My Experience training w/ Frank Zane in CA....

[punch]

Went to see FZ at a weight of 198lb 12-15% bf

3 mo later. 180lb 7-8% bf my guess.( these are real rough )

My lifts have stayed the same, endurance has gone up. I did lose size, how could you not with that weight loss.

Literally twice as vascular as before.

Im still doing incline presses w/ 225 for 15 reps, Squats 315 15 reps, 225 for 25. ETC

Overall, I cant believe I am lifting close to what I was w/ 18lbs of wieght loss. My goal now is to creep back up to 190, staying as lean as possible. I am currently supplementing w/ Whey protein, some V12( this is a useless product, just using what I have left)

Have never done juice in my life, cant say that i plan to. I will be submitting pics soon.

One interesting side note...I have been using FZ's method of ab work called ab aerobics. You essentially set a treadmill up on a very fast walk. Get on for 2 min. Then, lay on a bench ( prefer a decline bench to raise difficulty ) and perform 25 reps of leg raises. Then lay on floor, place your feet on an elevated surface. Perform a crunch only raising your shoulders off the floor. At the same time press down on the heels of your feet and raise your pelvis up. This should be done in one fluid movement of 25 reps. Lastly go to pulldown machine and perform 25 reps of rope crunches in the front and side to side. Start the process again on the treadmill. Do this for 3 sets of the circuit at least 3 days a week.

Result...my abs are more pronounced and harder than ever in my entire life.

 

[BOOEY]

That's awesome! I couldn't imagine training with one of the only men to beat Arnold

 

[wutangnomo]

You know what I find really funny is that so many guys on this site claim to lift some big ass weight, yet at my gym (it's one of the best and most popular in my area) the BIGGEST weights I have seen pushed around by the BIGGEST guys would be considered light weight for this board's standards. The gym I train at you got some hardcore trainers. The most impressive thing I saw was a guy benching 4 plates per side for 4-5 reps and deadlifted 5 plates + 15lbs per side for a single, while another big guy (at least 250lbs built like a tank around 5'10) benched 4 plates a side for a single rep. These guys at my gym aren't little peas, so how is it that quite a few guys on this site with half the "monstrosity" are pushing way more weight. Makes you wonder.

I am not surprised that Frank Zane has always used that amount of weight, which many would consider pansy poundages. The saying "it's about the quality, not quantity" is so damn true, especially when it comes to bodybuilding.

Good post Punch!

 

[Texas Ranger]

GREAT post, Punch! I know it had to be a WONDERFUL experience training & learning from one of the all time greats.

 

[punch]

A word about Frank Zanes journals.....He literally had a wall of books which contained every single workout, what it felt like, his mood for the day, every meal, his meditation time and on and on....this goes back to the 70's. I was like a little kid in school. The journals were awe inspiring, talked about who he trained with, Arnold, Serge, Franco!!!!

That is dedication to the extreme.

One funny story is when we did legs....we were on the leg extension machine and Frank cranked out 10 VERY slow reps with a decent poundage. He would lift in a controlled manner, never locking out, but lowereing the weight for a 5-8 second count...very intense. He actually grunted and strained on the 9th and 10th rep.. I got so freakin pumped watching him I couldnt believe it.. Now it was my turn.

I sit in the machine. He then looks at me and says, " Did you see those reps? That was a perfect set. Im not sure you have what it takes to pull that off! But being that your a big guy, I'll up the weight 20lbs" . So, at this point Im ready to bust out of my skin. I start the extensions which was at a weight I could normally do 10 reps with....however I hadnt performed them his way...So I crank out 8 reps and my quads are on fire, I get 9 reps, then I let out a growl and barely got the tenth. Frank gets in my face and says 4 more.. Come on, beat me, lets go, do it NOW he says. I tap into whatever reserve I had left and on my 14th rep I failed.

My legs were cramping and the lactic acid build up was so intense I was hopping around like an idiot.

He told me that what I just did is what seperates a champion from a recreational BB'er. He said you may not win an Olympia or ever go pro, but if you put your heart and soul into every lift like you just did, with that much focus you WILL achieve your goals. Most inspiring workout I ever had!

Peace.

 

[Texas Ranger]

A word about Frank Zanes journals.....He literally had a wall of books which contained every single workout, what it felt like, his mood for the day, every meal, his meditation time and on and on....this goes back to the 70's. I was like a little kid in school. The journals were awe inspiring, talked about who he trained with, Arnold, Serge, Franco!!!!

That is dedication to the extreme.

One funny story is when we did legs....we were on the leg extension machine and Frank cranked out 10 VERY slow reps with a decent poundage. He would lift in a controlled manner, never locking out, but lowereing the weight for a 5-8 second count...very intense. He actually grunted and strained on the 9th and 10th rep.. I got so freakin pumped watching him I couldnt believe it.. Now it was my turn.

I sit in the machine. He then looks at me and says, " Did you see those reps? That was a perfect set. Im not sure you have what it takes to pull that off! But being that your a big guy, I'll up the weight 20lbs" . So, at this point Im ready to bust out of my skin. I start the extensions which was at a weight I could normally do 10 reps with....however I hadnt performed them his way...So I crank out 8 reps and my quads are on fire, I get 9 reps, then I let out a growl and barely got the tenth. Frank gets in my face and says 4 more.. Come on, beat me, lets go, do it NOW he says. I tap into whatever reserve I had left and on my 14th rep I failed.

My legs were cramping and the lactic acid build up was so intense I was hopping around like an idiot.

He told me that what I just did is what seperates a champion from a recreational BB'er. He said you may not win an Olympia or ever go pro, but if you put your heart and soul into every lift like you just did, with that much focus you WILL achieve your goals. Most inspiring workout I ever had!

Peace.

WOW!! That's the s**t I'm talking about!! One of the greatest bodybuilders ever to walk the earth and some say the most perfect physique ever. Training with intensity like that is just AWESOME!!! Man, your a lucky MOFO!!!!

 

[Tom Treutlein]

That's intense, but is there any actual need to go so slow on reps? I suppose because more damage is said to be done to the muscle tissue during the negative phase, so extending it can only help.

Anyone have any input on this? I love the burn from slower negatives, but will it cause better growth?

 

[punch]

I believe that most injuries occur when explosive movements are done. FZ's concept was that time under tension leads to harder more well developed muscle, quality muscle. It is the combination of styles that define a well rounded body IMO. Doing slow, controled lifts may not be something you do each and every workout. There is a time and place for faster more forceful lifts.

One thing is for sure....when ANY momentum is taken out of a lift, it requires the recruitment of your stabilizers to a greater degree. This has helped me during my heavier days.

A great way to utilize this method if you do not wish to perform slow reps througout your whole workout is to save it for your last set of each movement. In this fashion it would ensure that you taxed any remaining stores of energy in the target area.

 

[Tom Treutlein]

Yeah I hear that, but I don't think it can make the muscles any harder. Not tryong to act as if I know it all, and FZ knows shit, just doesn't make sense to me. I'll admit, I do like the feeling I get from slow reps sometimes, and the idea of doing them at the end is nice. I used to take my last set to failure on every exerciss. It worked nice. I never got burnt out.

 

[casualbb]

Anyone have any input on this? I love the burn from slower negatives, but will it cause better growth?

I think you have even, controlled negatives slowing it down any more isn't going to help. Just poop you out.

But focus IS important, and that alone could improve results.

Btw, punch, that's some wife you got there bro. Frank Zane one-on-one is NOT cheap