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View Full Version : Rodney Roller answering some FAQ



DefMetalLifter
09-08-2014, 04:17 PM
Raw Power! By Rodney Roller
I have been working out for a while now and my arms have gone from 16 to 19 inches pumped. Now my arms have stopped growing. I started doing arms with back and chest, meaning bi's with back, tri's with chest. However, they don't seem to be growing this way. So I am going back to the once-a-week program, working arms by themselves. How many sets should you do for each muscle?
You have put three inches on your arms in a short period and that is incredible! What you have to realize is that there are very few pro bodybuilders who have arms greater than 20-21 inches. Yes, there are some freaks like Ronnie and Jay with arms in the 23-24-inch range. Everyone does hit a plateau— and that is when the really hard work for gains begins!
What I would suggest you try is training both your triceps and biceps twice weekly, with one day being a very heavy day, and the second workout being a very intense high-volume type training. However, when I say heavy or high volume, that does not mean sacrificing good form and slinging the weights around. Biceps especially respond to static lifts and squeezing the contraction at the top of the lift. I have also incorporated doing some very heavy negative sets once a month when I train with a partner, and this has helped me greatly. Give it a try and let me know how you make out. Now go tear some shit up!
Rodney, you're a strong mother but you still look good— not fat at all! That's what I'm after. I've only been training for nine months. At first I was doing all basic movements for straight sets. But with all those compound movements I never really got a burn or crazy-ass pump. So I started doing a lot of drop sets and a final burnout set of all my compound movements. Got a killer pump and burn with those.
But lately it seems I'm not getting stronger. Is this because of all the drop sets and burnout sets? I read to properly use muscle memory, the last exercise should be heavy and really tax your muscle. I'm thinking of stopping all the drop sets and burnout sets, and just doing sets in the 4-6 rep range, for 3 sets, and a body part a week. Will that get me gaining again? Remember, I want to be strong and look huge— like you!
Thanks buddy, for the support! I believe it's a little hard to tell at your stage of the iron game what you respond best to. Nine months of training really is not long enough to be able to say where the gains you have gotten have come from. When you first start training, you should be growing like a weed no matter what type of regimen you are following. However, I do incorporate drop sets into my training every now and then and do it a lot more often when I'm giving my body a rest from all the heavy pounding. I do drop sets this way using bench as an example:
135x20 or until loose and warm
225x12
315x10
405x10
315x25
225x about 15 or until failure
135x until failure and I usually can only do about 10 reps by then.
This is just a routine I do to change up my training— not one I do all the time. As far as the pump, maybe you are concentrating on the weight and not putting emphasis on the muscle you are training; the mind/muscle connection. I would basically tell you at your stage of the game to just get in the gym and bust your ass and learn good form and the weight and size will come.
I passed out, front squatting 585! This may be a problem with my structure and where I place the bar. I did 1 rep at 585 and it felt good. Next set I did 2 reps at 585, and was pushing pretty hard on the second rep. I decided to go for a third set, even though my little voice in my head said to drop the weight and do some reps. I started down with the weight and noticed immediately that I felt more pressure in my head and torso.
The next thing I knew, my training partner was waking me up and I was lying on the floor under the weight. I either had the weight setting on just the right spot to cut off the blood to my brain, or I wasn't tensing my arms, shoulders, and torso enough to keep the pressure of the blood vessels. This was one of the most unnerving training experiences I've had. Any recommendations or ideas on what happened?
I agree that you probably had the bar too high and that maybe that, with the combination of your breathing, caused the deprivation of oxygen. How was your blood sugar? Did you have enough to eat that day? My buddy also passed out in the gym last week and woke up in the ambulance. However, that was from the lack of eating/low blood sugar.