Men's Fitness UK

Men's Fitness is for men who want to get more out of their lives and celebrates an upbeat, optimistic, pro-active lifestyle. Men's Fitness recognizes that mental and emotional fitness is vital to balanced living and aims to offer active and aspirational men - entertainment, information and inspiration.

Men's Fitness

EDITOR’S LETTER

BIGGER & STRONGER

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS • From how long each workout should last to the difference between fat and muscle tissue, this handy guide busts some myths and shares the straightforward answers to your FAQs around all things strength training

LOWERING STANDARDS • Build bigger and stronger muscles by mastering the eccentric phase of every lift, says trainer Sean Lerwill

REST HARDER • The time between your sets is just as crucial as what you do in them, says trainer Alex Adams

MIND OVER MUSCLES • Get bigger and stronger muscles by thinking harder, says trainer Adam Gethin

ONE AT THE TIME • Lifting with one arm or one leg at a time is a great way to balance growth, work your core and minimise injury, says Adam Gethin

EXPERT ADVICE • The more you know about training, the better your progress will be. And with the benefit of our trainers’ experience and knowledge – including simple tips for first-time trainees and advanced upgrades for the veteran gym-goers – you’ll get stronger, leaner and fitter in next to no time.

Power House

GET LOOSE • Reduce your risk of injury by preparing your body with mobility-building moves and foam-roller exercises

MUST-DO MOVES • Each of your body’s major muscle groups is different and needs to be worked in its own way for the best results. These moves, selected by Nick Mitchell founder of Ultimate Performance, will target each muscle group for phenomenal all-over growth. Whether you want big arms, hard abs, strong legs or a classic V-shaped torso, you’ll find the move you need in this section.

LEAN MUSCLE PLAN • Trainer Richard Scrivener’s advanced programme will build lean muscle across your entire body

AMRAPS • AMRAP means completing as many rounds (or reps) as possible within a given timeframe - resting only when absolutely necessary. It’s a useful way to monitor your fitness progress, and using your previous score as a target to beat is a great way to motivate yourself when revisiting the same workouts, ensuring you channel your maximum effort into every session.

COMPLEXES • Ironically, given the name, complexes are actually fairly simple: pick up a piece of kit and don’t let it go again until you’ve finished every rep of every exercise.They test your grip strength and willpower, and fire up your metabolism to burn fat. And because they combine lower, upper and full-body moves, working all your muscles in each workout, they make your body release anabolic hormones, encouraging it to retain or even build muscle mass at the same time.

CLUSTERS • Lift a weight for long enough and eventually you’ll reach a point of failure when you can’t go on. This isn’t a bad thing – failure forces your muscles to grow back bigger and stronger, to cope better next time. With cluster-set circuits, you add brief pauses between reps, allowing you to lift longer and push failure back further. As a result, you build more muscle. And the more muscle you build, the more fat you burn.

STRONGMAN • Classic strongman-style carrying exercises are great for building muscle and burning fat – and you don’t need to be towing a truck to feel the benefits.

SIMPLE SOLUTIONS • Workouts don’t need to be lengthy and complex to be effective. Whenever you can’t get to the gym, don’t have much time to exercise, or just fancy a short sharp blast, grab a single bit of equipment and do one of these quick-fire routines. They may look basic,...