3

is not as prepared for such a high load of Frequency:

weight when using this method.
My purpose when training is to completely
fatigue a set of fibers so it needs one week
Rest: to recover. Soreness in a set muscle group
following a workout is a good indicator of a
Rest intervals are usually short, 45-60 seconds. successful workout, but it is not necessary to
When moving heavier weights, such as during make progress. I have encountered situations
leg movements, there are times when rest where I was not sore after completing some of
intervals may take longer because the trainee the greatest workouts of my life.
has to catch their breath before proceeding.
These rest intervals can take as long as two I recommend each body part be trained only
minutes between sets. once a week with the exception of calves and
abdominals. Calves and abdominals can be
The goal when weight training is to fatigue trained up to three times a week.
muscle fibers and break them down as much as
possible. Allowing longer rest intervals allows I recommend you do not perform the same
the fibers to recover too much, which can workout more than six times in a row because
reduce the amount of hypertrophy obtainable your body will have adapted to the program by
from a given workout. If your rest intervals are then and results will diminish. You may return
too short, sometimes your nervous system to a workout after you introduce a different
may not have recuperated in time for you to one to keep your body confused and always in
begin your next set. If you are training with a a state of adaptation. I have included a sample
partner, you should start each set immediately workout for you to target the body parts of
upon completion of your partner’s sets. each area we cover. Once you have completed
this workout, you can make it a new workout by
Please note: depending on your level of changing the rep ranges and the order of the
experience with weight training, your work exercises. You should be constantly assessing
capacity may not be able to handle short rest your physique for strengths and weaknesses.
intervals, especially at first. If you keep striving Fine-tune the program to place emphasis on
to meet the time limits of these rest intervals, your visible deficiencies.
your body will eventually adapt. Just keep at it
and your work capacity will improve. In the event you go to your local gym and each
machine or piece of equipment you had hoped
to use is busy when you come to that point in
your workout, you can just change the order of
Time to complete a workout:
the listed exercises. This will enable you to be
My workouts never exceed one hour. When a flexible when needed and it will help keep your
workout exceeds an hour, your ability to create body from adapting to the program.
intensity during your sets becomes greatly
diminished.
Speed of reps:
If you are able to train with a partner and
perform your sets alternately with each other, I do not intentionally count rep speed, but my
your workouts will often take only 45 minutes. clients generally execute reps that take one
to three seconds. I have my clients execute
their reps as fast as possible with a goal of
maintaining tension on the muscle throughout
the repetition. This does not translate to you
having permission to throw weights around

FUNDAMENTALS OF BODYBUILDING AND PHYSIQUE SCULPTING

4

recklessly. I have found that reps performed can reduce injuries. Repetitive motion, which
at the aforementioned speed allow you to is what weight training is, can cause micro
place the greatest amount of weight and trauma that can lead to injuries. Specifically,
tension on the muscles, which leads to greater muscles can bind together because adhesions
hypertrophy. develop between fibers and at points where
muscles intersect. When adhesions develop,
There are occasions where I use dead stops, they reduce the amount of pump one can
AKA paused presses, and slow concentric attain as well as hinder performance because
movements, but they are advanced concepts they do not allow opposing muscles to fire
and will be discussed in later publications. independently. Periodically stretching between
sets can reduce the frequency of injuries and
the resulting development of adhesions.
Structural Balance:
In the event your injuries become too severe
When you design your workout, you should or debilitating, I have found that the best
be mindful of deficiencies in the development treatment is myofascial release therapy. Its
of your muscles. You should always strive to fundamentals can be researched extensively
develop each body part to its fullest so that you via the Internet.
are never overly dominant in one particular
area. I will explore this further in later chapters
by addressing some of the more commonly Training Splits:
deficient body parts.
I train body parts in the following sequence
over the course of a week. This requires you
Weight Belts: train five days a week:

I am a proponent of using a weight belt on • Chest & Biceps or Chest &Abs

virtually all exercises, with the exception of • Quads
abdominal exercises. Wearing a belt is a great • Back & Triceps
way to train yourself to keep your abdominal • Shoulders & Abs or Shoulders & Biceps
wall tight. Weight belts relieve unnecessary • Hamstrings
pressure from being placed on your lower
back. Their usage can ensure greater weight You can take two days off as you see fit during
poundage can be used on your exercises, the week.
which translates to greater recruitment of
fibers, which translates to greater hypertrophy. Another set of options would include training
six days a week:
Regarding brands of weight belts, I prefer
old-style, solid cowhide leather weight belts. • Chest& Abs
These are the kinds that do not have lower • Quads & Calves
back padding. Be mindful that the weight • Back & Rear Shoulders
belts you can buy at sporting goods stores are • Shoulders & Abs
often made from pig leather, which is cheaper • Hamstrings & Calves
but does not hold up over time. • Arms

You can take your off day as needed.

Stretching and Injuries:
You can choose training splits however you like,
I have found it productive to stretch the trained but please note the following principles when
muscles periodically between sets because it deciding how to design your own program:

CHARLES GLASS: GODFATHER OF BODYBUILDING

 5

Triceps muscles get a slight workout when one

conducts a chest workout. Biceps muscles get
a slight workout when one conducts a back
workout. Shoulder muscles are trained when
one conducts a chest workout.

For these reasons, if possible, one should

be mindful not to pair or conduct training
sessions for these body parts back to back.
For example, if you have done a chest workout,
wait before training your triceps or shoulders.
Otherwise, you would impair the valuable rest
needed for these fibers to recover.

Angles:
When you perform exercises, please keep in
mind the importance of angles. As you follow
along, you will understand what I mean. The
angle at which you place your hands or feet
on a given exercise, particularly in pressing
movements, will play a direct role in how well
you recruit the targeted fibers. In almost all
pressing movements, you should have your
hands or feet just shy of 90 degrees when
your arm or leg is in the bent position. We use
this concept later to demonstrate the proper
execution of exercises.

Selection of Exercises:
When I design a workout for a client, I assess
their structural deficiencies. My goal is to
ensure complete development of each muscle
group. I work a muscle group by training it at all
angles so no portion of the muscle is neglected.
For example, I would never have a client do flat
dumbbell bench presses, flat machine bench
presses, and flat barbell bench in the same
workout. Let us explore the various ways you
can ensure maximal development for your
body.

FUNDAMENTALS OF BODYBUILDING AND PHYSIQUE SCULPTING

6

CHEST

The chest is a crucial region for men. Having to put greater emphasis on the upper
full, thick Pecs is a must if you are going to pectoral muscles.
take your shirt off at the beach or pool. Using
the tips presented in this book can facilitate • The inner edges of the dumbbells
pectoral growth. They will ensure maximal should be in line with your outer
recruitment and development of your pectoral pecs, where the pectoral muscles and
muscles. shoulders tie in, during the press.

When I train a client, I make it a point to • Shoulder blades must be pinched

ensure maximal development of the pectoral together throughout the exercise.
muscles by training each region of the pectoral
muscles – upper, middle, and lower. The • Ensure the middle of your back is
primary mistake I see people make when slightly arched, allowing your shoulder
doing chest movements is that they fail to keep blades to drive into the bench, but
their shoulder blades pinched together. By make sure your lower back remains on
keeping shoulders blades together during the the bench/padding.
movement, tension is forced onto the pectoral
muscles. Trainees must also be cognizant not • The top range of motion is just shy of
to lock out their arms at the top range of the locking the arms. This keeps tension
movement, because this allows the trained on the pec fibers.
muscles to rest. It also will cause you to unlock
• The bottom range of motion is about
your shoulder blades.
two or three inches above the chest.
Lowering the bar further recruits the
In almost all people, the upper chest region is
shoulder muscles and takes tension off
the most important portion of the chest to work
the pectoral muscles, thereby reducing
on because it is usually the least developed.
hypertrophy by giving the pectoral
For this reason, I almost always start with an
muscles a rest.
upper pectoral exercise.
• When performing the exercise, your
arms should not bend beyond a
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press – 90-degree angle. This will ensure
Upper Pecs maximal tension is placed onto the
pectoral muscles. If you extend beyond
• The incline of the bench will be 90 degrees, tension gets redistributed
higher than usual, approximately 55 to the shoulder muscles and taken off
degrees high. The bench is elevated of the pectorals. To ensure your hands

CHARLES GLASS: GODFATHER OF BODYBUILDING

 7

are placed in the right place, the width placed onto the pectoral muscles. To
of your grip should be the width your accomplish this, the width of your grip
hands would naturally go if you put should be the width your hands would
them in the air when you are lying naturally go if you put them in the air
down. when you are lying down.

• Throughout the movement, your • Elbows should be about one to two

elbows should be about two or three inches lower than the shoulders while
inches below your shoulders. If you performing repetitions. This ensures
keep your elbows in line with your tension remains on the pectoral
shoulders, you will be recruiting your muscles throughout the exercise, not
shoulders and not your pecs. on the shoulders.

Watch the following video for a demonstration: Watch the following video for a demonstration:
http://bit.ly/2wq96Ld http://bit.ly/2fcW2W7

Decline Barbell Bench Press – Startrac Flat Bench Press

Entire Chest with emphasis on Machine – Outer and Inner
lower pecs Chest
This is one of the most important compound • Pinch your shoulder blades.
chest movements because it trains the entire
pectoral muscle. • Handles should be at nipple height.

• Pinch your shoulder blades together. • Keep elbows lower than shoulders by
about two inches during the exercise.
• Drive straight up from the nipples.
• Drive your toes into ground, which
• Ensure the middle portion of your helps drive your torso into the padding
back is slightly arched, allowing your of machine.
shoulder blades to drive into the bench
while keeping your glutes on the pad. • The bottom end of the range of motion
is about two inches above the chest.
• The top range of motion is just shy of
locked arms so as to keep tension on » Going all the way down places
the fibers. tension on the shoulder muscles,
thereby allowing the pectorals
• The bottom range of motion is about a break from tension, which
two or three inches above the chest. reduces hypertrophy.
Lowering the bar further recruits
shoulder muscles and takes tension off • The top of the range of motion is
the pectoral muscles, thereby reducing just shy of locked arms so as to keep
hypertrophy by giving the pectoral tension on the pectoral fibers.
muscles a rest.
• When performing reps, the arm should
• If you are standing over a person be just shy of a 90-degree angle when
performing this exercise, where a the arm is bent.
spotter would stand, make sure their
arm is just inside of a 90-degree angle. • These principles can be used on all
This will ensure maximal tension is flat bench press machines. They can

FUNDAMENTALS OF BODYBUILDING AND PHYSIQUE SCULPTING

 17

SHOULDERS

Shoulders have an important role in creating from machine. This allows my hands to
the visual impact of an aesthetic physique. lower in a more effective manner than
The only way to ensure complete development facing the machine.
of the shoulders is to train the muscles in such
a manner that all heads – anterior, lateral and • Keep arms in a slight bend, no more
posterior – are equally developed. than 10 degrees, but do not lock them
straight.

Lateral Raises Machine – Lateral • Pinch your shoulder blades together.

Deltoids • Ensure that your elbows are kept
pointed towards the ceiling throughout
The lateral raise is the backbone exercise to the movement. This is the most
creating a full, capped look to your shoulders. important component of the movement
I usually start shoulder workouts with lateral because people often point the elbows
raises. I like them as a starting exercise because backwards as they raise their arms,
lighter weight loads are used to perform the which takes tension off the lateral
exercise. The lighter loads serve as a great deltoids.
way to progressively warm up the joints and
muscles for the heavier movements that are • Top position – Raise your arms until
used later in the workout. your biceps are almost parallel to the
ground. Do not try to go higher than
I perform these exercises much differently this as you will put undue strain to your
than the conventional method, which is with joints because they are not designed to
palms facing each other. I perform lateral go higher.
raises with my thumbs pointed towards my
body. The pinkies are closest to the sky at • Bottom position – Your thumbs should
the top of the range of motion. This ensures land just behind your hips.
maximal recruitment of the lateral heads of
the deltoids by working the muscles from each Watch the following video for a demonstration:
of the muscles’ insertion points. http://bit.ly/2wbFPo3

Although this video depicts a machine, the

same principles apply to doing this exercise
with free weights.

• Start position – Seated facing away

FUNDAMENTALS OF BODYBUILDING AND PHYSIQUE SCULPTING