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By Vince On August 1, 2010
106 Comments
The Beginner’s Muscle Building Program
By Vince Del Monte
Bodybuilding has changed my life – for the better.
After I transformed from a 149-pound, lanky, cross country runner to a 190-pound National Fitness Model Champion, I discovered the multitude of positive benefits bodybuilding has to offer.
Whether you want to build intimidating muscles, tighten up your midsection or slim down, it’s all possible with a bodybuilding lifestyle and a strength training routine with weights.
Whatever your reasons for wanting an attractive and muscular body, you need to start with a clearly defined program to ensure you get started on the right path. If you’ve a beginner bodybuilder (less than one year of weight training experience) then start following the beginner’s muscle building workout below.
Good News: The best muscular gains typically come in the first 6-12 months so be prepared to see your body, and your life, change in the very near future.
Bad News: There are no magical short-cuts to muscle growth. Stick to the program below and you’ll be 3-months closer to your goal instead of 3-months further from your goal.
“Skinny Vinny” in 1996 at the World Junior Triathlon Championships in Cleveland, Ohio – Proud of my Country, not so proud of my body!
Here are a few pointers to consider before starting:
- Be realistic but think big. Being realistic does not mean you can’t have big goals. In fact, I recommend you strive for big goals or else what’s the point? Be honest with where you are today and where you can be in three months from now, one year from now and three years from now. Keep focused on your short terms goals and remind yourself that they are moving you closer to your long term goals.
- Commit yourself to three months before assessing your progress. Let’s fact it, you want results fast and yesterday. So do I. Although it is possible to see over night results, don’t become frustrated during your transformation. Be happy with every gain you make and appreciate that sculpting your body takes time. Change occurs in spurts over a period of time.
- Training in the gym is only half the battle. Training your muscles in the gym in only half the equation and simply sets your muscles up for the potential to grow. What, how much and when you eat plays another critical factor. When you go to sleep plays another and what supplements you take can influence the rate your physique develops too.
Now that we have that out of the way, you’re ready to get started.
The Beginner’s Muscle Building Program
The muscle building for beginners consists of 15 exercises, using basic movements, a pyramid rep/set scheme, change in exercise order, training three times per week and followed for three months.
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By Vince On July 21, 2010
67 Comments
Meet today’s Featured Body Transformation Success Story Husein Al Shakarji from Townsville, Australia.
BEFORE Maximize Your Muscle Picture: Husein
AFTER Maximize Your Muscle Picture: Husein
Hi every one my name is Husein J My biggest challenge that I’ve been through in my life was building up my body. I started weightlifting 2 years ago when I was at the end of grade 11. As what normal teenage skinny kid always wants to have a bigger muscular body.
For me seeing older bigger men with massive man “jugs”, thick back, massive arms that got nearly every single person’s attention inspired me to lift weights. I didn’t have much knowledge on how to build my body so I use to go to the gym & pretty much do nearly every possible machine in the gym. “It felt great but I didn’t see ANY results at all.” I got sick off wasting my money on gym membership & powders after nearly a year of getting NO results.
I’ve tried everything the pyramid routine, 12 rep ranges, doing as much as u can on single weighted dumbbell, my body just didn’t respond to gain any muscle! I play basketball and Rugby, in rugby players need to be super strong and BIG and guess where was I playing? “The BENCH.”
So at the end of last year I received an email from Vince that he will be revealing a new program that hits 12 different anabolic targets. Most of all it mentioned that their will be different exercises EVERY MONTH so that we don’t get sick of the same old thing! Honestly I thought that this would be the same thing as the magazines and other internet lies that I red. I had nothing to loose.
When I received the 100 rep, straight away looked at the DVD, photo copied the program and I was off to gym. A month later I measured myself and gained couple of cm all over my body which gave me a massive confidence boost to keep going!
4 months later I’m double the size I was, super defined and I was asked to compete in the body building contest this September. As for Rugby I nearly play the whole game without getting subbed off Juntil now this program is truly the best body transformer that I’ve seen, “and I’ve tried heaps!
Husein Al Shakarji
Vince: On a scale of 1 to 10, how hard would you rate building muscle? 10 being the hardest.
Husein: Well it all depends on if u know how to build it, like for someone who has no idea about building muscle would be extremely hard but for more experience people would be more easier but physically its an 8 but when your on a diet to get shredded its defiantly 10.
Vince: What was your number one reason for wanting bigger muscles?
Husein: To feel more confident around the people who I hang with and also to find a healthier and more exciting life style.
Vince: How old are you and where are you from?
Husein: I’m 18 years old and I’m from Townsville, Australia
Vince: What do you think is more effective? Machines or free weights? Why?
Husein: It all depends on what type of muscle you try to train. Free weights are very important, it requires balance and also feels lot heavier then machines, which stimulates more muscles during the workout. Machines are designed to hit a particular muscle and also their are better resistance then free weight, for example cable preach curl or leaning behind back cable fly. We need both to gain the best amount of muscle.
Vince: Tell me about some of the different programs you tried?
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By Vince On July 19, 2010
16 Comments
Featured Maximize Your Muscle Transformation Story: Bruce Macdonald
These motivational stories will show you everything you will ever need to know on how to finally create the body of your dreams.
Feeling unmotivated? Well, look no further. Your fellow bodybuilding and fitness enthusiasts are here to give you all the drive you’ll need!
BEFORE PICTURE: Bruce
AFTER PICTURE: Bruce
“THE MOST COMPLETE AND CHALLENGING WORKOUTS”
“When you came out with the MYM program in Jan 2010, I thought that if the master sculptor for bodybuilding has a new program I wasn’t going to pass it up. I also felt you threw down the gauntlet when you said this was only for those really serious. I wasn’t about to pass up the challenge! Also, I wanted to see how a 63 yr. old body would respond to this level of workout. These were the most complete and challenging workouts I’ve ever been involved in. I was sore in places I didn’t think you could get sore!
Like all involved in the MYM program, it has taken lots of work, sweat, tears, consistency and eating healthy. Stay the course and you can achieve what you dream to have. At 63, I hope I’m an inspiration to those looking at these photos – young and old.
I appreciate the need to be in good shape and healthy at my age. I see too many my age that aren’t in good physical shape or in good health who are getting ready to retire. It is unfortunate for these people because they are going to be sitting on the sidelines or worse yet in the bleachers watching others as they play on the field of life! I prefer to be out there actively enjoying life because I’ve chosen a life style that enables me to thanks to your programs!”
-Bruce Macdonald MPH, RM(NRM), CSP, Durham, North Carolina
Vince: Congrats on your recent transformation. How do you feel about it?
Bruce: I enjoy looking and feeling good. Having put on more lean muscle since I finished the 6 Pack program has helped fill out my physique. While I’m impressed what I have done in 16 weeks, I still have not achieved the level I want.
Vince: It must take a lot of discipline and hard work to transform your body at 63 years of age. Would you agree?
Bruce: I chuckled at this question. I simply don’t view myself as 63 whatever a 63 is supposed to be/look like. In my mind I’m still a “young stud”, well maybe not THAT young!
I’m sure it took a lot of work for everyone on the MYM to transform their bodies regardless of age. I think too many people believe just because you’re over 60 yr. old you’re limited in what you can do! Not true. Sure recovery time may take a tad longer than when I was younger. I’m certainly not able to do what I used to do when I was younger. And there are years of accumulated aches and pains. However, I never let being over 60 yrs. old stand in my way. Any goal you want to achieve takes discipline and hard work no matter what age.
Vince: What is one thing you think you could have done to improve your condition more in the past 16-weeks?
Bruce: In looking back over the 4 Phases, I would have tried pushing more heavy weights. Part of holding back was from past injuries to my shoulders I had gotten in racquet sports that hampered me from doing heavy weights for some exercises. I found, though, the exercises I did do has helped stabilize my shoulder as I’m seeing in Phase 5 when lifting heavier.
Vince: How did you get into bodybuilding and fitness?
Bruce: Since I was a kid I was always active. In High School I did cross country and track. In college I took as many PE courses as I could to stay fit. Part of my drive to be fit comes from seeing how unfit my Dad was. He smoked and drank too much, having the skinny man’s beer belly. At the age of 62 he passed away as a result of being in poor health. I vowed I would not let myself get like that. This picture has been interwoven in the matrix of who I am and how I take care of myself.
Weight lifting hasn’t been a strong point with me until the last 3 years. Most of my lifting was to simply keep strong enough for the racquet sports I did. I really had no game plan when it came to lifting.
When our club closed there weren’t any other places around that had squash courts resulting in me finding a club to workout in. My workouts were totally unstructured. Doing the same old thing I had in previous years. One day I happened across your web site. One thing you said that hit home was “If you don’t have a plan when you workout then you’re wasting your time in the gym! Look around you. How many are still where they are physically this year as they were last year?”
Yep, that about described my workouts and the results I wasn’t getting. I decided at that point to get involved with the 6 Pack program to lose the body fat I had gained and go for the ripped look.
I’d like to add a sidebar to this answer because I think your readers need to read an example that illustrates the importance of your statement “You put small deposits into your account when you work out.” The event is another factor that continues to drive me to be fit.
In 2002, after an annual physical, I was told I needed to have heart surgery to repair a valve. If I didn’t then I wouldn’t have many years left to live. After the surgery I spent 5 days in the hospital and then was released. It would be two weeks before I had my follow up examine and could get back to my normal routine.
I realized when I was home that I needed to get out and walk to begin the process of building up my strength. If you’ve never had major surgery, you just cannot imagine what it takes out of you!
Having been disciplined in working out was a strong force to get me going. The first day I went a half block. It was as if I had done a marathon! I was exhausted. I didn’t know if I could make it back home! In subsequent days I was out again going farther, pushing to do a personal best.
By the end of two weeks I was doing 2 miles at a pretty good pace. Once I was given the O.K to go back to the gym I was in there doing light cardios and weights to continue to build up strength and endurance.
I attribute my ability to bounce back fast to the deposits I made in my account over the years that I worked out. I didn’t anticipate having heart surgery and I don’t think anyone can forecast when a health event will arise. Making those deposits, though, WILL give you a significant edge in recovery.
Vince: At what point did you decide to take your bodybuilding goals very seriously?
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By Vince On July 16, 2010
48 Comments
Meet Tom Bodd, from Creston, British Columbia. Tom was the 1st place grand prize winner of my first 16-Week Transformation Contest with Maximize Your Muscle. Probably the most impressive transformation I’ve ever seen! Check out the
BEFORE Maximize Your Muscle: Tom
AFTER Maximize Your Muscle: Tom
“I probably don’t fit your typical readership as I am 53 years old. The way you introduced your program caught my eye as you said it was geared towards people that have been training for awhile and didn’t shy away from hard work. That was enough to get me in. Honestly, when I think about it I believe it was your work ethic that I have seen and some of your comments about the way some or I should say most people “exercise” that made me take action and say this was for me.
I absolutely loved Vincesanity! Strength and endurance through the roof and started to get cuts where I never thought possible on me. Your insights for living life, the wisdom you have already gathered for a young man of 30, your passion to develop the human body all come through in your material. I would encourage anyone young or not so young, if you don’t like what you see or who you see in the mirror get off your butt, take action and get your life back! ”
TOM BODD
CRESTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA
Vince: When did you start bodybuilding?
Tom: I have played around with BB since I was young…probably like the rest of the guys in Maximize Your Muscle and the rest of your readers but when I was young there wasn’t this kind of info available like there is today. About 8 years ago I had a tragedy in our family so I had to find an outlet for myself, so I would say in the last 7 years I started kickboxing and then a few years later I did some casual weight training on my own. Nothing to serious. I’ve been reading your material for quite sometime now and when you introduced Maximize Your Muscle as an advanced program I became very interested in that. In the last 5 months I have made the most consistant gains in the last 5 years.
Vince: What was your biggest obstacle in changing your body at age 53?
Tom: My biggest challenge is keeping myself injury free. I didn’t stretch and warm up anything like I do today. Again following your program as you lay it out. Stretching and proper warm ups have kept me pretty healthy.
Vince: Tell us about your results using Maximize Your Muscle in the past four months.
Tom: My results have been the most consistant in the last four months than they,ve been in the last 5 years. Each month builds on the previous month. Before it was hit and miss but this way one leads into the next so I just kept improving. My strength and shape have changed the most.
Vince: You mentioned that “age is just a number” What does that mean and do you think that any 53 year old can build a body like yours?
Tom: Yes 53 is just a number. To me being 53 brings advantages not disadvantages. At 53 a person should have alot more wisdom, and discipline than someone half my age. My discipline and focus work to my advantage. I don’t believe in excuses. I believe that anyone with a goal or desire to change them selves can do so. Just get the right information, apply it with consistency, adjust where needed and you will arrive at your target.
Vince: What separates your mindset from other males your age?
Tom: I don’t think like everyone else. If you tell me it can’t be done I’ll do it anyway just to prove it can be done. I don’t give up and I go harder than anyone I know, well almost anyone!
Vince: What would the #1 secret you maximized to get your razor sharp jaw dropping abs?
Tom: Ahhh the abs. When I train I try to focus my mind and make a connection between that and the muscle I’m working on. Abs are no different. I use a slower than normal rep tempo and really squeeze the abs, also stretch them out often.
Vince: What does your daily nutrition plan look like?
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By Vince On July 14, 2010
26 Comments
Featured Body Transformation Story: Anthony Ciccotto
These motivational stories will show you everything you will ever need to know on how to finally create the body of your dreams.
Feeling unmotivated? Well, look no further. Your fellow bodybuilding and fitness enthusiasts are here to give you all the drive you’ll need!
Gained 9 Pounds Of Pure Muscle And Zero Fat In 16-Weeks
BEFORE PICTURE: Anthony
AFTER PICTURE: Anthony
“The only thing that should be left on the gym floor is sweat. My name is Anthony Ciccotto. I am 29 and live on Long Island in New York. Devotion is the key to success and I believe strongly in this. There is no point in doing something in which you are not going to give one hundred and ten percent to.
Training is a big part of my life. I have been doing it for as long as I can remember. A year ago I started to lose the challenging aspect that training should always bring. Around that time I Found Vince on line and subscribed to his newsletters. After six month of seeing what Vince had to offer, my confidence in him as a trainer grew. He then introduced MYM and I jumped on it. It was, and is, exactly what I needed to throw the challenge back into my training.
MYM Phase One (100 Rep muscle) awoke my muscles again and set the stage for what was to come in the phases to follow. Phase Two (Five Day Full Body Vinsanity) brought my body to a new endurance level that I never experienced before. After just two phases my weight increased from 147lbs to 152lbs. MYM Phase Three (Crank Up The Volume) expanded my muscles. It gave me a constant pump, feel and look, inside and outside of the gym. My weight jumped up to 158lbs. MYM Phase Four (Ripped In A Rush) toned my body while keeping the muscle on. This program kept me lean throughout. However, Phase Four gave me the tools to get extra cut just in time for summer. I am currently weighing in at 156lbs.
I really enjoy the challenges that Vince Del Monte brings through MYM. This program builds from month to month. As the program builds, my mind and body follow. I am very excited to see what is in store in the months to come. Thank you Vince for giving me the tools needed to bring my body to a whole new level of training. Health is life.
Anthony Ciccotto
Long Island, New York
Vince: What was your bodybuilding training like prior to starting MYM and entering the 16 week contest?
Anthony: My training kept me lean however, i was having a tough time gaining. I would hit the weights Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. My cardio days where Tuesday, Thursday. I used the weekends as my off days. My diet was just “OK”. I wasn’t getting enough meals in.
Vince: You mentioned you didn’t take measurements, just your scale weight. Do you think you can make gains and modifications to your program simply relying on the mirror?
Anthony: Absolutely. I pay much more attention to the mirror than the scale. Too many factors can sway the truth of the scale. (water weight, heaviness of the meals the day before weighing, time of day, weather or not a bowl movement was made prior to weigh in) haha you get the point. As far as the mirror goes, ya just have to make sure its clean enough to see your self. If i start to see something in the mirror that im not happy about, ill make a change to correct it. Be it diet or training.
Vince: It appears you gained at least 10 pounds of pure muscle mass without any fat? What was the number one strategy behind this hard to achieve result?
Anthony: Clean diet. I only use one kind of protein shake. I don’t rely on protein bars. I get all my protein, carbs and nutrients from actual food.
Vince: What do you think you did better than anyone else to achieve the results you got?
Anthony: I would say its a combination of my clean diet and my consistency with the training. Consistency meaning, not skipping days because im tired or not in the mood, and consistency meaning, hitting it as hard as i can every time im there. My goal every time i go to the gym is to always make sure im going to feel that soreness the day after. Then i know i worked hard enough.
Vince: What is the number one mistake guys are making when trying to gain quality muscle mass without the fat?
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A world famous fitness coach and author, Vince DelMonte is known as the top "Skinny Guy" expert and has helped more skinny guys and girls defeat their muscle unfriendly genes without drugs and supplements.
