To celebrate the release of our new Ebook training program Bigger for Rugby we are sharing with you a sample chapter. If you want to get bigger for rugby then keep reading…
KEYS TO GAINING MUSCLE
To gain functional muscle for rugby you need to follow several rules. But don’t worry we’ve broken them down for you to understand and of course our program is based on them so you can expect some of your best gains ever. Anyway here are the keys to gaining muscle for rugby:
Get Stronger
It shouldn’t take too much explaining to understand that a stronger individual has a greater potential for muscle than a weaker individual. A good size program will be designed to increase strength so you can do more work with heavier weights. Thus, overloading the muscles and stimulating growth.
Use the Right Exercises
This is crucial to ensure you add functional muscle that transfers to rugby and prevents you getting injured. As a rule of thumb use big compound lifts to increase strength, assistance exercises to build volume, balance muscles and prevent injuries and a small number of isolation exercises to further increase volume and muscle gain.
Use Sufficient Volume
Volume has already been mentioned several times and is of huge importance when trying to get bigger. Volume has been shown to increase gains whatever the loads lifted. Essentially for best results try and build a high volume of strength work and you will get bigger and stronger! Here are two great techniques used in the Bigger for Rugby programme:
EDT – Pick two opposing exercises and perform as many reps a possible for a set time usually 10-20mins. Great for chins and dips! Use a 10RM load and begin by performing sets of 5 reps with little rest. As you fatigue perform fewer reps per set and increase the rest between sets.
350’s – Using a light weight (25RM) try and perform 50 reps in 3 sets with strict 60secs rest between. If you manage 50 then put the weight up at the next session. Try it, its painful!
Size Must Be the Goal
Your body only has so much energy so if you are following a high volume strength programme you will need every ounce of it to recover and build the desired muscle. This means you can’t expend energy on other things. Your training block must be focused on solely increasing muscle mass. Not to get fitter, leaner, faster etc. This is critical to your success and when you do this program you must understand that other things have to take a back seat. The ideal time for this type of programme is the offseason.
Time Under Tension
To get bigger you need to stimulate the muscles for a longer duration than normal. That means increasing the time under tension. But take note, these techniques can be really tough on the nervous system so use them sparingly. Here are 2 of the best time under tension techniques for gaining muscle:
Mechanical Dropsets – Like a traditional dropset but instead of using a lighter weight each drop, you use a mechanically easier exercise. Eg. Db shoulder press, into incline db press into flat db press.
Barbell Complexes – These are savage! Basically grab a barbell and perform 3-6 exercises back to back without putting the bar down. They hit every muscle in the body and especially stress the grip, forearms and core.
Use Periodization
This leads nicely into the next chapter…
You didn’t think we were going to give away all of our secrets did you? Unfortunately you’re going to have to get the Ebook to learn more!
