the arm, which is actually a compound muscle containing an inner and outer group, is to bend the forearm at the elbow. It is most effective from about 20 to 60 degrees of arc. (The actual initiation of the action of bending the elbow is more the result of contraction of the brachialis muscle.) To exercise a muscle, or to load the muscle to generate hypertrophy, it must be stimulated over its specific range of motion. What different exercises do is stimulate auxiliary muscles involved in a specific movement. For example, reverse curls work the forearms as well as the biceps. Hammer curls work both the biceps ad the brachialis. Since both strength and appearance depend on balanced muscular development, Bulk & Muscle Training recommends rotating exercises from time to time for completeness. Varying your workout has the further advantage of keeping it from becoming routine or dull which generally results in a loss of intensity. When rotating exercises, keep in mind the major muscle group being worked, and be sure it is worked intensely to fatigue. Exercise rotation is not a critical component of the high-intensity workout described here and may be omitted if desired without sacrificing results. In general, pain is an indication of injury. However, during intense muscular activity, as the fibers approach failure, a burning sensation may be felt in the muscles. This is the result of microchemical changes which develop as the muscle fatigues. Remember, the goal is not to produce pain for the sake of pain. A mild burning sensation is simply an indicator of intensity. It must be distinguished from the sharp, tearing pang of injury which indicates damage has occurred and treatment is required. Many individuals note the appearance of delayed onset soreness after a particularly intense workout. This soreness, sometimes called "charlie horse," is associated with microinjury to the muscle cells and the leakage of cell components and enzymes into the extra-cellular tissue. This delayed soreness is neither "good" nor "bad" in the sense of promoting muscle growth, and is not the goal of training. It is an indicator that intensity has been high, possibly too high, and it is best to rest the muscle until the soreness has disappeared completely before starting another high-intensity session. "Pump" is the term used by bodybuilders to describe the full, flushed feeling that occurs in a muscle that has been heavily exercised. The pump results from increased blood flow to the muscle and is associated with a pleasant, accomplished feeling. The pump is not the stimulus for growth and is not the goal of high-intensity exercise. However, it is generally an indicator that the exercise has been performed well and the intensity level has been adequate. A good pump is the natural result of the exercise techniques used in Herbalife's Bulk & Muscle Training. High-intensity workouts also release endorphins, so it is natural to have a pleasant, tired feeling after a successful workout. The most effective way to keep track of your workouts, as well as your progress, is by keeping an accurate log or diary. Consider keeping a running log of your routine as well as the number of sets, repetitions and weights used for each exercise. It is also a good idea to keep track of the total time spent working out each day. Try to improve with each workout either by increasing the number of repetitions, weight used or by decreasing the time spent resting between sets. Remember, the goal is to progressively increase the intensity of the workout. Only by keeping accurate records can you be absolutely sure of your progress. A sample record form is available. You may also want to take pictures of yourself every month or so, and keep track of your weight and body measurements. Watching yourself progress is one of the truly great motivational tools for bodybuilders. True progress in bodybuilding, as in most sports, results from the application of scientific training principles, not from "feel" or "instinct." In fact, there is no such thing as a bodybuilding instinct in the strict sense of the word. You must learn the correct way to exercise by study, observation or direction. The process is objective, not instinctual or intuitive. Nevertheless, after you have become experienced at bodybuilding and have developed an understanding of your body and how it responds to exercise, you will develop an "instinct" about what is right for you and what could be potentially harmful or damaging. Similarly, it is wise to learn to listen to your body and observe it closely for signs of overtraining which may begin as a feeling of fatigue, boredom or lack of motivation. Despite all attempts to avoid them, injuries occasionally do occur as do acute viral illnesses like flus and colds. If injury or illness is recurring frequently, it may be a sign of poor nutrition or overtraining, and proper steps must be taken. Although there are varying points of view on how to exercise with an injury or illness, all experts agree on one common point - exercise intensity and frequency needs to be temporarily decreased. Attempting full-intensity workouts while you are injured or sick, besides going against common sense, can result in aggravation of the injury or worsening of the condition. If you have any doubts about the severity of an injury or illness, consult a physician. Myths abound in the area of bodybuilding nutrition. Most of these relate to the amount of protein needed, the number of calories, the levels of fat in the diet and the use of special supplements. The nutritional needs of the bodybuilder parallel those of most trained athletes. The diet should contain adequate protein for growth (about 1 gram per pound of lean body mass), carbohydrates for energy, and a minimum amount of lipid in the form of olive oil and polyunsaturated grain oils, like canola oil, to maintain health. Excessive protein intake is not required, and may be dangerous, while a "zero fat" diet contributes nothing but difficulty and obsessiveness. A balanced bodybuilding diet should contain about 15 percent protein, 20 percent fat and 65 percent carbohydrate. Consume a wide variety of foods including fresh fruits and vegetables, grains and cereals, and use low-fat protein sources. Cholesterol is often a problem with bodybuilders who consume large amounts of high-fat, high-cholesterol animal protein. Substitute "light" meats like fish and light-meat chicken, non-fat milk products, egg whites and isolated soy protein for some of your dietary red meat, particularly if you have a problem with elevated blood cholesterol. Meals should be spread evenly throughout the day to maintain energy level and stable nutrient intake. Use Herbalife's Bulk & Muscle Formula shakes between meals and after a workout to supply the body with the supplemental nutrition needed for your bodybuilding activity. The protein in the Bulk & Muscle Formula shake is specially designed, both in terms of quality and quantity, for the bodybuilder or active athlete wishing to gain muscle mass. It contains the proteolytic enzyme system, Aminogen®, which enhances the hydrolysis of protein into small peptides and free amino acids for more rapid absorption. Two shakes also supply the RDA of key micronutrients (vitamins, minerals and trace elements) involved in energy and protein metabolism, including GTF chromium. Additionally there are advanced, performance-enhancing substances including ornithine-alpha-keto-glutarate, l-carnitine, l-glutamine, potassium glycerophosphate, medium-chain triglyderides, and the herbs eleutherococcus and astragalus. Enhance Your Program with Herbalife's Complete Nutritional Product LineHerbalife's Bulk & Muscle Formula can be used alone or in conjunction with other Herbalife products including advanced Multivitamin-Mineral & Herbal Tablets and an herbal-based product called Cell Activator, which is rich in ergogenic botanicals and contains mineral aspartates, natural anti-fatigue factors. To assist you in making intelligent diet choices, use the Thermojetics Advanced Energy Guide and take the time to evaluate Herbalife's other health and performance-enhancing products. The importance of Water cannot be stressed enough as well as the need for additional Antioxidants to combat free radicals and aging. |