Rich Franklin’s 4 Top Tips For Arms Of Iron

How the body looks is secondary to how it functions. For everybody, overall health should be the key focus. However, a byproduct of a good training regime is that the body will start become leaner, with muscle growth to cope with the added workload.

Before Rich “Ace” Franklin became ONE Championship’s Vice President, he was a world champion martial artist, with the impeccable physique to match as a result of his intensive training. Although now retired, “Ace” loves to stay in stay shape for the health of both mind and body, and maintains the arms of steel that he used to seize success.

Here, he shares his secrets on how to replicate those results.

#1 It’s Not All About The Biceps

People think they need to do more bicep curls to get big arms, but actually, you should focus on your triceps. The biceps gets used all the time in your other lifting movements, so they will be getting plenty of action to help them grow.

What’s more, it’s a simple matter of volume. More than two-thirds of your upper arm is comprised of the triceps.

#2 Do The Right Exercises

Here are some exercises that will work out the entire arm. Remember, you need to lift heavy weights to stress the muscles. Keep your sets at eight repetitions or less, and make them as heavy as you can.

a) Triangle Push-Ups

Starting in a push-up position, make a triangle on the ground with your index fingers and thumbs. Lower your body to the ground, keeping your core engaged and tight, and push your body back up.

b) Close-grip Bench Presses

Get on the bench and underneath a barbell. Instead of the usual shoulder-width grip, go narrower than your shoulders, and get your hands as close together as you can without stressing your wrists.

Arch your back and keep both feet on the ground. Keep the elbows in tight, and then lower the barbell down to your sternum before raising it back up.

c) Tricep Dips

If you don’t have access to a dip machine in the gym, you can do these at home by gripping the arms on either side of a chair, and keeping your feet on the ground. Lower your body so your elbows get to 90 degrees, then raise yourself back up. You can add another chair for your feet to add resistance as you get stronger.

d) Skull Crushers

These are not as scary as they sound. Take a dumbbell and lay down on a bench. Have your elbows above your face and the dumbbell behind your head. Keep your upper arms still as you lift the weight with your upper arms, hitting the triceps really well for the extension.

#3 Nutrition Matters

Lifting weights in isolation is not what makes you bulky. It is what you consume after that adds the mass. Eating the right kinds of food at the right times will help to keep you growing and lean.

Immediately after lifting, eat some fruit for fast-acting carbohydrates. Twenty minutes later, make sure you are ingesting enough protein to facilitate growth. The sugar from the fruit will actually enable better absorption of protein into the muscles.

#4 Follow My Favorite Routine

Here is a simple regimen that you could follow: start off with eight close-grip bench presses, then do 15 tricep dips, and finish off with as many triangle push-ups as you can. Do four sets of this.

You can add intensity by increasing the weight of the barbell for your bench presses. Also, you could increase the number of repetitions for dips, and even add weight to them with a belt or a plate.

Play around with these, keep the workouts intense and interesting, and you might just need a whole new wardrobe of shirts in no time at all.

Images: Chee Boon Pin
Venue: Pure Fitness Asia Square