Individualized Strength Training Part 5: High Frequency Training
High Frequency Is For Me, But Not For Everyone
If I had to choose one type of training for myself, I would likely choose high frequency training simply because it is compatible with my own particular physiology. At the same time, I want to make it clear that I do not believe that high frequency training is the best option for everyone. I say this because there are plenty of lifters who have experienced tremendous success by hitting each muscle group only once per week, which is low frequency training. Low frequency training can only work if a lifter has muscles that stay activated for muscle growth for a long time after a workout. Another way to put it is that a lifter must have an anabolic window that stays open for a long time.
Activation length, Retention, and Recovery determine Frequency
The optimum training frequency for a given lifter should be determined based on three basic factors which include:
- The length of time that the lifter’s muscles stay activated for muscle growth.
- The length of time that the lifter’s muscles retain the benefits of any gains made from his latest workout.
- The amount of time that it takes the lifter to fully recover between workouts.
Activation and Retention
A long activation period for muscle growth is one physiological aspect that enables some lifters to benefit from training each muscle group only once per week. Others may only gain muscle for 48 to 72 hours after a workout, but they are able to retain those gains for another five or six days before they start to lose the benefits of their last workout. The ability to retain gains for a long time is another attribute that characterizes those who are able to benefit from low frequency training. On the other hand, what if your muscles don’t stay activated for muscle growth for very long after a workout? Likewise, what if you don’t retain your gains very long after a workout? If this is the case, low frequency training will not work for you. You will need to individualize your workouts with frequent activation.
Frequent Activation
I am one of those people who need to keep my muscles activated often in order to benefit from weight training. Hitting a muscle group once per week or twice per week will never cut it for me as my muscles will deactivate and atrophy before the next workout. I need to work each muscle group at least three times per week, and I have found success with hitting each muscle group five to six days per week as well.
Many people have been taught that muscles need at least 48 hours to recover. They have been led to believe that their muscles will never have a chance to rebuild in between workouts if they work them five or six days per week. I once believed the same thing until I became curious enough to work my whole body five to six days per week. I was surprised to find that if I stuck with it for at least four days, my body was able to adapt to the higher training frequency and I didn’t lose any size or strength. On the other hand, I didn’t gain any either until it occurred to me that high frequency training might actually work if I altered my workouts to make recovery easier.
Easy Recovery is Needed for High Frequency Training
If you try high frequency training and find that it doesn’t work, it doesn’t automatically mean that all types of high frequency training are ineffective. Perhaps high frequency training will work for you if you make some of the adjustments that facilitate easy recovery. What are these adjustments?
Don’t Train to Failure
I had to learn the hard way that training to failure and high frequency training are not a good combination. Always leave at least two to three reps in the tank if you are on a high frequency training program. I suggest that you only repeat reps as long as you can maintain a steady even rep pace within a set. If you keep repeating reps to the point where you transition to a slower rep pace at the end of a set, you are pushing your sets to hard to recover within 24 hours.
Don’t Train Past The Point of Being at Full Strength
A second consideration for recovering within 24 hours is to avoid repeating sets for a muscle group to the point where it is no longer at full strength. If you fail to do this, you will find it hard to recover with in 24 hours.
Avoid Fatigue
High frequency training tends to work when you do the right kind of workouts by avoiding fatigue. You can avoid fatigue by avoiding high intensity sets, and by avoiding the implementation of too many sets.
Guidelines for Progression
The essence of effective high frequency training is to “train, don’t strain,” and to finish your workout with as much strength as when you started. This basically means that your workouts will not be overly hard or long. High frequency workouts should be brief and only moderately hard. If you carefully control your intensity and training volume, (which was emphasized in The Norwegian Frequency Project, an experiment on high frequency training), you will find that your body grows comfortable with the workouts. This will allow you to gradually add on weight from time to time without feeling as though the workouts are getting harder and harder. If you follow these guidelines for progression, you will find that it is possible to make consistent progress with high frequency training.
Keep The Exercise Selection Simple
If you choose to use high frequency training, it is helpful to keep the exercise selection simple for each workout. When you do too many exercises, it usually results in doing too many sets within each workout. When you do too many sets, you can’t recover within 24 hours. I suggest doing just one chest exercise, one back exercise, and one leg exercise. Assuming you are not pushing to failure, you will probably be able to perform two to three warm up sets per exercise, and then have the ability to stay at full strength for one to three work-sets for each exercise. You can also do one set per exercise for smaller muscle groups such as, triceps, biceps, deltoids, calves, and abs if you want to.
Not All Exercises are Created Equal
You will probably find that not all exercises are created equal when it comes to training frequency and recovery. You may be able to bench press every day, yet find it hard to do heavy back squats every day, or vice versa. Most of you will probably find it hard to recover from doing heavy deadlifts every day, so don’t do them every day. Nonetheless, you may be able to substitute deadlifts with an alternative pulling exercise such as pulley rows or lat pulldowns every day. Learn which exercises you can do every day without developing joint pain or burnout. If there are exercises that you can only do once or twice per week, then just do them once or twice per week, and do alternative exercises for the same muscle group on the other days of the week.
Several Types of High Frequency Training
I think it is important to point out that there are several types of high frequency training. Some of the high frequency options are listed below:
Consistent Volume and Intensity
Perhaps the most basic type of high frequency training is to find an ideal training intensity and training volume that can be used on a daily basis. Learn how hard to push each set and how many sets to perform for optimum results and make it your standard in terms of maintaining a consistent volume and intensity for your workouts. This is the type of training that is discussed in the book, High Frequency Strength Training, Guidelines for Making It Work. Another book you can read on this type of high frequency training is called, Heavy Frequency Training. You can read if for free if you go to the home page of this website and click on the book cover that matches the title.
Varied Intensity Workouts
Another option for high frequency workouts is to vary the intensity from workout to workout by alternating easy workouts with more demanding workouts. This is discussed in the book, The High Frequency Training Pyramid. The book is based on four levels of workout intensity that range from easy workouts with light weights to hard workouts with heavy weights. The easier the workout, the more days per week you can do it without overtraining. The heavier the workout, the less days you can do it in order to avoid overtraining. Sample workouts are explained in the book (which you can access for free on the home page of this website) but you can also find your own formula for how you want to integrate a schedule in terms of light, medium, and heavy workouts.
Some lifters like to do speed work with light or moderate weights. They also like to do some bodybuilding exercises for 6 to 10 reps, and powerlifting exercises for 3 to 5 reps. Each type of workout can be a separate workout which can then be alternated throughout six workouts within a week as follows:
Day 1: Heavy powerlifting exercises for 1 to 3 sets of 3 to 5 reps
Day 2: Bodybuilding exercises for 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps
Day 3: Speed Work with moderate weights for 6 sets of 3 reps
Day 4: Heavy powerlifting exercises for 1 to 3 sets of 3 to 5 reps
Day 5: Bodybuilding exercises for 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps
Day 6: Speed Work with moderate weights for 6 sets of 3 reps
Intermittent High Frequency Training
You can choose to do high frequency workouts without choosing to do them constantly. High frequency workouts can be done on an intermittent basis. I have seen this work in my own experiences and wrote about it in a book called BOOM! This book offers the option of switching back and forth between hitting each muscle group two to three times per week, and hitting each muscle group five to six times per week. It is normal frequency training alternated with high frequency training.
Caution
When using high frequency training, you must be careful not to dig yourself into a hole that keeps getting deeper and deeper. What I mean by this is that you may be able to handle high frequency training for two to four weeks without any problem, but if you go any longer, you suddenly feel more and more burned out, or one of your muscles or joints may start to feel more and more aggravated. Don’t train yourself into an energy deficit or an overuse injury. If your body begins to experience any of these problems, just cut back on your frequency for a week or two. When your body feels ready, start back into high frequency training as long as it feels good to your body.
Individualize Your Workouts
You are an individual. You must individualize your training to match what works best for your physiology. If you happen to be a person who needs frequent muscle stimulation in order for muscle growth to stay activated, I suggest that you study the concepts that are discussed in this article and apply them within the context of high frequency training.
Norms and Guidelines for the Majority
My personal belief is that most people should start with the training norms that work for the majority of lifters. The guidelines for the norms are based on hitting each muscle group with two to three workouts per week. Each muscle group should be worked with two to four warm up sets followed by two to four work-sets. The level of training intensity should be based on leaving one to three reps in the tank for your work-sets. If these basic guidelines work, keep following them. If the basic guidelines don’t work as well as you would like, you can start experimenting with added frequency, or decreased frequency, added volume, or reduced volume, added intensity, or reduced intensity. Eventually you will find a combination that works. How you arrive at the right combination of volume, intensity, and frequency will be discussed more in the next article. Best of training to you.
Individualized Strength Training Part 4: High Volume Training
It is hard to deny that there are some people who seem to benefit greatly from high volume training. What is high volume training? I will define it as doing 10 or more sets for a muscle group during a given training session. In my opinion, high volume training is counterproductive for the majority of lifters. I believe that most people will benefit most from doing 2 to 4 warm up sets followed by 2 to 4 work sets for each muscle group during each training session. This should be done in combination with two to three training sessions per week for each muscle group. That being said, not everyone fits into the norm as some people seem to benefit from doing much more than normal.
Even before steroids made their way into the weight training scene, there were bodybuilders who did tons of sets and reps to develop amazing physiques. Four of these lifters are listed and discussed below:
Bill Pearl trained each muscle group with 20 sets per workout and trained each muscle group three times per week (that’s 60 sets per week for each muscle group).
Chuck often did at least 20 sets per muscle group and trained each muscle group 3 times per week.
Bob Gajda regularly did at least 20 sets per muscle group and more or less trained his whole body every day using what is commonly referred to as peripheral heart action training or PHA. This basically amounts to a form of circuit training. Of all the elite bodybuilders I know of, it appears that Bob used the highest weekly training volume of any of them.
Leroy Colbert is considered to be the first bodybuilder to develop arms that measured over 20 inches. He did about 18 sets per training session for both his biceps and triceps.
You can learn more about how each bodybuilder trained by simply clicking on their names.
Work Your Way Up To It
If you have a chance to read the advice that these bodybuilders offer, they will stress the importance of working up to high volume training. Bill Pearl probably offers the most accessible training advice and outlines a program that takes 20 months to work up to. Those who follow his program all the way to the end will be doing the type of high volume training that he did. I believe that one of the reasons that high volume training often fails is because people don’t work up to it and jump into it too quickly. They burnout and figure that high volume training doesn’t work. If high volume training is going to work for you, you must take your time to work your way into it.
Don’t Train To Failure
Of the four lifters I listed including; Bill Pearl, Chuck Sipes, Bob Gajda, and Leroy Colbert, three of them emphasize their personal belief that it is not good to train to failure. They all warn others not to push their sets to failure.
Chuck Sipes Included High Intensity Training
Chuck Sipes is the exception among high volume lifters before steroids because he would train to failure on some of his sets. Chuck even did strip sets, or drop sets at times. This simply means that he would push a set to failure and immediately strip weight off the bar in order to do another set as quickly as possible. This would be repeated two or three times with little to no rest between sets before stopping.
How To Perform Drop Sets
Chuck Sipes Was Super Human
Chuck Sipes seemed to be the most super human among others who also seem to be super human in terms of their ability to benefit from high volume training. Many have tried to imitate Chuck’s training only to wilt and disintegrate under the high-volume work load he thrived on. I tend to agree with the other three lifters who warned lifters to always leave a couple reps in the tank and refrain from pushing sets to failure; especially when using a high volume training program.
How to Work Up To High Volume Training
I believe that most lifters will do best with a normal range of training volume. What is normal? It basically means to perform 2 to 4 warm up sets followed by 2 to 4 work sets for each muscle group two to three times per week. As long as the normal range of volume works, there is no need to change. However, if it stops working, you may want to try some higher volume training to see if it seems to be beneficial for your individual physiology.
My advice for experimenting with high volume training is to follow a 4 – step program.
Step 1: Two Series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 for a total of 8 sets
Step 1 begins with choosing two exercises for each muscle group and using a 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 pyramid procedure for each exercise. This will amount to 8 sets for each muscle group. As an example of this procedure, you can choose bench presses and incline dumbbell presses for chest and perform the following sets and reps for each exercise as follows:
1 set x 12 reps (Use a weight that allows 25 reps, but only do 12 reps)
1 set x 10 reps (Use a weight that allows 18 reps, but only do 10 reps)
1 set x 8 reps (Use a weight that allows 12 reps, but only do 8 reps)
1 set x 6 reps (Leave 2 reps in the tank)
Try the workout listed above for one month.
Step 2: Two Series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 6 for a total of 10 sets
If you feel like you are recovering from 8 sets per muscle group, you can add one more set of 6 reps to each exercise. This will amount to a series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 6 for each exercise and will equal ten total sets. This workout is listed below:
Complete the following sets and reps for bench presses and incline dumbbell presses:
1 set x 12 reps (Use a weight that allows 25 reps, but only do 12 reps)
1 set x 10 reps (Use a weight that allows 18 reps, but only do 10 reps)
1 set x 8 reps (Use a weight that allows 12 reps, but only do 8 reps)
2 set x 6 reps (Leave 2 reps in the tank)
Perform the workout listed above for six weeks. If you are still able to recover from the extra sets, you can advance to step 3 and try adding more.
Step 3: Three series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 for 12 total Sets
Those who want to add more sets can do so by advancing to three exercises including, bench presses, incline dumbbell presses, and flat dumbbell presses using the 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 pyramid for each exercise. This will amount to 12 sets for each muscle group. Do this workout for at least six weeks before deciding whether or not you can handle more.
Still think you can handle more training volume? If so, advance to step 4.
Step 4: Three series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 6 for 15 total sets
For step 4, you will basically start where you left off with the same sets and reps for the same three exercises, but you will follow this six-week plan:
Add one more set of 6 reps to bench presses during weeks 1 and 2,
Add an additional set of 6 reps to incline dumbbell presses during weeks 3 and 4,
Add an additional set of six reps to flat dumbbell presses during weeks 5 and 6.
If you are still able to handle the increase in volume, you will be doing a total of 15 sets. It is possible that there are some people who can still benefit from more. If you are one of these rare people, advance to step 5.
Step 5: Four series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 for a total of 16 sets
For step 5, you must add on a fourth exercise (I would suggest cable crossovers or incline dumbbell flies) and perform a 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 pyramid for each exercise. This would amount to 16 total sets. Do 16 sets for one month. If you seem to benefit from the added volume, proceed to step 6, which is the last step for those who benefit from high volume training.
Step 6: Four series of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 6 for a total of 20 sets
For step 6, you will add on one set of 6 reps to one of the exercises every month. Keep repeating this for four months in order to reach the point where you are doing a five set pyramid consisting of 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 6 for all four exercises for a total of 20 sets for your chest. Twenty sets would be the maximum limit that I suggest. This could be done once, twice, or three times per week for each muscle group.
Remember, the ability to benefit from high volume training is somewhat rare, but it is obvious that some people respond well to high volume training. Even if you are a super responder to high volume training, it is likely that you will still need to work your way up to it over time in order for it to work. If you are one of those who is going to respond well to high volume training, the only way to know is to try it out, which is why I suggest following the guidelines in this article as it will enable you to work your way up to high volume training without burning out before you ever get a chance to see if it really works for you or not. If you find that you respond well to high volume training, you can learn from others who have thrived on high volume training and try some of their training methods. Some resources are listed below to help you do this. Best of training to you.
German Volume Training
Boris Sheiko’s high volume powerlifting program written
Boris Sheiko’s high volume powerlifting program video version
Click on the book cover to read the following book:
Individualized Strength Training Part 3: Low Frequency Lifters
There are some workouts that tend to work for the majority of lifters. This is because there is a normal range of sets, reps, and intensity that is beneficial for most lifters. This is verified by Prilepin’s research that was done in regarding to the optimum range of sets and reps that should be performed when a lifter is using a specific percentage of his or her single rep max. Prilepin’s research was not done on a few athletes, but on close to a thousand athletes. The norms of sets, reps, and weight that most lifters should use to increase strength was discussed in the last article.
The Norms
If you refer back to the last article for the guidelines that the majority of lifters will benefit from, you will notice that the guidelines provide a range of sets and reps instead of an exact number. This is because even the norm has a range consisting of 2 to 4 warm up sets followed by 2 to 4 work sets for a given muscle group. The sets should be pushed to the limit rep or the marker rep while using weights that permit 5 to 15 reps. This simply means to stop a set when you can no longer maintain a steady even rep pace, or to push one rep beyond this point by stopping after the first rep that starts to slow down. Each muscle group should be worked 2 to 3 times per week.
All of the guidelines just listed are for those who fit into a normal range of sets, reps, intensity, and frequency that are beneficial for most lifters. One of the goals of every lifter should be to start with a normal range of volume, intensity, and frequency, and to narrow that range down to a specific amount of volume, intensity, and frequency that is best for their own physiology. This is what individualized strength training is all about.
I think it is important to point out that some of the most popular training methods fit into the norm. The West Side Method fits into the norm in terms of volume and frequency. The Starting Strength Method and The Texas Method fit into the norms in terms of volume and frequency.
Not Everyone Fits The Norms
Even though it is true that there are norms, not everyone fits into the norms. Some lifters are outliers. Outliers are lifters who lie outside of the norm and do not fit the typical pattern in terms of the amount of sets, reps, and training frequency that would be beneficial for most lifters. These lifters will benefit from doing either more or less training than normal, and they should develop an individualized strength training program that is designed for their individual characteristics.
How do you know if you don’t fit into the norm? The only way to find out is to try a training method that does not fit into the norm in terms of volume, intensity, and frequency. For the rest of this article, I will be discussing the type of training that is beneficial for those who respond best to low frequency training.
Low Frequency Training
Low frequency training simply refers to training each muscle group only once per week or less. People who respond best to low frequency training do not fit into the norm, although it is actually quite normal for outstanding powerlifters and bodybuilders to respond best to low frequency training. But remember, the best lifters in the world are outliers, they are not normal and you can’t assume that what works best for them will work best for you. All you can do is to try low frequency training and see if it works for you.
If you have tried a low frequency training program and it didn’t work, it doesn’t necessarily mean that there aren’t any low frequency training programs that will work for you, it only means that the one you tried didn’t work for you. Fortunately, there are a few options that you can try as there are several low frequency training programs that range from low volume, to medium volume, to high volume workouts. I will start with low volume, low frequency training first, which is often called minimalist training.
Minimalist training is done by choosing one to three exercises per workout. Each exercise starts with a light warm up set. You then continue with increasingly heavier warm up sets until you have completed three to five warm up sets. The warm up sets should never be so hard or difficult that they rob you of strength for your heaviest set which is not a warm up set, but a work-set. Only one work set is performed for each exercise.
If you are a powerlifter, you can do all three powerlifting exercises (squat, bench press, and deadlift) in just one workout per week. You can also split the three powerlifting exercises into three different workout days by having a squat day, a bench day, and a deadlift day. You would only do one exercise per workout and hit each exercise just once per week. A final option would be to workout twice per week. An example would be to do bench press and squats on Mondays, and overhead presses plus deadlifts on Thursdays. This is the type of training that Marty Gallagher is famous for advocating.
Marty Gallagher and Minimalist Training
Marty has an outstanding reputation for producing excellent results with as little as one workout per week among those he has trained including champions such as Kirk Karwoski and Mark Chaillet. Another minimalist was Mike Mentzer who nearly won the Mr. Olympia. If you find that minimalist training is the most effective type of training for your physiology, or you simply don’t have time to train more than once per week, then I recommend the following resources for you:
Marty Gallagher: Experiments In Strength Training Minimalism Part 1
Marty Gallagher: Experiments In Strength Training Minimalism Part 2
Marty Gallagher: Experiments In Strength Training Minimalism Part 3
Marty Gallagher: Purposeful Primitive
Mike Mentzer: High Intensity Training
Minimalist training has proven to work exceptionally well for a small percentage of lifters, but a lot of lifters may find a minimal amount of training is not enough work when training each muscle group just once per week. This doesn’t mean that training each muscle group once per week won’t work for you, it may mean that you simply need to train each muscle group with more sets.
Jim Wendler’s 5 – 3 – 1 Workout
One training method that will enable you to add more volume to your low frequency workouts is Jim Wendler’s 5 – 3 – 1 method. When using this method, the core four exercises are done which include the bench press, squat, overhead press, and deadlift. Each exercise is trained once per week on different days and assistance exercises are done to complement the four core exercises. When using this program, use a weight that allows you to perform five reps the first week. Increase to a weight that allows three reps the second week, and one rep the third week. The fourth week is a deload week with five reps using no more than 60% of your single rep max. The fourth week completes a four week cycle. The idea is to keep adding five to ten pounds to your lifts after each four week cycle.
When adding weight from cycle to cycle, you will eventually get stuck and fail to be able to reach the required number of reps. This is an indication that you should start a new four week cycle. When starting the new cycle, the weights should be 10% lighter than the heaviest weights you reached at the peak of the previous cycle. You can then start the process of adding five to ten pounds every four week cycle with the goal of reaching a higher level of strength before you get stuck and have to start over again.
After doing the main work sets for either 5 reps, 3 reps, and 1 rep, assistance exercises are done for the lift that is being performed in that particular workout. One of the assistance exercises should consist of 5 sets of 10 – 12 reps of the main exercise that is being performed. This means that if the exercise is bench press, you will do bench presses for either 5 reps, 3 reps, or 1 rep, and follow it with 5 sets of 10-12 reps of bench press. A second assistance exercise for chest or triceps can also be done to supplement your bench work.
If you are interested in learning more about Jim Wendler’s 5 – 3 – 1 method, refer to the following video and links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R38OvrWZLSw
Get Strong Fast With 5 – 3 – 1: Article from Muscle For Life
Giant Pyramid Training
Giant pyramid training is another option to consider for those who want to hit each muscle group just once per week. Giant pyramid training consists of starting out with a light weight when performing a basic powerlifting exercise such as bench press, squats, deadlift, or overhead presses. The first set is usually done with ten or more reps. Weight is gradually added over the course of eight to ten sets until you reach your heaviest set on your eighth to tenth set. The giant pyramid will help you to include plenty of volume at the start of the pyramid while working up to a high intensity set by the end of the pyramid. An example of a giant pyramid is listed below:
1st set x 20 reps with 20% of your single rep max
2nd set x 12 reps with 30% of your single rep max
3rd set x 10 reps with 40% of your single rep max
4th set x 8 reps with 50% of your single rep max
5th set x 5 reps with 60% of your single rep max
6th set x 5 reps with 65% of your single rep max
7th set x 3 reps with 70% of your single rep max
8th set x 1 rep with 75% of your single rep max
9th set x 5 reps with 80% to 85% of your single rep max
There are several variations of this type of training and you can see a few variations in the book, Giant Pyramid Training. The variations give examples of Richard Hawthorne (World record deadlifter), Eric Spoto (world record bench press), Andrey Malanichev (world record squatter), and Ronnie Coleman (Mr. Olympia). You can learn about these variations by simply clicking on the book cover below.
A Bro Split
The last option that I am going to discuss in this article is a “bro split.” Bro splits are most commonly used by bodybuilders. When utilizing a bro split, only one muscle group is trained in each workout and the muscle group is trained with a lot of sets, reps, and exercises. Five workouts are typically done within a week to train each muscle group once per week. An example of a bro split is listed below:
Monday: Chest
Tuesday: Back
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Shoulders
Friday: Legs
Saturday: Arms
The exact number of sets that are done for each muscle group varies from individual to individual, however, in general, at least ten sets are done for each muscle group, and it’s not uncommon for bodybuilders to do as many as twenty sets or more for each muscle group. An example of a bro split workout is discussed and demonstrated in the video below.
The information in this article is not for everyone as it is focused on individuals who benefit most from low frequency training. Among those who respond well to low frequency training, there is great variance in terms of how much volume and intensity is used within each session. Those who respond best to a minimum amount of training can use minimalist training or a Mentzer type of high intensity training. If you need more training volume, Jim Wendler’s 5 – 3 – 1 method is very popular. You can also try giant pyramids, and if you respond best to high volume one day per week, you may benefit from a typical bro split. In the next article, I will discuss individualized strength training programs for who are best suited to high volume training. Best of training to you.
Individualized Strength Training: Part 2
I am a believer in individualized strength training. This simply means that we are all different and need to train according to our own capacities and physiology. If you don’t know how to do this, you can fall into extremes and endless variations that are not the best option.
The Need For An Individualized Strength Training
The range of training methods among top powerlifters and bodybuilders is so huge that it can easily leave you confused and befuddled if you are looking to them for training advice. Bodybuilders differ in their approaches to training. Some prefer tons of training, others prefer brief workouts. When it comes to powerlifters, they all have the common goal of becoming as strong as possible. In spite of this, different lifters often use very different methods to get strong. One reason for this is because different lifters are different from one another. Some benefit from high volume; some from low volume; some from high frequency; some from low frequency; some from high intensity, and some from moderate intensity. Many of these lifters train the way they do because they have an individualized strength training program that fits the physiology of their own bodies. For best results, this should be done by everyone. In other words, we all need to formulate an individualized strength training program that is best for our own bodies.
Some of you who are reading this may have already tried out a massive variety of training methods. Either this has helped you to discover what type of training works best for yourself, or you may still be bouncing from one type of training to another in search of the best training method. One thing that would be helpful is to have a systematic approach to try out different methods in order to discover what type of training works best for yourself. The goal is to develop an individualize strength training program that produces the greatest benefit for your own personal physiology.
Starting With The Norm
I believe that the starting place for an individualized strength training program is to start with workouts that most people can perform with some degree of success. This is based on those who possess a normal range of capacity in terms of finding the right amount of sets, frequency, and intensity. It is important to point out the normal range is not a fixed number of sets or training days per week, it is a range. If you fit into the normal range, your goal is to experiment until you find the specific part of that range that is best suited to your physiology. This is what will be emphasized in this article, finding where you belong within a normal range of frequency and training volume. Some of you may not fit the norm, which will be discussed more in future articles.
The Normal Range Is Not A Bad Thing
For now, we will assume that most of you fit into the normal range in regard to the amount of frequency and volume that are optimal for the majority of lifters. By the way, fitting into the normal range is not a bad thing, many of the strongest lifters possess a normal range of capacity in terms of the number of sets and the training frequency that is most beneficial. The extensive research done by Prilepin who was a Soviet sports scientist is evidence of this. (Click on Prilepin’s Table if interested).
Most who fit into the normal range of lifting capacity will benefit from doing basic weight training workouts. The key to benefitting from basic workouts is not to do more, more, more, or to push harder, harder, harder, but to use better form and to refine the frequency, volume, and intensity according to your individual physiology, and to do so with enough precision to derive maximum benefit. What are some of the basic workouts that are beneficial for natural lifters who possess a normal range of capacity? Such workouts include:
Do warm 2 to 3 warm up sets followed by 3 work-sets of 8 reps.
6 sets of 6 reps using the same weight (70 to 80% of your six-rep max) for each set.
8 sets of 8 reps using the same weight (60 to 70% of your eight rep max) for each set.
Do 3 warm up sets followed by 5 sets of 5 reps with 90% of your 5 rep max.
Do 3 to 4 warm up sets followed by 3 work-sets of 5 reps.
Use a 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 pyramid structure for each exercise. The first three sets are warm up sets. The last set is a work set.
The set and rep schemes listed above should be performed two to three times per week for each muscle group. Why? Because the majority of lifters who do not use PED’s (performance enhancement drugs) will fit into the range of having the capacity to perform two to four warm up sets followed by two to four work-sets for each muscle group, and they will be able to recover from this when hitting each muscle group two to three times per week.
What about The Champions?
Why are there champions who do so much more than the norm, and other champions who do so much less than the norm? There are two main reasons, the first is that many of them are outliers who are not normal; the second is that many of them use PED’s (performance enhancement drugs). Basing your training on someone who has genetic qualities that are very different than the normal population will often lead to a bad experience if you try to imitate them.
What is an Outlier?
The scientific term for something that lies outside of the typical norm is called an outlier. For example, someone who is seven feet tall is an outlier because they lie outside of the normal range of height. It may be normal for a center in professional basketball to be seven feet tall, but it is not normal among the general population. Someone who has a photographic memory or an IQ of 200 is off the charts. These people are rare, but they do exist, they are outliers. Some people can build a huge amount of muscle and strength with just a little bit of training. These people are rare, but they do exist, they are outliers. Kirk Karwoski and Mark Chaillet are examples of this. Other people are the opposite, they thrive on huge amounts of training without over-tranining. These people are rare, but they do exist, they are outliers. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an example of this. Bob Gajda is an example of someone who could train his whole body everyday with tons of sets for each muscle group and build a Mr. Universe body. People may try to train like Bob, but most won’t benefit from training the same muscle groups every day with tons of sets. Bob’s capacity to benefit from a daily dose of tons of sets is rare.
When individualizing your workouts, you must understand that you should individualize your workouts to match your own capacities. Trying to imitate someone who has the ability to benefit from an extremely huge amount of training, or an extremely small amount of training, will leave you frustrated and confused. You will wonder why you are training like them without experiencing the results they seem to experience. The discrepancy between you and an outlier will be even greater if the outlier is taking drugs to build his strength and size. You will go mad trying to do what they are doing unless you are one of the rare outliers who is taking drugs like them.
The bottom line is that my advice for the vast majority of people who want to get bigger or stronger is to train within your personal capacities. Most people will be training according to their capacities if they follow the guidelines listed below:
- Train each muscle group two to three times per week. The exact amount of days per week depends on your personal recovery rate. Let results be the guide
- Use basic compound exercises to build strength and size. Examples of these exercises include:
Squats and leg presses
Bench press and bench press variations
Bent-over rows and seated pulley rows
Overhead press
Deadlifts
- Do two to four warm up sets for each muscle group.
- Follow your warm up sets with 2 to 4 work sets for each muscle group. The exact amount of work-sets should be based on how many sets you can perform at full strength.
- Stay within a rep range of 5 to 15 reps per set.
- Push your work-sets to your limit rep or your marker rep. Your limit rep is the limit of reps you can perform while maintaining a steady even rep pace with excellent form. Your marker rep follows the limit rep and is the first slower rep where you can no longer maintain a steady even rep pace at the end of a set. You do not need to push your sets to failure as it will eventually lead to a sticking point.
- The last guideline is to progress at the right rate. A lot of beginning lifters can add five pounds to their lifts every seven to twenty-one days for a few months when using a sound training approach. If you are a beginner, you must know that your gains will eventually slow down. At that point, you must have realistic expectations and allow time for the poundages and reps you are using to become easier before adding weight. It may be six to twelve weeks before you can add five pounds to your lifts. If you add weight too quickly, you will be forced to squeeze out slow grinder reps at the end of your sets in order to do the amount of reps you planned for each set. Slow grinder reps and training to failure can lead to overtraining. This will happen if you add weight to your lifts too quickly. I recommend adding weight at a rate that allows you to stay within your ability to maintain a steady even rep pace.
My Experience With Progression
After years of experimenting with different progression methods, I have found that Marker Rep Training is one of the most reliable methods of progression for consistent gains. You can read about how to use this method for free by clicking on the book below:
Personal Lesson: Be Careful Who You Listen To
In regard to my own training, I started lifting in 1979. I was sure the champions knew the secrets to training and I kept trying all of their training methods. After a couple years of beating my head against a wall with training systems invented by drug enhanced outliers, I began to find some fairly sound advice from lesser known authors who weren’t as famous, but their advice worked better. This consisted of people such as Bradley J. Steiner, Stuart McRobert, and Vince Gironda. You can learn from their training methods by referring to the following resources:
Bradley J. Steiner: Hard Work On Basic Exercises
Stuart McRobert: Hardgainer Routines For Natural Lifters
Stuart McRobert: Brawn and Beyond Brawn
Another trainer who understands the type of lifting that works for the majority of lifters who have a normal range of capacities and do not take steroids is Mark Rippetoe. I am sure there are others, but the trick is to find someone who puts out information that is easily accessible in an easy to follow format with good instruction. Mark Rippetoe will do that for you. The following books and videos will provide you with some resources in regard to Mark Rippetoe’s training methods.
Mark Rippetoe: The Starting Strength Method
Mark Rippetoe: Practical Programming
Video of Garrett Blevins Explaining The Starting Strength Method
Video of Garrett Blevins Explaining The Texas Method
I originally started writing this article with the intention of explaining how to individualize your training whether you fit into the norm, or you are an outlier and an extreme. It soon occurred to me that I couldn’t do this in one brief article, so this article ended up explaining the variations within the normal range of differences. The variations within the normal range of differences are not huge, but subtle in regard to training frequency and how many sets to perform for each muscle group. These variations were discussed in guidelines 1, 3, and 4 within the seven guidelines that were stated earlier in this article. The guidelines are intended to help you determine the precise type of training that is best suited for your body, which is what individualizing your training to your own physiology is all about.
In the next article I will deviate from those who fit into the norm and discuss those who thrive on low frequency training. There are substantial variations among those who fit into this category. These variations require different types of low frequency training which will be discussed in the next article. Best of training to you.
Of all the books on this website. 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 is probably the best one for providing workouts that accommodate a wide variety of individual differences in training frequency and training volume. You can read this book for free by clicking on the book cover.
Individualized Strength Training
If you don’t understand that there are large variations in the type of strength training that stimulates strength gains in different individuals, there is a good chance you will overlook the need for an individualized strength training program.
We all tend to interpret the world through the lens of our own experiences. One lifter thrives on high volume training, another thrives on a minimum of training. Ask the lifter who thrives on high volume training for training advice and he will likely emphasize the importance of doing a substantial amount of sets and reps. Ask a lifter who thrives on a minimum amount of training for advice and it is likely that he will tell you that only a small amount of training is necessary to make optimum gains. It’s very easy to evaluate the type of training that works best for yourself and to generalize your experience to something that must be true of everyone else who lifts weights.
Information Overload Is Not An Advantage
I have heard some of the weight lifters and bodybuilders from the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s discuss weight training. They comment that the current newcomer to weight training has advantages that the old timers never had because those who lift in modern times have access to so much information that wasn’t available fifty years ago. I partially agree with this, but in some regards, I disagree. Why? Because the information is so vast and so varied that it is hard to sift through all of it to find the type of training that actually works. There is a degree to which you will find that the old timers had to figure it out for themselves because they didn’t have access to as much information. Many of them had to go by their own results, and that’s the advantage they had back then, they learned to listen to their bodies and went by their own results. The natural outcome was that many of the lifters developed an individualized strength training program based on their own experiences. In many cases, it probably worked better than the confusion that occurs today because of publicized experiences of those with extreme genetics and an infinite variation of weight training methods.
Too Many Methods To Choose From
Now days there are so many ideas and training concepts floating around that lifters often listen to everything but their own body. If they are caught up with intensity concepts, all they think about is intensity. If they have been indoctrinated by those who advocate volume, all they can think about is doing enough sets. If they have heard that 5 x 5, or Westside, or The Cube Method, or The Texas Method, or some other method is the best method, they will get stuck on a formula instead of listening to their body and developing an individualized strength training program.
Individual Differences
Some of the recent research shows that some lifters gain more muscle doing a basic strength training workout than when doing a bodybuilding workout that is specifically designed to build muscle. There is also research that shows some lifters who did low volume-low intensity workouts such as 3 x 5 with only 60% of their max actually improved more than when they used a higher training volume or a higher training intensity. In the minds of many, 3 x 5 with 60% is a mere warm up, but for some lifters, it worked better than what we think of as a full workout. The point of all of this is that we are not all the same, which requires the need for individualized strength training programs.
Beware Of The Extremes
My last article featured Mohamed Makkawy who was trained by Vince Gironda. Vince considered Mohamed to be an extreme in regard to his ability to thrive on a high amount of training volume. It would be way too much for most people. At the other extreme would be Mark Chaillet who did deadlift workouts consisting of just five single reps. The first single was fairly light. Weight was then added to each successive single rep until he reached a heavy weight on his fifth single rep. He did this once per week to reach the point where he could perform an 800 pound deadlift. Mark thrived on low volume workouts that were only done once per week. The training he thrived on was the exact opposite of what Mohamed Makkawy thrived on.
False Reasoning
When learning of Mohamed Makkawy’s success with his high volume workout, I could reason that he found the secret workout that made him great. I could further reason that if I did the same workout he did, I would also become great. I could apply the same reasoning to Mark Chaillet’s deadlift workout and believe that since his workout made him a great deadlifter, it would also make me a great deadlifter. However, the truth is that when I try to imitate Mohamed Makkawy or Mark Chaillet, I get lousy results. This is what happens when doing something that worked for someone else instead of finding what would work best for me. It would be far better to develop an individualized strength training program or bodybuilding program that matches my own physiology.
Developing An Individualized Program Will Take Time
Learning what works best for your own physiology will take some time. I believe you can decrease the time it takes to find a good workout for yourself if you know some basic training concepts. The concepts I am referring to serve as guidelines that will help you discover your personal capacities for intensity and volume. These are the concepts that are emphasized throughout the precision point training website; especially if you click on “what is precision point training” section of the menu. Let me emphasize that the precision point training guidelines are just that, guidelines. If you explore various training variables that move you outside of precision point training guidelines, you may find a form a training that works really well for your physiology, but I believe the guidelines are a good baseline to return to if your training experiments aren’t going well.
In the next article, I will address different ways of experimenting to discover an individualized strength training program that matches your physiology. Best of training to you.
Mohamed Makkawy: High Volume High Density Training
t his peak, Mohamed Makkawy stood out as a top professional bodybuilders. He was one of the best, if not the best bodybuilder from 1982 to 1983 as he won seven professional competitions during that time period. Although he never did win the Mr. Olympia, he came very close with two second place finishes in 1983 and 1984. You can get a taste of his tremendous physique in the following videos.
Mohamed had a physique that sizzled with bodybuilding perfection. His aesthetics were flawless as though he had been sculpted with perfect proportions, plenty of size in just the right places, and the deepest cuts imaginable. It makes you wonder how he developed such an amazing physique. Of course, great genetics were totally on his side, but he also trained very hard.
High Volume Training
Mohamed’s preferred training style consisted of high volume training. He did a lot of sets and a lot of reps, while maintaining a very fast training pace with little rest between sets. Mohamed was very precise about how he performed his exercises and made a concentrated effort to focus his attention on the exact part of the muscle that he was targeting. This being the case, he preferred weights that were only moderately heavy as opposed to heavy weights. This allowed him to implement the fast paced, high volume training style that he used in conjunction with focusing on a specific aspect of the muscle he was working.
Vince Gironda
Even though Mohamed did not stress the use of heavy weights during his most successful years, he did engage in heavy lifting as an Olympic lifter during his earlier years of weight training. Much of Mohamed’s training style during the years in which he dominated professional competition came as a result of working with a famous trainer by the name of Vince Gironda, also known as the Iron Guru. During the 1950’s and 1960’s, a legion of outstanding bodies and bodybuilders came out of Vince’s Gym, but by the 1980’s it had been a while since Vince had worked with a top name like Mohamed Makawwy. Mohamed had already had some success before training with Vince Gironda, but after working with Gironda, Mohamed quickly went from good to great using Vince’s high-density training methods.
High Density Training
There are four types of “high” that are connected with weight training including:
- High intensity
- High volume
- High frequency
- High density
Most people are familiar with the first three terms, but the term high density is less common. It simply means to condense as much work as possible into a short time period for a muscle group. This generally means six to eight sets in five to ten minutes, which can only be done with rapid paced training and little rest between sets.
Tons of Sets
Mohamed’s high density training generally consisted of five to eight sets per exercise using the same weight for each set. When using this method, the first set is not overly hard, however, since the rest periods between sets are 30 seconds or less, each successive set becomes more difficult as fatigue rapidly accumulates. By the time the last set of an exercise is performed, the intensity is high, but it shouldn’t be so high that failure is reached. Vince didn’t believe in training to failure and preferred to leave one to two reps in the tank.
Don’t train to failure
Caution on High Volume Training
I think it is important to understand that Vince did not usually recommend high volume training for everyone and normally prescribed three to eight sets per muscle group for the majority of people he worked with. In Vince’s own words, this is what he had to say in regard to finding the optimum number of sets that you should do:
“All bodybuilders have looked in the mirror during a workout and noticed that they were getting a terrific pump in a particular muscle group. Usually this is encouraging, so you continue to train that bodypart.
But after a certain point, you notice that the pump is suddenly gone. Then you should remember the last set on which you still retained the pump. That’s the set you should have quit on.
If you do too many sets, the body goes into shock. It does that to protect itself from injury. If you could continue to pump a muscle, you’d rupture capillaries and injure yourself. That’s why your pump goes down. In other words, the loss of pump (over-tonus) is caused by overtraining.
Over-tonus also occurs in cases of generalized overtraining, when the muscles begin to slowly shrink, regardless of how much you train them (or probably because of how much you train them).
I think that anything over 8-10 total sets per bodypart will eventually lead to overtraining and overtonus.”
Even though Vince prescribed three to eight sets per muscle group, Mohamed was an exception, and Vince knew that he could benefit from doing a lot more sets than most bodybuilders. This being the case, he often had Mohamed do about four to six exercises for each muscle group. Each exercise was done for five to eight sets which amounts to 20 to 30 sets per muscle group. Each muscle group was worked at least twice per week and even more often if needed. Mohamed generally trained just one muscle group per workout, but he would often do three workouts per day in order to train three muscle groups per day. This type of training seems severe and I know Mohamed trained like this before competitions, but I’m not sure how he trained in the off season. I don’t think he used the extreme type of high volume training that he is known for throughout the entire year.
Mohamed’s Training Schedule
I am going to list one of Mohamed’s training routines, but remember, Vince Gironda, the trainer who prescribed this routine for Mohamed Makkawy, would only prescribe about one fourth this amount of training to most of his clients. When looking at Mohamed’s workout, consider that Mohamed had already been training for several years before doing such a high amount of sets and reps. He was also unique in his ability to thrive on high-volume training, and he probably only did it right before competitions. It’s the type of training you can try if you want to, but you must work your way up to it over time. As long as it seems to be working, you can keep working up to it, however, don’t fall in love with the idea of high volume training just because Mohamed Makkawy used it. Only apply it to your own training to the degree that it works for you.
If you keep increasing your training volume and reach a point where it starts to have a negative effect on your strength and size, it’s time to cut back and find the right amount of volume that is optimal for your own body. Don’t forget Vince’s advice to work a muscle as long as it will stay pumped, but don’t keep working it to the point where you start to lose your pump.
Mohamed Makkawy’s Workout
Chest
Flat bench press (to neck): 5 x 8
20° Bench press (to neck): 5 x 8
Incline bench press 40°: 5 x 8
Bent arm pullover: 5 x 8
Wide grip “Gironda” dips: 5 x 8
Straight arm pullover: 5 x 10
Back
High bench rowing: 5 x 8
Pullups to waist: 5 x 8
Wide grip chins behind neck: 5 x 8
Wide grip pulldowns to chest: 5 x 8
Legs
Hack squat: 5 x 8
Seated pulley leg squeeze: 5 x 10
Thigh curl: 5 x 10
Thigh extension: 5 x 8
Roman chair: 5 x 10
Flat thigh extensions: 5 x 8
Seated calf raise: 5 x 15
Standing calf raise: 5 x 15
Abdominals
Lying leg raise: 5 x 15 to 25
Hanging leg raise: 5 x 15 to 25
Hanging knee–in: 5 x 15 to 25
Bent knee situps: 5 x 15 to 25
Twisting situps: 5 x 15 to 25
Cross ankle crunches: 5 x 15 to 25
Shoulders
Wide grip rows: 5 x 8
45° lateral raise: 5 x 8
Kneeling cable raise: 5 x 8
Bent over cable raise: 5 x 8
Lateral raise: 5 x 8
Cable lateral raise: 5 x 8
Biceps
Incline dumbbell curl: 5 x 8
EZ Bar curls: 5 x 8
Cable short range seated curls: 5 x 10
Triceps
Parallel bar dips: 5 x 8
Bent over triceps kickbacks: 5 x 8
Triceps rope pulls: 5 x 8
Mohamed Makkawy was a great bodybuilder. If you want to try his methods, you can learn from his training and modify it as much as necessary to fit within the capacities of your own body. If you are interested in more information in regard to Mohamed Makkawy, please refer to the following links. Best of training to you.
Mohamed Makkawy’s Youtube channel
Mohamed Makkawy’s Facebook page with more video’s
A book that include some of Mohamed Makkawy’s training along with many other bodybuilders from the 1970’s and 1980’s
When To Load and When Not To Load
I know that loading weight to your lifts plays a huge part when it comes to gaining strength, but loading must be done correctly if it is to be effective. The basic issue I want to address in regard to loading weight to your lifts is based on the following question:
When is it a good idea to load weight to your lifts, and when is it a bad idea to load weight to your lifts?
My personal opinion on this subject is that progressive loading must be done if the intensity of your sets is below the rep speed threshold. However, if your training intensity surpasses the rep speed threshold, you should not keep trying to load more weight to your lifts as it can easily lead to overtraining. Of course, these statements will mean nothing to you if you don’t understand what I mean by the rep speed threshold, so let me explain.
The Rep Speed Threshold
The rep speed threshold refers to the point in a set where you can no longer maintain a steady even rep pace. For example, we’ll assume Steve can bench press 200 pounds for ten reps before he reaches a point a failure where he can no longer repeat any more reps. If you were to observe Steve perform his set of ten reps, you would notice that he could maintain a steady even rep pace for the first seven reps, but his rep speed starts to slow down on his eighth, ninth and tenth reps. In this example, the rep speed threshold occurs between the seventh and the eighth reps because that is the point in the set where a noticeable difference in rep speed occurred. How would you take this information and apply it to loading when Steve is benching with 200 pounds?
First of all, if Steve is maxing out on reps and hitting failure at ten reps, he shouldn’t be loading weight to the bar. The reason for this is because he is pushing three reps past the rep speed threshold which means he is pushing extremely hard. Under these conditions, he will be trying to add more difficulty to something that is already extremely difficult. The result is too much stress which causes overtraining and the inability to gain strength.
What type of lifting conditions should Steve create if he wants to add weight to the bar? He should back off to six or seven reps. Let’s assume Steve stops at six reps. If he does this, he will be able to maintain a steady even rep pace for the entire set. Most likely, he will be able to keep adding five pounds per week before he hits the rep speed threshold with 210 pounds for six reps the third week. He will know he has hit the threshold if he can only maintain a steady even rep pace for five reps, and the sixth rep starts to slow down. If Steve wants to continue to add weight to the bar in future weeks, he needs to decrease the amount of reps to three or four in order not to overload his body to the point where overtraining occurs.
The bottom line is that Steve should only add weight to the bar from week to week as long as he is able to maintain a steady even rep pace for all his reps. When the additions of weight accumulate to the point where the last rep of his sets starts to slow down, he should either stop loading more weight, or decrease the amount of reps below his rep speed threshold.
Load And Hold
Another option is what I refer to as load and hold. In order to explain this, let us refer back to the same example of Steve using 200 pounds for six reps. We will assume again that he is adding five pounds per week which will eventually bring his poundage up to 210 pounds for six reps. It is at this point that he can no longer maintain a steady even rep pace for all six reps and his sixth rep starts to slow down after five even paced reps. This is where Steve would stop loading weight to the bar and would simply keep repeating workouts with six reps until he gains enough strength to perform all six reps using a steady even rep pace. This would probably take three to six weeks.
Microloading
I think the load and hold strategy works especially well with microloading which refers to adding weight in very small increments of a pound or less each week. If you can lift 175 pounds for ten reps using a steady even rep pace for every rep, you can improve by simply adding one pound per week. Eventually you will reach a poundage that prevents you from maintaining a steady even rep pace for all ten reps. When this happens, don’t load, but hold at the same weight for as many weeks as necessary until you can perform all ten reps using a steady even rep pace again. You are then ready to start microloading again.
In my way of thinking, your body only has two goals that it is trying to accomplish when it decides to gain strength. These reasons are listed below:
Reason #1:
When lifting a weight for an amount of reps that is difficult to lift, your body becomes uncomfortable. This being the case, it gains strength to make it easier to lift the same amount of weight and reps. This is especially true if you start out lifting at a level of effort that surpasses the rep speed threshold.
Knowing this is important because if your level of effort exceeds the rep speed threshold, the amount of training stress is sufficient to gain strength. Your body will gain strength in order to make the same amount of weight and reps easier to lift. Trying to load more weight on top of this will make the stress harder which is the opposite of what your body is trying to accomplish. If you keep making your training harder when your body is trying to make the same weights easier to lift, you will be training in contradiction to what your body is trying to achieve. The lesson to be learned is that loading isn’t necessary when you exceed the rep speed threshold. If you want to push past the rep speed threshold, keep repeating workouts until you gain enough strength for the same weight and reps to become easy enough to perform using a steady even rep pace. It’s at this point that you are no longer surpassing the rep speed threshold and you can add a little more weight until you cross the rep speed threshold again.
Reason #2:
When gradually adding small amounts of weight to poundages that start out easy or moderately hard to lift, your body will gain strength in order to keep the gradual additions of weight from becoming harder and harder to lift. Your body will especially try to gain strength as you approach the rep speed threshold in order to keep the additions of weight from causing you to cross the rep speed threshold. This is because the weight training stress will dramatically increase if you surpass the rep speed threshold and your body wants to prevent this from happening.
The lesson to be learn is that if you are not exceeding the rep speed threshold in your workouts, you should load a little weight to your workouts each week as it will help you to gain strength. Once the additions of weight cause you to surpass the rep speed threshold, adding more weight tends to be counterproductive unless you decrease the reps to avoid crossing the rep speed threshold. You can then add weight to the reduced amount of reps.
The bottom line is that if you are not pushing your sets to the point where you reach your rep speed threshold, it is advantageous to load weight to your lifts each week. In contrast, if you push yourself past the point of your rep speed threshold, there is no reason to immediately load more weight as it will lead to overtraining. Under these conditions, it is better to allow time for the same workouts to become easier. Eventually, you will be able to perform your sets with the same amount of weight and reps while maintaining a steady even rep pace without crossing the rep speed threshold. At that point, you are ready to load again. Best of training to you.
Ed Coan: Why He Was So Great
Why was Ed Coan such a great power lifter? Some of it was talent, some of it was persistence, and some of it was a long term perspective that promoted intelligent training.
A Head Start With A 400 Pound Deadlift
The truth is that Ed was pretty strong before he ever started training. Some people are just naturally strong and Ed is one of those people. Even though he was naturally strong, he was not naturally big, however, this didn’t seem to matter as he deadlifted over 400 pounds in his first deadlift workout while weighing only 130 pounds. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Ed was way ahead of the rest of the pack before he ever started to lift weights. Even if he had started out as a huge lifter, a 400 pound deadlift would be pretty good, but a 400 pound deadlift for a 130 pound beginner is absurd.
The 500 Pound Squat
Ed says one of his initial goals in powerlifting was to gain enough strength to do a 500 pound squat. With good genetics on his side, he made fast progress and was able to achieve this in a little less than a year. His training strategy at the time was simply to max out twice per week until he made it to 500 pounds. At that point, he knew it was time to change his training strategy, and he began to use a 12 to 14 week training cycle. The cycle started with a weight that would allow him to perform ten reps. Weight was then added each week throughout the cycle until he reached a heavy single rep.
5 Pounds Per Cycle
Ed understood that no one makes rapid gains forever. Adding weight to your max every week is possible for a while, but not indefinitely. With this in mind, Ed made an effort to plan his training according to a reasonable goal that he knew he could attain over and over again. This goal was to gain five pounds of strength by the end of each training cycle. After doing some simple math, he could see that his strength would increase by 20 pounds every year and that he would be 100 pounds stronger for all his lifts in five years. In the minds of many people, Ed’s strategy may not have seemed like it was accomplishing much at the end of three months, but he knew it would add up to a lot within five years if everything worked as planned, which it did.
Ed Didn’t Max Out
When Ed planned his training cycles, he picked poundages that did not require him to max out on reps or weight at any point in the cycle. He trained hard enough to gain strength, but not so hard that it led to overtraining.
The End Of The Cycle
Everything about Ed’s plan was based on getting stronger by the end of each cycle. He could have pushed himself to break a personal record during the middle of the cycle, but he reasoned that doing so would hinder his performance at the end of the cycle. He always made a plan and stuck with it instead of thinking to himself, “I feel really strong today, I think I should ignore my plan and put an extra fifteen pounds on the bar. I am going to max out on reps to see if I can set a personal record.” Ed believed that lifters who did this would pay for it at the end of the cycle with a smaller end result.
It’s Hard To Progress From A Peak
Many lifters get bored and impatient with slow progress. When they intensify their workouts, they suddenly get stronger. They believe that this proves that harder training is superior, but what they are really doing is hitting a peak. Pushing yourself harder than normal can lead to short term peak performance, but it can also prevent future progress. It is hard to keep making consistent progress while in a peak because you must use up your reserve of recovery power to get there. If you back off and leave a little in reserve, you can keep gaining. You may not gain as fast, but in the end, you avoid plateaus and end up gaining more.
I believe that Ed planned his cycles according to lifts that he could already make before the cycle started. He knew that if his five rep max for the squat was 800 pounds, that maxing out on reps with 800 pounds would be too severe and would take away his progress in future workouts. Ed understood that he didn’t have to use 800 pounds to gain strength, he could start with 700 pounds for five reps and add 20 pounds per week until he hit 780 pounds. This strategy provided enough training stimulus to make him stronger. By using this method, Ed was able to make progress without ever failing to perform the amount of reps with the amount of weight he had planned before the cycle.
The main lessons that we can learn as to why Ed Coan was such a great lifter are stated below:
1. Ed had a head start with a huge amount of built in strength before he began lifting.
2. He made rapid gains as long as he could
3. When Ed could no longer make rapid gains, he understood how to alter his training in order to keep making slow but consistent progress for many years.
4. Ed didn’t try to progress from a peak, he progressed towards a peak. He never maxed out, but he did lift hard enough to gain strength without training so hard that he over-trained.
For examples of how Ed set up his workout cycles, please refer to the links and book listed below. Best of training to you.
The Man, The Myth, The Method (book)
Primary reference source: The Jugglife: Ed Coan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIVoRy7zPbg
Progressive Overload Weight Training
One of the most fundamental aspects of weight training is often thought to be the concept of progressive overload. This concept was drilled into my head when I started lifting a few decades ago and it often works really well for those who are on a two to three-month weight training program in preparation for a sport, and for lifters who are in the beginning or intermediate stages of weight training. If you fit within any of these categories, the progressive overload principle can help you to make excellent progress.
An example of progressive overload training through the weekly addition of more weight to an exercise is shown in the following example. This can also be referred to as linear loading.
Week 1: 5 sets of 5 reps 135 pounds
Week 2: 5 sets of 5 reps 140 pounds
Week 3: 5 sets of 5 reps `145 pounds
Week 4: 5 sets of 5 reps 150 pounds
Week 5: 5 sets of 5 reps 155 pounds
An example of progressive overload training through the weekly addition of more reps to an exercise is shown in the following example.
Week 1: 3 sets of 6 reps with 135 pounds
Week 2: 3 sets of 7 reps with 135 pounds
Week 3: 3 sets of 8 reps with 135 pounds
Week 5: 3 sets of 9 reps with 135 pounds
Week 6: 3 sets of 10 reps with 135 pounds
You can also alternate back and forth between progressively adding reps and progressively adding weight to your lifts as follows:
Week 1: 3 sets of 6 reps with 135 pounds
Week 2: 3 sets of 7 reps with 135 pounds
Week 3: 3 sets of 8 reps with 135 pounds
Week 4: 3 sets of 6 reps with 140 pounds
Week 5: 3 sets of 7 reps with 140 pounds
Week 6: 3 sets of 8 reps with 140 pounds
Week 7: 3 sets of 6 reps with 145 pounds
Week 8: 3 sets of 7 reps with 145 pounds
Week 9: 3 sets of 8 reps with 145 pounds
Notice in the previous example that the reps start with 6 reps the first week and increases to 8 reps every three weeks. Weight is increased once every three weeks, but the reps always drop from 8 to 6 when weight is increased.
Progressive Overload Weight Training Resources
For those who are interested in more information on how to apply progressive overload training, here are some links to articles, websites, or books that offer training which works off the overload principle:
Muscle And Fitness article: 5 Week Progressive Overlaod Program
An excellent book: Starting Strength
An Excellent website is HST or Hypertrophy Specific Training
I also recommend the following video as good resource in regard to progressive overload training. The video is not specifically about progressive overloading training, but is about a training method called “Hypertrophy Specific Training.” However, Hypertrophy Specific Training is based almost completely on progressive overload training cycles. Bryan Haycock is a highly educated man who is the inventor of this training method, am method that resulted from scientific data and research.
For those who train year around or have progressed beyond the beginning stages of weight training, the textbook definition for progressive overload may lack precision in how it should be applied. Why do I believe this? Let’s take a look at a definition used for progressive overload weight training in order to consider misconceptions that can easily arise.
The progressive overload weight training principle states the following:
In order for a muscle to grow, or strength to be gained, or performance to increase, or for any similar improvement to occur, the human body must be forced to adapt to a tension that is above and beyond what it has previously experienced.
This definition leads me to believe that in order to gain strength or muscle size, I must either lift a heavier weight or do more reps or sets with a weight than I have ever lifted before. I very much disagree with this concept. I feel it is based on a premise that is terribly misleading and creates mindsets towards weight training that are counterproductive.
Let me explain, I do believe that you must increase the weight, or reps of your workouts at some point in order to keep gaining strength and size, but not all of the time. The next statement I am going to make is diametrically opposed to the textbook definition of progressive overload. The statement will be its own paragraph because I want to emphasize its importance:
I am absolutely positive that you can workout using an amount of weight and reps that you have previously lifted and get stronger from it. Furthermore, you can repeat workouts with the same amount of weight and reps and keep gaining strength from it for quite a while. I believe this because I have done it.
Let me give you an example, if you can bench press 185 pounds for a maximum of ten reps, you can keep on repeating workouts with 185 pounds for two to three sets of ten reps for quite a while and gain strength from those workouts. You don’t have to immediately increase to 190 pounds as soon as you gain strength in order to keep on getting stronger. Likewise, you don’t have to immediately increase to eleven reps or keep adding sets as soon as you gain strength in order to keep getting stronger. You can simply repeat workouts with 185 pounds for ten reps and you will keep getting stronger for quite a while.
As you get stronger from lifting 185 pounds for ten reps it will become easier. Of course, if it eventually becomes too easy it will cease to stimulate strength gains. However, I want to emphasize that this won’t happen right away and you should not train as though you must always immediately overload your muscles with an increase in weight or an increase in reps at the first hint of gaining strength. Why? Because it will lead to the pattern that kills progress.
The Pattern That Kills Progress
The pattern that kills progress occurs when you train in contradiction to the goal your body is trying to accomplish when it gains strength. What is this goal? Your body is simply attempting to decrease the amount of stress it takes to lift a weight by making it easier for you to lift the same amount of weight and reps when it gets stronger. With this in mind, a contradiction occurs when your response to a strength gain is to immediately add weight or reps and make the weight harder to lift. Your body’s goal is to experience less stress and easier lifting, but you contradict this by immediately making your workouts harder with an increase in stress. The eventual response of your body will be to shut down your ability to gain strength because it always makes lifting harder instead of easier.
Think about this question:
- If the main goal that your body is trying to accomplish when it gains strength is to make your workouts easier, why would it gain strength when you oppose your body’s goal by immediately making your workouts harder whenever you gain strength?
When your body knows that strength gains will lead to an immediate increase in stress instead of a decrease in stress, it will stop gaining strength. When does your body figure out that an increase in strength will lead to an immediate increase in training stress? It figures it out when you develop a consistent pattern of immediately adding weight in response to strength gains.
The whole idea in weight training often seems to be to overwhelm your body with a difficult weight training stress so that it has no choice but to respond with strength gains. If you believe this is true, then let me ask you a question in regard to overwhelming your body to achieve strength gains:
- Why would your body want to gain strength and allow you to use even more weight or reps when it is already overwhelmed with the amount of weight and reps that you are currently using?
Your body gains strength to escape from a state of overwhelm, not to intensify it.
Overload vs. Sufficient Load
You don’t need overload to gain strength, what you really need is sufficient load. Sufficient load does not require that you improve by exposing your body to an amount of weight or reps that you have never used before.
Overload vs. Ideal Load
Instead of pounding the idea of overload into the minds of those who train with weights, it seems it would be a lot better to consider the idea of ideal load. What is ideal load? Ideal load can be obtained by using strength training thresholds. Strength training thresholds are sufficient and they are ideal.
Weak Reps and Strong Reps
Those of you who are familiar with precision point training concepts on this website will already understand the difference between strong reps and weak reps. For those who are not familiar with the terms, strong reps and weak reps, I will explain it like this:
As long as you can maintain a steady even rep pace during a set, you are performing strong reps. When you reach the point in a set where fatigue sets in and your rep speed noticeably slows down at the end of a set, you have crossed the threshold and have transitioned from strong reps to weak reps.
Progression Strategy: Convert Weak Reps to Strong Reps
If you are pushing a set hard enough to encounter the slower weaker reps that occur at the end of a set, you don’t need to add weight or reps in order to get stronger because your body will want to grow stronger in order to move the threshold in favor of easier training by converting weak reps into strong reps. Let me explain.
If you can bench press 185 pounds for a maximum of ten reps, the first seven reps will probably be strong reps that you can repeat using a steady even rep pace. The last three reps will probably be slower weaker reps. The fact that you are forced to lift the weight slower for your last three reps shows that they are significantly harder than the first seven. Your body will be uncomfortable with the last three reps because they are harder. In order to decrease the difficulty of the weak reps, your body will try to gain strength. In the process, weak reps will become easier to lift and increasingly faster until they are converted into strong reps. Let’s look at another example.
Improve Your Ratio of Strong Reps to Weak Reps
If you must push to failure to perform ten reps with 185 pounds, the ratio of strong reps to weak reps will probably be about seven strong reps to three weak reps. A two to three percent increase in strength will cause the ratio of strong reps to weak reps to change to eight strong reps and two weak reps. Further improvements in strength will allow you to perform nine strong reps to one weak rep, and you will eventually improve to the point where you can perform all ten reps as strong reps.
Getting Stronger From The Same Workout
When you reach the point where all ten reps are strong reps, it is likely that you would have the ability to do thirteen reps with 185 pounds if you pushed to failure, but you don’t need to push to failure to get stronger, all you needed to do was to keep doing ten reps with 185 pounds until all ten reps became faster stronger reps, which are higher quality reps.
The significance of what was just described is this:
Seven strong reps and three weak reps were converted into ten strong reps. The only way your body can accomplish this process is to get stronger, and it all occurred by repeating workouts with 185 pounds for ten reps. In other words, you don’t need to immediately overload your muscles with more weight or reps every time you gain strength in order to keep getting stronger.
Those who believe in the overload principle are convinced that it requires an increase in weight or reps to gain strength, but it doesn’t, it doesn’t, it doesn’t, it doesn’t. Yes, you will eventually need to increase weight or reps to gain strength, but not right away, you can simply repeat workouts with the same weight and reps and get stronger. This will work for quite a while before you need to add weight or reps. Once all weak reps are converted into all strong reps, that’s when it is time to think about adding weight. If you take this approach, you can avoid the pattern that kills progress. Why? Because the training stress is becoming easier with improvement instead of harder with improvement, and when the stress finally becomes too easy, that’s when you add weight or reps.
Marker Rep Training
If you have bought into the idea of progressive overload weight training and it doesn’t seem to be working as well as you would like, I would suggest reading the book, Marker Rep Training (available for free on the home page of this website). Marker Rep Training is done by pushing a set until you reach a point in the set where your rep speed starts to slow down. The first rep that is noticeably slower than the previous reps of the same set is called the marker rep. The marker rep is a weak rep. If your marker rep were to occur on your eighth rep with 250 pounds, stop on your eighth rep. Instead of adding more weight or reps, keep repeating workouts with 250 pounds for eight reps until the eighth rep becomes easier and converts into a strong rep. If you can perform all eight reps as strong reps for three workouts in a row, it is a sign that you have gained enough strength to add a little weight. But before you add weight, you can gain strength by allowing the same weight and reps to become easier due to an increase in strength.
The bottom line is that you don’t always need progressive overload weight training to gain strength, however, you do need sufficient load and you can also gain strength by allowing the same workouts to become easier, not harder, over time. Once the workouts become easy enough, you must make them harder, but don’t immediately make them harder each time you gain a little strength. If you follow this process, you can avoid the pattern that kills progress and avoid plateaus. Best of training to you.
The Biggest Mistake In Weight Training
If there is one aspect of weight training that has been addressed multitudes of times in the blog articles and books on this website, it could be summed up with the following statement:
One of the biggest keys to consistent strength gains is to train with precision in terms of training hard enough without training too hard.
If you don’t train hard enough, your body has no reason to change by gaining strength because your body can handle the training stress in its current condition. In contrast, if you train too hard by using too much weight, too many sets, and too many reps, your body will become overwhelmed with the training stress you are putting on it. Why would your body want to gain strength and allow you to use even more weight, sets, and reps, when it’s overwhelmed with the amount of weight, sets and reps that you are already using? It wouldn’t.
I could put it another way:
Perhaps the biggest mistake in weight training is to either train to hard, or not hard enough.
I am not the only one who believes this. Listen to the following interview with Dr. Brad Schoenfeld, a researcher on the science of gaining strength and muscle size.
Brad Schoenfeld Interview
Be In Tune With Your Body
Dr. Schoenfeld goes on to say that you must be in tune with your body in order to determine if you are training with the right amount of volume and intensity. He also explains that it is an individual matter as there are individual differences in regard to how much volume and intensity are best for each lifter.
The Starting Place: Training Thresholds
When it comes to knowing how hard and how much to train, I believe the starting place is the use of training thresholds. I often refer to these thresholds as “precision points.”
The Rep Speed Threshold
The first training threshold to be aware of is the rep speed threshold which means that you should be aware of how long you can maintain a steady even rep pace when lifting within a set. I recommend that you stop a set after reaching either your limit rep or your marker rep. Your limit rep is determined by the limit of reps that you can perform while maintaining a steady even rep pace. Your marker rep is the next rep after the limit rep, which means it is the first rep that starts to slow down after you can no longer maintain a steady even rep pace.
The Peak Strength Threshold
A second training threshold is based on how many sets you can repeat before you begin to weaken and can no longer perform as many reps as you normally can with the amount of weight you are using. I sometimes refer to this as the peak strength thresholds as the concept is to repeat sets for a muscle group as long as you are at peak strength during a workout. Stop when your strength drops.
If you stick with these guidelines, you can always adjust the intensity and volume upward or downward to see if it works better. From my own personal point of view, the use of the training thresholds discussed in this article is the most consistent, predictable, way to ensure that I am training hard enough without training too hard.
Find The Right Training Frequency
The next step is to find a training frequency that works. The optimum training frequency can vary according to how hard and how much your training. If you use training thresholds, you won’t be pushing your sets to failure, nor is it likely that you will be performing tons of sets as most people do not have the capacity to perform tons of sets while remaining at full strength. Since you are forced to limit the intensity and volume when following the guidelines for training thresholds, you may find that you can train more often without overtraining.
What is the single biggest mistake in weight training? It basically comes down to training too hard, or not hard enough. If you are not making progress, ask yourself if you are making this mistake. If your answer to this question brings you to the conclusion that you are either training too hard, or not hard enough, make adjustments as necessary until you find the sweet spot in terms of the right amount of intensity, volume, and frequency. Best of training to you.
Relax When Lifting?
Stay tight! This is the advice that you will hear from a lot of lifting coaches. Of course, it is good advice because if you relax under a heavy squat or deadlift, you could suffer a disastrous injury or simply miss the lift. While it is true that you must maintain a substantial amount of tightness when lifting, consider that there may also be an element of relaxation within lifting.
There is never such a thing as total relaxation in any sports movement. Total relaxation means no movement at all. Even so, you will see runners who have a relaxed stride or golfers who have a relaxed swing. The opposite is also true as you will see runners who appear to be tight when they run, and golfers who are too tight or rigid when the swing a golf club. The right amount of tension must be applied at the right time in combination with the right amount of relaxation.
Richard Hawthorne is great at the deadlift and squat. He makes the point that successful lifting is based on the proper application of energy flow. He tries to let his body respond to the weight by letting energy and drive build up in his muscles. At the same time, he chooses not to initiate maximum tightness in his muscles before even starting the lift. The different muscles have to sync up with each other at the right time during a lifting motion for optimum lifting to occur. If one body part is too quick or too slow during one part of the lifting motion, the proper form and leverages are lost. Every part of the body must exert the right amount of tension with the right amount of relaxation for a lift to work right. It often takes lots of lifting experience to get the right feel for each exercise.
In the following video, Nsima Inyang (also known as The-natty-professor) stresses the importance of relaxing his face and neck when performing heavy squats. Once again, he is not advocating complete relaxation, nor is he saying that you should not try to keep your back and glutes tight throughout the lift as there must be a high degree of tightness. However, when you tighten up to the point where stretch reflexes no longer activate at the right time and the rhythm of the lift is destroyed, then tightness is interfering with the lift instead of enhancing the lift.
Relaxation And Recovery
Another issue when considering the role of relaxation in lifting is recovery. Instead of psyching yourself up and straining against the weight, consider not psyching yourself up. Be calm and let your body go through a natural process of reflexively responding to the weight in order for the various muscle groups to exert force at the right time and the right place. You may find that this practice allows you to conserve more energy during your workouts and makes it easier to recover.
If you find that maintaining a degree of relaxation doesn’t work when lifting, then throw it out. However, you may find that it helps you lift better and recover better. You’ll never know until you try it out. Best of training to you.