Innholdsfortegnelse for February/March 2017 i FLEX Australia

STATS DATE OF BIRTH January 23, 1983 BORN Shaqlawa, Kurdistan LIVES Sydney, Australia HEIGHT 175cm WEIGHT 96kg competition 105kg offseason INSTAGRAM sam_m_ifbbpro SNAPCHAT sammymo83 FAVOURITE SUPPLEMENT BSN Syntha-6 Edge Salted Caramel Sam Mohammad arrived in New Zealand in 1999 as a refugee after his parents gave up everything they had, including the family business and wealth, to escape the threat of dictatorship. In the land of the long white cloud they found a fresh start, but it wasn’t easy at first for then 16-year-old Sam. “I hated school, he says. “I was bullied, I was picked on, I was made fun of, because of my different culture and the fact that I had no English when we first moved over. I hated lunchtime as I had no one to hang…

ORIGIN First held in 2002, the Arnold Classic Strongman event pays homage to old-time circus strongmen like Louis Cyr and Arthur Saxon from the late-19th and early-20th centuries. Events include the 450-pound (204kg) Austrian Oak overhead log lift, one-handed overhead push press with the 300-pound (136kg) Cyr Dumbbell and 1000-pound-plus (453kg+) deadlift. RULES Each lifter gets three successively heavier attempts in the deadlift. For the Austrian Oak lift and Cyr Dumbbell push press, lifters get one attempt for reps with the heavier weight; anyone failing that then does reps with a lighter weight. The Bale Tote has two heats ending with 1540 pounds (698kg), while the 1100-pound (499kg) Timber Carry features one attempt for distance in 30 seconds. WHAT Staged before fans over the whole three days of the Arnold…

The Olympia is the ultimate gun show. On the Orleans Arena stage each September, the world’s greatest biceps and triceps are fired in shot after shot. In celebration of this annual event, we’ve assembled tips from 20 qualified competitors for the 2016 Mr Olympia and 212 Olympia. All of them offer up expert advice, and all of them are heavily armed. PHIL HEATH DOUBLE BICEPS CURLS “An exercise I sometimes throw in pre-contest is the two-arm high-cable curl in a cable crossover station. With this one, my arms are parallel with the floor throughout, so the exercise mimics the front double biceps pose. I like to do exercises that mimic poses, because, obviously, I want to look my best in those poses on the Olympia stage. But I also think…

In the context of modern cinema, IFBB Figure Pro Zoe-Claire Yaworsky might just be the equivalent of a Wes Anderson creation – the finely crafted narrative and superior dialogue matches Yaworsky’s own gorgeous looks, sharply-defined physique and unmistakable presence on stage. Her recent National Figure Open Champion win is the culmination of years of hard work, dedication and sacrifice which has resulted in the most coveted of status in this sport, the IFBB Pro card. Her story is unconventional yet intriguingly profound. Spending the first half of her life in UK and Hong Kong, Yaworsky immediately noticed her athletic frame didn’t fit the mould among her Asian friends, who were traditionally petite and small framed. “The majority of the girls I was surrounded by were mostly very petite and slender,”…

SHAPE-SHIFTER CAN YOU SHAPE YOUR BICEPS? HYPOTHESIS Every now and then a bodybuilder comes along with an exceptional body part that gets everyone asking what the secret is to developing such amazing muscle shape. Larry Scott, for example, was known for the long muscle bellies and an impressive peak of his biceps. One of his favourite exercises for biceps was preacher curls, which started the belief that doing “Scott curls” would allow anyone to develop the same shape of their biceps. Is it really possible to grow specific areas of a muscle to change or improve its shape? RESEARCH Brazilian researchers performed an experiment to determine if doing curls would lead to muscle growth in specific areas of a biceps or if growth occurs evenly throughout the muscle. Subjects performed…

It’s time for that conversation. It may seem early. But this is Mamdouh Elssbiay’s fifth pro year. What holds some people back from bold proclamations about his legs is the fact that the Beast from the Middle East is only 32 and still seems like a work in progress – especially when you consider how dramatically he’s transformed in just a few years. At the top of the lower-body wish list are deeper cuts in his quadriceps and hamstrings and larger calves to balance out the enormity of muscle above his knees. Maybe we’ll see that at future Olympias – and if we do he’ll likely be hoisting Sandows. Or maybe his “treads” are destined to never match his wheels. For now, let’s focus on what Big Ramy already has.…

This time of year provides a few guarantees: beach traffic, sweltering heat and plenty of opportunities for get-togethers with friends and families where there’s food aplenty. Undeniably, the latter can be rough on your diet – after all, who can resist second helpings of Mum’s famous potato salad? But too many poor food choices during summer gatherings can have long-lasting repercussions for your waistline. According to research from Cornell University, US, people are more likely to pack on Santa-like proportions of fat during the holidays, and it can take up to five months to shed them. So whether you’re hosting or attending a gathering, it’s a good idea to take a preemptive strike against ruining your hard-earned buff-to-blubber ratio by getting in the kitchen and rustling up some better-body party…

“A PERSONAL TRAINER WITH MUSCLES, EXPERIENCE, HUMILITY, COMPASSION AND CONVICTION, AND WHO SPEAKS KINDLY AND WISELY CAN BE WORTH HIS OR HER WEIGHT FOR THREE ONE-HOUR TRAINING SESSIONS AND AN OCCASIONAL FOLLOW-UP CONSULTATION.” Having spent considerable time in the gym in the pursuit of physical development, I’ve devised a random yet comprehensive list of problems I suspect might represent us all. Though I often use “you” to make a point, don’t take it personally. Or, maybe, do. 1 Purpose, the lack thereof You’re lazy and unmotivated, without spirit or enthusiasm, and feel no excitement or desire. In the ’60s we said you were a bummer on a bad trip. Today I say you are without purpose. If your purpose were strong and well-defined, none of the aforementioned negatives would materialise.…

OPENING ARGUMENTS Defense “Slow and controlled” is probably the most common bit of coaching that you’ll hear from a personal trainer while you’re doing any exercise. This is because performing an exercise in a slow and controlled manner reduces your reliance on momentum to move the weight. Reducing momentum increases the quality of contraction and increases time under tension, thus increasing the potential to stimulate hypertrophy. Prosecution Performing negative or eccentric reps too slowly can significantly reduce the mechanical stress of each rep, thus reducing its potential to stimulate hypertrophy. EVIDENCE Eccentric contractions are known to produce a more potent stimulus for growth than concentric contractions. Research from McMaster University, Canada, demonstrated that fast eccentric contractions (<1 sec down) produce greater muscle damage (ie, Z-line streaming) than slow eccentric contractions…

Edgar Allan Poe once said: “The true genius shudders at incompleteness - and usually prefers silence to saying something which is not everything it should be.” The expression by this literary great emphasises the importance of merit through hard work and a willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve this sense of completeness. A man who personifies that premise is multi-award winning IFBB champion Michael Galley, whose name is so synonymous with the sport of bodybuilding that the mere mention of his name draws compliments. He is a man who lives and breathes the sport in every facet and every element, constantly pushing himself to succeed, as well as promoting the sport that he loves. Galley recently returned to the stage after a four-year hiatus from the sport, winning…

After nearly two decades covering the sport of bodybuilding, I’ve seen some pretty extraordinary things in the gym. I’ve watched guys do arse-to-grass squats with hundreds of pounds and press out powerlifting competition-worthy bench presses and IFBB pros strip weight trees bare for all kinds of crazy lifts. Yet to this day, the most impressive feat I’ve seen was some relatively scrawny dude – he couldn’t have been more than 77-78 kilos, if that – step up to the pull-up bar, leap up to grab hold and then proceed to deliberately churn out rep after rep after rep. After 10 perfect pull-ups, I was already awed. By 15, I started to wonder what branch of the military he had served in. When he hit 20 without a hiccup in form,…

MOUNTAIN DOG TRAINING AT ITS GUT-CHURNING BEST IS A HELLACIOUS GAUNTLET OF PAIN. It’s a partner goading you through a series of agonising forced reps after you can’t lift the weight on your own. It’s a dropset, working your way down the rack once, twice, three times, then maybe attempting a handful of excruciating partials for good measure. It’s an iso-hold that stretches seconds into an interminable battle against gravity. By the end, your muscles are quivering, temporarily useless – and primed for insane growth. Just imagine then a Mountain Dog disciple who happened upon John Meadows training back of late. Notably absent are the techniques that have permeated his popular YouTube clips. Oh, the all-out effort is still there, but every set ends exactly at failure and not a…

Arnold Schwarzenegger Check out that V-taper! The best bodybuilder of his day also sported a killer beach body. Dave Draper The “Blond Bomber” was the archetype for all the sun-, sand-and surf-loving musclemen that followed. Frank Zane Known to many as history’s most aesthetic bodybuilder, Zane had a physique that impressed without intimidating. Hugh Jackman Over the past two decades, few actors have shown up fitter, on screen or in the ocean, than Wolverine. Joe Manganiello Ten guys are walking down the shore. One is Joe. Which guy will the women be checking out? Exactly. Matthew McConaughey What’s not to love about Matt’s body? He keeps getting older, but his physique stays the same. Terry Crews The multi-cover guy and Old Spice pitchman is so big and jacked that he…