Guide to Summertime Muscles: Get Ripped, Forget the Myths
With summer just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to relax and soak up some sun. Beach outings, barbecues, and pool parties are on the agenda, and for dedicated weightlifters, it’s the season to showcase that rock-solid physique they’ve been working on all year. No one wants to be caught with a soft, flabby body, so over the coming months, many will be entering “get-shredded” mode.
How do they typically approach this?
By reducing the weight and increasing the reps.
This method has long been accepted as the go-to strategy for “cutting down.” Most gym trainers will tell you that “heavy weights bulk up muscles, while lighter weights define them.”
But here’s the truth about the “light weight and high reps” approach to achieving a defined and ripped body:
It is completely, utterly, and entirely WRONG.
There’s no basis for this training method, and those who promote it have misled many lifters, causing them to waste time and hinder their progress.
Let’s clarify this once and for all: you CANNOT target fat loss in specific areas. It’s impossible to reduce fat in just one part of your body. Doing bench presses with light weights and high reps won’t magically remove fat from your chest or make it more defined.
Whenever you lift a barbell, dumbbell, or use cables, your aim should be to maximize muscle growth. There are no secret exercises that will “define” your muscles or make them more “ripped.”
Weight training is about building muscle mass, plain and simple.
So, how do you actually achieve muscle definition?
The only way to define your muscles is by lowering your body fat percentage to make them more visible. This can be accomplished in two main ways:
1. Adjust your diet.
Reduce your total caloric intake to about 15 times your body weight and eat smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day. This keeps your metabolism high and your body in a constant fat-burning state. Avoid saturated fats and simple sugars, opting for lean proteins and low-glycemic carbohydrates instead. It’s also crucial to stay well-hydrated, aiming for about 0.6 ounces of water per pound of body weight.
2. Engage in effective cardio workouts.
Forget the old method of moderate-intensity cardio for 30-45 minutes. To maximize fat burning and minimize muscle loss, focus on shorter, high-intensity cardio sessions. These workouts will boost your resting metabolism and help you burn more fat even when you’re not exercising. Aim for 3-5 high-intensity cardio sessions per week, ensuring they are at least 8 hours apart from your weight training.
That’s all there is to it. Discard the myth of “light weight and high reps.” This approach will only lead to muscle and strength loss without helping you burn fat or define your muscles.
To sculpt those impressive muscles for summer, follow these steps:
- Train with heavy weights and low reps to build maximum muscle mass.
- Adjust your diet and include cardio workouts to reduce body fat and reveal harder, more defined muscles.
That’s the bottom line.
See you at the beach!