Arnold Schwarzenegger's Bodybuilding Tips to Gain Muscle Mass

All bodybuilding fans know who is the most famous bodybuilding legend - Arnold Schwarzenegger. We all know that he is very famous as a bodybuilder, actor, and of course - governor. 

Arnold started lifting at the age of 15 and he won the first Mr. Universe title when he was 20. After that, he won 7 Mr. Olympia titles. Those are some well-known facts, but did you ever thought about how did he build such a muscular and defined physique? 

If you are interested in Arnold Schwarzenegger's tips for building a lot of muscle mass continue reading this article.

1. Arnold's Training Tips for Muscle Building

The Austrian Oak knew that it is not everything in training hard, he knew that he also need to train smart. One of his main tips for building muscle mass is: "To get big, you have to get strong."

In order to build his muscles, Arnold focused on multi-joint movements (compound exercises) more than on isolation exercises.

If you want to know which compound exercises are best for muscle building then check out another article:

Best Exercises to Build Muscle Mass

To get stronger and build muscle mass fast, compound exercises must be a foundation of your training plan.

2. Heavy weights and low number of reps

That is a key to building muscle mass and he knew it better than Arnold Schwarzenneger. Best rep range for muscle growth is from 8 to 12. To ensure muscle growth Arnold recommends starting with a few warm-ups and then pyramid the weight up from one set to next while decreasing the number of reps and going to failure. Arnold never performed a workout with less than 6 reps and more than 12 reps. 

3. Experiment with training routines

Never let your muscles to get used to the same workout routine. One of the best ways to make your muscles to grow is to shock them, confuse them. Don't let your muscles know what is coming next. 

Arnold was often switching his workout routines if he found that his routine is no longer producing muscle gains. Doing the same routine over and over without any significant changes will stop making results and your muscles will get comfortable with that workout routine, which means they won't grow anymore. 

4. Don't overtrain your muscles

This principle is very important for building muscle mass. You need to let your muscles to rest and recover after hard training sessions. Arnold said that too much can be as bad as too little in bodybuilding training. 

Overtraining one muscle can lead that muscle to lag behind other muscles. Don't overtrain your muscles, give them a chance to rest and grow. Remember, muscles don't grow in a gym, they grow while we rest.




5. Fuel your muscles with a lot of protein


In the time when he was competing, Arnold consumed a lot of protein. He knew that the most important macronutrient for muscle hypertrophy is protein. He used to say that for one pound of a body it is enough to consume one gram of protein.


Arnie used to split his 250 grams of protein into five meals a day. 



Here is an example of one of Arnold's meals:


3-4 whole eggs
2 pieces of bacon
2 pieces of Ezekiel bread



This was often his breakfast and after two to three hours he was ready to eat more. He was also a fan of protein shakes as part of his meals.

First 5 Mr. Olympia Winners

Mr. Olympia contest was invented by Joe Weider who created the contest to enable the Mr. Universe winners to continue competing and earn money. Even since the first Mr. Olympia win in 1965, this competition is still famous worldwide and every year bodybuilding fans across the globe are guessing who will be the next Mr. Olympia title holder. 

1. Larry Scott

First Mr. Olympia winner ever was Larry Scott who won two Mr. Olympia titles in the 1960s, one in 1965 and second in 1966. Larry Scott retired after his second victory. He is still known as the first Mr. Olympia title holder. 

2. Sergio Oliva 

Sergio Oliva, known as "The Myth" was the winner of Mr. Olympia contest after Larry Scott. He made three consecutive winnings, 1967, 1968, and in 1969 when one of the most famous bodybuilders Arnold Schwarzenegger also competed. 

3. Arnold Schwarzenegger

First Mr. Olympia that Arnold won was in 1970 when he defeated Sergio Oliva and other competitors. In the 1970s there was much competition between Schwarzenegger and Oliva. Arnold Schwarzenegger was the only man then that was able to match Sergio Oliva's muscularity and size. Judges chose Arnold because of his amazing definition and he won Mr. Olympia title six times in a row. After his win in 1975, Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a retirement. 

4. Franco Columbu

In 1976, when contest moved to Columbus, Ohio the Mr. Olympia title was won by Franco Columbu. Columbu was competing five times before his win and he retired after that victory. 

5. Frank Zane

While not as physically massive as other Mr. Olympia competitors, Frank Zane's body was very symmetric and defined. Many competitors that were bigger than Frank Zane lacked his level of muscular definition. Zane won three titles in a row in 1977, 1978 and 1979. Unluckily for him, Arnold Schwarzenegger showed again in 1980 Mr. Olympia contest and won the title. 

Check out the workout routine that Frank Zane followed to gain more muscle mass before his first competition:

Frank Zane Workout Routine for Muscle Growth

After Frank Zane's three consecutive Mr. Olympia wins many people wondered is it possible to break Arnold's record but nobody knew that Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to show in a contest in 1980. That was Arnold's seventh title win. 

Frank Zane Workout Routine

I already wrote about Bodybuilding Legends and their Workout Routines. Now it is the time to write about this Bodybuilding Legend that surely deserves to be called a legend. You can check out Bill Pearl's, Arnold Schwarzenegger's, and Reg Park's Workouts:

  Bill Pearl's Workout for Mass

  Arnold's Workout Routine for Mass

  Reg Park's 5x5 Workout Routine

Frank Zane had an amazing physique when he was at his peak. His physique was aesthetic and very muscular. He was three times Mr. Olympia and he was one of few bodybuilders that defeated Arnold Schwarzenegger. 

Frank Zane's aesthetic physique was a result of both light and heavy training. In the earlier part of his career, Frank Zane used to train with light weights and high rep range. He was already well built then, but the only thing that was missing for a Mr. Olympia title was Muscle Size. Frank wasn't very big like other Mr. Olympia competitors and he knew that his training with light weights won't build him a body for the title.

Soon after that, he started to train with heavy weights and rep range between 8 to 12. As a result, he won three consecutive Mr. Olympia titles. He was always afraid of training with heavy weights because he didn't want to get injuries. Unfortunately, he had knees and back injuries and he continued his training with light weights. Frank Zane said that he used to lift heavy weights with poor form and as a result, he got injured. 

What was his Workout Routine when he won 3 consecutive Mr. Olympia titles?

He followed a famous Push/Pull/Legs Workout Routine and achieved to build bigger muscular body. He started every workout with Powerlifting movement and finishing workout with exercises for abs. He used to 1,000 reps when he was training to win Mr. Olympia.

DAY 1 (Back, Biceps, Forearms, Abs)

- Deadlift, 6 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- T-Bar Row, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- Lat Pulldown, 3 Sets, 8-10 Reps

- Dumbbell Row, 3 Sets, 8-10 Reps

- Dumbbell Concentration Curl, 3 Sets, 8-10 Reps

- Alternate Dumbbell Curls, 3 Sets, 8-10 Reps

- Barbell Reverse Curl, 2 Sets, 12 Reps

- Crunches, Leg Raises, Hanging Knee-Ups, 50 Reps Each Exercise

DAY 2 (Thigh, Calves, Abs)

- Leg Extensions, 2 Warm Up Sets

- Barbell Squat, 6 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- Leg Press, 3 Sets, 10-15 Reps

- Lying Leg Curl, 3 Sets, 10-12 Reps

- Leg Extension, 3 Sets, 10-12 Reps

- Standing Calf Raise, 3 Sets, 15-20 Reps

- Donkey Calf Raise, 4 Sets, 20-25 Reps

- Crunches and Leg Raises, 50 Reps Each Exercise

DAY 3 (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps, Abs)

- Bench Press, 6 Sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 Reps)

- Incline Dumbbell Press, 4 Sets, 8-10 Reps

- Decline Dumbbell Flies, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- Dumbbell Pullover, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- Close Grip Bench Press, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- One Arm Triceps Extension, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- Bent-Over Lateral Raise, 3 Sets, 10-12 Reps

- Side Cable Raise, 3 Sets, 8-12 Reps

- 100 Crunches, 100 Seated Twists, 100 Leg Raises

That is it, three training days a week with at least one rest day between them. More information about Frank Zane and his training and diet you can find on his website:

www.frankzane.com

Reg Park - Legend of Bodybuilding

Reg Park - Bodybuilding Legend

Hercules of Modern Times

Did you hear about Reg Park, a Legend of Bodybuilding and famous actor? First time when he was seen in a movie Hercules (1965) a lot of people saw his strong and muscular body and became his fans. It is very interesting that one of Reg Park's fans was also one of the most popular men in Bodybuilding - Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Arnold first saw Reg Park's picture in some magazine when he was young and he wanted to become famous like him, to become Bodybuilding Legend and famous actor in Hollywood. There is a story that Arnold following his dreams escaped from military, where his strict father put him and went to Germany on Bodybuilding competition and he won Junior Mr. Europe title. That was in 1966 one year after Reg Park acted in Hercules and became very famous for his size and muscles.

After some time Arnold and Reg Park became good friends and Arnold had a good teacher.

How Reg Park, the man with a lot of Bodybuilding titles (9 times Mr. Universe), became so big and strong? He was not using steroids, he was totally natural and comparing to today's bodybuilders even without steroids he looked very good and aesthetic.

Reg Park is famous and also his Workout Program, 5x5 Workout Routine that he invented and many bodybuilders tried that routine to gain more size and strength. Exercises that Reg Park used in his routine were Compound Exercises, Squats, Bench Presses, Pull Ups, Dips, Military Presses and Dead Lifts. He used 5 reps for 5 sets and that number is great for Strength and Muscle Growth.

I wrote about Reg Park's Workout Routine for size and strength in another post, check it out:

Reg Park's 5x5 Workout Program for Muscle Mass and Strength

Try out this program for some time and believe me you will gain strength and muscle size fast, I tried it myself and had good results.

Arnold's Workout Routine for Mass

Arnold Schwarzenegger's Training Program for Muscle Mass

Who knows how to gain lean muscle mass better than Bodybuilding King Arnold Schwarzenegger? Probably a few people or we can say almost no one. Arnold Schwarzenegger is Bodybuilding, he is Lean Muscle Mass and Strength. We can almost say that he popularized Bodybuilding and Fitness. One of the biggest icons of bodybuilding was never always big you must know, he was also skinny young kid, but that was before he was 15. 

Take a look how big and aesthetic was Arnold when he won Bodybuilding Tournament in Germany when he was 15:

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He was huge back then and he was huge all his life and he actually still is. So, do you know what program for muscle mass gain Arnold recommend?

Here it is:

Monday - Chest and Back:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Bench Press	8-12	3-4
Incline Dumbbell Press	8-12	3-4
Dumbbell Flies	10-12	3-4
Bent Over Row	8-12	3-4
Seated Back Row	10-12	3-4

Add 5 sets of 25 crunches at the end of workout.

Tuesday - Shoulders and Arms:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Military Press	8-12	3-4
Dumbbell Lateral Raise	8-12	3-4
Upright Row	10-12	3-4
Standing Barbell Curl	10-12	3-4
Seated Dumbbell Press	10-12	3-4
Close Grip Bench Press	8-12	3-4
Barbell Triceps Extension	8-12	3-4

Wednesday - Legs and Lower Back:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Squat	8-12	3-4
Lunge	8-12	3-4
Leg Curl	10-12	3-4
Deadlift	8-10	3-4
Good Mornings	10-12	3-4
Standing Calf Raise	10-12	3-4
Crunches	20	5

Arnold used to shock his muscles every time to don't let them get used to his training, so he was changing his training routine or rep number often. He recommend doing 10 reps by starting with one rep of maximum weight then lowering the weight and adding more reps. So if you are doing bench press and let's say your maximum is 200 lbs then it should look like this for example:

200 lbs - 1 rep

180 lbs - 2 reps

150 lbs - 3 reps

140 lbs - 4 reps

120 lbs - 5 reps

100 lbs - 6 reps

Those numbers are just an example, you know your own maximum weight to lift in one rep or two rep. This workout is good because you don't rest between rep you just continue until you do 10 reps if you can. It is great for shocking your muscles and make them to grow.