Friday, February 7, 2025

Training for Definition - Alan Stephan

 



It has always been my opinion that the term "definition" is used rather loosely. Fellows use "definition" like they use the words "holy mackerel," frequently with little idea of what they mean. 

I get a real kick out of listening to a couple of young kids with less than a month of training under their belts tell one another how they are going to train for definition and then bulk and then definition and so on, indulging in make believe advanced training before have laid even the basics of a good physique. 

Even advanced weight trainers sometimes have the wrong idea of what "muscular definement" is, how they can get it, if they can get it and if not, why not. Make no mistake about it, training for the maximum in musculature is a highly SPECIALIZED phase of bodybuilding and is not for the beginner. 

Right now the sports columns are full of the task of confronting Ray Robinson in his efforts to train down to a welterweight. He doesn't eat anything from a pig or nothing which grows underground. He has five hours of roadwork and calisthenics, Turkish baths, the minimum of liquid intake and other refined forms of torture. 

Still, he has trouble. But in case you miss the important point of my "quote," I would emphasize that Robinson is bound to lose his excess and get weaker. The difference betwixt Ray and a bodybuilder training for defined muscles is that the bodybuilder REMAINS STRONG while Robinson, if he continues to "make weight" is bound to injure his health.

Definition doesn't mean starvation. It does not mean grueling road work. It doesn't even mean loss of bodyweight. It does mean increased and improved muscle tone. It does mean improved health and it certainly contains within it the seeds of a greater strength and a more proportionate physique. 

To use the same methods for definition that one would use in reducing is to court failure and possible ill health. It is my intention to deal with excess weight reduction in another article, but I would point out that countless hundreds of bodybuilders think that training for definition and reducing excess flesh are synonymous. That's a $64.00 word for "same thing." 

There are three factors which contribute to a successful definition inducement routine -- DIET, a schedule of correct exercise  and MENTAL contraction exercises. These are the components of a PRODUCTIVE system of chiseled, etched muscles and all efforts outside of these are bound to let you down. 

First I will discuss the physical qualities which produce definition and then I will tell you how it may be obtained. I know there are some who will disagree with me, but I am firm in stating that there are some people who will never get muscular definement no matter how much they try. Skin texture, glandular function, and the layer of subcutaneous fat all contribute to muscular impressiveness. Thickness of skin is a contributing factor, with the fair Anglo Saxon type possessing thin skin in the majority of cases. 

Some have an almost tissue paper like quality and for them definition training is an easy task. Other unfortunates with thick skins are at a decided disadvantage and no matter how hard they train, the individual muscles are always obscured with a smoothness that no amount of diet of loss of actual bodyweight will cast off. Particularly is this true of swimmers. Nature has built up a protective layer of fat under the skin as a guard against cold water temperatures in which the body remains immersed for some considerable period. The heavy-boned, large-jointed, beefy type of athlete -- I am thinking of wrestlers and lifters -- tho' he will never look like Floyd Page or Reg Park has compensation for his lack of definition, POWER. 

Now let's talk about what you must DO to get that muscular definement. First your diet. 

Everyone carries a certain amount of excess fat and this usually accumulates on the portions of your anatomy which are neglected insofar as your weight workouts are concerned. I have noticed that as soon as an Olympic lifter discontinues training or competition, he starts to gather extra flesh around the sides of the pectorals and right under the armpits where the serratus magnus muscles are situated. 

Those who indulge in a great deal of abdominal exercise have to work three or four times as hard after a layoff, for they usually manage to build up tiny "bay window." Therefore, you are going to have to work a great deal more on those parts of your body which are more of less "virgin ground." So before you start your schedule of exercises, attention to what you eat is important. 

You DON'T have to starve yourself. You an eat what you like within reason. NO starches, no fats, no soups or gravies and not too much sugar. Don't eat potatoes, rice, bananas, cauliflower or any other starchy foods. DO eat lots of fresh fruits, fruit juices, fresh salads and as little COOKED vegetables as possible. Plenty of lean, rare beef, with lots of salad greens and fresh vegetables, raw, if you can eat them that way. Diet should be with the accent on PROTEIN intake. Eggs and cottage cheese and beans are good. Seedless raisins are grand for a definition diet.    

Next, the exercises. A definition schedule should be one in which the movements which affect the large overall groups are mainly of the endurance type -- that is, the number of repetitions are greater than is normally the case, so that excess energy stored in the muscle and excess fat stored AROUND them is burned up as rapidly as possible. The other exercises should be built around the abdominal area and the region of the upper chest and shoulders. It is generally conceded that high reps build definition just as lower reps and heavier poundages build power and bulk. Therefore, your repetitions should exceed those which you ordinarily use in your workouts. 

Now for one of the most important items in your definition program -- Mental Contraction Exercises. Briefly, the movements are those previously known as "muscle control" exercises. 

Suppose you are concentrating on developing the biceps or triceps, then immediately you have finished your workout, stand in front of the mirror and tense those muscles, endeavoring to contract them physically while you concentrate on them MENTALLY -- never ceasing to flex them in an all out effort to gain even more concentration. 

Put every effort into each and every repetition. When curling a dumbbell, take the weight as high as you can and then hold it in the finish position concentrating in your mind on the function of the muscle, keeping the muscles tensed. 

The schedule I use when I am training for a competition is one which is designed to retain and then increase the basic power while, at the same time, heightening the muscles and burning off excess fat. I have had considerable success with it not because of what I already had in the way of strength and development, but because I was prepared to work harder than ever before. Altho my skin wasn't too thick, yet I had quite a smooth appearance and so really had to go at it to bring out the individual muscles. 

I am sure that by following my system for increasing definition, you will have great success and be all the better for it because of increased bodily strength, greater stamina and physical proportion. 




The first exercise is the HIGH REPETITION SNATCH. This movement involves practically all the muscles of the body and is a wonderful muscle definer because of the extreme range of contraction and extension of the muscles. In each set you must make AT LEAST 20 repetitions and you must do FOUR sets. 

Always start off with a poundage that you can comfortably squeeze out 20 reps for 4 sets and work up to 25 reps for 4 sets. If you can make in excess of 20 reps easily, then the weight is too light. Stand in front of the bar and take a very wide grip. Keep your back flat and as you start the snatch, pull up with every bit of power in your arms, legs and back. Take the weight overhead in one movement and pull it as high as it can go. Pull the weight straight along the body and either split or squat to get it to arms' length overhead, depending on what style you use. 

I am assuming that you already know how to snatch because, as previously stated, training for definition is an advanced man's schedule. 

Use a revolving barbell if one is available, if not slacken the collars slightly away from the discs so that the discs have free play in revolving around the bar. Thus, an ordinary training bar is given a little life. When the bar is overhead, recover to upright position and then lower the bar to the floor and repeat as fast as you can tear the repetitions off. 



The second exercise to gain definition is performing 10 FAST sets of dips. Involving mainly the triceps, anterior and lateral deltoids and pectorals, dipping between parallel bars is excellent for bringing out the height and contour of the muscles of the upper body and shoulder girdle. 

With each set make as many repetitions as possible with a bare half a minute's rest between each set. Start the exercise in the position shown above, dropping down as far as you can manage between the bars and pushing up as high as you can. 

Don't forget, make the reps FAST. Before I started this exercise the backs of my triceps were rather flat and didn't have any cross ridges but after a few hard workouts of dipping, they were more pronounced than I had ever anticipated. 

When a high number of reps becomes fairly easy, you can increase the resistance by tying weights around the waist. 




The third exercise is known as the clean and press and it is as the first movement, one that affects the muscles of the entire body. Clean the weight to the shoulders, and without any movement of the legs or feet and without any heave and bend of the body, press the weight overhead, lower to the shoulders, then to the floor and repeat the clean and press. 

Use a weight which will allow you to get 20 reps and make EVERY rep FAST. 

The entire back, shoulder girdle, thighs and arms are involved in this exercise and the complete range of extension and contraction over which the muscles move make it a very desirable definition inducer to include in your schedule. It builds up pressing power and coordination and maintains bulk while producing muscular refinement. 

Use 4 sets of 20 reps with each set. When you can use more than 20 reps with a given weight, increase the weight. 



The fourth exercise in this series of definition builders is what I call the Alternate Body Swing. I was taught this exercise by one of my former training partners, Tony Pytko, a fellow with an extraordinary build and terrific power in this type of exercise. I have seen him use two 60-pound dumbbells with ease and if you think this is easy, try it some time. Tony used the movement not only as an upper back builder, but also a lower abdominal exercise and he really had a torso that proved the exercise worked. 

Stand as I am in the photo above, with one arm directly up and the other arm down, keeping the legs straight and well apart. From this position reverse the position of the dumbbells with a swing of the body. Keep the arms straight all the time and don't bend them. You will notice in the photo that I have the left arm down and the right arm up. When I swing the body and reverse the position of the arms, I will have the left arm up and the right arm down. I have found this to be the best exercise for waist and upper back development and use a weight which will enable me to perform 20 swings. Keep the arms and back in a perpendicular position between swings and allow the twisting to take place at the waist only. 


The fifth and final exercise is the Rapid Bouncing Squat. 

Take a weight which you can handle for 30 reps. With no pause between reps, bounce up and down for the entire number of repetitions, rising on the toes and contracting the thighs as you reach upright position. When you have performed a single set, take a rest until you have recovered your breath, and then perform another set of reps. 

You will build considerable definition at the extreme lower back, the entire thighs and gluteus maximus and your chest size and intercostal muscles will respond favorably and your overall development gain. 

I am sure that if you follow these exercises, putting at least two into every routine, you will, as I did, see an increase in muscular tone, increased endurance and definition and a corresponding improvement in your entire physical makeup. 


Enjoy Your Lifting!


 


 








































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