I know, I know... as you guys alway tell me, I shouldn't be sorry for not being able to get to all your questions. Yet I really wish I could. But I guess I have to face reality. There are only so many hours in a day. And after working on articles for Muscle & Fitness, FLEX, and M&F Hers, as well as producing videos for M&F Raw!, I am left with less time than I'd like to help you all out.   When I first opened my blog to take your questions it was fairly easy answering a dozen or so questions each week. These days I sometimes get as many as 50 questions a week. I promise to get to all of them, but it may take me a little time to catch up. One thing that I am thinking of doing is starting a weekly live blog session to take your questions and answer them live. If you like this idea please leave a comment in the comments section of this blog. If I get enough "yays" to support this concept, then we'll get this new web function up ASAP.

For those of you who don't want to wait for me to get to your questions eventually in my blog, you have other options as well. I just started up my facebook account at full force. Check out my page at http://www.facebook.com/jimstoppani. Right now, I'm only getting a few questions each day on facebook. So if you sign up now, there's a better chance of getting your questions answered immediately. But don't hesitate, as of today November 17, I have about 750 friends signed up, but that number is increasing exponentially. As it grows I will be getting more questions on a daily basis and will become more difficult to get to everyone's questions immediately. In addition to having a direct link to me for your questions, my friends on facebook also get updates of what Raw! videos I am filming and immediate notification when they get posted on the M&F website. Plus I inform you of the latest studies that affect your training, nutrition, supplementation and health so that you're always on the cutting edge.

And yet another way to reach out to me with your questions is to follow me on twitter at http://twitter.com/JimStoppani. Currently, I only get a few questions each day on twitter. So take advantage of that. Plus, I update my twitter followers of new Raw! videos and new studies as well. So don't miss these opportunities to stay close to all the info I put out on a daily basis. You won't be sorry.

Alright, let's get to the real point of this blog - to help you with your questions and point you in the right direction to reach your goals.

Q: thanks for sharing your story about your back. Sorry to hear about it
but it is nice to know that someone can relate to what I am going
through right now. I love the insight of how you implemented a lot of
light-weight, high-rep training, with very little rest between sets and
lots of drop sets, supersets, trisets, giant sets, rest-pause and super
slow-rep training. Makes all the sense in the world, and I don't know
how I didn't think of that! My injury has been eating at me mentally
for the past two months, because despite missing this year's season for
football, I want to try to get ahead for next year's season, but it has
been extremely difficult. This was very inspirational and motivating! I
was told by the back specialist and my parents to take a lot of time
off and potentially never play football again, my passion (other than
training), but I refuse to give up despite all of their inputs. Once
again, I appreciate this and the other responses you have given me in
the recent past.

Regarding your solution above, how should I go about using the
rest-pauses while using a lighter weight? Did you find this effective?

Thanks once more!
DJ

A: Hey DJ! Yes, I found the rest-pause with light weight very effective. Simply take the set to near muscle failure, then rest 15 seconds and continue to muscle failure again. Keep doing this until you can do only 3 or 4 reps with that weight.

Q: What a story!  I like it when people beat the odds even when everybody
else think you won't make it...you made a long road to recovery and
came on top that's cool.

I also want to say that the power row for the lats is one of your best!
kinda hard but fun!
Implementing what you said about using heavier weights makes this one
worth while.I saw results real fast also using the one arm pullback
which is awesome on it's own!

I have a couple of questions I'd appreciate if you can answer:

1. I know a lot of guys are exaggerating with abs workouts time-wise
and rep-wise, what do you think is a fair amount of time to train the
abs and is it similar to any other muscle groups even though  they
obtain some different qualities, in the same way what about total
number of exercises to each part of the abs?  I know abs are a lot more
about diet and cardio(fat burning) more than the exercises themselves
but how important are they in comparison?

2. Regarding protein intake after workouts, let's say you workout for
little more than an hour on several muscle groups,does the first muscle
"suffers" because you worked on him first? I mean what if you worked
on,just for example so you'd understand what I mean; biceps,triceps,
chest and back does the first  two muscle groups don't build up as they
need to because they don't get protein right away?

Thanks again for the stories,articles and videos!

A: Hi Assaf -  Glad you're liking those back exercises! For abs I generally pick 3 exercises: 1 for upper abs, like crunches, 1 for lower abs, like hanging leg raises, and 1 for obliques, like dumbbell side bends. I like to train abs fast, so I usually do these as a tri set moving from one exercise to the next without any rest. I'll usually do 2-3 trisets. For the protein question, as lobg as you take a preworkout protein shake within 30 minutes of your workout, as well as a postworkout shake within 30 minutes after, none of your muscles will suffer and all will get adequate aminos for muscle growth.

Q: Hey Jim,

               Wow man thats a very interesting photo and story but I
do hope you stop hurting your back so much..Well I got the supplements
you suggested I get like the BCAA's, beta-alanine and whey protein and
I gotta say thank you so much cuz I can tell the difference when I'm
working out and all.The whole thing mixed together may have a funky
taste but hey its well worth it lol.I'm looking to see if I can order
the bands soon also.Well thank you for everything Jim.


A: Hey Angel - Glad to hear that supplement stack is working for you. It is a good one. And enjoy those bands!

Q: Dear Jim,

This article would have made you my biggest inspiration if it weren't
for the fact that you already are my biggest inspiration.  I thought I
was a champ when I did my leg workout last week with a migrane, but
this article is something amazing.  Keep up all of the hard work, it
really does help others like myself by doing so.  I had one quick
question if you don't mind.

I am currently bulking and things have been going pretty good.  I went
from 135 to 150 over the summer with little fat, thanks to all the M&F
tips.  My question concerns BCAA consumption.  I hear more is better
with BCAA.  I currently take in 1 - 2 servings of Xtend during my
workout.  Would I benefit any from popping in a few capsules or tabs of
ON BCAA with my meals or would it really do anything for muscle gains
since I'm already taking in 1.5g protein per pound body weight.  I hear
of people who just fill a gallon jug of watter and throw BCAA into it
and sip throughout the day.  Is this a good idea or just a waste of
money?

Thanks a lot for taking the time to read this.  It means a lot!
-Adam

A: Hi Adam - Thank you for the kind words, that means a lot. I suggest in addition to workouts you take 2 scoops of Xtend when you wake up and with your last meal of the day. It will definitely help you gain even more lean muscle.

Q: Greetings Dr. Jim
                                  
                               Hello, my name Josh and I have a quick
question for you Dr. I have reviewed your videos in detail from the
workouts to the ones on nutrition and I have read a lot of your
articles but my question for you is what supplements do you take? Now I
know most of the supplements you take, however its the brands that I am
curious about. I have watched the nutrition videos closely I can see
from them that you use Optimum Nutrition brand for your casein,  and
soy proteins I also know that you use Con-Cret from you video's plus
you use Primaforces Lean green and Beta Alanine but what I want to know
is what brands do you use for your BCAA, CLA, Forskolin, Carnitine,
Glutamine, leucine, Arginine and the many other supplements that you
take. I have looked  some of these up on Bodybuilding.com and
Prosource.net but I want to know  what you use. I use your advice for
my workouts and what supplements to take and when to take them and I
also use your advice for my nutrition so I think taking someone elses
advice on what brands to use would be pointless. I would rather hear
from you and this would help me greatly I know that you are a very busy
man but if you could help me I would appreciate it very much. Once
again if you could give in detail all the supplemnts you take and their
makers you would be very helpful.
                   KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK                            
Josh

A: Hey Josh - There are numerous brands that offer high quality supplements. For protein powders, I like Optimum and Dymatize. Mainly because of the taste and high quality protein they use. For BCAAs, my favorite is Scivations' Xtend, as it has added glutamine and citrulline malate. For carnitine, I like PrimaForce's Alcalean, as well as Met-Rx Carnitest. For CLA, any brand that uses Tonalin's CLA is a good one. For forskolin I usually go to Bulknutrition.com and buy their straight foskolin powder. For leucine, I get that in my Xtend BCAAs. However, if you want a good leucine, I recommend MuscleTech's Leucik. And for arginine I usually go with BSN's Nitrix and NO-Xplode. But that is not to say that other brand would not work just as well. These are what I find work for me. But bodybuilding is a about what works for each individual due to our unique biochemistry. So play around with different brands to find what works best for your body.

Q: hey jim,
appreaciate all the work you put in to M&F Raw! videos and your blog.
i had a question about NanoVapor, like Anabolic Halo can you mix in a
scoop of whey protein with nano or should whey be taken first and then
nano.
thanks for replying.
roger

A: Hi Roger - Take the Nano Vaopr about 30-45 minutes before your whey protein for best results.

Q: Hello Dr. Stoppani,

      My name is Tommy and I am constantly inspired by the information
you and all the other M&F guys give us!  I was recently watching the
Lab Rat serious and noticed that they were emphasizing the use of
exercise bands with your dumbbells works. I have been using bands with
dumbbells ever since and I even found a way to incorporate the exercise
bands while doing preacher curls! I was wondering if you think that
would be a good biceps blaster move?

Tommy

A: Hi Tommy - Yes, that does make a great exercise move, especially since the biceps don't full kick in until close to the halfway point of the exercise. For more on that read my article on using chains, titled Linked Mass, in the January 2010 issue of M&F, on newsstands now. Chains provide the same type of linear variable resistance as bands. That's a fancy way of saying that they get harder to lift the further you move them. This means with band preacher curls, the bands get harder to lift as your biceps really kick in. This means they can target the biceps better than free weight preacher curls.

Q: Hey doc

love the raw! vids! i had a couple questions for you.

1) when reading labels, how do you know if the carbs in the item are
fast or slow digesting? and when, for example, the label says it has 16
grams of fat per serving but only says it has 4 grams of sat fats and 0
grams of trans, does that automatically mean that the rest is poly and
monounsaturated fats? or arte there other fats as well?

2) i was wondering how when you said you altered your workout with very
slow reps and used all of those techniques and light weights, if you
solely stuck to slow reps for that entire month?

Thank you very much! once again, really appreciate what you do!

Kyle

A: Hey Kyle - To make sure a food is a slow-digesting carb it should list whole grains, or whole wheat, as the first ingredient. Also, there is a new stamp that is being placed on foods that provide an adequate amount of whole grains. On the fat question, yes, the remainder of the fats would be poly and monounsaturated fats. For the training, I usually start the first couple of reps with faster reps to build explosive power and then I slow it down.

Q: Hello Dr. Jim!

I am a 19 year old female in college and i weigh about 120lbs. I am in
good shape, but I would really like to start seeing some more
definition throughout my body. I have never taken any supplements
before. I asked my friend DJ, and told me to start taking some
supplements that would aid in my progress, and he gave me a decent list
of what he thought I should take, but I told him that I did not want to
get all big and bulky like he is. So, he referred me to you since I did
not believe him and said you were the best source of information when
it comes to this. He said he has asked you a lot of questions in the
recent past and has come up with nothing but great responses. If you
could please recommend the most efficient supplements for a female with
my goal, that would be great!!!

Thank you so much,
Ali P.

A: Hi Ali - I suggest you try CLA and fish oil. Take 2 grams of each two or three times a day with food. Also consider taking 500 mg of green tea extract three times a day between meals. Start with that  and then I can recommend others down the road as you progress.

Q: Jim,

Read your article in the supplement section where you recommend the
following:

20-beta-ecdysterone     300-800 mg
Rhodiola rosea 100-300 mg
Bacopa monnieri 100-300 mg

Do you know of a product out there that combines 2 or 3 of these
supplements.  And if not, do you recommend certain companies/brands.

Thanks

A: Hey David - Gaspari's Super Pump 250 contains both Rhodiola and Bacopa, as does MAN Swagger. Youcan c ombine one of those products with SciFit's Ecdysterone 300.

Q: Hey Jim,

 I got a big problem I'm having a hard time finding supplements and the
time to take them. here's my schedule because i'm in high school.

6:30-Leave the house
7:08-8:11-Class
8:18-9:08-Class
9:15-10:05-Weight Training
10:12-11:02-Class
11:02-11:30-Lunch
11:37-12:43-Class
12:50-1:40-Class

so you see i have a hard time fitting in supplements or do you any ways
i can.
Thank Jim "The Truth" Stoppani

A: Hey Jasaun - I'd like to do your question in my Diet 911 department in Muscle & Fitness Magazine. Go to jimstoppani.com and shoot me an email.

Q: hi jim, you don't use wrist straps when training back??? in raw video
#40? would you at least recommend it?

A: Hi Jack - Yes, I always recommend wrist straps. In fact, you can learn more about why I recommend using wrist straps by watching M&F Raw! # 10 - Benefits of Wrist Straps. However, I happen to have great grip strength and endurance, which helps with ground fighting. So I don't find that I need straps.

Q: Hi Dr Jim

I am a teen that is fifteen.  I am allowed to have one whey protein
shake per day. Any recomendations on around workouts, for example. It
would be great if they are low-carb too, since currently I am doing
Showtime.

Also I currently take fishoil, vitamins, some minerals, creatine, and
whey protein. (this is what I am allowed to have right now.) Is this ok
to reach my goals of getting as muscular and low fat as possible in 7
months. (after showtime) or in other words looking awesome!

Thanks for your time and you are a wonderful role model for all of us
man!

David

A: Hey David - Than you for the kind words. It's a true honor to be considered a role model. Thanks again! I think you have a good supplement plan there. Those will definitely help you along. As far as whey protein goes, I like Optimum's whey or Dymatize's Elite whey. Both are very low carb, mix easy and taste great. If you're limited to one shake per day, I would recommend you take it immediately after workouts, along with the creatine and some fast carbs.

Q: Quick question doctor:

What are drop sets, tri sets, giant sets, and so forth?
Thank you for your time.

Also my sis asked me to tell you that the m and f hers could use a plan
just like showtime, or if girls could do showtime as well?

With plenty of appreciation:
David

A: Hi David - First off, girls can definitely do the Showtime workout! In fact, if you notice in James Grages' video Lab Rat #7 - Showtime Training #1, there is a female doing it along with him. You can go to James' blog and ask him about it. As far as drop sets - watch M&F Raw! #44 - Drop Sets. Supersets are when you train 2 exercises back-to-back without any rest between exercises. Trisets are when you do 3 exercises back-to-back-to-back without any rest. Giant sets are when you do four or more exercises back-to-back-to-back-to-back without any rest.

Q: Hey dr last question

Is fiber counted as carbs?

Thanks again, David

A: Hey David - Yes, on nutrition labels fiber is counted  with the total carbs. So you can subtract the amount of fiber grams from the total carbs grams to figure out how many real grams of carbs you are eating.

Q: Dr. Stoppani!

I was wondering if it was possible to hit the long head of the triceps
without doing overhead presses?

Thanks man!
Steve

A: Hi Steve - All three triceps heads - long, medial, and lateral head work together whenever you extend your arm. However, it is difficult to optimally hit the long head without placing your arms over your head. You can get some extra long head involvement from lying triceps extensions, but not as much as when you do overhead extensions.

Q: hey dr..iam in between programs at the moment and was wanting to try
the red white and huge training program and just have a couple
questions about the diet part of it.

1-Like other mass gaining programs do u recomend a whey shake,furit or
fast digesting carbs as soon as i wake?

2-Since your gonna be hitting just one muscle per day would i be
comprimising my gains if i kept my postworkout carbs around 40g or
should i be getting in more?

thanks..btw i have felt your pain and yeah all you can do is train
around it

A: Hey Robbin - 1) Yes, you should also add a morning shake and a piece of fruit as soon as you wake to maximize muscle growth.

2) 40 grams of fast carbs will be fine after workouts.

Let me know ho wit goes!

 Q: Hello Dr. Stoppani,

Your story is very inspirational. I'm glad you shared it with the  M&F
family. I just wanted to drop by and say thank you for all the
information you give us. Your recommandation of Con Cret has
dramatically increased my performance.
There is no need for apologies; every one understands how hard you
work. Your lifestyle seems very hectic and we really appreciate what
you do.

Thanks again,
Nick Aguilar

A: Hi Nick - Thank you so much for your kind words. I am glad to hear that Con-Cret is working so well for you. Of course, I am not surprised, as I have seen the same dramatic results myself with Con-Cret and everyone I have recommended it to also see those results.

Q: Hey Jim,

 I got another question. Do you only take protein after lifting weights
or can you drink it by doing a bunch push-ups and dips to muscle
failure. Cause I do 10 sets of 5 and then keep going til muscle
failure. I try to do the suicide kings to tell you the truth i hate
running but i want to be determine so is there some kind of density
training to help work to it.

Thanks and keep up the good work Jim "The TRUTH" Stoppani

A: Hey Jasaun - You drink protein after any kind of exercise, such as pushups, or even after any sports. The best way to get better at running is to just run and slowly build up your endurance. You can try doing the Suicide Kings in reverse order, going from logest running to shortest. That way you do the furthest runs when you are fresh and the distance keeps getting shorter each time you go. Or try the typical interval runs like in the Showtime program.

Q: Hey Jim,

 I'm sorry for annoying you but I would to know if you would please put
your 4-week HIIT program on M&F Trainer

A: Hi Jasaun - It is supposed to be up on the M&F Trainer site soon, if it isn't already. If it hasn't been fixed go to www.jimstoppani.com and email me. I'll send you and electronic version of the program with the HIIT include. Same thing for everyone else that wants it.

Q: Hello Jim,
I have a question regarding your book and "training for maximal
strength" starting on page 141. I was planning to begin the "WHOLE-BODY
TRAINING SPLIT" on page 144.
- It gives a workout for Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so are the
unlisted days rest days, or could I implement some HIIT?
- For about how many weeks would you recommend sticking to this split?
Is it OK to train for strength for so long?
- About how long would it be proper to stick to the exercises that you
provided for in figure 8.1?
- Would it make sense if I rotated from this split to a split from
"training for muscle mass" and focus on muscle growth for a couple of
weeks, then jump back to this strength split?
- How often should I implement the Weider principles to these strength
moves?
I'm just pretty confused overall as to how to create a proper strength
program for myself?
Please help!
Lou M.

A: Hi  Lou - yes, the unlisted days are rest days, but that means rest days from lifting weights. You can definitely do HIIT on those days. I would only stick with that split and exercises for 4 weeks. Yes, it would make good sense to rotate this split after four weeks with a split from "training for muscle mass" and stick with one for another four weeks and then go back to this one. You can implement some Weider Principles like rest-pause, or drop sets on the last set of each exercise if you like, as often as you want. Hope this helps!

Q: Hey again Jim

I recently bought the "Stength Shoes" (the ones with the platform on
the toes) from Eastbay, online . Somebody told me they're bad for you.
Is this true? Or can they really help my vertical jump and speed if I
do the recommended plyo workouts it came with?

Thanks a lot
Jack

A; Hey Jack - There was actually a study done from Tulane Univeristy on the strength shoes and they showed them to be fairly effective and safe. Let me know how they work for you.

Q: Hey there Jim!

I just watched the video on your extended set training and was
wondering how to use this technique for other body parts?

Thanks alot!
Mikie

A: Hey Mikie - I will be doing other videos in the near future on extended set training for other muscle groups. Here's a great one for chest. Start with incline dumbbell flyes, after reaching failure immediately go into flat dumbbell flyes, the immediately into decline dumbbell flyes. After reaching failure on decline flyes go back to the inclines, but this time do incline dumbbell presses, then .move to flat dumbbell presses and finish with decline dumbbell presses. Rest 1-2 minutes and repeat one or two more times. Your pecs will be toast!

Q: In one of your previous M&F videos you talked about how pointing your
toes in or out during leg extensions can really hit different muscles
in your quads. When I added this to my workout I immediately noticed
results. But I have always had trouble gaining mass in my calfs and I
was wondering if you think that same concept could be used during calf
raises without causing injury? I wanted to get your opinion on it
before I tried it because I have a bad knee and don't want to risk it
flaring up again.

A: HI Sean - I actually have an M&F Raw! video on doing this with calf raises. Watch M&F Raw! #14 - Calf Raises for how to turn your feet to maximize calf growth.