If you're skinny-fat and want to build muscle should you do full body workouts, upper/lower or some other type of split? Get these answers and more in this week’s episode. continue reading.
Danny Vega, former collegiate Strength & Conditioning coordinator, is the co-founder of Fat Fueled Family - a podcast, blog and YouTube channel dedicated to helping families grow closer together through better health. Tune in as Danny provides his insight on navigating the current social climate, thriving through the uncertainty, and becoming the strongest, most optimized version of yourself. continue reading.
Big arms, you gotta love em’. Peaked biceps… Horseshoe triceps… Full, round, cannon ball delts… If there is a red-blooded man with an even an ounce of testosterone who doesn’t want a pair of thick, muscular arms, I haven’t met him yet. Although every man who trains wants them, few fulfill their potential to build jacked arms. But with the right approach to training you can be one of the “lucky” few. Here’s how you do it: 1. Use LESS weight on curling exercises If you’ve followed Renegade training methods for any length of time you know we’re all about… continue reading.
I’m back from some recent travels with another solo Q&A episode. I start by sharing my thoughts on the end of Game of Thrones, Sorinex Summer Strong, old school kicks, wasting money and more. I also discuss my good friend, WWE Women’s Champion, Becky Lynch. Then we get into your questions and much more! Scroll down for show notes: Click here to subscribe via iTunesClick here to listen on SoundCloud… continue reading.
My guest in this episode is 10-year NFL Veteran, Heath Evans. A lifetime fitness fanatic, Heath was one of the most jacked dudes to ever play the game. Since retiring from pro football, he has turned his focus towards helping other people build their bodies. He founded Heath Evans Strength Academy, where he provides members with daily workouts, nutrition advice and other exclusive online content. In this episode we talk training, nutrition, growing up with a Marine, what it takes to play in the NFL, his favorite recovery methods and much more including: Building his… continue reading.
Get ready to get jacked. My guest today is “The Glute Guy,” Bret Contreras. He’s a renowned fitness expert who knows quite a bit about the science of building muscle and getting strong. Bret has made an incredible transformation with his own body and has helped thousands of others do the same. He has the unique ability to blend science, real world experience and critical thinking. This leads to great advice and even better training programs. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this fast paced discussion with Bret on every aspect of training we could cover in an… continue reading.
When he was young and weak, Mark Bell had someone steal his football. It was a singular event that changed and shaped his entire life. He started lifting weights the next day and soon became obsessed with the iron. A few years later he was competing in powerlifting and setting records. That eventually led to a stint in the WWE minor league system, and the opportunity to train regularly at the infamous Westside Barbell Club in Columbus, Ohio. When his WWE career didn’t pan out, Mark moved back to California. Not long after, he opened what has since become one… continue reading.
In this episode, I break down the best exercises for every body part. They’re not what you might expect. But if you include them regularly you’ll get jacked. Even better, your joints will stay healthy. Ignore at your own peril! Summer’s coming and one part of your body that is always exposed is the forearms. So we’re digging deep on all the different methods you can use to increase their size and strengthen your grip. Other topics include: A necessary step in the path to fulfillment? Stupid things people do at the gym Optimal frequency for chest, back, and shoulders… continue reading.
Renegade trainee, Marko Zivkovic sent me a note echoing the experiences of thousands. You’ll probably be nodding your head as you read. If you haven’t experienced this yet, pay close attention. You’ll save yourself years of pain and frustration. “For a long time I’d been doing the classic 5×5 squat, bench and deadlift. It was good at first but eventually I stalled out. I came across your programs and have been doing them for years. My body feels better and I’ve been getting great muscle and strength gains.”… continue reading.
My company’s logo depicts a recreation of a picture of Arthur Saxon taken in 1906. That’s because I’ve been obsessed with “old school” strength training methods for over 23 years. Whether we’re talking music, sneakers or training I’m old school through and through. From Hackenshmidt to Paul Anderson to Mentzer to Kaz, they’ve all been a huge influence along the way in shaping the Renegade Method and how I design training programs today. Vince Gironda was another big influence who was light years ahead of his time. Like me, Vince was a renegade; a rebel who never… continue reading.
A perfect snatch is a beautiful thing. It seems that more coaches prefer the clean when it comes to Olympic lift variations for power production. But I’ve always preferred the snatch and have been obsessed with it for as long as I can remember. Before I even started lifting weights, actually. Cleans are a great exercise but they are also significantly harder to teach/learn than snatches are. The other issue I have with cleans is that they can lead to wrist and elbow injuries. There are certain athletes, such as basketball players or baseball players, that I wouldn’t want… continue reading.
In case you missed them here’s a quick list of the most popular (along with some of my personal favorite) posts from 2010: Please leave a comment on as many of them as you like. I always read each and every comment you post and always appreciate the feedback. You Must Have the Wrong Guy- Unlike Bruce Banner, people seem to like me when I’m angry. I kicked 2010 off with this little rant that a lot of people seemed to enjoy. Simplify Your Program to Amplify Your Results– Too many people add too many ingredients and end… continue reading.
By Nick Nilsson Overtraining is NOT evil. In fact, overtraining can be exactly what you need to achieve continuous and rapid results in your training and breakthrough muscle-building plateaus! So first, what IS overtraining? Overtraining is, most simply, training too much. Your body is unable to recover from the volume or frequency of training and begins to break down. You not only lose motivation to train, you become more susceptible to injury and illness, and you may even start to go backwards in your training, getting smaller and weaker on almost a daily basis. So how can overtraining possibly be… continue reading.
Here are 5 random muscle building tips that may make a big difference in your training. – Don’t exceed 5-6 reps on most of your warm up sets. Your first set could consist of a very light weight for 10-20 reps just to get loosened up and get the blood flowing but beyond that you want to keep the reps low. The reason for this is that you don’t want to build up too much lactic acid or accumulate too much fatigue with your warm ups. – Don’t stretch before your workout in the hopes of preventing… continue reading.
I was interviewed recently by Truly Huge and thought I would share it here with everyone. Q: What got you started with weight training? JF: I was a painfully skinny kid and always hated that. It tortured me and really affected my self confidence. My cousin was dating a pro wrestler who was absolutely enormous and he was the one who got me really into it. I wanted to be just like him so I started hitting the iron. Unfortunately I was doing a lot of the wrong things and wasted a lot of years… continue reading.
