Hi Davey, I’ve been getting back in to shape lately by going to the gym 2 – 3 times a week. When I first started, my muscles would become sore 1 – 2 days after my workout. Recently I’m finding that my muscles don’t become sore in the slightest. I am increasing the amount I lift but I’m cautious because [...]
Dear Davey, I’m quite skinny but I have a ring of fat around my mid-section – it’s like a pair of stubborn love handles. Obviously, I’d like to burn my stomach fat – but I also want to build muscle. Is it possible to do both? From, Joe Hey Joe, In short: Yes, it’s totally possible to burn fat AND [...]
Dear Davey, I was about to start working out when my friend mike was complaining to me about how we wanted to lose weight. So I invited him to join me. He declined by saying, “I’m drinking at the moment and you shouldn’t work out when you drink because it dose more damage to your muscles.”” Is this true? Dose [...]
The first time I encountered forced reps was while working with a trainer in Sydney, Australia. I was performing my final set of barbell bicep curls and approaching muscle failure. Just as I was about to complete my last rep, the trainer grabbed the barbell with two hands and shouted for me to continue. By assisting the movement, he was [...]
Dear Davey, I recently bought a protein shake, but when I got home and read the ingredients more carefully, I realized just HOW MUCH SUGAR is in it! It has over 50 grams of sugar per serving! Is that bad? Does the sugar prevent muscle growth? Does the sugar out-weigh the protein content? From, Christopher Hey Christopher, It seems like [...]
As I’ve mentioned before, drop sets just might be one of the most effective muscle-building techniques around. Drops sets are a strength training technique wherein you perform a set of any exercise to failure (or just short of failure) for between 8 and 12 reps – and then drop some weight (usually 15%) and continue for additional repetitions with the [...]
As silly as it sounds, don’t you love being sore a day or two after a really intense workout? In some twisted way, I think we all do. And it can be addictive; many people feel like they didn’t get a good workout unless they’re sore thereafter. But it begs the question: Is soreness required for muscle growth? No. Soreness [...]
Are monster sets as scary as they sound? Yes. But are they also super effective at increasing muscle volume and capacity? Yes. Basically, a monster set is performing consecutive smaller sets of an exercise until you reach a large, predetermined number like 50 or 60 reps. To perform monster sets, you should select an amount of weight that is 65% [...]
Hi Davey, I’ve recently gotten heavily into working out, and your blog has been a great source of information. I go to the gym five days a week and have broken up the days into two kinds of workouts – biceps/back/legs on one day and chest/triceps/shoulders on another. This was a good way for me to start, and while it’s [...]
Dear Davey, I’ve been told by multiple people, including my yoga teacher and friends, that there is a max number of reps one can do in one set. I’ve been told it’s somewhere between 21 to 25 reps. Is this true? From, Ryan Dear Ryan, There isn’t a magic number from a scientific standpoint, but there certainly are some ranges [...]
