Massive Iron

This is a quick look at the torso limbs split, a training structure I developed a few years ago. If you enjoy frequency training, but are not a big fan of the upper lower split and find it to be heavily leg focused, please take a look at this structure. The torso limbs split allows for a flexible schedule, meaning you could train three, four, or five days a week depending on your schedule that week. You simply rotate between the four workouts in your plan. Understand the guidelines presented in this video are just a general structure. Feel free to change things based on your needs, available equipment, and time in gym. If you need help developing a torso limb split or have any questions feel free to DM me, or please consider joining teammassiveiron.com. #massiveiron #upperlower #upperlowersplit #upperlowerworkout

This clip is part of tomorrow's longer video about how bodybuilding has been pulled off track. The complete video will appear on Massive Iron YouTube #massiveiron

My opinion on how to view rest in between sets. #massiveiron

Should you stop your bulk if you reach your goal weight but muscle and strength gains are rolling along?

Should the incline press be used over the seated dumbbell press? Are they equal exercises?

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My BEST Pendlay Row Form and Performance Tips #massiveiron #pendlayrows #pendlayrow #barbellrow #barbellrows

Thanks to m client Bruce for putting this video together and sharing it with me. For anyone that thinks I'm just out here trying to rattle cages and stir up random views, these are messages I would tell myself over and over and over again. This is a personal message that I would remind myself with daily. #massiveiron

I get a lot of questions about plateaus. Do you have a lifting plateau? During the beginning stages of training it's normal to see rapid progress. Once you hit the intermediate stages of lifting progress can slow and it can leave us feeling like we are stalling or doing something wrong. This is generally not the case at all. The grind stages of lifting and progress take place over a three to five year period of time. During this time I can feel like you're not making much progress at all... but this is a lie. This lie leads to distractions, program hopping, and can even lead to frustration and time away from the gym. Let's look at an example. Let's say we have a lifter with a bench press max of 185 pounds. Let's also say that this lifter "only" adds one rep to his top bench press set every 6 weeks. Most of us would consider this a plateau and feel like a complete failure. But let's say you continued making this rate of progress over the next 4 to 5 years. Where would your bench press be? The truth is your bench press max would now be 360 to 400 pounds. This is a hard pill to swallow, but the truth of the matter is that during your intermediate years slow progress is normal progress unless you're an absolute freak. This is why consistency in both training and nutrition is so important. If you mess around and program hop, or if you mess around and don't take your nutrition seriously, you'll wake up 5 years from now with a 200 pound bench press. It is the lifters that trust is the lifters that trust the process and remain consistent that reap the rewards. It's unlikely you have a plateau. It's more likely that you have unrealistic expectations. #massiveiron

I receive a lot of questions about programming and I want you guys to remember a couple of things. Always take a bigger picture view. Obviously, you want to utilize common sense and not do anything that's going to encourage injuries, but beyond that feel free to try things. Feel free to make adjustments that might not make sense to other lifters. Don't be locked down or boxed in by fear of being sub optimal. In the long run as long as you are consistent, nailing your nutrition, training hard, and pushing for progressive overload, it's okay to smash conventional rules and try new things. The body is not that fragile. It's okay to play around and try new splits, and formats, and new exercise orders that might not make sense in the world of optimal. It's okay to do your pec dec before bench press. It's okay to squat last on leg day. It's okay to do any of these things as long as you are recovering, not increasing the risk of injury, and most of all enjoying your workouts. #massiveiron

This is an example of an exercise variation I created called the bulldozer lateral. You start with a dumbbell on your off leg and drive it up by driving your elbow up. As the weight comes back down you catch it in your off leg to stop momentum. By starting with the weight on your off leg, you're able to generate a little bit more power and leverage. This variation also allows for more progression than a standard side lateral raise. Some lifters consider the starting point and leverage advantage to be cheating, whatever that means. Don't fall into this pit of ignorance. Try the exercise yourself. By starting with the weight on your off leg, it tends to feel a little bit easier on the shoulder joint. #massiveiron #bulldozerlaterals

I was asked to detail the three most important aspects of building muscle and strength. ▶ First, it's about consistency. You need to consistently nail your training over a long period of time - 5 to 10 years. There's no way around this. ▶ Second, you need to get a lot stronger than you are now. While we are not specifically chasing strength, if you do not get strong you are not training hard. Hard training inherently produces strength gains over time. ▶ Lastly, it's not just good enough to eat your protein and calories. It's not just good enough to eat healthy. To maximize your gym results you need to have very focused lean bulks. #massiveiron

Social media fitness and YouTube Fitness can place a lot of pressure on trainees to be perfect. I just want to remind everyone that perfect is not realistic. There are some sets where I simply do not feel like pushing hard, for whatever reason. I allow myself some leeway. Now, I'm not encouraging you guys to train like limp noodles. With that said not every set is going to be a masterpiece. On good days I might maximize maybe 75 to 80% of my sets. On days where I'm struggling I just try to hold the ship in the water and not let it sink. It's okay to be 75 to 80% over the course of 5 to 10 years as long as you remain consistent and train hard on most sets. #massiveiron

Using Overhead Pressing to Build Bigger Traps #massiveiron #bigtraps #shrugs #powershrugs

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Newbie gains are great, but let's go beyond that.

We salute you! Missouri state patrol office doesn't skip leg or deadlift day.

High or Low Volume is a LIE (Muscle Building) #massiveiron #musclebuilding #highvolumetraining #lowvolumetraining

The point... Keep a big picture view. Hard training, consistency, and nutrition are king. When we start creating "rules" that tear down common sense and reasonable programming we are confusing lifters and creating chaos. Programming is not that hard. Don't fall into the traps created by "experts." An expert isn't an expert if they have the inability to process and understand the big picture. The magic isn't isn't in magic frequencies, volumes, rep ranges, progression schemes, or exercises. The magic is this... Create a REASONABLE program. Work hard. Remain consistent. Control the weight. Attack progression. Nail your nutrition and be patient. Everything else is over-hyped dogmatic bullshit. #massiveiron

Let's talk about the big picture. Do you wake up every day and focus on taking care of yourself?

Stop overthinking. Take a big picture view. DM me if you need help or have questions.

Are you lifting weights or building muscle? #massiveiron #liftingweights #buildingmuscle #gymlife #commercialgym

LEARN MORE ABOUT COACHING: https://forms.gle/Djb8aiww4e2GKS9fA TEAM MASSIVE - https://teammassiveiron.com ===================================== Instagram: @ bendthebarman Twitter: @ massive_iron =====================================

How to perform the Barrel Press. Need help? DM me with questions. #massiveiron #barrelpress #dumbbellfly #chestworkout #chestday #musclebuilding #bodybuilding

Why nearly every workout system seems to work... even the bad ones. #massiveiron #workouts #musclebuildingworkout #workoutroutine #workoutmotivation #fitfam #musclebuildingtips