Winning the Mr. Olympia seven times in a row is no joke, but for Phil Heath, the hustle on stage was inevitable. Tying with the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger regarding the number of titles, he made an iconic impression with his hulk-like physique bursting through the seams.
Now, at 44, one could still not discern if he’s truly parted ways with the stage, given how his physique still shines through. With years of experience still as active as his prime time, he recently wanted to share some knowledge with fellow bodybuilding enthusiasts.
Heath has always impressed everyone with his work on his biceps and wanted to share some tips on how to grow them. In an Instagram post, putting together a montage of him working out and exercising his arms, he listed three steps to focus on.
The first tip is to nail the volume or frequency of training the biceps since this will ensure consistent work on the desired part. Heath recommends training the arms twice weekly – first while training the back or during pull day and next while training the arms.
View this post on Instagram
The next tip is arguably one of the most common yet significant pieces of advice for muscular hypertrophy. Heath wants fitness enthusiasts to properly contract the muscle to ensure full range of motion.
“CONTRACTION.. make sure you are holding your contractions for at least 1-3 seconds actually acting the muscle.. not just throwing it up and hardly activating anything!”
Lastly, Heath emphasized the importance of training all three heads of a bicep – the short head, long head, and brachialis. Only then will one be able to successfully trigger the growth mechanism in the arm.
“BONUS TIP!!!…. Negatives!! Performing slow negatives allows the bicep to stretch and lengthen whilst keeping constant tension on the muscle.”
While Heath has managed to maintain his physique well into his forties, there are some things that he believed that one needed to look out for. Fitness enthusiasts should not only focus on intense workouts and diet plans to keep themselves healthy but also pay attention to their bodies’ needs.
Phil Heath recently reminded fellow bodybuilders of the importance of self-care
As one grew older, the body underwent changes that would need more care and attention towards it. Therefore, just like various forms of exercise are needed to work each part of the body, different forms of therapy are also crucial for healing and recovery.
Heath recently went on a self-care spree to repair some of the damages that bodybuilding had inflicted upon him. Post-retirement, he had the liberty to choose between various options and combine them to form an ideal recovery plan. Some physiotherapy sessions and consultations later, the icon seemed to feel like himself.
