My biceps are soft as pillows. Ever since I was a kid and used to flex muscles with other kids, I noticd my biceps were always soft and theirs were harder, even now, where my arms are 16 inches, even whenI flex, my guns are like dough. They are big and all but not HARD you know. I want them to be hard. What makes them hard like that. Is it some kind of special diet or what, that gives them that hard feeling.
Post your pic on the T-mag photo forum. Maybe you’re fat and in denial.
Ive noticed it to. While my biceps arent soft, they are JUST as strong and defined as other peoples but are softer to touch. Also some of my muscles are harder when flexed than others. I wonder what the physiological reason is.
This was recently discussed here in the forum. Follow this link: Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION threads/thread.1953935228.html
That link doesn’t work.
Juity, when you paste the link into your browser, delete the space between “forum.1/” and “threads”
The link works fine if you delete the space.
As you’ll see from reading the thread, there are differing opinions about this issue. I sort of left off in the middle of that last thread because I didn’t feel like getting into a huge argument with Joel and the others, but after reading what they wrote my opinion remains unchanged on the subject. Aside from reducing your bodyfat (which is most likely the culprit, especially if you’re young and have 16-inch arms), I don’t think that there’s much you can do to make your muscles harder.
You can improve your muscle density to a degree, check out this article- Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION
Tension, especially resting tension. Pavel talks about this alot in his books. Master your ability to control tension, and you can be as hard as you want. I am a big believer ever since I got my kettlebell. Tension is the reason why a 135 lb Roman soldier could defeat a 190 lb barbarian.
Tension was the reason why the Romans defeated the Barbarians? Wow, and all those historians have been thinking for years that it was superior military tactics and organization. Thanks for setting the record straight.
From all my experience and reading, it seems to be a combination of:
1)Diet, Diet, Diet!!!
2)Heavy and progessive training.
3)Isometric Contractions (“Flexing”) on a regular basis, and
4)Anabolics…
Nicely put.
I’m willing to bet that it was superior tactics, training and weapons that enabled the Romans to win their battles.
Fellas, firstly I agree that Pavel is quite thorough in Power th the People concerning tension and density, his ideas are solid (no pun intended) and fully applicable to the real world as well. Secondly, the Romans were, indeed, a tense bunch. They would be pacin’ around and around, just looking to pick a fight but the Aristocrats were all money and couldn’t be bothered and sacrificin’ virgins gets bored quick. When various barbarian hordes entered the Roman villages on the outskirts of the main city, the soldiers, ornery from pacing around and flexing, just stabbed the bejesus (BC) outta 'em. Then the Barbarians got Conan and that warrior later played by Grace Jones. It was all to hell from there.
MBE: “Retarding history. Since 0001.”
-Eric
How many skinny ripped little kids do you know with muscles as hard as a rock? Even though they have no bodyfat they don’t produce enough androgens. You can train your ass off in whatever manner you please and you might get a temporary or maybe an all day pump but until you get some juice flowing through your body (either naturally or otherwise) you’re gonna wake up every morning feeling soft like you describe.
Juity, it sounds like you and I have a lot in common. Even though I have “larger” than normal arms, my biceps have never been “hard, round, full” or whatever as others I know. On the other hand though, my triceps have a gi-normous in comparison to my bis. You know what I did? Ian King’s 12 weeks to greater guns program. I feel it slightly prioritizes the bis and now, in my 11th week my biceps are as big and “charged” up as ever. And my tris are kickin too! Give it a try. Follow his instructions. They worked for me. Oh, and be sure to follow a good diet and recovery regimen. Your bis won’t grow if you don’t feed them and let them rest. Sand.
First of all, I would like to take the time to thank all you guys for this thread. This thread is busy clearing the air (to some degree) on resting tension, and I like Mufasa’s breakdown on what would be necessary to create that “hard” look, not ripped, but hard. AND, a extra bonus? Learning about the Roman Empire.
The hard look and feel comes from three factors: resting tension, myofibril density, bodyfat, and skin thickness. Can’t change the thickness of your skin, but all the other factors are changeable through what Mufasa wrote.
For what it’s worth, I have a very small (5’8", 150lbs) friend who happens to be very strong (particularly for his weight, ~280lb bench, 405 squat & dead), and when we play football with the boys, when you tackle him he’s hard as rock. So I guess good relative strength and 5% bodyfat help.
Alterations in resting tension are not possible. It is possible to increase your neurogenic tone (when movements and contractions occur), and myogenic tone (muscle density), but having the muscles in a partial state of contraction at rest is not possible.