Muscle Gain Programs

Mark Rippetoe, author of "Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training," explains that there is no reason to lift weights if you are not hoping to get bigger and stronger. The veteran strength coach and weightlifter claims that a well-designed strength training program is the most effective way to gain muscle.

5x5

So-called 5x5 programs are popular muscle-gain programs. Performing five sets of five repetitions each of weightlifting exercises will build strength and muscle. Perhaps the most famous advocate of using a 5x5 strength-training program to gain muscle is Arnold Schwarzenegger. In his classic tome, "The Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding," the former bodybuilding champion explains that 5x5s were his preferred training program on his way to earning the Mr. Olympia title.

Bill Starr's 5x5

One of the most enduring interpretations of the 5x5 program is one developed by strength coach Bill Starr for the 1970s Indianapolis Colts. It is still used by athletes in a number of strength sports who seek muscle gain. Starr's program focused on three basic exercises that he termed the "Big Three." The barbell squat, bench press and power clean provide a full-body workout that lead to huge muscle gains. In his book "The Strongest Shall Survive," Starr explains that these exercises work because they allow the athlete to lift more weight than alternatives such as dumbbell exercises and machine-based exercise. He also discusses alternative barbell exercises, such as the overhead press, incline press and barbell curls, to prevent overtraining and boredom. Starr says these also help strengthen the muscles needed to support the Big Three exercises.

'Brawn'

In 1991, bodybuilding coach Stu McRoberts, a Cyprus-based writer and publisher, released his book "Brawn." The bodybuilding program he outlined turned the physique sport on its head. Through the use of multi-joint, compound movement exercises, McRoberts explained, the average, nonsteroid-using bodybuilder could push toward the limits of his genetic potential for muscle gain. Using McRoberts "Brawn" program, the so-called "hardgainer" could pack an extra 10 or even 20, lbs. of muscle on in less than a year of training. Using different repetition and set schemes, McRoberts explained that exercises such as the bench press, squat and deadlift, when performed in "abbreviated" programs, would lead to faster gains. This was in direct contravention of the prevailing wisdom put forth by various bodybuilding magazines, advocating body-part isolation during training.

References

• "Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding"; Arnold Schwarzenegger; 1987
• "The Strongest Shall Survive"; Bill Starr; 1999
• "Brawn"; Stuart McRoberts; 1991
• "Starting Strength"; Mark Rippetoe; 2007