Tag: Videos
Nick Walker Shares Pro Tips for Building a Huge Back
Bodybuilder Nick Walker is switching gears in his training journey as 2023 Olympia is drawing closer. Walker recently went through a pull-day workout as a part of his preparation for the show and posted the video of this session on his YouTube channel.
Walker is an American professional bodybuilder and a top competitor in the IFBB Pro League’s Men’s Open division. He rose to prominence with a series of impressive performances in this first year of turning Pro. After making the debut with a fourth place finish at the 2020 Chicago Pro, Nick Walker snatched a win at the 2021 New York Pro, earning the maiden Olympia invitation in the process. He then became the 2021 Arnold Classic winner and rose to the contender’s status even before making the Olympia debut.
The fifth place finish at the 2021 Olympia was a great achievement given that ‘The Mutant’ was relatively new in the professional circuit. However, he decided to step away from the competition to improve his physique and take on the top crop.
Walker returned to competition at the 2022 Olympia and dominated the stage from prejudging to the finals. His effort earned him a podium finish as Walker stood third at the show. Walker’s most recent appearance came at the 2023 Arnold Classic in March. Although he was favored to become the two-time Arnold Classic champion, the New Jersey native lost to Samson Dauda by a razor thin margin.
Nick Walker will now attempt to dethrone Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan and achieve the ultimate goal of his bodybuilding career at the 2023 Olympia. 16 weeks out of the show, he annihilated a pull day workout in the gym to prepare his physique for this task. So let’s see what Nick Walker’s current pull-day workout looks like.
Nick Walker goes through a pull-day workout
Back Workout
Cable Straight Arm Pullovers
Walker started the pull-day workout with this exercise. But instead of pulling the weight in line with the upper body, he pulled it back as far as possible to get maximum stretch in the lats. The 28-year-old employed slow movement in the eccentric phase to focus on the muscles.
“On this movement, I’m able to get a full stretch. It’s giving me more of a stretch than an actual pulldown would. So I think it’s very beneficial when you’re trying to grow your lats, 100 percent.”
Walker pushed through three sets of straight arm pulldowns adhering to 15 to 20 rep range and took to the next exercise.
Chest-Supported T-Bar Rows
The 2021 Arnold Classic winner followed up the cable machine exercise with one of his favorite back movements – the chest-supported T-bar row. Specifically, Walker likes to perform this exercise on the Atlantis plate-loaded machine as it offers different grips for variation. To put more emphasis on the stretch, he employed a wide grip in this training session.
After using explosive movement during the concentric phase, but similar to the previous exercise, the 28-year-old performed the eccentric phase at a really slow pace. He is a huge proponent of slow eccentric movements and advises to adapt them for maximum gains.
“You’ve got to realize that training in this fashion, you don’t need to do seven to eight exercises per body part,” Walker added.
He performed eight to ten reps in all three sets of this exercise and proceeded to do the next one.
Assisted Pull-ups
Pull-ups are arguably the best bodyweight compound exercise to build the upper body pulling strength. However, it is not a suitable exercise for beginners as it needs sufficient upper body strength. This is where assisted pull-ups come in handy. But professional bodybuilders have to focus on hypertrophy.
To eliminate the jerkin motion or momentum and to build mind-muscle connection many elite bodybuilders opt for assisted pull-ups. Walker’s weight is hovering in the 290 lbs range right now. He felt that doing assisted pull-ups was probably in his best interest and performed three sets of ten to 15 reps to stimulate the pulling muscles.
Wide Grip Seated Cable Rows
After working on the lats for the first few moments, Nick Walker advanced to doing the seated rows to work the upper back muscles. In between sets, Walker explained the main challenge of developing the back muscles. He feels that the back is a tricky body part to grow simply because you can’t see it. Experience has taught the 28-year-old to use moderate weight while focusing on the contraction and eccentric phase for the best results.
“Ever since doing that over the years, what was once a weak body part has become one of my best body parts.”
Finding the best rep range is also crucial as it may vary for each muscle group depending upon individual body type. Walker applied this same wisdom to seated rows as well and performed two sets of this exercise for 15 reps each. This movement served as the finisher to back exercises as Nick Walker shifted his focus to the biceps next.
Biceps Workout
Nick Walker’s arms training routine has changed significantly over time. A few years ago, ‘The Mutant’ dedicated a separate arms day in his routine and performed a few biceps or triceps exercises on other days. However, his current split of push, pull, and leg day does not have a full Arm day.
Instead, Walker performs two to three biceps exercises (for two to three sets each) on a pull day and follows the same method for triceps training on a push day. The 28-year-old feels that his arms are pretty dominant already and overdoing arms exercises may not be ideal from the aesthetic point of view. On this pull day, Nick Walker incorporated two variations of machine curls after finishing up with back exercises.
Seated Machine Curls
Walker first performed seated machine Curls to stimulate the biceps. He reiterated that his arms respond best to high volume for inducing hypertrophy and shared the ideal rep range for him:
“I specifically like to stay in the 12 to 20 range. More so 15 to 20 but 12 I am okay with. But I feel for biceps and triceps, I feel I got the most growth was definitely in the 15 to 20 range.”
Walker is a big believer of slow reps and that’s how he performs the arms exercises as well. Needless to say, they have responded well to this type of training. Additionally, Walker employed the myo-reps training method for doing seated machine curls to eliminate the junk volume and produce maximal muscle growth. He performed two sets of machine curls for 15 to 2o reps and proceeded to the final exercise of the day.
Cable Curls
Cable Curls concluded the pull-day workout for Nick Walker. He performed a few sets of this exercise and addressed a crucial problem that a lot of people face.
Walker stated that quite a few people experience the plateau in their fitness journey and fail to make gains in spite of adapting the best training methods. He attributed this to wrong exercise selection and advised:
“You’re probably just doing wrong exercises too. Find the exercises that you best connect with already and then do those methods. I guarantee you, you will transform.”
After doing three sets of cable curls for 10 to 12 reps with a slow eccentric phase, ‘The Mutant’ called it a day in the gym.
Overall, the workout included:
Nick Walker gives health update as he makes changes to diet and training for 2023 Olympia
Nick Walker is already leaps and bounds ahead in 2023 compared to his previous off-season. He admits having fallen into the ‘more, more and more volume’ mindset in 2022. But he has made the necessary adjustments and said:
“Now I’m paying more attention to just making the sets count. I think it has shown in my physique thus far. I think I have made quite some improvements in a short amount of time.”
At the time of recording this video, Walker was 16 weeks out of the 2023 Olympia. He spoke about the changes in his diet as well and said:
“We’ve upped the cardio and dropped food in terms of fats. We did drop the carbs just a little bit but not crazy but we did drop all the fats pretty much out of my diet except for Beef meals and a little almond butter before the diet.”
Nick Walker stated that his weight has already started to drop down, which is a positive sign. He feels that he has made a lot of progress during this off-season and he is confident that 2023 is going to be his year. Although ‘The Mutant’ is closer to the Olympia title than he has ever been, he will have to push aside elite competitors like Derek Lunsford, Samson Dauda, and reigning Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan to take it home.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Nick Walker’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 29 July, 2023 | 9:22 AM EDT
Chris Bumstead Reveals Current Workout Split He’s Using to Win 5th Classic Physique Olympia Title
Chris Bumstead is in preparations to nail down a fifth Classic Physique Olympia title in roughly three months. At the competition, he’ll face a slew of familiar threats, such as Germany’s Urs Kalecinski and Brazil’s Ramon Queiroz. In a recent offering on the Raw Nutrition YouTube channel, Bumstead detailed the current training split he’s using to defend his crown later this year.
Since taking the Classic Physique Olympia title from Breon Ansley in 2019, Bumstead has been an unstoppable force in the category. His tall stature, dry conditioning, and hard muscle density have been critical factors in his successful reign. Bumstead also developed seamless posing routines and transitions, which makes his physique seem even more imposing on stage.
While the physical demands of an Olympia champion are sky-high, Bumstead takes pride in the mental challenges of the sport. He utilizes visualization, breathwork, and meditation, which he credits for helping him maintain inner peace, something he believes is crucial to performing at your best when it’s time to compete.
Ahead of his return to 2023 Mr. Olympia Bumstead has been open about his progress and preparations. Given the exhaustive nature of Hany Rambod’s FST-7 training regimen, Bumstead prioritizes his recovery strategies in the off-season and contest prep. Cbum values fasted cardio, sauna sessions, and cold plunges to ensure his muscles recover properly.
There are only 14 weeks until the sport’s biggest show of the year takes over Orlando, Florida. Having won his last Classic Physique Olympia title with a torn bicep, Bumstead hopes to complete this season with fewer obstacles.
Chris Bumstead Shares New Workout Split to Get Shredded for 2023 Mr. Olympia
Bumstead said he uses a three-day-on, one-day-off, three-day-on training split, which starts with a quad-dominant leg workout on Monday.
“Every time someone asks me this I can’t even remember. I just switched it and it’s hard to remember. It’s a three-day-on, one day off, three-day-on, one day off, repeat. But I’m going to try to get this right: I got legs, like a quad-dominant leg workout and I do chest with a little bit of triceps back with a little bit of biceps.
Then I rest, then I have a shoulder day with a little bit of chest. Then, I have a hamstring day with a little bit of back. And then I have an arm workout and then I rest, then I repeat the cycle,” Bumstead shared.
In addition to his latest split, Bumstead summed up what makes a great champion.
“In my mind what makes a great champion, I would say a great champion is someone I always say who doesn’t quit. Doesn’t matter if you have good days or bad days. Everybody wakes up feeling like shit some days, but if you actually get to work and do your best no matter what, then you’re a good champion, but more specifically aside from that, I think something that elevates people from the rest is champions who lift up others,” said Chris Bumstead.
Sporting one of the most aesthetic bodies in the world, it’s no surprise fans want to sculpt their physiques like ‘Cbum.’ Fortunately, the 28-year-old gave an inside look at his top ten favorite exercises. Following his list of exercises, the fitness community hopped on the trend. Jeff Cavaliere assessed Bumstead’s list with his own modifications. Additionally, Nick Walker made a similar video where he revealed his top ten most essential exercises.
Veterans of the sport have weighed in on Bumstead possibly taking on the Men’s Open. Given the size required for the class, Rich Gaspari suggested Bumstead could win the Mr. Olympia title but only if he added 40 pounds of muscle. Meanwhile, others like Chris Cormier believe Bumstead should receive a special invite to compete in the Open at a Mr. Olympia show.
As for Bumstead, he’s uncertain if he’ll ever compete as an Open bodybuilder but hasn’t stopped teasing the idea. Earlier this week, Bumstead joined Chris Williamson for another one-on-one. Bumstead again hinted at a move to the Open class. In a show of confidence, Bumstead said he could finish in the top 15 at the Open Mr. Olympia with a year of prep.
‘Cbum’ also compared modern Classic Physique standards to Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s golden era. Overall, Bumstead believes his division today requires more leanness out of athletes. Looking ahead, Bumstead’s focus is on his new training split to bring his absolute best in November.
READ MORE:
Watch the full video from the Raw Nutrition YouTube channel below:
Published: 28 July, 2023 | 11:17 AM EDT
Andrew Jacked Sculpts His Massive Back 4 Weeks Out of 2023 Texas Pro
Andrew Jacked went through an intense back training session four weeks out of the 2023 Texas Pro. The Nigerian has been making steady progress under coach Chris Psycho’ Lewis’s guidance and the results are visible in his vastly improved physique. Although he is favored to win his next show, Andrew is not underestimating his competition.
Chinedu Andrew Obiekea is best known in the bodybuilding community by his stage name Andrew Jacked. The Nigerian bodybuilder’s emergence on the international bodybuilding scene has been quick and dramatic, to say the least. After making a name for himself in the regional bodybuilding circuits, the 37-year-old transitioned to NPC in 2022. His astonishingly aesthetic physique and insane size quickly became a talk of the town. What’s more interesting is that Andrew Jacked is unusually tall for the Men’s Open division but still has the size, proportions, insane x-frame to be a successful competitor in the weight class.
Andrew earned the IFBB Pro card with a win at the 2022 Arnold Classic Amateur. He won the 2022 Texas Pro and the 2022 Arnold Classic UK in the months that followed. The Texas Pro win earned him the ticket to 2022 Olympia and Andrew Jacked finished eighth at the show. This was his first run-in with the absolute elite competition that the division had to offer. It gave him the necessary experience to make progress in future appearances.
Andrew’s most recent stage appearance came at the 2023 Arnold Classic in March. He surged past many dangerous opponents to finish third behind winner Samson Dauda and Nick Walker. He will next compete at the 2023 Texas Pro in an attempt to get the direct qualification to the 2023 Olympia.
Andrew Jacked goes through a back workout
The 2023 Texas Pro will take place on August 18-19. Andrew Jacked recently went through a back training session to prepare for the show. He laid out the objective and training strategies and said:
“The goal now is to beat the Arnold look in everything – both size, conditioning, and whatever. So that we can see how my body can handle things leading up to the (2023) Olympia.
Although he is a massive favorite heading into the 2023 Texas Pro, Andrew Jacked is not complacent and he is preparing for the competition with utmost sincerity.
“Hopefully I get a ticket. I wouldn’t be cocky to say, ‘Oh, I’m definitely winning the ticket now’. Because everyone competing (at) Texas Pro is busting their a** out. Everyone is trying to make a statement. So I’ll put myself in the same category trying to make a statement. So yeah, it will be a battle.”
Andrew is training intensely for Texas Pro but he is not going full throttle, risking the body to get exhausted before Olympia. The video of his recent back training session was posted on Andrew Jacked’s personal YouTube channel. So without further delay, let’s check out how he put in the work under coach Chris ‘Psycho’ Lewis’s watchful eye.
Lat Pulldown
Andrew Jacked started the training session with medium neutral grip lat pulldown to work the latissimus dorsi muscles. Coach Lewis allowed him to do stretching in between the sets to get the muscles and joints warmed up and lubricated, eliminating the potential for injuries. He admitted that it was an unusual practice. But according to him, it is one of the things that he needs to do.
“After a while I’m going to cut that stretching out because I believe that when you stretch, you’re actually letting the blood and nitrogen that we’re trying to put in (the muscles),” Lewis added.
‘Psycho’ argued that if you get a good pump within the first 12 to 15 minutes of the workout, it can really through the whole session. Therefore Andrew Jacked performed a drop set of lat pulldowns next.
“(Andrew) will be rocking back and forth using the momentum but it’s fine. I’m only trying to get a pump. I’m not sculpting it,” Lewis added.
After putting up with a triple drop set, The Nigerian bodybuilder advanced to rows.
Incline Barbell Rows
Andrew Jacked next performed this horizontal pulling movement but instead of performing regular sets, Chris Lewis guided him to do static holds. They used an old-school setup of an inclined bench and loaded the barbell with plates and metal chains. The Nigerian bodybuilder did 15-second static holds with incrementally heavier weights.
“So what we’re going to do is we’re going to bring the weight up and contract his back. We’re going to be holding it and then dropping the weight. I’m going to add more weight. I’m teaching his body or his back to contract at the top of the movement, instead of the full range of motion,” Lewis said.
The legendary coach argues that using chains for adding extra weight to the barbell is good for adding load at the top of the movement, which is the full contraction point. After the static holds, they switched over to doing slow reps for a few sets, controlling the weight throughout the range of motion.
T-Bar Rows
Andrew Jacked proceeded to T-bar rows next. The coach explained that he is not a fan of new-age machines and prefers sticking to a barbell. According to him, it is the ‘best piece of equipment on the face of the planet’. Therefore, the Nigerian bodybuilder performed the exercise using the old-school setup of a barbell instead of using a T-bar row machine. He executed some excellent sets of the exercise under Lewis’s watchful eye and advanced to the next exercise.
Twisting Cable High Rows
Andrew Jacked performed a few sets of twisting cable high rows. But for the last couple of sets, Lewis loaded the weight stack with chains for the ‘weight and mental aspect’ of it. After pushing through all the sets of this back exercise, Andrew Jacked wrapped up the training session.
Overall, the workout consisted of following exercises:
Andrew Jacked has handled the pressure of being a hot prospect really well and transformed into a serious contender within a short period of time. The improvements made so far between the 2022 Olympia, 2023 Arnold Classic and the upcoming Texas Pro are an indicator of a bright future. It will be interesting to see how he performs in his next show.
You can watch the full video here, courtesy of Andrew Jacked’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 28 July, 2023 | 9:04 AM EDT
Chris Bumstead Compares Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Era to Now, Teases Open Show: “Definitely Have Thought About It”
Classic Physique star Chris Bumstead has made it clear he plans to defend his title at Olympia later this year but refuses to discount a future move to the Men’s Open division. In a recent interview with Chris Williamson, Bumstead discussed what it would take to switch categories. He also compared the standards of today’s Classic Physique division to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s bodybuilding era.
In 2019, Chris Bumstead seized the Classic Physique throne at the Olympia show after defeating his rival, two-time champ, Breon Ansley. Since taking the honors, Bumstead has been on a roll at bodybuilding contests. His display of muscle striations and dry conditioning combined with his tall frame make him an incredibly dangerous competitor.
Cbum is a four-time Classic Physique Olympia, a successful reign he has made possible with hard work, dedication, and grueling training sessions. His last win came at the 2022 Olympia competition. The victory left fans speechless as Bumstead conquered the stage with a torn bicep.
Previously, Bumstead teased a potential move into the Men’s Open. In 2022, before they started training together, Bumstead told Hany Rambod that if he did try out the Open, it would be for a ‘one-off’ contest. In 2023, Bumstead approached the subject again. In a podcast with Rambod, Chris said if the Arnold Classic was two or three weeks after Olympia, he’d consider competing at the show as an Open Bodybuilder.
The 28-year-old has also discussed competing against a prime Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bumstead mentioned on the Full Send Podcast that he would defeat Schwarzenegger today if the Austrian legend presented the physique he won Olympia with. Since making the claim, a number of bodybuilding veterans have disagreed, like Lee Priest.
“Everything Progresses Over Time” – Chris Bumstead Compares Classic Physique of Today to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Golden Era
Bumstead believes the Open and Classic Physique categories have progressed over time with more ‘efficient’ diets, nutrition, and PEDs.
“Everything progresses over time, we get more efficient with nutrition, with dieting with PEDs, with rest, with recovery, everything just gets more efficient and everything excels. You just push the limits further and further. So, now, I mean… Open Bodybuilding just you look at it and you don’t even question if it’s the same sport, pretty much.
No weight limits, dude’s are on stage at 300 pounds like 3% body fat just fucking monsters. Like huge. Stuff you can’t even fathom. When I see them in person still I’m like wow, that’s a real person which is insane. But back in the Arnold days, it was purely like bigger upper bodies, legs weren’t massive, you weren’t shredded, it was more about being full and round and aesthetic, which is what Classic Physique was brought in for.”
The main difference between Arnold’s era versus modern Classic Physique is the level of leanness required to be competitive today.
“Even still, the contrast from Classic Physique versus the Arnold era, it’s way leaner now. It’s getting just as lean as the Open bodybuilders. It’s like shredded glutes, your ass is striated at the end of the day, feathered quads, just looks like you have no body fat on you. And probably about the same weight. I think Arnold was 240 on stage approximately and my weight cap is 240, I’m 239 when I weigh in,” said Chris Bumstead.
While Cbum would have loved to test himself against Schwarzenegger, he’s happy to be competing in the current era.
“No. I never really thought of that honestly. I really think this era right now fits perfectly where I’m meant to be and obviously it’s working out pretty fucking great so far. I don’t tempt fate with that I’m just grateful for where I’m at.”
Bumstead on Move to Open: “I Would Love to Just See What It Looks Like On Stage”
According to Bumstead, he’s been thinking about testing his resolve in the Open but said there are no shows after the Olympia that he’s interested in competing at.
“Definitely have thought about it [competing in the Open]. But there’s no Open shows after the Olympia there’s like one in Japan but I would want to do like a decent show. I’d rather stack up against a top-ten Olympian.”
It depends on the show. If you were to put me in the Olympia, if you put me in the Olympia the way I look in Classic right now I don’t think I would hit the top ten but I think if I was able to be a little bit less leaner and fuller because I always have to diet down five pounds of muscle just to make weight so if I was able to be full as fuck, sometimes I’m in my check in pictures four weeks out and I have a high-carb day, I’m like, ‘I look like a bodybuilder right now this is crazy.’
With one year of preparation, Bumstead is convinced he could finish in the top 15 at the Mr. Olympia.
“I would love to just see what this looks like on stage, give me a year and I could be top 15 at the Mr. Olympia,” said Bumstead.
If he were to attempt a move to the Open class, Bumstead said his training wouldn’t change but his food and PEDs would.
“I’ll cycle my calories, if I start to get too fat I pull it back down. I would just have to lean into that fat. I wouldn’t be fat-fat but I like being lean consistently, lean enough so I feel good. I’d have to put on a lot of weight and eat consistently, my training would be the exact same it would mainly be food and little more PEDs of course.”
Bumstead revealed that he tried to increase his height for Classic Physique by purchasing an inversion table. He believes Classic Physique is essentially a battle to be taller for added weight.
“I tried [to buy an inversion table to increase my height]. Yeah, I did, but I didn’t put it together. I went to a chiropractor consistently, and they have a machine that stretches your spine. It pulls it. It looks like it [a torture device]. You like sit in this machine upright and then it tilts you down and you have a thing around your waist that pulls your spine. I did that for a while, I’m just over 6’1″ so I’d have to grow a full inch to be over 6’2″ I would never do it but I also don’t want to shrink.”
“Classic Physique is just a battle to be taller essentially, to make your weight.”
Lastly, Bumstead commented on his lowest body fat percentage. He’s not certain but believes the range is between 4-5%.
“I haven’t [checked my body fat] no. I haven’t even tried to guess because everyone on the internet is like, ‘Oh!”
“If I had to guess I think it would I would be around four or five percent if I had to be conservative,” said Bumstead. “Yeah, a little bit. My structure would kind of make up for it [lack of conditioning and more fullness].”
Bumstead has been open with fans ahead of his anticipated title defense at 2023 Olympia. In preparation for the event, Bumstead has shared diets and has even gone into detail about common morning routines he utilizes in the off-season versus contest prep.
Given his impact on the industry, many are curious about which exercises Bumstead uses to build his Olympia-caliber body. In a prior interview with Chris Williamson, Bumstead revealed the ten exercises he would utilize for the rest of his life if he had to. His list ignited discussions online, which prompted others to offer their top 10 lists, such as Jeff Cavaliere and Nick Walker.
In three months, Bumstead will aim to solidify himself as a five-time Classic Physique Olympia. Despite his commitment to the division, Bumstead continues to tease a possible move over to the Open class.
READ MORE:
Watch the full video from the Chris Williamson YouTube channel below:
Published: 28 July, 2023 | 12:41 AM EDT
Jeff Nippard’s Ultimate Back and Biceps Workout Backed by Science
Jeff Nippard recently shared a science-backed high-volume pull-day workout for back and biceps gains.
Canadian fitness expert Jeff Nippard is one of the leading figures in the science-based YouTube fitness community. He is a lifelong natural bodybuilder, powerlifter, and personal coach. Nippard started training as a kid and went on to become the 2022 Mr. Junior Canada when he was 22 years old. As a powerlifter, he holds the record for 502-lbs squats, 336-lbs bench press and a 518-lbs deadlift. At one point, Nippard also held the Canadian national record for bench press.
Jeff Nippard’s knowledge comes from a degree in biochemistry and decades of training. He is a student of bodybuilding and continues to acquire and share knowledge. He routinely shares entertaining and informative videos on his YouTube channel that has amassed 3.8 million subscribers. Additionally, he has trained several natural bodybuilders and powerlifters to achieve their goals.
In recent months, Jeff Nippard has taken a deep dive into the minimalist training philosophy. He is in the process of releasing a six-part push–pull–leg training series based on the minimalist training principles. The most recent issue, a pull day workout was recently posted on Nippards’ YouTube channel. So let’s check out what Nippard has in store for us this time.
Jeff Nippard shares pull day workout and tips
One-Arm Half kneeling lat pulldown
Jeff Nippard advises to start the pull-day workout with this lat-focused exercise. Technique-wise, he suggests pulling the cable back until the upper arm is aligned with the body. Pulling the weight too far back is not ideal as the lats lose leverage once the arm goes behind the torso.
Nippard further stated that a lot of people prefer doing the lat pull-in where you pull the weight down from the sides. However, the teres muscles can take over the movement during the pull-in, causing the lats to get understimulated.
As of now, there is no scientific study that conclusively proves one exercise to be better than the other in terms of hypertrophy benefits. So as of now, choosing either of the two exercises is an individual preference without any specific benefits attached to it.
“I’d just say to roll with whatever one you feel hitting your lats harder. OR If you feel them both equally well, you can periodically rotate them in and out,” Nippard concluded.
You should perform three sets of the exercise adhering to a moderate 12 to 15 rep range.
Pull-ups
The advanced bodyweight movement follows the lat pulldowns. Personally, Jeff Nippard likes to do as many sets of pull-ups as possible. However, the lats already got the work during lat pulldowns and he feels that an-out set of pull-ups would be sufficient in this training session.
Additionally, Nippard’s priority is to make exercise enjoyable to a large variety of fitness enthusiasts. So while calisthenics enthusiasts might be excited to perform pull-ups, many bodybuilders are not in favor of doing them.
“While I do think that it’s important that your training is enjoyable, I also think pull-ups are a great exercise worth including that you shouldn’t avoid just because they’re harder than lat pulldowns.”
To address all of these factors and include this compound bodyweight movement into the workout, Nippard found the middle ground of performing one AMRAP set. The goal here should be to increase the number of reps every week while maintaining a consistent form.
“If you’re bulking, just matching the number of reps should be enough to present an overloading stimulus because as you gain weight, you’re adding resistance. But if you’re cutting, you should try to add at least one rep each week because as you lose weight, you’ll be lowering the resistance,” Nippard explained.
Technique-wise, putting the arms at a distance 1.5 times the shoulder width should be ideal and you can always use an assisted pull-up machine or resistance band if you’re at the early stages of development.
Kroc Rows
Nippard classifies Kroc rows as a more loose and slightly more upright version of dumbbell rows with ‘controlled cheating’. He argues that it is absolutely necessary to be more strict with the form, especially when you are a new lifter. But according to the Canadian fitness expert, you can restrict your progress in the name of perfect technique as you get into more advanced stages of development.
“Once you’ve mastered the technique basics, I don’t think there is anything wrong with a little controlled body English on select movements, especially if it allows you to overload the target muscles more effectively.”
Many elite professional bodybuilders allow their body to sway during exercises. Nippard drew attention to the fact that they are in control of the weight in spite of swaying, especially during the eccentric phase of the movement.
“The strength curve of the back exercises is actually very unique in that it’s super easy at the bottom and then much harder at the top. So if you stop at the first sign of any technique loss…”
He concluded:
“…You may be stopping well shy of the point where your back is fully stimulated. So using just a little bit of momentum at the bottom can help your back approach that point of full exhaustion much more effectively.”
Nippard does not advise cheating on exercises all the time. Instead, he feels that it can be an effective intensity technique in certain cases. Three sets of 10 to 12 reps on the Kroc rows should be enough for you to stimulate the back muscles.
Cable Shrug-Ins
The cable machine variation of shrugs should be the next exercise in the pull-day workout. Unlike the dumbbell or barbell shrugs where the weight moves along a straight vertical axis, the direction of movement is up and towards the center in cable shrug-ins.
According to Nippard, the direction of movement on cable shrug-ins lines up better with the orientation of the upper trap muscle fibers. As a result, shrugging up and towards the center is more effective for trap stimulation.
“That’s also why I generally recommend a slightly wider grip when doing barbell shrugs as it will force you to shrug up and in, and not just straight up and down,” Nippard concluded.
Once again, he advises doing three sets of this exercise for 12 to 15 reps before advancing to the next one.
Reverse Pec Deck Flyes
This rear delt-specific movement should be next in the workout. The focus here should be to push the weight out and back and not just back. This way, you can put more emphasis on the rear delts. According to Nippard:
“If you just pull the weight back, you’re going to shift a lot of focus on the mid-traps which isn’t a big deal if that’s what you’re going for. But we’ve already smashed the mid-traps with pull-ups and Kroc rows. So I’d much rather isolate the rear delts here since they’re usually overpowered by the bigger back muscles in those compound movements.”
You can experiment with the neutral, pronated, and internally rotated grip to stimulate the rear delt muscles in different ways and get the most benefits out of this exercise.
Overhead Cable Biceps Curls
Nippard is not a big fan of overhead biceps curls. However, he recently came across an experiment done by natural bodybuilders Alberto Nunes and Brian Miner. Both of them experienced more activation in the long head of the biceps during overhead curls.
There is little data to conclusively approve the findings of this experiment. But Nippard finds it worthwhile to at least experiment with this exercise. Three sets of 12 to 15 reps should usually suffice. But you can always add a couple of more biceps exercises to stimulate the muscles more.
Overall, the workout must include:
Jeff Nippard’s fitness advice stems from extensive research and study. So there is a high probability that you might be able to make better gains if you follow the training routine. So head over to the gym and give this pull-day workout a try!
You can watch the full video here, courtesy of Jeff Nippard’s YouTube channel:
Published: 27 July, 2023 | 11:07 AM EDT
Shaun Clarida kicks off the 2023 Olympia Prep With an Intense Back and Biceps Workout
Shaun Clarida has entered the prep for 2023 Olympia. He shared the news in a recent pull day workout posted on his YouTube channel and also shed light on the challenges of being on top of the division.
Shaun Clarida is an American professional builder that has competed in the Men’s Open and the 212 divisions of the IFBB Pro League. Although he has done the best of his work in the 212 division, the 40-year-old bodybuilder has maintained a strong presence in the Men’s Open division as well.
Winning the 212 Olympia title at the 2020 Olympia was the highlight of Shaun Clarida’s career. However, he was dethroned by Derek Lunsford at the 2021 Olympia, bringing the goal of a long title reign to an abrupt end. But Clarida turned up the heat and made the bold decision to move up to the Men’s Open division.
At 5ft-2in tall, Clarida is one of the shorter competitors. His decision to compete against the big boys was criticized as a result. But Clarida took the bodybuilding world by surprise when he emerged victoriously in his Men’s Open debut at the 2021 Legion Sports Fest Pro. The win earned him a direct qualification to compete in the division at the 2022 Olympia as well.
While he intended to create history by competing in both Men’s Open and 212 division at the show, Clarida eventually stayed in the 212 division, winning the second 212 Olympia title in 2022. He made a quick turnaround and attempted to score a win at the 2023 Arnold Classic in the Open division but managed to secure a fifth-place finish.
Shaun Clarida talks about the pressure of being an Olympia champion
Clarida will attempt the first defense of his 212 Olympia title in 2023 and started the competition prep 16 weeks out of the show. He made rapid progress in the off-season and feels comfortable at the current stage. Winning the third title is obviously the primary objective of the competition prep. While winning a title is probably the easier bit, defending it is the part where most people fail. Clarida has been in that situation before and highlighted the challenges of being on top of the division. He said:
“Much harder to stay on top, much harder! You’ve got a big a** target on your back. Everybody is coming to take you out. On the flip side everybody wants to see what kind of improvements you’re gonna make, how much better you can be. But if you follow my career for the past umpteen years, that’s what I’m known for… Improving year after year, bringing something new to the stage.”
The prospects of a competitive legacy are not the biggest motivating factor in his life. Clarida was blessed with a baby girl in 2022. He feels that being a father gives him the energy he needs to push through difficulties.
“Having that title is definitely motivating. But for me, what’s more motivating than that, aside from being Mr. Olympia, is being a dad, a father. Having this little human being in my hand to provide for, be an educator, be a leader…” He added.
The 40-year-old further stated that all the efforts are for his daughter and that’s one of the reasons he moved back to Texas. But he admits that being Mr. Olympia is a great feeling nevertheless. With that, Clarida jumped into the pull day workout and got a good day’s work in to get ready for the 2023 Olympia.
Shaun Clarida pushes through a high-volume back and biceps workout
Back Workout
Pull-Ups
Clarida kicked off the workout with assisted pull-ups. The regular bodyweight pull-up is one of the most effective compound exercises to build the upper body pulling muscles. Therefore it can be surprising to see an elite bodybuilder perform the assisted version, taking some resistance off. But Shaun Clarida has always preferred assisted pull-ups as they take the momentum out of play and help focus directly on the back muscles.
“I’m a big believer in pull-ups. I believe they are absolutely the bread and butter of growing that back.. For that back thickness and width…” Clarida exclaimed.
Clarida performed four to five sets of assisted pull-ups applying the progressive overload principle and setting the wheels in motion for an intense training session. He then jumped into the first official back exercise of the day.
Meadow’s Rows
‘The Giant Killer’ incorporated this exercise in his training routine around a year back when he started the training program to emphasize and improve the upper and outer areas of the latissimus dorsi muscles. But Clarida was introduced to the exercise back in the day by the late John Meadows himself ‘to really thicken up the lats’.
Clarida followed the training method taught to him by John Meadows to do this exercise. After doing a couple of warm-up sets without loading any weight on the bar, ‘The Giant Killer’ did two feeder sets to figure out a good weight that he could improve from. He uses 25lbs plates to do Meadows row as it enables him to get a better range of motion. There is a practical reason behind this as Shaun Clarida explained:
“I’m short. So if I’m short and I use the 45lbs plate, it’ll just be banging the whole time and I won’t be able to get the full (range of motion) which I want…”
The feeder sets were followed by working sets with incrementally heavier weights. Following this, the 212 Olympia champion took to the T-bar rows next.
Chest-Supported T-Bar Rows
T-bar rows are arguably the greatest exercise to impart thickness to the back. If you had to choose just one rowing movement for back, we would advise to go with T-bar rows. Clarida did the exercise on a chest-supported t-bar rows machine. Clarida prefers to have a grip that is in between the neutral grip and the overhand pronated grip. However, the machine did not have the option and Clarida improvised by attaching a D-handle.
Clarida did the warm-up set using a quarter plate and then proceeded to crank out the feeder sets. After working his way up to the top set of two full sets, ‘The Giant Killer’ took to another rowing movement.
Machine Rows
Shan Clarida next performed machine rows on the Prime Extreme Row machine. The machine has eight different adjustments for the bench. Clarida intended the exercise to simulate the bent-over dumbbell rows. He adjusted the seat accordingly and performed the rows unilaterally.
“By hovering over the bench and keeping one hand against the pad, I’m able to get a really good stretch in the lat,” Clarida said about the positioning.
He pushed through some solid sets of the exercise using a similar training method as the previous exercises – warm-up sets, feeder sets followed by working sets – and jumped into the next exercise.
Seated Rows
Most of the previous exercises primarily targeted the lats. Clarida shifted his focus on working the upper back and performed seated rows on a Prime selectorized machine next.
“(The machine) hits the upper back just right with the positioning of the chair. You’ll feel traps, rhomboids, a little bit of the rear delts but not too much,” Clarida explained.
The American bodybuilder annihilated some heavy sets of seated rows to work the upper back muscles before taking up a vertical pulling movement.
Close-Grip V-Bar Pulldowns
Vertical pulling movements help build a wide back. Clarida took to the v-bar lat pulldown next to build upper and middle back width. This variation of lat pulldowns heavily stimulates the rhomboids due to the close neutral grip. Also, biceps and forearms get a good workout as well. Clarida cranked out some solid sets of close grip v-bar pulldowns before taking up an isolation exercise next.
Standing Cable Pullovers
We can’t think of many isolation exercises when it comes to stimulating the back muscles. However, cable pullover is one isolation exercise that stands out for its benefits in back-building. It primarily works the latissimus dorsi, trapezius, and posterior deltoid muscles.
“A lot of rowing, a lot of blood flow in those lats. Now we’re going to stretch them out the front lat spread, double bicep to make sure that width is there,” Clarida stated.
The 40-year-old pushed through four working sets of this exercise and jumped into the finisher of the day.
Weighted hyperextensions
Clarida capped the back workout with a variation of weighted hyperextensions that he learned from the late John Meadows. This lower back movement targets the lower back muscles, more specifically, the spinal erectors.
“We’re still 16 weeks out and I’m trying to maintain as much mass as I possibly can. I’m still taking a lot of food in so I’m able to push a good amount of weight. But at the same time, I’ve got to push that conditioning,” Clarida said.
However, he has two herniations in the lower back and needs to be extra careful with the weight.
“When you turn around and ride those elbows back, spread double biceps for that lat spread, you see that whole lower back… We call it the Christmas tree, right? We want to see all those lines, all the details. This movement is going to help with that,” Shaun Clarida explained.
He performed a few sets of hyperextensions using a barbell with 25lbs plates for weight and wrapped up back training.
Biceps Workout
Single-Arm Preacher Curls
Shaun Clarida shifted the focus to the next part of his pull day – the biceps. Preacher curls are by far the most effective isolation exercise for biceps and help massively with muscle hypertrophy by eliminating all the other muscles from the action. Clarida performed a few sets of the exercise unilaterally on a selectorized machine and jumped into the last exercise of the training session.
Dumbbell Hammer Curls
Hammer curls target the brachioradialis and the brachialis muscles in the arms along with biceps brachii. Most of the arm muscles get sufficient work during most of the pulling movements. Therefore it is completely unnecessary to train them with excessively heavy weights. All they need is stimulation with a few sets done with proper form. Shaun Clarida did exactly that with dumbbell hammer curls next and wrapped up the training session.
Overall, the workout included:
2023 Olympia takes place from No.2-5 in Orlando, Florida. Shaun Clarida will be the obvious favorite heading into the show. However, he has to manage the resources well and bring a complete package to the stage. If he maintains the focus and unparalleled work ethic that he is known for, ‘The Giant Killer’ will certainly walk away with the third 212 Olympia title.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Shaun Clarida’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 26 July, 2023 | 9:26 AM EDT
Bodybuilder Seth Feroce ‘Exposes’ 12 Most Famous Influencers in the Fitness Industry: ‘Natty or Not’
The ‘Natty or Not’ debate has remained one of the most talked about fitness subjects in the industry. Recently, retired bodybuilder Seth Feroce posted a YouTube video where he examined the bodies of some popular influencers in the industry. He also gave his opinion on whether they use steroids or not.
“We’re not doing one person, you said everybody,” Feroce shared.
Feroce is a highly respected bodybuilder who made a name for himself in the Men’s Open and 212 Bodybuilding divisions. During his tenure, which occurred mostly in the 2000s, Feroce displayed exceptional conditioning, balance, and symmetry. He was led by Hany Rambod, a decorated trainer who is currently responsible for guiding top-tier athletes such as Hadi Choopan, Derek Lunsford, and Andre Deiu.
Over the last few years, ‘Natty or Not’ disputes have become the center of online discussions in the fitness world. Influencers are known for tackling these sensitive topics like Kenny KO. He’s discussed Mike O’Hearn’s natural status with him face-to-face. O’Hearn claims to be a lifetime natural athlete, who continues to defy age with a ripped physique and powerful lifts.
Joe Rogan has insinuated that Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Chris Hemsworth should come clean and admit their gear use as well. This revelation came after Derek of More Plates More Dates’ infamous exposé of Liver King’s (Real name: Brian Johnson) leaked steroid cycle. Meanwhile, Bradley Martyn also suspects that The Rock uses steroids.
The latest to take part in the controversial discussion was Seth Feroce. He systematically broke down 12 of the most popular influencers’ physiques and determined whether or not they are using PEDs.
Alex Eubank – Not Natty
“He is on the fucking border. I like Alex I’ve talked to him a handful of times on IG. He seems like a good kid. He says he’s natty. I know he’s made a lot of videos about him possibly transitioning over to the dark side, it looks like he takes something. He does have good genetics,” said Seth Feroce.
Shizzylifts – Not Natty
“They’re saying this dude is natural? There’s no fucking way. Is this an edited photo? Dude, this dude has got some serious arms. He trains hard, doesn’t he? I’ve seen these training videos of him.”
Sam Sulek – Not Natty
“That’s like asking if I’m natural. I just found him maybe a couple of weeks ago because it just popped up on my YouTube. He’s young too, isn’t he? This is all I see. This is the reason I like this kid. I see parts of me in him. This guy is definitely fucking batshit crazy. He has his shit together. In his videos, he’s calm, cool, and collected. Does his own thing.”
“He is fucking in it. You can’t pass judgment upon people for what they want to do with their lives because Sam seems to be having a massive impact on the fitness community,” said Seth Feroce. “A lot of people want to focus on the bad which would be his acne, the issues with steroid abuse, the long-term effects. But then at the same time, nobody would give two flying fucks about who Sam is if he wasn’t being who he is now.”
Jesse James West – Natty
“I could say that he’s natural. He seems like a decent guy. He seems like he loves what he’s doing. That’s all you can ask for for people that are doing things like this. I’d say out of everyone so far, he’s the one that I would say is natural.”
Tristyn Lee – Natty
“He seems like an actual genuine good guy, him and his brothers. Stupid genetics run in his family, stupid genetics. Dude, it’s [his conditioning] always around with him. But I’ve seen the videos that Doucette did on him about the being too skinny or too shredded all the time. You know that this young man is going through his own battles. Because if he’s training like he’s doing those things and eating like he is, he is obsessed.”
“I don’t know man. I think he’s probably dabbled with a few things. More recently in the past couple of years simply because he loves the gym. At the same time, you can throw in an oral for six weeks and notice a difference, especially if you’re on point like he is with everything he does. Why would you do such a thing? To learn and have fun. He could be natural because he has crazy genetics.”
“He’s had such steady progress, I could say that he’s natural because he’s never made massive jumps in weight, never. He is stronger than a motherfucker though.”
Tren Twins – Not Natty
“Obviously they’re not natural but by no means do I think these two take as much as people think they do. Their name was catchy they called themselves the Tren Twins. It’s awesome, it’s fun, it’s entertaining. They’re big, swole as fuck right here.”
Greg Doucette – Not Natty
“Greg is not on Tren no way. He’s on TRT obviously, he talks about it regularly. Yeah, dude, Greg is always in shape. He’s always in shape. Greg has been around, he’s older than I am and I can tell you right now if I cut peanut butter pretzels out of my diet, I’ll lose weight.”
“Greg has been like, ‘I rolled out of bed this is what I look like.’ We’re like yeah, you look like you’re on TRT. And post-workout, yeah, Greg you look like you’re taking Tren because the veins on your legs look paper thin.”
Mike O’Hearn – Natty
“Do I think he’s natty? I do think that he is natty but I do not think he’s human. I say Mike is an alien. Mike is an alien, he’s not a real human being. I think he’s from a different planet. There’s no reason, no amount of gear that still says you being a 50-plus-year-old man, that you should be able to bench 405 pounds for reps and do all the crazy wild fucked up shit he does. No fucking way. Why are you doing that? How are you doing that? Not from earth.”
Liver King – Not Natty
“The thing is Omnitrope, that growth hormone is some of the wildest growth hormone I’ve ever taken. There’s different levels of growth hormone, you can get the Chinese, and that’s some fucking knock-off bullshit, does it work, yeah sure. I could take ten IUs of it and be pretty good.”
Jeff Seid – Not Natty
“I think that he dabbled. Put him in the category of like Alex. If everything was off, he might be like ‘No, I just never have.’ But I wouldn’t be surprised if he was like, ‘Yeah, I took some stuff, I took Anavar, I took some SARMs.”
David Laid – Not Natty
“These people in person are probably not as big as they look on here,” said Seth Feroce. “These guys work, they’re not not doing shit. That’s not what this video is, but I don’t think he’s natural. It’s a little too much to claim natural.”
Lexx Little – Natty
“He’s probably strong but then you tell me he benches 405, that’s a strong lift for a little man. I mean, he’s got a great physique. He’s using the camera angle and the lends and the twisting waist. His upper body, I’d say you could achieve this naturally yes.”
Parting Thoughts
“Whenever you’re young you’re supposed to experience life and chase after things that are unique and special. You don’t get to be elite or great without intensity or passion okay? It just doesn’t fucking occur,” said Feroce.
“Most of the people on the list have a following that is very intense. My hats off to you young gentlemen, I hope you continue to do cool shit but keep living. It’s okay, you will be scrutinized for anything you do.”
This won’t be the last fans hear of ‘Natty or Not’ discussions. Just recently, former kickboxing champion and controversial influencer Andrew Tate was the center of the debate due to his built physique. According to Tate, he’s never touched testosterone replacement therapy or steroids in his life. In response to the claim, Derek of More Plates More Dates examined his body and determined that the evidence ‘leaned toward’ Tate being natural.
RELATED: Dan Bilzerian Shares His Opinions About ‘Natty Greek God’ Mike O’Hearn
As for Seth Feroce, he believes no matter what athletes do, if they find any sort of success, scrutiny will follow them. Even though he suspected that many of these influencers used PEDs, Feroce refused to discount the hard work that went into achieving such impressive physiques.
Watch the full video from the Seth Feroce YouTube channel below:
Published: 26 July, 2023 | 11:50 AM EDT
Blessing Awodibu Recaps 2023 Chicago Pro Showing w/ Bob Cicherillo: ‘I Was Soft, It Really Hurts’
Blessing Awodibu is aiming to rebound after failing to secure his Olympia qualification at the 2023 Chicago Pro, won by Justin Shier. In a recent YouTube video with Bob Cicherillo, Awodibu opened up about his lack of conditioning on stage and set his sights on the nearing Texas Pro.
Known for his boisterous personality, Blessing Awodibu quickly established himself as a legitimate contender in the IFBB Pro League. His narrow waist and aesthetic features guided him to success last year, where he commanded gold at two shows: the 2022 Indy Pro and the 2022 New York Pro. His first win secured him a qualification to last year’s Olympia, which would serve as his debut on the sport’s biggest stage.
Considering his success last year, Awodibu entered the Olympia contest last December brimming with confidence. Hours before competing, he stole the show at the Olympia Press Conference, where he and Nick Walker exchanged in a memorable back and forth.
However, on the Olympia stage, Blessing struggled against a historic lineup that featured several new threats such as Andrew Jacked, Samson Dauda, Michal Krizo, and Rafael Brandao. In the end, ‘The Boogieman’ placed outside of the top 15. And while he had hoped to lock down his passage to Olympia last weekend, fan-favorite Awodibu was unable to bring his best. As a result, he walked away in fourth place. To recap the experience, he joined athletes rep Bob Cicherillo.
Blessing Awodibu on 2023 Chicago Pro Performance: ‘I Was Soft, It Was a Really, Really Tough Prep’
Despite his status as a pre-contest favorite, Awodibu explained that outside pressures affected his ability to shred down for the competition.
“Came in as the pre-contest favorite, didn’t look like it went your way my friend, what happened out there man?” Bob Cicherillo asked.
“What happened out there, man? I mean, shit. I mean, I don’t know I couldn’t tell you, man. It was a really really tough prep man. Especially mentally and there was a lot on the line for me and a lot of pressure. It was a lot of pressure. And tonight, I was soft man, I was soft,” Blessing Awodibu shared.
“You looked big as a house, it looks like you put on some good muscle, meaning you were big, full, a lot of muscle, but just didn’t wring out that last bit of water,” said Cicherillo.
Awodibu revealed that he was ten pounds heavier than last year. Next, Awodibu announced his plans for the 2023 Texas Pro next month.
“Yes. That tightening wasn’t there. I was a little bit too wet. I just – I just got to figure it out man. I know when I do figure it out man it’s like – I feel like I’m in a whole different league. I just got to find that faith and that’s another one for me now. That’s two in a row. This should not be happening. This should not be happening.”
“Honestly I’m 10 pounds heavier, I thought it would have been a good thing,” said Awodibu. “I will figure it out guys. Because I know man, I deserve to be one of the best. When I miss like this, it really hurts. This should not be happening. You know, it’s bodybuilding, it’s a journey. You learn from these things and you can only get better as long as you keep moving.”
“We still got Texas,” said Awodibu.
In a separate Instagram post, Awodibu elaborated on his preparations and what went wrong.
“We nicely brought the body down from 306 to 276 keeping the fullness & roundness, the condition was definitely behind but honestly I was so damn excited with the way things were going until shit start to go iffy leading to Chicago.But right now I’m getting the wheels back on track with coach @cameron_cheek Road to O continues” Blessing Awodibu shared.
If Awodibu enters the upcoming Texas Pro, he’ll have plenty of top-tier talent to worry about. Defending 2022 Texas Pro champ Andrew Jacked will aim to earn his Olympia entry at this event. In addition, Hunter Labrada is slated to compete in Texas. He’s on a mission to redeem himself after falling to seventh place on the Mr. Olympia stage last year.
In addition to the above frontrunners, fans, and the bodybuilding community are excited to see mass monster Carlos Thomas Jr. make a splash on an IFBB Pro Open stage. While Carlos had to pull out of the New York Pro, he’s making it his mission to defeat Andrew Jacked and Hunter Labrada in Texas. The show takes place August 18-19.
As Bob Cicherillo suggested, Awodibu has clearly put on quality size. Should he manage to dial in his conditioning next month, with or without a coach, he’d be a definite title threat on the 2023 Texas Pro stage.
RELATED: Jay Cutler, Milos Sarcev Talk Hassan Mostafa & Blessing Awodibu’s Potential + Lack of Athletes Entering Shows
Watch the full video from the Voice of Bodybuilding YouTube channel below:
Published: 26 July, 2023 | 3:45 PM EDT
Erin Stern Shares 5-Step Plan to Figure Out Daily Calories & Macros
American bodybuilder Erin Stern has been a dominant force in the women’s Figure and Bikini division. Having been a part of the sport for over a decade, she amassed a plethora of knowledge about fitness. In a recent video uploaded on YouTube, Stern shared a simple five-step plan to figure out daily calories and macros.
Hailing from Tampa, Florida, Erin Stern comes from a family of athletes. She began competing in sports from a young age and developed a passion for weight training during her athletic days in college. After narrowly missing out on the qualification for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Stern turned her attention to bodybuilding and decided to pursue a career.
Stern’s potential was clear from the start as she emerged victorious in her debut contest at the 2008 NPC National Bodybuilding and Figure Championships. The win paved the way for her to participate in the IFBB Pro League.
Stern kicked off her career with several impressive performances, taking silver at the Arnold Classic in 2010 and 2011. She secured the coveted Figure Olympia title in 2010 and reclaimed it by exacting revenge on former champion Nicole Wilkins in a dominant showing in 2012. She also claimed two Valenti Classic Pro Figure wins.
The 43-year-old was at the height of her power between 2010 and 2013. She proved to be one of the most consistent and disciplined athletes in the sport, never placing below third in any contest during those three years. Following an outing at the 2014 Australia Pro Grand Prix XIV, Stern took to the sidelines for over six years.
In 2020, Erin Stern marked her return to action, but in the women’s Bikini division instead of Figure. She took silver to Daraja Hill at the 2021 Republic of Texas Pro and scored her first win in the category at the 2021 Tahoe Show.
Stern delivered a stunning season last year. She finished runner-up at the 2022 Miami Muscle Beach Pro and came out on top of the 2022 Republic of Texas Pro before concluding it with a strong showing at the Mr. Olympia show.
Erin Stern Shares 5-Step Plan to Figure Out Daily Calories & Macros
In a recent Youtube video, Erin Stern shared a straightforward 5-step plan to figure out daily calories and macros.
“A good diet can either help you along with your progress or it can seriously hinder it,” said Stern. “There’s so much information out there. Where do you turn? The more you learn, the more confusing things can be. I wanted to break it down into five simple ways to calculate your calories and macros.”
These five steps are:
1. Goal setting:
Looking at your starting point. Be really honest here. I want you to think about what your current body fat percentage is, how much muscle mass you’re carrying, and if you need to go get calipers or do body fat testing, really good idea. You can also get a DEXA scan if you’d like.
Take progress pictures, and measurements, then figure out what your goals are going to be for let’s say the next 90 days. It can be really helpful to focus on one goal such as building muscle or leaning down.
2. Calculate maintenance calories:
We’re going to calculate maintenance calories. There are several different ways you can do this. You’ve got some online calculators that can be pretty effective. You can also track your food for about two weeks, do a food log, keep track of your weights, and if things don’t change you’ve got maintenance calories. This is one of my favorite ways although it takes a little bit more time you know exactly what your maintenance calories are and therefore have an easier time adjusting from there. If you don’t want to wait… you can take your body weight, multiply it by a coefficient from 11 to 15.
So, if you’re highly active and want to gain muscle, maybe you’re on the leaner side of things and have a high metabolism, go for body weight times 14 or 15.
3. Calculate protein:
The reason I don’t do a ratio or percentage is because I want you to think about protein as the building block of muscle. This is a rather fixed number. The protein isn’t going to drastically increase or decrease. You’re typically going to be somewhere in that body weight times 0.8 to 1.2. Use our protein calculator.
4. Calculate fats:
Think about how you like to eat and your goals. You’re looking at your body weight multiplied by 0.2 to 0.6
If you enjoy low fat/higher carbs, choose somewhere around 0.2 – 0.3. If you like higher fats and lower carbs, choose somewhere around 0.5 – 0.6. Let’s go with 150 x 0.2 = 30g of fat. This gives us (30g x 9 calories per gram) 270 calories for fats.
The remaining calories are for carbs. So, 1,800 – 600 – 270 = 930 calories.
5. Calculate carbs:
We’re really just filling in those missing calories with carbs. Let’s get our grams of carbs, or (930 / 4 calories per gram), 232.5g of carbs So, we have: 1,800 calories 150g protein 30g fats 232.5g carbs.
“When making adjustments, think about making small changes every 1-2 weeks. This would be an increase or decrease of around 10% of your daily caloric intake or around 100-300 calories. Give your body 1-2 weeks to see how the adjustment works and then decide to stay at your current intake, or adjust intake again.”
Erin Stern gave fans a look into her customized high-intensity low-impact training to build muscle with minimal wear and tear on the body two weeks ago.
Her latest offering provides fans with an effective and simple way to calculate and track daily calories and macros to stay on track with their diet. It will certainly help many improve their results.
You can watch the full video below.
Published: 27 July, 2023 | 1:55 AM EDT
Brett Wilkin Shares Keys To Build Massive Biceps And Symmetrical Arms
All of us wish to have attractive physiques but most of us don’t have the discipline or the knowledge to achieve it. Bodybuilder Brett Wilkin made the job a little bit easier for us by sharing some insightful information on biceps training.
Brett Wilkin’s career trajectory has been rather interesting. He earned the IFBB Pro card in the Classic Physique division by winning the 2018 Junior National Championships. However, ‘The Butcher’ never competed in the division professionally. He made the pro debut in the 212 division but lackluster performances at the 2019 Puerto Rico Pro and the 2019 Toronto Pro Supershow prompted him to reevaluate the way forward.
Wilkin took time off from competition and worked on improving his physique during the extended break. He returned as a Men’s Open competitor and impressed the bodybuilding community with the overwhelming progress at the 2021 Chicago Pro, finishing second. In spite of high expectations heading into the 2022 Arnold Classic, Wilkin could only secure a sixth place at the show. A runner-up finish at the 2022 Romania Muscle Fest Pro concluded the 2022 competitive season for him as Wilkin did not have enough points to qualify for the 2022 Olympia.
However, he registered a thumping victory at the 2022 Bigman Weekend Pro, becoming one of the early competitors to qualify for the 2023 Olympia. He now trains with renewed vigor under ‘Hypertrophy Coach’ Joe Bennett’s guidance with the goal to secure a top ten finish in his Olympia debut.
Recently, Wilkin shared his list of five best biceps exercises on his YouTube channel to help fitness enthusiasts and budding bodybuilders achieve their fitness goals. So let’s check out the list to see how Wilkin has built those massive arms.
Brett Wilkin shares five best biceps exercises
Biceps are one of the most important muscle groups for appearance as well as function. But developing this small muscle is easier said than done. It requires time commitment and knowledge to get the biceps that look good and function at the elite level. Brett Wilkin made the job a little bit easier by sharing some of his go-to exercises and training tips to build the biceps.
Standing Cable Curls
Jumping right into heavy exercises without a warm-up is a recipe for disaster and training related injuries. Brett Wilkin addressed this issue in the beginning and shared standing cable curls as the first important biceps exercise. Cable machines put uniform stress on the muscles and help them warm up sufficiently for an intense training day. Additionally, they are a good alternative for warming up crucial joints like elbows.
“Main focus is just on that bicep head with no cheating. This cable unit is awesome because it creates that tension all the way through the bottom and then all the way through the top. So constant tension on the biceps, a lot of blood, a lot of pre-exhaust and we’ll keep moving into the bigger ones,” Wilkin stated.
Single Arm Dumbbell Preacher Curls
Preacher curls are hailed by many as the king of bicep exercises. They isolate the biceps muscles better than most other movements. Therefore it’s no wonder that they find a place in Brett Wilkin’s list of best biceps exercises. Wilkin explained the key to getting the most out of this exercise and said:
“I want to solely use that bicep head obviously. So how do you do that is you want to elbow drive back into the pad. So I’m driving back into the pad and at the same time I am curling up.”
Since the pad is a stationary object and we drive our elbow into it during curling, the bicep is the only muscle that gets activated according to Wilkin. ‘The Butcher’ advised to lower the dumbbell at a slow pace to create more tension in the biceps.
“The main thing is you don’t need too much (weight) here if you’re doing it right. So it’s the big squeeze with the drive and then the slow release letting it go out really stretching that bicep,” Wilkin concluded.
Hammer Strength Preacher Curls
Once again, the machine variation of preacher curl helps put constant tension on the muscles throughout the full range of motion. This helps tremendously in bodybuilding where muscle hypertrophy is the primary goal.
But working with a method that Wilkin calls ‘Partner Resistance’ can help with making gains. In this training style, Wilkin typically works his way to the top set. After this, the person holds the weight at the end of the concentric phase while a training partner tries to pull the weight down, adding more resistance to the person doing an exercise.
“This is just working that eccentric portion, that lengthening phase with resistance,” Wilkin explained.
Cable Curls – 21s Set
The next bicep exercise on Brett Wilkin’s list is not necessarily a unique exercise but a training method known as 21s set. This method involves breaking down a set of 21 reps into three parts of seven reps each. For the first seven reps, the person is expected to perform partial reps conforming to the bottom half range of motion. The next seven reps are the partials at the top half range of motion. The last seven reps are full reps with a complete range of motion from bottom to top.
“I just love this because you really slow it down and you feel each rep. So you’re not hurting through this, you’re not throwing your back in it – you’re staying strict. You’re really feeling that each curl and you finish it off with seven really hard full motion reps,” Wilkin concluded.
Reverse Grip Cable Curls
Big biceps and skinny forearms are not really a beautiful combination to look at. The last exercise in Wilkin’s list addresses this problem with slight modifications to the cable curls. Reverse grip cable curls put more emphasis on the brachialis and the Brachioradialis muscles in the arm to get strong and muscular forearms.
“We’re trying to be symmetrical here… Triceps matching the biceps matching the forearms. So this is going to tie it all together,” Wilkin stated.
The 35-year-old advices doing this exercise when you are tired and want to get the final bit of forearm pump before heading home.
To summarize, the five best biceps exercises according to Brett Wilkin are:
In spite of being one of the highly touted prospects in the IFBB Pro League, Brett Wilkin has not been able to produce a breakout performance so far. However, the 2023 Olympia qualification has given him all the incentive in the world to perform to the best of his abilities and take his career to the next level. It will be interesting to see how he performs at the 2023 Olympia.
You can watch the full video here, courtesy of Brett Wilkin’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 27 July, 2023 | 9:04 AM EDT