DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING
BROOKS D. KUBIK AUTHOR OF DINOSAURTRAINING: LOST SECRETSoF STRENGTHAND DEVLEOPMENT WWW.BROOKSKUBIK.COM
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NTRODUCTION
Back in 1993,I wrote a short coursecalledBIG ARMS, which was editedby StuartMcRobert and published by CS Publishing,Ltd. As originally written, it featuredMike and Mike's Gym. Stuart thought readerswould confuseMike with Mike Thompson,4 popular writer for his bi-monthly Hardgainer magazine,so he askedme to changethe name. After kickirg around a dozenor so different names,we settled on Flynn and Flynn's Gym. The coursewas so well received that I wrote a secondone calledBIG BENCH - also set in Flynn's Gym - and on occasion,in my Hardgainer articles,I wrote a trainirg article set in Flynn's Gym. But in my heart,I always knew I was writing about Mike's Gym - which is about the best darn place in the world to train, and a place that every serious lifter should visit at least once in his or her lifetime. Three years after writing the BIG ARMS course,I wrote and published DINOSAURTRAINNG: LOST SECRETSOF STRENGTH AND DEVELOPMENT, and the rest, as they s?y, is history. (And thathistory included the original Dinosaur Files monthly newsletter,which often included training articles set in - you guessedit - a very Dino-style gym calledby it's true name-- Mike's Gym.) Today, nearly 20 years after writing that little course,I find myself besiegedby readerswho ask for an updated,revised,expandedcourseon serious,no-nonsenseafin training for Dinosaurs- and for an updateon Mike's Gym. One day not very long 4go,after receiving yet anotheremail makittg this
request,I decidedto clearthe decks, chain myself to the keyboardfor as long as it took, and hammerthe little monster into existence.And that's how this coursecame into being. This brand new coursedoes severalthings: 1. It teachessane,sensible,nononsenseann training as part of a complete, total body training program. 2.It givesyou a completethreestageroutine for building strong, powerful, large and musculararms. (Yeah, I know the title suggeststhat we're only interestedin building BIG anns - but actually, we're interestedin building anns that are strong and powerful. If your arrns arestrong and powerful, they'll be plenty big.) 3. It teachesyou which exercises to avoid - becausethey can injure your shouldersor elbows. 4.It gives you an updateon arrn training methods thatMike and I have developedover the past 20 yearsbecauseit's almost20 yearssince that first little affn training coursehit the market and astonishedthe world. 5. It gives you ALL NEW routinesto build DNOSAUR ARMS meanirg afins that arebig, thick, strong andpowerful. I've enjoyedthe work I've done on this course,and I've enjoyedbringing back Mike, Mike's Gym and Mike's world-famous caninecompanion,the inimitable Sam.Pay close attentionto what they say. You'll learn a lot from them. I certainly have.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
MIKE'S GYM Mike's Gym is the perfect place for dinosaursto train. The dumbbells go up to 200 pounds.The gym boastseight full-si zedpower racks, four platfonns for deadlifting, and four more for Olympic lifting. It holds somethinglike 30 Olympic bars- power bars and black iron plates for the powerlifters and for rack training, andhigh quality weightlifting bars and bumper plates for the weightlifting platforrns. There are four competition style benchpress benches,two sfurdy incline benches, four flat benches,two chinning bars (one with thick handles),four Gerard Trap Bars, a standingcalf machine,two heavy-duty overheadpulleys for lat work, a vaiety of grip blasters,thick bars of various sizesand thicknesses, sledge-hammers,free standingsquat standsto use on the lifting platfonns, thick handleddumbbells,keffle-bells, Indian clubs, climbing ropes,two setsof gymnasticsrings, two adjustablesit-up boards,log bars,lifting blocks, & couple of heavy duty head-strapsfor neck work, bands and chains for the powerlifters, & wrestling mat for bodyweight training, and nothing else- unlessyou include the Pit in back of the gym and the special oocardio for strengthathletes" stuff that Mike usesto torture us. I'11tell you more aboutthe cardio stuff and Mike's patentedcardio torture routines some other time, but for now, let me briefly mention the Pit. It's an outside trainittg areathat Mike uses primarily for strongman stuff and for conditioning work. You ought to seeit! Mike has filled the Pit with heavy tires, sleds,sandbags,lifting logs, farmer's walk implements,steel suitcases,granite balls, ropes,wheel-barrows,enonnous anchor chains,anvils, barrels and beer-
kegs.He alsohas a completeset of outdoor climbing ropes,pull-up bars, 4 climbing wall and other fun equipment.
Edward Aston But other than the bars, the plates, the rest of the iron and the strongmantools in the Pit, that was it. You can look around from side to side, top to bottoffi, and even up on the roof, and you won't find a single chrome-plated,whrz-bang wonder machine.Nor will you find any of the typical piecesof 'ostandard" equipmentyou seeat most bodybuilding gyms or in the muscle magazines. There's a rumor (and it may even be true!) that Mike actually purchaseda pec dec once - and raffled tickets to give the guys the chanceto smack it to deathwith sledgehammers.They say he sold the thing for scrapafter it was demolished. The proceedswent to Sam's favorite charity - the local dog pound. Sam is
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Mike's goldenretriever, andevery bit as dementedas his thickly muscledowner. Peopleoften tell Mike that he would attractmore new membersand make oodlesof loot if he put in some "state of the art" training machinesand a big cardio theatrecompletewith a 2000 channelgiant-screentelevision set -- or even if he just put in a pec dec,leg extensionmachine,leg curl unit, leg pressmachine,and a few other "basic" piecesof equipment.But Mike refusesto do it. He has a theory about it. He says that if you cram a gymwith nonessentialpiecesof equipment all you do is encouragepeople to avoid the resultproducing basic movementsin favor of lighter, easier, far lessproductive exercises. "If I put a hack machine in here " he said,"some poor misguidedsoul would probably use it. Samewith a leg extensionunit - or a leg pressmachine. And I bet he wouldn't even do squats. Imagine what a travesty that would be. I would feel so guilty." A new guy heard him say that once and objectedto the dismissalof the hack machine, saying that it worked okay for GeorgeHackenschmidt,the old-time Russianstrongmanand wrestling champion known as "the RussianLion." Mike told him to go find a photo of Hack using a hack machine. The guy cameback a week later, dumbfoundedand embalrassed,and admitted thathe couldn't find one. 'oThat'sbecausehe never used one," said Mike. "In fact, he never trained with any sort of modern-day idiot machine.That's why he was so strong. He usedbarbellsand dumbbells.?' "Then why do they call it the Hack machine?" askedthe highly perplexedand confusedgym member. "Probably becauseall the other
nameswere taken," said Mike, and he went into the gym office and poured Sam an extra large bowl of puppy food. The guy scratchedhis head for nearly twenty minutes tryittg to figure it out, finally gave up, and went over to the power rack and startedto do squats.(He endedup gaining nearly 40 pounds of muscle and became a statepowerlifting champion, but that's another story and I don't have time to tell it now. Let me just say that GeorgeHackenschmidt would have beenproud of him - and proud of Mike, as well, for steeringhim straight. The new guy, I mean - not Hackenschmidt.)It was anotherexample of Mike's sophisticatedtraining and coachirg methods,and how well he has masteredthe gentle art of combating the modern-day brainwashing so many guys seemto suffer from. Especiallythe guys who spendtoo much time (Mike says anything more than 30 secondsanda chuckle is too much time) looking atthe musclecomics eachmonth. Mike's training philosophyis nowhere more evident than in the special training courseshe drops on beginners who want to bomb and blitz a particular body part to Herculeanproportions. Take the Mike's Gym ann routine, for example. THE ROOKIE A year ago a scrawny kid came into the gym, signedup for a one year membership,and proceededto try to curl himself to death.He had one of those space-dge,high tech training programs that so appealto teenagers.Where he found it, no one ever knew. The routine was endorsedby apopular bodybuilding star,who at 5'8" and (an alleged)293 poundsof "ripped to the bone, supershredded,maximum massmega-muscle"
claimed to have built his arms to 27" in record time. I think he also said he could curl 450 pounds for 35 reps and do lying triceps extensionsfor 20 x 20 with 600 pounds.His arrnswere so massivehe couldn't eatby himself, so he had to hire hot babesin very small bikini's to feed him. There were photos of this in the magazinesand on the internet. I looked at the photos once, and the girls were definitely hot, but it still seemedlike a difficult way to meet girls. I mentioned this to Mike, and he said not to wory becauseit was all the work of some publicist's feveredand over-active imagination, urhich was good to know.
Eugene Sandow Anyhow, the kid trained on one heck of a crazy program. To begin with, even though he was a rank beginner he trained his arrnssix daysper week. He did hundredsof setsfor the biceps and almost as many for the triceps.He did every upper artn exerciseever invented, and many that must have been invented exclusively for his training program. I had certainly never seenthem before. Of course,the only gym I go to is Mike's Gy-, so I'm probably not up on the latesttraining breakthroughs.Mike's not into the modern sfuff. The kid bombed,blastedand
blitzed religiously. He did tri-sets, supersets,giarrtsets,pre-exhaustion, compounds,breakdowns,running the rack, forced reps,negatives,isometrics, peak contraction, flushing, pumpitg, muscle spinnitg, crampitg, isolation exercises,slow motion reps, mental contraction,'opowertraining" (that's what he called it, but it really wasn't), muscle posiflE,and voodoo. Well, okay, not voodoo - but if the guy who wrote his program had told him to stick pins into a little doll to make his anns bigger, he would have done it. Heck, he would have sfuck pins into his anns if someone told him thatwas the way to make them bigger. On the kid's first day atthe gym, Mike askedthe kid if he would like to try a specialworkout for beginners. 'oIt'sa good, time-testedprogram that a man named Bob Hoffman put togetherway back in the I930's," Mike said. "He called it York Barbell Cornse No. 1." "Why'd he call it that?" asked the kid. 'o'Washe from New York?" 'No, he owned the York Barbell Compdrry,"said Mike. "In York, Pennsylvania." 'Never heard of it," said the kid. 'Never heard of this Hoffman guy, either." . "'Well, it's just aboutthe best courseever written for beginners,"said Mike. "Yeah, but I'm not a beginner," said the kid. "I trained for two weeks over at FitnessWorld before coming over here. So I'm ready for an advanced program.t' "Why'd you quit FitnessWorld?" I asked. "Conflict of interest,"saidthe kid.
Fred Rollon "What do you mean?"askedMike. "I heard the owner bet another guy ten bucks on who was gonna win the Mr. Inter-GalacticContestthis year," said the kid. "That's one I'm planning to win. It will be my first win in a major contest,and that's how I'll get my endorsementdealswith the supplement companies.So anyhow, when I heard that,I figured the owner had a conflict of interestand might not let me do enough setsof curls if he knew it about it. '' Mike nodded. "Yeah, I can seehow that would have really tore him up," he said. "Anyhow, that'swhy I'm here," said the kid. "Otherwise,I'd go some place where they have all the equipment I need.This place doesn'thave much. Just barbellsand dumbbellsand stuff. "
Mike noddedagain. When Mike nods his head and doesn'tsay anythirg, he'susually countittgto ten silently. In this case, maybehe was countingto 100. "You shouldmove out one of thosepower racks and put in a pec dec," said the kid. "I heardthey're pretty good for def and sep." "I hear that Deff and Sepp enjoy training on them," I told him. 'oYeah,well def and sep are pretty important," said the kid. "I don't want to be one of those loserswith nothing but maximum musclemass.I gotta be shreddedlike wheat, man!" Mike saidnothing. He didn't evennod. The kid hit a quick double biceps pose.Actually, it was too quick, because I didn't see anybiceps.
"ShreddedGuns!" he proclaimed. "What's that?" I asked. "That's what they're gonna call me!" saidthe kid. Silencefrom Mike. I don't think he was very impressedwith the kid's plans. We have tons of gym members with killer nicknames,but I don't think ShreddedAnything has ever been one of them. THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING LIFTER So that was how the kid endedup skipping York Training CourseNo. 1 andjumping into the crary program I already told you about. If you forgot what he was doing, go back and reread it. It takes too long to write it out, and just thinking about it makes me tired. After I typed it up, I had to go lie down for 15 minutesbecauseI was so tired. I think it made the kid tired, too. He startedto get these greatbig bags under his eyes.Pretty soon,the bags under his eyeswere the biggestpart of him. Nothing else was growing. In fact, if anythirg, he seemedto be shrinking. Especiallyhis affns. They hadn't been very big to begin with, but now they looked positively Lilliputian. o'Isit my imagination, or is the new kid shrinkrng?" I askedMike. "He's shrinking," said Mike. 'oWhyis that?" I asked. "Becausehe's following an atm speciahzattonprogram straight out of the muscle comics, and he's overtraininghis arrns,and he's undertrainingthe rest of this body - and he's a beginner,andhas no businesson a speciahzationprogram anyway -- and he probably lives on goory supplementsinsteadof real food -and he doesn't do squatsand pressesand
deadlifts and stuff like that -- and he trains for a pump instead of training for strength -- and he trains with midget weights -- and he tries to FEEL every rep -- and he's been brainwashed,anddid I mention thathe doesn't do squats and pressesand deadlifts and stuff?" I nodded. "Yeah, you coveredthat one," I said. "Well , it' s worth saying twice," said Mike. "Becausethat's preffy much where the whole problem starts." 'oIthought maybe it was because he wasn't taking enoughMegabolic Maxi-Mass Magic Muscle Mix," I told him. I said it real serious,but sort of casual,and kept my face real serious, just to seethe big guy's reaction. In retrospect,that was abad move. Mike ignored me, but Sam came out of the gym office with his fangs bared,growled menacingly, and began walking towards me the way a prehistoric cave-wolf walked toward a nice looking dinner of meat on the hoof. "Tell him you werejoking and give him a puppy biscuit," said Mike. 'oIwasjokiflEr" I said. Sam stopped. "Here you gor" I added,and tossedhim a puppy biscuit. Sam snatchedit out of the air and swallowed it in one gulp. "He's not a fan of the Magic Muscle Mix, is he?" I asked. Mike nodded. "Not at all," he replied. 'oYou should have seenwhat happenedthe day some guy came over trying to sell the sfuff to our members." Sam smiled and waggedhis tail. He obviously enjoyedthe memory. "Well, what arc we gonna do aboutthe kid?" I asked."He needs
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help." "He's a hard case,"saidMike. 'oHeneedsanothercouple of weeks of spinninghis wheels." "What happensthen?" "You'Il see,"he said. So I satback and laid low for almost a month, waiting to seewhat rvould happen.I did notice that the bags under the kid's eyeskept getting bigger and darker.PreW soonhe looked like he was a taccooll.
GeorgeHackenschmidt TIME TO TRY SOMETHINGNEW! One duy,the kid sloggedthrough anotherof his four-hour arm-bhtzing sessions,and then sat on a gym bench sipping somethingfrom a thermos.f figured it was Magic Muscle Mix, but I
was afraid to ask. Mike chosethat moment to stop by. o'How'sit going, champ?"he asked. The kid took anothersip of his whatever-it-was-drink, swallowed quickly so he wouldn't tastethe stuff, and looked np at Mike. 'Not so goodr" he said. "The program doesn't seemto be working very well." o'That'stoo bad," saidMike. 'oEspeciallywith that big contestcoming up for you. The Mr. - what was it?" The kid frowned. "I guessmaybe I'11have to wait a few more yearsbefore I enterit," he said. "Well , that's okay," said Mike. "That gives you more time for serious training." The kid noddedweakly. 'oYeah,I guessr"he said. He almost sighedas he said it. He looked so sadI startedto feel sorry for him. Even Sam felt sorry for him. He came out and sat in front of the kid and looked np at him with big brown puppy eyesfull of concenl. "Maybe you should change things up a brt," said Mike. "What do you mean?" askedthe kid. 'oOh,you know- maybetry a new program," said Mike. The kid brightened. "That's a good idea!" he said. "Maybe I can switch from multi-angular blast-mastercurls to power-pump retrogravity curls!" "That's one option," saidMike. "Supersettedwith inverted lowpulley tricepsextensions!"the kid added."For 20 x20 - with 20 seconds rest betweensets."
SamandI both workedhardto keepq sftaightface.I haveno ideahow Mike continuedto talk to the kid without breakinginto wild galesof laughter. Maybe it wasbecausehe felt sorry for him. Or maybehe wasthinking how muchfun it would be to showthe kid how easyit wasto build his arms- and therestof his body- with the kind of old-fashioned, backto basicstraining Mike lovessomuch. Evenso,he hadto takea big swig of coffeeto fortiff himselfbefore he replied.In the meantime,I tried to picture what invertedlow-pulley triceps extensionswould look like. Try asI might, I couldn'tdo it. Samlookedup expectantly.He had seenthis happenso manytimesI'm surehe lost count.You couldalmostsee the wheelstuming insidehis cunning caninecranium:"Here it comes!" Mike took a deepbreath, exhaled,andtried to keephis voice as casualaspossible. "How'd you like to try the Mike's Gym armroutine?"he asked. "It's a specialprogramfor buildingbig arms." The kid's eyesopenedwide in surprise. "You havea specialprogramfor building big arms?"he asked. Mike nodded. "Sure,"he said."But it's a secret progrum- only for membersof Mike's Gym." That caughtthekid's attention fast.The word o'secret" is nearanddear to the heartsof skinny guys aroundthe world asthey desperately searchfor THE PROGRAM that will transform their bodiesfrom toothpicksto redwoods. 'o'Wow!"saidthekid. And by the way he saidit, you couldtellhe was
mighty impressed. Mike seizedhis advantage. "I happento havea copy of it right here," he said."But I haveto warn you, this is a liule bit different thanthe programyou've beenfollowing for the pastcoupleof months.It usessome really new andexotictrainingprinciples. Specialstuffthat no oneelseknows too." about.Specialexercises, "Like what?"askedthe kid. "Like squatsandpressesand deadlifts,"saidMike. o'Neverheardof them," saidthe kid. 'Trlottoo manypeoplehave," saidMike. "Specialexercises,"saidthe kid. "I like that." "Yeah,they work prettywell," saidMike. "The guysherehavehad greatsuccess with them." "What aboutyour special trainingprinciples?"askedthe kid. By now, he soundeddownright eagerto get startedon the new program. "It's like the exercises,"said Mike. "It's stuff you probablynever heardof. They don't coverit in the you read." magazines "Like what?"askedthe kid. 'ol-ikehard work andheavy - basic, weights- poundageprogression - dividedworkouts compoundexercises - andabbreviated training,"saidMike. and 'Don't forgetconcentration hardwork," I added. "I saidhardwork," saidMike. "That wasthe first thing I said. "Well, yeah- but add concentration, too." Mike sighed. "Okay," he said. He turnedbackto thekid. to ttrelist," "Add concentration he said.
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The kid noddedsagely. "Concentrationcurls," he said.
of his pocket, openedit up, and handedit to the kid. "Here's the program)'ohe said. The kid took it eagerly,and quickly read it from top to bottom. Then he went back and read rt again. "Where are the curls?" he asked. "And where's the triceps work?" Of course,Mike had anticipated the question and had an answerall ready packaged. "This is the latestupdateon Swedishsomatotrophichyperbole training," he said."It's basedon the scientific principle of neuro-bio-quadrooptimization." He pausedand let the big words sink in. o'I'm sureyou've heardof itr" he added."I know you read a lot about this stuff." The kid nodded avidly. 'oYeah,they say it beats everything elsehandsdown!" he squealed. "Right," said Mike. "And the way we do it here at Mike's Gym, it really does." "Wow!" saidthe kid. He was mesmetized. But then he looked at the program again and frowned. "But why don't I do any curls?" he asked. 'oMolecularrefraction," said Mike. o'Anyonecando curls, but only a true champion builds his anns molecularly." The kid nodded slowly. "That makessenser" he said. Mike nodded. 'oYeah, it' s the little stuff that counts,"he said."Squats,deadlifts, pressesand molecularrefraction. They all go together." The kid nodded.
"Got it. Mike glaredat me. So did Sam. It was one of those"you're making this difficult and I'm not happy glares" that Mike and Sam sendme every so often (like once or twice a day).
GeorgeF. Jowett I pretendedto be counting the weights on Bubba Johnson'ssquatbar. Bubba had loadedthe power bar until it started to bend, so I figured counting the weights would take long enoughto get me out of trouble. 'Not concentrationcurls " saidMike. concentration! "What's that?" askedthe kid. "'We'11cover it Iater," saidMike. I continuedto count the plates on the bar. Mike pulled a piece of paper out
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{ "The flip snatchis strictlY a wafin-up exerciser"said Mike. 'oDothem with a light weight and hit two setsof 12 reps. They'll make you puff and pant, and get the blood moving through your entire body. And since you use pretty much every muscle in your bodY when you do them, they get your joints loose and limber and ready for the serious stuff." The kid did two setsof 12 rePs with a light weight. He startedto do some seriouspuffing and panting before he was halfivay through the first set.But he finished his setsand askedwhat was next. o'Indianclubs," said Mike. "What do those do?" askedthe kid. "They help loosenyour shoulders and your upper back," said Mike. 'oMost people are pretty tight there from all the sitting they do - and from being in front of a computerso much." o'Whatabout going to school and sitting in classall day?" askedthe kid. "That, too," saidMike. "Especially if you have a really boring professor." The kid sighed. "All of my professorsate borin8," he said. "What areyou studYing?"I asked. "Communications," said the kid, glumly. I made a mental note to Passon any CommunicationsCoursesif I ever went back to Central City Junior College for a seconddegree. Meanwhile, Mike showedthe kid somebasic exerciseswith Indian clubs and had him drill them for a couple of minuttt., Ihat looks good," he said. "How do you feel?'
"That makes sensar" he said. "So here'sthe deal," saidMike. "Go take a shower,take a couple of days off, and come back on MondaY for Your first workout. Kubik and I will coach you through it. We'll show you exactly what to do!" "Including the specialsecret exercises?" Mike nodded. oolncludingthe specialsecret exercises,"he said. THE KID'S FIRST WORKOUT The kid came back on MondaY, ready to go. He looked real excited about doing a special secretroutine filled with specialsecretexercises. "Okay, so here's what You do," said Mike. "Start by grabbingthatbat over there and doing 10 or 12 fliP snatches." 'oWhatare those?" askedthe kid. "Let's have Kubik demonstrate," saidMike. I walked over to the bar, stood in front of it as if I was going to perform a deadlift, croucheddown, keePingmY back flat, and grabbedthe bar with a wide grip. Not collar to collar, becauseI have short artns,but pretty wide. I pusheddown with my legs, and slowlY lifted the bar off the platforrn - and snappedit up and overheadwith a fast, smoothmovement.I held it overheadfor a secondor two, lowered it back to the platfo* and repeatedthe movement. fou do those with a wide grip," said Mike. The kid nodded. "Don't try to jerk the bar off the platformr" said Mike. "You start slow and accelerateall the way. Make it smooth." The kid nodded again.
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'oGoodand loose," said the kid. "'Warmedup and ready to go?" askedMike. "Yeah!" "Okay, then, let's get going. Your first real exerciseis the military press.We do a lot of them here at Mike's Gym." "I never heard of them," said the kid. "What do they buil d?" "They build the shouldersand the triceps," said Mike. "And they make you strong. Really strotrg." He had me show the kid how to do presses.I beganby cleaningthe bar, and then pressedit for five strict reps. No leg drive, no knee kick, no backbend - just five perfect reps,up and down, in the military style that Mike always requires. 'oI don't get it," said the kid. 'oHow can something like thatbuild your triceps?" "A lot of people think the military pressis the very best exercise for the triceps," said Mike. "Like who?" "Well, like John McCallum, for one." 'Never heardof him." "Peary Rader, for another." oNeverheard of him, either." "Bradley J. Steiner." "Nope." 'oJohnGrimek." "That draws a blank, too." Mike pointed to abrgphoto of Grimek on the wall of the gym. "That's Grimek," he said. The kid walked over to look and then stopped- and then walked closer and staredat the photo for somethinglike half a minute. Maybe longer.If I'd beenthinking,I would have timed him. But whateverit was, it was a long time.
'oGeez"I never saw anyonelike that!" he said. 'No one has,unlessthey saw Grimek in his prime," said Mike. "And he said that those military pressthings were good to do?" Mike nodded. "He always said they were the very best exercisefor the triceps.And he was seriousabout doing them, too. He set a couple of United Statesnational recordsin the military press- and came darn closeto seffing a World record. He could presscloseto 300 poundsat a bodyweightof about 185 or so." The kid nodded without answering.He was still staring at Grimek's photo. 'oSowhat do you think?" asked Mike. "I'll do them!" the kid almost shouted,and he ran back to the platfonn so fast that Sam and I had to jump out of the way. ooYou'regoing to do 5 x 5 on your presses,"said Mike. 'oln fact, you're going to do 5 x 5 on pretty much everythingyou do." "Why 5 x 5?" askedthe kid. "Did John Grimek do 5 x 5?" 'No, but Reg Park did," said Mike. "Reg who?" Mike pointed to the gym wall again. "That EUyr"he said. Once again we went through the whole deal of the kid walking over to the photo, taking a look, taking a second look, staring in amazement,and then standinglike a stone statuefor half a minute or more. 'oThreetime Mr. Universe," said Mike. "Best built man of his generation. Strongas heck, too. Pressed300 pounds. Bench pressed500 pounds.In fact, he
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importance of adding weight to the bat. The next exercisein the Program was one of the biggies - the squat.Now, you may not believe it, but the kid actually said he didn't want to do them! He said thatleg training would tire him out so much that he wouldn't be able to do curls. I thought Mike would blow a gasket,for sure,but the big guy took it in stride. He explained that Grimek and Park were both extremely strong squatters,and that both men always said that the squatwas one of their favorite (and most important) exercises.The kid took anotherlook at the Photosof Grimek and Park, and once agarn,he was sold.
was the secondman in the world to bench press500 pounds.Doug Hepburn was the first." The kid nodded absent-mindedlY. He didn't even bother to ask aboutDoug Hepbrlrrl. He just stood and staredat the photo of Reg Park. And that's how Mike sold him on doing 5 x 5. There arelots of different waYS to do 5 x 5. Mike had the kid do one that's perfect for guys who are relatively new to the lifting thing. He did two progressivelyheavierwarm-up sets, followed by three "working sets." Since this was the kid's first real workout (the silly stuff he had been doing before didn't count), Mike had him use light weights, so it was fairly easy for him to get five reps on all three of his work sets. Later ofl, as he got stronger,he added weight to the bar, and eventually he had to work preff hard to get thosefive reps on each set. Sometimeshe didn't make it. When that happened,Mike made him stay at that weight until he got the five reps. When he did, he addedweight again. Mike explained that adding weight to the bar was an important paft of the program. Of course,the kid said he'd never heard about that. Mike explained by showing before and after photos of Reg Park, who went from a tall, skinny beginner who could barely handle the empty bar to a massivelY muscled235 lb. Mr. Universe winner who played Herculesin the movies and really looked the part- and who handled heavier weights than just about any other bodybuilder of his era- and who could go head to headwith most Heavyweight weightlifters on squats,benchpress, dumbbell press,dumbbell incline press, bent over rowing and similar movements.That sold the kid on the
JoeNordquest Mike startedhim very light, and taught him to do full squatsright from the get go. Mike prefers full squatsto
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parallel squatsfor anyonewho can perform them safely. Of course,the powerlifters at the gym do parallel squatsbecausethat's what they do in competition, andthe Olympic lifters always do fulI squatsbecausethey need to be able to drop into the low squat position to catch the weight when they do squat cleansand squat snatches. Here's an importantnote.Doing fuIl squatsmeansyou need to wear Olympic lifting shoeswith a high heel so you can squat all the way down and keep your back straight. If you do full squats with a rounded back, you're asking for trouble. Plus, you're not getting nearly as much benefit from the exerciseas you would if you were doing them the right way. Older guys may find it difficult or impossibleto do full squatssafely. That's especiallytrue for guys who have done lots of heavy parallel squats.The parallel squatswill actually tighten your leg and hip musclesso that it becomes very hard for you to do a full squat.You CAN make the switch, but it takes time and patienceand lots of stretchingand plenty of common sensetraining. And even at that, for someguys it's just plain impossible.So Mike treatseachof his membersas a unique individual, and helps him perfect the best squat form that he can master- which is parallel for some lifters and full for others. After the squats,Mike had the kid do a single set of 20 breathittg pullovers with a pafuof light dumbbells. Thesewere purely for chestexpansion, and the stretchwas the important thing, so the weights were very light. Next, the kid did the barbell benchpress.Again, he did 5 x 5. Mike madehim do the benchpressesstrict, with a pauseat the chest.Mike doesn't allow dropping and bouncirg, raising the
hips or any other form of cheatingbench press.And he doesn't allow that "spotter grabsthe bar and deadlifts it while the lifter pushesand then the lifter claim she did it all on his own" nonsenseyou see in so many other gyms. If you bench heavy in Mike's Gym, believe me, YOU bench heavy. (Of course,you either bench in a rack with pins to catch the bar if you miss, or you use a spotterfor safetyin caseyou miss. Never try benching heavy - or going for maximum reps -- without a power rack or a spotter.) The kid didn't bother to complain about doing the benchpresses, but Mike still told him that they were excellentfor building the triceps.He also told him that the benchpresswas one of Reg Park's favorite exercises. (Grimek rarely did them - they were not a big deal when he was lifting, and he preferredthe military pressin any case.) The kid followed the benchpress with the barbell bent-over row. Amazingly, he didn't questionwhat must have been a very novel and surprising movement for him. If he had, Mike would have told him how Reg Park and Marvin Eder trained together on bent over rows and piled on weight until the bar startedto bend! Mike taught the kid to perform bent-over rowing with his knees slightly bent and his back flat. He pulled the bar up along his thighs, closeto his centerof gravity, and finished with the bar pressed againsthis lower abdomen. Mike says thatyears 4go,many instructors taught doing the bent-over row by pulling the bar up to the chest while the lifter was positionedwith his back at a 90 degreeangle(i.e.,his back parallel to the floor). Mike saysthat's a tenible way to do rowing. You place tremendousstrain on your lower back,
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{ 'Not to woff!," said Mike. o'He'11 be back." 'oBecause he had a life-changing experienceby doing squatsand presses and stuff?" I asked. Mike shookhis head. 'No, becauseSam swipedhis ipod while he was trainittg. The kid will come back looking for it." I looked at Sam.He looked back at me and grinned with satisfaction.The i-pod lay next to his pillow.
and you can't handle anywherenear enoughweight to build your lats and other upper back muscles. Mike made the kid do his rowing with arm, shoulder and upper back power alone- no bobbing, no jerking, and no heaving. Nice and strict all the way.And Mike madehim pausebriefly in the finish position, and then lower the bar slowly back to the starting position. 'oDothem strict or don't bother to do themr" said Mike. 'oIt's not a bent over power clean or an ugly looking sort of high pull." 'oWhatarethose?" askedthe kid. "Those are- heck, we'Il cover it anothertime," said Mike. 'oJustdo the rowing nice and strict." The kid nodded,and did five sets of five reps. That endedthe barbell portion of the workout. Mike had him finish with two setsof bent-leggedsit-ups on a slight incline (on a sit-up board), doing about ten reps per set, and curling his body up into a ball nice and slow so that he really worked his abs. Later, &she got stronger,Mike had him do the exercise with abarbell plate pressedagainsthis forehead. When the kid finished his workout, he was coveredwith sweat (and even with chalk, rvhich he had never usedbefore), and panting like a race-horseafter a fast quarter-mile with an overweighthippo as the jockey. He was so tired he didn't even bother to ask when he was supposedto do his curls and tricepspumpers. Mike told him he had done good, hit to the showers,to go home and get somefood, and to come back in 48 hours for his next workout. The kid nodded,wearily. He looked so darn tired that I actually wonderedif he would come back.
Otto Arco THE KID'S SECOND WORKOUT For his secondworkout, the kid followed a similar program - all 5 x 5 other than wann-ups and gut work - but he used different exercises.Mike likes to mix things up like that when he setsup a program for someone.Almost all of his programs involve two or three different workouts: Workout A and Workout B, or Workout A, Workout B and Workout C. He calls it the "divided workout system."I guessthat's as good a name for it as anything else.But whatever you call it, rt works pretty darn well. Many guys who never gained very much strengthand muscle doing the sametotal body workout three times per week have
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exercise- but do them the right w&y, regardless! Next, the kid did more work with the Indian Clubs. Some guys think Indian Clubs aresilly, but they're wrong. It's really important to get those shouldersnice and loosebefore you hit the iron. Tight shoulderscan messup the nerve impulses as they run down the arrns and forearms - and that can make it difficult or impossible to pack strength and muscle into your anns! (Remember that sometimesa pinched nerve in the neck or shoulderscan causethe atm musclesto atrophy. Tight shouldersdo the samething, only in less dramatic fashion.) After his warrn-ups,the kid did the standing alternatepresswith dumbbells. Once again,Mike made me demonstrate.You do this one by cleaning the dumbbells to your shoulders,standingtall and looking straight ahead - and then pressingthe dumbbell in the right hand. As you lower the dumbbell in your right hand back to your shoulder,you begin to pressthe dumbbell in your left hand. It's right hand, left hand, right hand, left hand, etc. Do five presseswith eachhand and then lower the dumbbellsback to the floor. "What kind of grip should I use?" askedthe kid - which was one of the better questionshe has askedso far, if you'rc paying attention to that sort of thing. ooThe old-timers usedto twist their wrist so the palms of their hands were facing eachother. That positions the dumbbellsso the front of eachbell is to your front and the back of eachbell is to your rear. Your arrns and shoulders are strongerin that position, and the dumbbellsbalancebetter." "So you can use more weight, right?" askedthe kid.
made gteat gains by switching to a divided workout schedule.(I should know - I'm one of them!) In his secondworkout - Workout B - the kid beganwith two setsof 12 reps in the clean and press.Once again, this was strictly for wanning up, so he used arcaIly light weight. Mike had me demonstratethe power clean for the kid. You probably know how to do it: stand in front of the bar like you're going to do a deadlift, keep the bar over the toes, legs bent, anns straight, flat back, tight arch,push the legs through the floor to get the bar started,move the kneesback, keep the bar closeto the legs (and later, closeto the body), pop the hips forward as the . bar passesthe knees- and make it a combinedl.g, back and hip movement rather than a slow deadlift followed by a cheat-stylereversecurl the way so many guys do it. Be sureto keep the bar close to the body at the top. LIFT your elbows. Do NOT reversecurl the bar - and never let it swing out and away from the body. You lose all your leverageand all your power if the bar swings out and away from you. Many well-intentioned writers have said thatthe power clean is a good 'Well, arrn builder. it's not. It's a lousy ann exercise- and if you try to make it an atm exercise,you're doing it wrong. It's not a reversegrip cheatcurl or a reversegrip swinging curl or a reverse grip anythirg, and it's not a deadlift followed by an upright row. It's aleg, back and hip movement, and that' s how you needto do them. (Note: all of the samepoints apply to high pulls. They are a total body, all-out strengthand power exercise,NOT an afiTrexercise,as so many effoneouslybelieve!) Of course,in this program you do the power cleansonly as a wafin-up
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Mike nodded. "That's rightr" he said. He shot me a quick glance.The kid was catching on! (And after only one workout.) This was beginning to look promising. o'Moreweight is good, right?" askedthe kid. "More weight is good," said Mike. "I thought it worked better to pump up the muscleswith light weights," said the kid. "That's what everyonealways saYS.That's whatl always read." "That's what theY saY,"said Mike. "But it's a big Pile of horse patties."
"Here's the way it reallY is," said Mike. 'oYourmusclesaren'tjust big chinks of solid tissue.They're actually composedof millions and millions of muscle fibers. The muscle fibers form little ropes all along the length of the muscle.When you PumPYour muscles up, all you do is fill the ateain-between the muscle fiber ropeswith blood - and when your workout is over the blood goes away, and you're right back where you started.It's like a ballooll. You take a balloon, and you blow it uP, and when it's filled with ar rt getsmaYbe50 or 100 times bigger than when you started. But when you let the air out, the balloon goesright back to its original size. Filling it full of hot air doesn't make the balloon any bigger. It just stretchesit for a while. Pumping Your muscleswith blood doesn't make them anybigget - it
just*'IT*l'ffi ".[3:??:ffi::1f ;' pump up your muscles?" "Becausethat's what the muscle magazineshave been teachingpeople for the putt.:0 or 60 years," saidMike. Why did they start doing 7t?" "Becausethey were looking for something new and different with a catchy name. The factthat it was an EASY way to train made it all the easier to promote.Remember,there was a time *h.tr pretty much everyonewho trained with weights did heavy weightlifting and strengthtraining. They developed great physiques as a natural by-product of their strengthtraining. Latet on, more people were interestedin bodybuilding in how they looked - than in weightlifting, so the magazinescatered
tothe':il|;l,ttr;*,nu,,,
Dave Mayor
Not many peoPledo. Most people have beenbrainwashed,andthey never figure it out."
"What's that?" askedthe kid. Mike translated. "Oh!" saidthe kid.
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grip, but he knows that sometraineesare just too stiff and too to do it. If that' s the case,he has the guy work on his flexibility, but let's him use the crossed hands style so he can still do front squats.(Or he has the guy do his wannup setswith the weightlifter grip and his heavier setswith the bodybuilder grip until the guy gets his flexibility where he needsit to be.) Mike is a big fan of front squats.He usually has most of his beginnersalternatethem with back squats.Back squatsin Workout A and front squatsin Workout B. To do front squatsthe right w&y, you need to keep your torso in a straight up and down position. If your back rounds,you're doing them wrong. Mike has everyonewho does front squatsdo them full squat style, not parallel. That meansall the way down to the platfonn on every rep. If you were doing them outside,it would be assto grass. The only way to maintain an upright posture when you go that deepis to wear the kind of liftitrg shoesthat Olympic lifters wear (which is what Mike prefers his lifters to do) or stand with your heels on a 2 x 4 or a couple of thick barbell plates (the poor man's option). Anyhow, I demonstratedthe front squats,and then the kid did his 5 x 5. He did apretty goodjob, too. Of courso,I deserveat least somecredit for that since I was demonstratingthe exercisesfor him. After the front squats,Mike had the kid do incline dumbbell presses. Mike thinks that incline dumbbell pressesare one of the very best chest exercisesout there.They also work the heck out of the shouldersand triceps. Once again,the kid did 5 x 5. For guys who train at home and
Well, I know what you're thinking. You're wondering if Mike just kept talking or whether he let the kid finish his workout. I won't keep you in suspense.Mike let the kid finish his workout. At Mike's Gym, lifters ALWAYS finish their workout! 'oHowdo people ever figure this out?" askedthe kid. o'Imeufl,how do they un-wash their brains?" That was another good question. I waited for the answer- but it never came. "Hold the thought for now," said Mike. "You've got a workout to finish!" "Oh - right!" said the kid. He grabbeda pair of light dumbbells and hammeredout his first set of alternatepresses. 'oThatwas good," said Mike. The kid did a secondwarm-up set with heavier dumbbells, and then hit his first "work" set. On the third or fourth rep he startedto dip a bit to the side on eachrep. When he finished the set, he put the dumbbells down and looked at Mike sheepishly. "I did it wron5, didn't I?" he asked. 'No, that's okay," saidMike. "In fact, the old-timers used to call it the see-sawpress.You're allowed to rock a bit from side to side to get the dumbbells up. Justbe sureto keep your legs locked." The kid brightened. "Got it!" he said. After he finished his alternate dumbbell presses,he moved on to front squats.Mike had me show him the crossedhandsway of doing them and the regular w?y, where you keep your handsunder the bar and your elbows up - just like you were an Olympic lifter performing a squat clean. Mike prefers to have his guys use the weightlifter's
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or pull-downs with a specralbarthat let him use a parallel grip with the hands a little wider than shoulderwidth apart. Pull-ups are a better exercisethan pulldowns, but if you can't do them, substitutethe pull-downs. They'll work fine. For guys who train at home, the one affn dumbbell row would be a good substitutefor pull-downs.
don't have an incline bench,the dumbbell benchpress(on a flat bench) works pretfy well. And if a guy ever gets so strongthat he can't get the dumbbells into the starting position, he should try the one affindumbbell incline press or the one arrrndumbbell bench press.That allows you to use two handsto get the dumbbell into position. I once askedMike if the dumbbell floor press(or the one hand dumbbell floor press)would be okay if a guy trained at home and didn't have a bench.Mike said it would be fine, so there's really no excusenot to include this one in your program. After the dumbbell incline presses,Mike had the kid do five setsof pull-ups. The kid had no ann strengthto speakof, but he was light and skinny, so he managedto get 5 reps on eachset in reasonablygood form. Mike had the kid do the pull-ups with his handspronated,so his palms were facing away from his chest.He held the bar with his hands a little bit wider than shoulderwidth apart.I asked Mike why he preferred doing them that way insteadof with the palms facing the chest(i.e., supinatedgrip, alWathe good, old-fashioned"chin-up"). Mike said he wants the exerciseto be a total upper body pulling movement thatprovides a heavy load for the biceps,NOT a pure biceps exercise.The chin-up is pretty much pure bicepsunlessyou're strong enough and advancedenoughto do it with your back arched and your shouldersback, pulling yourseHup until your chesttouchesthe bar. Mike knew the kid wasn't strong enoughto do that, so he had him stick to pull-ups. If he had not been able to do pull-ups, Mike would have had the kid do pull-downs to the chestusing the samegrip as if he were doing pull-ups,
Ivan Sanakov After the pull-ups, the kid did anotherof Mike's favorite exercises:the bent-leggedTrap Bar deadlift. Mike is a huge fan of the Trap Bar deadlift, and has most of his beginnersuse the exerciseinsteadof the deadlift with a straightbar. It's easierto learn the proper positions and the corect movement,it's easieron the knees,hips and lower back, and it's an excellent strengthand massbuilder. For many guys, it's secondonly to the squatas a strengthand massbuilder - and for some
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men (often including older traineesor very tall, 'olongand lanky" lifters), it's actually more effective than the squat. Mike had the kid finish the workout with two setsof leg raises. Fifteen reps per set.Mike told him that as he got strongerhe would start to do them on the sit-up board (with his head at the top of the board, of course),and then he'd progressto doing them with ankle weights or iron boots on his feet. The eventual goal was to work up to hanging leg raiseson the chin-up bar which is a heck of a tough movement, and a very effective *gut" exercise.) Once again,the kid finished the workout coveredwith chalk and sweatbut he seemedto be enjoying himself. Perhapshe was discoveringthatreal training is a heck of a lot more fun than the pseudo-stuffhe had been doing before. Anyhow, he wiped the sweat off his face with a towel, and askedwhat was next. Mike told him to hit the showersand come back in 48 hours. Before leaving the gym, the kid poppedhis headinto Mike's office. "What will we do next time?" he asked. "'We'11go back to Workout A," said Mike. "You'll alternateback and forth between the two of them for awhile." I was waiting for the kid to say, "But what about my arrn exercises?" But he surprisedme. "Cool!" he said. And then he was gone. "That was amaziflg," I said. o'You'reright," said Mike. "He didn't say a word about that missing ipod."
EugeneSandow EATINGFOR STRENGTHAND MUSCLE Before I for get,let me cover an important topic very quickly. Diet and nutrition for lifters. Don't worrlr, it won't take long. It's not too complicated. Mike told the kid to drop all the amino acid, mega-bolic,maxi-bolic multi-bolic, nutri-bolic, super-bolicand hyperbolic whatchyamacallit's that he'd been chuggirg, and focus on eating somegood old-fashionedfood. And lots of it. Mike knows that young guys can gain like qary if they train the right way and combine it with plenty of good, healthy food. The emphasisshould be on high quality protein. Me at, eggS,fish, chickon, and furkey. For those who can
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x 10 - 12,followed by Indian club drills for five minutes 2 . Milit a ry p re s s 5 x 5 3. Squat5 x 5 4. Bench press5 x 5 5. Barbell bent-overrowing 5 x 5 6. Bent-leggedsit-ups2 x 8 -I2 7.Hang from thick handledpull-up bat 1 x as long aspossible
digestit, milk, cheese,cottagecheese, and yogurt. Add lots of fresh green veggies,somefresh fruit, sweetpotatoes, brown rice, whole grain bread,whole grain pasta,and nuts, and you've pretty well covered everything. Older guys aredifferent. Older guys need to focus on protein and fresh veggies(and not much else).This allows them to gain muscle without adding fat. One of the big problems that guys have is thinking they can eatlike a teenager eventhoughthey're 40 or 50 or older. It's like they're in a time w&{P,where they keep focusing on the two quarts of milk, six-meal a daything and trying to gain 30 poundsof musclein 30 days.It's a classicexampleof how the stuff you read in the musclemags when You'te a young guy stays with you for your entire life. Oh, and whateverYour ?Ea,skiP the junk food. You don't need that stuff. That includes anything made with sugar or high fructose corn syrup - anything made with white flour - any "fast foods" - and anything made with hydrogenated fats (alkl a trans-fats). I'11cover diet and nutrition in in depth the not too distant future, but for right now, let me get back to arm training. After all, that's the focus of this course. Oh, and before I forget. Don't even think about taking steroids.If Mike hearsabout it, he'll sendSam after you.
WORKOUTB 1. Warm-up with LIGHT Power clean and press2 x 10 - 12, followed bY Indian club drills for five minutes 2. Alternatedumbbell press5 x 5 (5 reps with each ann on each set) 3. Front squats5 x 5 4.Incline dumbbellpress5 x 5 5 . P u ll-u p s 5 x 5 6. Trap Bar deadlift 5 x 5 T . L e g ra is e s2 x 1 5 Remember,it's a three-daY-Perweek schedule,NOT a four-ddY,fiveday or six-day per week split routine. That day of rest betweenworkouts is important.In fact, it' s one of the reasons why the program works so well. Remember,your musclesdon't grow while you're training. TheY grow afterwardslIf you don't give yourself enoughtime for rest and recuperation after eachworkout, you're pretty much wasting your time. THE RESULTS Mike had the kid train on the program three times a week for the next 12 weeks.He did onlY the exercises listed.Nothing else.No curls, no triceps pumpers- not even any close grip bench presses.And no dips. Mike's not a big fan of them. He's seentoo many lifters hurt their shoulderdoing dips. It seems to happento everyonewho doesthem
THE MIKE' S GYM ARM ROUTINE: LEVEL 1 When you put it all on Paperthe first part of the Mike's Gym ann routine looks like this: WORKOUTA 1. Warm-up with LIGHT flip snatches2
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with addedweight, no matter how strong they are,how much they enjoy doing dips and how much the dip helps them. Sooneror later it bites them - not in the butt, but in the shoulder. Amazingly, after the questions on the very first duy, not once during the entire l2-week program did the kid ask about doing curls and triceps stuff. Mike has been droppittg his affintraining routine on rookies for a long time now like more than twenty years - and the guys usually cry and moan and fuss and holler about not doing curls and triceps exercises,and Mike has to tell them the qaziest things to get them to keep them on the program. He told one kid they had to 'ooptimizethe metabolic flushing factors" before they could do any direct arin work. He told anotherkid they were using the "blitz-pump system from Florid a" to'.vasculartzethe lobotomy" before they addedann exercisesto the program. Thesewere whoppers,of course,but when you're fighting against muscle mag brainwashing and mainstreamsilliness,you have to take strongmeasures. But this time, all that was necessarywere Mike's initial references to "Swedish somatotrophichyperbole," "neuro -bi o-quadro-opti mization" and [my personalfavorite] molecular refraction training." After that,the kid went along with the entire program without any questionsat aII. So maybe times arechanging - or maybe kids are changing.I don't know. I just know the kid came to the gym and trained like clockwork - and addedweight to the bar wheneverhe could - and startedto get bigger and stronger and thicker so fast it surprisedall of us. You can guesswhat happened. At the end of 12 weeks,Mike weighed the kid and took his measurements.He
had gained 23 pounds of muscle and put 2 /, incheson his upper arns. "This is amazing!" said the kid. "I gained2 y2" on my arrns without even training them!" Mike laughed. "You've acfually been doing plenty of work for your arrns," he said. "Like what?" 'ol-ikeall the pressingexercises, the rowing and the pull-ups. The pressingexerciseswork the heck out of your triceps, and the rowing and the pull-ups work the heck out of your biceps,forearrnsand grip." "You mean I was training my anns and I didn't evenknow it?" Mike nodded. otYep."
"I can't believeit!" saidthe kid. "I mean- I can't believeit worked!" Mike laughedagain. 'The Mike's Gym Arm Routine alwaysworks!" he said.
Herman Gorner READYFORMORE! After he finished the first 12 weeks of the Mike's Gym arm routine, the kid was ready for Level 2 of the program. "What do I do now?" he asked. "Mike's got a program written up for you," I said. "But I'm not surewhere he left it."
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gym.
"fs it in his office?" "I don't know. He just coPYa big shipment of old time lifting magazinesStrength and Health back to the I930's and I940's, Iron Man back to the 50's and 50's, and some other good stuff. Mike and I are indexing it all, and it's scatteredall over the place right llow. The office is a mess.We actuallYlost Sam for a couple of hours." 'oHowcould you lose Sam?He's the size of a small grizzly bear!" o'I don't know how we did it, but we did it. He was buried under a pile of paper and stuff." "How'd you find him?" "Mike ordered a double pepperonipizza and had it deliveredto the gym. Sam dug his way out as soon as it arcived." o'Hemust like pizza." "He does.And pepperoniis his favorite." The kid nodded.I knew it made senseto him. It wouldn't make senseif you didn't know about Sam and his world-famous appetite- or about Mike and his gym and the way he runs it. But after you've beenhere awhile, it all makesperfect sense.You get a ton of old magazines,you pile them uP, You lose Sam,you order aprzza, andSam suddenly appears.What could be simpler than that? "Well, tomoffow is mY workout day. Ask Mike if he can find that program for me. Or maybejust write up somethingne'w." "Will do!" I said,and I went to back the job of catalogingand indexing the old magazines.Meanwhile, Sam lay next to an empty Przzabox at the foot of the stuffed grtzzly bear in the back of the gym. Aside from the corner of Mike's office by his food dish, it's probably his favorite spot in the entire
Mike came in an hour later and I askedhim about the kid's next training program. "It's right here," said the big guy. "Somewhere." He looked around the office and scratchedhis head. "Maybe it's in the desk drawer." I suggested.o'Orsomewherein the filing cabinet." 'oIt'snot in the filing cabinet.All I keep there is extra food for Sam." He looked at the desk. "But maybe it's in there." He walked over and openedthe drawer, rummaged around, and Pulled out amanila folder full of paperswith various plans, specsand training program scribbledonto them. He started to flip through them rapidly. "H.y, I forgot aboutthis," he said. He pulled out a Pieceof PaPer and set it to the side. 'oWhatis it?" I asked. He handedit to me. 'oTakea look," he said. It was a dragramof the gym with alarge X marked on the back wall. "What's that?" I asked."Is that where they buried Jimmy Hoffa?" Mike ignored the joke. He was operatingin seriousmode todaY. "No, it's where I'm going to Put two chutesthat drop into an alligator pit." "What do you want with an alhgator pit?" "It's for muscle PumPersand pushers." steroid 'No kidding? That's a great idea!" o'Iknew you'd like it," said Mike. "But th;.1e'sone Problem." What's that? Finding the
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alligators?" o'No,that's easy.I can't decide whether to add a third chute for the guys who write the superprograms for the muscle mags.They're getting to be as bad as anyone.In fact, they're probably worse than the musclepumpers." I looked at the plans carefully. 'oI don't think there's enough room for a third chute," I said. "Maybe you shouldjust use one shoot for the muscle pumpers and the guys who write the superprograms."
the file, scafferingpaperseverywhere.It looked like ablizzard. I wondered if we'd lose Sam again But before that happened,Mike stopped,held up a single sheetof paper, andsmiled. "Here it is!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "What is it?" I asked. "It' s the secondpart of the Mike's Gym ann training routine!" "Great!" I said.'o'We'llbe seeing those shreddedguns in no time!" Mike stoodup, walked over to his filing cabinet, andgrabbeda big pile of old Strength and Health magazines. He carried them over and set them down on the desk where I was sitting. ooHere you gor" he said. "Read two of theseevery four hours and if you don't feel better, call me in the morning." THE MIKE' S GYM ARM ROUTINE: LEVEL TWO The kid showedup right on time the next day. This time, Mike didn't have to say anythittg to convince him to train the Mike's Gym way. The kid already knew that it worked. Mike once againaskedme to demonstratethe exercises.It was easier this time becausethe kid had a much better idea of how to train, and because many of the exerciseswere oneshe had used in the first 12 weeksof the program. The main difference was a changein the setsand reps. Mike put the kid on another three-day-per-weekprogram. He uses three-day-per-weekprogramswith most of his members,including the powerlifters, the Olympic lifters and the guys training for strongmancomps. And if three-times-per-week doesn't seemto be working for someono,Mike usually
Andrew Passanant Mike nodded. 'oYou may be right," he said. "Thatwould make it easieron the alligators.They won't have to watch as many chutes." As he spoke,Mike rifled through
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the squatsand deadlifts).If he tells a guy it's okay to do a couple of setsof curls and close grip bench presses,the next thing you know, the guy takes it easyon the big exercisesso he eanhandlemore weight in the arm exercises- or elsethe workout suddenlyincludes 10 or 12 sets of arm exercises- and then 15 ot 20 sets - and then 20 or 30 sets- and all of a suddenthe guy is back to doing nothing but ann training.
has him try twice a week workouts. For someguys (especiallyolder guys), that works really well. It goesto show you how important it is to get enoughrest and recovery in-betweenyour workouts. Mike has a simple formulathat sumsup his entire training philosophy in just four words: "Trainorest, gfow, rePeat." Pretty good, huh? In this program, unlike the first 12 weeks,Mike actually had the kid do some direct affn work. Not a lot of it, but enoughto give the biceps and triceps some seriousaction. Basic sfuff, of course.No exotic super-dupercurls and no crazy tricepsexercises.I'll tell you about it in a minute -- but first I want to cover somethingvery imPortant. Mike once told me an imPortant secret.I'm going to shareit with you now - but remembet,rt' s a secret,so keep it under your hat. Mike said you could probably add a SMALL amount of direct arrn training to Level 1 of the Mike's Gym ann training Program and do fine. Nothing too extreme- just three or four setsof barbell curls in Workout A and three or four setsof close grip benchpressesin Workout B. The reason Mike savesthe direct armwork for the secondstageof the program is to show the guys that they can increasetheir arm sizeENORMOUSLY (like a couPleof inches) by training on nothing but basic compoundexerciseslike military presses,rowiflg, benchpressesand pullups. It's an important lessonto learn, and for most guYS,the only way to learn the lessonis to try the program and see what happens. Another reasonMike savesthe direct ann work for the secondpart of the program is that he wants to be sure the guys devote I00% of their energy to the really important exercises(especially
Michael Salvane And then there'sreasonNo. 3 for saving the armwork until later. A beginnerneedsto get strongerFAST in the major compoundexercises.Too many setsof biceps curls can affect a rookie's rowing and pull-ups (because your bicepswill be too tired and sorefor maximum efforts), and too many triceps pumpers can do the samething to your benchpressand your military press. Now you know the secret.So if you simply MUST do some direct arm work during the first 12 weeks of the progr am,you can do it. But keeP it simple: barbell or dumbbell curls (one of them, not both!), and close grip bench presses(as describedbelow). And as for sets,and reps,try this: 3 ot 4 setsof 5 reps, starting light and adding weight on each set so you do ONE set with Your top weight.
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use that, then do so - just be sureyou can managefive reps per set on the thick handledbar.) 3. Closegrip benchpress5 x 5 (two progressivelyheavierwaffn-up setsand three setswith your working weight) 4. 4. Standingbarbell curls 5 x 5 (two progressivelyheavierwarrn-up setsand three setswith your working weight) 6. Hangingkneesto chest2 x 10 - 15 (Note: if you're strong enoughto do hangingleg raises,then do 2 x 5 - 10.) 7. Pinch grip lifting - 5 progressively heavier singles,working up to your top pinch grip lift, then drop back to about 70% of your top weight and do a timed hold for as long as possible
And now - back to the workout. As I said, it was a three-day-per-week program,just the sameas before,but this time there were three different workouts. It looked like this: WORKOUTA 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x 10 - 12,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light cleanand pressfor 2 x 10 - 12 2.lMilitary press3 x 5 (progressively heavierwann-up sets),followed by 5l4l3l2lI (adding weight as the reps are lowered).(Note: if 5l4l3l2lI is too tiring, try 5l3lI for your heaviersets.) 3. Squats4 x 5 (progressivelyheavier wann-up sets),followed by 2 x 5 with your working weight 4. Bench press4 x 5 (progressively heavierwann-up sets),followed by 2 x 5 with your working weight 5. Pull-ups 5 x 5 (add a small amount of weight after each set if you are able to do so - otherwise,do 5 x 5 with bodyweight) (Note: if you have accessto a thick handled pull-up bar and prefer to use that, then do so - just be sureyou can managefive reps per set on the thick handledbar.) 6. Bent-leggedsit-ups on sit-up board 2 x 8 - 12 wrth extra weight resistance 7. Crush-stylegrippers 3 x max reps with eachhand
CharlesPoire
WORKOUTB 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x 10 - Iz,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light cleanand pressfor 2 x 10 - 12 2. Dumbbell incline press6 x 5 (three progressivelyheavierwarm-up setsand three setswith your top weight) 3. Pull-ups 6 x 5 (add a small amount of weight after eachset if you areable to do so - otherwise, do 6 x 5 with bodyweight) (Note: if you have accessto a thick handled pull-up bar and prefer to
WORKOUT C 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x 10 - I2,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light clean and pressfor 2 x I0 - 12 2. Alternate dumbbell press 6 x 5 (four progressivelyheavierwaffn-up setsand two setswith your working weight) 3. One ann dumbbellrowing6 x 5 (four progressivelyheavierwann-up setsand two setswith your working weight) 4. Trap Bar deadlifts 6 x 5 (four
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progressivelyheavier warm-up setsand two setswith your working weigh| 5. Bent-leggedsit-upson sit-up board2 x 8 - 12 with extra weight resistance 6. Thick bar deadlifts with double overhandgnp 5 x 5 (start light and add weight on each set) (Note: theseare a grip exercise- you alreadyhit your legs, low back and hiPs with the TraP Bar deadlifts.) EXERCISE PERFORMANCE TIPS: CURLS AND CLOSE GRIP BENCH PRESSES As I mentioned,the kid knew how to do all of the exercises,and only required coaching on the barbell curls, the close gnp bench press' and the grip work. On the curls, Mike taught him to use STRICT form. No cheating.Mike saysthat if there's one thing that 99% of traineesdo wrong , it's cheatingin their curls. And YeS,Mike knows all about cheat curls, and he knows that sometimestheY can be of benefit in a training program for an ADVANCED man - but he also knows thatthey're not nearly as productive as strict curls. Plus, he knows that cheat curls ate a greatway to hurt your lower back. So rnrhydo them? ' I askedMike how the whole cheating curl thing started,and he told me it gave the magazinewriters somethingnew and different to write about. He also noted that cheat curls are an easysell to readersbecausethey let them use more weight than rnrhenthey aredoing strict curls. So they can pretend they're getting stronger,when in fact they're just doing the exercisein bad form. Mike remembersa toP bodybuilding champ who supposedlydid 10 reps in the curl with 185 Pounds'
Now, by point of reference,the World and Olympic Weightlifting champion in the Hear-yweightclassat the time was John Davis - anenonnously powerful man who held ALL of the American, World and OlymPic records in the Heaq4weight class- and who could perform one-arrnchins while holding a dumbbell in his other hand. (I know, I know, hard to believe for a Hear-ryweight.But I know a maflwho saw Davis do a one-arrnchin while holdin I a 50-pound dumbbell in his other hand!) Davis once did someheavy curls at alifting show where he appeared as a specialguest|ifter, and cgrled 205 pounds in strict form. So the idea of a bodybuilder who weighed far less than Davis doing 10 reps in the curl with 185 pounds was just a little bit hard for people to swallow. In fact, one man was so upset bY it all that he wrote a letter to Strength and Health in which he challengedthe bodybuilder to perform 10 curls with 185 poundsIN PUBLIC, with certified lifting officials counting the reps. He even bet the bodybuilder a big chunk of changethat he couldn't do it. In response,the bodYbuilder admittedthat he could NoT do 10 reps in the curl with 185pounds.Those 10 reps he was supposedto do were CHEAT CURLS, not strict curls. Mike once said that cheat curls arelike kissing your kid sister,exceptno one brags aboutkissing their kid sister. And no one should brag about doing cheatcurls, either. The close griP bench Press requiresli6le explanatioll.Of course, you do them strict, with no bounce. Touch and go is okay, but don't bounce. And don't arch,raiseyour hips or do any of that kind of stuff. fhe really imPortantthing is to
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perfonn close gnp bencheswith your handsjust a little closerthan shoulder width apart.If you try to do the exercise with your hands extremely close to each other - or worse, touching each other then you don't have any strengthat all and you'll be limited to a very light weight. And worse than that, if your grip is too close it trvistsyour elbows into an unnafural position that can cause extremely sore elbows - and possibly even lead to tendonitis.Remember, heavy ann training is impossibleif your develop elbow tendonitis- so ALWAYS use a grrpthat doesn't over-stressyour elbows! (Even on your warrn-up sets. That wann-up weight is more than heavy enoughto do damageif you do it with an excessivelyclosegrip !)
secretsof successfularm specialization is training the armmuscles without causingextrememuscular soreness,sore elbows, "tennis elbow" or other forms of tendonitis.Remember,sore elbows will derail your arm training faster than you can S&y,"Back to the drawing bo ard!" But guys have a lot of questionsthat bear directly on the whole issueof avoiding elbow problems. First, many guys ask if they can use anEZ curl bar insteadof a straight bar. They say that the straight bar rrcitatestheir elbows. But they're reluctant to use the EZ curl bar becausethey think it's cheating,or becausethey've read that straightbar curls are more effective. (Arthur Jones, the inventor of the Nautilus equipment, usedto note that your biceps are in a fully supinatedposition when you perform straight bar curls, but are only partially supinatedwhen you perforrn EZ bar curls - so he argued that straight bar curls aremore effective.) Mike has a different answer.He saysyou shoulduse whichever bar feels more comfortableand allows you to handlemore weight. There'sno reason to torture yourself with straight bar curls if they hurt your elbows. Even if straight bar curls really ARE more effective (and that's debatable),they lose their effectivenessif you developinner elbow tendonitisand can't train any more. Second,guys ask if they can use anEZ curl bar for close grip bench presses.Once agarn,the answeris a resoundingYES ! Use whatevertraining tools allow you to lift the most weight without any muscle or joint pain. For somemen, that meansusing a straight bar for their closegrip benches- for others,it meansusing anEZ curl bar and for some,it meansusing a Log Bar with aparullel grip. Mike often usesme as an
Bob Hoffman PROTECTNG YOURJONTS A11of this brings me to another importantpoint. Severalof them, actually. They all relateto one of the most important - but neglected- aspects of successfularm training. Protecting your elbows. Somethingthat should be fundamental,but somethingthat is rarely if ever discussedin arm training courses or in articles about affn specialization. And that's crazy, becauseone of the
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example of the importance of finding the right bar for eachexercise.I usedto be able to use a straight bar for curls with no problem, but as I got older, the straight bar curls started to hurt my inner elbows.so I tried using anEZ curl bar. I tried two or three different EZ curl bars and didn't like them at all. Then I found an old, thick, verY heavy-duty EZ curl bar thathad unusually sharp angles where you held the bar. This bar worked GREAT for me! With it, I was able to work up to 185Poundsfor five rePsin the STRICT curl - which is pretty darn good. And it never hurt mY elbows. On closegriP benchPresses,I was able to use an OlYmPicbar and work up to 295 or 305 pounds for 5 reps - but I preferredusing the samesharply angledEZ curl bar, and did most of mY close grip training with thatbar. I worked up to 320 Poundsfor 5 rePsin the close grip bench presswith that bat. And once agarn,othet EZ curl bars with a different angle don't work nearly as well for me. So everyoneis different, and everyoneneedsto find exactly the right bars and other equipment for his or her particular body. Your elbows will thank you for it. Third , train Your tricePsthe Mike's Gym way - with close griP benchpresses,regularbenchpresses' and military presses.The Frenchpresses, triceps extensionsand skull-crushersall twist your artns into unnafural positions, and they all exposeyour elbow joints to the risk of severeinjury or crippling tendonitis. (WhV do you think so many guys who handle heavy weights in the skull-crusherexercisewear rubber wraps on their elbows or wraP them with powerlifter-styleknee wraps?It's becausetheir elbows areeither injured or on the point of being injured every time they train.)
Fourth, skiP the Preacherbench curls. They're just too hard on your inner elbows. That bottom position where your arrn is extended againstweight resistanceis an elbow killer. And they will NOT 'olengthen"your biceps' as many believe. The only way to lengthen your biceps would be to have surgery to reafrachthe muscle lower down - and that's not somethingyou ever want to do. Fifth, skiP the curling machines' They're evenworse than the preacher bench curls. In fact, theY can cause severetendonitisin just a couple of workouts - I know becauseI did it once when I was young and foolish. (That was back in my BMG Days - Before Mike's Gym.) Sixth, skiP the wide grip curls and the naffow grip curls. They place tremendoustension on Your inner elbows and wrists. (The wide grip curl is especiallytroublesome.)Yes, I know they look like fun, and I know that many top champs sweat bY them - but seriously,you onlY have one set of elbows, and you don't want to abuse them. Seventh,droPthe reversecurls' We used to do them a lot when we were younger,but Mike's PrettYmuch droppedthem now. They end up causing tennis elbow for too many guys. The problem, once again,is the twisted positioll. It just torquesthe heck out of your inner elbows. Point 1lo.eight -- if barbell curls hurt your elbows, use dumbbell curls instead.Find an angle and a tange of motion that feels okay, and stick to it. For somelifters (especiallyolder lifters), the hammer curl with dumbbells(i.e., a
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t
dumbbell curl holding the dumbbells with the thumbs-up, as if you were holding a hammer) is the best way to go. Indeed, for older lifters , it may be the only curling exercisethat doesn't cause joint pain. Finally, if you want to do thick bar curls, start slow and light and work up carefully. Thick bar curls work the heck out of your tendonsand ligaments, and you need to break into them very carefully. (The samegoes for any other thick bar exercises.Thick bars are terrific training tools, but you needto use them wisely and intelligently. Train with your brain, not your ego.) And if you do try thick bar curls, try a 1 Yz"or 2" thick bar. Unless you have really large hands, a thrcker bar is going to be very difficult for heavy curls. And since we'rc talking about the importanceof protectingyour joints, let me note that two of the most popular arrr'exerciseswill causeshoulder problems for a very high percentageof lifters. One of them is the parallel dip. As I've alreadynoted, it' s a very popular exercise- and it works great for some guys - but it leadsto shoulderproblems for many guys. And the funny thing is, a guy can train on dips with good results for a long time, and then all of a sudden WHAM! Somethinggoeswrong, and one bad rep causesproblemsthat may take weeks or months to heal. Or it may causeproblemsthat never go away. The other exerciseis the press behindneck. It's a classicold-school exercise,and many respectedauthorities have taught it in their books, articlesand courses- but it can really hurt your shoulders.Military pressesand dumbbell pressesare much safer-- so skip the behind the neck presses,and stick to the safer (andjust as effective) pressing movements.
If you think about it, virtually all of the arm specializationcoursesand articleswritten over the past 100 years have included too many different exercises,performed for too many different setsand reps, and they've also included exercisesthat tend to cause elbow problems.Most arm training routines have severaldifferent types of curls and severaldifferent triceps exercisesin them (presumably,to give the trainee amaximum pump and to "hit the musclesfrom all possibleangles"). The problem is, if you do a number of different ann exercisesthat someone elsehas selectedfor you, the odds are good that one or more of them is going to be bad for your particular body structure.As a direct result, many arrn speciahzationprograms do little more than lead to sore shouldersand sore elbows for the guys that follow them. In fact, if you ever wrote a book on the history of arm speciahzationroutines, you could call it: "A History of Elbow and ShoulderWrecking Programs." It makesfar more senseto build your anns by training hard and heavy on one or two exercisesthat you know from experiencework well for YOU - and on exercisesthat do NOT causeyou pain or discomfort. Rather than try to work your anns from all possibleangles,you should work your anns ONLY with exercisesthat don't causeproblems for you. Remember,it doesn't matter if somemassivelymuscledchampion- or a massivelymuscledguy who happens to train at your gym -- saysto use a particular exercise.If it works for him, fine. But if it HURTS YOU, DROP IT! Find anotherexercisethat doesn't hurt when you do it. Of course,no matter what exercisesyou select,you can still hurt
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yourself if you skip your wann-ups or if you do too many setsand reps.Always take the time to warm-up with progressivelyheavier setsbefore tackling heary curls or heavy close gnp benchpresses.And pleasenote that the 5 x 5 systemor a similar set/repsystem will allow you to train your muscles without overworkittg your joints. That's one of the reasonsthat Mike usesthe 5 x 5 system(and similar set/repschemes)in his training programs. And one other thing. Heavy singles.They work gteatfor many exercises(for an advancedman who has built up to them with sensible,low rep training), but they're not as good for ann training. For presses,they're fine (for an advancedman). For curls and close grip benchpresses,not so good. So follow the set/repschemesin this course.
you hit muscular failure in no more than 15 reps. If your gnpper isn't strong enough,you have three options: (1) buy a strongergnpper (order from John Wood at www. functionalhandstrength. com), or (2) begin the setby squeezingand holding the gripper shut for 10 - 30 seconds,and then do your reps after you have "pre-exhausted"your gripping muscles,or (3) hold the gripper shut for 5 - 10 secondson eachrep. If you have severaldifferent grippers, you can do one set with the easiestone, and then work your way up to harder grippers for the secondand third sets. You can do your pinch grip lifting with a pinch grip block or with a barbell plate. If you use a plate,use a smooth exerciseplate with no rim, not an Olympic plate. Depending on your equipment,you can work one hand at a time or two hands at a time. The thick bar double overhand deadlifts work the heck out of your fingers and thumbs. Many guys are concernedbecausethey can't use their regular deadlift poundagesin this exercise.That's becauseit's a GRIP exercise,not aleg, hip and lower back movement. You train your legs, hips and lower back with the Trap bar deadlifts that come before this movement. If you do your grip training right, your hands and fingers will be fried when you're finished. So always do your grip work at the end of the workout. By the w&y, Reg Park and John Grimek both had massiveforeanns and incredibly powerful grips. Thesemen are clear proof that grip trainingplays an important part in building Herculean upper afins.
Edward Aston EXERCISE PERFORMANCE TIPS: GRIP WORK The kid's grip work was pretty basic stuff, but Mike and I coachedhim through the exercisesto help him squeezeeverylast drop of good results from them. Grip work is one of the many aspectsof training where the liftle things can be really important. To begin with, you can use any kind of crush style gripper you enjoy using, &Slong as it's strong enoughthat
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John Grimek THE KID'S RESULTS The kid trained hard for the next 12 weeks,and always tried to add weight to the bar on all of his different exercises.And at the end of 12 weeks, he had packedanother14 poundsof muscle onto his frame, and added 1 y2,, inchesto eachof his upper anns. That made a total of 37 poundsof muscle and 4" to the kid's upper anns - all of it in just 24 shortweeks.Not bad for six month's of training. Many beginnerswill gain just as fast. Somewill gain even faster.That's especiallytrue for guys who arestarting out at the sametime they hit their "growirg phase))- the one where teenagerssleepso much, eatso much and suddenlyend up many inchestaller and many pounds of muscleheavier,all
as a result of their body having reached the "GROW STAGE" where they move from boy to man and their glands and hormones areworking overtime to keep them in "grow mode." Older traineesand traineeswho have been lifting for awhile will gain more slowly - but everyonewho works through the fuIl l2-week cycle for Level One and the l2-week cycle for Level Two of the Mike's Gym armroutine shouldbe ableto add l0 poundsof muscle and an inch on his upper arms. It's a greatprogram- and if yOU work the program will WORK! Now if you really want to go whole hog on the big arrnsthing, then do this. Follow the program exactly as written, going through both levels one right after the other. After that,take 12 weeks and follow an all-aroundprogram of your choicefiust be sureit's a Dinostyle programs,i.e., somethingthatMike
would let you do if you were training at Mike's Gym) - and then follow the atrr1 routine (both levels) for two l2-week cycles.After that,train on all-around programs(Dino-style!) for most of the year,but hit the level two program at least once per year. And if you think you're readYfor rt, try the Level 3 Programfor !2weeks every year' (The Level 3 Program is outlined in the next sectionof the course.)Aftef a few years, your anns will be so thick and powerful that you'll be able to get a job doubling as the gorilla atthe local zoo. Now, You might wonder what the kid decidedto do next. Heck, if you've been paying attention,you might even wonder if he ever enteredthat InterGalactic Mega-Muscle contesthe was babbling about when he first showedup at Mike's Gym. The answeris'No'" In fact,he never even mentioned the silly thing. At least,I never heardhim mention it. But he did do some other stuff thatwas probably more impressive. I'll tell you about it the next time Mike asksme to write somethingup about his specialtraining programs and training methods. You also might be wondering aboutthe kid's i-pod, and whether Sam ever gave it back. It turns out that the iand the kid |eft it pod -on had gotten broken, the floor in the locker room. That was where Sam saw it. So Mike andI were wrong. Sam didn't swipe it - he found it. When Mike learnedthe real story, he felt bad for having suspectedhis four-legged buddy of cunning caninethievery (even if it was - we thought - for a good cause).So he ordered a double deluxe pepperoniPvzafrom Sam's favorite priruplace. A very cutepizza delivery girt biought it over, and shemade a big fuss about Sam and scratchedhis ears
and said he was 'othecutestpuppy dog shehad ever seen," and thatmade it extra special for him. So once again,things are back to nonnal atMike's Gym. Sam is enjoying a double deluxe pepperoni przza,the guys arestanding atthe window and staring atthe pizza delivery girl as she walks back to her car,Mike is working on revised plans for his alhgatorpit, and I'm hitting the keybo ardto put it all on paper. And of course'we have Yet anothermember of the Gym who made greatgainswith the Mike's GYm arm routine. That's beenhappeningfor a heck of a lot of yearsnow. I guessyou could say that somethings never change. THE MIKE' S GYM ARM ROUTINE: LEVEL THREE Note bY Mike: Once agarn, Kubik got most of it right. He onlY missed a couple of important points' Mainly, the entire Level Three of the Mike's Gym Arm Routille. of course,in Kubik's defense,the kid hasn't done the program yet. But rnrhenhe does- which I imagine will be in about two years he'll make evenmore greatgains' Level Three of the Mike's GYm Arm Routine is ONLY for advanced lifters who have been through at least two completecycles of Level One and Level Two of the routine. It looks more like a conventional arm training program than Levels One and Two. But there are someimportant differences.You'll see them wfren I outline the routine for you. You follow anotherthree-daYper-weekroutine. The secondworkout of the week (Workout B) will be Your afin training day. WORKOUTA 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x
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first set, then using extra weight perfonn progressivelyheavier sets working up to one top set for five reps)* 3. Bench press,incline barbell press, dumbbell bench press or dumbbell incline press(progressivelyheavier sets working up to one top set for five reps), followedby I x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on eachset)** 4. Bent leggeddeadlifts or TraP Bar deadlifts5 x 5 (progressivelyheavier setsworking up to one top set for five reps), followed bY 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on each set)* 5. Hangingleg raises2x 8 - 15 * Finish with a heavy single but NOT a maximum single. ** Use 5 x 5, 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 ifyou perfofin benchpressesor incline presses with abarbell. If you use dumbbells, perform 6 x 5 (4 progressivelyheavier wann-up sets,followed bY 2 x 5 with your top weight). If you use barbells and finish with a single reP, finish with a heavy weight but NOT a maximum single.
10 - lz,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light clean and pressfor 2 x I0 - 12 z.M7litary press5 x 5 (progressively heavier setsworking up to one top set for five reps), followed bY 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on each set)* 3. Back squat or front squat 5 x 5 (progressivelyheavier setsworking up to one top set for five reps), followed by 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on each set)* 4. Bent-leggedsit-upson incline boardz x 8 --I2 (with extra weight resistance) 5. Crush style grippers 3 x max reps (at least five, but not more than 15 rePs) * Finish with a heavy single but NOT a maximum single. WORKOUTB 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x 10 - Iz,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light clean and pressfor 2 x I0 - 12 2. Alternatedumbbell press 6 x 5 (four progressivelyheavier sets,followed by 2 x 5 with your top weight) 3. Barbell curls (progressivelyheavier setsworking up to one top set for five reps),followedby 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on each set)* 4. Close grip bench press(progtessively heavier setsworking up to one top set for five reps), followed bY 1 x 3 and 1 x 1 (adding weight on eachset)* 5. Dumbbell hammer curl 5 x 5 (progressivelyheavier setsworking up to one top set for five rePs) 4. Pinch grip lifting 5 - 7 progressively heavier singles* * Finish with a heavy single but NOT a maximum single.
THE WRAP-UP That covers the Mike's GYm arcrr training routine. If you like it, ordet a pepperoniprzza for Sam, and ask if "Mandy" can deliver it to the gym. She's the hottie that thinks Sam is so darn cute! Other than that,there's nothing left to say- other than good luck, good training, and keePus Postedon Your results! You know how to reachme it's
[email protected] and if you want to drop Mike anote (or ask him a question),sendit to me and I'll passit
WORKOUT C 1. Warm-up with light flip snatches2 x 10 - lz,Indian Club drills for 5 mins, and light clean and pressfor 2 x I0 - 12 2. Pull-ups 5 x 5 (with bodyweight in the
along.
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