7 Ways to Change Your Workout to Look 3D

If you hit the gym to improve your physique, you’re probably striving for that ultra-hard, 3D look. The type of physique where every muscle pops and is perfectly shaped and sculpted. Unfortunately, many hit the gym without any real purpose and think that by simply going through the motions, they’ll see drastic changes in how they look. The sad reality is… that never happens. You need to change your workout to put yourself in a position to achieve the results you desire and look 3D.

In this article, we are going to look at seven different ways you can change your workout to achieve an impressive physique and look 3D. 

Disclaimer: As always, it is recommended that you speak with your doctor before engaging in any exercise program to ensure you are healthy enough to do so.

1. FST-7 

First on our list of ways to change your workout to look 3D is none other than a training method created by Hany Rambod. Used by athletes and competitors around the globe, FST-7 has become a staple in programs where maximum muscle growth is the goal.

What exactly is FST-7? FST-7 stands for Fascia Stretch Training, and the number seven refers to the number of sets you’ll complete for your final exercise.

Those who implement FST-7 into their program can achieve a maximal hormonal response and muscle hypertrophy. The goal with this specific training method is to not only force as much blood into the muscle as possible and create small tears in the muscle fibers but also to stretch out the fascia and allow more room for the muscle itself to grow.

Related Video: FST-7 Tip — Does Age Affect Training and Recovery?

To use FST-7 in your training, use an isolation movement as your final exercise (think along the lines of a cable triceps pushdown or a machine chest press that really targets just the muscle group you’re working). Strive for 8-12 reps on each of your seven sets. If you can only get 8 reps on your first set, the weight is too heavy, and you should lower it slightly. You will complete seven total sets with less than 30 seconds of rest between each set. 

When you’ve completed your seven FST-7 sets, your muscles should be engorged with blood and have an intense pump.

2. Progressive Overload 

When it comes to building quality lean muscle mass, this is one of the best ways to get the results you desire. Progressive overload isn’t some secret way to change your workout to maximize muscle growth, but rather something you should be striving for in each workout. 

If you’re one of those people who have been in the gym all year but still look the same, progressive overload could be a way to unlock new muscle growth. How does it work? Well, it’s not complicated.

Progressive overload is a training method where you are pushing the muscle further than your previous workout. For instance, if you were benching 185 for 3 sets of 10 reps, your next workout, strive to beat that. This can be done by adding a little more weight to your bench, adding more reps, or adding more sets. You could even slow down the tempo of the movement by going slower on the concentric and eccentric portion of the movement to increase your overall time-under-tension and stimulus on the muscle.

3. Eccentric Concentration 

Many people look at the concentric portion (muscle contraction) of an exercise as the key part of the movement. In actuality, the eccentric portion (elongating of the muscle and stretching it) is what does the most damage to the muscle fibers.

For those who have a hard time hitting those deep muscle fibers, concentrate more on the eccentric portion of an exercise to really fuel new muscle tissue growth. Eccentric concentration is a great way to change your workout and look 3D.

In order to utilize this training technique, you can do it in a couple of different ways. One way is to simply slow down the eccentric portion of an exercise with the weight you normally use. This could be two seconds for the concentric and four seconds for the eccentric. You want to resist the weight down and fight gravity.

The second way is to add more weight to the bar than you’re used to lifting, have your workout partner help you with the concentric portion of the movement and then really focus on slowing down the eccentric portion and overload the muscle.

4. Partial Reps 

A great way to change your workout and look 3D is to utilize partial reps in your training. Far too many people hit a certain number of reps in their head for a set and then rack the weight when they really had more in the tank. The goal of resistance training is to tax the muscle fibers and force them to grow. If you’re sandbagging your workout and not bringing the intensity with you each time you step in the gym, you’ll never achieve the 3D look you want.

With partial reps, you are to go through your normal set until your reach muscle failure or can’t continue without proper form. Rather than simply racking the weight, you will do partial reps. This can be a quarter or even half of your normal range of motion on the exercise. Strive to push out more reps by utilizing partials. If you fail at 10 reps, push for 15 reps by doing five partials to finish off the set.

5. Forced Reps 

Forced reps are very similar to partial reps in that they are done at the end of your set after failure has set in. If you train with a workout partner, change your workout around to allow for some forced reps and really target those deep muscle fibers and force them to grow. Muscle growth is all about stimulating the muscle, breaking down the fibers, and then allowing them to recover, rebuild, and grow.

With forced reps, your workout partner will help you at the end of your set. For example, if you are doing biceps curls and can’t get the weight up after completing 10 reps, your workout partner will step in and help you lift the weight for a few extra reps — pushing your muscle past the point of failure.

6. Drop Sets 

While being a great way to change your workout and promote new muscle growth, drop sets are a method that seems to be forgotten quite often. If the term “drop sets” doesn’t ring a bell, it is also often referred to as “descending sets” or “strip sets.” 

This method aims to push the muscles past failure by using a lighter weight. After completing a working set, drop the weight down by 10-15% and keep repping it out. If it’s dumbbells, move down the rack. If it’s the cables, move the pin up higher on the stack to lighten the weight. If it’s a barbell, strip off a portion of the weight on the bar. Push yourself until you hit complete failure, and it feels like your muscles are on fire.

If you want to take this method even further, you can do more than one drop set. After hitting failure with a certain weight, you can drop it down once more and rep until you achieve muscle failure again. You can implement drop sets as your final set of your workout to completely annihilate the muscle fibers and promote growth.

7. Compound Sets 

Are you looking to achieve a 3D physique? Then change your workout and add in some compound sets. If you’re not familiar with compounds sets, you may have heard of supersets. Supersets are doing back-to-back exercises for opposing muscle groups (such as chest and back or biceps and triceps, for example). Compound sets, on the other hand, are back-to-back sets of the same muscle group.

Compound sets can help push a ton of blood into the working muscle group and promote the breakdown and micro-tears of muscle fibers. A strategy to employ with compound sets is to move as quickly as possible from one exercise to the next so that your muscles don’t have time to recover.

An example of a compound set would be a bench press followed immediately by a dumbbell fly.

If you want to build a 3D physique implement some of these tips into your workouts and stack it with EVP 3D stim-free elite pump and training ignitor. Now available in our popular Java Series flavors in Iced Mocha Coffee and Caramel Frappe.

Want a Training Program and Nutrition Plan Laid Out for You? 

Hany Rambod has built out the ultimate training app! The FST-7 Training App can be downloaded to your smartphone and provides you with the guidance you need to constantly change your workout, dial in your nutrition, and get the results you desire. If you want to look 3D and turn heads, the FST-7 Training App is where it’s at!