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Dr. Carl Juneau, PhD

A University of Montréal, London, and Harvard alum, Dr. Juneau is a former trainer for the Canadian Forces with a PhD in Public Health/Epidemiology.

Wrote 153 posts
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Build Muscle Faster With This Tip From the First US Male Powerlifter to Win Gold at the World Games

Mike Tuchscherer is somewhat of a legend in powerlifting circles. In 2009, he became the first male in USA Powerlifting history to win a gold medal at the World Games. He’s also won 2 bronze and 3 silver medals, setting (drug-tested) squat and deadlift world records multiple times. He

2 min read

Muscle hypertrophy and muscle damage: no pain, no gain?

Last month, I wrote a review for Greg Nuckols titled Training for Hypertrophy: The Case Against Muscle Damage. Today, I’d like to update and expand on that review. I’ll add a bit of evidence in favour of the “muscle damage” theory of muscle hypertrophy, to provide a more

3 min read

Update 913: Customize Your Rep Range to Focus on Building Muscle and Strength or to Burn More Fat

Back in 2001, I was reading my first book on building muscle (Delavier’s Strength Training Anatomy), looking for the best reps range to build muscle. At the time, most coaches agreed there was a “hypertrophy range”. Usually 8-12 reps, but sometimes 6-12 reps. Even textbooks relayed the idea. But

1 min read

Training for Hypertrophy: The Case Against Muscle Damage

This week, I was PUMPED to contribute this article to Greg Nuckols’ awesome site (I’ve been amazed by Greg’s work over the years): Training for Hypertrophy: The Case Against Muscle Damage In this piece, I review the evidence on muscle damage. Does it really cause hypertrophy? I was

1 min read

Rest-Pause Set for Hypertrophy: Benefits, Examples & More

A practical, science-based guide to building muscle faster with rest-pause sets, a technique used by the only bodybuilder to ever beat Arnold Schwarzenegger at the Mr. Olympia

Science 12 min read

Update 889: Dr. Muscle now tells you how to warm up to boost your power and strength performance

We’ve just released warm-up sets! In a systematic review, McCrary et al. (2015) found “strong research-based evidence” that “warm-ups enhance power and strength performance.” In a meta-analysis, Fradkin et al. (2010) found that “Warm-up was shown to improve performance in 79% of the criterions examined.” So, you should warm

2 min read

Podcast: Effective Reps & Strategies for Hypertrophy

I was on the Sigma Nutrition podcast with Danny Lennon (truly one of my favourites podcasts). We discussed effective reps and strategies for hypertrophy. As always, Danny asked great questions. He surprised me a bit, and we jumped into the juicy stuff right away. Highly recommended if you’re into

2 min read

Podcast: The Science of Effective Reps and Rest-Pause Sets

Steve Hall of Revive Stronger just published a new podcast with me. Steve is a class act, and it was a pleasure to be on to discuss the science of effective reps and rest-pause sets: The Science of Effective Reps and Rest-pause Sets I wrote about the science of effective

1 min read

Transform your body and your life forever

Let me tell you a story: In 2008, I got an email one night. It read: “Hi Carl. I’ve done a lot of research and I’d like you to be my trainer. I’m 44 and I’m obese (252 lbs). I can’t live like that anymore.

2 min read

Effective Reps: Are All Reps Created Equal For Muscle Hypertrophy?

Are all repetitions (reps) created equal for muscle hypertrophy? Or are some reps more effective than others at building muscle? I’ve been thinking about this concept of “effective reps” for some time, and I’m delighted to announce that Alan Aragon just published my first paper on the topic.

1 min read