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Training Like An Athlete
Training like an athlete is the most complete way to become more muscularTraining like an athlete means purposely engaging in intense workouts that build muscle and burn belly fat. However, as strange as it seems, most guys do NOT actually want to engage in exercise sessions that will make them more muscular. How can this be??? If you look at an elite Olympic sprinter, decathlete, water polo player, or an NFL skill player, they are layered with lean muscle mass and an extremely low percentage of body fat. Their physique is powerful-looking, yet not swollen outrageously like a professional bodybuilder dosing on quarts of steroids. Women admire this type of lean, defined, muscular body almost exclusively. They are turned-off as much by over-developed drug-assisted physiques as they are by flabby, soft ones. You would think there would be gyms filled with guys eating to build muscle, lifting to increase their lean muscle tissue, and hammering away at interval training...yet this is NOT the case. But why??? The reasons most guys do not want to train like an athlete falls under two main reasons: (1) Fear, and (2) Myth. Training like an athlete means training differently than the mainstream
Why do Fear and Myth play such huge roles in guys not wanting to workout like an athlete? * It is simple: Guys are fearful of the hard work required to train like an NFL player. They will have to pay attention to what they eat, they won't be able to have their iPod or cell phone with them, they will have to handle heavy weights, they will not get to rest near as much, they will have to work on lifts they don't like (squats, deadlifts, pull-ups...), and they will have to run afterwards...hard. * Who in their right mind wants to sweat, get out of breath and real red in the face...at a gym...then run 200m-400m intervals afterward? * Secondly, the myths surrounding workouts that build muscle sound so much better than "Eat intelligently, have a purpose and focus in the weight room, and work hard in your interval training." * If a guy believes he can drink a "secret formula protein" shake three times a day to gain muscle mass, it sure sounds more attractive than a workout of a Pull-Up Ladder, a Dip Ladder, and 8x400m. * Olympic athletes and NFL players work very hard on their lower body. Squats, deadlifts, and leg curls are pretty basic lifts for them. This is not real motivating to guys who want to do some lateral raises, concentration curls, wrist rolling, and triceps kickbacks. * Training like an athlete means focusing on multi-joint lifts like horizontal pushing (bench press, push-ups) and horizontal pulling (bent rowing) exercises and vertical pushing (dips, military presses) and vertical pulling exercises (pull-ups, cleans). They will normally be done in super-set fashion, which makes them even tougher. Training like an athlete means doing work other guys do not want to do
* Athletes work intensely because they know it is much easier to stay in shape, than it is to get in shape. * Athletes are intent on eating the best foods that build muscle and building fat loss muscle. They do NOT drink gallons of calorie-laden "protein shakes." They eat nutritionally. * Training like an athlete means incorporating exercises like cleans, hang cleans, and partial reps (bench and squat) on the power rack. These exercises can be exhausting. * Athletes are continually changing their reps and sets about every 3-4 weeks because their bodies adapt to the workout as they get stronger. * Training like an athlete means integrating interval training into your weekly workouts two days a week. Two other days each week you will have runs of 30 minutes with 6-8 light accelerations (for 30 seconds) included. * On days when you squat, you will ride the exercise bike for 20 minutes. * You will commit to understanding how food helps you build muscle and will be accountable for what you put in your mouth. You will know what foods and behaviors sabotage your muscle gaining and fat loss goals. Training like an athlete is not for every man. You must do hard research to find proven programs to help you. Become More Muscular...Like An AthleteWe think Gridiron Domination is the top program to help you train like an athlete, and get the body you want. It is demanding and only the guys with an athlete's mentality toward fat loss/muscle gain are going to buy into the training. Now, will you really look like an NFL defensive back at the end of 24 weeks? Of course not, but you will definitely be much farther down the track than if you had purchased a program strictly for bodybuilding. Elliott Hulse's's protocol is about increasing the athletic mentality needed to engage in high-level training as much as it is about completing his actual strength training workouts. You will be expected to make significant changes in your present diet to become more muscular and lean, get more sleep, and stay hydrated. Training like an athlete is not one dimensional.
If Elliott's program sounds too demanding or you see it as geared too much toward football, my recommendation would be to go with the P90X Workout Plan. Results from guys using P90X are both proven and incredible. As with Elliott's course, you will be expected to make far better food choices, as well as focus on intensity each workout. (With either one, you will be sweating and breathing real hard...) Of course, training like an athlete means you will be doing a lot of things weaker people simply do not want to do.
 
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