To be blunt, most people who go to the
gym screw at least SOME things up.
Sometimes big, sometimes small....
sometimes HUGE.

I've been there...

When I first started training, I did things that were
flat-out STUPID...I didn't think so at the time, of
course ;).

But I LEARNED from those mistakes...and I fixed them.

And now, as your teacher and mentor, I want YOU
to learn from mine, so you don't have to make those
same stupid errors.


#1 - I didn't squat my whole first year of training

You see, I bought into the myth that squatting was
bad for the knees (it's NOT, when proper form is
used). I look back and shake my head when I think
of the results I missed out on.

Ironically enough, I DID do heavy leg presses and
extensions, which are WAY harder on the knees
than squats!

The fix here...squat.


#2 - I didn't deadlift my first TWO years of training

Yep, this is like confessional time...nobody (and I
mean NOBODY) in the gym I went to did deadlifts.
So neither did I. Luckily for me, I got to know a
powerlifter who taught me the error of my ways.

The first time I deadlifted, I put 225 lbs on the bar
for three sets of 5 reps...and then couldn't sit down
without falling down for the next three days, which,
of course, I LOVED. The deadlift instantly became
my favorite exercise and I never looked back.

The fix here...do deadlifts. They're a great exercise
and, when you use proper form, are completely safe
and effective...no matter how old you are or how
new you are to training.


#3 - Too many barbell curls

I totally messed up on this one...I actually barbell
curled so much my wrists developed constant
pain and I had to wear wrist wraps...so I could
KEEP CURLING.

Do you see the stupid here? ;)

When you curl with a barbell, your wrists get
locked into position on the bar and every rep puts
stress on them.

And the fix was easy...I kept curling but switched
to dumbbells. Within a week my wrist pain was
gone.


#4 - I trained WAY too long

I loved training so much that I would literally
spend two hours in the gym. Imagine my shock
when I hit a plateau!

I got lucky, though...I came across a program
called Bulgarian Burst Training that taught me
WHY I was overtraining by training so much,
how to FIX it (don't train so much..duh) and,
most importantly, how to USE overtraining to
get great results.

I still trained a lot (twice a day, six days a week),
but I knew how to make it WORK...using shorter,
more frequent workouts.


#5 - Massively stupid cardio

Now, I'm not saying ALL cardio is stupid...just
the way I was doing it. A typical session for me
was 20 minutes on the stair monster, 20 on the
stationary bike, 20 minutes skipping rope then
another 20 on the stair machine.

Yep, stupid.

I was in great cardio shape but my strength
dropped, my muscle mass faded away and I
started to get overuse injuries in my legs.

The fix...SMART cardio. Here are your options.

1. No cardio at all..just use short rest periods in
your weight training or perform metabolic
conditioning work.

2. Interval training.

3. Strongman/Crossfit style FUN cardio that involves
throwing, carrying, pushing, pulling, etc. I like to
work with sandbags, sledgehammers, tires, water
jugs, cars...stuff like that.

4. Low-intensity cardio. Yep , you read that right.
I'm NOT totally anti-long-cardio...just mostly. ;).
I think it does have its value and I think some
people can benefit from it...just not most people.
If you're currently doing long cardio and not
seeing the results you want, you are one of the
most people who shouldn't be doing it.


#6 - Too much barbell bench pressing

Now this is something I actually didn't screw up
in my first year of training...that came later.

In my first year of training, I actually NEVER did
any barbell bench press. None. Zero. All I did
was dumbbell bench press.

The reason was bad shoulders. The first time I
tried barbell bench, I unracked the bar and
immediately felt a horrible sharp pain in my right
shoulder. I reracked it and tried the db press.
No pain.

So for the next year, I worked up to some
MASSIVE weights in the dumbbell press, topping
out at sets with 150 lb dumbbells. It was ridiculous.

Eventually, I decided to see if I could do barbell
press again. Because of the strength I had gained,
I had no pain...so I immediately started barbell
benching way too much to make up for lost
time...which then reaggravated my shoulder!

The fix...balance your barbell pressing with
dumbbells..or drop barbell bench altogether. It's
not a 100% necessary exercise and you have
my permission to not do it if it hurts.


#7 - I wore a lifting belt...ALL the time

My entire first year of training, I wore a belt for
every set I did. Except ab work, so at least I
wasn't a TOTAL idiot. ;)

A belt should only be used for top-end heavy sets
of a few exercises (like squats and deadlifts)...and
only if you really need it. Don't just assume you do.

Training with a belt for everything will limit your
core strength development. and will teach your
body to rely on it when you lift things. You don't
wear a lifting belt in real life...train your body to
function without it.


#8 - I did a twisting stretch as a warm-up...

I remember clearly sitting on an incline bench,
turning my torso to the left and bracing my right
elbow against my left knee...then pushing...hard...
to get a good stretch.

Then I heard a loud POP...

Then I fell on the floor.

I had ripped three muscles right off my spine. Yeah
that hurt.

So my final screw-up is the biggest one I want you to
learn from...do not EVER do forced twisting stretches
like that. Get blood flowing, get warmed up first, then
do some smart stretching (or better yet, save it for
after weights).

Lucky for me, I was able to recover from that.
Ironically enough (after the tip above!) I had to wear
a weight belt every waking AND sleeping moment
for the next three days in order to even breathe
without incredible pain.

I was back in the gym within a few days after that,
rehabbing and doing some easy lifting. It could've
been worse...I can still deadlift and squat with no
pain. But to this day, when I get lean enough, there
are three little balled-up lumps of muscle in my lower
back that remind me not to be an idiot like that ever
again.


The Bottom Line...

We all screw things up in the gym...I still sometimes
push myself a little too far or try exercises or
techniques that don't work the way I anticipate. It's
all part of the experience.

Just promise me these things...that you take the
time to learn from your mistakes and mine...that
you make sure you perform your exercises in a safe,
controlled manner (aggressive, sure...just under
control).

Now, if you are starting out and are looking for
some practical advice on building muscle, I want to
direct you to a report on how to build mass by a
friend and colleague of mine, Carl Juneau. It's
completely free and you can grab it here...

http://buildingmuscleformula.com/

It's good, solid info and it'll help you get yourself on
track for building serious muscle in 2014!

Nick Nilsson
The "Mad Scientist of Muscle"



P.S. If you know anybody else who might benefit from this
information, feel free to forward this email to them!