Strength and Physique

Q: Hi James, 2 questions for you:  Several of your exercises, like the heavy squatting routine, requires up to 4 minutes of rest periods. James, I have ADD. I can’t wait around 4 minutes when I want to get in a solid effective heavy-based workout regimen. How do you recommend spending those minutes of rest instead of being stressed out just pacing around and my mind wandering and feeling like I’m wasting time?   As for deadlifts, the weight I can lift is severely limited by my grip strength. Using wrist supporters allows me to deadlift up to 225 lbs instead of 95 lbs without them. However, one of my most important strength training goals is to improve my grip strength. Grip strength is VERY important to me. What would you recommend I do? Use other equipment like thick bar kettlebells for grip strength training and use the grip wraps for the deadlift? And are those grip wraps safe anyways?   Thanks for your help as always. Love your blogs.  ...

Nothing beats the convenience of a good home gym! You never have to battle traffic on your way to a crowded facility where you then have to wait forever for equipment. Plus, the music is always your style and the post-workout smoothies are so much more affordable. Speaking of cheaper, just think of all the money you’ll save in memberships, fees, and gas! No matter your budget, when you invest in a home gym, you’ll start seeing a positive return on that investment almost immediately. But what equipment should you have in order to still maintain your ideal physique? Here are 10 must-have items for your home gym that will keep you healthy and looking good! Dumbbells Nothing says strength training like a long line of dumbbells, but sets like that can run you thousands of dollars and eat up valuable floor space. If your home gym’s square footage or budget won’t allow for that, then opt for adjustable-weight dumbbells which give you virtually the same versatility at a frac...

Q:  You had mentioned in a previous blog post a site to purchase thick bars. Can you remind me the name of this site again? Thank you. My best, Larry K. My Answer:  It was the  Heavy Handle . I don't think they make the Heavy Handle anymore.  Which is unfortunate, because it was truly a unique and effective piece of equipment for thick bar training. You may want to consider Fat Gripz.   It's an inexpensive way to do fat bar training.

Q:   I want to employ your lat shock routine, but I am on a periodization routine.  I'm working upper and lower every other day. Instead of putting all 4 exercises in one day, then resting that part for a week, I'm doing it all week.   If I split up the lat work all week, will it still shock them into growth, or do they need all that work in one sitting?  Or should I do it once a week then the rest if the time do a lightweight lat workout?  Cause exercise done every other day would result in overtraining right? < -Brian My Answer:   The Wingspan Workouts are 4 different WORKOUTS. So you would not do all 4 in one day.  You can rotate through the 4 workouts through a length of 2 weeks, so that would mean 2 lat workouts a week. Or you can do one lat shock workout a week, so that would mean 2 lat workouts a week:  one lat shock workout, one light active recovery workout for the back. Q:    I was looking for a workout routine....

Q:  I am 19 years old and will be a sophomore in college this fall. I major in Criminal Justice and hope to one day become a law enforcement officer. I am 6 feet tall, 170 pounds, and in the worst shape of my life. I had back surgery for a herniated disc in January and haven't worked out since.  While browsing articles on law enforcement fitness, I read a piece you wrote for bodybuilding.com . I loved it. My surgeon has advised me to stay away from heavy deadlifts and squats for a long time. Basically, anything that could reherniate my disc is a big no no. In regards to the workout you listed, is there anything I could replace "high risk back" exercises with? My goal is to become as agile as I used to be, and I would also like to put on a few more pounds of muscle.  Thanks,  Jacob W. My Answer:  If you want to remove the deadlift and back squat from the RTC program , then I suggest you substitute cable pull-throughs and Bulgarian squats.  You will...

Q:  My name is Trey, and I am writing you today to see if by any way you could possible whip me in to shape with a workout. I would say I have maybe 2-3 months to get in to shape for the job demands. I work out now, but I feel like it's not getting me any where. I bust my ass when I go to the gym, but I see nothing different, so maybe you could refer something? Please help! Thank you. My Answer:  First off I have no idea what is your physical condition and physical conditioning.  Are you overweight, or are you looking to add more muscle? The problem I see with a lot of guys trying to get in shape is that they are not honest about what their condition is and what they need to do to remedy the condition.  I know a deputy who doesn't do cardio and was doing 5x5 to get in shape. I thought to myself, "Dude, you're diabetic and overweight.  You don't need to do 5x5.  You need to do higher reps and cardio." If you're trying to prepare for the physi...