Slim Fit Health Plus+

by Darren MacLeod

When it comes to building muscle I like to keep things simple. Itís easy to get caught up in the hype of hot new products and exercises that promise to be the next best thing in muscle building. Theses fancy exercises and products use long ìscientific likeî words and explanations to show you they work to build the most muscle.

In this article I am going to get back to basics. I am going to show your three muscle building exercises you canít afford not to do and why you should be doing them. These three exercises are the grass roots of building muscle and are essential for any serious training program.

You might find it hard to believe, but with these three exercises alone you can pack on a serious amount of muscle. I refer to these exercises as the ìcoreî to any good program. When I start planning I muscle building program for a client I always start with these three basic exercises and build the program around them.

3 core muscle building exercises:

Squat
The squat is the biggest exercise for packing on serious poundage. Thereís no argument about it. The squat is primarily a leg building exercise. You start the exercise with a barbell resting across your shoulders standing straight up. Then bending at the knees and hips you lower the barbell down until your thighs are almost parallel to the floor. And then push the barbell back to the starting position.

The main muscle groups pulled into action for the squat are your quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes. Secondary muscle groups include the lower back, adductors and to a certain extent your shoulder muscles. As you can see many muscle groups are recruited for this exercise making it the biggest exercise and biggest potential muscle builder.

Like all the core muscle building exercises, you should make the squat the first exercise you do on your leg training day. Because itís the biggest exercise you want your legs to be fresh and ready. If muscle building is your goal, aim for about 8-12 reps on the squat. Because youíll be lifting heavy weights a good warm up is vital. Squatting is very stressful for the lower body, especially the knees, so 5-10 minutes on the treadmill and some lights squats first up are recommended.

Bench Press
The bench pres is the king of upper body building exercises. For years the bench press has been used to measure a lifterís strength. How many times have you been asked ìhow much do you bench?î I bet youíve never been asked how much do you squat or how many chin ups can you do.

The bench is a simple yet extremely powerful exercise that targets the entire chest (pectorals), front shoulders (deltoids) and triceps. To perform a bench press you must lie on your back on a flat bench, grip the barbell at slightly wider than shoulder grip and press the bar straight down to your chest.

The bench press is the biggest upper body builder because it allows you to move the most amount of weight possible. This is its advantage over the dumbbell press. With the help of a spotter you can also push yourself to lift heavier weights. There are also other advanced bench press techniques like board presses, bench press negatives and chain presses. See our link at the bottom for more details.

Wide grip Chin Up
If you were only going to do one exercise to work your back this would be it. The wide grip chin up is the ultimate test of a lifters power to weight ratio. This muscle building exercise is very demanding on the body.

The wide grip chin up primarily hits the lats, but also targets the entire upper back, biceps and forearms. To execute this exercise you need a chin up bar or assisted chin up machine. Hold the bar in a wide grip (greater than shoulder width) with your palms facing away from your body. Start in a ìhangingî position with your arms fully extended. Pull yourself up until your can get your chin over the bar and lower back to starting position.

Most people will not be able to do wide grip chin ups without some lat/back training first. You can use the assisted chin up machine or lat pull down machine to strengthen your lats before attempting wide grip chin ups. This is the most demanding back exercise you can do so it must be the first exercise in your session.

When you should be doing these exercises

Like I mentioned previously in this article, these exercises are the biggest muscle builders and also the most taxing on your body so they must be done at the beginning of your workout to get the maximum benefits. I recommend that you do up to 5 sets on each exercise and vary the way you perform these sets each week. For example, the first week you do pyramid up sets, the second week you pyramid down and the third week you do straight sets. This keeps your muscles from getting accustomed to your routine. Good luck packing on some serious pounds!

For more information on muscle building exercises visit our muscle building megasite. We have muscle building exercises, workouts, articles and forum and more.

Share and Enjoy:

by Bob Howard

When you first begin exercising - no matter whether itís weight training or cardio - your muscles immediately begin to use energy to allow them to work. For the first three minutes of activity, your muscles burn glycogen, the form of sugar stored in the muscles for a quick infusion of energy. During this period fat is not burned. This process is called anaerobic metabolism. During the first few minutes of strenuous activity, especially during anaerobic metabolism, you may experience a burning sensation in the muscles of your arms, legs, or back. This is caused by the accumulation of lactic acid, which is the result of burned glycogen. This burning sensation will soon pass and should not disrupt your workout. Anaerobic metabolism is the main form of energy for activities that require short bursts of power such as sprinting, football, and bodybuilding.

As your exercising continues, your body will eventually burn up all the glycogen stored within the muscles. Your muscles will then move into the aerobic metabolism phase. When this occurs, lactic acid production stops. This occurs because the glycogen is now being burned in the presence of oxygen, which is brought to the muscles by the blood stream. Provided you continue to breath correctly, your system will continually bring oxygen to the muscles. These stores of glycogen are expended after about 20 minutes. The body will then start burning its fat stores as an energy source. Thus, the longer you exercise, the more fat your body will burn.

What this means for you

For optimum health and fat burning, your bodybuilding workouts should consist of both anaerobic training and aerobic training. Weight training will strengthen and build the muscles, as well as boost your metabolism so youíll be burning fat even after you leave the gym. Aerobic exercise such as cardio machines or aerobic classes will both stimulate your cardiovascular systems as well as burn body fat while your doing it.

© Bob Howard 5/5/2006

Bob Howard expert on bodybuilding and steroids. Are you looking for more of his bodybuilding articles? http://www.bodybuildinginformation.com

Share and Enjoy:

by Fred Waters

Landice has an excellent reputation for building quality treadmills. These are not your mass merchant specials with 90 day parts and labor warranties. In fact, Landice offers a lifetime warranty on their treadmills, which says something about their durability.

Landice has been selling treadmills for a number of years. Their focus is to build sturdy treadmills with the best components available. The result is machines that are built to last and are capable of taking a beating. Of course, that comes at a price. Their least expensive treadmill starts at $3,100, and their commercial grade models top off at $5,000. Letís just say, you donít want these treadmills to end up as clothes racks.

So what do you get for your money?

As mentioned, Landice utilizes the best components available for treadmills. For example, they equip their machines with 3.0 hp continuous duty Baldor motors. These motors are monsters in comparison to most treadmill motors. There are a number of companies that claim their treadmills have 3.0 hp motors, but if you were to compare them to the Baldor motor there would be a noticeable difference in the size. This powerful motor assures that the treadmill will run at even the highest speeds without straining.

Landice uses a 4-ply treadbelt, the majority of competitors use 2-ply. Although costing significantly more, this 4-ply belt provides twice the strength of a 2-ply belt. It also adds additional cushioning to reduce impact.

Another quality component that Landice installs are 2.5î rollers. These are the same rollers used in the best commercial treadmills. The larger the roller diameter the less tension required on the treadbelt, since the roller has more surface area to grab the belt. Decreased tension means decreased friction and longer life on belts, motor, bearings and the rollers themselves.

As you can see these treadmills are built to institutional standards, in fact Landice has over 20,000 treadmills placed in health clubs around the world. And unlike every other fitness manufacturer that builds treadmills, Landice only produces treadmills. They are not also building, elliptical trainers, strength machines and stationary bicycles. Their focus is solely treadmills.

Who should buy a Landice treadmill?

Individuals who are going to abuse a treadmill. Weíre talking serious runners, including competitors and marathon runners. These treadmills are ideal for people who push their equipment to the limit.

Landice Receives ìBest Buyî Recommendations

In the past Landice has received a top pick from one of the most popular consumer rating magazine. Landice has also received a number of ìBest Buyî ratings. Treadmill Doctor states, "An incredibly solid treadmill. Some cheaper treadmills may be better for some people but if you’re serious, this is a serious machine."

Menís Fitness Magazine had these comments on the Landice L7 Executive Trainer: ìIf you want the best - and can afford it - the L7 is the bad boy.î

If you want a treadmill that can withstand strenuous use, then you should consider Landice. They are built to last and may just out last you.

Fred Waters worked in the treadmill industry for a number of years, and is the author of the Treadmill Rating and Review site. Check out all of his Landice Treadmill Reviews, and see how they compare.

Share and Enjoy: