The Super Calf Bodybuilding Routine

Recently I have been focusing quite a lot on building up my calves. In fact… this is not even a recent issue. This is an on going never ending issue with me and my 6ft frame with more legs than body. However, I have started to see some results since following and mixing up my workouts with the weightlifting routine I am about to show you.

Workout No.1

Calf Press On The Leg Press Machine

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Dumbbell Single Leg Calf Raises

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Rocking Standing Calf Raises
Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Workout No.2

Single Leg Calf Raises

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Seated Calf Raises
Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Calf Press On The Leg Press Machine

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Now all you have to do is alternate! Have fun.

See you in the comments.

Lats ‘Wings’ Routine For Your Bodybuilding workout

It’s been a while since i posted How To Build Lats (Wings) Like These and since then it feels like I have left you hanging without a workout routine to follow it up with. Just like the other body parts that I have covered, here are 2 weightlifting routines that you can alternate to build a killer pair of lats.

Remember this guy?

The Lateral King

Workout no.1

Bent Over Barbell Rows

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Close Grip Front Lat Pulldowns

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Hyper-extensions Back Extensions

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Workout no.2

Bent Over One Arm Long Bar Rows

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Gorilla Chin Crunches

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Smith Machine Stiff Legged Deadlifts

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (Increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minutes of rest between each set

Switch these weightlifting routines up and feel free to let me know how you get on.

See you in the comments.

Shoulder Workout Routine

It’s that time again where I abruptly interrupt the flow and give you a workout routine to follow. After all, I know you are all alternating your weightlifting workout routines… right?

Any how. This is a routine for your shoulders should you be focusing on that at this current time. If not, it’s there when you need it.

Workout no.1

Standing Palms In Dumbbell Presses

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Smith Machine ‘Behind The Neck’ Presses

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Reverse Flyes
Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Workout no. 2

Front Two Dumbbell Raises

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Front Plate Raises

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Side Lateral Raises

Sets: 3
Reps: 8-12 (try to increase the weight after each set)
Rest: 3 minute rest between each set

Increasing the weight after each set is what will give your muscles a challenge. Just increase with moderation once you have figured out your own strength.

The Dumbbell Weightlifting Routine

This is a dumbbell routine that you can use if you ONLY have dumbbells to workout with. This coincides with my review of the Powerblocks which you can see here.

Monday – chest and triceps

flat bench dumbbell press – 4 sets
incline bench dumbbell press – 3 sets
flat bench flyes – 2 sets

skull crushers – 3 sets
single arm overhead extensions – 3 sets

Tuesday – legs

squats – 4 sets
lunges – 3 sets
stiff legged deadlifts – 4 sets
standing calf raises – 4 sets

Wednesday – off

Thursday – shoulders and traps

seated dumbbell press – 4 sets
single arm lateral raises – 3 sets
shrugs – 4 sets

Friday – back and biceps

deadlifts – 4 sets
bent over rows – 4 sets
single arm bent over rows – 2 sets

standing dumbbell curls – 3 sets
preacher curls – 2 sets

Now you don’t have to perform this dumbbell routine if you don’t want to. But it does happen to be a really effective weightlifting routine if dumbbells are the only piece of workout gear that you have access to.

How To Build A Muscular Back (Part 3)

Welcome to the 3rd and final part of how to build a muscular back and as I mentioned in part 2, today I’ll outline a weightlifting routine for your weightlifting workouts where you can execute those exercises that I covered.

Before I describe these routines we will first cover them in order of difficulty.

• Beginning
• Intermediate
• Advanced (I’ll leave that till another post)

This is to ensure that you build muscle mass at a safe pace, avoid injury, but more importantly, allow your body to grow once you hit a plateau.

Beginning Bodybuilding Back Routine

For those who are just starting out in bodybuilding, I always recommend a full body routine practiced 3 times a week that uses mostly basic exercises to target each muscle group. As a result, a back routine for the beginning bodybuilder may consist of just a couple of exercises that cover all of the back muscles.

• One Arm Dumbbell Rows 2 sets of 10-12 repetitions (Rest: 1 minute)
• Pull down To Front 2 sets of 10-12 repetitions (Rest: 1 minute)

How to Step Your Game Up

After 4 weeks of performing 2 sets of each exercise for 10-12 reps, move up to 3 sets per exercise. Keep the rest to 1 minute in between sets.

Intermediate Bodybuilding Back Routine

After 12 weeks in the beginning body-building schedule, it will now be time to ante up to an intermediate routine in order to keep progressing. In this routine, the body is split in two separate days; chest, back and arms on day 1, and shoulders, legs and abs on day 2.

• Wide Grip Pull-up to Front (alternate with Reverse Close Grip Pull-ups on the next workout) 2 sets of 10-12 repetitions (Rest: 1 minute)
• T-Bar Row Machine (alternate with One Arm Rows on the next workout) 2 sets of 10-12 repetitions (Rest: 1 minute)
• Bent Knee Deadlifts 2 sets of 10-12 repetitions (Rest: 1 minute)

How to Step Your Game Up

After 4 weeks of performing 2 sets of each exercise for 10-12 reps, move up to 3 sets per exercise. Keep the rest period to 1 minute in between sets.

Note

Use either a spotter or a chin assist machine to help you perform the pull-up movements. Only use the pulldown machine at this stage in case that none of these options are available.

For most of you, reaching the intermediate level of the weightlifting routine for your back will be as far as you need to go in terms of building muscle mass.  But once you have followed all 3 parts of How to build a muscular back, you may just find that you have become your own self made super hero and have to invest in a new wardrobe.  Now quit reading already, I want to see some action! Go and build that muscular back already.

See you in the comments.

How To Build A Muscular Back (Part 2)

I hope you are all enjoying yourself this weekend regardless of what you are doing, but let me now break down some of the exercises that you can do to build up all of those muscles in your back.

Width and Thickness

These are the first two things that you must consider when building muscles on your back and it is important to first identify which exercises help build both and the muscle groups that they target.

Types of exercise

Compound and isolation movements

• Pull up and pull down movements will promote width
• Rowing movements will promote thickness

Man vs. Machine

I have previously talked about the differences between using both machine weights, free weights and bodyweight exercises and all have their benefits. But the exercises that will stimulate the muscles in your back the most will be compound exercises (bodyweight and free weights). However, I have considered that there will be those of you who are not quite advanced in the high strength development department as yet, so I have listed some exercises that are machine based or isolation exercises, which will give less stimulation.

The exercises

Latissimus Dorsi Emphasis (Emphasis on width but also help with developing thickness)

These exercises emphasize the latissimus dorsi section of your back with secondary stimulation of the midback exercises.

Free Weight Basic Exercises (Highest Stimulation)

• Wide, Medium or Close Grip Pull-ups to Front
• Wide or Medium Grip Pull-ups to Back

Note

(not good for those who suffer from shoulder pain or who are wide open to a rotator cuff injury).

• Neutral Grip Pull-ups (using either parallel bars or a v-bar)

Note
(If you are not strong enough to perform pull-up exercises, simply either use a spotter to help you or a chin assist machine such as the “Gravitron”.  Even when using this machine the movement is still superior to doing a pull down)

Machine Based Basic Exercises (Less Stimulation But Good For Beginners)

• Wide, Medium or Close Grip Pull-downs to Front
• Wide or Medium Grip Pull-downs to Back

Note

Not good for those who suffer from shoulder pain or who are wide open to a rotator cuff injury).

• Neutral Grip Pull-downs (using either parallel bars or a v-bar)

Isolation Exercises (Free Weights and Machine Based)

• E-Z Bar Pullovers Performed On A Decline Bench
• Stiff Arm Pulldowns Using Straight Bar
• Stiff Arm Pulldowns Using A Rope
• Machine Pullovers

Teres Major/Minor And Rhomboids (These are midback muscles so these exercises emphasize midback thickness but they also help with building width as the lats are stimulated as well)

These exercises emphasize the midback muscles and will give your back a thick and powerful look.

Free Weight Basic Exercises (Highest Stimulation)

• Dumbbell Rows
• Barbell Rows (medium shoulder width grip or slightly wider grip)
• Underhand Grip Barbell Rows (underhand medium shoulder width grip or slightly wider grip)
• T-Bar Rows (performed with a barbell and a v-bar on it; not on a t-bar machine)

Machine Basic Exercises (Less stimulation but good for beginners and advanced bodybuilders as they provide a different feel to the exercises and really bring out the devil in the detail of your muscles).

• Low Pulley Rows (using V-Bar)
• One Arm Pulley Rows (with high or low pulley)
• Low Pulley Barbell Rows (underhand medium shoulder width grip or slightly wider grip)
• T-Bar Row Machine

Isolation Exercises (Free Weights and Machine Based)

• External Rotations Using Dumbbells or Pulleys
• Rear Delt Machine (Has secondary emphasis on midback as well)

Traps

These exercises emphasize your traps as well as your delts. Therefore they can be trained either on back day or on shoulder day.

Free Weight Basic Exercises (Highest Stimulation)

• Close Grip Barbell Upright Rows
• Medium Grip Barbell Upright Rows
• Upright Rows With Dumbbells Held Together
• Upright Rows With Dumbbells Held 5-6 Inches Apart

Machine Basic Exercises

• Close Grip Straight Bar Low Pulley Upright Rows
• Medium Grip Straight Bar Low Pulley Upright Rows

Isolation Exercises (Free Weights and Machine Based)

• Barbell Shrugs To Front (Can use barbell or smith machine)
• Barbell Shrugs To Front (Can use barbell or smith machine)
• Dumbbell Shrugs
• Shrug Machine

Spinal Erectors Emphasis

These exercises emphasize the spinal erectors with secondary emphasis on the teres major/minor, rhomboids, and lats (as in the case of the bent knee deadlift).

You really need to pay attention to your exercise for with this exercise and the weight used should always be kept under control. Do not sacrifice form in the name of adding weight as doing so can result in serious lower back injury. (Remember this?)

Free Weight Basic Exercises (Highest Stimulation)

• Barbell Bent Knee Deadlifts
• Dumbbell Bent Knee Deadlifts

Isolation Exercises (Free Weights and Machine Based)

• Good Mornings
• Hyperextensions
• Lower Back Machine

Just like on my article Balancing Cardio Exercises for Weight Training, you can use this as a personal guide on how to structure your personal weightlifting routines. But if your are really crap at doing that or are just to lazy too figure it out, the Bugmeister will gladly do the honour of giving you a weightlifting routine (regardless of what level you are at) in part 3.

See you in the comments.

Plateau Busters – The Weightlifting Routine

On Monday I introduced the idea of a weightlifting version of the popular TV show ‘Biggest loser’. The main idea behind this is that all participants will gain rapid first hand experience of how they can custom their workouts to be more effective for achieving weightlifting goals. But it will also prove to be a way to overcome weightlifting plateaus,

Since introducing plateau busters last week, I described some key methods of how you can overcome weightlifting plateaus with certain muscle groups.

Chest
Legs
Arms

But what I’ll do today is propose a weightlifting workout routine for a 3-day week to help start you off in overcoming those plateaus.

MONDAY (Chest, Triceps, Shoulders)

Chest Exercises

Incline dumbbell press – this is a compound exercise that targets the chest but also works the triceps and shoulders.

Pec-deck flye – This is an isolation exercise that works the pecs.

Triceps

Dips – This compound exercise targets the triceps but also works the chest and shoulders.

Shoulders

Front military press – A compound exercise that targets the shoulders but also works the triceps.

Dumbbell lateral raises – An isolation exercise that works the shoulders only.

Bent over dumbbell laterals – An isolation exercise that works the rear deltoids.

WEDNESDAY (Back, Biceps, Forearms)

Back

Front lat pulls – A compound exercise that targets the lats but also works the biceps and mid-back.

Deadlifts – A compound exercise that targets the back and quads but also works the hamstrings, calves and glutes (the butt)

Dumbbell rows – A compound exercise that targets mid-back but also works the biceps and lats.

Dumbbell shrugs – An isolation exercise that works traps.

Biceps

Dumbbell biceps curl – An isolation exercise that works the biceps.

Dumbbell hammer curls – An isolation exercise that works the biceps.

Forearms

Barbell wrist curl – An isolation exercise that works the forearms.

FRIDAY (Lower Body)

Legs

Squats or leg press – A compound exercise that targets the quads but also works the hamstrings, calves and glutes.

Leg extension – An isolation exercise that works the quads.

Leg curls – An isolation exercise that works the hamstrings.

Standing calf raise – An isolation exercise that works the upper section (Gastrocnemius)of the calf muscle.

Seated calf raise – An isolation exercise that works the lower section (Soleus) of the calf muscle.

What you have to keep in mind here is that you are trying to reignite that burning flame that your muscles had when you first began building muscle fast. As I have mentioned before, the key way to do that is to work your muscles with an increased intensity. Up the Ante! And workout like a barbarian.

Key pointers

- Muscles will need more recovery time (A full week for each muscle group)
- 3 day a week workout (No less, No more)
- Aim for two sets of 8-10 reps for each exercise, but as your strength and size increases you should introduce techniques that boost the intensity even further such as,

• Pre-exhaustion
• Super sets
• Partial reps
• Isometric contractions
• Forced reps

All of which I’ll cover this week.

See you in the comments.

Help! I Can Barely Lift My Own Body Weight, How Do I Start?

When I first began to get serious about working out and improving my body strength, I was still a student. I wasn’t entirely broke like most students are, but paying for a gym membership would definitely sting my bank account every month. Even so, I didn’t let that stop me and I at least wanted to make a start.

My plan was to initially use my own body weight to increase my strength and size by doing the following,

• Push-ups
• Dips
• Pull-ups
• Squats
• Lunges

After about a week of getting into the routine I realised that I had one slight problem.

I could barely lift my own body weight!

I WAS WEAK!

This was especially noticeable with pull-ups. I would do,

3 sets

Reps
1. 10
2. 5
3. 2
(To failure!!!)

In my view that was just simply pathetic strength endurance for a young and generally fit guy, almost embarrassing. Not to mention that these were ordinary pull-ups too, no wide/ close grip, which is where most people initially struggle.

With that said, things did improve over time, but that was with the assistance of weight training.

The key thing to take home here is that using your own body weight for exercising (Functional training) is still the no.1 method for increasing your strength, balance, flexibility, and natural muscle development. Below I’ll outlay some methods of how this can be done.

Green fitness Exercises

Before you even decide to start increasing your strength from doing bodyweight exercises, you may want to start doing these first, especially if you are as weak as I was. This would include taking up activities such as sprinting, riding, climbing, hiking or yoga. All of these activates will improve your functional strength, strength that you would use performing real world activities.

Start with the basics

Once you have a routine in place, then you may begin to consider starting to use your own body weight to increase strength. Earlier I mentioned that I started with,

• Push-ups
• Dips
• Pull-ups
• Squats
• Lunges

These are a great set of body weight exercises to start with. I would recommend that you structure your sets ‘To failure’. Which means that you push your self until you can push no more.

Example

Sets 3

Reps
1. 10
2. 8
3. 6

Everyone’s strength levels will be different, so change your sets to suit.

Advance to this

Once you have become quite competent in those exercises, get yourself a dipping belt for your pull up exercises, this will allow you to add weights to your body to increase the difficulty of the exercise. Then add these into the mix,

• One-arm push-ups
• One-legged squats
• Handstand push-ups
• Headstand leg raise
• Mahler Body Blaster
• Knee Jump

All of these exercises can be quite challenging, so I wouldn’t recommend jumping straight into them unless you know that you will be competent at doing them.  If you do then here is a routine to follow,

• Handstand Push-ups -- 5-10 Reps
• One-Arm Push-up -- 5-10 Reps
• One Legged Squat -- 5-10 Reps
• Knee Jump -- 5-10 Reps
• Headstand Leg Raise -- 5-10 Reps
• Mahler Body Blaster -- Work up to 25-50 Reps

If you really want to test your strength and you think you are an expert, try out the exercises in the videos below. If you do manage to perform all of these exercises with no trouble at all, then you must post a link in the comment sections of you doing so. If you do, I will be very impressed. Not even I could do some of these, and I’m quite an animal when it’s time to ANTE UP!

To conclude

Lifting weights will always be a superior way to increase strength and in quick succession. But if you’re a beginner, just want to be strong and have a naturally toned body, then this would be the way to go.

What are your experiences with body weight training?

See you in the comments.

Introducing Bugs Weekly Workout Routine

It’s Friday folks! The weekend starts today. Well… for most it should, if not then enjoy the time until it comes. By now, I hope most of you have enjoyed the posts and topics I have covered so far on stayfitbug.com. That will not stop! But today it is time to introduce workout routines, those of which I have personally experienced. This is to be known as:

BUGS WEEKLY WORKOUT ROUTINES

Every week I will post a workout schedule, some cardio based, some weights based or a variation of both, and the results that you can aim to achieve from doing them. By outlaying the results you can expect to achieve, it will be easy to identify if the post will be related to you or not. They will be based on what I’ve learned from being an athlete and from since being into fitness, and how effective I found them to be.

Today’s workout routine: Beginner weight training (building for muscle mass)

Ideal for: Beginners and those with busy schedules

I find that it is always best to try and start your workout week on a Monday. This allows you to fully utilize the weekdays and keep your weekends for rest days. Remember this (Balance)

Make sure you perform 1 – 2 sets of Warm-up exercises. Stretch before every first set.

Bugs Workout  Week # 1

KEY

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