3 Ways to Maximize Your Strength Workouts

Maximize your workouts

I often hear people say they want to “maximize” their strength-training workouts. The translation of this statement is usually “my workouts aren’t giving me what I want.” If this is you, you’re smart to think you should be doing something differently to build muscle or lose fat. But what is that “something?” You can improve your workouts – and your body composition– by changing an almost endless array of variables. Here are just three ways to start seeing better progress immediately. Avoid Ineffective {Read More…}

Put Pushups at the Top of Your List for the New Year

In the New Year, I challenge you to up the ante with your pushups! Being good at pushups is a worthy goal that deserves some of your time because they build a sculpted, strong upper body. But more importantly, being able to do pushups on your toes – or more difficult full pushups – makes you feel good about yourself. It means you worked towards something important, followed through, and achieved it. Pushups primarily use your pectorals, triceps, and anterior {Read More…}

Are Pull Ups the Gold Standard of Strength?

chin-up-small

There are so many measures against which we hold ourselves. If you can’t hold a plank for 2 minutes then you’re a wimp. If you can’t deadlift extraordinary loads you’re not strong. If you don’t look like a fitness competitor/model you’re not thin enough. It’s desirable to have goals – of course. It’s healthy to “reach for the stars.” But some of these strength standards – and comparing ourselves to others – only serve to make us feel inadequate. The {Read More…}

Weightlifting Ideas to Pump Excitement into Your Recovery Week

Courtesy PeterJBellis

Ever since I started periodizing my training, I’ve had to grapple with entire weeks of backing off the weights. As those who lift smartly know, you can’t go hard every single day. There need to be lighter intensity weeks cycled in so that your joints can recover from the stress of hard training. I went hard nonstop for years because I hate backing off the weights. Having to lift lighter during my usual routine makes it very hard for me {Read More…}

The How-to Guide for Pull ups (Guest Video) by @leanmusclematt

Pull-ups are one of those exercises that everyone wants to do but few can. Why? Because pull-ups require a lot of upper-body strength and are best worked up to using small steps. So I was excited when my friend and fellow fitoholic Lean Muscle Matt created this how-to video on how to rock them. Check out his tips – and let me know how you’re doing! Matt is a Certified Public Accountant and blogging fitness freak. After starting his fitness {Read More…}

Getting Big Results with Box Squats

Most people know the value of squats – a compound movement that helps to build hamstring, glute, and quadricep strength. Hopefully you’re doing them – with heavy weights – because they’re the best lower body exercise around. But box squats, when done correctly, are also valuable for general lifters. Box squats involve doing a squat with a box behind you. So what’s the difference between that and regular squats? According to powerlifter and biomechanics engineer Scott Dueball, box squats are {Read More…}