How to fill a week?

[diamondpete]

Hi

WEEK 1
I will be finishing up Phase 4 of HGM Beginners at the end of next week (week ending April 23).

WEEK 3
From April 30 to May 8, I will be taking a week holiday (Golden Week for the Japan vets).

Herein lies the problem: What do I do in the week that falls in between (week 2)?

Choices
1. Take 2 weeks off instead of one.
(IMO, a wasted week, I do not want to unless there is a very good reason to)

2. Do an extra week of Phase 4
(seems a waste because I did and extra two workouts to “figure out the weights”, so I will already be “over 4 weeks, and I am thinking about periodization)

3. Start Phase 5, then have the week off and start again on week 2 of phase 5, or really start again on week 1 of phase 5?
(Mentally does not seem good, what do you think?)

4. Do Phase 1 of HGM and see how much the weights have jumped
(great ego boost, but that alone is not a good reason, is there a good reason?)

5. Do some Max weights lifts, deads, squats, bpress, and of course chins and dips, etc
(same as above, great ego boost, but that alone is not a good reason, is there a good reason, that out weighs the risk of injury, remember, I am still someone of a newbie)

6. DO something else? Got a fun 3 day a week workout, that can be done at home once?

Thanks in advance for your input

Peter

[Chris Correia]

I like:

#5 - It's something different, for fun.
#3 - Get the weights figured out; after that week, start week one over, ready to go.
#99 - I'm going to email you a copy of a reply Charles Staley posted to me - another "something different, just for fun."

I also realized I have to reply to your last email to me; I will, but I'm a bit crunched on time these next few days.

[steelerfan]

Get Srawny To Brawny and do the corrective phase, Phase 1 to correct any inballances you may have.

Would also then be a great follow up to HGM if looking to add muscle mass...

[bryanc]

I know you don't want to do it, but I like #1.

Do nothing for an extra week. Or rather, do nothing in the weight room for an extra week. Even Olympic athletes take a full month off every year with strict rules not to train (leisure athletic activities are fine). You've got some time, so take it. Your lifts are not going to fall through the floor--in fact you may find they go up after your break. Give yourself the reward of rest time.

[Chris Correia]

Originally posted by bryanc:
I know you don't want to do it, but I like #1.

Do nothing for an extra week. Or rather, do nothing in the weight room for an extra week. Even Olympic athletes take a full month off every year with strict rules not to train (leisure athletic activities are fine). You've got some time, so take it. Your lifts are not going to fall through the floor--in fact you may find they go up after your break. Give yourself the reward of rest time.

Shoot. I was going to say that, but I never follow that advice myself, so why should I give it, even if it is the right answer?

Compromise: 10 pushups, three-to-four times a day, for five days? That OK?

[bryanc]

Originally posted by Chris Correia:

Compromise: 10 pushups, three-to-four times a day, for five days? That OK?

No, silly, that's probably more volume than he already does now. The point of rest is REST. Disrupt your schedule. It's okay. You can do it. Don't worry, the gym will still be there when you get back. It will miss you, but bring it some flowers, take it out for dinner to make up to it, if you must. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[laxcdn]

How about trying this http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/austrian_blitz_.php

Do one day of legs and one day upper body supersets. ie bench and rows

[wingsfan]

bryan bring an interesting question to mind dealing with people that regularly workout.

why is it psychologically that we don't like to take a week off?

is it the unfounded fear that you'll lose all your strength/muscle/endurance gains all within a 7 day period? or is it more of a distrust in yourself that if you take a week off, you're afraid you won't have the drive to get you started up again?

[Chris Correia]

Originally posted by bryanc:

quote:

---

Originally posted by Chris Correia:

Compromise: 10 pushups, three-to-four times a day, for five days? That OK?

No, silly, that's probably more volume than he already does now. The point of rest is REST. Disrupt your schedule. It's okay. You can do it. Don't worry, the gym will still be there when you get back. It will miss you, but bring it some flowers, take it out for dinner to make up to it, if you must. [/quote]LOL. "Silly" was about the nicest thing you should have called me. Alright, pushups EVERY OTHER day.

Actually, especially as I'm working back into more intense taekwondo and kumdo workouts the past few weeks, after taking it a bit lighter for a bit, I find I am hitting an overtaining point REALLY quickly. I had a crappy weight workout on Tuesday, so I'm skipping the next couple of weight workouts. (Of course, I'll have done two hard martial arts classes last night and tonight. ) I personally am trying to appreciate the rest concept more these days.

[Lost Dog]

I don't think any of your options are "wasted." Never underestimate the psychological value of testing yourself and trying something different. So, 4, 5, and 6 are good.

2 is also good. There's no issue with going a extra week or two with a program. It's not a magic number, but a somewhat arbitrary number based on an ongoing scheduled workout. The designer, in this case, wanted a program that would take the lifter from one issue to the next. In fact, Mike Mejia has posted elsewhere that he was somewhat restricted based on the publishing schedule of MH. But, by and large, they came out 10 times a year (monthly, but with two long pauses in there somewhere). So, he designed them to work with that publishing schedule.

The only option that I don't like is 3. What start something new, only to have to take a week off and come back?

Personally, I'd choose 5, with no real structure and just have fun at the gym.

[Trian1]

I have had great success with:

1. Just go to the gym or basement, and just lift whatever you want in what ever order you want for 45 minutes. Think lifts you do not normally do.

or

2. An extra week off does give a chance for the body to recover and grow nicely. IMO, the reason is the body grows when it is surprised.

On the very odd occasion when I have been unable to start a new program as soon as I wish, an extra week off did one of two things...either the rest helped the body recover, or I had extra motivation to hit the weights again.

[diamondpete]

Thank you all for the interesting/imformative comments.

"bryan bring an interesting question to mind dealing with people that regularly workout.

why is it psychologically that we don't like to take a week off? "

I agree, I do not want to take a extra week off. I was also very hesitant to take the scheduled week off but that what a holiday is for, right.

1. One reason I do not want to kae off a the extra week is not so much that I am worried about losing the muscle, but gaining the fat. I have been on HGM since Oct, and have gone from 76 kg and change to this week breaking 68 twice:morning weight. (I usually bounce up up and down for a week to 10 days and then drop and stay in. So I expect I will be 68-69 this week, but by mid next week I will be consistyantly 68 (morning weight). Then I will hold 68 for a week or two ande then dip into 67, etc. At least that has been the pattern since I started in Oct. Aside from HGM, I have only been "watching my food quality, but not monitoring volume, etc.

2. Another reason is that I have only been training for 6 months and I feel that I have not yet become a "fitness person". By that I mean, I do not think that I have fully become entrenched in fitness and I could "slip out" if I slack off before the training habit has become a true lifestyle habit. I think many of us have this feeling, (perhaps more so for newbies) that we might somehow stop working out (as we have all seen people who have given it up). I have a pretty severe work schedule and I know the habit of "having" to work out has saved me a few times from missing some sessions.

3. Partner, my training partner is going back to Canada in June so we are both "set" on keeping the no workouts missed attitude/pace. I know he will not want to take 2 weeks off. He has made some very impressivie changes (-19 KG, but with cardio on off days)


Chris, looking forward to you email and the stanley bit,

Bryan, I was afraid someone would say something like that. I did not even want to list it as a choice... In my defense, or in the defense of not taking the EXTRA week off, I am not an olymipic athlete after all (I only look like one LOL) but I also feel that I have not trained long enough to need such a long break. I took a week off at new years and I missed two days in Feb because of the flu.

Anyway, thanks to everyone, and I will thinking and reading your future (if any comments). I hate to ask someone's advice and not take it, but to the extra week guys (Bryan and Trian) I must confess that I am leaning towards doing something, at least to keep the schedule habit going.

Thank you again

Peter

[Lost Dog]

I hear you about the fat gain. I'm in the same boat when I take time off, as I'm still trying to lose fat.

I have to really restrict my calories... I count on those workouts to make my diet more tolerable.

One good reason to do some workouts. Even ad hoc ones.