1ST SET
ASK MERLIN
BY ERIC “MERLIN” BROSER
STRICTLY
SPEAKING
PROPER EXERCISE
FORM AND HOW IT
CAN SPEED (OR SLOW)
YOUR PROGRESS.
First, let me simply say: Just look
at them! How could I possibly
argue with their results? They
have 12 Olympia titles, six Arnold
Classic wins, and a bunch of
other IFBB Pro League titles
between them! However, aside
from all other obvious factors
(i.e., superior genetics, PEDs,
Spartan-like discipline), did
they achieve their incredible
musculature because of, or in
spite of, their “less than
textbook” lifting technique?
Would each of these champions
have become even more
impressive if they all utilized
strict exercise form?
I think one of the most
important keys to success
when it comes to bodybuilding is
having complete and unwavering
faith in your own approach. If
you truly believe your method is
best and have no doubt it will
lead to the desired results, you
are already many steps ahead of
the game. And the men you
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FLEX | JANUARY ’18
mentioned have said several
times in interviews that they
could not imagine training any
other way. They all have
expressed that if they had tried
to train strictly and slowly, rather
than in the more ballistic style
they employed, that they would
not be nearly as massively built.
From a psychological standpoint
this might be true, because as I
mentioned, it is their faith that is
greatly responsible for their
results. However, if in their early
days they had been mentored by
someone who taught them to
train ultrastrictly—and that is
what they then did and believed
in—I personally feel they may
have grown just as massive or
perhaps even more so. Not to
mention that Ronnie and Branch
in particular have suffered some
rather severe injuries in their
careers, which may have held
them back to some degree (and
perhaps even forced them out of
the game early).
The best method for the
majority is very strict form/
technique and total concentration
on stimulating only the target
muscle. Cheating should be
used only to get a couple of extra
reps (or specifically, eccentric
contractions, which are vital)
after you can no longer complete
the ROM in proper form.
Coach Broser, I am
a big fan of your
videos online and
see that you are a staunch
advocate of using extremely
strict technique. What do
you say if someone argues
that some of the most
massive bodybuilders in the
world, like Ronnie Coleman,
Branch Warren, Jay Cutler,
and Johnnie Jackson, all
achieved their development
while using very “loose”
form on most movements?