Building Muscle with Smart Programming, Recommended Lifting Accessories, and Advice on Diet along with Extra Prescribed Calisthenics and Breathing Exercises.

I like to lift weights to build muscle and to build strength, and to sustain a healthy body. Much of my knowledge came from Powerlifters, and thus I've given a great status to the Squat, Bench Press, and Deadlift. And I've probably honored those lifts to a fault. I don't compete, but I do plan to if I get my Deadlift to a solid 500lb or 600lb. I think it's a great mistake to frequently perform the same lifts in the same manner. Powerlifters recommend playing with speed, acceleration, and range of motion. They'll also prescribe single joint exercises for maintenance like biceps curls or triceps work. It's easy to ignore all of the extra accessory work, and to ignore using bands and chains or changing range of motion.

When you stay so static as described above - there will be clear cut weak points that you're simply not going to improve on by doing the same thing. You might look strong and be strong with the main three lifts, but I guarantee you can look better and be stronger with an assortment of lifts depending on your body type, experience, and goals.

Scroll to the bottom of the post to see the routine I'm doing. For:

• Weighted Pull-ups, I recommend a dip belt. Specifically the Iron Mind De Rigueur Dip Belt. I purchased it six years ago. It's rated to hold 1,000lb, and has never failed me. It holds weight plates. I've done +135lb many times with it.
• Bench Press, I recommend The SlingShot by Mark Bell. This device protects the elbows, wrists, shoulders, and pecs from injury. You should still know and use good technique though, which I describe as elbows pinned to your sides, scapulae pinched together, and back arched.
• Deadlifts, I recommend wrist straps. My favorite have been Iron Mind Strong-Enough Lifting Straps. I used them five years straight with good success, but I tried a different type of straps, and had a severe wrist injury.

Some notes on the wrist straps for deadlifting - I've heard many people claim that wrist straps reduce grip strength, and it's true to some extent, but you can also do many things with the wrist straps that you can't do without them. For example, if your hands hurt to much to deadlift or rack pull, and you're waiting very long periods for your hands to recover - you probably want to switch to wrist straps to save time, and to get in more total volume.

If your hands hurt, you will lose mental confidence and it will sap your physical strength. The wrist straps prevent your hands from fatiguing. You may want to add chalk in to prevent hand fatigue. I have also found that if your hands are relatively larger than smaller, you may find barbells to be rather skinny, and you might find relief in your joints, wrists, and elbows if you were able to use a thicker barbell. Well, when you wrap the wrist straps around the barbell, you are thickening the diameter, and thus it hits the forearms differently, and the rest of the body.

If you've ever tried working out 6 days a week, you may quickly run into hand fatigue and hand pain. The wrist straps will prevent that to a great extent.

Also to note that if you're not using straps, you may switch to a mixed grip once your hands give out, but the lat muscles and biceps work very differently depending on the direction the palm is facing. If the palm is facing the bar, you will undoubtedly use more biceps and less lat than an overhand grip, and straps allow for an overhand grip even once your tired.

For diet, it's never been more clear to me that vegetables are the healthiest food and the best fuel for workouts and clean energy. Fruits are loaded with sugar, and people will say that the sugar in fruits is good for you because it's slower digesting due to the fiber in fruits, but if you try to eat every morning one apple, one orange, and one banana. You might find all the sugar hurting your teeth, and it's because there's 42 grams of sugar in those three fruits versus drinking one can of coke that has 39 grams of sugar. Compare this to three servings of broccoli, and you'll have a little more fiber, significantly more protein, and half the calories compared to the fruit.

I recommend not going carb crazy. If you want to eat pasta, use vegetable noodles. There's never going to be a need for an entire bowl of carbs. 37.5% Fat, 37.5% Protein, 25% Carbs might be a good ratio. I generally just keep in mind 33% for all three, but will ditch the carbs before anything else. I mostly consume greek yogurt, sushi, fried chicken (small amounts), vegetables, and grilled meat patties. I advise against microwavable preserved frozen foods. And I advise to eat smaller meals, and not binge eating to avoid digestion issues and stomach bloating.

For liquids I recommend coconut water, cold brew coffee, and g2 low calorie Gatorade. Water and tea are other daily drinks I recommend. As for alcohol in the active athlete's life, I recommend avoiding Champagne, wine, and beer. These will only slow you down. A clear hard alcohol such as Vodka will have the least amount of slow-down on the body compared to the rest. Darker hard alcohols will often have more sugars.

Two forms of calisthenics I recommend are Yoga and Muscle Control. I have two forms of yoga I'll do - either the 27 poses that you can find on these yoga mats - or Vivastra Kama Yoga (nsfw). I've done both of them for 5 years on and off. I mostly do the mat, but will do the other twice a week or so - perhaps on weekends. Muscle Control is largely misunderstood. Max Sick, a lifter from the early 1900s, was born a weak frail boy, and educated himself on body anesthesiology and muscle anatomy. He devised a set of poses, which if performed regularly, enhances the mind-to-muscle connection for easier and faster muscle contractions that will also make you look more toned, it will enhance digestion, improve posture, promote bloodflow, and will ultimately put your body under your control to a farther degree than which it currently is. Here's a link to Max's book.

So I recommend doing the yoga (27 poses) in the morning pre or post shower, and later in the day before dinner. Muscle Control can be done after the yoga either once or twice a day. By doing this every day, the body becomes conditioned to perform it every day. I notice my metabolism speeding up, and all muscles head to toe becoming more chiseled. Advanced muscle control involves contracting each muscle individually in both the stretched and contracted state as well as relaxing the muscle in both the stretched and contracted state.

As for breathing, I highly Recommend Bas Ruten's O2 Trainer. I like using it during yoga and muscle control.

I mentioned the GZCL lifting method last post, and that method continues into this new routine I've assembled.

WK1	85%		3 sets of 5 reps		15 total reps
WK2	90%		4 sets of 3 reps		12 total reps
WK3	87.5, 92.5., 97.5%		1 set of 3	2 sets of 2	3 sets of 1
WK4	90, 95, 100%		1 set of 3	1 set of 2	1 set of 1+

Above is the formula for the GZCL method that grants you periodization and has you peaking on the 4th week in terms of strength. And below is the first month of my new routine:

First are the Training PRs, which you need to calculate each weeks weight intensity. So for WK1 Pull-Ups, it's .85 multiplied by 100 to determine how much weight for 3 sets of 5. The answer is 85lb.

100	195		405	250	250	290
PULL-UP	BENCHPRESS		RACK PULL	STIFF LEG	ROMANIAN	TRAP DL

8/10/2017	Workout A
Thursday	Bench 165lb WK 1, 3 sets of 5
	Pull-Ups 85lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
	Stiff-Leg Deadlift 215lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
	Trap-Bar Deadlift 245lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
8/12/2017	Workout B
Sunday	Romaian Deadlift 215lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
	Shrug 170lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
	Rack Pull 345lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
	Rack Pull in back 345lb WK1, 3 sets of 5
8/17/2017	Workout C
Thursday	Pull-Ups 90lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
	Trap-Bar Deadlift 260lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
	Stiff-Leg Deadlift 225lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
	Bench 175lb WK 2, 4 sets of 3
8/19/2017	Workout D
Sunday	Romaian Deadlift 225lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
	Rack Pull 365lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
	Rack Pull in back 365lb WK2, 4 sets of 3
8/24/2017	Workout E
Thursday	Pull-Ups 90lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 95lb 2 sets of 2, 100lb 3 sets of 1
	Trap-Bar Deadlift 255lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 270lb 2 sets of 2, 285lb 3 sets of 1
	Stiff-Leg Deadlift 220lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 230lb 2 sets of 2, 245lb 3 sets of 1
	Bench 170lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 180lb 2 sets of 2, 190lb 3 sets of 1
8/27/2017	Workout F
Sunday	Romaian Deadlift 220lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 230lb 2 sets of 2, 245lb 3 sets of 1
	Rack Pull 365lb 220lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 375lb 2 sets of 2, 395lb 3 sets of 1
	Rack Pull in back 365lb 220lb WK3, 1 set of 3, 375lb 2 sets of 2, 395lb 3 sets of 1
8/31/2017	Workout G
Thursday	Pull-Ups 90lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 95lb 1 set of 2, 100lb 1 set of 3
	Trap-Bar Deadlift 260lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 275lb 1 set of 2, 290lb 1 set of 3
	Stiff-Leg Deadlift 225lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 240lb 1 set of 2, 250lb 1 set of 3
	Bench 170lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 180lb 2 set of 2, 190lb 1 set of 3
9/3/2017	Workout H
Sunday	Romaian Deadlift 225lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 240lb 1 set of 2, 250lb 1 set of 3
	Rack Pull 365lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 385lb 1 set of 2, 405lb 3 sets of 1
	Rack Pull in back 365lb WK4, 1 set of 3, 385lb 1 set of 2, 405lb 3 sets of 1

2017 The Weight Lifting Routine I Recommend

I was very consistent on following weight lifting programs the first four years I had taken up lifting. After that period, I hit some injuries, and as I would return to lifting, I would frequently get injured, and it led to a lack of conditioning, strength, and muscle. It became apparent that my body wasn't ready for a weight lifting routine. So I got into the habit of sticking to a routine that was primarily low weight, high volume, medium frequency. This was helpful for rebuilding the foundation of my body so that I wouldn't get injured. I started lifting heavier, but for some reason didn't choose a program, and instead I lifted the amount of weight that I felt my body could handle on that given day.

That may sound like a good idea (lift what you can for that day), but I'll demonstrate why it's not a good idea. The reason I stuck on a program (I rotated through many different ones) when I had started lifting is that I heard many warnings from veteran lifters, strength trainers, and bodybuilders that when you show up to the gym without a plan, you're setting yourself up for failure, and a term that can go along with that methodology is fuck-around-itis - which won't get you anywhere - you might maintain but you won't progress.

In the world of fitness and exercise, the mind will give out before the body. That's why you don't want the mind to be the arbiter of how much weight and how many reps or sets, and how often you show up at the gym. Humans work well with structure and patterns, whereas an open slate with no paved roads has less chance of producing fruitful results regardless of how liberating it may feel.

The weight lifting routine I recommend is GZCL. I've mentioned it on this blog before, but I don't think I described it well enough. Firstly, its author (not me) prefers it to be known as a Method and not a Routine. This means that there's leeway to be had here-and-there to better suit the individual.

I want to lay this out simply in case whoever's reading doesn't have experience with routines. I will establish what you need to do in order to generate your own GZCL method lifting program for yourself with appropriate amounts of weight, reps, sets, and frequency. Volume, Frequency, and Intensity are the three governors of any lifting program. In order to prioritize any of those 3, you must deprioritize one of the other 3. For example, High Intensity necessitates Low Volume and Low Frequency. Or for example, High Volume necessitates Low Intensity with Frequency being about Medium. So to do High Volume, High Intensity, and High Frequency is not an option.

Lifting programs firstly begin starting with a person's PR numbers (personal records). The closer you dial in your PR number, the more efficient the program will be, and the less time you'll waste finding your actual PRs or your actual strength.

For example, say a lifter named John has these for the following PRs - Squat - 300lb, Bench Press - 200lb, Deadlift - 400lb. Lifting routines will have you take out a calculator and find out for example 65% of your PR. I'll even point out how this is done on a calculator to be thorough - to find out the 300lb squat's 65%, do the following, type in calculator 300, hit multiply button, .65 (note the decimal place), hit enter and the answer is 195, so if the program called for doing 65% of your Squat, and you Squat 300lb, you would squat 195lb for x amount of reps and sets.

You can see now that all that makes a weight lifting program is the percentages, which are designed to allow for your body to experience periodization. This term is important. It means that you cannot simply lift +5-10lb on every lift every time you go to the gym. This type of progression works for beginners, but eventually drops off, you'll no longer gain strength or size. Periodization is the acknowledgement of this linear drop-off, and instead of being linear, instead it uses a pattern which will span weeks to months depending on when you want your body to peak. Weight lifters don't try to break records on any given day - instead they chart out a program, and hit their peak on competition week. This is also what fighters do in fight preparation, and many other sports athletes.

The GZCL Method that I use which is suited to me is what I'll share here now. The author of this Method can be found here. Spanning 4 weeks, I have GZCL programmed for the Bench Press, Squat, and Deadlift. I do all three lifts on the same day with only 1 workout per week (you can do additional training for secondary lifts).

250lb	185lb	440	lb
SQUAT	BENCHPRESS	DEADLIFT	training max

WK1	85%		3 sets of 5 reps		15 total reps
WK2	90%		4 sets of 3 reps		12 total reps
WK3	87.5, 92.5., 97.5%		1 set of 3	2 sets of 2	3 sets of 1
WK4	90, 95, 100%		1 set of 3	1 set of 2	1 set of 1+

	Workout A
5/18/2017	Squat 210lb WK 1, 3 sets of 5
	Bench 155lb WK 1, 3 sets of 5
	Dead 375lb WK1, 7 sets of 2, plus 1
	Workout B
5/25/2017	Squat 225lb WK 2, 4 sets of 3
	Bench 165lb WK 2, 4 sets of 3
	Dead 395lb WK 2, 6 sets of 2
	Workout C
6/1/2017	Squat 220lb WK 3, 1 set of 3, 230*2*2, 245*1*3
	Bench 160lb WK 3, 1 set of 3, 170*2*2,180*1*3
	Dead 385lb WK 3, 1 set of 3, 405*2*2, 430*1*3
	Workout D
6/8/2017	Squat 225lb WK 4, 1 set of 3, 235*2, 250*1+
	Bench 165lb WK 4, 1 set of 3, 175*2, 185*1+
	Dead 395lb WK 4, 1 set of 3, 420*2, 440*1+

Progression Guide for WK4 -			0= repeat
			1= repeat
			2= +5lb
			3= +10lb
			4= +15lb
			5 =+15lb

You can see that it's a 4 week cycle. If you wanted, you could modify it into an 8 week cycle or 12 week cycle. Although extending it very far might require additional tweaks to the program/pattern. It's important to keep track of your progress. For example, if you overestimate your PRs, you could end up injured for weeks by being too destructive on your body. Likewise, if you underestimate your PR, you'll at least have consistency of exercise, but you would be spinning your wheels a bit, and leaving the uncharted waters of higher strength and more muscle mass until you get closer to your actual PRs.

On the 4th week, the intensity is ramped up to 100%, and for as many reps as possible. If you do 2 reps of your 100%, you add +5lb to your PR - so if you had a 300lb Squat, and did 2 reps on Week 4, you'd up it to 305lb for the cycle.

Speaking of being destructive to the body, if you commit fully to a weight lifting program/routine, which you should be, and start experiencing joint pains, shoulders aching, knees aching, etc. or heavy muscle soreness that's not going away, you may be experiencing 'overreaching'. This is the subtle more minor version of being overtrained. It's a common misnomer to assume you're overtrained when the going gets tough, but being truly overtrained is a state where you're already suffering from the consequences, and have lost strength. Lifting weights is basically about overreaching consistently. By introducing a high workload to your body, the body must become stronger to handle the new more demanding workload.

And so, when you're feeling beat up, don't assume you're overtrained, and instead attempt to do what I would call 'rehabbing'. This is where the multitude of devices and techniques come into play to help the body recover faster - this includes foam rolling, yoga, stretching, the six Tibetan Rites, and/or whatever else you do to recover, which can also include consuming more calories, acquiring more sleep, and drinking more water.

You can run this weight lifting routine or method on any lift, but I advise against doing it with too low of a weight because the percentages will be too close to each other (things like 85%-90% could be the same weight number). So in that instance, I would modify the percentages to have more variation. And lastly I advise against doing this method with too many lifts at the same time. For example, I've attempted doing this with bench press and an overhead press, and found the two to be too conflicting, and my shoulders couldn't recover fast enough. Good luck, and stay on a program.