Florida Agenda

TOM BONANTI

I always say that there is no need for workouts to become boring or stagnant.

Likewise, no one should ever throw in the towel if a fitness regime isn’t quite achieving the desired results. Every fitness enthusiast or body builder hits a brick wall occasionally, but perseverance is the key to success in any endeavor, as they say. Journaling your workouts at the gym, finding a reliable workout partner, hiring a personal trainer, even doing research on the Internet can help you come up with fresh techniques for your exercise program. This week let me share with you a few simple and interesting techniques that are sure to maximize your workouts by helping you to pack on quality muscle in less time. Get ready to feel the burn!

“Superset” is a widely misused term. Technically, a superset is when you train two opposing muscle groups (i.e. biceps versus triceps, back versus chest, quads versus hamstrings, etc.) with only a small break between exercises. For example, you may do a set of flat bench dumbbell presses for chest, then move quickly using the same weights into a bent over dumbbell one arm row. Go back and forth for three sets of each. Take a brief break, and then alternate incline dumbbell presses and wide grip lat pull downs. Supersets create balance and joint strength, and allow one muscle group a brief rest while you blast its opposing muscle group.

Compound sets are great, especially if you have a problem muscle group that won’t grow. These are my favorites. Compound sets are two intense exercises for the same muscle group. For example, a standing barbell curl can be combined with a preacher curl to really fry those biceps. Perform a set of barbell curls to exhaustion, then move to a set of killer preacher curls to isolate those twin peaks.

If you’re really cruising for a burn, go for trisets. This means simply that you add a third or even a fourth exercise to the above torture as you max out those mighty arms.

Forced reps are a great way to push muscles just a little harder, once they’ve been pretty much exhausted. Just when you think you can’t do another curl, press or squat, recruit someone else’s muscles to help you! That’s right, get a trainer, partner, or buddy to help you squeeze out a couple of forced reps before you rack your weights and call it quits. Make sure that your form doesn’t suffer too much as you force that last blasted rep!

Learn to accentuate the negative. I’m not talking about your attitude, I’m referring here to your reps. When I train clients, I’ll often have them focus on the negative or eccentric contraction during an exercise. For example, during a bicep curl, explode as you bring the weight to your chin (concentric or positive contraction), then as you lower the weight, slow down and focus as you push your muscles to a new level of fatigue. Try doing negatives with bi’s, tri’s, chest, legs, etc., once a month to maximize size and strength.

Remember, doing negatives every workout can lead to over- training, so once or twice a month should be enough to make you grow, but prevent you from injuring yourself.

No need to get bored or frustrated! Just check in with Guy Magazine every week for the latest information on just about any topic under the sun. Any questions about your workouts? Need a pointer or just a little direction with your routine? Contact trainertomb@aol.com!

Tom Bonanti is a certified personal trainer and owner of Pump’n Inc. Gym at 1271 NE 9th Ave, Fort Lauderdale.
For more tips on fitness, give me a shout at TrainerTomB@aol.com

BY TOM BONANTI

“Your triceps demand even more attention in the gym.”
– Tom Bonanti

Photo:Courtesy, istock.com

It’s fun to train biceps (the front of your upper arms) as you watch them bulg ing and pump

ing in the mirror. But your triceps (the back of your upper arms) demand even more attention in the gym and having terrific tri’s will set you above the rest!

Triceps make up two-thirds of your upper arm, therefore it is logical that the bigger and more defined these babies are, the more massive your arms will look. The triceps are responsible for the movement of extension of the elbow and produce motion of the forearm. Because of their larger size you need to work tri’s a little longer and harder than biceps. Hit triceps once a week using 3-4 exercises of 3-4 sets of 8-12 repetitions for maintenance. Work them at least twice per week using the same formula to build them, especially if the are lagging behind your show-off biceps.

Use free weights for triceps to give you a better range of motion and to produce a fuller muscle. Always make sure you get a good stretch for tri’s especially as you conclude the workout. Stretching helps bring out the separations and detail in the muscle.

Here are some dynamite exercises that will leave your triceps feeling pumped after only a few sessions:

Whenever you are working a muscle group, always include at least one exercise that will take the muscle group through its full range of motion. Closegrip bench presses will do this for triceps. Lie face up on a flat bench, feet firmly planted on the floor. Take a barbell or E Z curl bar from the rack. Use a narrow grip so that your hands are only 2-3 inches apart. Keeping your elbows close to your body, lower the weight to your lower sternum, and immediately push upwards. Always begin with a light warm-up set.

Triceps extensions are a classic. Start this exercise by holding a lat machine bar with your hands 2-8 inches apart. Now press downwards from your chin until your arms are straight. Return and repeat. Most bodybuilders keep their elbows tucked in at their sides during this movement. A few, deliberately hold the elbows out to the sides and lean into the exercise. The choice is yours. This exercise can also be performed with a rope instead of a straight bar or lat machine bar.

Bent-over triceps kick backs are great for isolating each of the triceps. Hold a dumbbell in one hand and hold on to a rack or bench with the other hand. Raise and lower (kick back) the dumbbell at an even rate, keeping the upper arm in line with your torso and parallel to the floor. Keep your upper arm tight against your waist throughout. Be careful not to over use your wrist as you kick the weight back and extend the elbow.

Lying triceps extensions or “skull crushers” as they sometimes call them are killers. Lie on your back on a flat bench and hold a barbell or E Z curl bar at arms length above you. Lower it slowly to the forehead and raise the bar again to arm’s length. During your workouts do not waste time. When you’re working triceps or any muscle group remember to stretch and move around between sets. When you finish a set of triceps extensions, for example, walk briskly around the area and stretch each of your triceps over your head thoroughly, then do a set of off the bench dips before moving on to dumbbell kick-backs.

Strong Arm Tactics Training Terrific Triceps

Tom Bonanti is a certified personal trainerand owner of Pump’n Inc Gym at 1271 NE 9th Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304,

Facebook: TrainerTomB.

www.pumpnincgym.com