Author: Kevin Ramsey

Q: Is there any advantage to using the EZ curl bar? A: The short answer is no. The longer answer is still no, but if you’ve got wrist problems it will probably make for a more comfortable workout. The EZ curl bar is a shortened bar with ‘z’ shaped angles where you hold it. It allows the palms to be angled in slightly so that they face each other. Many trainers report that this significantly reduces the stress on the wrists that they experience when performing curls with a straight bar. The EZ curl bar also allows for more synergistic…

Q:  A trainer at my gym came running over the other day and told me to stop doing the behind the neck shoulder press because it was ruining my shoulder joints? Yet all the guys in the mags are doing them. Does he know what he’s talking about? A: Maybe – it really depends how you were doing the exercise. If you were bouncing the bar up and down or using a weight that is obviously too heavy for you, then he may have had an argument. My guess, however, is that this guy was against the behind the neck…

Your mission, if you choose to accept it is to lift, scream, and strain your way to the biggest, and most ripped arms imaginable. We’ll warn you ahead of time, building a set of “weapon’s grade” arms is never easy, but you’ve been pre-selected as a reader of HCM to test your will and resolve. When your mission is complete, you’ll have “arms inspectors” everywhere either salivating with desire, or interrogating you for training info. Without any more time wasted, there are a few things you should know before you embark. One piece of information you should file away is…

Having full, pumped biceps with distinct peaks is the classic sign of a true bodybuilder. But what if you’re a serious guy who trains them every week, only to find them exactly the same size as last year? Or worse yet, the year before that? If this sounds like you, take a step back and look at the big picture. Whatever you’re doing right now is obviously not working. Instead, let’s turn a fresh page and approach the issue from a new angle. Here is a 10-week recipe for jump-starting even the most stubborn biceps. Week 1: Setting the Agenda…

Many top bodybuilders have recently spoken out about their preference for alternating nearly “all-barbell” and “all-dumbbell” days. They believe that training in this manner, they are able to isolate certain muscle fibers and stabilizer muscles, which can often become overlooked using the same exercises in the same order each week. Let’s look at a standard example of how chest day could be trained in consecutive weeks, alternating barbell and dumbbell day. Workout #1 – Barbell Day Flat barbell press Incline barbell press Hammer Strength Bench Press machine Dips with attached weights Barbell pullovers Workout #2 – Dumbbell Day Incline dumbbell…

Preparing for a competition usually propels many a gym-goer into the realm of Hard Core training. After all, when you went to your first competition and sat in the audience, didn’t it make you want to jump up out of your seat and rush to the gym to replicate all that you saw on stage? Of course! That’s why seeing a physique in perfect condition is so motivating. You see that it’s actually possible to achieve what’s in your mind’s eye. However, as most people who train know, getting from that seat in the audience as a spectator and up…

Your mission, if you choose to accept it is to lift, scream, and strain your way to the biggest, and most ripped arms imaginable. We’ll warn you ahead of time, building a set of “weapon’s grade” arms is never easy, but you’ve been pre-selected as a reader of HCM to test your will and resolve. When your mission is complete, you’ll have “arms inspectors” everywhere either salivating with desire, or interrogating you for training info. Without any more time wasted, there are a few things you should know before you embark. One piece of information you should file away is…

Having full, pumped biceps with distinct peaks is the classic sign of a true bodybuilder. But what if you’re a serious guy who trains them every week, only to find them exactly the same size as last year? Or worse yet, the year before that? If this sounds like you, take a step back and look at the big picture. Whatever you’re doing right now is obviously not working. Instead, let’s turn a fresh page and approach the issue from a new angle. Here is a 10-week recipe for jump-starting even the most stubborn biceps. Week 1: Setting the Agenda…

Q: Can you give me some guidelines for choosing a good gym for bodybuilding training? A: Gladly – and from your question it appears that you appreciate that not all good gyms are good bodybuilding gyms. Gyms, of course, are commercial enterprises. They are there to make money. Obviously they cater predominantly to the greatest needs of the society in which they operate. That usually means that many of them have little interest in providing for the needs of hardcore bodybuilders. Which is not to say that there aren’t some damn fine bodybuilding gyms out there – there are. You’ve…

Q: Why should I do exercises to develop my tendon and ligament strength and what ones are best? A: Developing tendon strength is vital once you start lifting serious weight. Tendons are connective tissues which join the end of a muscle to bone. Ligaments, which are cord-like fibers that bind bones together at joints are also important in lifting. When we get under the heavy iron, we don’t want proportionately weak tendons or ligaments to be the limiting factors that halt our progress or, even worse, cause a rupture. That could happen if we do not consciously work to improve…