Chapter One
You Will Get Stronger
The Advance Science
of Strength
THE BODY OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ABOUT BODYBUILDING—WHEN AND HOW TO LIFT WEIGHTS AND EAT SPECIFIC FOODS—HAS EXPLODED IN THE PAST 30 YEARS. THE HARD-BODY PLAN PROVIDES YOU WITH SOLID, CUTTING-EDGE SCIENCE.
Thirty years ago, Big Wally down at the seedygym where the fighters worked out was the expertpeople turned to for advice on how to buildmuscle, burn off fat, and get a body into buffshape. Big Wally knew how much iron to pumpand how often. Big Wally knew what to eat. BigWally knew what strange supplements to take.People got results because some of what BigWally taught was right ... but some was dangerous.
Today, we know a lot more. Men and women inlab coats at top universities study this stuff. Theyconduct experiments and develop long-term researchprojects. Universities have whole departmentsdevoted to different specialties within thefield of muscle building and athletic performance.People get doctorates in muscle building. They callit exercise physiology.
This stuff is a science. And the Hard-Body Planprovides scientific precision from the surest scienceon the cutting edge.
We enlisted one of the top muscle docs in theworld to draft the weight training program for TheMen's Health Hard-Body Plan: Peter W. R. Lemon,Ph.D. He is a professor and head of research on exercisenutrition at the University of Western Ontarioin Canada.
Dr. Lemon was in the vanguard of thosestudying exercise from a scientific perspective—hestarted in the late 1960s. He's not just a sci-guyHe's a musclehead, too. He lifts weights and has formore than 30 years.
Over those thirty-some years, he's heard andseen a mishmash of theories on how best to amassmuscle and lop off love handles. But we're beyondspeculative theories. Science now has definitive answers.You're holding the solid science in yourhands.
Science also knows what you should eat tomaximize your weight training muscle gains and totrim your fat. We give you those answers too. Andyou may be surprised by some of them. "Nutritionis an area that has so much misinformation," saysDr. Lemon. "Everyone thinks it's simple. In reality,it's very complex."
That being the case, we had another expert,exercise physiology doctoral candidate ThomasIncledon, M.S., R.D., create the eating program forthe Hard-Body Plan. Incledon is a registereddietitian, a certified strength and conditioningspecialist, and the director of sports nutrition forHuman Performance Specialists in Plantation,Florida. He has participated in numerous nutritionstudies and written articles on diet and fitness.
So, what's the upshot of all this expertise? You'regoing to eat scientifically, and you may enjoy itmore than you've ever enjoyed eating in your life.You're going to eat using the most efficient technologyfor fast muscle building. And you're goingto experience results that go far beyond a better-builtman in the mirror (but don't worry—that'sthe key part of the plan).
Muscling into
the laboratory
Along with new findings on how best to buildmuscle, science has also discovered myriad benefitsfrom lifting weights. The more muscle you add,the higher your metabolism becomes, convertingyou into a more efficient weight-loss machine.Weight-bearing exercise slows bone loss, whichmay not seem important now but will be about thetime you've lost your hair and your teeth. (Weighttraining, unfortunately, does not seem to slow lossof hair or teeth.)
Weight training and other forms of exercisealso give you more energy and, of course, strength.Exercise even improves your mood. Skeptical?Well, researchers at Duke University MedicalCenter concluded that depressed patients whowere placed on a 16-week program of exerciseshowed almost the same improvement as thosewho were given antidepressant medications or acombination of medications and exercise.
We're guessing that you want to lose flab andadd muscle to look good or feel better. If it alsohelps you rant less at your wife or kids, that's gravy.So what we give you in the Hard-Body Plan is thelatest, soundest thinking on building your body.
The Hard-Body Plan is your guide, your bible,to building bulk and shedding fat. It is packed withreliable information on how often and how muchto lift, how often and how much to eat. Here's anoverview. You'll find more in-depth information onthese subjects as you dive into the program.
Good Eats
Here's a feature of the Hard-Body Plan that weknow you'll like. You get to eat often. In fact, weinsist. Try six or seven times a day. Now, we're nottalking six trips through Big Bertha's BountifulBuffet every day. Because if you did that, the onlything bountiful would be the girth of your gut andthe size of your butt.
But we are saying to eat often and eat less. Bychowing down on six or seven easy-to-find or easy-to-fixdesigner meals and snacks throughout the day,you certainly won't be haunted by hunger as youfollow this program. There are many good reasonsfor doing this, all supported by the latest research.
Smaller, more frequent meals spaced strategicallythroughout the day enable your body to getthe maximum benefit from food's nutrients andgive you the best shot possible at building muscle.
If you gorge yourself at the dinner table,your body simply can't absorb all thenutrients. You literally flush them downthe drain.
Frequent meals, however, parcel out nutrientsas needed and help your body maintain an anabolicor tissue-building state. Plus, eating several times aday raises your metabolism because your body hasto burn calories to digest the food. This in turnhelps you burn body fat. Your body will use thosecalories as fuel rather than storing them as fat.
We give you dozens of Hard-Body meals thatare not only tasty and varied but also balanced,with a ratio of carbohydrates, protein, and fat thatwill best enable you to build muscle when youfollow our weight training program. The formulais this: 15 percent protein, 20 to 25 percent fat,and the remaining 60 to 65 percent carbs.
Maybe you were expecting a diet packed withprotein. A lot of gym junkies believe that proteinpowers the path to bigger muscles fast. We knowyou've heard that. We know that high-protein dietshave hit the heights of hype recently ... again.And, in fact, protein is the crucial nutrient for repairingand building muscles. But you probably aregetting plenty already.
The Hard-Body Plan is heavy on carbohydratesbecause carbs are more easily converted to energyby your body than protein is. Burning carbs for energymeans that your body won't have to tap intoprotein as a source of fuel, so the protein will beavailable to repair muscle fibers and stimulatemuscle growth—just what you want.
You needn't worry that this is a diet thatonly Kate Moss could love. It's heartyand healthy.
You might have, for example, a mushroomomelette with a slice of rye bread and some milk,coffee, and grapefruit in the morning; a tuna saladsandwich at lunch; and a chicken breast, bakedpotato (with butter!), veggies, and strawberries fordinner. Add in three or four hearty snacks—morelike mini-meals—throughout the day It's hardly ahardship diet, yet it's one that will help you loseweight when combined with your Hard-Bodyweight training program.
The other key component of the eating plan istiming. Research shows that consuming a mix ofcarbohydrates and protein before and immediatelyafter your workout can be a boon to buildingmuscle. That's because the combination of the twonutrients seems to lessen the harmful chemical reactionsthat result from the tiny tears in musclefibers that occur when you lift weights. Result: Youshorten the recovery period after exercise, have lesssoreness, and build bigger muscles faster.
What could be better than that?
In the Hard-Body Plan, you eat a snackcontaining a 4:1 ratio of carbs to proteinwithin an hour of completing a workout.It's a no-sweat thing to do because youhave so many options—anything frombagels to fruit or an energy bar.
We also realize that there are times whenyou're vacationing or on a business trip and youhave to eat out a lot. That's a challenge to even themost diligent diet watcher, but we've made it easyfor you. We show you how morning forays toDunkin' Donuts and nocturnal visits to Taco Bellcan be managed as part of the plan.
First, we provide you with lots of tips on how tokeep your calories in check when traveling. (It's easy-to-rememberstuff: Order salad dressings and potatotoppings on the side, for example, so you can controlhow much to use to flavor your food. Or bank caloriesby eating a little less breakfast and lunch andfewer snacks if you know you're going out for dinner,so you can stay close to your calorie quota.)
Even better, we give you plenty of suggestionsfor restaurant meals you can order that don't oozefat with every bite. Better still, we aren't talkingsprouts and alfalfa sandwiches with a dollop of cottagecheese on the side. No, with the Hard-BodyPlan, you can eat lobster, steak, and fajitas—justnot in the same meal. You will still eat well, andyou'll eat smartly.
The Poop on Pumping Iron
Eating wisely won't build muscles, of course,but food provides the fuel for your workouts and thenutrients for your recovery from them. And when itcomes to weight training, the Hard-Body Plan offersa 12-week path to power whether you are a beginner,intermediate, or advanced weight lifter. Howdo we know? Because the workout program, like thefood program, is supported by scientific researchand the real-life experiences of guys just like you.
The beauty of the Hard-Body Plan is that it is dividedinto weight training programs for beginner, intermediate,and advanced weight lifters. No matterwhat level you're at, you'll find an exercise regimenhere to challenge you. In fact, there are more than180 exercises altogether from which you may choose.
There are exercises with free weights.There are exercises with weight machines.There are even exercises with noweights, using everything from rubbertubing to milk jugs and your own bodyweight. And, of course, we offer funcardio routines.
Here are the highlights. You'll find more in-depthdiscussions as you proceed through the program.
· One-set lifting. For beginners only, theHard-Body Plan calls for doing a single set of eachexercise.
· Heavy weights. Most of the time, you will beexpected to perform no more than 10 repetitions ofan exercise during a weight training set, regardlessof whether you are doing one-set lifting or multiplesets. If you can do more repetitions, you will addadditional weight so that you can do only 6 repetitions.As you get stronger and progress again to 10repetitions, you will once again add enough weightthat you can do only 6 repetitions.
· Speed. We have you move from one exerciseto the next with the minimal amount of timeneeded for recovery before you lift again, and nota minute more. In fact, a minute is all you need betweensets. Your workout will be more efficient andyou'll finish faster so you can do other things.
· Combo lifts. For the more advanced lifter,we've included combo lifts (also known as supersets). They entail moving directly from one exerciseinto another without rest. Result: a more intenseworkout and less time spent in the gym.
· Forced reps. Some of the exercise programsrequire you to lift to fatigue (muscle failure) andthen try to power through one or two more repetitions.You need a training partner when you'reready for this.
· Pyramids. Occasionally, you will add weightand reduce the number of repetitions with each setto the point where you can manage but one repetition.As with forced reps, this taxes to the max thefibers that will grow your muscles.
As with the eating portion of the Hard-BodyPlan, the weight training segment doesn't requireyou to endure a physical ordeal that rivals NavySEALs training. That's not to say that it's easy. Butit's doable. We've provided you with the latest science,the expertise. You have to provide the desireand discipline to stick with it. Do it. It's worth it.In a matter of weeks you'll see a powerful, Hard-BodyMan staring back at you in the mirror. Wethink you'll like him.
Excerpted from The Men's Health Hard-Body Plan by Larry Keller. Copyright © 2000 by Rodale Inc.. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Copyright © 2000 by Rodale Inc.. All rights reserved.
