Strength and Physique

  Q: I've recently stumbled across your blog, and it peaked my interest. I admire the physique you've built up for yourself.  That's the reason I'm writing to you, because I'd very much like to know how you build muscle density. I don't wish to gain more muscle simply to be big. I'd like my body to have the look of strength, power and speed, much like how Bruce Lee was. I was hoping you could enlighten me on the ways in which one would need to train to build such a physique.  Would you recommend weight training or training without weights? How much cardio would you recommend? In your opinion what level of balance should there be between developing slow-twitch and fast-twitch muscle fibers, and how would one change its proportionality?  -S. Singh My Answer: Muscle density refers to how thick and hard the muscles look and feel. Muscle density is developed through sarcomere hypertrophy. In other words, the muscle fibers grow by thickening in d...

We’re all born into a box.   You drive to work in a box.   When you get to work, you work in a box.   You think inside the box.   You come home and live in a box.   You eat of a box.   You even workout in a box.   Some have bigger boxes than others.  What if you were in a prison cell?  What if you worked in a submarine?  Or what if you just live in a cramped studio apartment?  How would you train?  How could you build a better body in a box? A lot of people ask me how to train at home with limited equipment and limited space.  There are a number of reasons why people would want to train at home: 1) You save time. For a commercial gym, you have to drive to there and from there. For a home gym, however, your commute time is ZERO. 2) You can work out whenever you please. Whereas most commercial gyms have business hours, your home gym is open to you 24/7. So you have no excuse to miss a workout.  Since ...

I like to do outdoor workouts every so often. Lake Merced has a fitness trail lining the north end of the lake.  I used to train clients at this spot.  Once a week I bring a 50 pound kettlebell to a pull-up station at Lake Merced and do a workout of pull-ups, one arm push ups, pistols and kettlebell snatches. A fitness trail (a.k.a. parcourse ) is a running course with exercise stations scattered at varying intervals.  It's a great way to get some fresh air and sun and combine strength calisthenics with cardiovascular work. Here's a brutally effective circuit that I used to put my clients through.  The pull-up station at Lake Merced is located next to a downhill path, so we'd do hill sprints as part of the circuit. The Lake Merced Workout: Pull-ups, as many reps as possible (AMRAP) Run downhill to the bottom, turn around and sprint up the hill as fast as you can Push ups, AMRAP Body weight squats, AMRAP Hanging leg raises, AMRAP Repeat circ...

Q: Hello, I found your books site off an Amazon search and have several added to my Kindle.  I'm in the middle of one right now, and I'm enjoying it immensely.  I was really interested in the High Tension Exercises book but don't see it available yet as a Kindle book. Any idea if or when it will be??? I saw it available as an E-book from a separate site, but I am pretty sure my wife won't approve of me paying $25 for an E-book. :-(   Was just hoping it would show up on Kindle eventually???   Thanks in advance. Scott M. My Answer: Hey, who's the boss, you or your wife?  If you want to buy a $25 E-book, then buy it and prepare to sleep on the couch for a week.  It's worth the investment!  A man's got to have his hobbies. All kidding aside, thanks for purchasing my Kindle books.  Strength and Physique: High Tension Exercises for Muscular Growth , however, will not be on Kindle.  The book goes over the same material in my previ...

Q: I found your Return to Copland workout on line. I am a 41 yr old lieutenant who is trying it. The workouts seem great so far. I'm looking for something to do on the off days. What do you recommend? Rest? Walking? Yoga? Thank you, Jimmy My Answer: Any of those are fine. I prefer doing mobility work on the off days. The following are exercises that I recommend to all tactical athletes (law enforcement, military, fire, EMS). Years of bearing the continuous load of your equipment (bullet resistant vest, duty belt) compresses your spine and constricts your torso movement. This often results in lower back pain as well decreased thoracic mobility. These mobility exercises will restore your range of motion: Single leg RDL

Q:  I'm a 23 year old male. My problem is that I have really fat thighs and calves. It actually runs in the family. I tried all sorts of leg exercises, but they end up looking more thick. If I do too much cardio I end up losing weight from my upper body. Any help or advice will be appreciated.  Thanks,  Jivesh My Answer: Tough to say what your issue is, because I don't know if you're fat overall or just fat in the legs. But let's just assume you're fat in the legs and not the upper body. If this is the case, then you have a major problem. You as a young male should not be having a pear shaped body like a woman. If you're fat in the hips and thighs, then you've got too much estrogen circulating in your body. Again I don't know what exactly your issue is, because I don't know if you're fat overall or just fat in the thighs.  Drinking a lot of alcohol screws up your androgen levels, so avoid alcohol. With that said, you should avoi...

Q: Really loved your article on training police officers on Bodybuilding.com and thought I would reach out to you. I too am a full time police officer over in the UK. I've been on the job for five years, and I suspect we hold the same frustrations about fitness and health within the service. I am hoping to set up my own strength and fitness consultancy business in the near future as a bit of a side venture. I was wondering if you had any advice on setting this kind of thing up whilst also tackling the shift work. Have you any sporting aspirations yourself? How do you juggle working with training, eating and recovery? My aim with my venture is to start out initially by just offering my services for free to colleagues and friends and take it from there really. My background is in Sports Conditioning having completed a university degree some years ago. Do you guys have to do a fitness test every year? Are you given time to do any physical training? What facilities are...