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IFBB Pro League bodybuilder Jamie Christian (also known as “The Giant”) is slated to compete in the 2022 Yamamoto Nutrition Pro Show in Milan, Italy on Sunday, Sept. 11th. The 6’5” bodybuilder claims to be the tallest Men’s Open pro in the world. Clearly, it takes a lot of food to keep a man his size training and prepared for competition.
Christian posted a video of his YouTube channel, filmed on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022, that featured his “refeed day” as part of his prep for the upcoming contest. He is working under the guidance of retired competitor and current coach Milos Sarcev.
In the beginning of the video, Christian explained that after being in a calorie deficit for nearly 15 weeks, this particular day of eating couldn’t have come at a better time.
“(The body) needs it,” he said to the camera. He went on to say that, in order to eat all those calories, it would take eight total meals throughout the day, as well as a workout shake that would have 150 grams of carbohydrates on its own.
Christian would later say that, with less than two weeks to go before the contest, he is still over 300 pounds and felt he was in the best shape of his life. He documented the entire day’s worth of food in the video. The individual meals, amounts (when explained), and approximate times (when given) were as follows.
Meal One (4:00a.m.): 150 grams of oats, 150 grams of banana, 65 grams of whey protein, 30 grams of peanut butter
Meal Two (6:30 a.m.): 100 grams of rice, 150 grams of turkey, 100 grams of banana, courgette (zucchini)
Meal Three, Pre-Workout: (Amounts of food not specified) Cream of rice, banana, blueberries, whey isolate, two Rice Krispies Treats, one cup of coffee
Workout: Pre-workout drink (75 grams of carbs), BCAA and essential amino acid shake
Meal Four, Post-Workout (3:00p.m.): (Not all amounts specified) Lucky Charms cereal, 50 grams of whey isolate
Meal Five (4:00p.m.): (Not all amounts specified) Rice cakes, turkey, rice, banana, courgette (zucchini)
Meal Six: 150 grams of oats, blueberries, one rice cake, whey protein
Meal Seven: (Not shown on video) 100 grams of rice, 150 grams of turkey, 100 grams of banana
Meal Eight (9:00p.m.): 100 grams of rice, 150 grams of turkey, 100 grams of banana
Meal Nine: 200 grams of ground beef, 20 grams of almond butter, 150 grams of oats, 100 grams of banana
Approximate Total: 7,000 calories, 360 grams of protein, 1,250 grams of carbs, 35 grams of fat
At the end of the video, Christian pulled up his shirt and showed the camera his abs. He discussed that his stomach was still flat and defined because the food he ate didn’t cause bloating or indigestion, in part because fat intake was kept low in every meal except the last.
I don’t even feel like I’ve eaten anything today.
Earlier in the video, he also theorized that keeping protein relatively low and walking for 10-minutes multiple times throughout the day improved his overall digestion.
When he competes in Italy, Christian will be looking for his first professional win as well as his first qualification to the Mr. Olympia contest, which is scheduled to take place the weekend of Dec. 16-18, 2022 in Las Vegas, NV.
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At 19 years of age, Agata Sitko has enjoyed a terrific 2022 season on the competitive lifting platform. Her latest output at the 2022 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Sub-Junior and Junior Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4, 2022, is another impressive notch in the Polish athlete’s strength belt.
Sitko broke the raw bench press IPF world record in the 84-kilogram division with a 147.5-kilogram (325.2-pound) press. While Sitko’s figure came during a Sub-Junior and Juniors competition, it is a new all-time IPF world record for all age groups in her weight class.
Sitko ranked first overall in the 84-kilogram Juniors category. Here’s an overview of each of Sitko’s top raw stats from this contest, including a competition personal record (PR) in the deadlift:
2022 IPF World Classic Junior Championships | Agata Sitko (84KG)
Note: Sitko typically competes in the 76-kilogram division. Of her 13 sanctioned meets at the time of this article’s publication, nine were at 76 kilograms.
Even moving up a weight class, Sitko made seemingly effortless work of the previous bench press record. The Polish athlete’s new world record bench press surpassed Daniella Melo’s top mark from the 2021 IPF World Classic Championships by 10.5 kilograms (23.1 pounds).
Had Sitko stayed at76 kilograms, she would’ve surpassed her bench press record in that division by a smaller 2.5-kilogram (5.5-pound) margin.
Versatility on Display
In a year full of records and achievements, Sitko has staked a claim as a powerlifter to keep a keen eye on. For example, in seven 2022 contest appearances, Sitko won on six occasions. Sitko broke five equipped world records at the 2022 European Junior Championships in early May. She then eclipsed some of her marks with three new equipped world records at the 2022 World Games in mid-July.
Not many athletes can say they own the IPF raw total (585 kilograms (1,289.7 pounds)) and equipped world records (726 kilograms (1,600.56 pounds)) in the same division. Yet, according to the IPF database, that’s precisely the position Sitko sits in with her past accomplishments as a 76-kilogram competitor.
Note: With a 704.5-kilogram (1,553.1.pound) total from the European Championships, Sitko also possesses the IPF equipped total world record in the 84-kilogram weight class.
While it’s unclear what the next steps are for Sitko, it seems evident she’s pushing the petal to the barbell metal. Even as the leaves turn orange and the nights grow colder as fall approaches, it may not be long before the powerlifter adds another record to her resume.
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French powerlifter Samantha Eugenie is now the IPF World Junior Record holder in the raw deadlift for the 63-kilogram category. On Aug. 31, 2022, Eugenie pulled 216 kilograms (476.28 pounds) at the 2022 IPF World Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. You can see the lift in the Instagram post below, shared by the IPF.
Weighing in at 62.7 kilograms (138.2 pounds), Eugenie lifted in a sumo stance and used a mixed grip while wearing a singlet and a weight belt when she made the successful attempt. She went three for three on the deadlift, having pulled 200 kilograms (441 pounds) and 210.5 kilograms (464 pounds).
As of this writing, she is 11.5 kilograms (25 pounds) away from the all-time junior world record in the deadlift. Jordanne Panton pulled 227.5 kilograms (501.6 pounds) at the 2021 USAPL Europa Dallas Showdown meet.
Overall, Eugenie went eight for nine on the day, with her only miss being her second attempt at the squat with 172.5 kilograms (380 pounds), which she cleaned up on her third attempt. She went on to win the 63-kilogram world junior championship at the meet.
Samantha Eugenie (63KG) | All-Time Raw Competition Bests
Squat – 172.5 kilograms (380.3 pounds)
Bench Press – 105 kilograms (231.5 pounds)
Deadlift – 216 kilograms (476.2 pounds)
Total – 493.5 kilograms (1,088 pounds)
According to Open Powerlifting, this was the 20-year-old’s tenth powerlifting meet. The deadlift and bench press lifts are personal records as well. She was 10 kilograms short of her best squat effort. On May 14, 2022, Eugenie successfully squatted 182.5 kilograms (402.3 pounds) at the FFForce French Youth Athletic Strength Championships.
Eugenie may have been wearing the gold medal at the end of the meet, but she wasn’t satisfied with how her day went.
“To be honest I’m not proud of my performance. I did a lower total than my last comp and I know why. I will work harder for it to not happen again,” she wrote in the caption of her Instagram post. “I’m not proud of my total but I’m proud of the title and the journey to this day.”
As of this writing, there is no official word on when Eugenie will compete again. If she doesn’t compete again, then this record will cap off a year that also saw her break four junior world records at the French Nationals in May.
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Malik Bernoussi Triolet has been a competitive powerlifter for just over four years. In that time, the 18-year-old French athlete has had his moments, but perhaps never one that put him “on the map.” That may no longer be an issue.
During the 2022 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Sub-Junior and Junior Championships, Triolet broke three raw Sub-Junior IPF World Records in the back squat, bench press, and total in the 93-kilogram weight class. He also captured a competition personal record (PR) on his best deadlift.
These respective stats were enough to vault Triolet to first place in his class. The contest featuring other young competitors like Triolet took place in Istanbul, Turkey, from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4, 2022. Here’s a rundown of Triolet’s top stats from his performance:
2022 IPF World Classic Sub-Junior Championships | Malik Bernoussi Triolet (93KG)
Squat — 282 kilograms (621.7 pounds) | Sub-Junior IPF World Record
Bench Press — 200.5 kilograms (442 pounds) | Sub-Junior IPF World Record
Total — 775 kilograms (1,708.6 pounds) | Sub-Junior IPF World Record
Because Triolet’s new bench press record surpassed his previous mark, the French athlete is now the first 93-kilogram Sub-Junior IPF athlete to press at least 200 kilograms (440.9 pounds). Triolet’s past best bench press was a 193-kilogram (425.5-pound) mark from the 2021 European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) European Classic Powerlifting Championships.
Meanwhile, Triolet’s squat record exceeded Jaime Santillana Izquierdo’s previous world record by 8.5 kilograms (18.7 pounds). As for the staggering total, Triolet eclipsed Jack Hopkins, who logged a 752.5-kilogram (1,659-pound) total at the 2021 EPF European Classic Championships.
Here’s an overview of some of the more notable results from Triolet’s career, who has only ever competed raw:
Malik Bernoussi Triolet (Sub-Juniors) | Notable Career Results
2018 Fédération Française de Force (FFForce) Premier Pas FA PL LAURAF (66KG) — First place/First career victory
2019 FFForce Challenge d’Hiver FA PL LAURAF (74KG) — First place
2020 FFForce Test Match Eleiko (83KG) — Fourth place
2021 IPF World Classic Powerlifting Championships (93KG) — Second place
2022 IPF World Classic Sub-Junior and Junior Powerlifting Championships (93KG) — First place
According to Open Powerlifting, Triolet has competed in 12 sanctioned contests since October 2018. He has four victories to his name. Triolet has finished off the podium on only three occasions and can now boast of his first career victory in a major international competition.
At the time of this writing, Triolet hasn’t made any formal indications toward an upcoming strength competition. That said, at 18 years old and already the owner of a world title, the sky is the limit for one of French powerlifting’s next stars.
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Mention the triceps kickback in certain lifting circles and you might generate some side eye looks of disappointment or even a bit of mocking laughter. This short-sighted response comes from the exercise’s unfortunate and unfair reputation of being ineffective, or being performed only by people with “less-than-serious” goals.
The dumbbell kickback was once a staple of bodybuilding’s Golden Era from the 1950s to the ’70s. However, its popularity in ’80s mainstream fitness classes diluted its muscle-building connection and it began to be performed with extremely light weights for extremely high repetitions. “To tone up without building bulk” was the popular, if misguided, logic.
Credit: Reshetnikov_art / Shutterstock
Regardless of the misinformation, the triceps kickback is a very effective tool to target the biggest arm muscle — the triceps. The triceps are also a key muscle for performance through many upper body exercises. So forget what you might’ve heard about the exercise and learn the real reasons why you should include this exercise in your training regimen.
The basic single-arm dumbbell triceps kickback is an isolation (single-joint) exercise that focuses solely on triceps development. It’s a great way to emphasize peak contraction of the muscle.
Step 1 — Set Up in the Starting Position
Credit: BAZA Production / Shutterstock
Stand in front of something sturdy, like a rack or a bench. Hold one dumbbell and get into a wide stance. Bend your knees slightly and lean forward at the hips while keeping a neutral spine. Aim to have your torso almost parallel to the floor. Place your free hand on the rack or bench for maximum balance and stability.
Pull your working arm up so your elbow is near your ribs and pinned close to your body. Let your forearm hang perpendicular to the floor with your palm facing in toward your body. Don’t look up or forward. Keep your head in line with your spine and your chin slightly tucked in.
Form tip: Flaring your elbow away from your body will only encourage cheating to move more weight and potentially strain your elbow joint. Keep your upper arm glued to your side. This is not an exercise to move super-heavy weight. Keep the load relatively light to ensure impeccable form.
Step 2 — Reach a Peak Contraction
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Brace your core and exhale while flexing your triceps until your arm is completely straight. Squeeze at the top for a second to feel a maximum peak contraction. Your lower arm should be the only thing moving. This is an isolation exercise, so focus on only working the triceps.
Your hand, and the dumbbell, should pivot around your elbow. Treat your elbow like a hinge. No other part of your body should move.
Form tip: Be sure to reach full extension with each rep. In the top position, your entire arm should be nearly parallel to the ground. Because gravity offers minimal resistance against the weight in the bottom part of the movement, it’s essential to use a full range of motion and emphasize the contraction.
Step 3 — Return to the Stretched Position
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
Slowly come back to the starting position while inhaling. Again, only your forearm should move. Pause very briefly in the bottom position to avoid quickly swinging the weight down and up.
Sure, momentum might allow you to move more weight, but you will diminish the range of motion and the time under tension — both crucial for muscle mass. Swinging the weight will also put more stress on the elbow joint. More joint strain with less muscle-building is not a great bargain.
Form tip: Start each set with your weaker or non-dominant side so you have more energy and more focus. Perform all repetitions and then match the same number of repetitions with your stronger arm, even if one side is capable of more reps. This will help to balance common strength or development discrepancies between left and right arms.
Triceps Kickback Mistakes to Avoid
This exercise can be prone to bad execution because it requires light weights, so a lifter can sometimes lose focus. Learn about the most common errors and how to avoid them.
Swinging the Weight
Let’s be real for a second: cheating a few reps at the end of a session won’t smite you instantly. It can sometimes even be beneficial, for experienced lifters using it as a deliberate intensity-boosting technique. But for the vast majority of people, you should avoid cheating and swinging the weight with kickbacks or nearly any exercise.
Credit: lunamarina / Shutterstock
If you swing and cheat, you will only actually work your triceps through a very short portion of the range of motion, and the exercise will provide a limited triceps-building stimulus. Moreover, this will result in more stress to the elbow joint and you don’t want to develop tendonitis — that’s the best way to keep having small arms.
Avoid it: Make sure you control the eccentric (lowering the weight), and even pause for a dead-stop at the bottom briefly. If you focus on only moving your forearm, you basically cannot cheat. If your elbow moves, you’ve started doing a dumbbell row, not a triceps kickback.
Not Locking Out Your Arm
If you don’t completely extend your arms and squeeze your triceps in a hard lockout, you lose most of the benefits of this exercise because of the resistance curve. At the start of the lift, there is almost no resistance at all because the dumbbell isn’t directly moving against gravity. The hardest part of the exercise is in the shortened range when the muscle is contracted.
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
If you don’t lockout, which can happen if you try using too much weight, then you don’t really work your triceps’ most challenging part of the range of motion. That ends up making the exercise easier and less efficient for muscle growth.
Avoid it: Make sure you use a proper weight that allows you to fully lockout your arm. If you can’t pause at the top for a second, the weight is too much.
Benefits of the Triceps Kickback
Even though the exercise is often overlooked and disrespected, the triceps kickback has unique benefits for your triceps training and will help you get bigger, stronger arms.
Muscle Growth
This exercise is focused on directly training the triceps, specifically for hypertrophy (muscle growth). Indeed, this exercise thrives with lighter weight and a longer time under tension, which is a great way to build muscle and create an aesthetic physique. (1)
Credit: Bojan656 / Shutterstock
Moreover, as an isolation exercise, it is the perfect fit for developing a mind-muscle connection and accumulating triceps-specific volume without taxing other muscle groups, which are both beneficial for muscle growth. (2)(3)
Pressing Strength
Triceps strength, and the pushing pattern in general, are involved in many sports like volleyball, American football, combat sports, etc. And let’s not forget strength sports like powerlifting.
Sure, the triceps kickback won’t create pure neurological strength like training the heavy bench press or overhead press, but building larger triceps muscles can eventually improve strength. (4) So if you’re interested in performance, fit this into your accessory training.
Training the Shortened Range
Many triceps exercises such as skull crushers emphasize the lengthened range of motion and stress the stretched position. The triceps kickback, on the other hand, focuses on the shortened or contracted portion. Because of its resistance curve, the exercise is relatively easy in the stretched position and much more challenging in the peak contraction.
This can provide a novel stimulus, help develop a stronger mind-muscle connection, and unlock new gains, because training variety can be better for motivation and hypertrophy in itself. (5)
Easy on the Elbows
The triceps kickback can be invaluable for experienced lifters with cranky joints. Because the upper arm is in a higher position than the forearm, and joint isn’t being strained through the entire range of motion, the elbow can move more freely without significant stress.
If you have nagging pain in your elbows, shoulders, or wrists, or if you’re prone to tendonitis, make the kickback appear regularly in your training plan.
Muscles Worked by the Triceps Kickback
The aim of the exercise is to train your triceps, but some postural muscle will be recruited as well to hold the position.
Triceps Brachii
This is the biggest arm muscle and the main target of the kickback. It is made of three heads. Two of them (the medial and the lateral head) go from the elbow to the humerus (upper arm bone). These are responsible for extending the arm.
Credit: nkotlyar / Shutterstock
The long head also extends the arm, but because it is attached to the scapula, it also extends the shoulder and raises the arm. Because the upper arm is positioned alongside the torso, the triceps kickback emphasizes the lateral and medial heads.
Back
The whole back — upper back, lats, and lower back — work to maintain a parallel body position and stabilize the working arm during the kickback. The back’s involvement should be limited to the muscles working statically to hold your body’s position without movement.
However, if the kickback is performed improperly, the back muscles (specifically the upper back and lats) may become more significantly recruited, drawing muscular stress away from the triceps.
Who Should Do the Triceps Kickback
The goal of the kickback is to add meat onto your triceps. So if you’re looking for bigger, stronger arms — like plenty of people in the gym — you can include this lift in your training regimen.
Beginners
Some people advise that beginners to avoid single-joint exercises and focus primarily on the big basics (multi-joint compound lifts like presses). This is generally sound advice, but isolation work can also have benefits for newer lifters.
By improving the mind-muscle connection with specific muscles, they can feel that muscle work more effectively, which leads to better growth and body awareness. Exercises like the triceps kickback also help to directly train muscles which may be under-worked when compound exercises are overemphasized.
Physique Enthusiasts
Whether your goal is to look better or to compete in a physique show, the triceps kickback is a perfect fit. Performing this exercise allows you to increase triceps volume without fatiguing other muscle groups, leading to focused muscle growth.
This is very valuable, for instance, if you lack overall arm development, or if you need to create a balanced and symmetrical physique by correcting muscular imbalances.
Strength Athletes
If you’re an athlete that requires pressing strength such as a powerlifter, strongman/strongwoman, or CrossFit athlete, then triceps training is essential. Including the triceps kickback can be surprisingly effective for strength athletes.
The relatively light weight and high muscular tension allows them to increase triceps training volume without aggravating their elbows, which are usually already beaten up by heavy lifting.
How to Program the Triceps Kickback
The kickback is a single-joint exercise and as such, it is not ideal for moving heavy weights because additional muscles will be excessively recruited. The kickback is most effective using moderate to light weight to stimulate muscle growth and zero-in on working the triceps.
Moderate Weight, Moderate Repetitions
The time-tested bodybuilding scheme of three to four sets of 10 to 12 repetitions will be your kickback bread and butter. This is a very efficient way of increasing volume leading to muscle growth.
Light Weight, High Reps
This exercise can really shine with higher reps because of its resistance curve, cumulative time under tension, and its low impact on the joints. Performing two to four sets of 15 to 20 repetitions can serve as an amazing finisher to really scorch your triceps. It can also be a great way to start your arm workout by really warming-up your elbow joints.
Triceps Kickback Variations
The single-arm dumbbell kickback is a great exercise in itself, but you can tweak it to better suit your goals or provide a different feeling. Here are the main kickback variations.
Cable Triceps Kickback
Instead of using dumbbells, use a cable. Instead of attaching a handle, grab the cable by the “ball” at the end, just above the cable clip. This allows you to keep a neutral hand position without straining your wrists.
The exercise may not seem like much because of the relatively lighter weight, but the cable provides constant tension through the lift, even more than using a dumbbell. This stimulates the triceps throughout the entire range of motion, which will increase the time under tension and lead to improved muscle growth.
Pronated Kickback
This subtle variation was popularized by bodybuilding coach John Meadows. Using a pronated (palms-down) grip will emphasize the medial head of the triceps. Using two dumbbells at once also changes the total-body stability requirement.
Because your forearm is slightly rotated, this variation will also address forearm and wrist health. You can even perform a type of superset, beginning with reps of pronated kickbacks and then immediately transitioning to standard neutral-grip kickbacks.
Two-Arm Dumbbell Kickback
This variation is pretty straight-forward: Perform the standard triceps kickback with both arms at the same time. This will slightly decrease the weight you can lift because the muscle focus is “divided” between both arms.
This variation also requires more work from your core, back, and legs to stabilize yourself because you don’t have a free hand to brace on an outside support.
Triceps Kickback Alternatives
If you’re still not convinced to incorporate kickbacks, here are some alternatives that will share similar benefits to spice up your training. Variety will challenge the muscles differently, promoting new muscle growth.
Triceps Pushdown
If you’ve got access to a cable station, you can perform this fundamental exercise. The triceps pushdown, sometimes called a pressdown, emphasizes the peak contraction and isn’t very stressful on the elbow joints.
Use an attachment that allows you to extend your arms completely — a rope handle is often most effective. As with the kickback, be sure to keep your arms close to your body and only move your hands and forearms without swinging your elbows.
Decline Dumbbell Skull Crusher
The standard flat bench skull crusher is an effective exercise, but using a decline bench gives it a twist to focus more on the medial and lateral heads of the triceps. The arm angle doesn’t provide as much stretch or long head stimulation, but can offer more tension in the top position.
Using a pair of dumbbells allows your arms to move freely and reduce strain on your wrist and elbow joints, compared to performing the exercise the a barbell or EZ-curl bar.
Overhead Dumbbell Extension
If you want to emphasize the long head of the triceps, this variation is for you. Performing triceps extension with your arms extended above your shoulders will focus more on the lengthened range and will significantly recruit the long head because it’s involved in raising the arm.
Because this movement emphasizes the stretched position, be sure your elbows and shoulders are thoroughly warmed up. It’s not an ideal first-exercise in your triceps workout, but it can be a key player in building larger arms.
FAQs
Do I have to train my arms directly?
It depends on a few variable. If you’re a short-limbed lifter, your arms will probably be significantly stimulated with compound exercises like the bench press, overhead press, rows, and pulldowns. But if you’re dealing with long arms, you should train them directly because your leverage on big lifts is different and the biceps and triceps are often under-stimulated in those movements.
Ultimately, if you’re interested in having bigger arms, it’s a good idea to include at least some direct training, especially if you’re a more advanced lifter. If you’re a competitive athlete, you should skip direct arm training in-season and keep that energy for your sport-specific training. Accumulating too much training volume can cause burnouts, stagnation, or even regression.
I can’t stop my elbow from flaring. Why is that?
The first culprit could be weight. If the dumbbell is too heavy, flaring your elbow out will recruit extra muscles (in your back and shoulders) to help lift the load, but it’s at the potential detriment of your joints and it will reduce triceps activation.
If you’re certain that you can control the weight, it could be a matter of mobility. If your upper back or shoulder mobility is compromised, it will result in protruded, forward-pointing shoulders that prevent you from keeping your elbows close to you. You should include a mobility routine in your workouts with exercises like band pull-aparts and wall slides.
Let’s Get Pumping
The triceps kickback’s bad reputation is unfair and unfounded. Don’t let any misinformed knee-jerk reactions or cliches steer you away from this classic arm-builder. It’s a versatile movement that lets you hit your tris with light weight, high tension, and minimal joint strain. It’s definitely time to remind today’s gyms that kickbacks are for serious lifters.
References
Burd NA, Andrews RJ, West DW, Little JP, Cochran AJ, Hector AJ, Cashaback JG, Gibala MJ, Potvin JR, Baker SK, Phillips SM. Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. J Physiol. 2012 Jan 15;590(2):351-62. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200. Epub 2011 Nov 21. PMID: 22106173; PMCID: PMC3285070.
Calatayud J, Vinstrup J, Jakobsen MD, Sundstrup E, Brandt M, Jay K, Colado JC, Andersen LL. Importance of mind-muscle connection during progressive resistance training. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2016 Mar;116(3):527-33. doi: 10.1007/s00421-015-3305-7. Epub 2015 Dec 23. PMID: 26700744.
Schoenfeld BJ, Contreras B, Krieger J, Grgic J, Delcastillo K, Belliard R, Alto A. Resistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy but Not Strength in Trained Men. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2019 Jan;51(1):94-103. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001764. PMID: 30153194; PMCID: PMC6303131.
Reggiani C, Schiaffino S. Muscle hypertrophy and muscle strength: dependent or independent variables? A provocative review. Eur J Transl Myol. 2020 Sep 9;30(3):9311. doi: 10.4081/ejtm.2020.9311. PMID: 33117512; PMCID: PMC7582410.
Baz-Valle E, Schoenfeld BJ, Torres-Unda J, Santos-Concejero J, Balsalobre-Fernández C. The effects of exercise variation in muscle thickness, maximal strength and motivation in resistance trained men. PLoS One. 2019 Dec 27;14(12):e0226989. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0226989. PMID: 31881066; PMCID: PMC6934277.
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IFBB Pro League bodybuilder and 2022 Texas Pro champion Andrew Jacked was once a training partner of multi-strength-sport athlete Larry Wheels. The duo reunited recently to train shoulders and biceps together, and Jacked shared a video of the session on Aug. 30, 2022 on his YouTube channel. The video can be seen below.
The location of the video wasn’t shared in the video, but a recent Instagram post that Jacked shared about the workout tagged Binous Gym in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In the beginning of the YouTube video, Wheels joked that he could remember being bigger than Jacked when they previously trained together in 2019 and 2020.
Jacked began the session with cable lateral raises, taking his arms up into a “Y” formation. The extra range of motion targets the rear delts as well as the side delts.
Rear Lateral Raise on Incline Bench/Single-Dumbbell Two-Arm Front Raise
Wheels and Jacked then moved on to a superset performed on an incline bench. They started with rear lateral raises with dumbbells followed by a front raise with one dumbbell held in both hands. Portions of the workout weren’t shown on camera.
The weight of the dumbbells that they used for the first exercise wasn’t shown, but they were lifting a 30-kilogram (66-pound) weight for the second movement. Both men raised the back pad of the adjustable bench for the front raises in order to achieve a greater range of motion.
Seated Machine Press/Cable Upright Row
They performed another superset pairing that included machine presses and cable upright rows. Jacked briefly spoke to the camera and explained that he called this session ‘a maintenance workout.’
“I don’t want to push anything to the max at this point,” he said. “We’re just keeping everything the same.”
Dumbbell Lateral Raise
The final shoulder exercise was a standing lateral raise with 20-kilogram (44-pound) dumbbells. Only one set from each man was shown on the video.
Standing Cable Curl
After six total shoulder exercises, Jacked and Wheels shifted to biceps, starting with cable curls using individual handles on two pulleys. They stepped forward so each arm would be behind their torso at the beginning of the movement. This worked the biceps from a different angle and added a stretch at the bottom of the movement.
Cable Rope Hammer Curl
The final movement of the session was another cable exercise, but with a different attachment — using the rope handle and performing a hammer curl to target the brachialis and forearms. The weight they used couldn’t be seen. They maintained a consistent speed throughout their sets without pausing too much at the top or the bottom.
Jacked won the Texas Pro on Aug. 13, 2022, and he earned a qualification for the Mr. Olympia contest, which will take place Dec. 16-18 in Las Vegas, NV. Before he competes in the Olympia, he plans to take part in the 2022 Arnold Classic UK contest. That show will be held on the weekend of Sept. 23-25, 2022 in Birmingham, England.
The stereotype of a typical college student’s diet is pretty grim. Ramen and fast food. Keggers and 2 a.m. pizza. All-nighters fueled by Red Bull and Cool Ranch Doritos®. Mostly tragic dining hall food.
As with most stereotypes, this isn’t an accurate characterization. Oh, there’s plenty of pizza and energy drinks, but college isn’t really the health wasteland it’s made out to be. Many students eat normal meals at normal hours more often than not. They make at least some attempt to choose healthy fare. Dining halls try to present a variety of nutritious options—by conventional standards, not Primal ones, of course, but they do try.
This is to say, it’s entirely possible to eat healthy in college. Granted, we might want to adjust our standards for what “healthy” looks like in this context (occasional all-nighters are better than frequent all-nighters). And even then, it’s not always easy. Kids who live on campus are limited to what they can prepare in cramped dorm rooms and forage from campus dining services. Time is often at a premium. Grocery bills add up, and getting to the grocery store isn’t always easy. Many students simply aren’t prepared for the responsibility of procuring and preparing their own food.
The purpose of today’s post is to share some tips for how to eat healthy in college dining halls or on a budget. Use these ideas as inspiration, but know that you, dear student, don’t have to follow them to a tee to be healthy. We’re not trying to turn you into social pariahs who are unable to enjoy the occasional late-night drive-thru run with friends or movie night with piles of candy and popcorn.
You have youth on your side, so you can probably get away with more excursions than we older folks. Still, good nutrition is vitally important. Your body and brain are still developing, and the rigors of college mean you’re frequently low on sleep and high on stress. Nutrient-dense, satisfying food is one of the ways you can support yourself and, to some degree, offset (or at least not add to) the stressors you can’t control.
How to Make Healthier Food Choices in College
1. Get to know your surroundings.
Finding the best food options at the best prices means shopping around.
Explore the dining hall options. Even if you plan to eat mostly on campus using a meal plan, large universities often have multiple dining halls and minimarts for students. You might discover that the dining hall across campus has far superior breakfast options, but you prefer to stick closer to your dorm for dinner.
Check out the local grocery stores, delis, and markets. See which ones have the best prices. Sign up for club cards and coupon apps. If you’re not thrilled by the offerings, consider ordering periodically from places like Thrive Market or Amazon. Perhaps your roommate or other students on your floor will want to go in on orders together.
Scope out restaurants within walking or biking distance.
Look for farmer’s markets on or near campus. This is one of the best ways to get fresh fruits and vegetables at good prices.
2. Stock your dorm room.
Create a mini-kitchen in your dorm room with a few essential tools to prepare quick meals and snacks. This could include:
Mini-fridge with freezer
Small blender, like a Magic Bullet or Ninja Personal Blender
Microwave
One-cup coffee maker
Basic cooking implements (cutting board, knife)
Plate, bowl, utensils
This simple, compact set-up lets you make all sorts of meals that require little or no cooking—salads, smoothies, soup, protein oatmeal, and more. Many dorms also have shared kitchen spaces. Look to see what kind of appliances and tools they provide and whether there is a refrigerator/freezer you can use.
Keep a selection of groceries on hand that you can turn into a quick breakfast on the go (smoothie bowl, microwave egg bites) or to snack on between classes (trail mix, apple with peanut butter and a cheese stick). Here’s a basic shopping list to get you started:
I still think about the fabulous salad bar in my university’s dining hall where a chef would assemble a killer big-ass salad per student’s exact specifications. The dining hall also had good hot food options, fresh fruit, and, of course, pizza, french fries, giant dispensers of sugary cereal, and Chik Fil-A.
There are always options. Pick the ones that serve you best… most of the time, anyway.
4. Build meals around protein and produce.
When it’s time to eat, think protein and produce first. Try to get a decent serving of protein and at least one vegetable or fruit at every meal. This rule of thumb will help you put together meals that have the nutrients you need.
5. Make time for proper meals.
College life gets hectic, but try to minimize the number of meals you eat while running from one class to the next. Don’t skip breakfast, only to end up famished and grabbing something out of the vending machine at 11 a.m. Eat dinner before sitting down to cram for tomorrow’s exam. Eating in a relaxed, unharried state improves digestion, and keeping regular-ish meal times helps your circadian rhythm.
Speaking of your circadian rhythm, eating too late—and certainly eating in the middle of the night—really messes with your internal clock. The occasional late-night meal probably isn’t a big deal, but it really shouldn’t become an every weekend thing.
6. Eat fish once in a while.
It’s easy to get by on hamburgers, lunchmeat, and chicken fingers, but you need fish for those essential omega-3s. It doesn’t have to be fresh fish. Canned fish—tuna, sardines, salmon, cod livers—are fantastic and easy to keep in your dorm room.
7. Make simple swaps.
Don’t overcomplicate it. Ask for a lettuce wrap instead of a bun. Get grilled chicken fingers instead of fried. Get a side salad instead of tater tots. Opt for a burrito bowl instead of the plate of nachos. Not every time necessarily, but look for obvious chances to make a healthier choice, and take them.
8. Watch the alcohol intake. Coffee too.
This one needs no explanation. Consider the budgetary benefits, as well.
9. Control what you can; don’t worry about the rest.
Eating in the dining halls means ceding some control over ingredients and options. You’re probably not going to be able to avoid seed oils, for example. While not ideal, this isn’t something to stress about. Use avocado oil, olive oil, and butter or ghee when cooking for yourself. Big props if you don’t mind schlepping a bottle of avocado oil salad dressing to the dining hall. But as long as you’re doing the best you can with what’s available, this is a “don’t let perfect be the enemy of good” situation.
The goal isn’t to be a perfect Primal eater, and we definitely don’t want food to be a source of anxiety and misery. What you eat plays a huge role in how you feel, though. Therefore, it behooves you to pay attention to how you’re nourishing your body and to make self-supporting choices more often than not. Instead of thinking about what you “can’t” or “shouldn’t” eat, seek out foods that will help you feel physically well, mentally sharp, and energetic.
Sometimes, the self-supportive choice will be to embrace the social experience of going to the all-you-can-eat buffet with your dorm buddies at 11 p.m. If you do that a few times a week, week in and week out, you’ll feel like hot garbage after a while. Remember the 80/20 principle: strive to make healthier choices most of the time, recognizing that college life is messy and fun and sometimes inherently unhealthy. Just like I’d never suggest that college students must get 8.5 hours of sleep every single night because it wouldn’t be realistic for myriad reasons, I’d never suggest that you must make healthy eating your top priority at every meal. College life isn’t set up for that.
You don’t have to embody the stereotype of an unhealthy college student, though, either. Seek out people who, like you, want to find a good balance between relishing your time at college and also taking care of themselves so they can truly get the most out of every part of the experience.
“Tiny nitpick: One doesn’t “flâneur,” flâneurs (or flâneuses, let’s not exclude people) flânent; you (pl.) flânez.
Putting the grammar-Nazi away… there is so much truth to your thoughts on creating – rather than passively consuming – experience. To me, it’s the difference between men like Sir Hillary and Norgay (truly intrepid souls) and all those tourists who pay to be all but carried up Everest.
That’s not to knock those who follow that set guide rope, it’s still a dangerous and no-doubt memorable time, and I’ve personally never stood on top of the world – it’s just not the same.
Too much planning can kill pristine joy. Adventure with security is a lie. Granted, reckless adventure can simply be stupidity (the first time I saw a hyena in the wild, I tried to pet it – I’m forever grateful that it ran away), but I’d rather live stupid than live boring.”
Originally Posted At: https://breakingmuscle.com/feed/rss
Ab training is not only about aesthetics and making your abs look better. Yes, these workouts will check both of those boxes, but these specialized training plans can also help you understand that your abdominal muscles are highly functional, not just for show.
Credit: I T A L O / Shutterstock
Once you start training them effectively, you can end up looking better, moving better, and feeling better. These workouts may look simple, but don’t be fooled because simple does not mean easy. Get ready to build a midsection that will help you crush any workout and, if needed, anyone.
If you want to get stronger, training your abs is extremely underrated. You might be more focused on heavy squats and deadlifts. While these types of big movements do require abdominal engagement, you’re limited to the amount of direct exposure to properly train those muscles with progressive overload through longer ranges of motion. (1)
To really build serious core and total-body strength, expose your abdominal muscles to a variety of challenges and stimuli when both creating and resisting movement. During compound movements, that happens through the sagittal plane when you are resisting flexion and extension (abdominal bending and straightening) using isometric contractions to create tension.
The Core Strength Workout
This workout exposes your abdominal muscles to unique stresses that aren’t already addressed in your training program. It will challenge your abs to resist and redirect force, as well as overcome direct resistance in different directions. Perform this workout two to three times per week at the end of your other sessions.
Dumbbell Plank Pull-Through
How to Do it: Place one dumbbell on the ground and position yourself at arm’s length to the side. Begin with your hands, knees, and toes on the floor. Set shoulders directly over your wrists and your knees directly under your hips. Keep your arms straight and actively push your hands into the ground while reaching your shoulders down to engage your serratus anterior. With the hand farthest from the weight, reach across your body and then drag the dumbbell across the floor underneath you. Take three to four seconds to move the weight, which should allow you to feel your abdominal muscles working. Continue dragging the weight until your arm is fully extended. Don’t allow your body to tilt or rotate. Switch hands and return the weight to the starting position.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 16 total reps, alternating sides each rep for 8 reps per side/per set.
Rest time: 60 seconds between sets.
Dumbbell Sit-Up
How to Do it: Lie on the ground and hold one dumbbell by the ends, horizontally, under your chin and resting on your chest. The key is to keep the weight touching your body, which will make the initial part of the sit-up much harder (in a beneficial way). It also ensures that your abdominals, not your hip flexors, are performing the movement. (2) Dig your heels into the floor and pull them back statically to engage your hamstrings. Curl your torso toward your knees. When you successfully get to the top, slowly lower yourself down back to the start position. Keep your head and shoulders away from the floor so you don’t fully relax in between each rep.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 10
Rest time: 60 seconds between sets.
Dumbbell Side Bend
How to Do it: Stand up straight with one dumbbell in the suitcase position (in one hand, at hip-level as if carrying a suitcase). Without rotating or twisting, lean your upper body down towards the weight and feel a stretch along the other side of your body. Maintain a stable base and don’t shift your entire weight over to the side. Your individual range of motion will be different based on overall mobility and strength. When you’ve reached the maximum comfortable stretch, pull yourself back to an upright position using the stretch your obliques and core. Avoid “over-correcting” or leaning too far over to the opposite side. Perform all reps on one side before switching hands.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 10 reps per side.
Rest time: No rest between sides. 60 seconds between sets.
Best Dumbbell Ab Workout for Muscle Gain
Many people think abs are closely associated with fat loss, and that’s a fair connection. However, the abdominal muscles are, in fact, muscles just like any other. They can be trained for growth which, just like your biceps, calves, or any other muscle group, can help them stand out and look even better.
How to Build More Muscular Abs
These three moves will make your abs look and feel like they have been carved out of rich mahogany. To really build muscle, challenge the abdominals with both more load and more volume than they’re used to. Perform this workout three to four times per week.
Dumbbell Double Crunch
How to Do it: Lie on the ground with your legs bent and your heels elevated on a bench, box, or stability ball. Hold a dumbbell from the sides with both hands and straighten your arms above your chest. Crunch your upper body while reaching the weight straight up towards the ceiling, not forward towards your feet. While you’re reaching up, simultaneously push your heels down into the bench and lift your hips up a few inches away from the floor. Hold the double-contracted position for a second and then slowly return yourself to the start position. This exercise gets nasty pretty quickly so get ready to embrace the burn.
Sets and Reps: 4 x 8-10
Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.
Leg Raise
How to Do it: Lie on a flat bench, with your body positioned towards one end, and place the dumbbell handle between your thighs. Hold the bench behind your head and extend your parallel with the floor. Bend your legs as you pull your knees towards you with control. Squeeze your legs tightly to control the weight. Focus on covering your stomach with your thighs instead of trying to bring your knees to your elbows.
Sets and Reps: 4 x 8-10
Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.
Dumbbell Side Bend
How to Do it: Stand up straight with one dumbbell in the suitcase position (in one hand, at hip-level as if carrying a suitcase). Without rotating or twisting, lean your upper body down towards the weight and feel a stretch along the other side of your body. Maintain a stable base and don’t shift your entire weight over to the side. Your individual range of motion will be different based on overall mobility and strength. When you’ve reached the maximum comfortable stretch, pull yourself back to an upright position using the stretch your obliques and core. Avoid “over-correcting” or leaning too far over to the opposite side. Perform all reps on one side before switching hands.
Sets and Reps: 4 x 10 per side.
Rest time: No rest between sides. 45 seconds rest before returning to the first exercise.
Best Dumbbell Ab Workout for Fat Loss
Unfortunately, there are no specific ab workouts or special ab exercises that will increase the rate of fat loss or weight loss. To improve body composition, you need to maintain or increase overall activity throughout the week while adjusting your nutrition, to support a calorie deficit.
The Program to Reveal Abs
Here’s a simple and effective ab routine to increase your weekly training load, increase calorie-burning, and maintain strength and muscle as you drop body fat. Perform this workout two to three times per week at the end of your other strength training sessions.
Dumbbell Renegade Row
How to Do it: Start in a plank position (top of push-up) with legs straight and your toes on the ground. Begin with both arms straight, with one hand on the ground and the other holding a dumbbell directly under your shoulder. Row the dumbbell towards your ribs while actively pressing the other arm into the ground. Resist any twisting at your hips or shoulders. Perform all reps with one side before switching arms.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 8 reps per side.
Rest time: No rest between sides, no rest before moving to the next exercise.
Chest Press in a Hollow Hold
How to Do it: Lie on the ground in the “hollow rock” position — both legs extended and your heels and shoulders lifted off the ground. Raise your feet slightly higher than your hips, and press your lower back into the floor to engage your core and stabilize your body. Maintain this static position throughout the exercise. Hold one dumbbell at chest-level horizontally, grabbing it at each end. Perform a repetition by pressing the weight towards the ceiling. Reach as far as possible to really engage the serratus anterior and oblique muscles.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-10
Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.
Half-Kneeling Wood Chop
How to Do it: Start in a half-kneeling position, holding a dumbbell with both hands near the hip of your “down” leg. Bring the weight up towards the opposite shoulder while rotating at the waist and straightening your arms. Return to the starting position. Perform all reps on one side before switching legs.
Sets and Reps: 3 x 16 reps on each side.
Rest time: No rest between sides. 30 seconds rest between sets before returning to the first exercise.
The Ab Muscles
To some peoples’ surprise, “the abs” aren’t one single muscle. A group of several muscles —some visible on the surface and some deeper but just as important — work in coordination to control your torso position, provide stability, and offer postural support and strength.
Rectus Abdominus
This muscle gets the glory and is recognized as the main ab muscle. The rectus abdominus is divided into several “sections” depending on your unique genetic structure and tendon arrangement. This is why some people may “only” ever develop four-pack abs while others can be capable of building an eight-pack — it’s not about specific exercises or dieting, the end result is entirely genetic.
Credit: antoniodiaz / Shutterstock
The rectus abdominus controls torso flexion (bending your upper body) and it plays a role in resisting extension (bending backwards) and resisting lateral flexion (bending sideways).
Transverse Abdominus
The deep and powerful core muscle, your transverse abdominus is essential for serious core strength. It is heavily involved in creating intra-abdominal pressure, which stabilizes the lower back. The transverse abs are also significantly activated to resist flexion and extension, and helps to create a stable pillar throughout your upper body.
Internal and External Obliques
The obliques, found on either side of the abs, are most recognized for their rotational power and strength. Any movement which involves twisting at the hips, or which prevents the waist from rotating, will rely on well-developed oblique muscles. They are also responsible for lateral bending as well as resisting movement to the sides.
Ab and Core Warm-Up
Like any body part, a thorough warm-up is critical for optimal performance with a reduced chance of injury. When it comes to weighted ab exercises, one very efficient way to warm-up is to perform the exercises without weight before grabbing the dumbbells.
Especially since ab training is typically performed at the end of a training session, you shouldn’t need a general, total-body warm-up. Simply run through your intended exercises, without added weight, for several reps to prime the specific movement pattern and directly prepare the muscles and joints.
For example, you may prepare for the strength workout by holding a basic plank position, performing several sit-ups, and performing unweighted side bends before beginning the weight-bearing versions of the exercises.
Ab Training is Essential
Your abs play an important role in many different activities and exercises, yet including specific exercises to really challenge them is treated as less-than-important. The standard bodyweight-only ab training will only take your results so far. Just like any other muscle, the abs need be loaded and progressed overtime with either more reps, more weight or both. Make intense ab training a higher priority, and watch your performance and physique grow.
References
van den Tillaar, R., & Saeterbakken, A. H. (2018). Comparison of Core Muscle Activation between a Prone Bridge and 6-RM Back Squats. Journal of human kinetics, 62, 43–53. https://doi.org/10.1515/hukin-2017-0176
Workman, J. C., Docherty, D., Parfrey, K. C., & Behm, D. G. (2008). Influence of pelvis position on the activation of abdominal and hip flexor muscles. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 22(5), 1563–1569. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181739981
Originally Posted At: https://breakingmuscle.com/feed/rss
On Saturday, August 28, 2022, powerlifter Chris Kugh set the all-time world record in the squat (Raw With Wraps) at 82.5 kilograms, lifting 366 kilograms (807 pounds). The new record took place during the 2022 Irish Pro Invitational meet at Southside Barbell in Limerick, Ireland.
The new record was Kugh’s second of his three attempts at that meet. He attempted 375 kilograms (826.7 pounds), but the attempt wasn’t successful. Overall, Kugh was one for three on the squat, and three for three on both the bench press (where he also set a one-kilogram personal record), and deadlift. He would leave with the overall championship belt and title from the meet as well. The summary of Kugh’s day is as follows.
Squat — 366 kilograms (807 pounds)
BenchPress — 206 kilograms (454 pounds)
Deadlift — 300 kilograms (661 pounds)
Total — 872 kilograms (1,922 pounds)
Aside from the all-time world record in wraps, Kugh also shared in the post that it was a personal best by 16 kilograms. His previous best mark was 358.5 kilograms (790.3 pounds), which he achieved at the 2022 GPC European Championships on June 29, 2022. The new personal and all-time world record replaces Maliek Derstine’s mark of 365 kilograms, which was set at the 2020 USPA Dirth South Powerlifting Championships.
At 29 years old, this is Kugh’s seventh year of competing in powerlifting, according to Open Powerlifting. This is the only all-time world record in the Raw With Wraps category that he holds as of this writing. He has also competed in single-ply and multi-ply meets.
His personal best squat in a single-ply squat suit is 340 kilograms (749.5 pounds), and he set that mark in April 2022 at the Nottingham Strong Qualifier event. His best multi-ply squat is actually less than that. On July 30, 2017, Pugh completed a lift of 307.5 kilograms (678 pounds) at the Salisbury Qualifier event.
Pugh is also no stranger to other weight classes, having also competed in the 90 and 100-kilogram classes this year alone. As of this writing, Pugh hasn’t shared what his next meet will be or if he will compete in a different class should he do so.
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The stereotype of a typical college student’s diet is pretty grim. Ramen and fast food. Keggers and 2 a.m. pizza. All-nighters fueled by Red Bull and Cool Ranch Doritos
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Putting the grammar-Nazi away… there is so much truth to your thoughts on creating – rather than passively consuming – experience. To me, it’s the difference between men like Sir Hillary and Norgay (truly intrepid souls) and all those tourists who pay to be all but carried up Everest.
That’s not to knock those who follow that set guide rope, it’s still a dangerous and no-doubt memorable time, and I’ve personally never stood on top of the world – it’s just not the same.
Too much planning can kill pristine joy. Adventure with security is a lie. Granted, reckless adventure can simply be stupidity (the first time I saw a hyena in the wild, I tried to pet it – I’m forever grateful that it ran away), but I’d rather live stupid than live boring.”