Dave Draper’s Musclebuilding Q&A

I am a 43-year-old female who has been weight training with a partner for a few months, four days a week. There seems to be some question about the amount of weight I can lift comfortably and keep good form…  I am wondering if it is better to go lighter with good form and more reps, or should I push myself and go heavier?

Here’s where you come in: Your decision.
If your goal is to grow muscle mass, this methodology is often necessary (my experience). You’re seeking hypertrophy and it’s expensive. The tough overload and a degree of compromise in form should be approached carefully during segments of your workouts, either daily or throughout a schedule of workouts. You’re taking it to the edge.

The goal to be healthy, fit and lean and to enjoy injury-free training without ogles of muscle and might is best sought by hardy training minus a lot of risky muscle and joint overload and training intensity.

The method one chooses usually matches their personality. I was driven and chose MO #1. 50 years later I’m driven and have driven for a long time, and I like both methods 1 and 2 . Number two is more appropriate and sensible, yet on a good day I’ll push it with all my remaining might. Be aware, beware, have fun, live long and free…

Go… Godspeed… Dave

What is your opinion on children lifting weights? Is 12 years old too young for a structured routine with cardio and resistance training? I know unsupervised or heavy lifting are not options and maybe benching or squatting could impact the growth plate of a bone.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

You sound like a sensible adult, with commonsense and compassion and an eager child within.

Cut ‘em loose after you show ‘em the ropes, unless any one of them is a wild and crazy monster-child.

Hope this link helps: IronOnline Youth Training Archive

Go… Godspeed… Dave

Just received your book today, can’t wait to start reading it!  Was just wondering if you have any tips on increasing chin-up and push-up reps?  My husband said just keep doing them and I’ll get better, but I don’t feel I am getting anywhere!  What weight-based exercises should I be doing, if any?

Practice your chins — over-grip, under-grip — regularly and sensibly, knowing over-practicing can be counterproductive, stressing and boring. They’ll come along as you continue to train overall, gain muscle, lose unwanted bodyweight and get stronger.

All pulling exercises will contribute to your chinning strength: barbell and dumbbell curls of all sorts, pulldowns, seated and bent-over rows.

You might particularly enjoy and benefit from close-grip pulldowns that simulate the hanging chin. Adjust the weight to gain the full extension and contraction of the chin, perform burning and pumping and satisfy reps and fully engage the muscles involved. Bingo, presto, wa-la — you’re knocking out real, live freehand chins like nothin’.

Same with pushing exercises and push-ups — dumbbell presses on flat bench and all inclines (better than bar), triceps work. Have fun, struggle and strive…

Go… Godspeed… Dave

Steroids as we know makes a positive difference to an athlete’s ability to recover. Many doubt that Reg Park took them, so my question is, if Reg didn’t take, can a natural athelete really train deadlift three times per week as he claimed to do as a beginner?

I strongly doubt Reg took anything beyond naturally healthy, musclebuilding foods and pure water and fresh air…

Maybe he exaggerated and the deadlifting was only twice a week… that doesn’t mean it was necessarily a good idea. Reg insisted and persisted and resisted and is listed among the top two physiques in the solar system, alongside Steve Reeves. Gee… how the heck did he do that…?

Remember, Reg was Reg, one of a kind from the head to the toes, from the genes to the mind.

Dave

I need that more rugged dense trap muscle… Do you think a trap bar will help?

Save your money. The trap bar is good if you have a structural problem deadlifting with a straight bar. If not, it will not provide the advantages you’re seeking.

The basic trap-builders include barbell shrugs, farmer walks, dumbbell shrugs, cleans — with a mix of reps and heavy weight. Don’t roll the shoulders when shrugging — injury risk.

Big traps cannot always be achieved if genetic structuring is not cooperative.

Push that iron… Godspeed… Dave

I have a stress fracture of the ulna in my left arm. I did chest and tris last night and got thru 95% of my workout, but when my forearms started aching I stopped. I don’t understand how or why this happened. When I first injured my forearm I finished that evenings workout with ez bar preacher curls  and did them slow with no pain. Anyway, what rep program do you suggest?

I used progressive rep and poundage routines during my earlier years of training, but found reliance on my instincts to apply exertion and power more productive and less rigid and commanding.

My sets and reps depend more on feeling than numbers and vary more or less from workout to workout. Though the darn ego is ever-present, more often than not the lighter weights with thoughtful performance are more satisfying (pump and burn and execution), effective and safer than the heavier weights.

Going heavier might not be the wise way to go at this stage of the game. That doesn’t mean you can’t go tougher.
The origins of injuries are more mysterious to me as I gain experience — go figure.

dd

Hi Dave, I just wanted to ask you how long my workout sessions should last when the goal is size and strength. Appreciate it.

This varies from one hour a day three times a week to two hours a day five times a week, depending on at least a dozen different factors:

• Goals — how much and quality of mass;
• Commitment — training style-performance-discipline;
• Hereditary basics — metabolism and structure and genetics;
• Nutrient ingestion — menu quantity and quality;
• Will and willingness;
• Age and health and condition and intelligence and so on.

Train hard, eat right, be strong and be happy. I could tell you to add plenty of lean red meat to your daily menu, and quality peanut butter and bananas to your shake, and a meal of tuna and water to your existing diet, and cottage cheese and plenty of raw fresh fruit and vegetables regularly and, by all means, enjoy Bomber Blend — the best protein in the world.

Creatine helps (Anabol Naturals for purity and absorption)

Dave

I’m over 60 and am planning to enter a bodybuilding contest. I’d like to know why the legs lose size first and is there anything I  can do about it.

I hear what you say and know what you mean, and I don’t have a physiological or technical answer. Body’s natural selection for survival, perhaps… or twitch of muscle fiber or the hooded guy lurking in the corner…

Old age does its thing despite our efforts to fight the good fight with lifestyle, weight training and right eating. I was good till age 65 (squatting 450) when circulation in the legs went south and the heart gave me grief. I lost 15 pounds in 30 months, most notably in the thighs. I had to give up squats, the legs’ dream exercise, and deadlifts, both powerful systemic (whole body) exercises. I’ve noted similar situations in other big guys as age crawls upon the scene.

Do your best at what you are able to do. Squat if you can — best for mass and power. Eat your protein (red meat, if you will) and limit aerobics to HIIT style and/or in-gym well-paced training (supersetting without compromising weight used). Be nice to your wife and kids and dog. Never quit…

Godspeed… Dave

In terms of taking a layoff, how often do you think one should set down the iron and for how long?

Depends on a bunch of factors — your training intensity, training frequency, exercises performed,lifestyle, recuperative ability, age, health, stress, condition and such.

Once a week when I was young, twice a week till I 60, three times a week when I didn’t care. Now when I need to, 1 day on, two off works.

A lay-off of more than a week only when it’s important — injury, health, vacation, obligations, urge.

dd

Super setting and tri-setting movements gives me a tremendous pump, but obviously with no rest between movements in a given tri-set, I can’t use as much weight as I can when doing straight sets.  If I’m after maximum size, should I stick to straight sets where I can use more weight per movement or does it matter to the muscle?

I practice both single-set and superset methodologies. Make your strength choices accordingly.

Supersets and multi sets need not be performed with super speed. Slow down between sets, moving like a powerful locomotive switching individual cars at a rail yard, not the Pennsylvania express en route to Chicago. You can accomplish mass and power and shape and hardness over time.

Give yourself time to practice, learn, adjust to, assess and respond to various approaches. They en total work well, work best. You’ll see…

Blast on… focused and sure… Dave

If the government decided to dictate what we do in the gym, and declared, “Only one exercise per bodypart will be allowed,” which exercises would you choose? And why…

Chest)  low-incline dumbbell press

Back)  bent-over barbell rows

Shoulders)  seated press behind neck

Bis)  standing barbell curl

Tris)  overhead triceps extension

Legs)  squats and calf raises

Gut)  rope tucks

Why… ‘Cuz they work

Dave

To get strong and larger, would you rather do, four sets of triceps pulley pressdowns with 75 pounds, 10-12 reps, or four sets of the same exercise with 140 pounds of 4-5 reps?

In the pulley pushdowns, I go for the higher reps… and I vary my body position and groove to engage as much triceps as possible… and then I introduce some body thrusting to enable even a few more reps, often the reps approaching 18 to 20 — Sorta multiple stages of performance within the one set.

I appreciate including more upper body action in the goal to overload the tris. Lots of muscle and energy benefit to increased upper body action.

However, I probably wouldn’t select pushdowns as an exercise for getting stronger.

Go… D

In a recent newsletter, you mention both shoulder and chest incline dumbbell press.  I’m not clear about what the difference might be in those two moves.

The steeper the incline, the greater the load on the shoulder regions. Conversely, the lower the incline the more the pecs are engaged.

As a young lifter, I quickly discovered barbell inclines were murder on my shoulder cage, and dumbbells were just right — powerful muscle engagement in cleaning the weights into position and more control in directing action toward power-groove and away from injury.

The bench press is a universally favorite exercise and hard to resist, but is famous for developing severe and lifelong shoulder problems. Works okay — injury to musclebuilding ratio — if it is executed as a thoughtful exercise and not a blood-spurting-from-the-eyes power movement. Trouble ahead, safety and longevity first.

Blast to last…  Bomber

 I have a very labor intensive job and at 55 years old old I am currently working out 3 days a week, full body workouts 4 sets of 10 with a change in workouts every 30 days. I am tired at the end of my work week as I go to the gym at 5 am. Do you have any hints for this old dungeon gym rat?

A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do: Quit your job.

Or, you might have to alter your workouts to accommodate your weariness, which I suspect is due to the mounting years. 55 is wide open to years of strong training ahead, but recoup time becomes the trick. You might spread the workouts over a four-day period (includes a weekend day, perhaps) or try a new approach… exercise combos, rep scheme 12, 10, 8, 6 or all 6s or 8s, split routines…

Often, when bound by job and schedule and convention, we stick to what we know, what we trust. Be creative, be risky (clue: there’s no risk), have fun, mix it up… just press on, always.

Bomber Blend before and/or after workouts… Go Godspeed… Dave

I have a question about what weight belt you use. I really would like to use one, but don’t know which brand to choose or thickness measurement to get, leather or nylon ply. 

Depends on need… I like a double-thick, 4-inch belt end to end. Use the belt only on heavy lifts or when necessary to protect the area on special occasions… don’t want it to take the load when you should…

EliteFts is where many of the guys are getting them, and looks like they have them on sale right now. Here’s the link to the weight belt sales page, and here’s how to pick the size.

Just for sport, a nylon 4- or 6-inch will do for firming-up the region in testy situations. Kinda girly.

dd

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the gym, and I’ve come across a lot of conflicting information in my research.  Because of the release of cortisol, in order to get the most out of your workout before your body releases an excessive amount of the hormone, it’s said you should keep it at most an hour. Someone once asked Ronnie Coleman the duration he thought and indeed he said around 45 minutes. Generally the more popular view is that two hours or even longer is fine in the gym.  I’m fine with that if that’s what needs be.  I generally enjoy my time in the gym, feeling satisfied and better about myself for having gone. Still, I’m not sure what I should do to get the most out of my workout based on this conflicting information.  Do you have any ideas that could help me?

I have trouble with the science and the iron of musclebuilding. An hour in the gym never did it for me as a young, hardcore muscle-maniac. Sixty minutes? Fine for older folks and fitness-heads, but to arrange and focus and fight and pump and burn and blast the sets and reps and movements, I’m only half way home.

Never know what or who to believe: That’s why I never read any mags or how-to books along my cast-iron journey. We’re all different, with differing advantages and limitations — chemical, metabolic, genetic, structural, aptitude, affinity, attitude. Hence, our needs differ.

What one does in 60 minutes — exercises choices, exercise form, exercise volume, performance intensity, weight used, pace applied, methodology — is not what another might do.

Do what you need and want to do. They’ll probably match. I swap the science for good old instincts and commonsense. Call me dumb. Too much data and research and science and I wanna go home. Let me lift.

It’s complicated. Cortisol is a life-saving hormone created by stress within the body by our own hands (excessive system overloads) or from stressful circumstances surrounding us (war). Too much cortisol can certainly be damaging when produced to alter our cellular chemistry.

I see from your email address your military commitment, and I consider that a number one producer of cortisol. Toughest job in the world, for which we are deeply in debt, thank you.

I’d use the gym to build muscle and might, as best you can, while relieving the multitude of stresses around you. This means enjoy it, trust it and love it, and hate it only slightly. Dig in, but don’t bury yourself.

Rest as much as you can and eat as well as you can, often. Got some dough? Invest in some good supplements to fill the gaps. Protein powder, tuna and such…

Again, thanks for everything… God’s strength… Dave Draper

I was born with thin legs and can’t get them to grow like my upper body. I do back and front squats with leg presses and leg curls. I started a few months ago doing a lot of dumbbell squats. My legs are muscular but not big. My dad has twigs and my friends tell me it’s genetics and I have to live with it.

I’m a 67-year-old bomber who’s been through a few skirmishes in the gym and whose dad had strings transporting him about for 94 years. My advice is carry on with gratitude and appreciation and courage. Genes tend to rule our domain, especially the lower regions.

You’re doing it all and life is good. Be sensible in your training intensity and realistic in your goals. If your legs aren’t thunderous and sweeping by now, give them ample hope and time, but don’t distress your mind, body and life in the pursuit. Injuries are around the corner when we over-overload. Tedium and discouragement lie waiting in the shadows… who needs it? Anxiety? What for…

Smile and be happy: train smart, eat right, be strong, live, learn and grow in all manner and direction.

Squat and deadlift intelligently… Thank God… DD

Given my age, small frame and apparent preponderance of slow twitch muscle, I have no chance of growing a physique. But I still like a good workout, and find it very satisfying whenever  I can add 5# to this exercise or 10# to that one. In order to add weight to my anemic DB bench I had to psych up, intend and will to succeed, focus all my concentration on the movement and really give it Hell. It did work for a while. But the last month, the trend is definitely down, not up. Given the low volume, could I still be over training?

This training and gaining feature can go on for only a limited time, obviously. We hit a plateau; we max out; we adapt to our output; we grow accustomed to our exercises and routine; we beat the horse to near-death.

The body and mind have met their match. You need a change: new approach, plan of attack, exercise combinations.

Replace the worn exercises with different ones, if for no other reason than physical and mental and emotional change of pace and restoration: different grip, different angle, train for sets and rep performance rather than final-rep max; pump and burn with a focus on building muscle from another vantage point.

Step away from routine and mix it up. There’s creativity and play and discovery in that heap of metal. Sameness frustrates.

I submit we need a variety of exercises to grow in strength- and muscle- and structure-health, and if we are to endure. The mind and body loves well-ordered variety — responds to it.

Focus and dedication and determination are important to good training. They are wonderful requirements. But extreme psyching-up can be overwhelming. The do-or-die approach should be reserved for those occasional extreme workouts, or each set of each workout becomes too serious, and critical and too often disappointing, risky, excessive and negative Training becomes grim.

I don’t like grim. I hate grim.

Good considerations. I exercise to exercise, to move, to groove, to feel and notice and note and enjoy.; to live, learn and grow.

Try one-arm overhead cleans, bent-over barbell rows, standing reverse dumbbell curls and dumbbell triceps extensions; sets of 12, 10, 8, 6, simple supersets.

Remember: Ruts ruin rippin’ rascals…

Go… Godspeed… DD

What are dumbbell pullovers? You mention them all the time and I’m not sure if I am envisioning the correct exercise.

You’re lying on a flat bench with a single dumbbell fully extended overhead, hands spread over the inside plate and balancing. With nearly straight arms — allow for elbow joint comfort and safety — thoughtfully lower the dumbbell backward till your arms are parallel to the floor… they are extended as if reaching for the far wall. Reverse the action smoothly and return the load to the overhead starting position.

I love it. Oxygenating feel-good movement, it engages the abdominal muscles, the underside of the arms, rib cage, shoulder rotation, serratus, lats (super good lat move) and minor pec regions.

With lighter dumbbells you can, upon return of the weight to overhead, go forward of the starting position thoughtfully to engage the front delts and pectorals. Experiment, experience, be aware…

Great companion in a variety of supersets, as it’s a relief movement with many facets of interfacing.

Squats and pullovers, various dumbbell presses and pullovers, deadlifts and pullovers, cable crossovers and pullovers. 3 to 5 sets x 15, 12, 10, 8, 6 reps — start light at 12 to 15 reps, go up the rack and lower the reps toward 6 reps.

As always,  focus and form… Godspeed… Dave

How many minutes can you work each muscle a day?

Varies widely with people and conditions…  too many to consider here.

Short and simple answer:

For health, physical conditioning and prowess…Give yourself 75 sensible minutes in the gym three times a week with some aerobic activity on the off days… say 25 minutes a muscle group if you’re counting.

For competition, twice or three times that…

We press on to enjoy our training and to build muscle and might… Discipline and Character travel by our sides.

Go… Godspeed… Dave