I survived the 28 day Muscle Explosion Challenge. I’m going to request that Nick Nilsson, the creator of the program, get some shirts made up with that slogan on them. It’s the least that he can do after what he put me through in the past 28 days. But it’s all been worth it. I gained 6 1/2 pounds of muscle in only 28 days. I never thought those words would be uttered out my ‘hard-gainer‘ mouth.

Following the Muscle Explosion has been one of the best things that I’ve ever done for myself. It forced me to step outside of my comfort zone. It forced me to try exercises and variations of exercises that I would have never imagined trying. I has totally transformed my physique, and I’m loving the comments that I’m getting from Angie and my friends in the gym. But most of all it’s transformed my mind.

I think that it has something to do with the challenge itself. I felt like a different person when I entered the gym. I had laser focus. I pushed myself harder than I’ve ever pushed myself in the past. I really wanted to put the Muscle Explosion program to the test.

The biggest thing that the Muscle Explosion program did for me was get me excited about putting on even more muscle. I’ve basically mapped out the next 6 months and Muscle Explosion is a big part of those 6 months. That in itself has a lot to say for the program. If it didn’t work for me I certainly wouldn’t be going back on it again. I’ll share my long term plan with you later this week.
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Today marks the beginning of the final week of the Muscle Explosion Challenge. After 21 days on the program I’ve added 4 1/2 pounds of muscle and 1 pound of fat to my body. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a difficult time adding 4 pounds of muscle in 3 months let alone 21 days. This is a bit ridiculous. I can’t wait to see the final measurements at the end of the 28 days to maximum mass.

The workouts this week are the same as last week and I’m loving them. The stretch-pause style of training has been very effective for me. I love the pump that it gives me, and I love that it has helped relieve the pain in my left shoulder.

On Saturday I had an hour deep tissue massage which was awesome. I can take the pressure on my upper body, but I usually have to ask the therapist to ease up on my legs because they are so frickin tight. But this massage was different. The therapist noticed right away. He said, “Wow, your calves and quads are not as tight as they usually are, and you’re not wincing in pain.” [Read more →]

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Day 17 of the Muscle Explosion Challenge is a day of rest which was much needed. This gave me the opportunity to take a few measurements. After 17 days I have gained 2 1/2 inches on my chest, 1/2 an inch on my shoulders, and 1/4 inch on each arm. I’m surprised that I haven’t gained any size on my legs after all the deadlifting last week, but maybe they still need to recover from all the punishment and abuse that I put them through.

It just goes to show that the mirror can be a really good indicator of the progress that you are making. It has been obvious to me during the past 5 days that my chest has been filling out quite noticeably. This excites me more than you can imagine because developing my chest muscles has been a major challenge for me over the years, especially since injuring my shoulder over 10 years ago.

The amazing thing is that [Read more →]

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My legs are screaming at me after and intense day of training with the Muscle Explosion program. My legs just about gave out on me during the last set of leg presses and sissy squats. This was a brutal combo for this style of training. When I was doing the sissy squats my legs were shaking out of control while holding the stretch position. It was crazy insane and amusing all at once

Nick proved how mean he can be by following up this pair of exercises with a leg curl and stiff leg deadlift combo. Not nice Nick! Not nice at all. I went from thinking my quads were going to seize up to thinking that my hamstrings were going to cramp up and I wouldn’t be able to stretch them back out.

In addition to legs, I also trained [Read more →]

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Today marks the beginning of the ’stretch pause’ training of the Muscle Explosion program. For the last remaining 14 days of the 28 days to maximum mass, I will be performing this awesome style of training. You may have heard of rest-pause training which is pretty darn effective. Well Nick’s stretch-pause training puts a wild twist to it and I’m loving it!

I achieved a ridiculous pump during this workout. Today I trained chest, back, biceps, calves, and traps. When I was doing the biceps curls I thought my veins were going to burst through my skin.

When I was holding the stretch position of the exercise I could feel the warmth of the blood rushing through my veins. And then when I finished off with the partial movement I thought [Read more →]

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It’s day 14 of the Muscle Explosion Challenge and my muscles are finally starting to recover from the abuse that the bodybuilding mad man Nick Nilsson put them through this week. I’m definitely noticing some changes in the mirror and feeling much stronger. Kudos to Jeff Doucette, who has been sharing his experience on the program as well. He has added 7 pounds of lean muscle mass to his body so far. I’m going to have to take some measurements soon

There is a downside to having a day off from working out. My nutrition is always better on the days that I train. Today I slipped up a bit and had [Read more →]

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I’ve completed all 5 workouts of the ’structural attack’ week in the Muscle Explosion Program. I have to admit that the Muscle Explosion program has forced me to step outside of my comfort zone. I never would have thought of trying anything like this before, and some of the training goes against conventional bodybuilding wisdom. I guess that’s what makes Muscle Explosion such a powerful muscle building program.

My strength and stamina dropped today. With the increase in duration to 40 minutes of deadlifting, it took everything that I had to get through today’s workout.

Once I completed the workout I experienced a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. This week has been a grueling test of my mental and physical abilities. I’d say that I passed with flying colors.

I learned a lot from this week. I’m learning that [Read more →]

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The second week of the Muscle Explosion program is a true testament at how our body can adapt to extreme situations. As the creator of the Muscle Explosion program Nick Nilsson says, “Your body is going into emergency mode. It’s digging deep into the reserves. What I’ve been doing during this 5 day structural attack, is controlled over training.

The Muscle Explosion program is designed so that your body has no choice but to get stronger and gain more muscle. It’s pretty wild, and when you see how the entire program is laid out, you really start to get the picture of power behind the program.

Increased Strength Once Again

For the forth day in a row I was able to increase my strength on the deadlift. Today it was [Read more →]

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My strength has been increasing dramatically over the past 3 days of the Muscle Explosion Challenge. The crazy thing is that it seems to go against all logic. But Nick Nilsson predicted this would happen. This morning I thought there was no way that I would be able to lift more today than I did yesterday. I really had to psych myself up for todays workout.

My body was feeling sore from 2 days in a row of deadlifting. 20 minutes of deadlifting on Monday, 25 minutes of deadlifting on Tuesday, and now 30 minutes of deadlifting today. Each day Nick suggests that we attempt to increase the weight in addition to the duration.

Yesterday I felt strong. I felt ready for the challenge. Today was a bit tougher. I wasn’t ridiculously sore. I knew that I would be able to perform the movement correct and safe. But, if I wasn’t following the Muscle Explosion program, and I wasn’t so excited about achieving great results, I would have taken today off.

Boy am I ever glad that I didn’t take today off. [Read more →]

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Absolutely Awesome! Day 9 of the Muscle Explosion Challenge is total proof that Nick Nilsson knows what the heck he is talking about. Yesterday I did 20 minutes of deadlifts. Today I did 25 minutes of deadlifts. In addition to increasing the duration of the workout, I also increased the weight. In the Muscle Explosion book, Nick mentions that even though I trained hard yesterday, my nervous system would be better ‘tuned’ to the exercise and I would probably be a bit stronger. He was positively correct on both counts.

Today I really felt like I had a rhythm going right from the start. Yes my muscles were sore from yesterdays workout, but I was eager and ready for the challenge. I was totally in the zone. I felt bigger. I felt stronger. I was ready to conquer what ever came my way.

My Abs Felt Ripped!

I am really glad that I took Nick’s advice and [Read more →]

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Today is the beginning of week two from the Muscle Explosion Challenge. This phase of the program is called “The Five Day Structural Attack”. Boy does my body ever feel like it’s been attacked today Basically the next five days is ‘controlled over-training’. I have a feeling that my muscles will be screaming at me by the end of the week.

For these 5 days of the program you are to choose one exercise and stick to that one exercise for the entire week. If it’s your first time on the program Nick recommends squats or deadlifts. I chose deadlifts. So today my workout was [Read more →]

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I’m proud to say that I survived the first 7 days of the 28 day Muscle Explosion Challenge. So far it’s been a great experience. Oddly enough, the first week of the 28 days to maximum mass, actually focused on weight loss. I am certain that I dropped a few pounds of body fat in the past week and I will share those results with you tomorrow. I was very happy that today was a day of rest with no workouts. My hamstrings are still sore from Friday’s workout.

The week finished off today with a fruit detox. All day long I was eating fruit bowls containing, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, plums, and apples. I also snacked on cherries. I actually felt satisfied in terms of hunger today. The only problem is that by the end of the day I really wanted something solid to chew on. I ended up chewing on a bunch of gum for a couple hours before bed.

Summary Of The Muscle Explosion Challenge Week 1…

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Day 6 of the Muscle Explosion Challenge consisted of the ‘core combo’ training along with 15 minutes of interval training. This was exactly what my body needed today. I love the core combo routine. It includes an abdominal exercise, a lower back exercise, and a great exercise to strengthen your rotator cuff. That shoulder exercise alone has done wonders for me.

For the interval training, here’s a video of the routine that I followed. It took 15 minutes… [Read more →]

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Muscle Explosion program are what Nick Nilsson calls ‘Tissue Remodeling’. The focus is on developing the connective tissue and at the same time increase growth hormone levels.

I’ve been fascinated with this two day phase. I will be asking Nick if [Read more →]

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Dude! The Muscle Explosion Day 4 workout was frickin awesome! I have never done anything like this before, and I’ve never felt a pump like this before. Seriously, when I was doing curls I saw veins that I never new I had and they were popping out like crazy. Absolutely incredible is all I can say.

The Workout

Today’s workout consisted of partial reps for high repetitions in both the extended and contracted positions. I’m not going to give everything away here, but I’ve got to tell you, this is one wicked way to train. I seriously felt huge walking around the gym because I was pumped full of blood and also I believe because a lot of the movements really focused on working the stretch position and probably created more room for my muscle to expand.

It wasn’t too difficult to choose the weight. I made sure that during my warm up I experimented with each exercise to get a feel for the weight that I would use.

The thing that really surprised me was how strong I was in the stretched position of a calve press. After doing this exercise I could feel the blood rushing to my calves and they felt incredibly warm and they looked very pumped.

This has always been a week point for me. I’m going to have to come back and revisit that exercise another day for sure.

Man did I ever get some strange looks from the guys in the gym today. I’m glad that I have my head phones on because I’m sure they would be asking me a bunch of questions.

Today the focus was on chest, back, biceps, and calves. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s workout and focusing on legs, triceps, and shoulders. I’m sure it will be awesome.

What I ate today

Breakfast: 3 whole eggs, Prograde VGF+25 multi-vitamin, and Prograde EFA-Icon

Meal 2: 1 can white flaked tuna, 1 tbsp mayo, Prograde Craver Bar (peanut butter)

Post Workout Meal: Prograde Recovery Shake

Meal 4: 1/4 cup almonds, 4 oz salmon, veggies

Prograde Supplements can be found at…
http://6packabs.getprograde.com

I know that the purpose of week one is to deplete your glycogen stores and to really restrict calories. My calories are quite restricted, but I remember Nick saying in the interview on how to make the most out of his program, was that one of the mistakes people make is to eat too much during the first week. He’s a big guy and he only consumes 1200 calories during the first week. I will try to reduce my calories a bit more tomorrow. At least it’s only for a couple more days then I get to feed myself

Mentally, I’m totally loving this program. It’s something fresh and exciting. That makes sticking to a program a whole lot easier.

I was still sore today from the 1st two days of training, but I pushed through that soreness and boy am I ever glad that I did.

But now, it’s time to hit the jacuzzi so I can be fresh for tomorrow’s workout.

Have a 6 Pack Abs-solutely awesome day!

Scott Tousignant

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