Beyond Brawn - The Insider's Encyclopedia on How to Build Muscle && Might

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. is does not, however, exclude careful and intelligent use of lockouts in the
occasional cycle, at least in some movements, but not in movements where
you have a structural weak link. Start relatively light, and take a couple
of months of progressively building up before you start to use your limit
weights for lockouts.

. For lockouts, your form must be absolutely impeccable. If you get out of the
groove with the very heavy weights that lockouts in some exercises permit,
you will expose your body to potentially very dangerous levels of stress. Be
careful! Generally speaking, non-exaggerated full-range training is a much
safer way to train.

. Using a restricted range of motion other than the lockout part can be a safe
and very productive way to train even on a regular basis. Training the bench
press from two inches above chest height, and the squat from two inches
above the point where the thighs are parallel to the ground, are examples
of reduced-range-of-motion training that do not necessitate the big (and
potentially risky) loads that lockouts do.

One-and-a-half reps
. Full reps and partial reps can be blended in the same set. is is a very
demanding way to train, and a potentially productive addition to your
arsenal of training tools. But do not apply it to too many exercises at any
one time, or else you will risk overtraining. Be conservative and use it on no
more than two exercises in any given routine. Over time, vary the exercises
to which you apply one-and-a-half reps training.

. ere are two ways to perform one-and-a-half reps:

a. Using the bench press as the example, imagine the bar at arm’s length.
Lower the bar under control, gently touch your chest a little below your
lower pec line, and press the bar back to arm’s length. Pause for a second
or two and then lower the bar approximately half way down, stop, and
then press the bar back to arm’s length. Alternatively the half rep could
be done before the full rep. In both cases this is one-and-a-half-rep work
going down.
b. Again imagine the bar at arm’s length. Following a short pause, lower
the bar all the way to your chest. en press the bar only half way up,
and return the bar to your chest. en press the bar all the way up. is
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