Read Mike’s great article on bodyweight squats:

Bodyweight Squats Muscular Endurance Challenge

Hey there, it’s Mike from TruthAboutAbs.com & Busy Man Fitness .com

I told you last week that I’d be sending you out a training challenge this week. Well, here it is. I challenge you to try to beat my results at this little 5-minute routine. You’ll see my results below.

I’m sure if you’ve been reading my info for some time that you know I like to get creative in the training routines that I recommend trying. I think trying different training styles and routines keeps things more interesting and can be motivating if you set specific goals for certain exercises.

Tip! Egos: In many ways most people allow their egos to defeat them and get in the way of the full potential. You might not get this but, bodybuilding is not about you! Lose it, or keep on losing in life.

In fact, if you didn’t already see it, one of my unique training ideas was recently featured in the popular international magazine, Muscle & Fitness Hers, Jul/Aug issue pg. 18.

So my boredom buster this week is something I just thought up recently. I set a challenge with a couple of my training partners at my gym to see who could do the most repetitions of bodyweight squats in 5 minutes. I will qualify that these are meant to be full squats all the way down to thighs parallel with the ground, not the little “half way down” squats that you see so many people doing.

You basically just keep squatting for as many reps as possible in 5-min. You only rest a couple times here and there for a few seconds if you need it to help you keep squatting.

I liked this idea because I thought it would be drastically different from the normal 3 sets of 10, 5 sets of 5, 7 sets of 3, and so on. No matter how you break it down with weighted squats, you’re usually in the range of 20-40 total repetitions in a given workout.

However, with max repetition bodyweight squats in 5-minutes, your numbers easily can get up to well over 100 reps. Let me tell you… even though you’re not squatting heavy weights with this unique training style, the high volume of repetitions really pumps your legs and gets you dripping with sweat. Also, if you’re not used to this high volume, your legs will be in for some deep soreness for about 2-3 days afterwards.

So the results? Well, in my first attempt at 5-minute squats, I pumped out 157 reps. About a week later, I tried it again, and beat my 1st number by repping 163 squats. Then the following week, I once again beat my former scores by blasting through 169 squats.

I’ve set the goal that I’d like to get up to 200 squats within the 5-minute time frame. Considering that you have 300 seconds in 5-minutes, I figured 200 reps might be about at the maximum possible capacity as you really need to be repping quickly to do 200 parallel squats in 300 seconds.

Bodybuilding Done Right. Busy Man Fitness

For example, this muscular endurance goal of 200 squats in 5-minutes is on the totally opposite end of the spectrum when compared to a different goal that I trained for last year when I was training in a pure strength mode working up to a 405-lb deadlift. Changing things up like this and training for wildly different goals at different times can really help keep you interested in your workouts.

Alright, so go ahead and give this little 5-minute squat challenge a try (remember full squats, no halvsies).

Update: several weeks after running this article, I ended up beating my goal of 200 bodyweight squats in 5 minutes by pumping out 214 reps! Oh my, the burn!!

Good luck!

Feel free to forward this link to any friends, training partners, or family that you think might want to try this training challenge.

About the Author:  Mike Geary
Certified Personal Trainer
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Founder – TruthAboutAbs.com & BusyManFitness.com

Is there a way to get a muscle building effect with cardio? Recent research says “yes” you can build muscle with interval training. This shocking research study goes against the grain of every major bodybuilding concept that you have ever heard but now you can build muscle and lose fat at the same time. Most people always thought that weight lifting builds muscle and cardio workouts burn fat. While that is partially true, why not build muscle and burn fat with the same exercise?

Most people typically fail because they are performing slow and steady cardio. Not only is slow and steady cardio boring but as I explain in The Physique Formula, this type of workout actually shuts off your anabolic natural muscle building hormones that cause you to build muscle and lose stomach fat. This is why most people struggle to lose those last five pounds of fat that are stuck on your lower abs, glutes and hamstrings.

Don’t think that you have get on the treadmill or bike to do muscle building cardio like recent research has shown. Not at all, you can actually get the same effect during your workouts and they don’t even need to be workouts in the gym. Tabatas are a method of training that have been shown to accelerate the fat lose process faster than typical interval training and almost double the fat loss of steady state cardio.

Here’s how to get the muscle building cardio effects by using tabatas in your workout.

-Pick a compound full body exercise like the bench press, squat, deadlift, chin-ups, dumbbell shoulder press, dips or lunges.

-Pick a weight that you can do for 15-20 reps.

-Perform as many reps as you can in 20 seconds.

-Rest for 10 seconds.

-Perform another round of as many reps as possible for 20 seconds.

-Rest for another 10 seconds.

-Repeat another round for the final 20 seconds then rest another 10 seconds.

-Perform this type of tabata set for another 2 sets.

-Select 3 other full body exercises (2 for the upper body and 2 for the lower) and perform the same amount of sets.

Record the weight used and the reps done because next time you train you are going to get a better muscle building cardio effect because you’ll do more reps with the same weight.

Discover the quickest way to build muscle and burn fat with a sample bodyweight workout routine. Jimmy Smith, MS,CSCS is a Men’s Fitness muscle building expert.

Tip! Ashamed to ask for help: The smartest thing I did when I was first started bodybuilding and competing was to ask for help. Knowledge is power when you adapt it to your personality.

Posted on a Bodybuilding Message Board:

Quick And Easy Bodybuilding Guide.

Hi everyone I’m 15 and was wondering what I can take for my muscle to grow? I have heard of muscle boosters or something like that so I was just wondering if there was anything like that that I could take in order for my muscle to get huge.

I might be thinking of steroids.

Answer:

Stop! What the HECK are you thinking? Why are we always looking for the short cut to the biggest gains while still being able to watch T.V.? I guess the word “hard work” isn’t something you really need to do if you know some handy-dandy SECRETS to building muscle.

Clarence Darrow, a famous trial lawyer, once said:

“As long as the world shall last there will be wrongs, and if no man (or woman) objected and no man (or woman) rebelled, those wrongs would last forever.”

Tip! Teach others what you have learned ? Bodybuilding Champions help others gain knowledge. The best champions are those who share the wealth, teach others and inspire hearts.

Listen closely! The term ‘lifestyle’ means ON-GOING and NEVER ending. A shortcut has no place in bodybuilding and certainly no place in getting into the best shape of your life.

So what?

I can already hear the voices now like waves crashing against a rocky wall “why should I care?” Or the other one “what’s in it for me?”

A Blueprint for your Success:

* The more you know, the more educated you become from a cast of reliable sources and PASS that information on to your friends…

* The better off this industry will become…

* The FASTER you can AVOID mistakes…

* The FASTER you can make better LONG TERM progress!

FACT: According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens(NIDA):

“As part of a 2002 NIDA-funded study, teens were asked if they ever tried steroids?even once. Only 2.5% of 8th graders ever tried steroids; only 3.5% of 10th graders; and 4% of 12th graders.”

Tip! Egos: In many ways most people allow their egos to defeat them and get in the way of the full potential. You might not get this but, bodybuilding is NOT about you! Lose it, or keep on losing in life.

Add to this an article I read in the May 2004 issue of Flex magazine by Tom Prince. He profiled his career in a very thought provoking article called “When the Posing Stops.”

Truly Huge Bodybuilding Book. The Secrets To Gaining Muscle Mass Revealed.

Tom Prince went on to explain his steroid use, his mad as a hatter like rush to the top, and eventually the pain he endures and his eventual kidney failure to reach a peak. The descriptions of his crumbling shoulder socket and the pain he must be in made me as sick as a dog.

At the time of the article, Tom Prince was 34 years old! He said:

“I will probably die younger than normal, 65 or something like that, but 65 is better than 35.”

STOP and ask yourself this key question:

Are the youth of today any different then me 16 years ago when I was looking at bodybuilding magazines and wanting to be ripped and muscular? In my mind, I was willing to take all kinds of supplements and do whatever training program I could to look like those guys in the magazine ads. They were my HEROS and inspiration.

Thankfully I didn’t go down that path.

Just last week, my friend (Yes I really have spoken on the phone with him several times) Tom Venuto sent out a issue asking people to take a look at the natural bodybuilders all over the Internet for inspiration.

Tom Venuto wrote:

Tip! Never forget where you come from! ? Bodybuilding Champions never forget what the sport has taught them, where they have been or who has helped them along the way. Bodybuilding and life share the same principles: what you gain inside is more valuable than anything physical.

“There ARE heroes and role models to look up to today, and you will find them in the drug-free bodybuilding movement.”

He’s RIGHT. In fact I know an older gentleman, Scott Hults, who’s a big fan of natural bodybuilding and has done wonders in this sport to educate himself and others around him that taking shortcuts isn’t the way to go and that hard work can pay-off at any age. If I can be in as good of shape as Scott when I’m older, I’d be lucky.

Think about it.

Toss this idea around, if you want to get better at something, you should do everything in your power to make the exercises HARDER, not easier.

Tip! More is not better! ? Bodybuilding Champions work smarter not harder. Efficiency and knowledge is the key to becoming a true champion.

Clearly you can see by now shortcuts simply don’t come without a price. If you are one of those people who wants to make working out and building muscle or losing fat easy as cutting thru a banana cream pie, you’ll never reach the goals you’ve set.

Richie Smith, a personal trainer with more horsepower in the gym then a Bugatti Veron, said “When you are child, your parents tell you to keep your hands off the stove?they tell you not to put your hand into the flame, because if you do, you’ll get burned. If you’re serious about bodybuilding, you have to un-learn what you were taught as a child. When I train people, basically I’m telling them to put their hand right into the fire and keep it there. I have them train into and beyond the pain zone. That’s what makes you grow.”

Tip! Leave your ego at the door! ? Bodybuilding Champions focus on the process and not on themselves. Your life should not center on you and you alone.

Are you beginning to see how building muscle and changing your body is work but it’s fun? Building your body isn’t like FedEx … it simply, positively DOESN’T happen overnight. But one could also say … it’s human nature to avoid hard work.

Tom Venuto wrote in his natural bodybuilding blog, “Most people are on a constant search for the path of least resistance. A drug, a supplement, a ‘breakthrough technique’ a new machine, a shortcut in exercise form?anything and everything they think will help them reach their goals with less effort and in less time. This is typical human nature. Unfortunately, this is also faulty thinking and you will NEVER become a champion with this type of attitude.

Tip! Get a mentor- Bodybuilding Champions are never afraid to ask for help. Champs know that knowledge is power.

You can clearly see what I’m saying is certainly true…

If I could give you a training strategy that is GUARANTEED to increase your muscle and burn more fat, would you be interested?

Copyright 2006 Marc David

Stop spending time searching for answers and learn the REAL truth about natural bodybuilding and how to train right, eat right and supplement right with proven step by step methods in the Beginner’s Guide to Fitness & Bodybuilding. http://www.beginning-bodybuilding.com

Truly Huge Bodybuilding Book. The Secrets To Gaining Muscle Mass Revealed.

Since the early days of physical culture, modern man has been searching for the elusive ”Fountain of Youth”. The promise of radiant health, enduring strength and a Herculean physique has drawn millions on this quest for physical perfection.

Through the early decades of bodybuilding, the forefathers of physical culture established basic guidelines for the muscle enthusiast to follow. Natural foods, resistance training, plenty of rest, and a positive outlook in life were the primary ingredients for achieving ones goals.

The demand for knowledge on ‘how to’ reach the stars would result in millions of booklets being sold by mail order, while magazine stands and bookshelves were continually restocked with the latest ‘muscle building secrets’. Tons of steel and exercise equipment would find its way into the homes of thousands of Americans all across our nation. Health clubs and iron gyms would sprout up in local neighborhoods and towns, while physique competitions were held to determine whom the best in the land was. The strong roots of physical culture were taking grip in our society, and the mighty oak of bodybuilding would soon branch out through every city in America.

Tip! Feed the Spirit! Bodybuilding Champions understand the mind is their biggest competitor and the heart is their biggest asset. If you kill your spirit or passion for the sport, you have lost the main purpose for your efforts.

A new ‘way of life’ became a reality for many as the ‘body beautiful’ movement swung into high gear. For decades the much traveled road to muscledom kept its promise, then by the mid-60’s what seemed pure and natural took a wrong turn setting the course of modern bodybuilding down a dead end. The introduction of anabolic steroids into the sport of bodybuilding would usher in a new era of super sized and equally strong muscular physiques that would attract millions of young men with a desire to achieve the same naturally unattainable goals.

Bodybuilding Done Right. Insiders Audio Guide To Muscle Building Secrets.

Along with the growth of the sport, the physiques continued to become bigger and more vascular as bodybuilders experimented with ’stacking’ the latest in designer muscle enhancing pharmaceuticals. Magazine and ticket sales were at a peak and bodybuilding competitions were seen regularly on network TV. The popularity of the sport was soaring high. Then, what could have been mostly prevented by not promoting and rewarding individuals whose physiques were chemically altered became a reality as the widespread use of drugs in the sport became relevant.

Words such as steroids, cycling, and growth hormones became common place in our gyms, and juicing no longer meant enjoying your favorite health drink. Reports of bodybuilders on dialysis and with heart ailments became a frequent occurrence while the eventual death of several competitive pros hit home hard. What had been a dark cloud in a sport with such great potential turned into a storm that spread its vast shadow on a culture that once shined.

Tip! Ashamed to ask for help: The smartest thing I did when I was first started bodybuilding and competing was to ask for help. Knowledge is power when you adapt it to your personality.

Organizations dedicated to natural bodybuilding and a healthy lifestyle would soon respond to the call for a return to the ideals set forth by the forefathers of physical culture. Physique promoters throughout the land created natural bodybuilding competitions so athletes could compete on a level playing field without running the risk of ruining their health. Publications featuring natural bodybuilders began to spread the gospel of healthy living through proper nutrition and exercise.

The televised media developed new bodybuilding and fitness programs to inspire future generations of natural iron pumpers. And as the age of cyber space came upon us, the Internet became a resource of concepts and opinions for bodybuilders to learn and express their views with other physique artist throughout the World. The new millennium is here and those dedicated to physical culture have begun to prevail as the radiant beacon of light from the torch of natural living begins to shine through the storm.

Tip! More is not better! ? Bodybuilding Champions work smarter not harder. Efficiency and knowledge is the key to becoming a true champion.

Mario Strong is a published author, trainer, national judge, competitor, gym owner, and recognized bodybuilding authority with over 40 years as a proponent for natural bodybuilding.

To learn more about natural muscle building and bodybuilding’s golden era go to http://www.mariostrong.com.

It is only recently that female muscle bodybuilding has gained a higher profile. For many years, the sport was dominated by men. It seems that men supposedly look good with muscles, while women didn’t. Now this attitude has really changed because many of the female muscle bodybuilding women are regarded as sexy and beautiful.

Female bodybuilding gains even more press when celebrities and well known women take part in the sport, as the following article describes:

News.com.au October 15, 2007 06:46am

WITH typical Hewitt determination, tennis star Lleyton Hewitt’s younger sister Jaslyn is flexing her muscles in her own right.

The 24-year-old last night entered her first bodybuilding competition, just six months after taking up the sport.

Jaslyn, a coach with Tennis SA, trained for up to four hours a day to prepare for last night’s event, shedding 12 per cent of her body fat.She said she was interested only in figure events and did not want to “bulk up like a she-man”.

“I like the athletic feminine look,” she said.

“I’ve always wanted to have a six pack and get as lean as I possibly could.”

Click here to read the full article on the website.

If you think that you might like to try female muscle bodybuilding, then talk to women at gyms or via the Internet who are into bodybuilding. They may be able to help you avoid any pitfalls and provide good advice to enhance your chances of success and enjoyment in your new sport.