Tag: Originals
George Farah Warns Bodybuilders: Stop Old School Bulking And Cutting
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George Farah favors building muscle slowly rather than old school bulking and cutting and warns of dire consequences.
George Farah is a legendary bodybuilding coach. He has also been much more vocal in the past decade about how his perception is changing as to what a pro bodybuilder needs to succeed. In fact, Farah believes that as bodybuilding culture changes – the training and dieting has not caught up and it’s endangering athlete health. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, George Farah warns against old school bulking and cutting in bodybuilding. He fears it will raise high blood pressure and lead to damage to kidneys and the liver.
Heart health and high blood pressure has been a topic we’ve discussed previously during our GI Exclusive interviews. That’s why we decided to turn to the bodybuilding guru himself – George Farah – for his take on how to avoid high blood pressure as a mass monster bodybuilder. His answer expands past blood pressure and also into liver and kidney health as well.
George Farah worries that the current culture of bodybuilding is leading to more health risks than necessary for athletes. Much like other individuals we have interviewed recently, Farah believes mass monster culture is leading to younger bodybuilder getting too big, too fast. More specifically, be believes that the old school method of bulking and cutting is no longer the best way to prep as a pro bodybuilder.
Bulking and cutting has been a very common way for pro bodybuilders to train and diet for decades. In short, in involves eating more to bulk up muscle in the off season and then cutting down during competition prep. This allows for a shredded and conditioned look after adding some significant size.
This is of course not the only way to prepare. Bodybuilders like Dexter Jackson have long since focused on staying lean all year and building muscle slowly rather than going through bulking cycles. While bulking itself can be done clean – there are many who will dirty bulk to put on as much weight as possible. Not all of it is muscle and the cutting phase becomes more challenging.
George Farah believes that with the changes in bodybuilding today – bulking has become more dangerous. Especially dirty bulking. There are more powerful supplements and drugs being taken by bodybuilders. Not only that – but the overall size of bodybuilders has increased since the golden age of the sport. This makes the bulking and cutting phase much more dangerous.
The mass amounts of food needed to eat during bulking will inevitably lead to health problems. High blood pressure and possible future heart issues is just one of them. All of the food and ingredients a person eats needs to be processed through the liver and kidneys. During consistent bulking every year – this can over time do some serious damage to both organs.
In our previous segment with George Farah, he claimed that if a bodybuilder can’t see his or her abs during the off season – then they are doing something wrong. This same mentality goes into his view on bodybuilder health. In the chase for building as much muscle as fast as possible – unnecessary risks are being taken. These risks won’t show the true significance of the damage until many years down the road. It’s easy for young people to avoid thinking about it. Life seems long and possible danger is so far away.
It’s just like cigarettes – consistent use in the long term can lead to serious health issues. But millions of people smoke every year. It’s short sighted. It’s focusing on the short term benefits over the long term losses. George Farah has had enough of it. Much like our past few videos – he desperately warns the new generation to actually think ahead. “There is life after bodybuilding,” Farah says multiple times in this video. He can’t stop repeating it. He hopes it eventually starts changing the culture.
You can watch George Farah go into detail about blood pressure in bodybuilding, bulking, and cutting in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above.
Samir Bannout: “Why Can’t A Guy Who Is 200lbs Beat Someone Who Is 250lbs?”
Samir Bannout believes there are “a lot of things that need to be adjusted” in pro bodybuilding moving forward. Samir Bannout is a pro bodybuilder and a Mr. Olympia champion from a far different era. A perfect example of this is the fact that Banout won the Olympia weight in at only 196 pounds. In…
Zane Watson: “2020 Was The Best Judged Olympia I’ve Ever Watched”
Zane Watson talks about the results of the Mr. Olympia 2020 compared to previous years. When it comes to bodybuilding, especially the Mr. Olympia, everyone has their own opinion of who should have won. When enough people agree and speak up about it – that can create genuine controversy. Victor Martinez vs Jay Cutler at…
Mike O’Hearn Answers: Does Having A Child Change Your Bodybuilding Lifestyle?
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Mike O’Hearn talks about having a child and how that affected his rigorous bodybuilding lifestyle and schedule.
In 2019, Mike O’Hearn became a father and introduced the world to his son Titan. O’Hearn is a bodybuilder known for his insanely rigorous schedule. He would wake up to train at 4am every single day and has stayed committed to that schedule for the past few decades. A child is a big commitment – and one that changes a person’s life forever. So how does that affect the demands of bodybuilding? In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Mike O’Hearn details his personal experience on how having a child changed his bodybuilding lifestyle.
There’s no doubt that having a child is a massive commitment. It changes the parents’ lives forever. Especially in the early years, a child is in constant need of supervision, it adds a lot to financial demands, and starts forcing you to think beyond yourself. A bodybuilder lifestyle, on the other hand, is one that requires a certain level of selfish focus. It also requires a great deal of commitment.
Mike O’Hearn is a bodybuilder who exemplifies the ultimate bodybuilding dedication. He has stuck to an extremely rigorous schedule for training and dieting for nearly four decades. Those who know him well claim that he has never stumbled and always stayed on point. So did having a child throw a wrench into his four decade long dedication?
Mike O’Hearn admits that he needed to start changing up his schedule in order to meet the needs of raising a son. But he’s also lucky in that he owns his own gym and has built a successful life that allows for him to be more flexible. Despite now having to dedicate time to loving and raising a child – he still makes sure to stick to his bodybuilding plans. In fact, he claims to have put on even more muscle over the past year.
This is in large part due to the pandemic as well. Just a year after Mike O’Hearn’s son was born, COVID-19 shut down the United States and most of the world. This meant that one aspect of O’Hearn’s life was put on pause. There were no more public speaking arrangements or guest posings. This allowed him to have his first ever “off season” in a very long time.
Mike O’Hearn is always dedicated to staying in lean shape for guest posings throughout the year. Between the pandemic and having a son – he’s had more time to focus on recovering and bulking up a bit more. He’s now preparing for his first string of guest posing events in over a year. He’s excited because he in fact thinks his physique has improved.
It’s often a common held believe that having a child means putting your other passions on hold. But Mike O’Hearn seems to buck this trend and prove that notion wrong. It of course requires incredible will power – but since bodybuilding is a passion for him – that dedication is fun. In the same way others might want to play video games or go out for drinks – Mike O’Hearn looks forward to training and focusing on his health.
You can watch Mike O’Hearn go into more detail about having a son and his new bodybuilding lifestyle in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above!
Talking Huge With Craig Golias | EP 6: Kai Greene Vs Phil Heath, Victor Martinez Vs Jay Cutler, & More
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Craig Golias has doubts about Kai Greene’s 317 pound physique, talks Nicolas Villioud’s retirement, and much more.
Welcome to another episode of Talking Huge – a weekly digital series in which Craig Golias talks in-depth with Vlad Yudin on the latest trending topics in bodybuilding. Raw, honest, and uncut – Craig Golias shares his opinions on all things bodybuilding. In this episode, Craig Golias talks about Kai Greene’s recent 317 pound shredded physique, possible comeback rivalry rematches, Nicolas Vullioud’s retirement, and more!
This past week was packed with exciting updates and news in the bodybuilding world. Kai Greene made some considerable waves by not only posting his massive 317 pound shredded physique photo – but also calling out Phil Heath for some sort of challenge. Could it be a bodybuilding rematch? Victor Martinez also made mention in one of our own interviews that he would only compete again to rematch Jay Cutler in a special bodybuilding battle. Craig also talks his thoughts on Nicholas Vullioud’s retirement announcement at a young age. And we discuss some functional bodybuilding tips such as how to properly meal prep and break through plateaus.
Craig Golias: Kai Greene Is Not 317 Pounds And That Shredded
The first topic we discuss with Craig Golias is the recent waves Kai Greene made on social media. First, he posted an epic and shredded photo of himself – claiming to be 317 pounds. It was proof that despite no longer competing, that he was keeping in fantastic shape. Fans started speculating (again) if he would make some sort of comeback.
Craig Golias, while finding the photo impressive, does not believe that Kai Greene was actually 317 pounds in the photo. He just doesn’t see that being possible at Kai Greene’s height and build. According to Craig, there’s no way Kai can maintain that level of shredded physique while staying at 317 pounds. Instead, he is more likely 285 pounds. Craig admits that even at 285 pounds, his physique is shredded and impressive. But he thinks that the shock of his claim is a little misleading.
Craig Golias also touches on the news that Kai Greene has been calling out Phil Heath. Craig never found much excitement in their rivalry – but admits that if they were to do some sort of special bodybuilding PPV event that he would watch it.
What Craig would be more excited to see, however, is Victor Martinez rematch against Jay Cutler. Craig claims this would be the most exciting event in bodybuilding possible for him – much more exciting than Kai vs Phil.
Nicolas Villioud Shocking Retirement At Only 30 Years Old
Craig Golias also shares his thoughts on the recent retirement announcement by Nicolas Villioud. The promising bodybuilder is only 30 years old – and many fans had high hopes for his career in the coming years. According to Villioud’s own announcement – he retired because he felt he could not compete even with only 1% doubt in his mind. He has other goals he would like to accomplish with his life, it caused even the smallest doubt that he should compete, so he felt that this was the wrong mental attitude to have to ever become a champion.
Craig Golias agrees with this point and somewhat relates. Craig used to compete on the bodybuilding stage but quickly left to focus on his own goals of getting huge in his own way. The amount of repetitive work and dedication required to become a Mr. Olympia champion is all-consuming. If there is a doubt that this is what you seek to be fulfilled in life – it might be the right decision to retire.
Wrap Up
There are far more topics discussed in this episode than we can cover in this article. You can watch Craig Golias and Vlad Yudin discuss other topics such as how judging works in pro bodybuilding, how important meal prep for a shredded physique, and whether or not Craig would face off against Big Ramy in some sort of special battle. You can check it all out in the latest episode of Talking Huge above! Make sure to check out Talking Huge every week on Friday – only on the Generation Iron Fitness Network!
Joey Swoll Returns Full Interview | Painkiller Addiction, Recovery, & Judging The New Era Of Bodybuilders
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Joey Swoll returns for a new full and uncut GI Exclusive interview.
Over the past year, Joey Swoll made a public announcement online that shocked many of his fans. He had been quietly suffering from a pain killer addiction during the pandemic. Swoll made the post after he had put himself through recovery – but wanted his fans and followers to know the truth and hope to inspire those who are also suffering a way towards recovery.
That’s why we reconnected with Joey Swoll for a new video interview to discuss his addiction, recovery, and recap the latest topics in bodybuilding since our last conversation in 2019. It was a long and insightful interview breaking down the intricacies of addiction and how the struggles were enhanced due to the pandemic lockdowns. It’s also an interesting look at some of the latest developments in bodybuilding.
Over the past few months we’ve released multiple GI Exclusive segments from our interview with Joey Swoll. Now we’re releasing the full length interview including topics such as cryptocurrency, addiction, and how the new generation of bodybuilders stand up to the current top pros.
Listen To Our Joey Swoll Returns Interview On The Generation Iron Podcast
Our full length interviews are now also in podcast form! Subscribe to the Generation Iron Podcast for candid, full length interviews with the biggest names in bodybuilding, fitness, combat, and strength sports.
Listen to the full Joey Swoll interview here:
Joey Swoll Details His Rock Bottom Moment Of Pain Killer Addition
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Victor Martinez’s Chest Workout | Training With Victor Martinez (Part 1)
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Victor Martinez’s in-depth chest day training guide.
Victor Martinez is an iconic pro bodybuilder and legend in the sport. He is considered by many to have one of the greatest physiques of the 2000s era of bodybuilders. In 2007, in a controversial decision, he nearly beat Jay Cutler for the Mr. Olympia title. That’s why we met up with Martinez at the Generation Iron Personal Training Gym for an epic workout. In this GI Exclusive, Victor Martinez breaks down in-depth tips to upgrade your chest day training session.
It’s easy enough to find a training routine online – but the real work comes in knowing the details. A list of exercises, sets, and reps is simply the most basic foundation for a successful workout. Knowing proper form, full movement, and specific tips can transform a workout from good to great. It’s what separates a “normal” in shape person from a shredded bodybuilder.
That’s why Victor Martinez met up with Vlad Yudin to go through the ultimate gauntlet of a workout. In part one of our training mini series with Martinez, he puts Vlad through the paces and shares important tips on how to optimize your routine. A workout sheet is one thing – but this video guide will give you play-by-play examples of how to actually perform like a pro bodybuilder.
Victor Martinez’s Chest Day Training Workout
To start, Victor Martinez stresses the important of warm up exercises. Many lifters might want to jump right into the heavy lifting – but warming up not only helps prevent injury, it can allow you to get the most out of your workout and push your muscles to exhaustion. Martinez suggests two warm up exercises with light weight that match the muscle group you’re about to train.
With the warmups out of the way, Victor Martinez decided to focus on three core exercises and break down how to best perform them. Below is the full breakdown of exercises, sets, and reps.
Exercises
Sets
Reps
Chest Press
4
15
Decline Dumbbell Press
4
15
Standing Cable Crossover Flyes
4
15
When it comes to weight, that’s impossible to recommend broadly. Each individual has different limits on how much weight to push. Ultimately, you want to lift enough weight to complete all three sets for each exercise. By the end of the final set for each – you should barely be able to finish. It may take trial and error to begin with – but you’ll ultimately find a sweet spot this will be more than enough to exhaust your muscles completely.
Chest Press (Machine)
For this exercise, Victor Martinez is using an old school chest press machine. He explains how the machine was inspired by football and emulates the kind of moves a linebacker would typically perform on the field. That’s why Martinez suggests sliding down on the seat to give your movements more of an upward momentum. You want to have explosive momentum pushing up, squeeze, and then slowly bring the weight back down in a controlled manner. Avoid locking out your elbows.
Decline Dumbbell Press
For the next exercise, Victor Martinez goes to the classic decline dumbbell press. He suggests that decline presses be done the older you get – as this muscle area tends to lose its fullness as you age. The decline press is also important to provide your chest a full and complete look. Martinez also suggests wide grip dips if you don’t have time to fully commit to a decline press. This also hits the wide areas of the chest.
Standing Cable Crossover Flyes
The final exercise in our Part 1 Victor Martinez workout is the Standing Cable Crossover Flyes. This exercise is a great finisher as it provides focused isolation on the chest. Martinez typically suggests splitting the reps of upper and then lower flyes to best hit the chest from all angles. He also warns of pulling to far back. While many believe this gives a fuller range of motion and a good stretch on the muscle, it can lead to injuring the rotator cuff.
Wrap Up
That about wraps up Part 1 of Victor Martinez’s upper body training routine. Next week, we’ll return to hit up the back in a new selection of exercises. Make sure to watch the GI Exclusive training video above to get complete play-by-play tips on each exercise. Soon you’ll transform your workout into a pro level routine.
Gunter Schlierkamp: It’s Dangerous For Young Bodybuilders To Get Too Big, Too Fast
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Gunter Schlierkamp reflects on the passing of Dallas McCarver and the growing trend of bigger size in bodybuilding.
Last week, Gunter Schlierkamp discussed how bodybuilders need to match their muscle size to their genetic frame. Now in our latest segment, Schlierkamp continues sharing his thoughts on the growing trend of pushing the limits of mass monster size in bodybuilding. Is it getting too dangerous? For Schlierkamp, it depend son how you do it. His biggest concern is how fast bodybuilders, especially young athletes, are putting on size. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Gunter Schlierkamp explains how some young bodybuilders are putting on too much size at too fast a rate.
When Shawn Rhoden won the Mr. Olympia in 2018, it seemed as if there might be a shift in physique aesthetic moving forward. Would a more classic look start to be preferable instead of mass monster size? Ultimately, this was a passing thought – as two years later Big Ramy won the Mr. Olympia and brought back mammoth size to the title. It seems with a few exceptions, hulking mass monster physiques are here to stay.
We asked Gunter Schlierkamp about his thoughts on Big Ramy’s win and if it will push forward the trend of increasing the average size of pro bodybuilders. Gunter is unsure at the moment whether or not Big Ramy will reign as Mr. Olympia long-term. But he is a bit worried about the growing trend he’s seeing in modern bodybuilding. Less so about mass monster physiques in general and more about how it’s influencing younger athletes.
Gunter Schlierkamp understands that pushing the limits of size is part of bodybuilding – but he thinks that younger athletes are now rushing too fast to get there. Reaching a weight of near 300 pounds should be a slow process over many years. It shouldn’t be achieved short term. It seems, at least to Schlierkamp, that in today’s society of instant gratification – some young athletes want to reach the pinnacle faster than ever before.
Schlierkamp fears that this will lead to serious health issues. Again, he understands that mass monster physiques are a part of bodybuilding in the big picture. He knows all athletes take some risk to achieve it. But he’s convinced that rushing too fast at too young of an age almost guarantees serious health issues that could be avoided.
Gunter Schlierkamp reflects on Dallas McCarver, who passed away too soon at the age of 26. While it’s impossible to directly connect his cause of death to his mass monster size – Schlierkamp worries that this was the underlying cause.
He recounts a moment just before McCarver died – where he was asked on his opinion of the athlete. He admitted that his physique and size was astounding and impressive. But he also worried that he achieved it at such a young age that something bad would happen. Shortly afterwards, he heard the news of Dallas McCarver’s death. He was deeply saddened by not only the untimely death but the timing of his statement. Was he right? He worries so – and hopes that incoming bodybuilders take their time to build mass monster muscle rather than rush it.
You can watch Gunter Schlierkamp’s full comments on Big Ramy and young mass monsters in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above!
Zane Watson: How To Properly Train To Failure In Bodybuilding
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Zane Watson answers: Is training to failure necessary for bodybuilding success?
In bodybuilding, training to failure is a tactic that requires a lifter to lift reps until they can no longer put up weight. Rather than hit a specific number of reps, the reps continue until the body part can’t physically perform no matter how hard you try. But how necessary is this tactic to succeed as a pro bodybuilder? In our latest GI Exclusive, Zane Watson discusses the misconceptions about training to failure and how to perform the tactic properly.
When discussing bodybuilding tips and workout guides, aspiring bodybuilders always want to know the trick to optimize training. How many sets? How many reps per set? Should you do high weight and low volume or lower weight with higher volume. There are arguments on all sides of these different questions. Ultimately, this is all window dressing. What is most important is that you exhaust your muscle and hit all the right areas of the muscle for full growth.
This is easier said than done and the reason so many different strategies exist. They are an effort to get the lifter to full exhaust their muscles, hit all the right spots, and commit to full range of motion. For Zane Watson, his training tactics were inspired by Dorian Yates and then later by Ben Pakulski. This made him favor training until failure during his training sessions.
But is training to failure necessary? In Zane Watson’s humble opinion, he believes it is a key part towards bodybuilding success. There are arguments that feeling sore after a workout isn’t required for building muscle. Watson respectfully disagrees. He thinks that for full growth in a way that bodybuilders are seeking – feeling sore is key to knowing you push your muscles deep.
Training to failure guarantees a workout that will make you feel sore afterwards. It’s a tactic he favors. Of course, there is a difference between physically training to failure and mentally training to failure. Some bodybuilders, especially those new to training, mentally block themselves of how far they actually push while their muscles are under pressure. This is the same reason why blindly following a certain set/rep structure can fail.
Part of the skill behind being a successful bodybuilder is knowing your body’s true limits. Knowing when you are truly exhausting your muscle vs just mentally unable to handle the stress and pain of moving past that wall. For Zane Watson, training to true failure rather than focusing on reps is a helpful way to push to the next level. It’s his biggest tip for bodybuilders to push past plateaus.
You can watch Zane Watson talk in more detail about training to failure, his bodybuilding inspirations, more in our latest GI Exclusive interview above!
George Farah: The Biggest Mistake Bodybuilders Make When Cutting Weight
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George Farah explains the true key to cutting weight without diminishing muscle.
George Farah is one of the most legendary bodybuilding coaches in the history of the sport. So when he can share some vital advice to the masses on bodybuilding nutrition and dieting – it’s important to pay attention. In an era where being a mass monster is becoming increasingly more about heavier weight, it’s important to know how to get shredded properly. It’s a struggle, for example, that Big Ramy had for many years before finally earning his Mr. Olympia victory. In our latest GI Exclusive, George Farah details the biggest mistake to avoid when cutting weight in bodybuilding.
The notion of spot reducing fat has been debunked many times by many people. So the unfortunately truth is, if you have impressive muscle but flabby weak areas – there’s no way to spot check the fat without sacrificing the muscle. So how do bodybuilders cut down weight after a bulking cycle without diminishing their hard earned muscle?
We turned to legendary bodybuilding coach George Farah for his advice on this specific topic. His answer is direct, insightful, and something that all bodybuilders should heed when looking long term into their training and dieting plans. There is no trick to only burning fat without burning muscle. Instead, it’s important to prepare for the inevitability that you’ll need to cut down some weight and size overall.
George Farah claims that the biggest mistake bodybuilders make is not staying in shape during the off season. While bulking and cutting is a typical cycle for competitive bodybuilders – the bulking phase should not get too out of control. Farah holds nothing back when explaining this during our interview:
“Whatever you’re doing, you’re still going to lose muscle when you diet down. Especially if you gain a lot of fat. That’s why I tell people, listen, don’t call yourself a bodybuilder if you don’t have your abs in the off season.”
George Farah goes on to say how he “never understands” how bodybuilders are so shocked when they start cutting and end up losing much more weight than expected. This is because they put on more fat than they think – and unfortunately – muscle is always lost as well during this process.
That’s why a dirty bulk is often frowned upon by serious competitive bodybuilders. Dirty bulk is when you eat any kind of unhealthy food simply to build weight while you are pumping up muscle in the gym. A clean bulk relies on healthier foods so that you have less fat during the bulking phase.
Still, even with a clean bulk, how do you prevent losing too much muscle and underperforming on size and shape before a competition? George Farah says that the cutting phase needs to be longer than most bodybuilders think. Cutting should start off earlier and a bodybuilder should ease into it.
Cutting needs to start slow and progressively become more focused as you get closer to the show. This way you can see how your body reacts, and focus on training certain muscle areas that might start burning away. Adding more time and building your weight loss diet up slowly allows for more time to adjust, more time to fix weak areas of muscle, and more time overall to be prepared on the weekend of a competition.
So for your next cycle of building up muscle, ask yourself, “Do I still have abs during the offseason?” If the answer is no, you should reconsider how you are bulking. You are likely looking at problems down the road when it comes time to burning off weight and prepping your shred.
You can watch George Farah’s full comments on how to lose fat without losing muscle in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above!