Top Tips for Competitive Bodybuilding

You have spent months, maybe even years working on your physique, your hard work has paid off and you have decided to enter your first Bodybuilding Competition. Competing in bodybuildingrequires an extreme level of physical and mental discipline unparalleled by most other sports, as any true bodybuilder will tell you, you will never really know what you are capable of physically until you have made the commitment to be your best on Competition Day. Here are my top tips on how to do your best in competitive bodybuilding, they helped me in my quest to become British Champion and maybe they can help you make your goals a reality, whatever they may be. Read more

Training tips for the big three – Squats, Bench Press & Deadlift

Squats:

Try and get the position of the bar below the traps and over the rear deltoids. This will feel awkward at first but is much better than using a foam pad or having a high bar placement. You will be able to handle heavier weights without putting stress on the top of your spine / base of your neck area, also your stability will be much better. Balance is everything when squatting. The squat is a fantastic core exercise that will help to give you better balance. I can remember being at a world championships back in 2009. The judging was very strict on the depth of the squats. The top part of the thigh had to break 2 inches below parallel. With a low bar placement, my balance was much better than the lifters with a high bar placement causing a large number of lifters to fail the lift. Remember to keep your head up, try and find a spot on the ceiling or wall in front of you. Focus on the spot as descend, push back so the overload goes to you gluts and hips. Never drop down with your knees going forward, always push your knees out and bum back. If you watch some of the best lifters in the world on clips from YouTube, you will hear the coach shout “back, back”. This means they are trying to remind the lifter to push back and not just drop down. This will make you break parallel easier, save your knees and give you more power and explosion from the lift. Read more

Pre-Workout Supplements – The Benefits

An Introduction

Preworkout supplements are specifically designed to prepare your body and create an environment within yourself which will maximise your ability to train more intensely than ever before. The idea behind a pre-workout supplement is to cause a stimulation which essentially leads to enhanced energy levels, improved mental focus and even strength levels. They are a relatively new catagory of bodybuilding supplement, and one that has become increasingly popular over the past few years, as more athletes begin to see the benefits of including one in their routine. Read more

The Core Exercises to Incorporate into Mass Building Routine

Now when it comes to selecting the correct exercises to your goals whether they are for building muscle or cutting fat Compound movements I believe along with many other trainers are a vital ingredient to anyone’s successful journey in getting to the target goal.

The reason we want to include these movements purely is because of the fact that they recruit a whole compound of muscles both included in the target body part but also amongst other body parts too meaning more fibres are recruited, broken down and then recovered and over compensated by the body by building more size and strength in the repaired tissue created in what we know as muscle hypotrophy, along with more muscle hypotrophy there will also be more growth hormone and testosterone secreted through your muscles out into the body which will also enhance your muscle building potential. Where we also can include more isolation exercises that usually target one muscle at a time as long as performed correctly with good form we would have to include multiple exercises and sets to hit the same amounts as compound movements meaning more time is needed with the body under stress and more sets potentially also required in order to complete the same effect on the body to grow and progress. Read more

Ketogenic Dieting

What is Ketogenic Dieting?

Ketogenic dieting is appropriate for those individuals that are either not exercising at all, or those who are only performing low intensity aerobic exercise. Read more