PRIORITY NUMBER ONE - By Alfred Page

Originally posted on NaturalStrength.com on March 27, 2004

The reason many of us train is to increase our muscle size. Well, forget that while you read the following. For muscles to grow, they must become stronger. This means you must lift more weight. You must train for strength. Every time you lift weights and workout, provided the body is subjected to sufficient stimulus, muscle fibres become damaged. These muscle fibres (given ample recovery) repair themselves and adapt so they become fractionally stronger. Enough to cope with that stress in the future. Once this happens you must add a fraction or almost unnoticeable amount more weight to the bar. Do this again and again and your muscles will constantly be repairing themselves stronger than before to handle more weight. You can eat more, rest more, weigh more and train harder, but in the long run - if you are still not lifting more and becoming stronger, then you will not grow. This is the law of progression. Progress is human nature, always striving to be better, to improve.

Abbreviated training is almost an "underground" style compared to conventional training. If you do train in the conventional manner and are lacking results, or have been using the same weight for a long time, then consider this: Pick just one compound exercise for each major area of the body ie. back, chest, legs, arms. If all you did were these exercises and you added 1/2 pound every week or two for 1-2 years, imagine how much more weight you would be lifting! Your muscles would have to be bigger for you to be lifting that much more! This is the simplicity of abbreviated training. Every trainee has their own personal level of strength. You don't only grow if you are lifting massive weights. If you can only squat 125 lbs. then that is your level of strength. By lifting that weight and adding to it slowly your body will still grow. Do not concern yourself with how much someone else is lifting. Your body is your priority. You are who matters most. Natural and Drug-free trainees who bench with 300 lbs. and squat 400 lbs. didn't just wake up one morning with such incredible strength. It was accumulated pound by pound through years of hard work. It is the same as if you put a dollar bill into the bank every day for a year. It would soon add up to a lot of money! Add a little bit of weight to the bar as often as possible and eventually you will be the one lifting those big weights. Lastly, if you are NOT lifting in good form then I urge you- do not bother lifting at all. Not only can you seriously injure yourself, but you will be wasting your time. Squatting 150 lbs. in perfect controlled form and a full range of movement will build far more muscle and strength than would squatting 350 lbs. on raised heels, with a rounded back and half the range of movement.

Physical Culture Books.com