Rock HaRd

Get in the best shape of your life with our new muscle-building, fat-burning training, diet and supplement program. Ready to get rock hard?

INSIDEComplete Workout Program p. 74

Pullout Training Card p. 80Contest Entry Form p. 86The Rock-Hard Diet p. 88

Rules & Regulations p. 270

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By JoE WuEBBEN | PHoToS By PavEl yTHJall Program By JImmy PEña, mS, CSCS

Kick off your journey to a new you with the first phase of our progressive program

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What we also offer this time that we didn’t in the early years of the Chal-lenge is a true multimedia experience: The Rock-Hard Challenge is now on DVD. Your hosts, m&f Fitness Direc-tor Jimmy Peña, MS, CSCS, and per-sonal trainer and fitness model Linda Ruggiero, walk you through the entire three months with the help of three of the industry’s most successful com-petitors and models — Stan McQuay, Jim Romagna and Timea Majorova — who demonstrate each exercise in the program. Also available is the Rock-Hard Challenge Training Log, which includes the entire training program and diet plan, as well as a specifically formatted Rock-Hard Journal to record every set you do and every meal you consume. The Rock-Hard Challenge DVD ($9.99) and Training Log ($9.99) can be purchased at musclestuff.com.

That said, welcome to Month 1 of the 2008 Rock-Hard Challenge. What follows is the guide for your first four weeks of lifting and cardio (the Rock-Hard Diet begins on page 88). The beauty of the training regimen is that it’s both simple and demanding, which is all you really need if you have the dedication to follow the program reli-giously. You’ll also notice, especially in Months 2 and 3, that it’s a progressive program — you’ll push yourself more in terms of volume, intensity and car-dio duration as the days, weeks and

We created the rock-Hard Challenge in 2001 with a very simple premise in mind: Help readers dramatically transform their physiques in a very short period — three months, to be exact. We not only provided a highly effective training program and diet regimen but added incentive in the form of a contest to help maximize our readers’ motivation. ❡ Seven years later, the Rock-Hard Challenge is still going strong and the premise remains unchanged: Follow our three-month training and diet plans to a T to get in the best shape of your life. And if turning your phy-sique around 180 degrees in just three month’s time isn’t motivation enough, consider this — a $2,500 grand prize for both the men’s and women’s Rock-Hard champions. Not bad, huh?

>> Stand erect holding a barbell across your upper traps. Position your feet roughly shoulder-width apart and push your chest out slightly so your back arches naturally. Squat down with the weight as if sitting in a chair, keeping the arch in your back. When your thighs are parallel to the floor, push yourself up through your heels, extending your knees and hips, to return to the standing position.

>> Sit on a low-back seat or adjustable bench set upright holding a pair of dumbbells. Lift the weights to just outside your shoulders, palms facing forward. Press the dumbbells straight up until the weights are overhead with your elbows just short of lockout. Slowly lower the weights to the start position.

Squat

>> Lie back on an incline bench (set to 30–45 degrees) with a rack and grasp the bar with an overhand grip outside shoulder width. Unrack the bar and position it directly over your upper chest, arms extended. Slowly lower the bar to your upper chest. Touch the bar to your chest lightly, then press it back up to the start position without locking out your elbows.

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months pass. Without a doubt, this year’s installment of the Rock-Hard Challenge matches, if not exceeds, the level of past challenges, which falls right in line with your goal: to take your physique to heights never before reached. That’s quite a challenge. Are you up to it?

roCk-HarD SPECIfICSBefore you jump into the first month of lifting, here’s a quick overview of the program:>> training Split You’ll lift four days a week, training each bodypart once (with the exception of calves and abs, which you’ll train twice a week) and pairing muscle groups as follows: Day 1, chest and triceps; Day 2, legs, calves and abs; Day 3, shoulders, calves and abs; and Day 4, back and biceps. Which days of the week you want to train is entirely up to you. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday always work well, but if you’d prefer to work out, say, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, or even Sunday through Wednesday, go right ahead. This train-ing split will remain the same for all three months of the program.>> exercise Selection The exercises included in the Rock-Hard Challenge are basic, tried-and-true moves per-formed with straight sets. The intent isn’t to try to reinvent the wheel but rather to emphasize compound exer-cises that train the most muscle to promote maximum hypertrophy and calorie-burning to lose bodyfat. We’ll introduce different exercises in Months 2 and 3, but again, the move-ments are basic, core lifts that you’ve likely done before. >> Sets, Reps and Weights Rock-Hard is a high-volume program, meaning you’ll do a high number of sets for each bodypart (up to 30-plus total sets in a given workout). It also combines both heavy (low-rep) and light (high-rep) sets throughout the three months, which will help build muscle and burn fat during workouts as well as at rest. For example, many exercises call for 5 –6 sets, and your reps will range from 6–12 in Month 1, 5–15 in Month 2 and 4–20 in Month 3.

>> Stand erect holding a barbell with your arms extended straight down in front of you and your knees slightly bent. Keeping your elbows in at your sides, curl the weight toward your chest. Squeeze your biceps for a count at the top, then slowly return the bar to the start posi-tion — don’t let it drop.

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>> Position yourself as you would on the bench press, but grasp the bar (loaded with a lighter weight than you use for wide-grip benching) with your hands 6–12 inches apart. Lower the bar to your mid-to-lower chest, then press it back up explosively, keeping your elbows as close to your sides as possible. CrunCh

>> Sit in a leg press machine and place the balls of your feet low on the platform approxi-mately 6–12 inches apart with your heels hanging off the bot-tom. Keeping a slight bend in your knees, lower the platform until you feel a good stretch in your calves, then extend your ankles to press the weight up as far as you can.

>> Lie faceup on the floor with your knees bent about 90 degrees, feet on the floor, and your arms either across your chest or your hands behind your head. Contract your abs to lift your shoulder blades off the floor, then lower yourself slowly. The range of motion is very short — the goal is to press your lower back into the floor to bring your sternum closer to your pelvis.

>> You’ll repeat the following routines each week for the next four weeks, lifting on whichever four days of the week you choose. While it would seem the workouts are the same from week to week, if you’re pushing yourself to failure on every set, you should be able to use heavier weights on many exercises each week.

DAy 1: Chest, tricepsexeRciSe SetS RepSCHESTIncline Bench Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12Bench Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12Decline Flye 4 12TRICEPSBench Dip 5 6,6,10,12,12Close-Grip Bench Press 5 6,6,10,12,12Lying Triceps Extension 5 6,6,10,12,12

DAy 2: Legs, calves, absexeRciSe SetS RepSLEGSSquat 5 6,6,10,12,12Leg Press 5 6,6,10,12,12Lunge 5 6,6,10,12,12Leg Extension 2 12Leg Curl 2 12ABSCrunch 2 15Reverse Crunch 2 15CALvESLeg-Press Calf Raise 2 12Seated Dumbbell Calf Raise 2 12

DAy 3: Shoulders, calves, absexeRciSe SetS RepSDELTSoverhead Dumbbell Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12Upright Row 5 6,6,10,12,12Bent-over Lateral Raise 2 12ABSCrunch 2 15Reverse Crunch 2 15CALvESLeg-Press Calf Raise 2 12Seated Dumbbell Calf Raise 2 12

DAy 4: Back, bicepsexeRciSe SetS RepSBACKBent-over Row 6 6,6,6,10,12,12Seated Row 6 6,6,6,10,12,12Lat Pulldown 4 6,6,10,12BICEPSBarbell Curl 5 6,6,10,12,12Incline Dumbbell Curl 5 6,6,10,12,12Dumbbell Preacher Curl 2 10

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The amount of weight you select for each set is critical. Since your goal is to transform your physique in just three short months, you’ll want to really push yourself, lifting to failure on each set. Thus, on a set of six reps, don’t pick a weight with which you can do 8–10 reps; rather, choose a weight that makes a seventh rep physically impossible to achieve. As you get stronger, increase the weight you use to maximize the effectiveness of the program — for example, one week you might fail at 10 reps with 100 pounds, but maybe the next week you fail at 110 pounds. >> Rest periods During this first month, you’ll rest 1–2 minutes between each set. This rest period is ideal for sufficient recovery that will allow you to train at a high intensity in each workout. As your body becomes more conditioned to the fierce workouts, your rest periods will shorten — in Month 2, you’ll rest no more than one minute between sets, and in Month 3, that time shrinks to 30–45 seconds. >> cardio The training portion of the Challenge won’t be limited to only lifting. This first month, you’ll do car-dio 3–4 days a week on your choice of cardio equipment (treadmill, stair-stepper, bike, etc.) at 60%–65% of your max heart rate (see above left). >> Up next… As the Rock-Hard Chal-lenge is a progressive program, we’ll up the stakes next month, and then the month after, with more exercises, more sets and, all in all, more intense training sessions. But don’t worry about that just yet. Take the program one day — one workout — at a time, following the regimen we’ve drawn up set by set, rep by rep. All it takes is focus, discipline and, most important, desire. If you possess these traits, you’ll no doubt be up to the challenge. M&F

>> Stand holding a barbell with a shoulder-width, overhand grip. Bend your knees slightly and bend over at your waist so your torso is close to parallel to the floor; keep your torso in this position throughout. Start with your arms extended, hanging straight down, and pull the bar into your midsection. At the top of the move, squeeze your shoulder blades together for a count to fully contract your back muscles, then slowly return the bar to the start.

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Exercise descriptions can be found at muscleandfitness.com. To share your progress with other readers or ask our fitness director a question, go to muscleandfitness.com/boards. To purchase the Rock-Hard Challenge DvD, go to musclestuff.com

NoW aT m&f oNlINE

CarDIoWeeks 1 & 2>> 3 days per week (either after lifting or on days you don’t lift)>> 30 minutes (45 for Week 2) on your choice of cardio equipment>> Perform at a steady state of 60% of maximum heart rate

Weeks 3 & 4>> 4 days per week (either after lifting or on days you don’t lift)>> 45 minutes on your choice of cardio equipment>> Perform at a steady state of 65% of maximum heart rate

>> Record your workouts on this log. When you’re done with Month 1, mail it to M&F’s Rock-Hard Challenge, 21100 Erwin St., Woodland Hills, CA 91367 by July 31, 2008, to be eligible for the grand prize.

m&f RockHaRd cHallenge TRAINING LOG

Record your weights used in the corresponding blanks. Please see the official Contest Rules on page 270.

Month

1DAy 1: Chest, tricepsExERCISE SETS REPS WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4cheStIncline Bench Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Bench Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Decline Flye 4 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _tRicepSBench Dip 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Close-Grip Bench Press 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Lying Triceps Extension 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

DAy 2: Legs, calves, absExERCISE SETS REPS WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4legSSquat 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Leg Press 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Lunge 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Leg Extension 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Leg Curl 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ABSCrunch 2 15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Reverse Crunch 2 15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _cAlveSLeg-Press Calf Raise 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Seated Dumbbell Calf Raise 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

DAy 3: Delts, calves, absExERCISE SETS REPS WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4DeltSoverhead Dumbbell Press 6 6,6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Upright Row 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Bent-over Lateral Raise 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ABSCrunch 2 15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Reverse Crunch 2 15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _cAlveSLeg-Press Calf Raise 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Seated Dumbell Calf Raise 2 12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

DAy 4: Back, bicepsExERCISE SETS REPS WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4BAckBent-over Row 6 6,6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Seated Row 6 6,6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Lat Pulldown 4 6,6,10,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _BicepS Barbell Curl 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Incline Dumbbell Curl 5 6,6,10,12,12 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Dumbbell Preacher Curl 2 10 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

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