Tell an experienced lifter to do 20 reps of curls and they’ll say it’s too easy. Tell them to do 20 reps of pull-ups and they’ll say it’s too hard. Tell them to do 20 reps of squats and, if they know their stuff, they’ll start to tremble. The 20-rep squat program has a long […]
In the world of fitness, lifting with a partial range of motion is often considered blasphemy. There’s been an ongoing war waged between coaches, lifters, and fitness gurus about proper exercise technique. For many, anything short of a full range of motion is ineffective and off limits. Credit: Andrey_Popov / Shutterstock But, as time and […]
There aren’t too many “one-lift wonders” that can make you epic by delivering a ton of benefits in a single set, but the deadlift is one of them. The conventional deadlift gives you the potential to lift a lot of weight, get jacked, and brag about your massive deadlift PRs (if that’s something you’re in […]
Simple bodybuilding programs are a little too easy to find. You could pull them from fitness magazines — those ghost-written workouts that your favorite bodybuilders supposedly follow. You could roll the dice and ask an artificial intelligence chatbot to generate one for you. Or, you could attempt to develop one for yourself. Just a few […]
The front squat is one of the most effective lower body exercises, offering tons of benefits from strength and muscle size to athleticism and mobility. The same exercise can also be daunting because it requires coordination from head to toe. This challenging squat variation can even be awkward for some lifters because it demands more […]
Due to their prominence, well-developed back muscles have been described as wings. Want wing-like back muscles? On the short list of things that allegedly “give you wings” are energy drinks, good deeds, and upper body vertical pulling. After consuming energy drinks throughout my younger years, I can dispatch the first claim. Alertness and insomnia? Yes. […]
“How much do you bench?” It might be the most frequently asked question among hardcore “gym bros” and experienced gym veterans looking to establish a pecking order, as well as curious beginners looking to strike up a conversation. It’s also one of the most popular (if misguided) ways to inquire about someone’s strength, fitness, and […]
When it’s time to hit the gym, most people instinctively gravitate toward hitting the weights. That’s certainly an understandable course of action, since weight training plays a role in everything from muscle-building and strength gains to fat-burning and even heart health. However, for maximum results toward any of those goals — physique, performance, or health […]
The lat pulldown can be a reliable and effective alternative to back-training staples like chin-ups or pull-ups. Pulldowns can be useful for novice lifters who may not yet be strong enough to perform high-quality repetitions, as well as more experienced lifters looking to minimize the role of their core or lower body while zeroing in […]
When it comes to building muscle one leg at a time, the Bulgarian split squat, also known as the rear foot elevated split squat, usually gets all the praise and attention. But the real ones know how underrated the front foot elevated split squat truly is. Credit: Zoran Pucarevic / Shutterstock The unfairly overlooked front […]