Author: Skip La Cour

Life is always teaching us lessons. The only question is whether or not we are paying attention to those lessons.

The best way to feel good about yourself is to step up, push yourself, and do something so well that it even impresses the heck out of you.

Proudly highlight your strengths. Camouflage your weaknesses while always striving to improve upon them. Be the best YOU can be.

Don’t make the mistake many people do about their training efforts. They ASSUME they are smarter and work harder than most people. That way of thinking just takes away your ‘edge’to go for more. Even if that was true, the vast majority of people aren’t Great at what they do–so that’s not a great accomplishment anyway.

Always be mentally prepared – you must be 100% mentally prepared to have an awesome set at least a few seconds before your hands even touch the bar, dumbbell, or machine.

Control The Negative – Lowering the weight at half the speed that you used to power it up is a great start.

Flat Barbell Bench Press – The key to stimulating the targeted muscle group more effectively might be as easy as adjusting the angle of your arms compared to your torso.

I have experimented with many body part training splits over the years, but none produce results that compare to the ones I’ve achieved while training one major body part a day and training each body part once every week. Al McGuire, the late Marquette University basketball coach, used to say “you gotta dance with who brung ya!” What the heck does that mean, you ask? Literally, it means that you are obligated to dance with the girl or guy who invited you to the dance—and no one else. As a basketball coach, McGuire felt that he should use the same…

When asked about the amount of effort they put into their training, most bodybuilders I talk with describe themselves as dedicated and committed. If I were to ask 10 guys who train on a fairly consistent basis “Do you work hard?” I can almost guarantee you at least 9 of the 10 would emphatically answer “Yes!” Physique development can vary greatly from person to person. Some guys excel, others do fine, while still others produce less-than-satisfactory bodies. If they are all indeed working hard as they believe, why are there such varying degrees of development generated from their bodybuilding efforts?…

For packing-on the most quality muscle in the shortest period of time, I suggest that you strive to perform 4 to 6 repetitions during every set. If you can do more than six reps during a particular set, then you have picked a weight that is too light. Conversely, if you are not able to properly perform four repetitions, the weight you’ve chosen is too heavy. I am really big into the mental factors that contribute to your performance in the gym. Your mind is your most valuable training tool. This is the way I see things: The less time…

Two sets of each exercise—performed with a high level of intensity—are all it really takes to effectively initiate the muscle-building process. On occasion, I will allow three sets to get the job done—but any more than three sets simply is not necessary. Just like many other bodybuilders, I used to perform four to five sets of every single exercise when I first started training years ago. Why did I choose four to five sets? To tell you the truth, I don’t really remember. More than likely, the reason why I settled on that amount was because the first person I…

If you are training with the right amount of intensity, I firmly believe that you can effectively stimulate a major muscle group for maximum growth using only 2 to 5 exercises during your workout. An intermediate bodybuilder once said to me, “Skip, doing two, three, four, or five exercises may work for you at your level of experience, but I think beginners and intermediates simply must do more exercises in order to be just as productive.” Although, I emphatically believe there are no physical reasons why his theory is true, I can understand why many less experienced lifters may feel…

At one time or another, we’ve all accomplished our short-term bodybuilding goals such as having a good day of training and eating properly. Those victories give us great feelings, don’t they? No matter how great that single event or day may be, one training session or one day of outstanding habits alone will not create an outstanding physique. When you can turn that one great day into a great week, that great week into a great month, and string together a series of great months, you begin to create the powerful force known as momentum. When you can harness the…

When it comes to contest preparation, too many competitive bodybuilders are often confused and frustrated because of their misguided beliefs. I’ve come to this realization after dealing with literally hundreds of bodybuilders around the world. Let’s face the facts. After a person has been dieting for weeks, when they fail to do as well in their show as they wanted, the entire process can be quite devastating. Man! I know this from some of my own personal, less-than-satisfactory contest preparation experiences! After an ill-fated contest experience, your brain desperately searches for reasons why things went so wrong. But, if you…

Unfortunately, when it comes to enhancing your physique many things are not easy to quantify or standardize. Many people (including myself at times) need everything to be specific, measured and/or in “black-and-white” when it comes to bodybuilding and training. They need exact numbers or indicators to feel comfortable about what they are doing. When they don’t get those concrete answers, they get confused and frustrated. Intensity is the key to determining the effectiveness of cardiovascular training. Constantly striving for a higher level of intensity, pushing yourself to exert more effort, or taking your training to the “next level” during each…

I’ve often shared with you that, the more I learn about training, I understand that less training—not more—is often needed to effectively build muscle. That is true, however, only if you are training with enough intensity and efficiently. Over the years, I’ve often documented how dramatically I’ve cut back on the number of sets I perform during my workouts—and how beneficial I think doing so has been for my development. No matter how much you love to train, you must take time off. More is not better in this case. Taking time out of the gym is very difficult for…

When it comes to training injuries, I feel extremely fortunate that I have never experienced any injuries that have seriously hampered my bodybuilding efforts. I’m sure the reason why I’ve avoided major injury isn’t because I’ve always trained 100 percent correctly in the gym. I certainly realize injuries can happen in the most surprising and unique ways. For example, one person I know has been hurt getting off a stationary bike. I’ve also known people who have been injured lifting very light warm-up weight. The problem was that they lifted the lighter weight in a slightly different manner than they…

The best time of day to train is the time that you feel you are the strongest, most motivated, and energized—and can feel that way on a consistent basis. For me, the best time of day is 4:30 a.m. Now, I know of many scientific studies that believe your natural growth hormone levels are at their peak in the morning and conclude that a person will build muscle most effectively at that time. However, that is not the reason I train at 4:30 a.m. I train at this time because of the way I prioritize my focus and energy. To…

You will not be doing yourself any favors by training when you are too sick to be productive. Both resistance (weight training) and cardiovascular training obviously put a lot of physical stress on the human body. Continuing to work out when you’re seriously ill could make you sicker and/or prolong the length of your illness. Training when you are too sick can also have negative effects on your bodybuilding efforts—both physically and mentally. If you are significantly weaker due to your illness, you’ll have difficultly training with weight heavy enough to truly overload the muscles. You simply will not be…

Today’s Mass Machine ® Bodybuilding and Training Tip: The key to success in bodybuilding and training (and every area of life) is to continually work effectively and efficiently is when things are not clearly defined. Things are rarely “black and white”  no matter how hard you try to make them. You must become mentally and emotional flexible in the “grey”.