No Nonsense Newsletter Vol. X, No. 3


There’s nothing pretty about lying on a cold, concrete basement floor, praying you hold down last night’s Ultra Size, peanut butter, oatmeal shake, and wondering how you’re ever going to make the short walk back home.


It’s just three houses up the street, but the way I’m feeling it’ll take me a good 10 minutes to get there. As I stagger up the street, I stop at each driveway. At the second house I kneel down behind my neighbors’ car, hoping he doesn’t see me as I make another attempt to hold down last night’s shake. Heck, I don’t want to waste a single calorie of food if I can help it. Finally, I make it to my house, flip on the ceiling fan in my bedroom and lie down on the bedroom floor to rest for the longest 20 minutes possible. Then the race begins to get to work!

Quad Training
As you read the introduction to this article you might think I’m exaggerating. Especially when you find out that the workout that "put me under" was basically just squats for 5 sets of 5 reps. But, if there is one body part I need to give my all every workout (outside of my lower lats) it’s my quadriceps. With long quadriceps, I have to do everything I can to continue to put the needed size on them to compete at the level I want to compete. With that said, I know that sticking to the basics, and going heavy with sets of 5 reps, and no more than 10 reps, is what I need.

My workout partner, Marty and I started that particular morning with squats. Everyone’s heard how important squats are for growth, but we’ll do just about anything to avoid them. And when we decide to squat we may fool ourselves by going only half way down; or do a few warm-up sets, one set with a good weight, and then off to the leg press where we can really push some heavy weight without near as much discomfort.

I’ll never forget when I first started working out in a gym. I think I’d just turned 16. There was a poster on the wall facing the squat rack with a photo of a tall, slender guy and a huge, massive guy talking to each other. The slender guy says, "I do 3 sets of leg presses, 4 sets of leg curls supersetted with 4 sets of leg extensions, and I finish with 3 sets of squats on the smith machine. So, what do you do for legs?" And the huge massive guy says, "SQUATS"!

What you put in your body (Nutrition) is at least as
important as what you do to your body (Training).


Here’s a personal story that illustrates how important squats are. A couple years ago I was doing some landscaping. I was trying to lift what I thought was a small rock out of the yard and the more I tugged, the bigger the rock grew. Well, before the rock came out, something else went out – my back. It was pretty messed up for 3-4 months. No, I didn’t quit training. In fact, I could do just about everything I needed to do but squats, deadlifts, and rows. I was able to do all the other leg exercises but squats were impossible because of my back.

When I finally started squatting again a strange thing happened …my strength on every one of my upper body exercises increased. My bench press alone went up a good 30 lbs my first month back on squats – and remember, for us natural guys, increasing 30 lbs on your bench in a month’s time is a major accomplishment.

There’s no doubt, Squats make you stronger overall.

Now don’t get me wrong and think that you can make gains no matter what you eat. What you put in your body (Nutrition) is at least as important as what you do to your body (Training). But in this instance, my diet was pretty constant both before and after the increase in strength. I was eating 6-7 meals each day with 2-3 of those being Ultra Size shakes. And I was taking Beverly’s Creatine, Ultra 40’s and Mass, so I was bound to go up in strength some. But I truly believe that Squats, accompanied by the disciplined off-season diet and Beverly supplements, are what caused the huge increase.

I believe that if you truly want leg gains, you’ve got
to break up your lower body just like your upper.


Before I go into the details of my last leg workout, I’d like to share one more thing about squats. I saw a Muscle and Fitness interview with Tom Platz in my late teens and have never forgotten it. Platz, who was known for his tremendous leg development, said, "If you leave the squat rack with enough energy to superset leg extensions and leg curls, then there is only one thing you need to do for the rest of the workout-go back to the squat rack! And that is the mentality I have taken ever since to add some size to my "bird legs" (yes, in grade school and early high school, I had been called "bird legs" more than a few times).

Now let’s go to Marty’s basement for "Quad Day". Something I think is important to note is that on quad day we do quads, and only quads. Many people will break their upper body up into 3 or 4 workouts, and then try to do the entire other half of their body (legs) all in one session. I believe that if you truly want leg gains, you’ve got to break up your lower body just like your upper. I do Quads alone one day, and on another workout day, I hit Hamstrings and Calves.

This morning, Marty and I are going to do 5 sets of 5 reps. I start with 135 for a warm-up set of 15 reps. Next is 225 for 10 reps. It’s cold, so I warm-up with 225 a second time for a quick 6 reps. I then jump to 315 for 5 reps, and once again, since I’m still not feeling ready, I do 315 again for 5 reps. Now the workout begins. I throw on 405 and it goes up for the easiest five reps I’ve done in years.

See, I have stayed in near contest condition for two years straight. This fall and winter, I’ve added calories and a few extra Mass Maker / Ultra Size shakes to my diet and have put on nearly 25 lbs. I’ve intentionally done this to increase my strength levels. And this morning was a direct reflection of my game plan working because 405 for 5 was just too easy. I decide to go to 445 for 5 good, deep squats. Now, I will start my 5 sets… And 445 is the perfect weight – hard, but not impossible. I got all 5 reps on my first 3 sets with no help. On my 4th set, Marty did barely help me. I don’t think I really needed his help on that 5th rep, but that’s ok, because I get another try to get all 5 on my own on the last set. Now, mind you, at this point in the workout, I’m already laying on the concrete between sets. I just want to lay there and rest but I eventually have to get up to spot Marty and then prepare for my final set. My turn! Whoo, Marty basically has to pick me up on my 4th deep rep of the last set. I think about trying a fifth rep, but know that at this point there’s a better chance of hurting myself or Marty than of me making the rep. I’ve got to be honest with myself so I rack the weight.

Marty and I are lying on the floor, both feeling pretty sick, for a good 20 minutes, then off to lunges we go. Now, I know what you’re thinking. Lunges? Yes, I really get a lot out of HEAVY walking lunges. I’ve actually started workouts with lunges, holding 90’s in each hand for 20 good reps (10 on each leg). Today, my legs are "spent" because of the squats so I opt for the 40’s. We start on one end of his basement, walk for 10, and without rest, turnaround for another 10. We do this for 3 sets, and unfortunately have to rest nearly 10 minutes between sets.

Finally, we go to leg extensions and finish with 3 sets of 15 reps. My legs are so spent, that the leg extensions feel utterly useless. I watch the weight move, but can’t feel the contraction. Not even a slight burn. And that’s exactly what I want. See, if I was really able to put a strong effort into the leg extensions, then as Tom Platz would say, I should have "gone back to the squat rack"!

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