FACT: To get big arms you need to work the triceps HARD.
FACT: I’m going to tell you how to work the triceps HARD and SMART.

If you’ve ever read articles on arm training, you’ve probably learned that the tricep muscle makes up about 2/3 of total arm mass. The bicep, while being a great “show” muscle, is actually relatively small!

That’s all well and good, and just blindly doing tricep exercises without a plan may net you some results, but to really maximize your triceps (as I mentioned above) you need to work them SMART.

So if you really want to stretch your T-shirt sleeves to the max, take a crack at this workout. It contains three of THE most powerful tricep exercises I’ve ever used. Not only that, these exercises are arranged strategically to literally force the activation of many more muscle fibers in the triceps, leading to greater muscle growth and strength fast!

The best part is, this workout requires very little in the way of specialized equipment!

In the next section, I will tell you about the three exercises (with a link at the bottom to use for pictures of the exercises in action as well as more detailed instructions). Then, I’ll tell you how the exercises work together to help you blast your triceps into next week!

EXERCISE #1 – Bodyweight Tricep Extensions – 2 sets of 8 to 12 reps

EXERCISE #2 – In-Set Superset of Lying Tricep Extensions and Close Grip Bench Press – 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps

EXERCISE #3 – Bench Dips – 2 sets of 10 to 12+ reps

Take 90 seconds rest in between each set.

How To Perform Exercise #1 – Bodyweight Tricep Extensions

2 sets of 8 to 12 reps

For this exercise, you will need a horizontal bar/edge about 2 feet off the ground. You can use a Smith machine bar, Universal bench handles, a railing, the edge of a chair or table, or even an Olympic bar set in the power rack with the safety rails a few feet off the ground will work.

Essentially, any horizontal bar that is 1 to 2 feet off the ground will do. It should have some clearance underneath it so you have somewhere to put your head.

This exercise has a demonstration video at the link below as well as more detailed instructions and pictures, including how to make this exercise easier or harder. It is HIGHLY recommended to see the pics and video before trying the exercise.

-Stand in front of the bar, about a foot back from it. Place your hands about 6 inches apart with a thumbless (false) grip.
-Step back a few feet, letting your body straighten out as you do so.
-Keep your abs tight so that your body stays supported
-Now lower your entire body forward, bending only at your elbows, so that your head ducks under the bar as though you are trying to do an overhead tricep stretch.
-Keep your elbows tucked in close the whole way.
-Keep your entire body tight and stiff. The only movement should occur at the elbows.
-Extend back up using your triceps.

This exercise will build up the long head of the triceps (which runs along the undersides of the arm) as well as give your triceps a great stretch.

How to Perform Exercise #2 – In-Set Superset of Lying Tricep Extensions and Close Grip Bench Press

3 sets of 6 to 8 reps

Note: One rep of each exercise (1 extension and 1 press) counts as one total rep for our purposes here.

This is a unique type of Superset where you basically mesh two different exercises into a single set – preferably one isolation exercise and one compound exercise.

For this Superset, we’ll be using EZ Bar Lying Tricep Extensions and Close Grip Bench Press (with the same EZ Bar). Use a weight you would normally be able to do about 12 reps with for Lying Extensions on their own.

In a nutshell, you will do one rep of extensions then one rep of close grip presses, alternating reps until you can no longer do any reps of the extensions. At that point, you finish with as many reps as you can do of the close grip presses. It’s a very intense technique!

This type of Superset maximizes training intensity and allows you to work several different aspects of the muscle at the same time, dramatically increasing workout efficiency.

This exercise is best done lying on the floor (especially if you are training alone) rather than on a bench. If you have a spotter to hand you the weight at the start and grab the weight for you when you’re done, you can do these on a flat bench.

Start with a rep of the Lying Tricep Extension. Lower the bar to your forehead then extend back up. Now do a single rep of the Close Grip Press, lowering the bar to your lower rib cage area then pressing back up. Now do another extension, then another press. Repeat until you can no longer do any extensions with good form. Now finish with as many presses as you can do with good form. That’s one set!

How to Perform Exercise #3 – Bench Dips

2 sets of 10 to 12+ reps
(the number of reps you’re able to get will depend on the body position you use for the exercise)

You can use a bench (or even an ordinary chair) for this one. Start by sitting on the bench. Place your hands on the bench right beside your glutes with your fingers curled over the front edge. It will almost look as though you are sitting on your hands.

Where you set your feet will affect how hard this exercise is. The easiest position is with your feet flat on the floor a foot or two away from the bench. Your knees will be bent.

To make this exercise harder, move your feet further away from the bench (you can straighten your legs). This forces your triceps to take up more of your bodyweight. Your next position after that is with your feet up on a bench with your legs straight. You may even with to try it with your feet on a bench that is higher than the one you have your hands on.

But if you’re REALLY looking for a challenge, move your bench so that it’s facing a wall (about 2 or 3 feet away). Instead of resting your feet on the floor or on a bench, place your feet flat ON the wall.

That way, the only thing holding you up is your legs pushing back HARD directly against your triceps as you do the exercise. The contraction you will feel in your triceps will be so strong and painful that it’s almost cruel!

To start the exercise, move your butt forward off the bench a few inches. Now dip your upper body down as though scraping your back along the front edge of the bench. Push yourself back up, squeezing the triceps hard.

Why This Workout Is So Effective:

As I said above, the key to building the triceps is to work them hard AND smart.

We start the workout with an exercise that puts the triceps in a stretched position. The stretch position has two main benefits – the first is what is called the myotatic reflex (a.k.a. stretch reflex).

When the muscle is placed under tension in the stretched position, a quick change in direction causes more muscle fibers to activate than normally would. This change in direction should NOT be a bounce but almost a twitch.

So when you get to the bottom of the Bodyweight Tricep Extension, get the stretch in your triceps then change direction quickly (but don’t bounce!!)

The second benefit of the stretch position is in helping to stretch the fascia surrounding the muscle. Fascia is basically a connective tissue “pillowcase” that holds a muscle in place. Fascia is tough and restricts muscle growth. Stretching helps loosen the fascia and make room for the muscles to grow.

Now we move to the second exercise(s). The In-Set Superset combines two movements into one exercise. The Extensions provide another stretch-position exercise for the triceps (this stretch position is not as complete as the overhead position from the first exercise, though) and the press gives you a compound exercise that allows the shoulders and chest to help push the triceps harder.

Completing each set with a burn-out on the presses will really light up your triceps.

Now we move to the coup-de-grace: the Bench Dip. With this exercise, we are looking for a maximum contraction. The position that your arms are in (behind your body) is the position where ALL the muscle fibers of the triceps are in optimal position for peak contraction.

Just keeping your arms straight and trying to touch your hands behind your back will demonstrate that.

After the stretch-position movement and the double-trouble of the In-Set Superset, you hit the triceps with the hardest contraction they are anatomically able to achieve.

Let me tell you right now…if you’ve not felt your triceps swell up like balloons before, this combination of exercises will do it! And, you’ll achieve huge gains in tricep muscle development very quickly!

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of BetterU, Inc. and has been inventing new training techniques and exercises for 17+ years. Nick has written many training books including “Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass” & “Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss” – http://www.fitness-ebooks.com

The mere mention of the hip flexors often sends personal trainers into a tizzy.

“Do whatever you can to eliminate them from the exercise!” they scream.

And, for a lot of people, this CAN be decent advice. TIGHT hip flexors can be a huge contributor to lower back pain. TIGHT hip flexors can cause what’s called “anterior pelvic tilt”…this is your hips tipping forward because your hip flexors are pulling them forward when the lower back and abdominal muscles aren’t strong enough to oppose that pull.

Now, you’ll notice I highlighted the word “tight” in the sentences above.

STRONG hip flexors present no such problems, especially when balanced by strong abs and lower back muscles.

It’s only when those hip flexors are never stretched and tighten up so they constantly pull forward on the hips that they present a problem.

Hip flexors are definitely NOT evil.

In fact, hip flexor strength is one of the greatest limiting factors when it comes to running speed!

If you’re an athlete, or if you train or coach an athlete, listen up.

A constant focus on doing exercises that eliminate or minimize the hip flexor involvement will slow down maximal running speed.

I’ll tell you why…

In your head, picture somebody running…notice what happens each time they bring their leg forward. Looks like the hip flexors might be involved in that, doesn’t it!

When you strengthen and TRAIN the hip flexors for explosive power, you can significantly (and very QUICKLY) boost running speed. Your body is able to bring your legs forward faster and you’ll be able to accelerate faster.

Who do you think is going to win the race…the person with the faster stride turnover or the person with the slower turnover (assuming their strides are equal in length). Big duh.

The single most effective exercise you can do to increase running speed quickly in a person is not squatting or power cleans or anything like that. It’s explosive hip flexion.

Now, it IS true that the hip flexors are highly involved in the sit-up exercise. But I’m definitely not recommending you do ballistic, explosive sit-ups to work the hip flexors.

You’ll be much better off doing direct hip flexor work using bands or cables. Bands especially are excellent because you can explode strongly against them without having to worry about decelerating the resistance…the stretching of the band takes care of that for you.

So first, get yourself some training bands (if you don’t have them or can’t get them, a low pulley cable with an ankle harness will work just fine).

The simplest exercise you can do is to attach a band to a solid object down near the ground (or use the low pulley with the ankle harness). Loop the other end over your thigh. Hold onto something solid then EXPLODE up against the band.

The exercise itself looks like you’re trying to knee somebody in the gut as hard as you can. Simple as that. Do it against resistance and do it explosively. This will do more to increase your running speed than squats ever will.

[If you're interested in seeing more explosive hip flexor exercises, I'll have a link at the end of the article]

To prevent that tightening problem I mentioned above, be sure to stretch your hip flexors after every session and regularly throughout the day if you spend a lot of time in a seated position (which puts your hip flexors in a shortened position for many hours at a time).

To stretch them, drop down on one knee like you’re in a lunge position then just lean your upper body back. You’ll feel a great stretch along the front of your thigh up through your hip flexor. Hold for 20 to 30 seconds then repeat on the other leg.

CONCLUSION:

Hip flexors are NOT evil.

They’re CRITICAL, especially if you want to improve running and/or leg speed (I say leg speed because it’s important in skating as well and I can’t really call that running!).

By properly strengthening the related muscle groups (abs and lower back) and by stretching the hip flexors, you’ll have no problem keep proper alignment in your body AND you’ll experience great improvements in speed performance.

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of BetterU, Inc. and has been inventing new training techniques and exercises for 17+ years. Nick has written many training books including “Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass” & “Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss” – http://www.fitness-ebooks.com

Golf fitness exercises can be beneficial for the woman golfer in terms of improving the foundation of the swing, rotation in the backswing, speed development in the downswing, and a consistent finish position. Learn how golf fitness exercises can benefit the woman golfer. Lowering golf scores and making the game more enjoyable.

It is well known in professional golf how integral golf fitness exercises are for success at the highest level of golf Men on the PGA Tour and women on the LPGA Tour understand the benefits of golf fitness exercises in achieving success.

Outside the circles of professional golf many questions exist about golf fitness exercises. Questions such as; what are the best exercises to improve golf fitness levels, are flexibility exercises and stretches better than other forms of golf fitness exercises, and what are the benefits of golf fitness exercises for the woman golfer?

These and many questions surround the topic of golf fitness. This article is to provide some answers for you on the topic of golf fitness exercises for woman.

It has been well documented in magazines and television how LPGA women such as Annika Sorenstam utilize golf fitness programs to benefit their play on the golf course. Is there a difference between the LPGA player and the amateur woman golfer in relation to golf fitness training? The answer is no. Yes, the women on the LPGA Tour are the best women golfers in the world, but the physiology of the LPGA player and amateur are the same.

The skeletal, muscular, and neural systems are the same. The professional golfer has the same number of muscles in their bodies as the amateur. The woman’s professional golfer has the same skeletal structure as the female amateur, and nervous system as well. Granted the LPGA player has more refined and efficient swing mechanics, but the body is the same.

As a result of the body being the same, the principles and structure of a golf fitness program for any woman is similar. Before discussing the specifics of a golf fitness program for women it is necessary to understand a few important principles.

The first principle to understand about a golf fitness program is sports specific. Sports specific is a term describing the type of training utilized in a golf fitness program. Sport specific training simply states the program utilized by the woman athlete is geared towards improving them in their chosen sport.

A second principle closely related to sports specific training is cross specificity training. Cross specificity training is the utilization of exercises to develop the woman golfer in the positions, movements, and actions incorporated in the golf swing.

The goal of cross specificity training is a transfer of training effect to the field of competition. Simply stated, a transfer of training effect is the ability of exercises utilized to train the female golfer having a direct benefit on their performance during a round of golf.

For example, golf fitness flexibility exercises will attempt to improve the flexibility within the woman golfer. As the woman golfer improves her flexibility parameters in relation to the golf swing. She may be able to create a bigger shoulder turn, which may increase the distance of her drives.

This benefit is an example of a transfer of training effect onto the golf course. In summary, the three principles that assist in the development of a golf fitness program for women are; sports specific, cross specificity training, and transfer of training effect. Many additional principles exist that are used as guidelines in the development of a golf fitness program, but these are three essential ones.

Outside of the guidelines governing the development of a golf fitness program for woman. Specific physical components within the body are needed within the body to execute the golf swing correctly. Remember, it is the body performing the biomechanics of the golf swing.

In order for the golf swing to be executed correctly and efficiently certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power are required. These are the actual physical components within the woman golfer a golf specific fitness program looks to develop and enhance in relation to the golf swing.

The golf swing requires the body to move through a long range of motion for an efficient movement to occur. Much of this is contingent upon the ability of the core to coil and uncoil during the swing. In order for these two biomechanical actions to occur efficiently, the development of proper flexibility in the core is necessary.

We utilize flexibility exercises that are cross-specific to the movements in the golf swing to develop flexibility. The majority of these flexibility exercises are rotational and dynamic.

The golf swing is a dynamic movement, indicating that the body is in constant motion. It is crucial to develop a range of motion for the swing in a dynamic rather than a static (not moving) method. The goal of these exercises is to create a range of motion in the core for the golf swing. Flexibility is the first physical component requiring development within the woman golfer.

One needs to maintain, dynamically, a stable body throughout the entire swing. We have all hit balls at the range and know what happens when we do not stay balanced during the swing.

Improving the balance and stabilization capabilities of the core translates into a better golf swing. Better Balance equals a Better Swing. Even subtle movements are consistency killers; thus we need to develop and maintain balance for a consistent swing.

Balance is connected to the efficiency of the nervous system and strength of the muscular system working together. The development of greater balance in the core and swing is the result of two types of specific exercise. The first challenges the nervous system creating greater efficiency.

The second are exercises that create increased strength in the core. The combination of these two types of exercises permit for the body to maintain posture, promote efficient weight transfer, and create power in the swing. The result is a more consistent, accurate, and powerful swing. This is the second component included with a golf fitness program for women

Remember that the golf swing is a repetitive movement. The mechanics of the swing repeat with each stroke. This process can be repeated hundreds of times in a round of golf Ever go to the range and hit two buckets of balls? At some point the body starts to tire, and shots scatter.

Proper endurance training enables us to repeat a sound swing. We produce this through a series of exercises developing endurance in the entire body. This nets us a consistent swing through eighteen holes. Increasing endurance leads to lower scores. This is the third physical component of the golf fitness program for women.

Club head speed is a function of power. The more power generated by the body, the greater speed at which a club head impacts the ball. More power to the ball equals longer drives. Developing higher levels of power within the muscular system of the body is achieved through the implementation of power exercises. These types of exercise assist in creating higher power outputs of the muscles involved in the golf swing. Power training is the final component found in a golf fitness program for women.

In summary a golf fitness program for the LPGA or amateur woman golfer is relatively the same. Golf fitness exercises for the woman golfer are sports specific. The exercises contained within the golf fitness program are cross-specific to the movements, positions, and requirements of the golf swing. The exercises within a woman’s golf fitness program induce a transfer of training effect onto the golf course.

The golf swing requires certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power to execute correctly. A golf fitness program for women will look to enhance these physical components of the body. The end result is an improved golf swing equating to lower scores and more enjoyment on the golf course.

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly working with professional golfers. To learn more about Sean Cochran and his golf fitness exercises and training programs go to http://www.seancochran.com.

Have you ever walked into an elevator and when the doors closed you thought that the walls were going to close in on you? Maybe you got on an airplane for the first time and the moment the doors were closed, you had a feeling of panic that increased in severity and symptoms until you reached a point that you thought you were going to die. Perhaps you have a friend with a pet snake and when you went over to their house they had it out and put it around your neck and you froze, couldn’t breathe and were powerless until they got it off of you. All of these are examples of anxiety disorders to one degree or another.

Anxiety, which include anxiety attacks, panic attacks, and all the symptoms they produce, is a condition we create. Anxiety continues to affect us when we don’t understand it or we don’t know how or don’t do what we must to stop it.

While anxiety is a natural emotion in each and every one of us and in normal responses it can be very beneficial. It can help us do things we must like prepare for a test or complete a task for a deadline job. Under normal circumstances anxiety causes you to get a little uncomfortable. It raises your stress a bit and then your confidence and self determination kick in and you move beyond it to accomplish what you must productively.

For others, it is not at all the same. A triggering event or circumstance can create any and many of the various emotional and physical symptoms of anxiety, causing complete loss of control and an overwhelming fear that results in the attack and eventually avoidance of ever again being in the same situation. For such people, anxiety begins to take control of their lives in a very negative way.

There is a long list of anxiety symptoms and you may suffer from one or a combination of several. Because each person’s physical and mental state is unique, anxiety affects everyone differently. Symptoms will vary from person to person and can occur frequently or only occasionally, and they may be intense or minor.

There are many ways to deal with anxiety disorder, but the first step is in actually accepting you have it. Once you do that, you can begin to confront it and start to lead a normal life without fear.

Tired of suffering? You can cure anxiety and panic attacks with natural remedies that do not involve harmful medications. Get started with my free report available at http://www.clickherelearnnow.com/anxiety.html

It may seem like a bit of a radical idea, but many are starting to look at ice baths as a treatment for certain types of anxiety or panic attacks. Looking at it on the surface, it would almost seem like some sort of torture, but after looking into it a little more, you can understand how this can be an effective treatment.

Have you ever watched sports on TV and then seen the locker room interviews where the athletes are all iced up? The other thing you sometimes see are athletes that will immediately take full ice baths after a game or a hard workout. Why is that?

One of the main reasons is that it ice is believed to cool the body down and help with the relaxation of tense muscles. In their situation, the body is hot from the exertion and the muscles have become tense from strain. Obviously the body heat is eating away at the liquids that would normally naturally cool them off. The ice bath offers almost instant relief and relaxes their muscles so they can recover from their physical activities.

While a panic attack is not an athletic event, it often shares some of the characteristics in that the victim will be begin sweating, become very flush and their muscles tense up and sometimes totally lock up. If this treatment works for athletes, why would it not work in the relief of a panic attack?

While this may not be a widely used approach to treating panic attacks and anxiety’s symptoms, it is proving itself to be effective for some. When doing research on the topic, results are a little difficult to find, but it is being reported anecdotally from people that have used the treatment with some success.

Each and every day, panic attacks are increasing. They are being taken more seriously and research is being conducted to not only find the causes, but the cures. The world presents emotional, physical, and mental challenges today like never before and we are all exposed to so much more in our daily lives. Being able to deal with the stress of life is proving to be more and more difficult for so many people. The result is an ever increasing number of people ending up with anxiety and panic disorders. As they become more prevalent, so does the search for treatments that work. While ice baths as a treatment for anxiety seems wild, it’s just one of numerous natural treatments for the symptoms of the condition.

Tired of suffering? You can cure anxiety and panic attacks with natural remedies that do not involve harmful medications. Get started with my free report available at http://www.clickherelearnnow.com/anxiety.html

What is the best treatment for acne? Well that is a pretty simple question but not a very easy question to answer. The reason why we say this is because what might be the best treatment for acne for one person may not work at all for the next person.

Many people who suffer from acne fail to realize that the human body has its own chemistry. Each individuals body is unique and therefore the physiology, although basically the same, does have certain chemical differences. Once person may have a more acidic based system where as another person my have more of an alkaline chemistry. Why do you think no two humans smell alike?

Because of this difference in basic body chemistry it would be almost impossible to say what is the best treatment for acne? However, if you look at the question in terms of basic human health and basic human toxicity levels it is our firm belief that the best treatment for acne would be an all natural treatment.

Think about it. Most of the treatments for acne that are out there right now were created by pharmaceutical companies using chemicals to treat acne. What is interesting to me is the fact that most of the time the chemicals are cheaper to produce than an all natural remedy and there for there is more of a profit margin available to the pharmaceutical companies when they use a cheaper to produce chemical.

What the pharmaceutical companies won’t tell you is what the negative consequences of using the chemicals might be. When is the last time any of you who suffer from acne took the time to research the Material Safety Data Sheet on the chemical that are found in your acne treatment?

Well I took the liberty of investigating the two most popular chemicals used in the production of acne today. Sorry to be the one to tell you this, but I do not think there is any way shape or form that these chemicals should ever be considered the best treatment for acne that is available.

Chemicals are caustic in nature and by simply reading the contents label of the acne treatment product you should be able to decipher whether or not it would be a good idea to use or not to use that particular acne treatment product.

Just take a look at this: One of the more common chemicals used in so called “acne treatment products” is Sodium pyrithione. But check out the following information that I found about its toxicity to humans:

Toxicity to humans, including carcinogenicity, reproductive and developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, and acute toxicity.

Or what about the most popular and most widely used acne treatment product; benzyl peroxide also spelled as benzoyl peroxide:

Benzoyl peroxide is highly flammable, explosive, toxic and a possible tumor promoter and may act as a mutagen, and should be handled with care.

Now granted, they take great pains to minimize this by mixing the chemicals but it still does not alleviate or remove the risks. So again I ask you; why would you put this on your face? Should these caustic chemicals really be considered as your best treatment for acne?

I don’t mean to scare you only inform you. The most dangerous person in the world today is an informed consumer. I want you to be dangerous but more importantly I want you to be healthy and acne free.

Get informed. Get the information and then when you have all the facts make your own informed decision as to what the best treatment for acne for you is. Remember doctors are trusted professionals who are there to advise you. Stop taking there word as gospel and question there motives and there recommendations. They are after all only human.

As I said, I still firmly believe that the best treatment for acne is an all natural treatment. During my research I did find a very effective all natural method that I myself have used. I am happy to report that I am now acne free. Considering that this all natural process and treatment works and the fact that it is all natural, you now know why I consider it to be the best treatment for acne available today.

Mike Murray is an author and sufferer of acne. Mike has spent countless hours researching the latest advances on acne treatment. If you want more information please feel free to visit:

http://www.ways-to-cure-acne.com/best-treatment-for-acne.html