The crazy blast is one of the most powerful training methods I know You’re not doing it because no one else knows about it. And it didn’t come from me either.

Rather, the crazy blast is a move that was invented my friend and gym-buddy Nathan. It’s a move that takes all my favourite training methods and then combines them into one ultimate exercise.

So, my favourite training methods include:

• Joe Weider’s classic intensity techniques. That means forced reps, drop sets, pyramid sets, flush sets, burns, pre-exhaust, muscle confusion… all the good stuff that the likes of Arnie and Frank Zane were using back in the golden age of bodybuilding. These training methods have more than stood the test of time, in my eyes.
• Overcoming isometrics, negatives, static contraction, plyometrics… I like to alter the cadence of my exercises because I believe this helps to recruit a greater variety of muscle fiber and build different kinds of strength. Training the eccentric portion of a move with a negative (slowly lowering the weight) is great for creating microtears and triggering hypertrophy. It’s great for explosiveness too and even flexibility. Meanwhile, overcoming isometrics can increase muscle fiber recruitment and max strength. I like to vary the weight too, so as to build endurance and limit strength. You get the idea.

In other words, I believe in variety and I believe in adding a little masochism to my workouts – to punish the muscles and test the CNS in all kinds of creative ways during a single workout. I’m telling you all this because I want you to fully appreciate the beauty of the crazy blast. I’m not going into the science of why all these methods work because I’ve done it countless times on this site before. Rest assured that if you’re interested in mechanical drop sets, negatives, supersets or anything else, you’ll find the information somewhere on this site.

I’d been training like this with Nathan for a while and he had been willingly going along with it. And then he happened upon something awesome.

The Crazy Blast Explained

So, here is how it goes. It requires a gym buddy and they’re going to be your spotter. Let’s start with the crazy pec blast, seeing as that’s the one that we use most often.

To perform the blast, one person lies on the bench holding two dumbbells as though they are going to perform a dumbbell press or fly. The difference is that they aren’t going to move until they are cued to do so by the spotter. The spotter will gently guide their hands and then encourage them to perform a press. Or perhaps they encourage a one-armed press and then alternate on the other side. They might encourage them to perform a flye, or they might encourage them to stop and hold the weight in position. They might, if they’re feeling particularly sinister, push down on the weights from above and get the person underneath to perform an overcoming isometric, or a negative – pushing against their hands as hard as they can until the spotter chooses to have mercy.

Perhaps the repetition will be slow, or perhaps it will be very fast and explosive. The point is, the person underneath has to react to whatever the spotter is telling them they need to do and they will be taken through all kinds of different movements to challenge them in lots of different ways.

Why It’s Awesome

Why is this awesome? First of all, it’s a ton of fun. It’s great for a laugh and for bonding in the gym and it’s particularly enjoyable as the spotter coming up with unique ways to challenge and punish the person underneath. Just remember… it’s your turn next! This is training as a competitive game and it’s much more rewarding as a result.

Likewise, the crazy blast trains everything from endurance and explosiveness to control and maximum strength. It also teaches adaptability and because the angles are constantly changing, it’s much more functional than your typical static press.

It’s versatile too. You can do similar things with the barbell curls by assisting, then resisting, by forcing partial reps then changing to a hammer curl or overhand grip. You can instruct challenges while someone is performing squats or even press ups likewise. Maybe place a foot on their back or swipe out one arm…

Give it a go at the end of a workout and make sure to start with a light enough weight. I promise you you’ll feel the burn and you’ll have a blast. [cringe]

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