by andre rzazewski photos: jason breeze

BY ANDRE RZAZEWSKI
PHOTOS: JASON BREEZE
There is nothing like thick
and sculpted arms to get
you noticed, fast. If you’re
reading this, chances are
you’d like to stretch your
shirt sleeves and serve
notice to the world that
you are not only in shape,
but paid your dues; you’re
certified to carry lethal
sidearms – welcome to the
gun show.
Big, shredded arms
complete an imposing
physique like a set of 24
inch chrome wheels finish
off a Hummer. They are
the most visible attribute
you have and a short
sleeved shirt is all you
need to show off your hard
work in the gym. Huge
guns command instant
respect and a bodybuilder
who lacks them is never
taken seriously. I’ve put
together a wide array of
sure-fire exercises to get
the results you are looking
for. This is definitely some
of the best ammunition to
add to your arm training
arsenal. Anyone serious about adding inches
and gaining pounds of
lean muscle to their guns
should pull up a seat and
read on. Following each
action packed exercise is a
link to the Status Fitness
website for a helpful video
description.
The number 15
and the Science
behind it
Over the years I have
used several different rep
ranges and training methods. Of every variation I’ve
tried, 12-15 reps is where
I have noticed my best
gains. 12-15 is not a magic
number but it does allow
you to use heavy weight in
a controlled manner and
get a sufficient number of
repetitions in to pump the
target muscle.
The Pump. What is it?
How will it help you? I’m
going to take you and your
guns on a journey into
Pump-Based Training, but
first let’s examine what
the pump is and why it’s
so effective. Every rep
causes both a stretch and a
contraction forcing blood
and nutrients into your
working muscles. This
causes muscle fibers to
elongate, swell and create
micro tears. If your goal is
to increase muscle mass,
you need to create the biggest pump possible in the
target muscles. Key isolation motions we will cover
here create a voluminous
pump, and simultaneously fully fatigue and tear
as much muscle fiber as
possible. In nature, each
stimulus has a response.
Your body’s response to
Pump-Based Training is
to increase muscle protein
production to repair the
muscle fiber micro tears.
Your ongoing dedication
to Pump-Based Training forces your body
to respond by gaining
both strength and size.
Continual and gradual
increases in weight along
with variations in the
exercises from session
to session, the body will
continue to adapt and add
muscle mass.
During intense PumpBased Training, the body
is pumping 4-8 times its
regular amount of blood
volume (cardiac output)
from 5L/min to 20-40L/
min and it’s an optimum
time to intake nutrients
which are beneficial to
enhance pump, growth
and recovery. Furthermore, intake of properly
timed vitamins/minerals
and nutrients before, during and after training will
optimize results, in addition to adequate amount
of recovery time between
weight training sessions.
In the next issue of Status,
I will discuss these in detail in my article entitled
“The ABC’s of Anabolism”a virtual Coles notes on
everything to do outside
the gym, to make the most
of your time spent inside.
Dumbbell
Kickbacks on an
incline bench
Awesome pumping
exercise.
POSITION: Rather
than always performing
the traditional standing
dumbbell kickbacks, I
sometimes prefer to do
these lying on an incline
bench. Set the bench to
a medium incline (30
degrees approx.) and lie
face down, with the head
just past the top of the
bench.
MOVEMENT: Attempt
to raise the dumbbells, in
a kickback motion, past
parallel with the ground.
This will keep much
tension on the triceps
and create an almost
painful, massive pump.
Keep the repetitions
constant, beginning the
next rep immediately
after completion of the
preceding one-pumping
as much blood into
the triceps as humanly
possible. I also alternate
grips between a hammer/
neutral grip and palms
facing down. This
variation will target the all
three heads of the triceps
(long, medial and lateral).
Close Grip
pushups off
dumbbell or step
This is a must at the end
of every tricep training
session. After hitting your
triceps with a barrage of
exercises, fully fatigue
your muscles by hitting
some close grip pushups
off a dumbbell or a step.
The catch is, you will
do these unilaterally,
alternating from one side
to the other.
POSITION: Set a heavy
dumbbell on the floor, in
an upright position and
place your hands on it.
Fully extend your arms in
a pushup position, with
legs wide to maintain
balance.
MOVEMENT: Remove
one hand and place it on
the floor, about shoulder
width from the dumbbell
and lower your chest
towards the floor, keep
your arm close to your
body to maintain focus
and tension on the triceps.
Push back up and return
your hand to the top of
the dumbbell and then
alternate arms. Once you
can no longer complete
the alternating unilateral
pushups, keep both hands
on the dumbbell and do
a few more close-grip
pushups until you are
totally spent.
Cable Press
downs
Seated overhead
cambered bar
extensions- one of
my “meat and potatoes”
mass building exercises
for the triceps.
POSITION: Take a
cambered bar and sit
in a low rise seat with
back support and begin
the motion in the fully
extended position, above
the head.
MOVEMENT: Allow the
bar to come down towards
the back of your head in
a full range of motion
to achieve a maximum
stretch in the triceps. Do
not attempt to lock the
elbows parallel to each
other; instead allow them
to drift into their natural
plane minimizing the
stress on the joint. After
the bar has been lowered,
raise the bar with the
triceps until reaching the
fully extended starting
position.
This exercise is the one
of the best for adding
size to your triceps, but is
also an easy way to injure
the elbows if performed
incorrectly.
Use a high cable pulley
and select a v-bar,
cambered bar or straight
bar. Mixing it up from
session to session will
keep your muscles from
becoming accustomed to
the same movement. You
will stimulate all areas of
your triceps which will
ensure that you pack on
more mass!
POSITION: Stand
one step back from the
cable and lean forward,
maintaining an arch in
the back and keeping your
knees slightly bent. This
will reduce the amount of
stress to the abdominal
muscles during the motion
and will enable you to
place maximum tension
on the triceps.
MOVEMENT: Keep
the elbows tight to the
body and press the bar
down until the arms have
reached full extension.
Pause in the flexed,
contracted position for
a half second and then
begin the next rep by
slowly raising the bar
to the starting position.
The forearms should be
the only parts moving
during this motion,
isolating the triceps and
creating a vicious burn
and engorging your triceps
with a volumizing pump.
Overhead Triceps rope extensions
A great warm up exercise for the triceps and the elbow joints
- adds more detail to the triceps.
POSITION: Using a high cable pulley with a rope
attachment, face away from the weight stack. Grasp the
rope and take two large steps forward. Lean down with
upper body until parallel with the floor and remain in this
position throughout.
MOVEMENT: Extend the rope past your head until the
arms are in a straight, extended position, creating a peak
contraction in the triceps. Next, allow the arms to return
to the bent, relaxed starting position until the forearms
are touching the biceps, with a full range of motion. The
overhead triceps rope extension is also a safe way to use
negative repetitions and drop sets to push the muscles past
failure.
Dips (parallel
bars) Bodyweight dips
have become a staple for
me over the years. These
are often performed for
the lower pecs during a
chest workout, with the
triceps acting as secondary
muscles. However, with
a slight adjustment to
the angle of the body, the
triceps can be isolated and
can become the primary
target muscle.
POSITION: Perform
dips on parallel bars or a
Gravitron machine, with
a grip around shoulder
width.
MOVEMENT: Lower
your body in an upright
position until you feel
a stretch in the triceps.
Then press yourself back
up to the starting position,
with arms fully extended
and a flex in the triceps.
Pause for a second in a
peak contraction and
then proceed with the
next repetition. This
exercise works for the
pump so well, because
of the amount of tension
you are able to focus on
the triceps. Completing
your reps at different
speeds and pausing for
static contractions from
time to time will activate
the maximal number
of both slow and fast
twitch muscle fibers. If
completing sets of 12-15
with only the bodyweight
becomes easy, additional
resistance can be achieved
by incorporating a
weight belt and plates.
Conversely, if attaining
under 6-8 reps is not
possible with one’s
bodyweight, use a
Gravitron machine with an
assisting, counterbalanced
pad under the knees to
complete 12-15 repetitions.
This is the time to take that unnecessary walk to the
fountain to showoff how pumped you are, despite
the fact that you have a gallon of water with you at all
times. Even if the fountain is out of order, your favorite
mirror is bound to be somewhere in that area.
Seated two
arm overhead
dumbbell
extensions
This motion is a must
for adding mass to the
triceps, due to the fact that
it works all three heads of
the triceps. Since this is
a unilateral motion, each
arm works independently
and has an equal amount
of workload placed on
the muscle, eliminating
any compensation for the
weaker arm.
POSITION: Take a
pair of dumbbells and
sit in a low rise seat with
back support. Extend
both arms fully until the
triceps are flexed. Begin to
lower the dumbbells in a
controlled motion, behind
the head, until you have
gained a maximum stretch
in the triceps.
MOVEMENT: Keep
the elbows as vertical
as possible to maintain
maximum tension on the
target muscles (triceps).
Return the weight back
up to the starting position
and twist the wrists,
so that the palms face
forward creating a peak
contraction in the triceps.
Seated incline
curls (palms up)
employ my Modified
Alternating Isometric
Hold/Curl Technique
(MAIHCT).
An Isometric hold is
when you resist against
an object for an extended
period of time in the same
position (no shortening or
lengthening of the muscle
occurs).
Hammer curls-
I always begin my biceps
workout with hammer
curls. This mass building
motion is great for
targeting the brachialis
and the brachioradialis.
Well developed brachialis
cause the biceps to appear
wider from the front and
add that finished look to
the arms. You will begin
to notice a much more full
appearance to the arms
once the brachialis has
been targeted, in addition
to the biceps brachii.
POSITION: Begin by
grasping two dumbbells
at the sides of your body,
with the palms facing each
other.
MOVEMENT: Curl the
weight up with one arm,
towards the shoulder,
keeping the elbow tight to
the body until you have
achieved peak biceps
contraction. Do not turn
the weight over, your
palms must face inward
throughout the motion,
not upward. Lower the
weight and proceed
with the opposite arm.
Perform two warm up
sets. The third set I use
a style borrowed from
IFBB pro David Henry.
Select a weight that will
help you achieve failure
at 10 repetitions. After
completion of this set to
failure, set the dumbbells
down and rest for 10
seconds. Next pick up the
same dumbbells again and
curl until failure. Rest for
another 10 seconds and
perform one final set until
failure. Do this and your
Pump-Based Training will
rise to a whole new level.
Try this style for other sets
too.
POSITION: Sit on an
incline bench set to a steep
incline of approximately
75 degrees.
Standing bent
one arm curls
This motion is great for
isolating just the biceps.
Use a supinated grip
(palm up) to focus on the
inner biceps brachii or
hammer grip to target the
brachialis.
POSITION: With feet a
little wider than shoulder
width apart lean forward
until the upper body is
parallel with the floor.
Grasp a dumbbell in
one hand and place the
opposite hand against the
other knee to minimize
any stress to the lower
back.
MOVEMENT: With arm
hanging perpendicular to
the floor, curl the weight
up keeping all the stress
on the bicep and be sure
to not let the elbow drift.
Avoid any swinging or
momentum to complete
the repetition. I like to use
ascending sets here as one
arm has time to rest while
the other is working. As
I increase the weight, I
decrease the number of
reps ie. 30 lbs for 15, 40
lbs for 12 and 50 lbs for
10. The next set I will
begin with 40 lbs for 15,
50 lbs for 12 and then 60
for 10.
MOVEMENT: Take
a set of dumbbells and
curl up a single rep with
both arms and hold
both arms in the flexed
position creating a peak
contraction in the biceps.
While holding the weight
with one arm in the fully
contracted position, lower
the opposite arm through
a full range of motion.
As the dumbbell of the
working arm is returned
to the top and contracts,
the opposite arm will then
lower and work while
the other remains tightly
contracted.
I like to use this method
with every exercise to
really bring out hardness,
definition and vascularity.
The use of the incline
bench will create an angle
at which the bicep is well
isolated and unable to
recruit secondary muscles
or momentum to complete
the repetition.
Incline bench
preacher curls-
This exercise is great to
bombard the biceps and
really focus on the peak
contraction maximizing
the pump.
POSITION: Set an
incline bench at a steep
angle (approx 75 degrees).
Stand behind it and sink
your armpit in as deep
as you can, resting your
tricep on the pad.
MOVEMENT: Slowly
lower the dumbbell down
toward the bench, about
90% of the way down,
maintaining tension
throughout. Flex hard to
bring the weight back up
to the top, pausing in this
position for a half second.
Keep the reps quick and
steady. Focus on pumping
as much blood into the
muscle on each successive
rep, like a hydraulic pump
forcing fluid in to propel
a machine into motion.
This technique will create
a massive swelling in the
biceps and expand them
to new dimensions. This
is also a great opportunity
to incorporate the
ascending set technique as
mentioned above.
Standing
Bilateral curls
standing against incline
bench, with elbows
against ribcage to support
(isometric hold for last 5
reps). Back in the Golden
days of bodybuilding,
Arnold Schwarzenegger
was photographed doing
standing straight bar curls
with a sling around the
neck which held a metal
brace that went over the
abdominals and behind
the triceps. This allowed
Arnold to fully isolate
the biceps, by having a
portable preacher bench
so to speak, strapped to
his body. Here, he was
able to eliminate elbow
motion and maximize
tension and workload on
the biceps, thus allowing
for greater isolation and
over time, resulting in
better gains. Since Arnold
has two of the best peaked
biceps in bodybuilding
history, I thought I would
incorporate one of his
favorite motions into my
regimen. Unfortunately,
these braces have become
a thing of the past and are
very difficult to find. This
is where you have to get
creative in the gym, since
you don’t always find the
equipment you are looking
for. You may have to pull
a MacGyver and make
your own.
POSITION: Grab two
dumbbells, most likely
less than half the weight
you would use for regular
standing curls and place
the arms out in front
of the body, resting the
elbows against the ribcage.
Lean with your back
against an incline bench
set almost at 90 degrees
(straight up).
MOVEMENT: Raise
the dumbbells either
palms supinated (up)
or in hammer position
(neutral grip) until you
have achieved a peak
contraction in the biceps.
Lower the dumbbells 90%
of the way down, until
almost at full extension,
but always maintain
tension on the biceps.
Bent over cable
curls (straight or
cambered bar)- This
motion I borrowed from
the Great 8 time Mr.
Olympia Ronnie Coleman,
who also possesses two of
the most impressive bicep
peaks in history.
POSITION: Stand at a
low cable pulley and turn
your back towards the
weight stack. Grasp the
bar and direct the cable
through the legs, standing
in a bent, forward
position, maintaining
an arch in the back at
all times. This will keep
constant tension on the
biceps from the top to the
bottom of the motion,
giving them no place to
run or hide until finished
the final excruciating,
expansive rep.
MOVEMENT: Raise the
bar to peak contraction,
then lower and extend the
arms almost all the way
down. Do not fully extend
the arms, as this removes
the tension from the
biceps and can overstretch
them, resulting in injury
to the biceps tendon.
This is a great motion
for adding detail to the
biceps. Drop sets and
static contractions are well
suited for this exercise.
Just a few words
before battle:
Be sure to stretch as much
as possible, before, during
and after your training
session. This will elongate
the muscles and prepare
them for the impending
punishment. Stretching
is also important between
every set as this will keep
muscles loose to avoid
injury while facilitating
growth. It should be
noted that one should not
overstretch, but lightly
pull the muscle until it
feels tight, then hold this
stretch for 10 seconds.
Pump-Based Training
is also responsible for
stretching the muscles.
As the muscles become
engorged with blood, the
muscle fascia expands.
The greater the pump, the
more ability the muscle
has to grow.
Now you have all the
ammo you need to have
your guns locked and
loaded for battle with the
iron. A beginner should
try 2-3 exercises for each
bodypart. An intermediate
to advanced level trainer
(3-5 years of consistent
training), should aim for
3-4 exercises for each
bodypart and a total of 3-4
sets per exercise.
Try to incorporate
drop sets, supersets
and ascending sets to
maximize pump and
muscle fatigue.
• Superset- The pairing
of two exercises
• Trisets- The grouping
of three exercises
• Giant sets- The
grouping of four or
more exercises
Alliances
I also train bis after
back and tris after chest.
Grouping triceps with
chest for example is
beneficial because the
triceps are already pre
exhausted from all the
pressing while training
chest. Once preexhausted, the triceps are
easily fully fatigued with
two to three of the above
motions. Same goes for
biceps. The biceps are
secondary muscles used
in all the pulling motions
during back training.
Since the goal of training
any muscle group is to
fully pump and fatigue
the muscles, pairing a
secondary muscle with
a primary muscle in the
same workout will easily
achieve this. Then I give
my arms their own day at
the end of the week with
deadlifts.
Armed and ready
for action
Now you have the combat
and tactical training
necessary to build guns
like the pros. Each
time you enter the gym,
you need to treat it like
your battle ground and
wage a war with the
weights. Remember
that persistence and
consistency will be the
tools that lead you into
your campaign each
session, on the odyssey
towards building massive
arms.
There is no substitute for
hard work, determination
and dedication. If you
apply all of these to your
training and everyday life,
you will achieve things far
beyond your original goals
and expectations. One
great man once started
with a goal of creating
mountains out of his
biceps and that won him
7 Olympia Titles. Next,
he took those guns and
stormed the silver screen.
Then he ran for Governor
of California…and won.