Others Tried it, Others Raved

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It’s no secret that major research is underway in the development of life-extension substances, formulas and procedures. Ongoing disease prevention, treatment and cure often share the same conduit as longevity studies, and information supporting longer life has been carefully gathered and gleaned for years. Hence, prohormones and similar agents have been uncovered as hormone precursors or stimulants, and they have made their way to the bodybuilding and athletic market. The reports have been mixed; I haven’t heard any solid and persuasive testimony supporting the cascade of "diones" choking the articles and advertising of the muscle magazines today.

Trouble ahead. Any good doctor will tell you prohormones have a place in hormone therapy when diagnosis is certain, and they can upset the ole’ apple cart if taken indiscriminately. Athletic commissions will tell you it’s drug use. The media does its spin and you decide.

Now, that doesn’t mean I’m a prude and unwilling to augment my system when the ingredient or practice is legitimate, sensible and healthy. I wouldn’t pass on additional HGH if it was happily flowing in my veins and arteries. Of course, it is not available unless you have a liberal doctor and the key to Fort Knox. Instead, I direct you to the recent studies by Tom Incledon, prominent World Strongest Man contender, friend of IronOnline and research biologist. I trust him like the great ball of fire in the sky.

Click here for Tom's research data.

Here Tom refers to the Ageless Growth Formula as having definite and substantial HGH- and IGH-1-factor-enhancing properties. He explained his findings in person at our June Bomber Bash in St. Petersburg six months ago. I believed then the research was real and indisputable. No doubts. Tom said so; good enough for me. But I’m a bear that has endured many winters and my hide is thickened by time, and battered by wear and tear. Them thar woods is tough, what with livin’ on berries and chasin’ them crazy salmon upstream. Something you can get off the shelf that’s safe and unrestricted is plenty good for domesticated pups, not ancient grizzly bear losing their fur in tufts.

Others tried it, others raved.

I tried AGF and watched and waited. Laree joined me and raved immediately and continually, "I’ve never felt so good. I’m stronger now than I was when lifting at Dynamo in D.C. 20 years ago." I remained watchful and patient.

I’m suspicious, distrustful, cynical and leery, but remarkably pleasant. I’m also holding my bodyweight without carrying a canvas feedbag around my neck like a plowhorse. I wonder -- an indication of more solid muscle, perhaps? My body throbs, but my lifts are going up. Am I stronger? Maybe I’m throbbing ‘cuz lately I’m training for two to three hours and don’t have any desire or sense to stop. I want more, more, more. Greater endurance? Maybe I throb because I exert with more muscle intensity set after set -- one more rep, you can do it. Drive, enthusiasm, determination and persistence! Or is it my insisting on intensity in my newsletters that’s exciting my intensity on the gym floor? Am I becoming a mental monster motivated by my own motivation, or am I becoming a mental case -- delusional, schizophrenic -- in need of sedation and observation? Neither. It’s the Ageless Growth Formula. There, I said it; freely admitted it, you heard me say it, it’s true, the word is out, stand back. I’m a liberated man at last. AGF works. I cannot, shall not deny it.

Of course, I also devour Bomber Blend generously.

It’s not like creatine, which might give you an extra rep or a tighter contraction, and it’s not stimulating like a thermogenic. The response to Ageless Growth Formula is less specific. It’s an overall dynamic or vibrancy; there’s a pump, but not a puffy carbohydrate bloat; there’s intensity in performance, but not from a central nervous system stimulus; power is available from a deep internal well, not drawn from a dripping faucet of coincidence, timing, technique, psych, an imperceptible bounce, tinsy bit of undeclared assistance or lots of sugar. The subtle yet certain filling of wellness and might I experience during my workout is real, natural and comfortable. I feel solid and ready to go.

There’s more to this sudden confirmation. It’s not exactly cheap. Is the physical and mental response worth the investment to the individual user; is its use tailored to the user’s chemistry and needs and goals by intuition; is the favorable response greater for some than others; are the responses consistent day to day or do they pulsate with the user’s biorhythms; does one take the formula regularly or when training urges suggest its support? There, just a few queries that crossed my mind as I downed the caps before plunging into my workout.

Placebo? Nah. There were a few times in my enthusiasm to hit the gym floor that I forgot to take my daily dose of the blue and white caps. As I reviewed my workouts upon their completion and rated them as merely adequate, I realized my most recent and favorite descriptive word, "extraordinary," was missing from my appraisal. It became evident after subsequent careless omissions that AGF was responsible for the "extraordinary" element in my workout performance and workout evaluation.

I can live without it, though the added five to ten percent of "extraordinary" in this n’ that is handy, sometimes exhilarating.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM AMERICA

Unless you live under a bridge, you probably noticed its Thanksgiving across America. We want to say Happy Thanksgiving and wish you good cheer. The holiday season has begun. December and its jingling bells and tinsel, shopping, buying, worship and celebrating offers an unusual assortment of experiences, obstacles and emotions no matter where you go, stay or hide. Just remember: eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow you train.

Tomorrow you blast it; move the iron, lift the steel, squats, deadlifts, cable-crossovers and presses. It’s the workout.

Workout. Do you feel the warmth and security in that word? Like shelter and food in a cold world, the foresail and rudder of a stormbound vessel, the North Star and Morningstar to a lost voyager. Do what you must, do what you do; you are safe when you work out. The workout protects you. The workout strengthens, fortifies, energizes and restores you. Should you eat and drink too merrily on those special occasions, the workout cleanses and balances you. Sit in traffic on the way to the mall, the workout soothes tensions and removes wild thoughts. Pull the car from the huge snow drift, your back is strong and endurance high from never missing a workout. It’s the middle of January and people look like party balloons, they don’t work out, never did. Sad… but don’t you feel like a million bucks?

You are so cool, so very cool. Flex those lats.

Are you ready for your third Cannonball Routine for winter training when time is light and needs are heavy? Remember this: When the mind is prepared and the course is plainly set before you, when you are psychologically energized and your purpose is ingrained, your workout is inevitable. It becomes a rolling stone; forceful, unstoppable. Don’t let your mind slip into seasonal withdrawal and accept a soft attitude of winter compliance. Keep the mind and body ready and, if you must, the workouts short and sweet. But keep them explosive and cannon ballistic.

I have outlined below your dynamite workout for knocking down obstacles like they were cardboard cutouts. Do this instead of nothing and you will grow ten feet tall.

The Works

(Instead of midsection work)
Deep dumbbell deadlifts off two-inch block
Supersetted with
Stiff-arm dumbbell pullover

3 sets x 10 -12 reps

Close-grip pulldowns, under grip
ss with
Overhead triceps extensions
ss with
Thumbs-up curl

3 sets x 10 -12 reps

There’s no major explanation for these fundamental moves, but I’ll toss out some random thoughts as we look them over.

The dumbbell deadlift is a compact full-body movement if it is done with full-body awareness. You can at any given time grab a pair of dumbbells and execute an exercise like you were painting a fence with a sticky, stubby worn-out brush. Or you can paint a fence like it was the greatest fence in the world worthy of heavy and blended strokes from a well-balanced tool managed by the strong arm of an artisan.

Grasp your dumbbells and stand erect, shoulders back and proud. Now inhale and bend over with your arms slightly bent and back straight until the weights hang just below the block level, pause long enough to blink and return to the starting position. Exhale as you rise. The weight is enough so you can do eight reps with 80-percent output. This affords you the energy and comfort to notice what you’re doing and to enjoy doing it. Flex the broad range of muscles involved excessively throughout the exercise, as if posing before a camera or captivated audience. With this intention you will realize greater muscle exertion, engagement and fulfillment. Maximum energy on the other hand -- 100-percent output -- beholds a different fascination altogether and can be deliciously mean.

The stiff-arm dumbbell pullover brings out the lats like the wings of a Stealth Bomber. This not only looks cool, but is handy for short trips to the market or soaring around the neighborhood.

The close-grip pulldowns mimic the hanging chin. Adjust to a pumping weight for eight reps -- total extension to engage the serratus, lats and head of the biceps, and full, tight contraction for maximum biceps engagement. This’ll assist those who have difficulty with freehand chins.

The segue to the triceps work is a relief from the tough pulling and completes an arm workout, always a welcome injection in the middle of the winter grays. With your back to the pulleys, grasp the handle overhead, lean forward and extend the handle away from your body seeking a tight contraction of the triceps. As the weight takes its toll and begs for assistance, employ well-meaning extensions, thrusts and contractions, recruiting the lats and serratus and enabling the triceps continued work... extraneous muscle action here and there, free for the asking. Get the most from every exercise by being intense, creative and greedy.

The thumbs-up curls are a neat diversion to the standard dumbbell curls and attack the bis and forearms from likable angles. As the weight becomes more demanding and you employ acceptable thrusts, you exact thickness-building torso contribution. The shoulders and upper back act as if you were doing minor cleans. Your breathing heavily, hot blood is flowing and you say to yourself, "Go ahead, neighbor. Eat, drink and be merry. I can have my weights and lift them, too."

Cannonballs and cannons, wildflowers and honey.

Sweet dreams, crew... DD

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