You'll want to read this!

[Ronnie Rowland]

There's a lot of theories on how to make maximum muscle gains for competitive bodybuilders while using anabolic steroids and pro-hormones. You do not need steroid cycles that are so complicated that you would need a degree in bio-chemistry to figure them out. It's harder to climb your way to the top of the mountain in one shot. Its best to slingshot your way up the competitive ladder in increments! Even if you are all-natural this is still the best way to make maximal gains while minimizing the risk of over-training and hitting barriers. I want to share with everyone what I have learned in 33 years of experience as a personal trainer. I have seen a lot in my days!

I see a lot of the same old questions being asked and I want to hand out some sound advise for those wanting to know what I have found to work best. It's really quite simple. KEEP ANABOLIC STEROID CYCLES/PRO-HORMONE CYCLES 8 WEEKS!


Slingshot Functional Training Overview and Cliff Notes

Slingshot Functional Training (SFT) is defined as bodybuilding using Straight Sets (stopping 1 rep shy of all out muscle failure in the 8-15 rep range) with free weights, machines, cables, or body weight. This form of Functional Training involves getting a maximum muscle pump while using heavy weights (the term “heavy” is relative) and great form. It builds an extremely high degree of muscle tone. This form of training requires proper periodization in order to allow maximum recovering and to prevent the body from adapting to high volume.

SFT is made up of two training phases: an 8-week reload and a 1-2 week deload. The reload is a high-volume training phase and the deload is a low-volume training phase. You continuously alternate between an 8-week reload and a 1-2 week deload. After 8 weeks of reloading, your body will need 1-2 weeks of deloading to prevent overtraining of the joints, connective tissues, and the central nervous system. After 8 weeks of reloading your body will have adapted to high-volume leaving you no where else to go expect to beyond failure training methods that cause over-training and injury (e.g., forced reps and heavy negatives) A deload consist of performing about half as many sets while using the same intensity, weight loads, and rep-ranges. It allows for catch-up growth to occur that was stimulated toward the end of the reload. After the 1-2 week low-volume training phase is incorporated, your body fully recovers and allows maximum progress to continue.

Slingshot training works by reloading with more volume while your on an 8 week anabolic steroid cycle or 8 week pro-hormone cycle, etc. Anabolics have been shown to work best for approximately 8 weeks. After that point, additional muscle gains slow dramatically and you would need to use higher amounts drugs or supplements to advance further. The problem with that approach is additional unwanted side effects. So in order to keep making maximum progress you come off a heavy cycle by lowering the amount of anabolics used or bridge with a small dose of anabolics for 1-2 weeks and reduce training volume. This 1-2 week period of reducing anabolics encourages receptor sites to become more sensitive to anabolics so that when you return to another (steroid cycle/8 week reload) you'll make better gains. To recap: You use more training volume and use higher dosages of anabolic supplements during your 8 week anabolic steroid cycles so you can get the most out of each cycle. This is your reload ! After the reload you begin deloading for 1 week by using less training volume and less anabolics, so you can return to another 8 week anabolic cycle/reload 1 week later and make better progress. The cycle continues (reload/deload/reload/deload/reload/deload, etc). If you decide to use steroids for longer than an 8 week cycle you'll still need to reduce your training volume in half for 1-2 weeks after 8 weeks of high volume to prevent injury, totoal burnout and hitting a barrier! a)

It’s up to you as an individual to find out how many sets work best for your body

1. The first type of SFT is performing around 14 to 20 Functional Sets weekly per major body part. They are straight sets taken 1-2 reps shy of muscle failure in the 8-15 rep range.
2. The second type of SFT is using single-drop sets, performing around 7 to 10 single-drop sets weekly per major body part. Single-drop sets is a technique in which you perform an exercise using straight sets until 1 rep shy of muscle failure in the 8-15 rep range (Functional Set), then immediately reduce the weight load by approximately 10-30% for an additional Functional Set to be performed 10-15 seconds later.


Important Note: During 8 week reloads/8 week cycles, you must be prepared to push training and protein intake to the limit. As you progress, anabolic dosages and calories must be increased in order to make continued gains!) Most people fail to max out their genetics because they use momentum to lift the weight. When momentum is used the ancillary muscle can do more of the actual work than the targeted muscle group. It's an ego thing and has no part in bodybuilding. Maximum muscle growth will take place without a large increase in body weight, with "Slingshot Functional Training". Old school
bulking up is unnecessary and very unhealthy. Old school bulking up causes heart problems that are often blamed on steroid use !

When supraphysiological amounts of anabolics steroids such as testosterone enanthate or certain prohormones are introduced into the body, maximum receptor site stimualtion occurs during the first 3-8 weeks. After having been on test for around 8 weeks your libido will begin to level out as will your muscle growth as these receptor sites adjust to the exogenous testosterone . It's during this 3-8 week period of enhanced libido that maximum muscle growth occurs! Some of you will make the majority of your gains during weeks 3-6 while reloading others will gain more during week 5-8. Gains are finalized during the deload (week 9). I do believe in set time frames in regards to reducing training volume and anabolic dosages. A 1-2week deload following an 8-week reload is very important because it makes you stronger and packs on some additional muscle due to a rebound effect. Long acting esters will still present during a deload. In addition, the reduction in protein actually helps the body store a little more protein-hence more muscle mass!

I strongly believe that changing your exercises constantly is a huge mistake. Doing so will not allow for SPECIFIC ADAPTATIONS to occur to their fullest. If you are changing exercises every time you train you will have no history of progress. Results can only be measured against your baseline exercises that give you the most bang for your buck. For example: squats for the thighs! Alternating leg presses with squats every other week would not be as beneficial as sticking with squats for most of your leg training sessions unless squatting every week caused joint pain. By using the same key exercises most of the time (during reloads) your results will be better. It's during the deloads you should consider changing exercises every workout.


A reload will consist of training each body part 1 to 3 times per week. You may choose to switch things up. For example, After 2-3 months of training a muscle once a week you could benefit by switching over to training each muscle group twice a week during the next 8 week reload. It's not manadory, but a good way to help prevent boredom/break plateaus!

When training a muscle twice a week it's best to do one heavy training day (lower reps) during your first weekly workout and a lighter training day (higher reps) during second weekly workout. However, it's not mandatory. It’s also best to use different exercises on light days but not mandatory. Only when using the Slingshot Super Blast is being utilized should you stick with the same exercises for both heavy and light days (the way some trained in the Arnold era)!

Plateauing : A plateau effect will occur within 8 weeks with most steroids/anabolic supplement cycles. This is the perfect time to deload and decrease anabolics. Strength gains often occur during a deload due to a rebound effect of stopping anabolics and by putting less demand on the nervous system/joints/tendons by training with only half the volume. The deload primes the body for future gains and allows you to get stronger/bigger during the next reload/anabolic cycle. Cycling in this manner increasing the effectiveness of every 8 week anabolic steroid or pro hormone cycle. There's no value in going past 8 weeks of using anabolics unless you are cutting and getting ready for a show. Once an 8 week cycle is completed you would have to escalate anabolic dosages much higher to get additional results-hence more side effects would occur and over-training would manifest itself.

Work Sets:There's never a need in exceeding more than around a total of 20 intense Functional Sets for any body part each week or around 10 single drop sets taken 1 rep shy of failure. After that kind of volume is completed the muscles stop firing. Doing upwards of 30 intense sets while training to failure or beyond failure will often result in injury and total burnout! All to often I see people thinking they need to do 30 work sets per muscle group. Now I want to drive this point home-If you cannot break down your muscles to the max with 14-20 intense Functional Sets (straight sets taken 1 rep shy of muscle failure) total for the week (warm up sets not included) whether you train them once, twice, or three times a week; you have a serious training problem! Likewise, if you can't break your major muscle groups down performing 7-10 single-drop sets you have a problem!

The Functional Diet:

During a reloads and deloads you will need to keep protein at around 40% of your daily total caloric intake. Carbs will make up 30-40% and fats will make up 20-30%.
In regard to the best diet plan for your body type, you must figure out whether you do better on higher carbs or higher fats. Protein always remains high! If you do better on carbs, then keep the fats lower. On the other hand, if you do better on fats, then keep the carbs lower.

1. Consume only carbs and protein during the first half of the day.
2. Consume some fats with your protein and carbs around 3-4 pm.
3. Avoid mixing any substantial amounts of carbs and fats in the same meal to decrease insulin spikes.The only exception to this rule is around 3-4 pm to avoid energy crashes.
4. Cut off carbs during the evening and consume protein, fats, and non-starchy carbs.
5. Have one cheat meal per week.

Slingshot your way to the top!

The Slingshot Functional Training By Ronnie Rowland.”

WARNING: READ FIRST

No liability is assumed by the author for information contained within. Anabolic steroids are illegal in many countries and are not condoned by the author. All readers, are advises that any form of supplements or drugs described may be illegal, prohibited, or used only with a doctors prescription. The author does not participate, advocate, or encourage in any illegal activities. Readers must consult with appropriate legal and medical authorities if not certain about what has been stated in this article. COPYRIGHTED BY Ronnie Rowland....

Introduction:

When many weight lifters hit a plateau, what do they do? They begin to push even harder by adding more intensity to their routine. This kind of thinking is wrong because a muscle has to be exposed to something it is not used to doing without over-training the nervous system and joints. Adding intensity, using "extremely intense" beyond failure training techniques, is widely known for producing frustrated bodybuilders! It's no secret that progressively adding more weight to every lift while using great form is a sure-fire way to increase total lean body mass, given the diet, training volume, and exercise selection is spot on. Almost everyone starts out using low volume. They grow at a phenomenal rate until the body adapts and quits responding. Because some feel the gains were so great using the lower volume approach, they begin to try and lift heavier weights while using the same program for extended periods of time. They put continued pressure on themselves to try to beat personal records each training session in hopes it will somehow further their muscle mass. Unfortunately, they end up with nothing more than chronic injuries and stagnation as a result.

The intelligent trainer's switch-over to using more volume, while the less fortunate keep thinking less is always more! The next mistake comes into play by the trainees who have switched over to using the higher volume approach. Many become so overwhelmed with their newly found muscle mass after having increased the volume that they begin to reason with themselves thinking more weight or volume must always be done from that point on. They keep increasing work sets/and or workout intensity and eventually develop over-use injuries and an over-trained nervous system, instead of keeping their volume where it needs to be and focusing on contracting and squeezing the muscles during Functional Sets (work sets). Sometimes their training will take the form of more sets-reps, exercises, intensity, training sessions, etc. Some are in constant search for the latest routines that will shock their muscles even further. However, all this does is hold them back even more because no one can overcome diminishing returns or keep using the same routine forever and expect to maximum gains. Slingshot Training helps you overcome both of these dilemmas by setting up guide lines on how many sets to perform per body part and employing both a low volume training phase (deload) and high volume training phase (reload) during the appropriate time frames!

** As someone who lifts weights, you will be going up against giants. In biblical times David used a "slingshot" to destroy his largest opponent of all, Goliath. Slingshot Training will dramatically change your physique.* *

Every time I browse the internet it’s the same old question being asked over and over again; “What’s the best training routine to gain lean muscle mass and strength?” Many of you are jumping from program to program and it’s not really making any noticeable differences in your strength or appearance. Some of you were making gains but have now reached a plateau. Others believe that a properly structured routine won’t really make much difference in comparison to other training programs and you tend to be either an obsessive-compulsive high volume trainees (always going for a pump) or an obsessive-compulsive low volume trainees (always trying to gain more strength). If you fall into any of these categories, I want to share with you what I have found optimal for making forward progress as a weight lifter.

Let me be clear, various training techniques have nothing to do with genetic capabilities. There is not one single variable that is the total downfall of not being able to gain more muscle size. Forced reps, rest pause, heavy negatives, giant sets,etc., will all depict some form of muscular hypertrophy. However, a major problem (other than these techniques being less effective at stimulating muscular size-strength and putting more strain on the joints, tendons, and CNS) is that they take in a much selected group of principles and apply them. The theory of combining all different training techniques to increase muscle hypertrophy is short-sighting the way the human body responds. If genetics dictated the needs for 20 different training style, then some could use rest-pause or forced reps and get bigger/stronger than what they could obtain with straight sets, and we know this is not the case! Time has proven that the genetically superior will respond better to all forms of training methods when compared to the genetically inferior. Simply changing the way you create damage by employing various beyond failure training methods does not alter the fact that over-training of the CNS and joints/tendons will out pace muscular damage! So, it all boils down to finding that training methods that’s not only the most effective for all genetic types, but the safest. It just so happens that straight sets and single-drop sets are those methods. In final, straight sets is the superior training style that out does all the rest when periodized properly. Single-drop sets come in second place! Alternating back and forth between these two forms of training is optimal for making the most progress possible. You can use all the fancy beyond failure training methods such as forced reps for hours on end and never create a true progressive overload because limitless adaptation equals a heavier workload in conjunction with additional volume to breakdown down more muscle tissue, while never going past the point of diminishing returns.



* * Just because something has been shown to work doesn't mean it’s the best way**

A lot of talented people fail because they don't have a strong work ethic or they get poor information and stick too it. It's very important to get the right information. Do some investigating. Our projection of things is how all of us make our decisions. And all too often, people tend to believe something just because they have heard others say it over and over again. You must resist letting others condition or brainwash you into believing something that is not altogether true. Be skeptical when someone is trying to sell you something. It pays to be defensive because there is always something being promoted as "new and amazing" that turns out to be pure garbage. I'm not telling you that Slingshot Training is the only one way to success, or that all other training systems are wrong. I'm all about teaching others what I have found to be optimal. I get tired of all the silly debates on the internet that means absolutely nothing. For every article debunking a certain method, 25 can be found supporting it. Studies are fine, and theories are great, but reality hits hard and the paper studies that are put out become worthless when the truth is finally revealed. When someone gives the default answer "Well there's not an effective off-season program that will work for everyone in terms of maxing out their genetics potential," I realize they are basically admitting they do not understand how the human body responds to outside stimuli. The big picture is learning what it takes to create an effective progressive over-load (lift more weight) without getting injured and then taking those strength gains and proceeding forward to create a true progressive over-load (performing more sets with heavier weight loads) without developing over-use injuries, over-training, and adaptation. Add the proper nutrition into the mix and that’s how you get results. I refer to this as using a slingshot approach (hurling intensity to the muscles). Link showing pro and cons of very low volume and high volume training- Bring Back Hard Work and Volume Training

Straight sets and single-drop sets are the only two methods needed to safely max out your full-genetic potential as a bodybuilder!

If you gain strength but fail to gain some muscle size over time, it’s because you are not eating enough calories. If you gain strength by way of decreasing training volume (deload) but neglect to increase training volume (reload) during a period of using more calories to put on weight, you will gain more body fat and less muscle size. Combining more volume with extra calories and increased strength gains is what causes maximum growth. Then you must periodize these 3 factors so progress and recuperation can be made year round.

A progressive over-load is brought forth when you can lift more weight using the same form, taking the same rest periods between sets, and increasing Functional Sets or work sets. After each subsequent set that follows the first work set, the type-1 fibers tire out earlier in the set and the type 2 fibers that are most responsible for giving you muscle size-strength take over the load for longer periods of time. By the time you have done only 3 intense Straight Sets, the endurance fibers are shutting down much earlier in the set and it's mostly the type-2 fibers lifting the weight. This is why volume training works well for pro-bodybuilders. The type-2 fibers must be made to adapt to lift more weight for longer periods of time in order to grow larger. In order to accomplish this feat, you must handle heavier weights over time while using perfect form to isolating the muscles to their fullest. By training each body part only once a week as a "baseline," you will produce the most size gains with the least amount of effort, all while sparing the joints and central nervous system. Once the body adapts to once a week body part training you'll want to periodically hit each muscle group twice or three times a week in order to keep progressing forward at the fastest rate humanly possible! Always training each muscle group once a week or always training a muscle group twice or three times a week stops being the most productive way to train for the more advanced bodybuilder. Once the muscles have fully adapted to the training frequency it should be changed on occasion if you are to continue to force the body to adapt. When done correctly this leads to further growth without having to increase training volume or work sets. It takes approximately 8 weeks for full-adaptation to occur when using anabolics. [/U]Full-adaptation is what you want so go with 8 weeks! [B]A longer reload gives the body more time to adjust and you will hold onto the muscle better than short cycles!

IMPORTANT NOTE: My book about Slingshot Functional Training and the Functional Diet is now available on Amazon- http://www.amazon.com/Functional-Tra...ng+with+a+fork

You can email me directly at [email protected]