Lots going on at the mo. First off congratulations to the missus for her successful interview with Fitness First. Rachael will be moving into sales in our place next month. Next up we are off to London this week for the Men's Health Cover model awards party.
Guaranteed to be an awesome night. The winner will be on the cover of the Oct edition available in Sept. In September Rach will be...
I am currently getting together ideas for a new website. Although I love my old site I need to freshen it up a bit and make a few tweaks. Anything you think I should add to www.neilmct.com or anything you feel should be taken out?My ideas so far -Content -- About me section giving some background info.- Diet plan info and testimonials (feel free to mail me yours).- Contact section for people inquiring about personal training etc.- Video section which links to both MH TV and my own clips of me showing lifts etc.- FAQ - hopefully a list of frequently asked questions regarding the diet and gym side of things.- Personal training info and testimonials.- Articles section with my favourite articles.Design -- A lighter and brighter website with elements of old the site ie anatomy work in the...
Tom Platz . . he laughs in the face of disco muscle workouts.Before I went away I had nailed 150kg on the front squat which was always a bit of a goal. This time around I plan to drop the weight a touch in the pursuit of 4 x 8. Here's a look at what I did today.Front Squats.60 x 880 x 8100 x 8110 x 5Stiff Leg Dead lifts.55 x 1275 x 1295 x 12105 x 7Split Squats with back foot raised (also known as Bulgarian split squats.)Held 8kg dbells x 15 each leg.I stayed on 8's and did one more set but I do plan to add an extra set and more weight next time.Leg Curls.40 x 1545 x 1550 x 11Pumped out on calves and leg ext for fun to finish off. Good workout and a great pump at the end. Again its different to my last routine so I plan to give this a go for a month or so.(My last leg workout had heavy...
Day 2 of my new split ended up going like this . . .Weighted Chins.bodyweight + 10kg x 8+ 15kg x 8+ 20kg x 8+ 30kg x 4 1/2Preacher Curls (I don't count the weight of the EZ bar, just whats on it)20kg x 1225kg x 1230kg x 525kg x 11Face Pulls. (On a seated row with a rope attachment you pull towards the face)42 x 1549 x 1556 x 9Dbell Curls.16's x 1018's x 1020's x 10Straight arm pulldowns for fun to finish.Really good pump today and the biceps work was great as I don't do a lot of arm stuff these days. I plan to do a leg workout on Sun or Mon and again I will add it to the blog for you guys to have a...
No matter how ugly you are there is always hope that you could create a solid physique !I hit the gym today to try my new plan which I mentioned briefly in my last post. Today I worked my chest and shoulders - tomorrow its back and bis and a bit of legs the following day before returning to chest. Heres what I ended up going for today.Incline Dbell bench press.32.5's x 840's x 845's x 850's x 9Clean press from the waist.45 x 855 x 865 x 875 x 3Weighted dips.bodyweight x 1210kg added x 1220kg added x 1230kg added x 10Side raises.12.5's x 1217.5's x 1220's x 10Cable crossovers for fun to finish.So after a fortnight off I felt pretty strong but gassed out on the clean presses. I ended up just staying with light to heavy on everything which is something I never used to do. I either picked a...
Me and Rach on some random island. I shit you not we actually ended up darker than this. I really am surprised that we got back into the country without having to climb fences and run up the channel tunnel.So I had talked about training when away but did the best thing possible. 2 weeks of total rest and plenty of food. I have actually sickened myself with the grub side of things and can't wait to pump some iron 2moro as I start back into my new routine.So the plan was a bit of full body to take the cobwebs out but after having a think I may hit a bit of a generic split routine. Although I prefer the upper / lower split I do need to mix it up and came up with this -wed - upper - cobwebs outthur - lower - again get the wheels moving and take the cobwebs out.Then onto a split routine which...
(Rach was taking this pic and told me to lean my shoulders forward a bit which gives me a fecking hunch back - thanks Rach for making me look like Quasimodo)Just a quick update.After bulking up to about 14'10 I have now cut down to about 14' 2 ish. Just 8 pounds off in about the same number of weeks.Excellent result as my goal was steady fat loss without losing any muscle at all. I actually feel like I have added muscle all over and unlike last year I didn't need to drop size. My goal was to stay as close to 14 stone as possible.Strength is pretty good to with 140kg on the front squat for 3 after a few work sets.(I was dropping 130kg less than a year ago and I only started front squats again last month).I had my body fat tested on 2 electronic machines in work just out of curiosity and...
I'd love some feedback from the regulars on here. I have always dreamed of my own gym but have often been put off by rent, rates, etc. But what if it could be done, how would it be done?(I did ask this a while ago on another blog entry but every month I see new readers and always appreciate new input)Heres my idea -1 - A one to one studio.2 - Staff handpicked by me and all trained in my methods.3 - Hand picked kit based on effectiveness, not want people think they need (ie ab crunchers, leg abductors).4 - Healthy eating section with quality supplements.5 - Results based.To go into a bit more detail lets break it down.1 - Large gyms can intimidate people and Monday night at 5.30 can seem like a war zone in any gym chain. A 1 to 1 studio would have less peaks and troughs like a regular gym...
So on Sun the 27th I turned 28. Not too far away from 30 now but I don't mind, as being male, we get more distinguished and sophisticated whereas chicks getting bingo wings and wrinkles. :-)I used my birthday as my second real cheat since I start dieting at the start of the month. Progress has been good so far. I have taken it really slow and managed to hold weight pretty well as the ultimate goal here was just a steady body fat loss while staying as heavy as possible.So far - - I see veins sprouting out again in my legs and arms.- Abs starting to come through and the fat on my lower back is shrinking away. (This is where I hold my body fat)- Still over 14 stone and holding muscle well. Feel pretty strong.Changes -- This week I plan to tighten the carbs a touch by dropping the bread a bit...
So I started back on the diet plan at the start of April. I feel my clothes getting loser and already the body fat around my abs, back and arms has started to melt away. I think I'm about 7 pounds down but to me that means spank all - its all about the visual aspect which has been pretty drastic already. Here are some of the foods I like to stick with when dieting.Weight gain powder - Yes, I do take weight gain powder. Why I hear you cry. Well I was taking it when bulking and rather than remove calories too quick I kept this in and only dropped the likes of junk food and accessories. (I count accessories as those wee things added in that you don't really notice ie grabbing a juice from the gym fridge when working etc.) The weight gain powder I use is also pretty good in terms of protein,...
Although I did have a target of 15 stone before switching to the diet I have decided to go for it now rather than shoot for those extra few pounds. Heres why -* Planning to go on holiday in the middle of June so this gives me 8 - 10 weeks to lean out then get a tan :p* The bulking picture of me in the garden surprised me a bit. I've added a decent amount of muscle in a year so I now want to see what shape I'm in with lower body fat.* I plan to tighten up the diet for the next few days then go to my mates stag doo next weekend for a blow out. Then I have 2 weeks before my birthday which I could use as another cheat then maybe go strict until the holiday with cheat days introduced to help with fat loss as I feel I need them.*This time last year I was dieting and I actually miss the...
I have bulked a number of times over the years with targets being everything from 9 stone upwards. This time round I am shooting for the 15 stone mark. Not for any particular reason than simply to have a goal.When I switch to a lean out phase I plan to document the whole thing and make a bit of a montage with Rocky music in the background - I shit you not.(pic by younger brother. 14 stone 6. Unpumped and striking a blue steel...
Rach and I got a few shots taken earlier to help promote Boditronics and their dogs balls range of supplements.Here's just three pics that got uploaded before the internet decided to...
Mike Mentzer - loved full body routinesI had planned on hitting upper body on sat and lower body on sun but with work and a bit of grappling yesterday I was left with just one day to do weights. I was meant to start some full body work before today but I was holding onto an Upper Lower split that had worked great. The best plan though is the one you are not on so here is the new look routine.NEW PLANMon - offTue - morn classWed - full bodyThur - night classFri - full bodySat - rolling classSun - full bodySo today my workout basically just came off the top of my head. I decided to keep my rest at a constant 1 min 45 and try to superset as much as possible. I have never really super setted the big three (squats bench and deads) so I decided I would. This should only be attempted when you...
So on Sunday (today) I had a go at a Mixed Martial Arts Competition! After chatting to the coach he basically said just to have a rattle to see how it feels to go toe to toe with other guys in the comp situation. I was nursing a shin injury from sparring and pretty sore breasts from pumping iron on the Fri but I thought feck it and had a go. For the first fight I was up against a guy a bit taller and after we traded kicks I got in close and got the takedown. Unfortunately I got caught up in his long legs and he had me in the triangle choke. Doh! As the adrenaline wore off my thumb hurt like feck (I think staved it hitting him with a few body shots.)Soon I was up against another guy who had won his first fight. Again we swapped kicks and I got the takedown. He tried to get the Guillotine...
At the end of last year I got back into Mixed Martial Arts and have found myself doing 2 - 5 hours per week. As such, my weights routine is modified to ensure I still improve in the gym. If you play any sort of sport and try to juggle the gym too then this post is for you.OK - the problems -When playing a sport outside of the gym you are often tied down to certain times and days which makes the gym routine less than perfect.For example - Recreational FootballerTuesday - footie trainingThursday -5 a sideSaturday - 11 a side matchSo the days free are Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun. To train all of these days you could end up burnt out and struggling to recover.I try to get some MMA in on Tue / Thur and Friday which means I could do some weights on those days but ideally an alternating pattern works...
After seeing so many of you guys get stuck into the Diet Plan I have decided to switch from my bulk to a cut a lot earlier than expected. I miss the discipline of dieting and would like to cut up without the pressure of meeting competition dates. In the summer I needed to be really light to be suitable for the Men's Health Competition but now I can drop body fat without any pressure.My current weight is about 14 '5.Squat, Bench and Dead lift at the minute only 10 kg below my personal bests at180 / 150 and 220 kgMy current plan is an Upper / Lower split pretty much most days - if I am tired, busy in work, burnt out etc I will rest up until the following day. I judge my rest by how I feel.Cheat days will be thrown in again when I feel I need them. If I don't feel I need to cheat I may just...
I feel strong again. I'm up to 90kg and have seen my lifts return, almost to where they were at the start of the year before I started cutting up. I recently benched 150kg and after this 180 kg squat I did a 220kg dead lift without straps and I had only started dead lifting again on Tuesday.Still plan to keep the bodyweight up until after crimbo and go for a cut next year to get the body fat down a touch. When I'm big I want to be leaner and when I'm lean I want to be bigger - never fecking happy!...
At last, it's complete!The book is short and sweet and contains lots of great information for you guys to get leaner than Bruce Lee . . . after he died.Check the right hand side of the blog for more info or clickWhen you get into awesome shape drop me a testimonial or at least leave a comment on the blog boasting about your washboard abs.I am off to bed to dream about Paypal buttons, HTML, Ebooks and other such geeky stuff that was almost beyond the reach of this iron head, protein...
This post is more of an expansion on my previous post detailing my weekly plan. Fitness First Newtownabbey has just received some great new kit which I want to throw into my new routine. Today I got to try this leg press machine which is great for something different on legs day.Also new - a 'free bar preacher bench' which is probably one of my all time favourite exercises. The gym has a machine preacher bench but, as with most machines, the fixed pivots just make it too awkward to use so I very rarely bothered with it.Finally - a decline bench press which is something I have only tried maybe once or twice. As with many people I have put a step under a bench to make a decline for dbell use but to have a proper place for them is excellent.In my routine I had planned to bench press on tue /...
Recently I was training with a textbook bodybuilding split. Just to hit each body part with more volume and reduced frequency.My new routine is basically the opposite. I've went back to increased frequency and dropped the volume to fit extra body parts / lift into my hour in the gym. I also started playing football during the week, nothing major, just a bit of astro turf footie with the older brother and a few guys from his work.Ok my new week -Mon - Legs -lots of the big lifts as well as good morning which I haven't done in ages and varied super set with calves and split squats.Tue - Upper body -Includes bench press, flys, bent over rows, straight arm pull downs, clean presses from waist and side raises. The compound lifts = 5 sets of 7 and the isolation stuff = 2 x 20 with little...
First, the bad news - I didn't win the competition but you can check out the winner on the Men's Health UK site. He is also featured on the cover of the October edition of the magazine. (Available on the 10Th of September).Secondly, the good news - Men's Health want me to work for them on their recently improved website. My role as Online Fitness Editor / Advisor will see me answering questions and doing what I do best - going on and on about lifting weights ! Details to be confirmed this month.Not winning is obviously disappointing but the job offer is great for me and my career in the long run. I imagine it can only benefit me as a Personal Trainer and I enjoy writing about training as much as I love teaching all things training related.Stay tuned and I will pass on the details as they...
. . . we find out who has won the Men's Health Cover Model Competition!I'd obviously love to win but either way it would be nice to get everything done and dusted. As the regular readers will know, I started dieting in Feb and the winner isn't featured until the October edition (available Sept 10th)That's a pretty long process to be involved in.The magazine will post the winner on their site pretty soon after the event and I too will try to keep you guys updated although I my have a serious hangover for a few days !Thanks again for all of your support.Neil...
Last year I really felt my legs and back were my worst body parts. I could squat and dead lift pretty good weights but the size just wasn't going on there as I would like. Check these tips on improving everything and how to give your physique the balanced look. Enjoy.Vary rep ranges, frequency and volume. Muscles are both fast and slow twitch in make up. Having power days and days of higher reps can help stimulate growth - this increased frequency can also help.Unilateral work. My legs have really responded to single leg movements such as the split squat variations. Try having your feet up on a bench and work with barbells and dumbbells.Small arms ? Work the triceps. They make up a greater percentage of the arm. You also need to bring up your shoulder girdle if you want guns and not pea...
Bofe Men´s Health 13/7/2007 Versão inglesa da publicação faz concurso para eleger belo da capa. Concorrentes são absurdos! Por Redação Foto: ReproduçãoUm dos belos...A versão britânica da Men´s Health - revista de beleza e saúde para homens existente em diversas partes do mundo, inclusive no Brasil - lançou um concurso para eleger seu próximo modelo de capa.No total, são 15 deliciosos exemplares masculinos que serão avaliados pelo público inglês que pode votar na página e ainda concorrer a um prêmio de mil libras, quase quatro mil reais.Entre os belos concorrentes, estão o personal trainer de 27 anos, Neil McTeggart, e tem um dos peitorais mais bonitos da competição. Outros lindos são Olly Mcguffog, um...
After uploading the last two videos I got a few emails from guys wanting to see my front squat and asking why I do them. Below is a deep front squat with 130kg. Front squatting loads the body differently and requires the abs to do more work than the lower back. I love the feeling you get doing these but man they are tough. This is 140kg and believe me its fecking heavy. I feel the bar digging into my collar bones that bit more on the front squats since I've lost weight whereas before I never even noticed. As you can see in the video, the great thing with squatting deep and not being able to get it, is the fact that you never get hurt due to the position of the safety bars. Two grip styles for front squats...
This is me after I'd already done 5 sets of front squats and had then moved on to back squats. For back squats I went up 160kg and then down again to 100kg. In this video I'm using 140kg. On the third rep you might notice that hit the safety bars which threw my balance a bit.Also a video of David warming up on the front squat - He is taller than me but still shoots pretty...
You can vote online for myself and others who made it to the finals of the Mens Health Cover Model Competition.Click to Vote !The standard of guys was very good this year. I saw all the guys on the day and believe me they all had put some serious effort in !We go back to London at the end of next month fora party and to find out who won the competition. I'll keep you all posted...
As you all know I dropped a lot of weight there for the Men's Health Cover model Competition. I head back to London in August to find out who won the comp and MH basically treats us to a night out. I'd like to stay lean for that event and to be honest stay lean from now on :-)Here's the plan -A 'clean bulk' to refill muscles with glycogen, build new muscle and ultimately try to stay as close to single digit body fat as possible. (I had hit about 7 percent there).In the past I have usually gone for the 'dirty bulk' which in reality is just the lazy mans way of adding size but can result in the body fat going a bit higher than it really should. Calories come from anywhere ! This method results in stricter dieting down the line to take off the excess body fat. Some guys really struggle to...
The after effects !OK - So on Saturday we hit London and met up with the other finalists and the Men's Health staff for the competition photo shoot. I cant mention any real details here as obviously the magazine wants to be the first to show the pictures and talk about the day so all I will say is that I had a great time - A big thank you to everyone involved - It was a great experience. The standard of competitors was unreal. Some had excellent mass - others going for the super lean look - I just got a sore neck looking up at these guys with their bright white teeth and chiseled chins ! B*stards !You can check the Men's Health site from the 9th of July for all the pictures and vote for the top guys. ( Vote for the good looking Irish underdog :-)How did I get in shape ?In Feb I was...