How To Channel Testosterone Straight Into Muscle!

Posted on February 14, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

[Written by Jeff Anderson]

Any gym rat who’s ever touched a dumbbell knows that testosterone builds muscle, right?

In fact, your ability to gain mass is in direct proportion to your body’s T-levels.

That’s why bodybuilders and athletes are gobbling test-boosting supplements by the handful (and the supplement companies are more than happy to sell you a bucket or two at jacked up prices!)

But few people realize this critical mass building truth…

Testosterone Will NOT Build Muscle
Without This One Critical Component…

Here’s the deal…

Testosterone builds muscle by binding to a transport protein located in your cells called “androgen receptors“.

The androgen receptors are what bring the testosterone into your muscle cells to make new proteins and promote muscle building.

It’s kind of like all of us “losers” lined up at the school dance.

There may be a hundred of us all praying to God, Krishna, Zeus, or any other diety who could possibly influence some hottie to come over and give us a shot at a groping session during a Journey song (long live the 80′s!)…

…but it requires a physical connection to transform teen lust into twisted tongues.

Likewise, you can jack up your testosterone all you want but if you don’t have an androgen receptor “hottie” to flutter its eyelashes, your “T” isn’t even going to get to first base.

In other words, testosterone won’t work without active androgen receptors to transport it into the muscle cells.

But all this medical mumbo jumbo is no good to you without some practical “do this” tips, right? So…

Here’s How To Naturally Increase Testosterone
And Turn It Into Muscle…

1. Cycle Your Training The RIGHT Way!

It’s a difficult combination but androgen receptors respond best to high intensity training while testosterone responds best to heavier training (about 80% of your 1 rep max).

This requires some specific pairing of exercises and rep ranges in order to accomplish both goals and unfortunately, most guys don’t train the “right way” in the gym to stimulate both testosterone AND androgen receptor activity.

Generally, you want to cycle your training with weeks of higher repetition ranges to stimulate androgen activity while steadily increasing the weight on other weeks with lower reps to boost testosterone.

So perhaps one week, you use rep ranges in the 10-12 range for an “androgen pump” and then each week, add an extra set with a lower rep range of like 6-8 to go heavier.

Your earlier workout sets of higher reps will stimulate androgen receptors while your later sets will work on providing the companion testosterone increase.

This is one way to do it but of course, there are other ways to train.

The key is to use BOTH methods of lifting in order to maximize both testosterone AND androgen receptor activity.

2. Don’t Give Up, You Big Whuss!

Studies show that more experienced weight-trained athletes have a much higher level of androgen receptor activity than beginning trainers.

This is where the men are separated from the boys!

I know everyone talks about “fast muscle” but the fact is that the longer you stick with bodybuilding as a marathon rather than a sprint, the more muscle you’re going to build and the longer it will last.

Science proves this in the natural androgenic programming results that show that your body will follow what you tell it you need it to do on a long-term basis.

Newbies who give up too quick will NEVER see the body they’re dreaming of!

Stick with it!

3. Cycle Your Protein Intake

Ok, things get a little tricky here, but this is pretty freakin’ cool…

Bodybuilders have been brainwashed into thinking that they need to consume massive amounts of protein in order to build muscle.

But the fact is that your body can actually MAKE ITS OWN PROTEIN!

This is what happens when testosterone pairs up with androgen receptors and are transported into the muscle cells.

In fact, it’s possible to actually INCREASE your body’s own natural demand and production for testosterone by triggering this coupling action to happen at a more intense level.

This is done by cycling your protein intake for short periods where you take in very little protein.

In response, the body senses that training is intense but protein isn’t as sufficient for recovery and muscle growth.

Then, your muscle cells actually answer the demand by bonding more testosterone within the cells for “internal protein creation”.

I know it sounds strange…but it’s absolutely true!

This requires a very specific combination of training cycle plus protein deprivation cycling to “trigger” this very special ability of the body and it only works for a short time.

But knowing when to pull one of these triggers and exactly how to do it results in testosterone interaction you can actually FEEL working!

In fact, this method works WAAAAY better than taking a testosterone boosting supplement to build muscle mass!

It’s not always easy to do, but if you’re open to experimenting with this rather insane method, you’ll want to check out this website:

Click Here To See How This 1973 Study
Broke All The Rules About Mass Building >>

This method is the result of several years of experimenting with this unique T-boosting method and it’s even been used by some pro bodybuilders as a steroid-alternative.

The reason is because it really does naturally boost testosterone to insane levels, but more importantly, it also intensifies androgen activity so that your body USES that testosterone to stimulate real muscle growth.

If you’re serious about seeing incredible muscle gains, then you need to check out that site.

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Biceps Training Tip: Wrist Curl Mistake!

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

[Written by Jeff Anderson]

When beginning the “curl” movement from the bottom position (for this example, with a straight bar), MOST guys actually begin with a “wrist curl” motion where

they bend the wrist toward the forearm.

This is something you’re probably not even aware of, but chances are, 95% of you begin the movement this way.

Unfortunately, all this does is take stress off of the BICEPS which is where you’re REALLY trying to target.

So your smaller forearms most likely give out before you’ve effectively hit your bi’s, leaving you with untapped muscle fibers.

The solution?

Bend your wrists DOWN through the whole curling movement!

Essentially this means keeping your wrist LOCKED in a position where your knuckles are tilted as far toward the ground as possible – the OPPOSITE direction of a

wrist curl.

This places WAY more stress on the biceps as you lift the weight.

At the top, feel free to curl your wrists back in to get a more concentrated SQUEEEEEEEEEZE contraction before lowering the bar again with your wrists tilted

back down.

Fix this mistake…and feel the burn!

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Quick Bicep Exercise Tip For Better Contraction!

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

[Written by Jeff Anderson]

Who doesn’t want BIGGER BICEPS, right?

And you know that BARBELL CURLS are a powerful mass-builder for your arms, don’t you?

Well you know I’m a stickler for the big no-no’s I see everyone doing in the gym with their curls…

…not using a full range of motion

…flopping their body all over the place to cheat the bar up

…too much reliance on the “EZ Curl Bar”

But here’s a neat little trick that you may find brings you a better “peak contraction” to really burn those bicep fibers…

Quick Bodybuilding Tip: Bicep Burner Thumb Trick!

First, you’ll use this “technique” with a STRAIGHT BAR only (forget the EZ Curl bar)!

The whole foundation of this is to get maximum “supination” which is necessary to complete the range of motion for your curls.

This is easy to do with dumbbells because you can twist the weights at the top of the curl.

You see, the further you can bring your pinky pointing in toward your working shoulder, the better contraction you’ll get in the peak bicep contraction.

You don’t get this supination very much with the big mass-building BARBELL CURL though because you can’t really “twist” your wrists to get your pinkies in the

right position.

But this will help…

Instead of wrapping your thumb around the straight bar, use a “thumbless grip” where your thumb is on the same side as your fingers!

You’ll find that at the “top” position, your pinkies are now slightly higher than they would be if you had your thumb wrapped around the bar.

This will help you get better supination and a better peak contraction!

PLUS, it forces you to use your forearm muscles more as you have to grip the bar harder in order to keep it in your hands.

Just a nice little “bonus”!

Give this puppy a try on your next “Arms Day” and see how it works for you!

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4 Mental Tricks To Increase Your Bench Press By 20%!

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

[Written by Jeff Anderson]

Been stuck at 185 on your bench press for what seems like DECADES and looking to FINALLY crack 200?

Well, no promises…

…but these 4 powerful little mental “tricks” COULD help you add an IMMEDIATE 20% more to your bench press and break a new personal record!

BENCH PRESS POWER TIP #1: Focus on your BODY…not the BAR!

When you’re benching, try to actually push your BODY away from the bar…NOT the bar away from your body.

This trick works for the same reason when doing pullups, you focus on pulling your elbows down.

Your brain sees the bar as an inanimate object OUTSIDE of your control and it understands that the bar may “win”.

But your brain sees your BODY as an “ally” and “WITHIN your control”…

…and is much more CONFIDENT in your strength when focusing on moving your BODY.

BENCH PRESS POWER TIP #2:  “Pull” The Bar Apart!

As you’re lifting the bar, try “pulling” it apart as if your hands were moving away from each other.

Your hands don’t actually move…you just want to grip hard and imagine “stretching” the bar longer.

This calls into play more “stabilizer muscles” to give you extra power in your upward movement.

BENCH PRESS POWER TIP #3:  Visualize The Bar Going UP!

Do you know this “spotter” trick?

Whenever you’re spotting someone on the bench press and they’ve hit a sticking point, most of the time all you have to do is place 2 FINGERS under the bar and it MAGICALLY seems to raise again.

No…you DON’T have the world’s strongest fingers!

It’s simply a total mental “mind f’er” where the lifter “thinks” he’s getting help with the rep…but is actually doing it all on his own.

You can do this by yourself (or with a partner) just by VISUALIZING the bar constantly moving upwards.

When you reach that sticking point, play a mental movie in your mind and vividly SEE the bar raising.

Your body will “believe” what you see and respond by making your “movie” a REALITY!

BENCH PRESS POWER TIP #4:  Look To Your Dominant Hand!

Another “sticking point” destroyer…

Once you reach the point where the bar stops its ascent and you think you’ve been defeated, look (WITHOUT turning your head) toward your dominant hand (the one you write with).

This is yet another mental “trigger” for your brain to associate strength and power with what it perceives as your strongest assetts in your “bench press battle”.

Well, there you go!

Bring your brain to your next chest workout and load up a few extra plates because you’re guaranteed t leave your wimpy old record in the dust once you try these easy tips!

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Pec-Poking Pain From This Chest Training Technique!

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

When was the last time you really had that “chest poke pain”?

You know…like when 24 hours after your chest workout, you can’t stop poking your pecs with your finger to marvel at how much it hurts?

Yeah, it’s a secret pleasure of mine too! (ha ha!)

If it’s been a while, then here’s a “Quick Chest Training Technique” I did last week that will have YOU pokin’ away by tomorrow evening:

(Warning to “skimmers”: This will LOOK like a simple, giant “tri-set”, but there are a few twists…so READ EACH STEP!)

1. First, you’re going to be using the bench press for this exercise (your favorite, right? ;-)

2. Choose a weight that you can do for about 12 reps before hitting failure BUT (and this is IMPORTANT!) load up the bar with either 10lb or 25lb plates so that you can quickly take off 50% of what you have loaded on each side.

(Sure, you’ll look like a whuss! But ARE you? Hell no…so “grab ‘em” like you got a pair and don’t give a damn what the other guys think! ;-)

3. Now, do a traditional set (8-12 reps) on the bench press until you reach full muscular failure.

4. As soon as you rack the weight, jump up and strip 50% off each side.

5. Now…with no rest, grab the bar with a WIDE, WIDE grip (up to 12 inches past your shoulders) and knock out your reps to failure.

Side Note: This works by really taking your burned out triceps out of the picture as much as possible and give you a WICKED PUMP in your chest!

Read on…

6. LASTLY…as soon as you hit failure on this second set and rack the weight, with no rest, grab a dumbbell (just about 30-50 lbs will do nicely) and do a set of Dumbbell Pullovers, keeping your arms VERY, VERY STRAIGHT (to take your triceps out of the movement even more) and feel a good stretch in your chest at the bottom.

This will allow you to really burn out your Type 1 muscle fibers for a serious Growth Hormone (GH) response and a massive pump!

Once you hit failure, give yourself a good 2-3 minute rest to recover and run through this giant set just one more time.

That will give you 6 total “chest sets” and the next day all your co-workers will be wondering why you keep poking your chest and wincing! ;-)

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(Video!) Workout First Aid: Is YOUR Training Suffering?

Posted on February 7, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

By The “Muscle Nerd”, Jeff Anderson

Walk into any gym in the world and you’ll find about 95% of everyone working out making at least ONE of these common training boo-boo’s!

Well, the doctor is in (actually the “Muscle Nerd”) and I’m armed with a box of bandages and another powerful “video article” to administer some “Workout First Aid”!

In this short video, you’ll discover…

* Your “EVIL TWIN” on the gym floor that’s doing everything he can to sabotage your gains!

* The key to “going the distance” and getting the most from every workout session!

* The most important piece of gym equipment for pushing your gains to the next level!

Check out this short video presentation and see if YOU aren’t seeing the same symptoms in your own training program…and learn what to do about it NOW!

Take YOUR Training To The “Next Level”!

Mass Building Secrets >>

Stop training like a “beginner”!

If you’re not hitting each one of these “8 Anabolic Factors”, then you’re missing out on some SERIOUS MUSCLE!
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Best Abs Exercises Technique For 3-D Abs!

Posted on February 6, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

Check out any local gym and you’ll see inexperienced members training their abs with endless sets of situps and crunches, right?

While the abs are predominantly made of Type 1 (endurance) muscle fibers and respond to slightly higher repetition ranges,your abs are made up of muscle just like any other part of your body. 

Therefore the best abs exercises to get that “cut” look are those that are resistance-based and treat them like any other muscle.

But there’s a special little trick you must know in order to maximize your abs training on your way to having a stacked 6-pack.

In fact, ignoring this principle, could force you to develop “lopsided” abs that are so common among beginner bodybuilders.

Let me share this secret with you now…

The main abdominal muscle you want to be working when training your abs is your “rectus abdominis”, that sheet of rippled muscle that goes from your rib cage all the way down the front of your body to your pelvis.

What’s unique about this abdominal muscle group is that the upper abs can work separately from the lower abs (to some extent)…BUT when you work your lower abs exercises, your upper abs are ALWAYS working as well.

This is why most people (including myself from years of military training focusing on upper abs) had overdeveloped upper abs but underdeveloped lower abs.

Here’s how to correct this…

Make sure you train your LOWER ABS first in your abs workout (ALWAYS!) which brings both upper and lower abs into the workload!

If you don’t work your lower abs first, you exhaust your upper abs too soon and when you DO target your lower abs, your upper abs will fatigue too fast and you’ll end up with under-targeted lower abs.

So the best exercises for lower abs are:

    * Incline Leg Raises
    * Incline Knee Ups
    * Hanging Leg Raises
    * Flat Bench Leg Raises

And then follow up with the best upper abs exercises:

    * Crunches
    * Weighted Crunches
    * Situps
    * Hanging Knee Raises

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An Insane Exercise That Builds A MASSIVE Chest!

Posted on February 4, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

 In This Chest Training Article:

  • Why breaking all the rules when it comes to training your chest can lead to greater muscle growth
  • A “dangerous” exercise for defeating your underdeveloped UPPER CHEST…and how to do it SAFELY!

I hesitate to even write this article for 3 reasons…

One, because it’s one of my SECRET weapons for building a massive chest;

Two, I’ve historically saved it for the EXCLUSIVE privilege of my clients in the Optimum Anabolics Program (www.OptimumAnabolicsSystem.com); and

Three, because any knucklehead who doesn’t follow my instructions to the letter could SERIOUSLY injure himself!

With that said, I’m going to throw caution to the wind and let you in on one of the most advanced chest building exercises you’ll ever use.

But I MUST warn you…

It breaks one of the most important safety rules of working out (although I’ll show you a safe way around this later on)!

Well, here goes…

My guess is that you’re currently busting your ass on the flat and incline bench presses, pressing the bar up in the air from mid-chest level, in an attempt to really pack on some mass to your pecs.

But have you ever heard of pressing to the NECK ?

OUCH ! Just thinking of that bar crashing down on my Adam’s apple makes me want to dial 9-1-1 .

But first let’s discuss the benefits of this popular exercise from the master of muscle, Vince Gironda, and then I’ll tell you how to avoid having to dust off your will.

Your pectoralis major actually is made up of four separate divisions which require different movements to effectively train them.

While the regular bench press can target the mid-chest area pretty well, it falls short of expectation in developing the upper and interior chest regions.

Failure to properly train these areas can mean a poorly developed chest due to uneven growth.

On the other hand, performing a flat bench pressing movement to the NECK area actually forces your UPPER and INTERIOR , as well as EXTERIOR regions of your chest to pull together like never before in a team effort to REALLY pack on the mass!

Here’s how to do it SAFELY …

ALWAYS use either a Smith Machine with a SPOTTER . IMPORTANT: NEVER, NEVER, NEVER ATTEMPT TO USE A REGULAR STRAIGHT BAR, EVEN WITH A SPOTTER AND WHEN YOU USE THE SMITH MACHINE, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS USE A SPOTTER!!!

A spotter should be someone you KNOW understands how to “spot” someone, preferably someone you’ve worked out with before.

If you don’t have a spotter, use a set of DUMBBELLS to be safe.

Keep the amount of weight much LOWER than usual until you learn how to perform the movement properly.

On a FLAT bench (the exercise is actually LESS effective using an incline bench), with a MEDIUM grip, and starting from the “up” position, SLOWLY lower the bar (or dumbbells) to neck level, keeping your elbows pointing out AWAY from the body.

Focusing on contracting your chest muscles, raise the bar/dumbbells as quickly as safely possible back to the start position.

Perform 3 sets of 8-15 reps.

By REALLY hitting these hard to reach areas and ALSO calling upon the larger areas of your chest to perform this movement, you can stimulate MANY more muscle fibers resulting in explosive growth for the entire chest region.

Give it a try, be safe, and oh yeah, one more warning…

This one’s gonna make you hurt the next day!

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(Video!) The Bodybuilding PUMP: Mass Building Myth…Or Legend?!

Posted on February 3, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

By The “Muscle Nerd”, Jeff Anderson

Ever see those documentary television shows “Animals Gone Wild”? (no…NOT “GIRLS Gone Wild”! A-N-I-M-A-L-S!)

You know…the ones where normally docile animals scratch, claw, kick, bite, peck, gnaw, or otherwise DEVOUR another animal right before your eyes?

Well, here’s a challenge for you…

Throw a hundred fitness consultants in a room and ask them to debate whether or not that huge “PUMP” you get in the gym is REALLY building you any muscle…or if it’s just a useless ego booster…then watch them start scratching out eyes as the debate heats up! ;-)

Yep…tempers flare on this topic and opinions are all over the board…so how would you like a little help from the scientific community on whether or not you should be ignoring the pump…or whether it’s your best friend in the gym?

The answer may SURPRISE you!

Amaze your friends with your bodybuilding brilliance as you bring the next “pump” argument to a screeching halt with the no-nonsense verdict you’re about to learn in this short VIDEO LESSON!

57 Amazing Tips To

Build A Thick Chest!

Click Here

6 bodybuilding experts put their heads together and revealed their TOP TIPS for doing just ONE THING…

…building MORE MASS onto your chest!

We’re talking like 90 minutes of audio!
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How To Master The Mother Of All Hormones To Build Muscle And Burn Fat!

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Shawn Horwood

[Written by Jeff Anderson]

In This 6-Pack Chiseling Article:

  • How you can tap into the ab-shredding workouts that will carve out your body like a “300″ movie extra!
  • How increasing your growth hormone will help you burn body fat at breakneck speed…for washboard abs that will turn heads at the beach (or at the coliseum)!
  • What you can do AFTER your workout that will help you jack up your anabolic juices for a fat melting, muscle building conquest!

The epic war movie “300” jacked up the occupancy rates of every gym across the country as all of us guys dreamed of owning a set of washboard abs (and swords) like the warriors from the film.

Hell, I practically have to snap my fingers in front of my wife’s face to break her out of her trance every time the movie trailer played on our TV!  It’s hard to compet with ripped and shredded ancient soldiers!

But there’s some sort of irony that this movie about a Spartan king who leads his army of 300 soldiers into battle against the invading Persian army, shows the defenders as being so big and buff.

You see, the Spartans were Greek and the Greeks are credited with the origin of the word “hormone” (from their word “horman”, meaning “to stir up or excite”), the very thing that they worked so hard to master to become such great athletes and warriors.

So as my own tribute to this killer movie, this article is dedicated to these formidable warriors who have inspired men everywhere to chisel out a “Spartan-like” physique able to fend off attackers anywhere.  (Now leave our wives alone!)

Yes…this article is about naturally mastering your body’s growth hormone (GH) levels for more muscle and more fat burning!

In fact, if your goal is to lose fat and build muscle, it’s absolutely critical to pay close attention to your efforts to maximize your production of this powerful chemical in your body. 

Released from your pituitary gland, growth hormone production peaks around puberty, and then slowly fades away as we age and plays a key role in the maintenance of muscle, bone mass and the balance of body fat.

This chemical is so powerful that even WITHOUT following an exercise program and healthy diet, it can build muscle and burn fat!

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that a small group of elderly men (aged between 61 and 81) who were given injected GH treatment showed an increase in both muscle and bone mass…AND reduced body fat at the same time.

Now, injected GH therapy does have its down sides so you can put down the phone…your doctor isn’t going to give you a prescription.

Joint and muscle pain can eventually occur from artificial stimulation and once you stop taking it, all benefits go bye-bye.

However, if done correctly, research has shown that naturally stimulating growth hormone can pay off with big dividends in a short period of time.

In fact, one university study from Denmark found that a 9-week program designed to naturally stimulate GH release resulted in strength gains 300% over normal increases!

Adding to that, men following the program increase arm strength by a whopping 37% compared with only 9% by the “control group” who only followed a “non-GH-stimulation” program.

And remember…these GH increases were activated not by injected hormone, but by completely natural means.

Now you can see why my program “Optimum Anabolics” (www.OptimumAnabolicsSystem.com) has a primary focus of stimulating natural anabolic hormone output within the body…and why it has proven so effective at building muscle and burning off fat for thousands of men.

Hormone-focused training WORKS!

So to help you get started at mastering your own growth hormone factory, here are some of the key elements you need to apply to your workouts:

Natural Growth Hormone And YOUR Training Program

Exercise intensity is key when it comes to activating a GH response in your body.  You want your workouts to be rather fast and furious, keeping total workout time no greater than 60 minutes.  After that, you start to see a rapid decline in hormone response in the body.

You have a lot of work to do in just 60 minutes so in order to maximize your time in the gym, stick to “supersets” for your exercises and keep your rest periods to a minimum (about 60-90 seconds between sets).  A superset involves going straight from exercise 1 to exercise 2 without resting or with minimal rest in between. Once you’ve completed both exercises, you will take a short break (remember…”short” means just 60-90 seconds!) and go back to exercise 1 again to hit the next superset.

Keep your repetition count high (around 8-12 repetitions per set).  This will help activate a lactic acid response in your muscles and lactic acid in turn activates the release of growth hormone.  You’re going for the “burn” in this program!

Be sure to pause and squeeze your targeted muscle at the peak contraction point (for bicep curls as an example, this would be in the “up” position). 

This will really activate the lactic acid response as well as make sure you’re hitting deep into your muscle fibers.

Once you’re done with your workout, save about 5 minutes at the end for “sprint training”…

Researchers from Loughborough University have shown that a group of athletes who conducted a short series of 30-second sprints reached growth hormone levels 25 TIMES their resting levels approximately 30 minutes after training. 

You’re not going to want to miss out on THOSE kinds of results!

So at the end of your workout, do three to six 30-second sprints on your gym’s track or on the road to finish off the day and set yourself up for peak GH output.

Follow this program and YOU will soon be shopping shirtless for a shield and armor at the local blacksmith!  (And stay away from my wife!)

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