Muscle memories: how I became a Body-for-LIFE champ in 12 weeks, and then went a step beyond

WHEN I WAS 19, I WAS NAMED GRAND CHAMPION of the 2001 Body-for-LIFE Challenge--the most popular physical-transformation contest in the country. In 12 weeks, I went from 6'3" and 173 scrawny pounds to 195 ripped ones, holding my body fat at 8% throughout. As a result, I won $25,000 in prize money and a round-trip to Hawaii. But the biggest reward has been telling everyone since about all the things I could've done better, so that they can do better, too.

You see, in the past four years I've become a certified personal trainer, graduated from the College of New Jersey with a double major in exercise science and physical education, and founded my own online training e-zinc, Ruggedmag.com. And while I won't disparage the hard work and sound methods that carried me to victory back in '01, I now realize I could have done even better. Since the contest, I've used the latest training research to bulk up to 250 pounds, while maintaining around 10% body fat. Here's how I've done it:

I TRUST MY BODY, NOT A CALENDAR

When I was training for the contest, there were many days when I wanted to hit the gym but didn't--just because my schedule said it was an "off" day. There were other days when I felt rundown but trained anyway because I was scheduled to. Looking back, I realize I was cheating myself out of productive workouts and pushing myself too hard, simultaneously. These days, I listen to how I'm feeling from day to day--going to the gym when I have the motivation and taking the day off when I don't. My goal: Train as often as possible, but don't do it just to do it. This way, my workouts don't become a chore, which keeps my enthusiasm to train high and makes each workout more productive.

I KNOW SORENESS IS MEANINGLESS

While muscles do need recovery time, soreness is no gauge for how long you should wait. After a punishing workout, I often felt sore for up to five days--and I wouldn't train the same muscle group again until the feeling passed. Now I know that I was just robbing myself of opportunities to build more muscle. Studies have shown that muscles recover within 48 hours of your last rep, and that you may recover faster if you work them again sooner rather than later. That's because a second workout will force nutrient-rich blood into the muscles, giving them the materials they need to recuperate quickly from your previous session.

I G0 LOW TO GROW

Low-rep sets (six reps or fewer) allow you to use heavier weights, which is why they're great for building pure strength. The only problem is, they cut down on your workout's volume (the total number of reps you can perform)--an essential ingredient in boosting muscle size. During my training for the Body-for-LIFE Challenge, I relied on sets of 8-12 reps (a fairly high-volume routine), which I'd heard provided the fastest gains in size. But as I've discovered, that kind of thinking is shortsighted. For really impressive development, you need the best of both worlds. How? Keep the total number of reps you do the same, and increase the number of sets. So if you've been doing three sets of 10 reps (a total volume of 30 reps), try switching to six sets of five reps, or 10 sets of three. The volume will still be 30 reps, ensuring that your muscles do enough total work to grow big, but the heavier weight you'll be handling will bring tremendous strength gains, and more overall increases in size. (In general, volumes of 30-100 total repetitions grow muscle fast, but err on the lower end of that spectrum if you haven't been training very long.)

I KNOW MY RANGE

Every rep range offers unique benefits. As I mentioned above, heavy training is best for building strength. Moderate-weight sets of 8-12 reps are primarily for size gains, and light sets (13 reps or more) can increase muscular endurance and enhance recovery. Nowadays, I alternate heavy, moderate, and light days to get the most out of my training and prevent plateaus--a method that strength coaches call "undulating periodization." Here's how it works: In my first workout of the week (coming off some rest days so I'm fresh), I go heavy--doing, say, 12 sets of four. The next time I work that muscle group, I may do five sets of 10. And in the session after that, two sets of 15-20. The overall volume in each workout is nearly the same, but the training effect is a bit different each time, allowing me to maximize my training without switching exercises or making any other adjustments.

COPYRIGHT 2005 Weider Publications
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