Read this for better gains and quicker fat loss.
Myths abound in this game. There are so many clueless people giving their opinion who really have no idea what they’re talking about.
Problem is this: taking their advice could severely limit your gains…and wreck any chance there is of you getting a six-pack.
So read this. Pay attention. Your gains (and abs) depend on it!
8 MUSCLE MYTHS
(1) You Can “Out-work” A Bad Diet
Nope. You just can’t. Let’s say you eat a chocolate bar at 300 Calories. So you assume that if you get on a treadmill later and burn 300 Calories, that evens everything up, right? Wrong.
All machines overestimate Calories burned. You didn’t burn 300 Calories – but higher numbers help sell treadmills and cross trainers.
Also, after a while your body compensates for Calories burned through exercise by slowing energy-utilization elsewhere in the body. The body is always finding ways to adapt and compensate. It will become more efficient in its energy usage to “make up” for the extra calories burned through exercise – so you simply won’t be creating as much of a deficit as you think. A bad diet cannot be “out-worked” with exercise.
(2) You Don’t Need To Diet – Just Exercise
Following on from point 1, it should be obvious that exercise alone simply cannot burn a lot of fat. In fact, cardio is the very least effective method for fat loss. It’s mostly about diet. In order of effectiveness, it goes like this:
(1) Diet
(2) Weight Training
(3) Cardio
This is how trainees on my Total Six Pack Abs program succeed so easily – the know exactly what they’re doing.
(3) ‘Total Volume’ Is More Important Than ‘High-Intensity’
Nope. Both intensity and volume matter. But intensity is the most important factor. The Total Volume is a number on a piece of paper and says absolutely nothing about whether or not growth has been stimulated. Triggering the body to adapt and grow is primarily about high-intensity (taking sets to failure)…then – and only then – will extra volume count towards growth.
You cannot make up for a lack of intensity with extra sets/volume. If you stop every set 2 reps before failure, you are simply training WITHIN your body’s existing capacity. Since your body can already handle what you’re doing, it has absolutely no reason to build more muscle mass – no matter how many sets you do.
For a more scientific explanation of why intensity trumps volume, see my article Total Volume vs Intensity.
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(4) Do Higher Reps When Cutting
Rubbish. There’s nothing magical about high reps that burns fat. Even when you’re cutting, you still train for hypertrophy/growth as normal.
Getting a cut look is about lowering your total body fat percentage with diet, and building the muscle tissue underneath. You then get that ripped look. It has nothing to do with a “special” high rep range.
(5) You Can “Tone” A Muscle
No you can’t. There’s no such thing as “toning”. You either build a muscle or you don’t. Just like I stated in point 4, the toned look is a combination of building muscle tissue and lowering your body fat percentage. “Toning” is a word manufactured by Personal Trainers to market to women.
There's no such thing as toning a muscle. You either build it or you don't Share on X
(6) More Protein = More Muscle
It’s totally true that without a sufficient amount of protein, you won’t make any gains. But beyond that sufficient level, any extra protein is simply converted to sugar in the body.
As I state in my most recent podcast, you might as well be eating extra carbs when you eat surplus protein (a process called gluconeogenesis).
Shoot for around 1g per pound body weight in protein. No more. No less. More on this here.
Take only 1g protein per pound bodyweight to build muscle. Extra protein will convert to sugar Share on X
(7) Stretch Before A Workout
Wrong. Warm up, but don’t stretch a muscle before strength training.
Stretching a muscle temporarily weakens it. It’s called “stretching induced force deficit”. If you want to stretch, do it AFTER training. More about his here.
Stretching Induced Force Deficit means stretching a muscle weakens it. So stretch AFTER training Share on X
(8) Always Use Free Weights – Never Machines
Despite the fact that all the biggest guys use machines, this particularly annoying myth is still prevalent in the bodybuilding world.
For optimal gains you should use BOTH free weights and machines. If you are wondering what benefit machines give, read my article ‘Should You Use Machines To Build Muscle‘. But in short…
“Machines force you to move the weight up and down along a set path of motion. This totally REMOVES the issue of stabilization from the exercise because the machine is stabilizing the load for you.
Without a portion of your strength being diverted away to the issue of stabilization, more of your strength and force is left to push against heavier loads (this is why you can always use heavier weights with machines).”
THT training will have you using free weights and machines for truly optimal gains.
If you’ve got questions or need help, just ask below 🙂
Mark McManus
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I was guilty of overeating the protein thinking it was going to build more muscle but it didn’t. Was actually a relief when I started eating less. I was trying to hit 300g every day lol.
Mark,
Thank you! I have told clients and students for years that there is no such thing as “toning” muscles. As a matter of fact, when a person is building muscle he/she is changing the physiological state of muscle; causing muscle to be more efficient for calorie burning; basal metabolic rate too.
@Dr. J – Exactly right. And yet the “toning” myth continues, and probably will for some time. Great comment.
@Matthew. Wow. 300? If you were really building muscle with that much protein every day, you would have been Arnold in a couple months! lol
Hello Mark,
Just wanted to ask this
The issue is regarding the contradiction of 2 methods for maintainence level calories measurement.
1) In the free calories measurement calculator with 139lbs and 16%body fat, the calories(maintenance) appears to be 2537-2637.
2) In the manual calculation method (the one with RMR), the calories(maintenance) appears more than 2800 (lean mass-54kg).
So there are contradictions in both methods. Which should I follow ?
Range of 2537-2637 (as per calculator) and add 200 cals or 2800 (as per manual calculation) and add 200 cals to it for mass gain?
Hi Mark!
First off, this is my first post, but I have been following you for about 5 years and follow/promote your advice religiously. I am a hard gainer like you, and I have been subject to many of these and other misleading muscle-building myths. I’ve read virtually every one of your posts, and I can’t get enough of it. Since I’ve been on your program, I’ve gained about 25 lbs of muscle on THT (spread out over 5 years, as I wasn’t totally engaged nor was I following your advice or a good diet 100%. And yes, when I wasn’t doing the workouts, my ectomorph self stripped off all of my muscle. But whenever I did hit the gym, I made sure I did your most updated THT program), and I’ve helped multiple friends and family members “see the light” and train correctly and with intensity. They have all loved it! You are doing good things brother, keep it up.
Alright, enough mushy rubbish. Onto my question:
Like I said, I’ve read all of your posts, so I understand all the logic and science behind this, but I wanted to hear it from the horse’s mouth and hear you bust this myth once and for all. It has to do with overtraining. That post about CT Fletcher was very informative, but I wanted a little more detail on your take/the science behind anabolic recovery. You mentioned that if you work a 5-day split working each body part with 8-10 sets to failure that you would need about 5-7 days to recover and reach the P.O.P. to maximize gains. I am currently doing the TSPA with my wife (we are both LOVING it by the way and seeing great results. We’ll make sure to send pictures.) and of course, my goal is to build as much muscle as fast as possible, specifically in my arms, shoulders, chest, and back (hers is to lose fat). Losing fat/staying lean is easy for me since my body will destroy any fat or muscle every chance it gets. My question is this: she will be following the 6-day split program perfectly, but is there something more that I can do to accelerate my muscle growth? Can I insert a different body part into the training session (such as chest or back) on the day we work just abs? Instead of abs, can I work a different body part twice a week? There’s support out there for two-a-day programs. Is there some way I can do two training sessions in a day using THT principles without overtraining? Every time I leave the gym I find myself longing to get back in there, and I look forward to every training session and taking my supplements afterwards almost like I’m excited to play with a new toy because I’m seeing solid gains. I would just like to know if there is something more I could be doing.
Wow, I’m sorry this turned into a novel. I didn’t mean it to be. Any help would be greatly appreciated Mark! Love your new sexy website btw. People are very impressed when I refer them to it.
I have a question. If I want to lose weight, and your rule of thumb is to consume 1g of protein per pound of body weight, should I make that consuming 1g of protein per pound of my target body weight? Or current body weight?
Thanks!
Good post, Mark. I’ve been following you for a few years now and your information is always right on the mark. I’m almost 63 years old and you inspired me to create my own blog a few months ago aimed solely at the baby boomers, my generation. I read a few articles that said we’re supposed to live longer than all of the generations before us, which sounds like a good thing. Then I took a look at a lot of my peers and realized what’s the point if you can’t live those extra years in good health. Thank you for all of the great info. I pattern my own workouts on your Total Six Pack Abs manual.
@Abhilash. You need to ensure that your math is correct and that you are using the same activity level for both calculations.
@Preston. Thanks for the kind words and congrats on your success so far.
Regarding adding extra work, I would advise against it, especially when in a caloric deficit as you will be on TSPA. Ability to recover and growth is hampered with fewer calories. You might find yourself getting weaker if you add extra sets. By all means try it. But measure it against your previous progress. If there’s any sign of stagnation or getting weaker, remove the extra sets again.
@Travis. It would be 1g per pound of your current weight.
@Rick Henkin. Awesome! And good luck with the new blog, my friend. Glad to you have as a Muscle Hacker 😀