Friday, November 1, 2013

The Journey To Super Muscle

           We all share a certain journey in our lives, our journey starts usually when we’re born but also there is a journey where it’s not always where you’ll go in life, it could be something you want to go after. In the case of strength training, some of us in the Physical Culture world are on a journey to create Super Muscle. What is Super Muscle you might ask? Is it having a big burly body like a Mr. Olympia? Is it having the body of a Powerlifter or is it having a body that can do all sorts of things? That is entirely up to you and what your goals are. To me, Super Muscle is having a strong, powerful and enduring body and learning to use it in many ways like lifting heavy weights, doing tough bodyweight exercises kind of similar to a Gymnast and doing high octane conditioning using various tools and programs that keeps you functional and channeling your inner power.

            There are people who say because of a certain age or genetics; they can’t build a great deal of muscle mass. Not true. Sure you may not look like another Arnold Schwarzenegger or Ronnie Coleman but you can build good solid and mighty muscle. Back in the golden age of Physical Culture there were men and women who at first were sickly, weak, overweight, and thin down to the bone but somehow managed to build crazy amounts of muscle and this was long before steroids and high level supplements became the stuff to build muscle. To give you an example, a man named Maxick who was a sick kid, didn't have a chance in hell in his youth to live a long and healthy life yet persevered and became a legend in weightlifting and bodybuilding by becoming one of the first men in his weight class (145 lbs.) to lift double bodyweight in the overhead press and was able to control the muscles in his body to move any which way he wanted. No matter what your age or by genetics big or small, you can create great muscle.

            In my opinion, Functional Muscle is far superior to today’s Bodybuilding type muscle. By functional I mean using your body to levels where it’s useful and can be used in a variety of everyday situations. Bodybuilding muscle is isolating specific parts of the body and not being able to use it in most everyday situations. Take for example my friend Bud Jeffries, one of the strongest men in the world (drug-free I might add) who’s around 6’1 and over 275 lbs. yet when you first look at him he doesn't look like the functional type of strongman but yet he’s extremely agile for his size, very agile and one of the most conditioned athletes of any size. He is one of the embodiments of Super Muscle.

            On your journey to develop Super Muscle, remember to work with other attributes because just building muscle isn’t always going to cut it. Learn to be agile, work on flexibility, build your balance and very importantly exercise your tendons an ligaments, they are the very foundation for your Super Muscle development otherwise you’re building useless muscles that can bite you in the ass. Here’s some ways to build Super Muscle…..



Do Hard Bodyweight Exercises

Learn Muscle Control

Be Flexible

Do Thick Bar Lifting (Fat Gripz are optional to put on the bar or dumbbell)

Self Resistance Exercise

            All of these are very useful and you don’t have to do all of them, pick what works for you and run with it. Building Super Muscle isn't some thing you can get overnight, it takes time but you don’t have to punish yourself. Have fun, use your imagination and be creative. Your results will come when you make progress a little each time to make big gains. Do what works for you and have a blast with it. It’s only a matter of time before you achieve levels of strength you never believed at first but now are in your grasp.


            Picture yourself getting there, be mindful and get into the habit on never giving up what you want.

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