Mike Mentzer - Discussion

[Vince B]

That’s a program I started doing in the 90’s and led to most  of my gains! I put on about 20 pounds in 3 years that way and then plateaued. It is probably the best routine out there for natural bodybuilders.

Either an hypertrophy theory is correct or it is not. I recognize that drugs impact on results but the basic theory remains the same.

Mike and Ray developed great physiques and trained hard for many years. Exactly what they did to produce the most gains is now somewhat unclear.

Both gave talks and training camps so clung to various theories that were different from what so-called conventional training was in those days.

Essentially they recommended shorter, more intense workouts over longer ones with more sets. 3 to 5 sets versus 15 to 20 volume sets.

What is true is that muscles can be retained using protocols they recommended. I doubt maximum hypertrophy will be achieved using Heavy Duty or HIT.

I don't think they were correct re their theory of hypertrophy and volume plus intensity is more what is required.

[BSN]

1979 MO

[BSN]

1981 Mr. America.. Mike and Tim

[NarcissisticDeity]

 

[Sexybeast777]

pure motivation

[Equalizer]

I thought u said most of ur gains were made doing one full body workout each week?

[karasan]

In Netflix TV Series GLOW, I saw the ultimate Mike Mentzer Reincarnation (washed up Director Sam Sylvia played by Marc Maron)
He's a chain smoker, coke snorter grumpy type, what can I say, they may be inspired by Late Mentzer

[ARNIE1947]

 

[Straw Man]

less is more...except for drugs

you only need a few sets to stimulate max muscle growth and anything in excess in counter productive

you don't need to eat more than the RDA of protein so most people only needs 50 - 75 grams or whatever the RDA is for your weight plus an extra few grams and you're covered

drugs?

I assume it's a half tab of dbol once ever 10 days or so

right?

[AbrahamG]

In Netflix TV Series GLOW, I saw the ultimate Mike Mentzer Reincarnation (washed up Director Sam Sylvia played by Marc Maron)
He's a chain smoker, coke snorter grumpy type, what can I say, they may be inspired by Late Mentzer

I can see it a little.  To me he looks more like the younger version of JSchmoe Weider.

[BSN]

I can see it a little.  To me he looks more like the younger version of JSchmoe Weider.

hahaha, YES !

[BSN]

1979

[NarcissisticDeity]

 

[Rmj11]

A true account of Mentzer.

"I met Mentzer around 1979-80 while I was in high school. He was really ascending the BB hierarchy and becoming a big deal. He had just won one of those early ‘Night of Champions’ contest.

He appeared at a local sporting goods store, not sure exactly what his reasons (read contractual obligations) were but he appeared in athletic shorts and a ‘Weider’ T-shirt. There was a relatively big group there and he took questions. Someone asked him to ‘flex’ and he did a front double bi with his t-shirt on.

They asked if he would take his t-shirt off and he said “they are not paying me enough to do that”. I asked him how big his legs were and he said “big” (I was expecting a measurement). At the conclusion as he walked out he muttered “I gotta get out of this town”. He acted like he did not want to be there, never smiled that I could recall.

I had heard from the mags that he was arrogant and my conclusion from having met him was that he was. He was not particularly warm to those who came to see him.

In contrast I met Franco Columbu about the same time also at a sporting goods store. It was right after he retireed and after his biography ‘Coming On Strong’ came out. It was also after he retired and after he trashed his knee in the World’s Strongest Man contest.

He was in Street clothes and people asked him to take his shirt off and pose. Franco was very reluctanct, not because he was not being paid, but because he was so out of shape but he obliged and was very gracious. They then asked him to do a feat of strength so they assembled one of those really crappy multi-benches and loaded 350 on the bar. Franco pumped out 20 reps on the bench without a warmup! People loved him."

Franco a true winner. Mentzer a sorry loser.

[Rmj11]

Beyond Brawn starts off as a good read. Then it's like Stuart taking 20 pages on what can be said on a paragraph or two. The guy just doesn't know when to stop.

His quest to do, I forgot the details, deadlift 400+ for 20 reps is telling. Gotta keep pushing the weight, even micro load. All about intensity, anything else is futile. Blame the injuries for non stellar form. Too stubborn.

And there's no evidence of McWhiner's claim of  lifting 400 for 20 reps. Nothing. All he wanted to do was sell books to the lazy and the misinformed.

[Rmj11]

Interesting views on Nutrition, taken from an interview he did with IronMan Magazine

Theoretically, you can become highly defined eating nothing but ice cream'as long as your daily total calorie intake is below your maintenance need of calories. Then you have to resort to bodyfat for energy. I'm not advocating that because it's not a well-balanced diet. Eat a well-balanced diet'60 percent carbohydrates, 25 percent proteins and 15 percent fat'but eat a reduced number of calories. It doesn't have to be all protein. I know the majority of my fellow Mr. Olympia competitors woke up every morning during their training period grumpy bastards because all they had to look forward to was tuna fish and water. I woke up in the morning always looking forward to breakfast because I had bran muffins and often cake and cookies, fruits and vegetables.
I ate a wide assortment of carbohydrates; often I would have just carrot cake and coffee for breakfast because I knew I needed that sugar for the workout. But I didn't do it recklessly; I knew what my daily maintenance need of calories was and as long as I stayed below that every day'I kept a daily record of my calorie intake'I could eat that cake with impunity and not get fat. I was getting ripped, as a matter of fact.

I was eating ice cream at least four days a week before the Mr. Olympia contest'again, not recklessly. I knew that I had to get under 2,500 calories a day. I was averaging about 1,800. So I was burning about 700 calories a day in fat. And I was actually burning more than that because I was so active. I was riding my bicycle up to 40 miles a day. And I was getting cut up before my very eyes. Every day I would wake up and see more definition'and the night before I had just had an ice cream cone. I mean, it's ridiculous eating nothing but protein or tuna fish and water to get cut up. Not only is it not healthy and no fun, it's just ridiculous.

You've got to have carbohydrates to build muscle, and you've got to have carbohydrates to maintain muscle. If you're looking to build mass, you've got to have a large amount of carbohydrates in your diet. Not an untold number'again, 60 percent of your daily maintenance need of calories. And, when you're trying to lose fat and maintain muscle, you need sugar in your diet. As long as you're eating a reduced calorie diet, you can eat as many carbs as you want and still get ripped.
Theoretically, you can eat pure table sugar and be as ripped as a Mohamed Makkawy. I've gone beyond the 60 percent that I mentioned. Before the Olympia I was eating almost 80 to 90 percent carbohydrates. Tom Platz, who looked unbelievable at this year's Mr. Olympia'he was probably around 2 percent bodyfat. In the last three days before the contest he stayed at my home in Palm Springs to get some sun, and I couldn't believe my eyeballs when I saw him: His skin was like tissue paper! He was eating 400 grams of carbohydrates a day, but he was performing a lot of aerobics, and he was getting fewer calories than he needed to maintain himself. It can be done.

And he never won an Olympia. Screw methzer and his high carb garbage.

[Rmj11]

The hit cult members with their "heavy dooty" light weights and slow rep crap.

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[Rmj11]

More from the heavy dooty crew. This time with some hardcore heavy metal muscle to seemingly make the vid more "intense." Skinny methzer followers trying to be tough. 😆😅🤣😂

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[Rmj11]

Oh dear. More nonsense from these skinny hit cultists. It just gets funnier every time...

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[Rmj11]

Seriously, these hit cult dweebs are truly delusional. His t-shirt says lift to failure, don't become one. Too late for that with these hit idiots. Heavy Dooty Squad indeed. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

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[Rmj11]

It just keeps getting funnier. The hit cult brag about making "tremendous" gains on hit yet I fail to see where these "phenomenal" gains are at. Nice pedo tash though...😂

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[Rmj11]

Top methzer dick licker John Little promoting methzer's delts and arm workout. People really believe that they can get maximum gains by doing the bare minimum. I couldn't even maintain my muscle with such little work let alone build it. 🤣🤣🤣

[Rmj11]

Jesus freak lunatic John Heart (who claims natural but actually took drugs) claims that HIT is alive and has come back in a big way. It hasn't. No-one in the gym is doing hit. Most hit fanatics are in their home gyms doing hit so they will be spared the humiliation of doing such a pussy ass workout while looking weaker than somebody's 80 year grandmother in front of real serious trainers.

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[Rmj11]

Intense gains? More like no gains and how is going slow on reps intense? Nobody ever got big and strong training like an elderly person. The hit cult are just so laughable...🤣

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[beakdoctor]

Pretty sure this is 77. Literally zero progress between here and 80. If anything a little regression.  The longer he used HIT the more he stagnated.