Hey Guys!
When we work out we develop physical strength. We are completely aware of this, but we may not be aware of the other strengths we develop through training.
Like I said in a previous post, there are multiple types of strength. When we work out we strengthen our bodies. We increase our physical strength, but we do so much more than that.
When we take this journey in the world of improving our health and fitness we are also strengthening our resolve. We decided to make a positive change to better our health or appearance. We chose to become stronger.
Many people are afraid to make this change. They are afraid of exercising, eating healthy, or both, and that can be for many different reasons. Others may not have the confidence to exercise in front of others. Others are simply too lazy or resistant to change.
So we are also developing character strengths like confidence and courage. We are becoming confident in ourselves, our appearance, and our abilities. We are less fearful of change. We are able to express ourselves with our bodies, which requires internal and external strength.
We also show strength of willpower when we take this journey. We constantly push through no matter how hard or frustrating that journey gets because we have strength of faith. Faith that we will live longer, healthier lives. Faith that we can do anything we set our minds to.
All of these strengths will carry over into our other activities and daily lives. You may not realize it, but we are developing, becoming stronger versions of ourselves all through training.
Through strength training we achieve true strength.
If you always put limits on what you can do, physically or anything else, it'll spread over into the rest of your life. It'll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level.
- Bruce Lee
Get Stronger!
- Nas
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Friday, January 23, 2015
Getting Consistent Results while Working Out
Hey Guys!
I'm going to cut right to the chase and tell you that everyone who has practiced strength training ever has, at least once, stopped getting results from working out. This can be frustrating, but there are variables we can change that influence our progression.
When we work out, our bodies adapt to the stress we place it under. The reason you stop seeing results is that your body has adapted to the stress; now you need to add a new stress in place of the old stress to continue developing.
There are many ways we can change the parameters of our workout routines to promote growth. The variables I will discuss are Intensity (weight), Volume (sets and reps), frequency (how often you work out) and exercise variations (or cycling).
Intensity is where most people get stuck. Some people use the same weight for weeks, even months, on end. The worst thing you can do is use the same weight over and over again. Your body has adapted to that intensity. You now have to add or drop weight. Do not be discouraged to drop weight if you have to. Your pride can keep you from getting stronger - don't let it.
So you can either add or drop weight, but now you have to either lower or raise your volume. If you drop weight you should perform more sets and reps, and if you increase the weight you have to lower the amount of sets and reps you perform.
Just those three variables alone will provide enough change from workout to workout to promote consistent results, but I have two more variables for you guys.
Frequency, or how often you train a particular muscle (or muscle group) also influences your development. But the amount of stress you place upon your body will influence how often you can workout without overtraining. Beginners can easily train a muscle group twice a week, while intermediates and advanced lifters need more time to recover. After all, they handle much more stress than beginners.
What intermediates and advanced lifters can do is train muscle groups twice a week and have one day focus on volume while the other focuses on intensity. One day you would use heavy weights, the other you would use light weights. This way you would not place as much stress on your body.
Finally, you can add variety to your exercises. I'm not saying you have to perform completely different exercises. You can, but you can also make changes to the exercises you are currently doing. Every exercise has its variations. For example, instead of doing bench-press over and over you can do flat or incline dumbbell presses.
You can even keep it simpler by only changing your positioning - hand position, stance, grip, etc. For example, you can perform side lateral raises with a straight arm or with your elbows slightly bent. This will allow you to train different muscle fibers and build fully developed muscles.
I change at least one variable in my routine each time I work out. Some changes are more drastic than others, but each time I see results.
So that's all folks. Until next time. If you have any questions or comments leave them in the comment section below.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
I'm going to cut right to the chase and tell you that everyone who has practiced strength training ever has, at least once, stopped getting results from working out. This can be frustrating, but there are variables we can change that influence our progression.
When we work out, our bodies adapt to the stress we place it under. The reason you stop seeing results is that your body has adapted to the stress; now you need to add a new stress in place of the old stress to continue developing.
There are many ways we can change the parameters of our workout routines to promote growth. The variables I will discuss are Intensity (weight), Volume (sets and reps), frequency (how often you work out) and exercise variations (or cycling).
Intensity is where most people get stuck. Some people use the same weight for weeks, even months, on end. The worst thing you can do is use the same weight over and over again. Your body has adapted to that intensity. You now have to add or drop weight. Do not be discouraged to drop weight if you have to. Your pride can keep you from getting stronger - don't let it.
So you can either add or drop weight, but now you have to either lower or raise your volume. If you drop weight you should perform more sets and reps, and if you increase the weight you have to lower the amount of sets and reps you perform.
Just those three variables alone will provide enough change from workout to workout to promote consistent results, but I have two more variables for you guys.
Frequency, or how often you train a particular muscle (or muscle group) also influences your development. But the amount of stress you place upon your body will influence how often you can workout without overtraining. Beginners can easily train a muscle group twice a week, while intermediates and advanced lifters need more time to recover. After all, they handle much more stress than beginners.
What intermediates and advanced lifters can do is train muscle groups twice a week and have one day focus on volume while the other focuses on intensity. One day you would use heavy weights, the other you would use light weights. This way you would not place as much stress on your body.
Finally, you can add variety to your exercises. I'm not saying you have to perform completely different exercises. You can, but you can also make changes to the exercises you are currently doing. Every exercise has its variations. For example, instead of doing bench-press over and over you can do flat or incline dumbbell presses.
You can even keep it simpler by only changing your positioning - hand position, stance, grip, etc. For example, you can perform side lateral raises with a straight arm or with your elbows slightly bent. This will allow you to train different muscle fibers and build fully developed muscles.
I change at least one variable in my routine each time I work out. Some changes are more drastic than others, but each time I see results.
So that's all folks. Until next time. If you have any questions or comments leave them in the comment section below.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
Friday, January 16, 2015
How to Increase Muscle Mass
Hey guys!
This post is about increasing muscle mass. I'm not sure how many of you know this, but the amount of repetitions you perform during a particular exercise dictates whether you develop strength, mass, or endurance. Generally, sets ranging from 8 - 12 reps develop muscle mass. I find that sets of 10 work best, but that is my preference.
Now this may be a surprise to some of you, but lighter weights are better for building muscle mass. A common mistake people make when trying to get bigger is using heavy weight that they cannot control.
In order to promote muscle growth you must increase the time your muscles are under tension. This is best accomplished with high volume (lots of sets and lots of reps), good form, and focusing on the negative (eccentric) movement of each repetition.
The negative movement is often the second portion of a lift where the trainee lowers the weight back to the starting position. For example, the negative movement of a bicep curl is the part of the exercise where you lower the weight back down.
These negatives create the most micro-tears in the muscle, therefore placing it under much more stress than the positive (concentric) movement. As such, those focusing on increasing muscle mass would be wise to control their negative movements.
Gaining mass is all about control; focusing on squeezing, feeling the muscle ache, and controlling the movement.
And unless you are a beginner, you should be performing at least 5 sets of 8-10 reps. I often perform 10 sets of 10 reps on each exercise to increase muscle mass - though you do not need as many sets if your intensity (weight) is high. Varying intensity (weight) and volume (reps and sets) can provide enough variation for you in order to prevent plateaus - a piece of advice to keep in mind.
Finally, the best exercises to perform to get big are isolation exercises. Isolation exercises allow you to focus on not only individual muscles, but different portions of different muscles. For example, the flat bench press develops the lower chest, incline dumbbell presses work the upper chest, flys focus on the outer chest, and pullovers strengthens the inner chest.
So those who would like to have an aesthetically-pleasing body should focus on a variety of exercises. This will give your body a fully-developed look.
I hope this helps some of you in reaching your New Year's resolutions. If anyone has any questions, comments, concerns, or whatever, please leave a comment down below. As always, more exercises, stretches, nutrition info, and general tips coming soon.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
This post is about increasing muscle mass. I'm not sure how many of you know this, but the amount of repetitions you perform during a particular exercise dictates whether you develop strength, mass, or endurance. Generally, sets ranging from 8 - 12 reps develop muscle mass. I find that sets of 10 work best, but that is my preference.
Now this may be a surprise to some of you, but lighter weights are better for building muscle mass. A common mistake people make when trying to get bigger is using heavy weight that they cannot control.
In order to promote muscle growth you must increase the time your muscles are under tension. This is best accomplished with high volume (lots of sets and lots of reps), good form, and focusing on the negative (eccentric) movement of each repetition.
The negative movement is often the second portion of a lift where the trainee lowers the weight back to the starting position. For example, the negative movement of a bicep curl is the part of the exercise where you lower the weight back down.
These negatives create the most micro-tears in the muscle, therefore placing it under much more stress than the positive (concentric) movement. As such, those focusing on increasing muscle mass would be wise to control their negative movements.
Gaining mass is all about control; focusing on squeezing, feeling the muscle ache, and controlling the movement.
And unless you are a beginner, you should be performing at least 5 sets of 8-10 reps. I often perform 10 sets of 10 reps on each exercise to increase muscle mass - though you do not need as many sets if your intensity (weight) is high. Varying intensity (weight) and volume (reps and sets) can provide enough variation for you in order to prevent plateaus - a piece of advice to keep in mind.
Finally, the best exercises to perform to get big are isolation exercises. Isolation exercises allow you to focus on not only individual muscles, but different portions of different muscles. For example, the flat bench press develops the lower chest, incline dumbbell presses work the upper chest, flys focus on the outer chest, and pullovers strengthens the inner chest.
So those who would like to have an aesthetically-pleasing body should focus on a variety of exercises. This will give your body a fully-developed look.
I hope this helps some of you in reaching your New Year's resolutions. If anyone has any questions, comments, concerns, or whatever, please leave a comment down below. As always, more exercises, stretches, nutrition info, and general tips coming soon.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
Friday, January 9, 2015
Exercise Post: Reverse Flyes
Hey Guys!
Some of you who work your shoulders tend to neglect your rear deltoids. For those who do not know, there are three sections of the deltoid muscle (often called the front, side, and rear deltoids). Those who have round shoulders have developed all three of these parts.
I'm assuming that some of you do not know how to isolate the rear deltoids, and so I offer you guys reverse flyes, but before I get into the specifics of the exercise, let me help you understand why it is important to strengthen this particular area.
The rear deltoids force thoracic extension, allowing you to keep a neutral spine. In simpler words - they improve your posture by keeping your body erect. Another reason for working the rear deltoids is to alleviate shoulder pain caused by the muscle imbalance between the front, side, and rear deltoids.
The shoulder joint is like a ball sitting in the middle of a socket, but if one area of the deltoid is developed more than another, the joint will be pulled in the corresponding direction. For example, some people have overdeveloped front deltoids, and that leads to the joint being pulled forward.
THIS IS A GREAT EXERCISE FOR PEOPLE WITH SHOULDER PAIN CAUSED BY A MUSCLE IMBALANCE. The reverse fly is an isolated exercise, meaning that it focuses specifically on the rear deltoids. It can be used to correct muscle imbalances in the shoulder and force thoracic extension. And it just looks sick to have round shoulders.
To perform the exercise, stand with your feet at shoulder width apart, dumbbell in each hand, lean forward until your back is parallel with the ground, keep your knees slightly bent. Do not round your back. Keep a slight bend at the elbows and bring the weight all the way up until your shoulder blades are touching.
Make sure to squeeze at the peak of this exercise. You really want to feel the tension in your rear deltoids. Afterward, slowly lower the weight back down. Do not use momentum or heavy weight during this exercise. This is a controlled movement, and should focus on the time under tension to maximize the development of the rear deltoids.
So that's all folks.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
Some of you who work your shoulders tend to neglect your rear deltoids. For those who do not know, there are three sections of the deltoid muscle (often called the front, side, and rear deltoids). Those who have round shoulders have developed all three of these parts.
I'm assuming that some of you do not know how to isolate the rear deltoids, and so I offer you guys reverse flyes, but before I get into the specifics of the exercise, let me help you understand why it is important to strengthen this particular area.
The rear deltoids force thoracic extension, allowing you to keep a neutral spine. In simpler words - they improve your posture by keeping your body erect. Another reason for working the rear deltoids is to alleviate shoulder pain caused by the muscle imbalance between the front, side, and rear deltoids.
The shoulder joint is like a ball sitting in the middle of a socket, but if one area of the deltoid is developed more than another, the joint will be pulled in the corresponding direction. For example, some people have overdeveloped front deltoids, and that leads to the joint being pulled forward.
THIS IS A GREAT EXERCISE FOR PEOPLE WITH SHOULDER PAIN CAUSED BY A MUSCLE IMBALANCE. The reverse fly is an isolated exercise, meaning that it focuses specifically on the rear deltoids. It can be used to correct muscle imbalances in the shoulder and force thoracic extension. And it just looks sick to have round shoulders.
To perform the exercise, stand with your feet at shoulder width apart, dumbbell in each hand, lean forward until your back is parallel with the ground, keep your knees slightly bent. Do not round your back. Keep a slight bend at the elbows and bring the weight all the way up until your shoulder blades are touching.
Make sure to squeeze at the peak of this exercise. You really want to feel the tension in your rear deltoids. Afterward, slowly lower the weight back down. Do not use momentum or heavy weight during this exercise. This is a controlled movement, and should focus on the time under tension to maximize the development of the rear deltoids.
So that's all folks.
Get Stronger!
-Nas
Thursday, January 1, 2015
Quick Tip to lose Fat
Hi Guys!
It's already 2015, and I'm sure many of you have decided to lose weight for your New Year's resolutions. Some of you may not know how or where to begin in this endeavor, but here is one tip to put you on the right track.
This post may get a bit technical, but please bear with me. You may or may not be familiar with the glycemic index, but what you need to know is that in order to lose weight you must consume low glycemic carbohydrates in addition to fat and protein (in moderation of course).
Low glycemic carbohydrates are not easily digestible, which allows our bodies to process them without a spike in blood sugar that will raise the amount of insulin in our bodies. See, when insulin is running through your system, your body will stop burning fat in order to burn the carbohydrates in our blood.
The more insulin your liver secretes, the less weight you will lose, no matter how little you eat. If you cut calories drastically, your body will adapt by using less energy. Any spike in insulin will also make you hungrier which will cause you to eat more, but even if you resist the urge your body will respond by using less energy. You can avoid this by cutting carbohydrates, leaving only low glycemic foods in your diet.
Now you may be wondering what low glycemic carbohydrates are. A few examples of low glycemic carbohydrates are whole grains, fruits, vegetables, sweet potatoes, and brown rice. These foods take time to digest, so your body will not have to deal with the contained sugar all at once. The foods you want to avoid, which are high glycemic, are refined carbohydrates (white bread, pasta), processed sugar, and starches (potatoes). Logically, these foods spike your blood sugar and raise your insulin levels.
So keep that in mind when you go to the supermarket. On a side note, I created an Instagram account so follow me @ nas_fitness, and, as always, more tips and exercises coming soon. Happy New Year!
Get Stronger
-Nas
It's already 2015, and I'm sure many of you have decided to lose weight for your New Year's resolutions. Some of you may not know how or where to begin in this endeavor, but here is one tip to put you on the right track.
This post may get a bit technical, but please bear with me. You may or may not be familiar with the glycemic index, but what you need to know is that in order to lose weight you must consume low glycemic carbohydrates in addition to fat and protein (in moderation of course).
Low glycemic carbohydrates are not easily digestible, which allows our bodies to process them without a spike in blood sugar that will raise the amount of insulin in our bodies. See, when insulin is running through your system, your body will stop burning fat in order to burn the carbohydrates in our blood.
The more insulin your liver secretes, the less weight you will lose, no matter how little you eat. If you cut calories drastically, your body will adapt by using less energy. Any spike in insulin will also make you hungrier which will cause you to eat more, but even if you resist the urge your body will respond by using less energy. You can avoid this by cutting carbohydrates, leaving only low glycemic foods in your diet.
Now you may be wondering what low glycemic carbohydrates are. A few examples of low glycemic carbohydrates are whole grains, fruits, vegetables, sweet potatoes, and brown rice. These foods take time to digest, so your body will not have to deal with the contained sugar all at once. The foods you want to avoid, which are high glycemic, are refined carbohydrates (white bread, pasta), processed sugar, and starches (potatoes). Logically, these foods spike your blood sugar and raise your insulin levels.
So keep that in mind when you go to the supermarket. On a side note, I created an Instagram account so follow me @ nas_fitness, and, as always, more tips and exercises coming soon. Happy New Year!
Get Stronger
-Nas
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