Since I started The Thor Challenge last November, I've packed on 30 lbs. (which puts me at 170), but lost an inch off my waist. This is a very, very good thing, for it's adding to the pitch of my V-taper, i.e., broad upper body tapering toward a narrow waist like the letter "V."
How the human body works blows my mind.
Gaining muscle while simultaneously losing fat is the great challenge and paradox of weight training. Professional bodybuilders can weigh well over 200 pounds but still have 30-inch midsections.
Gaining muscle while simultaneously losing fat is the great challenge and paradox of weight training. Professional bodybuilders can weigh well over 200 pounds but still have 30-inch midsections.
How do they do this?
The first secret is diet. Increased protein intake is perhaps the most vital element in the equation since it not only builds muscle, it burns fat. (Conversely, bodybuilders limit their sugar consumption, because it metabolizes as fat. This includes fruit.)
The second secret is muscle tissue is much, much denser than fat.
The first secret is diet. Increased protein intake is perhaps the most vital element in the equation since it not only builds muscle, it burns fat. (Conversely, bodybuilders limit their sugar consumption, because it metabolizes as fat. This includes fruit.)
The second secret is muscle tissue is much, much denser than fat.
The third secret is bodybuilders burn fat while sitting still.
You read that right: Muscles that are consistently stimulated—meaning exercised regularly—remain in a state of contraction. This steady compression burns calories 24/7. (Since I exercise almost daily, that means I'm working out as I type this!)
With this in mind, it now makes sense that even though I've nearly doubled the amount of food I typically eat, I've only increased my body weight by 20 percent and have a smaller waist.
Since we now know how bodybuilders keep their waistlines in check, let's examine the other element to the coveted V-taper equation: the back.
Expanding your back starts with lat pulldowns (fig. 1), wide-grip chin-ups (fig. 2), one-arm rows (fig. 3), my beloved seated rows, and plenty of deadlifts.
You read that right: Muscles that are consistently stimulated—meaning exercised regularly—remain in a state of contraction. This steady compression burns calories 24/7. (Since I exercise almost daily, that means I'm working out as I type this!)
With this in mind, it now makes sense that even though I've nearly doubled the amount of food I typically eat, I've only increased my body weight by 20 percent and have a smaller waist.
Since we now know how bodybuilders keep their waistlines in check, let's examine the other element to the coveted V-taper equation: the back.
Expanding your back starts with lat pulldowns (fig. 1), wide-grip chin-ups (fig. 2), one-arm rows (fig. 3), my beloved seated rows, and plenty of deadlifts.
fig. 1 | fig. 2 |
fig. 3
A lot of people are reluctant to incorporate deadlifts into their workout due to risk of spinal injury and those who include them are oftentimes overly cautious, meaning they put so little weight on the bar they wind up doing more aerobic than anaerobic exercise, which defeats the purpose. The back muscles—just like any other—have to be stressed in order to grow. How much weight is recommended?
The average male is able to deadlift 133 percent of his body weight. After that, it's all a matter of gradually developing the muscles. This is how I got my back looking the way it does.
The average male is able to deadlift 133 percent of his body weight. After that, it's all a matter of gradually developing the muscles. This is how I got my back looking the way it does.
Count 'em: That's a 45, two 35s, and a 25 ( x 2) + 45 lb. bar = 325 lbs.
(191 percent of my body weight)
(191 percent of my body weight)
Before we get started, I want to preface this segment by stating, Yes, 325 lbs. sounds impressive to the average person and, even by developmental standards, I'm (slightly) ahead of the curve. However, readers need to keep a couple of things in mind:
To put this into perspective, the 1RM expectation for Navy SEALs is 175 percent of their body weight (150 percent over five reps).* I did 191 percent fives times in a row for the video shoot. Hoisting that bad boy that many times means I'm theoretically capable—but don't dare risk injury—of hefting 365 pounds, or 215 percent of my body weight, once and only once.
But, again, the poundage isn't the point. As I discussed a few weeks prior, it's all about the muscle development; the weight is merely a means to an end.
I will admit, however, as Thor 2.0, I'm glad to see I'm keeping pace with another superhero-in-training, Deadpool's buddy Cable. (Brolin is doing 315 lb. Romanian deadlifts, which is lifting the bar off a rack located just below the knees.)
- Of the three compound exercises—bench press, squat, and deadlift—this is the only one where being taller than the average bodybuilder is an advantage. Lanky people are leverage machines.
- As previously mentioned, my back is the most developed part of my physique.
To put this into perspective, the 1RM expectation for Navy SEALs is 175 percent of their body weight (150 percent over five reps).* I did 191 percent fives times in a row for the video shoot. Hoisting that bad boy that many times means I'm theoretically capable—but don't dare risk injury—of hefting 365 pounds, or 215 percent of my body weight, once and only once.
But, again, the poundage isn't the point. As I discussed a few weeks prior, it's all about the muscle development; the weight is merely a means to an end.
I will admit, however, as Thor 2.0, I'm glad to see I'm keeping pace with another superhero-in-training, Deadpool's buddy Cable. (Brolin is doing 315 lb. Romanian deadlifts, which is lifting the bar off a rack located just below the knees.)
* - Strength evaluation--when determining 1RM--factors in diminishing returns, meaning it accounts for a person getting weaker with each successive repetition, i.e., The reason 150 x 5 = 750 / 5 equals 175, not the mathematically accurate average of 150.
#ThorChallenge #BeYourOwnSuperhero #Bodybuilding #VTaper #Progress #Diet #Protein #Sugar #Fruit #Fat #Muscle #LatPulldowns #OneArmRows #Deadlift #CutlerAthletics #NavySEALs #Deadpool #Cable #JoshBrolin
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