I’m a big believer in learning about all kinds of training, in fact, our gym has a growing library of books on training, philosophy, and psychology. I figured it would be a great idea to do some reviews and share some of the most useful things from each of them.

This week’s article is the top 3 takeaways from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s book, Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding. I feel pretty confident in saying that Arnold is the entire cause of the popularity of all forms of physical training. Not a single person in the gym doesn’t known his name. He is also widely regarded as one of, if not the greatest, bodybuilders of all time. His book is massive, 700+ pages, and is filled with tons of great info from front to back. The hardest part of writing this article was distilling this into three main takeaways, but I’ll do my best.

1. On Training Chest: “Start with the basics, Bench and Incline Bench, Dumbbell Fly’s, Dips, and Dumbbell Pullovers”. He also goes on to say that he did those same movements for 3 years straight. I’m willing to bet that most of us have made the mistake of trying to get too fancy to quick. He also continues to hammer home the importance of keeping Incline Bench Press in the training program all the time, instead of sprinkling it in. He also drills that while it’s great to have a large chest, if it’s not built on an impressive rib cage area, then it doesn’t matter. For this he recommends doing Dumbbell Pullovers often. (this is a particular favorite of mine)

2. On Training Legs: “They don’t realize the kind of total concentration and effort that it takes to make them respond” He goes on to talk about squats, and explains that squats may be more or less effective depending on individuals particular proportions, so it is important to do many different types of exercises to find what works to continue to get strong. Back squats, front squats, leg presses, leg extensions, hamstring curls, lunges, and doing a lot of high volume, heavy training is they key to getting bigger legs.

3. On Training Back: “Strong back muscles are essential for lifting and carrying heavy weight and a highly muscular back has always been a measure of a man’s strength”. This has always been a focus of my training, anybody who’s trained with me knows that. Arnold has a few points that I think can help anybody with improving back size and strength. First, avoid using the biceps with any pulling exercise. Instead visualize the arms as the link between the weight and your back, not as a prime mover. Second, keep your movements as strict as possible when training back, as it is important to focus on EXACTLY what muscles you are trying to work on.

I think all physical training styles can learn something from each other, so I advise you to follow along and take the useful bits for whatever you do, and apply it to help shore up any weaknesses you have.

If you have book suggestions, let me know!

Hopefully, you found this useful! If you’re interested in any of my coaching or programs, you can find them here! Otherwise, make sure to join my free discord to get access to form checks, weightlifting advice, and stay up to date on program launches, events, and other cool stuff!

-Coach Brian

@bigbendstrength