1. Being beyond others in progress or ideas
2. Being beyond the elementary or introductory
3. Greatly developed beyond the initial stage
4. One who has long ago mastered the basics
5. One who is greatly developed, experienced and who now has the sole purpose of maintaining muscle mass acquired while simultaneously refining and improving that muscle mass and physique

You have reached the highest point in your weight training; you are now training at a level most never will. Your body parts are now split down into more specific sections, and you have long ago mastered all the basics. At this point you need to intensify your workouts even more and apply more concentration movements to gain added detail.

If you have reached this point the odds are strong you have been training for a decent amount of time. How long? This is impossible to say, everyone is different and everyone reacts and responds differently. Some simply want have it in them to train in the manner in which will be discussed here, but the few that do will witness some amazing progress.

In many ways things from the intermediate level will be the identical here, the same can be said in regards to the beginners routine discussed here at steroid.com. The basics, squats, presses, dead lifts, etc, they will still be part of your routine and this will never change. If you are looking for some magical exercise then you are going to be disappointed at what you find; there is no such thing. Nothing will replace hard work and a sound diet, but at steroid.com we will show you how to maximize these aspects.

There will be several keys to your success and the rate at which this success is met. Several will be discussed here, but the biggest of all, what makes any bodybuilder or health enthusiast successful is there diet. For complete guided diet information, see the steroid.com diet and nutritional outlines for the best and latest insight on the best way to eat.

***Age Factor***

It does not matter how old you are; if you have mastered the beginners outline and surpassed intermediate levels, you are ready for the advanced training method.

***Form***

The form you use on these exercises is the most important aspect to your training next to consistency and diet. Without proper form you may indeed make some progress; some being the key word. Each one of these various exercises has a correct way to be performed and is designed to hit the targeted muscle perfectly and most efficiently. With improper form, it is easy to lead to injury; it is also very easy to take away from the muscle group youre trying to work. So many will work their shoulders and triceps more than needed when trying to work chest because of improper form. So many will involve their biceps and forearms more than needed when trying to work back; the list goes on and on.

***Rest***

No matter how advanced you may have become, your body will still need to rest. Our bodies actually grow while at rest, not when we are hitting the weights. Now that youve mastered the basics, it will be time to split up your training a little more, this will mean more days in the gym, but it will also mean its time to hit it even harder, so make your rest count.

***Note on rest: Some will not be able to split their routine into more days per week. This is not the end of the world. If you still need to train your arms with other body parts then do so, but the odds are in your favor for more development if arms are trained separately. Our advanced routine will also promote a split in leg day between quads and hamstrings.

***Workout Duration***

None of your training sessions should last more than one hour tops. This does not include any cardio or abdominal training you may do. Continually pounding and pounding your muscles in two or three hour weight training sessions is a futile attempt and complete waste of time when it comes to building muscle. The idea behind your workouts is Stimulation not Annihilation. Annihilation has its place in what you will undertake, but it should not be an every time you go to the gym scenario. This is a sure fire way to fry your Central Nervous System (CNS), as well as cause you to get burned out sooner then you should have. If you do thing correctly, and if you keep your drive alive, there should never be a reason for you to burn out.

***Consistency***

Consistency is one of the major keys to building any well-toned muscular physique. Develop a plan of attack and stick to it; you will need to schedule and set aside time to train. Make training one of your priorities; it should become a regular part of your basic day. If youre sick, then do not go to the gym, but only if you are truly sick. If you have a slight head cold or are just a little tired, push through it. Its very easy to find a million excuses every day not to train; you have to make it a priority if you are going to succeed.

***Intensity***

When you hit the gym it is important to hit the gym hard. Dont waste your time while training, get in get out and get the work done. A long-standing question has been how hard do I need to exercise? You will need to train hard; no, you will not need to be on the verge of passing out every single set and rep. However, keep the intensity high, limit rest between sets to 60-90 seconds and when you feel really good, dont be afraid to make the rest even shorter at times. Longer rest periods can be acceptable, such as when youre doing heavy squats or dead lifts, say 120 seconds, but this should not be every time.

-One thing is for certain; vigorous exercise is more beneficial then exercise alone. Studies have shown that vigorous exercise in healthy individuals can increase endorphins in the body and create a strong state of increased positive hormone production. Meaning it can increase testosterone and growth hormone levels within the body in ways moderate exercise cannot

*You will find a lot more freedom as an advanced trainer. Pick and choose the most adequate way for you to warm up; this should be easy by now. Begin adding in more supersets, drop sets, giant sets and any other intensity technique you can come up with. The following outline will give you a good idea how to go about this, but you will need to continually change it up and give it your own twist if you want to continue progressing in the right direction.

Chest: (Workout A)

Incline Dumbbell Press: 3 Working Sets 8-15 reps each

Incline Dumbbell Flys super-set w/Flat Barbell Bench Press: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each exercise

Weighted Dips super-set w/Cable Crossovers: 3 Sets 10 reps w/Dips, 10-failure w/Crossovers

Plate Loaded Machine Press (any type) 4 sets, minimal rest in-between sets 15 reps each

Chest: (Workout B)

Incline Barbell Press (Rest/Pause Reps): 3 Sets 8-10 reps each

Incline Dumbbell Press: 3 Sets 10-12 reps each

Incline Flys: 2 Sets triple drop sets to failure

Plate Loaded Machine Press (any type) 4 sets, minimal rest in-between sets 15 reps each

Back: (Workout A)

Wide Grip Pull-Ups or Lat Pull Downs: 4 Sets 10-15 reps each

Reverse Wide Grip Seated Cable Row super-set w/Incline Dumbbell Rows: 3 sets 10 reps each exercise

Barbell Rows: 4 Sets 8-15 reps each

Rack Dead Lifts: 3 Working Sets 6-12 reps each (you may need several pyramid sets to get up to the heavy weight)

Back: (Workout B)

Hanging/Elevated Pull-Ups: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each

Reverse Grip Barbell Rows super-set w/Reverse Grip Pull Downs: 3 Sets 10-12 reps each both exercises

T-Bar Rows: 3 Sets 8-12 reps each, last set triple drop set

Perpendicular Close Grip Lat Pull Downs: 3 sets 15 reps each

Quads & Calves: (Workout A)

Single Leg Extensions: 3 Sets each leg, 15-20 reps each

Squats: 3 Sets 8-15 reps each

Unilateral Leg Press: 3 Sets each leg, 15-25 reps each set

Hack Squats super-set w/Staggered Squats: 3 Sets 12-15 reps each set on Hacks, 10 reps each leg on Staggered

Seated Calf Raise w/counted holds: 3 Sets 10-15 reps

Quads & Calves: (Workout B)

Giant Set: Hack Squats super-set w/Leg Extensions: 3 Sets 15 reps each

Front Squats: 3 Sets 12-15 reps each

Leg Extensions: 2 Sets both sets 50-failure (hard contractions, at least 1 second hold on each rep)

Standing Calf Raise super-set with Single Leg Standing Calf Raise: 2 Sets 15 reps for Weighted, 10 for single leg

Shoulders & Traps: (Workout A)

Lateral Raise super-set w/Front Raise: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each exercise

Dumbbell Military Press super-set w/Dumbbell Shrugs: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each exercise

Reverse Pec Dek Fly: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each arm, final set triple drop set

Barbell Shrugs: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each

Shoulders & Traps: (Workout B)

Hammer Strength Military Press (or equivalent) 3 Sets 8-12 Reps each

Dumbbell Lateral Raises: Run the rack start with heaviest weight possible for 10 reps, drop 5-10lbs and immediately go again. Repeat until youre at 10lb DBs

Incline Dumbbell Front Raises: 3 Sets 12-15 reps each

Hammer Strength Shrugs (or equivalent): 1 Set, Progressive Rep Drop Set

Arms: (Workout A)

Barbell Curls: 3 Working Sets 10-15 reps each, last set triple drop set

Dumbbell Preacher Curls: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each arm

Incline Hammer Curls: 3 Sets 10-12 reps each arm

Close Grip Bench Press: 3 Working Sets 8-15 reps each

Dumbbell French Press/Skull Crushers: 3 Sets 8-12 reps each

Reverse Grip Pull Downs: 3 Sets 12-15 reps each arm

Arms: (Workout B)

Incline French Press/Skull Crushers super-set w/Incline Curls: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each exercise 3 rd set taken to absolute failure both exercises

V-bar Press Downs super-set w/Straight Bar Cable Curls: 3 Sets 10-15 reps each 3 rd set taken to absolute failure both exercises

Close Grip Bench Press super-set w/Dumbbell Hammer Curls: 3 Sets 8-10 reps each 3 rd set taken to absolute failure both exercises

Hamstrings & Calves: (Workout A)

Unilateral Lying Leg Curl: 3 Sets 10-12 reps each leg

Stiff Leg Dead Lifts: 3 Sets 12-15 reps each

High Leg Press: 3 Sets 15-20 reps

Standing Calf Raise: 2 Sets 15 reps each

Donkey Calf Raise: 2 Sets 15 reps each

Hamstrings & Calves: (Workout B)

Lying Leg Curls: 3 Sets 10-failure each, last set triple drop set

Glute Ham Raises: 3-4 Sets absolute failure on all sets

3 Sets 10 reps each side

 

Standing Calf Raise: 3 Sets triple drop sets each

 

%%Panel.pick3pages%% ***Abdominals***

*Train your abs 3 days per week in the similar manner in which you did in the beginning routine. Pick 3 exercises from the 3 categories, but start experimenting with ways to make the exercises harder to add additional stimulation.

***KEEP YOUR AB TRAINGING GOING. Many people will neglect their abs thinking its not important unless they are dieting and leaning out for competition. Nothing could be further from the truth. Strong abdominal muscles greatly aid in stabilizing the body during other exercises. You need a strong midsection if you expect to go up in weight in lifts such as dead lifts, squats, military press, etc.

***Important Note***

-Some of the lifts that were listed in the beginners and intermediate routine are not listed in this Advanced routine; this does not mean that those lifts that were left out of the Advanced routine no longer have their place in your training. In fact, most all of the lifts that are discussed in all of the routines regardless of the level will always have a place.

-What was done here was to show you how to incorporate new exercises into your routine that were not included in the beginners or intermediate routine. You will still need to use some of the very exercise in the beginners and intermediate routine in this one. Learn to mix and match, but follow the formula here now that youve arrived.

-Take for example Plain good old-fashioned leg press; it is not listed in the advanced routine, other leg exercise made their way into this sample outline. Remember, THIS IS A SAMPLE! You will still need to incorporate regular leg presses into your routine; the same can be said for all exercises.

***The Sample Routines A & B Sections:

*These routines are just that, Samples they are not to say this is the only way you can pair your exercises for a body part. For instance, on chest day, Chest Workout B, on the list above it has you doing your flys after your presses, doing them first on one of your chest days is a great way to pre-exhaust your chest at the beginning. Its important to mix things up to keep the body guessing, the body has a tendency to try its best to remain the same, to stay in a state of homeostasis. Lets answer some questions you might have

Q: Should you follow the routines just as they are laid out?

A: When you first begin the advanced level, absolutely, follow the above routine the exact way it is laid out. The first week you begin training, follow workout A for each body part, the next week follow workout B and then repeat so on and so on. As you become accustomed to the training, begin to mix up the order of the exercises.

Q: Should I keep the reps and sets just like they are in laid out in the routine or should I play around with this as well?

A: When you first begin the Advanced level, absolutely, follow the above routine the exact way it is laid out. As you begin to progress, feel free to play with the rep range slightly. Keep in mind; you are lifting for your physique not simply for strength alone, your reps should generally fall in the 8-15 rep range on each set. The occasional burn out set of 20+ reps is a great way to mix things up, and if you want to do an occasional set of 3-4, go for it, but in general keep the sets in the 8-15 range.

Q: Most of the exercises have only 3 sets in them, is this enough?

A: When you begin your workout, lets use chest as an example, say you begin with Incline Barbell Press. You will need to warm up and do a few sets while progressively increasing the weight with each one. When it comes to the 3 sets listed in the outline, these represent Working Sets the sets where you are pushing to the limit. After youve completed this first exercise, when you go to the next there is no reason to go through the same warm up again. You should not have to do a few sets of the next exercise, you should go right into the working sets; your body is already warmed up.

-As with everything in life, there are exceptions, and there are slight ones here. When you are doing legs, if you do not do squats first you may still need to do a set or two to sort of get in the groove; but do not waste a lot of energy on a bunch of warm up sets, you should already be warm. The same can be said with dead lifts, and some of the pressing movements.

Q: What if I feel like doing more sets, should I?

A: In general, no, you should be able to get all the work done in the prescribed amount of sets listed in this routine. Now sometimes to mix things up, sure throw an extra set or two in there, it will be good stimulation for the muscle. But in general, if you follow the guided outlines rules and recommendations, and if you follow them perfectly, you will make perfect gains and get the most out of your training.

***Myths***

*Spot Reduction:

When you train a certain body part, this does not mean you are burning fat from the area being worked. Many people believe that if they do sit-ups or crunches they will in fact shrink their stomach; nothing could be further from the truth. When you exercise, the energy pulled from fat burns stored body fat from the entire body; it starts from the last place the fat was stored. When you work a certain body part, you do in fact improve the shape and strength of that body part, but you do not specifically remove fat from that area. Your goal is to shrink fat cells throughout the entire body, which is exactly what youre doing when you exercise and eat right.

*Muscle to FatFat to Muscle:

Many believe that when they stop training that the new muscle they have acquired will turn into fat; the opposite is sometimes said about fat. Some believe that when they begin training that the fat they now have will turn into muscle. Muscle tissue is not the same as fat tissue. Why does this myth exist? This is because of catabolism of muscle fibers for the use of energy, which in many cases will cause excess glucose to be stored as fat. What you end up having is muscle atrophy and increased fatty tissue in the same body part giving the appearance that muscle has turned into fat.

*Reshaping the Muscle:

Unfortunately you cannot reshape your muscles. The shape of your muscles is determined at birth. Your goal is to add all you can to the look of your muscle, to enthusiastically create a better appeal of the muscles in your body. By increasing the size and by removing excess body fat around the muscles, it will give them the appearance of better looking muscles.

***Sample Weekly Splits***

*Sample 1:

Monday	Back
Tuesday	Chest
Wednesday	Quads & Calves
Thursday	Shoulders & Traps
Friday	Arms
Saturday	Hamstrings & Calves
Sunday	Off/Rest

*Sample 2:

Monday	Rest/Off
Tuesday	Back
Wednesday	Chest
Thursday	Quads & Calves
Friday	Shoulders & Traps
Saturday	Arms
Sunday	Hamstrings & Calves

*Sample 3:

Monday	Arms
Tuesday	Quads & Calves
Wednesday	Off/Rest
Thursday	Shoulders & Traps
Friday	Rest/Off
Saturday	Back
Sunday	Chest

*Notes on Sample Splits:

*In the advanced routine you are doing quads and hamstrings separately. For many of you this will be a great way to bring up lagging hamstrings, more of you will fall into this category then not. If not, or if you simply do not have time to add in the extra training session, it will not be the end of the world.

*In all three splits, back and quads are kept with at least one day apart from the two; nowhere are they listed on back-to-back days. You should be moving some pretty decent weight by now, and having them back to back can lead to too much stress on the spine.

*Arms, nowhere are they listed to where you train arms and then train chest, back, or shoulders the next day. They should always fall one day before you rest, or one day before you train quads or hamstrings to allow them to recover.

***How Long to Stay on Advanced Routine***

*Hopefully for the rest of your life. You will need to continually mix things up, find new ways to create adequate stimulation. If you stay tuned to steroid.com we will continue to show you these ways.

-If you fall away from training for a short while, ease back into it just a little but dont waste too much time. Get back going as quickly as you can

***Very Important***

-As you did at the intermediate level you will need to continue imploring different styles of training to compliment what youre already doing. The steroid.com outline should always be your base, but feel free to experiment with other training methods to compliment this one.

-If you are to follow the steroid.com training outline, as some point growth and progress will slow down; this will be true with any training method you follow. At this point you may very well need to consider switching to an alternate routine for several weeks. After you have made this switch, after you have trained with your alternate routine for a set amount of time, then it will be time to return to this outline.

-Lifting styles such as DC, YT3, HIT, etc. are excellent choices to give your body a needed change and boost in training.

-Once you have completed a set time period through one of these alternate training methods, when you do return to the steroid.com training outline, you will find that your progress will increase yet again.

***Soreness***

*Soreness is not the end all to be all factor when it comes to actual progress or in determining if your training session went well.

-When you first begin this routine you are going to be sore, this is a given. You will be sorer then you have ever been or ever will be again; especially after the first few sessions of squats and dead lifts. Dont let this concern you, it will hurt, it will be uncomfortable, but you need to work through it. If you are sore the next day after your leg workout, this does not mean you take the next scheduled lifting day off; you work through it. There will be times when it is difficult to sit or walk normally, there will be times when lifting your arms up is a difficult task; WORK THROUGH IT! As you continue to work, the soreness will lessen and become more manageable.

-Many people enjoy a manageable level of soreness after they workout; it gives them a feeling of satisfaction that their workout session was a job well done. But it is not the soreness itself that leads to a Good Workout. The soreness was caused in part by the strain on the muscles and in part by the buildup of lactic acid around the muscles being worked. For some this will be worse than others. Proper diet and proper rest will alleviate soreness to a great extent, as will cardio. (See Cardio Section)

-Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS): you have trained a particular muscle group, yet soreness does not show itself until an undetermined amount of time has passed. For example, you trained legs, after youre done training you are tired and fatigued, perhaps sore in a strained sort of way, yet actual Soreness is absent. The next morning when you wake up, perhaps even twenty hours later, the intense soreness rears its head. There can be even another level of DOMS that is not uncommon; you have trained a particular body part and the extreme soreness shows itself the next day. 48 hours later, the soreness is intensified yet again taking it to its peak level. When this occurs it may take a few days before the soreness subsides completely. DO NOT WORRY, this is normal and all part of the new way of life you have undertaken.

***Taking a Break***

*After approximately 12-16weeks of training, it is strongly recommended that you take some time off from your weight training. At this point you will not want to touch a weight for a solid week. This will allow your body some much needed rest, and it will let your muscles heal and prepare you even that much more for the training to come. At this point some of you will find that you will be ready for the intermediate level of training. You will have mastered all of the basics in this outline. Most of you, however, will not be ready and will still require some time. How much time as said before is impossible to determine. Use your own sound judgment.

Q: Why take a break, shouldnt I train more and more? Wont I lose my gains, wont I hurt my progress?

A: Absolutely not, if anything you will help it tremendously

Q: Should I do nothing when I take my break?

A: Remain active, its recommended that you do something most days; it is simply good for your health. Take a walk or go play some sort of pickup game with your friends, anything to simply get some exercise

Q: What if I reach the 12-16wk mark and dont feel like taking a break, what if I am really in the groove and making great progress, should I still take a break?

A: There is nothing magical per say about the 12-16wk mark. If you are hitting it hard and really making progress, sure, go ahead and keep going for another week or two, but you should really force yourself to break at some point during or slightly after that time frame. Your gains will be greater and your body will thank you.

***Cardio***

*Cardio is an absolute essential for anyone looking to build a great physique. It is beneficial for your cardiovascular system, it keeps your metabolism revved up, and it helps regulate many of the hormones in your body that are essential for a proper functioning body to build an awesome physique.

*There are several things to consider when it comes to your cardio. Right now you are not dieting for a contest, you are not trying to get down to an extremely low body fat percentage, but cardio and keeping your metabolism burning quickly is important.

-If you are carrying a large amount of body fat, then it is recommended that you do a pretty good bit of cardio from the get go. At this point you should be following a weight loss style diet with your training and you should be doing cardio most every day. Recommended a minimum of 30 minutes every day of some type of cardio, 45 minutes a day will probably be more like it.

-If you are in relatively good shape, your body fat is at a manageable level and you are not concerned at this time with losing any body fat, 30 minutes of cardio around 4-5 days a week is perfect.

-If you are a hard gainer, you have very low body fat and struggle with gaining muscle, you still need to do a little cardio. If nothing else consider the health benefits. On top of this, keep in mind that regular cardiovascular training enhances hormone production in the body, therefore increasing your ability to build lean muscle tissue. 3-4 sessions per week at 20 minutes per session is perfect for you.

*The type of cardio or how hard you do your cardio is important. You should keep your heart rate in the fat burning zone. There is no need to sprint or get your heart rate flying; this will put you at risk at burning precious hard earned muscle tissue. Keep it in the fat burning zone; your heart rate should be at 110-130 beats per minute.

*Final cardio note: Regular post weight training cardio is one of the best ways to ensure youre not sorer then you need to be. Nothing flushes out the lactic acid that builds up around your muscles during weight training and causes soreness like cardio does. If for no other reason then this, cardio should be executed regularly.

***Stretching & Warming UP***

*Both are important before any training session. Before you hit the weights it is not a bad idea to do 5-10 minutes of light cardio to get your blood flowing and get into the right state of mind. Is it necessary? No, but its not a bad idea.

*When it comes to stretching itself, before each workout stretch the muscles that you will be training. However, you do not and should not do any extreme stretching before lifting. This can be damaging to your muscles before you lift. Keep the intense stretching for after you lift. Is post workout stretching necessary? To an extent absolutely! It will help flush lactic acid away from the muscles making soreness more manageable. It will also help prevent injury

***Lifting Accessories***

*There is an ongoing argument among trainers, lifters and weight lifting experts as to which if any accessories are acceptable. Among pure strength athletes these can be a hindrance, but you are here to build a perfect physique.

*Belts: If you can get by without using one then by all means go for it. If you are feeling pressure on your lower back in some exercises then please use a belt. If you are feeling pressure during presses then you are twisting your back and should stop immediately and perfect your form. If you feel you need a belt while doing curls, then you are swinging your back and hips, stop lower the weight and perfect your form.

-Belts are acceptable for:

*Squats

*Dead Lifts

*Bent-Over Rows

*Shrugs

*We can make an exception with belts when the individual becomes more advanced in his training. At this time the individual should have mastered his form and can choose to use a belt during any exercise for any body part if he so chooses.

*Lifting Straps: Some will argue that using lifting straps will take away from forearm development and that they should never be used. This is simply an overblown myth. When training your back your forearms will come into play on almost every exercise, on everyone of these exercises no matter how strong your forearms are, they will tire out before your back does. Your back will always be stronger then your forearms no matter how strong your forearms become. For this reason it is strongly recommended that you use lifting straps while training back and while performing shrugs in some instances. Worry about your forearm strength and development when youre training arms.

*Knee Wraps: These items have their place in a training routine when it comes to legs. However, their use should be limited. As a beginner you were strongly urged not to use these items, as a more advanced lifter this may be the time for some of you to begin using them. So when is it time?

-You have built up a massive amount of strength in your legs.

-You have weak knees when it comes to the heavy weight you now need to push doing squats and lunges.

-Squats and lunges will be the only two acceptable places where you are to use knee wraps.

-At steroid.com, we can say with almost all certainty that if 225lbs is considered heavy for you on squats, then there is no reason for you to use knee wraps.

-You should be pushing 400lbs+ if you are going to consider using wraps. This doesnt mean you have to, but lets make 400lbs the bench mark.

***Notes on Exercises***

*Incline Dumbbell Flys: This is the same movement as a regular dumbbell fly performed on a flat bench; all that has changed is the angle. The angle will provide greater stimulation to your upper chest, and many find that these cause less stress to the shoulders then traditional flat bench dumbbell flys.

-Lying on an incline bench, keep both feet on the floor and hold the dumbbells directly above your head, palms facing in.

-Lower the dumbbells in a circular motion towards the floor

-DO NOT lower them to the point where your shoulders start pointing behind the bench; this is too low.

-Pull the dumbbells back to the top and squeeze the pecs hard.

*Flat Bench Press: With the bar or the dumbbells, the downward portion of the movement should hit somewhere in the mid to upper chest region. If the bar is hitting you below the chest you are doing the movement incorrectly.

-Your elbows should remain almost perpendicular to your body; a slight inward turn is acceptable and will probably feel more natural, but only slightly. DO NOT allow your elbows to turn in towards your chest; this will put the stress on your triceps and shoulders and is one of the biggest leading causes to injury on the bench press.

- Your butt should remain flat on the bench the entire time, with your feet flat on the floor. Do not flail your legs, do not twist and contort your body to get the weight up. If you cant do this, then lower the weight because it is too heavy. Control is the key!

*Weighted Dips for chest: These are performed in the same manner as upright tricep dips are performed with one exception; here you will remain leaning forward with your chest the entire time, there by putting a large amount of the stimulation on your chest. You will need to use a belt with a chain attached to hook a plate or dumbbell to the belt.

-DO NOT lean up, stay at an angle throughout

-Keep your chest tight the entire time

*Cable Crossovers: Gripping two D-handles, attach them to a cable station with them set at the position close to the top; they should be above your shoulders. Experiment with the height and dont use the same height every time. Grab the handles, step forward a few steps and lean your body slightly forward. Simply bring the handles together in a circular motion and squeeze your chest at the bottom of the movement. Your hands should be at approximately level with your hips at the bottom of the movement.

-DO NOT over exaggerate the lean forward

-DO NOT let your shoulders roll forward, if they do, you are using too much weight

-Keep one foot slightly in front of the other for the best balance

*Incline Barbell Press (Rest/Pause Reps): The exercise works the same as standard barbell incline press; it is the way in which you perform the reps in terms of speed that is different.

-Lower the weight in a controlled manner at the same speed every time. It should be done very slowly, experiment with a 3 count and a 5 count to find the perfect groove.

-At the bottom of the lift, when the bar is all the way down, hold in position for a count of 2-3 full seconds.

-DO NOT let the bar rest on your chest, the bottom of the movement should have the bar approximately 1 above your chest

-After the 2-3 second pause at the bottom, explode up. The weight is not going to move fast but get it up with as much power as you have in you.

-The total weight used on rest pause sets will be much less than standard sets.

*Incline Bench Press: With the bar or the dumbbells, the downward portion of the movement should hit in line with the upper portion of your chest, just below your neck line for full stimulation.

-The downward portion of the exercise, your elbows should be close a 90 degree angle perpendicular to your body or slightly lower. Find the natural position. If you have longer arms, there is no need to go down to where your elbows begin to point and drift behind your body. This will cause damage to your shoulders.

-Your butt should remain flat on the bench the entire time, with your feet flat on the floor. Do not flail your legs, do not twist and contort your body to get the weight up. If you cant do this, then lower the weight because it is too heavy. Control is the key!

*Wide Grip Pull-Ups: Wide Grip means just that; WIDE GRIP! Slightly beyond shoulder width is as close as you should ever get to your body. As you get stronger, widen your grip even further out.

-As you grip the bar, use a thumb less grip to take pressure off the forearms and keep it on the back.

-Use your arms and hands as hooks; contract your back muscles to pull you up. If you feel added stress on your shoulders, examine your movement; you may be pulling with your shoulders and not your back. This is a very common mistake and easy to do.

-Take the movement all the way to the top and all the way back down to the very bottom for a full stretch. The top part of the movement should have your chin at the top of the bar.

-If you cannot do bodyweight pull-ups, use an assisted machine until you master the exercise and are ready for full-fledged pull-ups. If your gym does not have an assisted machine, use the lat pull down on the cables; most gyms do have an assisted machine.

*Reverse Wide Grip Seated Cable Row: Performed identically as the wide grip seated cable row, however, this time you will grip the bar with an underhand grip; everything else is the same.

-DO NOT jerk the weight back to where you are leaning backwards at the end of the movement.

-After youve pulled the weight back and are preparing to lower it back down, let it stretch your arms and lats forward to get a good stretch. This is sort of a touchy thing, it can be easy to let yourself stretch forward and then use the momentum to thrust yourself backwards, which will take your back out of the exercise in the incorrect way.

*Incline Dumbbell Rows: Lying face down on an incline bench, this exercise is similar to a standard dumbbell row. The big difference is the angle, you will find this exercise much harder to do correctly but it will provide a much needed added stimulation to your back. Keeping your head down, let the dumbbells hang naturally to your side and pull them straight up as high as you can, contracting at the top.

-DO NOT raise your head up

-Keep your torso planet firmly on the bench

-Make sure your elbows are coming straight back and not flaring outwards

*Bent-Over Barbell Rows: Grabbing a barbell at shoulder width, using a thumb less grip bend over to where the bar is hanging towards the floor, arms straight. As you bend down, bend at the hips, not at the waist. Your rear end should be pointed outward at an exaggerated position if you are bending over correctly. Bend over to a 90 degree angle. A 45 degree angle can be acceptable, however upright is not nor is a slight bend.

-Pull the bar straight up keeping it towards your body the entire time. As you pull up, your elbows should be pointed straight back. Contract hard at the top and repeat.

-At the top portion of the movement, the bar should hit in between the hips and your bellybutton, not below and not higher.

*Rack Dead Lifts: Very similar to dead lifts, the difference here is the starting point. With Rack Dead Lifts, you will start with the bar right below your knees; other then that, the movement is exactly the same.

Why Deads off a rack? You should be much stronger by now. You are also not training purely for strength but for a well-defined and developed physique. With regular dead lifts from the floor it is very easy for to cause unwanted distension in the stomach and over developed obliques, which will make your waste appear wider, this is the last thing you want. Taking the starting point to slightly below the knees will greatly aid in preventing these things from happening.

Inside a power rack place the safety stops directly below the knees. Grab the bar with a slightly wider then shoulder width grip, both hands with an overhand grip, palms facing down. Pull straight up, contract your entire back and lower the weight back to the safety stopsrepeat.

-DO NOT bend over at the waste letting your back round over. Remain as upright as you can naturally.

-Make sure you go all the way down with each rep

*Hanging/Elevated Pull-Ups: You will need to perform these using a Smith Machine. Lying under a Smith machine bar, place the bar approximately 2.5-3.5 feet off the ground. In front of your feet you will need a bench; a bench you would use for dumbbell military press will work best. Simply prop your feet on top of the back of the bench while gripping the Smith machine bar with your hands and pull yourself straight up into the bar; contract at the top.

-Your feet should be higher then your head at the bottom of the movement and your head will be almost inline with your feet at the top, still slightly lower.

-Keep your torso as straight as possible throughout

*Reverse Grip Barbell Rows: The exact same movement as regular barbell rows, only this time you are gripping the bar with your palms facing up. The difference here is it will allow you to pull your elbows back more.

-Pull the bar straight up keeping it towards your body the entire time. As you pull up, your elbows should be pointed straight back. Contract hard at the top and repeat.

-At the top portion of the movement, the bar should hit in between the hips and your bellybutton not below and not higher.

*Reverse Grip Pull Downs: These can be performed using a Hammer Strength Machine that is specifically designed for this movement or with a lat pull-down bar on a cable station. Either way, your hands will be approximately 6 apart and you will hold the bar with a reverse grip, palms facing up. Simply pull straight down into your chest.

-DO NOT lean back at all if you use the Hammer Strength method, a slight lean is acceptable on the cable station; no more then 10 degrees.

-Keep your head up

-DO NOT let your shoulders become involved

*T-Bar Rows: There are two options to perform this exercise. First, some gyms have a t-bar row bench, it will have a pad you lean over on with your chest, and two handles that you reach down and grab. You simply pull the weight up to the bottom of the pad.

The other option, and this is the steroid.com favored method, do it the way it was originally intended to be done. Place a bar in a floor positioned t-bar holder or simply place a barbell in the corner of a wall. Put your weight on the opposite end of the bar and using a D-handle grab the bar and pull straight up towards your chest. You should remain bent at the hips at a 90 degree to slightly less the entire time, similar to how you would be bent performing barbell rows.

-DO NOT bend at the waste

-Keep your head up

-Contract your lats hard at the top

-DO NOT bounce the weight off the floor

*Single Leg Extensions: Everything that is said about standard leg extensions is the same here; you will simply use one leg at a time for isolation purposes. Simply place both feet into the proper position on the leg extension machine and work one leg at a time.

-DO NOT lock your knee at the top

-Squeeze and hold each rep at the top for a second

-DO NOT bounce the weight

*Squats: With the bar across your back, you should squat down similar to if you were sitting down in a chair. Your feet should be shoulder width to slightly less than shoulder width apart. Spreading your feet further apart will give you more power, but will take away from the stimulation you are trying to achieve.

-The bar should not be up high on your neck, rather it should be resting on your lower traps. Having the bar too high can force your head down. Your head should remain up the entire time to relieve stress on the spine.

-You should remain upright through the entire movement. However, this means upright in a natural position; you do not need to be at a 90degree angle. Your glutes should be going back and down as you make the movement.

-The movement itself, your knees should not go out over your toes. Feet remain flat; your heels never come up. Your thighs should be parallel to the ground at the bottom portion of the exercise. Going below parallel is great, if you can squat glutes to calves then do so, but not at the expense of solid form in every other aspect. However, Parallel is a MUST!

*Unilateral Leg Press: On a leg press machine, you will perform these one leg at a time. Place both feet on the platform to get the weight up and then drop one leg to the floor; let it relax naturally. You will press the weight with the one leg left on the platform. You will need to keep your working leg positioned directly in line with your working side shoulder.

-DO NOT put your working leg directly in front of you to where your foot is in line with the center of your chest

-DO NOT lock your knee at the top

*Hack Squats: Youre gym should have a machine called a Hack Squat this is the one youll use. The move can also be performed holding a barbell behind your back and squatting, but for our purposes we will use the Hack Squat machine press. There are two types of hack machines/benches:

Stand in the machine lying back on the pad with the shoulder pads directly over your shoulders. Standing with your feet slightly less the shoulder width apart on the platform, simply squat down.

Sit in the seat that has a V shaped bend, with your lower back directly above the crease/split. Seated with your feet slightly less the shoulder width apart on the platform, simply squat down.

-DO NOT let your back come up off the seat or off the back pad. This can lead to severe stress on the spine

-DO NOT slouch your body; remain fully up right with your torso

-Keep your toes pointed slightly out, slightly

*Staggered Squats: To use any decent amount of weight you will need to use a Smith Machine for this. Step under the bar just as you would to do regular barbell squats. Placing one foot out in front of you and the other stretched out behind you and up on your toe. Lower the weight down. The movement should be almost identical to a lunge, but you will be able to use a far greater amount of weight with these then with lunges. Keep in mind, these do not replace lunges, they offer a variation on stimulation.

-Remain perfectly upright throughout

-DO NOT let the bending leg come out over your toe

-The back leg should remain straight and relaxed

*Seated Calf Raise w/counted holds: These can be performed on any calf raise machine. You will simply be using a count to make the work more difficult and provide needed stimulation.

-Press the weight to the top position and bring it down slowly for a count of 8 seconds; you should not reach the bottom until you have reached a full count of 8

-At the bottom of the exercise, hold for a count of 5 full seconds

-After the 5 second hold at the bottom, explode up and repeat

*Leg Extensions: In a leg extension machine, simply extend your legs up with your ankles resting on the pad. Contract at the top

-Hold the rep at the top for a second and contract

-Control the weight back down

-DO NOT bounce the weight

*Standing Calf Raise: Standing in a calf raise machine, place the pads on top of your shoulders. Your feet should be placed with your heels hanging off the foot platform. Press up and all the way back down, very simple

-DO NOT lock your knees, keep them relaxed

-DO NOT bounce

-Use full range of motion, do not forgo going all the way down.

-Squeeze at the top

*Standing Single Leg Calf Raise: These will not seem like much, but if performed correctly they will burn your calves to pieces. Find a step to use, simply stand with one leg on the step, the other wrapped around the back of your working ankle. Raise up and down.

-DO NOT bounce

-Full range of motion

*Front Raise: These can be performed with dumbbells or a straight bar.

-Dumbbells: Hold one in each hand, and raise directly in front of you

-Bar: Hold the bar with an overhand grip, palms facing down, and raise the bar straight in front of you

-The top of the motion should have your arms at a perfect parallel height

-DO NOT raise the bar/DBs above your head; this can cause undue stress to the joints

*Incline Front Raise: Very similar to standard dumbbell front raises. Performing them on an incline bench will intensify the movement making it much harder.

-Lying on an incline bench, raise the dumbbells directly in front of you to eye level height.

-These can be performed one arm at a time or both arms at once.

*Dumbbell Military Press: Use a bench with a back support and press the dumbbells directly above your head.

-Place the dumbbells on your thighs and kick them up one at a time to where youll be holding the dumbbells directly above your shoulders perpendicular to your body. The dumbbells should be pointed outward, not inward

-Press directly up but DO NOT lock out your elbows at the top

-Lower the dumbbells back down to the point to where your elbows are at a slightly lower then 90 degree angle. It should be the same point and line as a barbell military press

*Dumbbell Shrugs: Hold two dumbbells to your side and shrug

-Keep your head down throughout

-DO NOT roll your shoulders at the top

-DO NOT jerk your body

-Control the weight back down

*Behind the Back Barbell Shrugs: Grab a barbell with an underhand grip, palms facing down with the bar behind your back; simply shrug up

-You will need to create a slight lean forward

-Keep your head down throughout

-DO NOT roll your shoulders at the top

-DO NOT jerk your body

-Control the weight back down

-The bar will hit the bottom of your glutes, its supposed to

*Bent-Over Dumbbell Lateral Raise: Sit on the end of a bench and bend over to the point where you are lying on the top of your thighs. Let the dumbbells hang down to your side beside your legs behind your feet.

-Using the same motion as a lateral raise, raise both dumbbells straight up

-Keep a slight bend in your elbows

-Keep your head down

-Raise the dumbbells up until they are slightly higher then perpendicular to your chest. If your shoulder blades pull close together, you have gone back too far and have taken the stress off your rear delts.

*Hammer Strength Military Press or Machine Equivalent: This will be the same motion as any military press. The difference here is on this machine you will lean slightly back. Everything else is the same except for the fact that you should be able to use a pretty decent amount of weight.

-Press directly up but DO NOT lock out your elbows at the top

-Full range of motion

*Hammer Strength Shrugs (or equivalent): Performed as you would on a barbell or with dumbbells. You should be able to use a massive amount of weight with these as well as add some intensity techniques that are more difficult to do with dumbbells or a barbell.

*Standing Barbell Curl: Standing upright, grip a barbell at approximately shoulder width. In a curling motion, raise the bar all the way up towards the chest and squeeze. Proceed to lower the bar all the way down in a controlled manner.

-DO NOT roll your shoulders or bring your shoulders into the movement in any way. If your shoulders come into play, chances are you are using too much weight

-DO NOT cheat yourself and not come all the way back down. Full range of motion, as will do with all your exercises

-Do not use your back in any shape form or fashion. If you find you are heaving your body and using your lower back, lower the weight. This is a very common mistake and is an ego factor that causes many lifters to seriously short change themselves, not to mention threaten serious injury to your lower back

*Dumbbell Preacher Curls: Exactly the same as regular preacher curls, only you will use dumbbells and perform the reps one arm at a time for a more concentrated affect. Everything else that is said about curls is true here.

-DO NOT let your butt come up off the seat for any reason

-DO NOT roll your shoulders or bring your shoulders into the movement in any way. If your shoulders come into play, chances are you are using too much weight

-DO NOT cheat yourself and not come all the way back down. Full range of motion, as will do with all your exercises

*Incline Hammer Curls: Lying on an incline bench, you will curl up just as you would doing standard hammer curls.

-Keep your head flat on the bench throughout

-DO NOT raise up

-Keep the dumbbells pointed vertically the entire time, palms facing in

*Close Grip Bench Press: Lying on a flat bench just as you would to do flat bench press when working chest, grab the barbell with your hands approximately 6 apart. Lower the bar down to your mid chest and explode up

-Keep your elbows tucked in on this exercise, the exact opposite as you would do on flat bench press when working chest.

-Squeeze the triceps hard at the top portion of the exercise

*Dumbbell French Press/Skull Crushers: Exact same movement as standard French Press/Skull Crushers, only using dumbbells for added concentration; everything else is the same. Laying on a flat bench with both feet on the floor lower the dumbbells towards the center of your face, your arm length will determine exactly where this point is.

*Reverse Grip Pull Downs: Using a straight or cambered bar attached to a cable station, grab the bar with an underhand grip. Pull straight down until your arms are nearly straight. Some may find standing at a 90 degree angle and performing a twisting role at the bottom of the movement with the bar to provide a harder contraction.

-Contract hard at the bottom

-DO NOT let your body sway

-You will not be able to use much weight on this exercise as compared to other lifts, but dont let this concern you; it is the contraction and stimulation you are after

*Incline French Press/Skull Crushers: The exact same movement as standard French Press/Skull Crusher except you are lying on an incline bench and will need to let the bar go behind your head slightly. Everything else is the same.

-Bend your arms all the way down to where your elbows are slightly below a 90 degree bend

-Explode up and squeeze your triceps hard at the top

-Do not let your elbows flair out

*Incline Curls: Lying on an incline bench, you will curl up just as you would doing standard dumbbell curls. The starting point of the lift should have your palms facing in, at the top they will have turned to facing up.

-Keep your head flat on the bench throughout

-DO NOT raise up

*V-Bar Cable Press Down: Grip a V-Bar cable attachment and simply press down using your triceps. One of the simplest exercises you will ever do, but there are slight mishaps that can mess it up.

-Stand directly in front of the cable station; do not take several steps back to make it easier

-Use full range of motion; at the top portion your elbows should be at 90 degrees directly beside your body

-DO NOT bounce the weight

*Cable Curls: Exact same motion as a barbell curl, grab a straight bar cable attachment and curl. This exercise allows for an equal amount of tension to be on the muscle throughout. You should be facing the weight stack, not reversed with the cable between your legs as you may see people do. Everything else is the same. In a curling motion, raise the bar all the way up towards the chest and squeeze. Proceed to lower the bar all the way down in a controlled manner.

-DO NOT roll your shoulders or bring your shoulders into the movement in any way. If your shoulders come into play, chances are you are using too much weight

-DO NOT cheat yourself and not come all the way back down. Full range of motion, as will do with all your exercises

-Do not use your back in any shape form or fashion. If you find you are heaving your body and using your lower back, lower the weight. This is a very common mistake and is an ego factor that causes many lifters to seriously short change themselves, not to mention threaten serious injury to your lower back

*Close Grip Bench Press: Lying on a flat bench just as you would to do flat bench press when working chest, grab the barbell with your hands approximately 6 apart. Lower the bar down to your mid chest and explode up

-Keep your elbows tucked in on this exercise, the exact opposite as you would do on flat bench press when working chest.

-Squeeze the triceps hard at the top portion of the exercise

*Dumbbell Hammer Curls: Holding a dumbbell in each hand curl the dumbbells straight up but in doing so, keep the dumbbells pointed straight ahead the entire time, palms facing the body. Squeeze hard at the top and control the movement down.

-As you squeeze up, focus more on squeezing the biceps where they tie in with your forearms

-As with all curling motions, DO NOT cheat by rolling your shoulders or using your shoulders at all or your lower back

*Straight Leg Dead Lift: Very similar to a standard Dead Lift, however you will keep your legs straight the entire time.

-Do not lock the knees, stand relaxed

-Lower the weight towards the floor until you feel a good contraction in your hamstrings.

-The distance you lower the weight will vary from person to person, depending on height. Try to lower the bar all the way to the ground, but if you reach a point to where the tension leaves your hamstrings and is placed on your lower back, you have gone to far, try to find the sweet spot.

-The weight used on this exercise is not a major issue; you are going for the hard contraction. This is a very easy exercise to mess up and cause injury to your lower back or hamstrings; use caution and sound judgment every time.

*High Leg Press: On a leg press machine, you will perform this exercise identically to the manner in which standard leg presses are performed; the difference here will be foot position. You will place your feet up high on the platform, how high exactly will be determined by the length of your legs and the size of the platform; either way, they should be about as high as you can manage. This will take the stimulation off of the quads and put it on the hamstrings

-DO NOT let your back come up off the seat at all

-Your Knees should be around your head at the bottom portion of the exercise

*Standing Calf Raise: Standing in a calf raise machine, place the pads on top of your shoulders. Your feet should be placed with your heels hanging off the foot platform. Press up and all the way back down, very simple

-DO NOT lock your knees, keep them relaxed

-DO NOT bounce

-Use full range of motion

-Squeeze at the top

*Donkey Calf Raise: Two ways to be performed.

Place your lower back directly under the pad of the machine, and use the same motion as you would for a standing calf raise.

The other type of machine has a seat very similar to the seated Hack Squat machine, almost identical. Same motion as the other version.

-DO NOT lock your knees, keep them relaxed

-DO NOT bounce

-Use full range of motion, do not forgo going all the way down.

-Squeeze at the top

*Walking Lunges: Use either a bar across your back or hold a pair of dumbbells in your hands. If your grip begins to give out before your legs do and youre using dumbbells, switch to a barbell.

-Lunge forward one leg at a time. For perfect form throughout, take one step forward and bring the other leg up to meet the lunging leg and stop then repeat with the other leg forward. Once you perfect your form, you may begin taking continuous strides without the stopping point. This is not a required necessity, if your form gets sloppy with this method, go back to one leg at a time then stop and repeat.

-As you lunge, the back leg should come within inches of touching the ground. As you come forward with the back leg, push off hard with your back foot to intensify the stimulation in your glutes and hamstrings.

Perpendicular Close Grip Lat Pull Downs: Using a close grip D-handle on the lat pull-down machine, you will enter the seat backwards placing your shoulder blades on the leg pads. Feet on the floor, shoulders on the pads, you should have a straight line in your mid-section. Pull the weight down.

-You will not be able to go as heavy with these as some pull down movements as the weight will pull you off the pads.

-Keep a controlled movement and squeeze hard at the bottom.

Glute Ham Raises: Can be performed using a glute/ham machine; however, many commercial gyms do not have these. It can alternately be performed using a seated calf raise machine. In the case of the latter, place your knees on the seat pad, ankles under the knee pads and curl the body toward the floor just as you would with a glute/ham machine.

-If a calf raise machine is used, make sure theres adequate weight on the machine to support your bodyweight.

Jefferson Squats: Stand over a barbell with it going between your legs. With your right foot in front of the barbell and left foot behind, grab the bar with your left hand with an underhand grip and your right hand with an overhand grip. Squat down keeping your upper body as erect as possible. Squeeze your glutes as hard as you can throughout.

-The weight used for these will not be heavy.

-Toes should be pointed out notably.

-Switch feet and hand positions and perform another course of reps. Once both positions have been completed, this is one set.