THE BEST BODYRECOMPOSITION WORKOUT [ option A ] Part 1

We can’t ov erstate the awesomeness of German engineering. The land that brought us jet planes, the Mercedes, and Heidi Klum also introduced perhaps the best method of body recomposition known to the fitness industry —that is, a timeless strategy to gain muscle and lose body fat simultaneously . A chtung!

HOW IT WORKS

Hala Rambie, a scientist who defected to West Germany during the C old War,found that fat loss could be accelerated by raising lev els of blood lactate—an energy substrate. More lactate corresponds to greater release of growth hormone, which tells y our body to grow muscle and burn flab.

The best way to raise lactate quickly is to pair upperand lower-body exercises, or opposing movements, for reps in the 8–15 range. The sweet spot for sets is three,

and rest periods are restricted to 30–60 seconds. This approach has since become known as German Body Comp.

DIRECTIONS

A lternate sets of “A ” and “B” exercises. So y ou’ll do a set of A , rest, then a set of B, rest again, and so on for all the prescribed sets. The remaining exercises are done as straight sets.

To increase the intensity, decrease your rest between sets by 15 seconds every two weeks. Start by resting 60 seconds for the first two weeks. Then in Weeks 3 and 4,

rest 45 seconds, and so on.

TEMPO
Each exercise is assigned a tempo.

(A “0” indicates no time—simply mov e on to the next digit.) For example, a front squat with a tempo of 3110 would be done like so: Take three seconds to lower y ourself into the squat. Pause for one second at the bottom. Take one second to come back up to standing, and then go right back into the descent.

1A DEADLIFT

SETS: 3 REPS: 8–10 TEMPO: 4010 REST: 60 SEC.

Stand with your feet hip width. Bend your hips back to reach down and grasp the bar, hands just outside your knees. Keeping your lower back in its natural arch, drive

your heels into the floor and pull the bar up along your shins until you’re standing with hips fully extended and the bar is in front of your thighs.

1B 1¼ NEUTRAL-GRIP DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS

SETS: 3 REPS: 8–10 TEMPO: 3020 REST: 60 SEC.

Lie back on a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand.Turn your wrists so your palms face each other. Press the weights over your chest and then lower back down.

Come back up one quarter of the way, and then down again. Now press up to lockout once more. That’s one rep. Take three seconds to lower the weights down from

the lockout position, and two seconds when pressing to lockout.