I've been working out for a few months and I've seen some nice gains for a skinny bastard. In the past month I've been doing a very unorganized upper/lower split. When I made the plan (with the help of others from the site, thanks guys), I had scheduled to work both upper and lower twice a week. But, I have not been able to stick to my schedule, being that I have two jobs and other stuff going on.
With that being said, I think a full body routine would be a better fit for my time. This way, when I miss a workout, it doesn't throw me off track. I just pick up where I left off. I've done some research and I found a couple plans (HGM and HST), but neither of them really strike my interest.
My Question:
So you guys have any suggestions for full body WO's? I wish I could do more research but I don't have the net at home and I can only use it at work for 10 or 15 mins. once a day.
I workout at home and have a weight set/bench, leg ext., ez bar, dumbbells, swissball, pull-up bar, total gym, and a treadmill.
Check out T-Nation and do a search of TBT and check out Total Body Training by Chad Waterbury. I just started it Tue. and doing my 2nd workout tonight, so can't give any results. But it seems like a solid routine based off of mostly compound movements. I only thing I had a little doubt about is the one day you do 2 sets of 15 reps, I didn't think over 12 reps was ideal for adding mass. Can somebody explain the reasoning for this? In later weeks it jumps to 18 reps one day a week?? It starts with 3 sets of 5 reps on day one then 3 sets of 8 on day 2 and 3 sets 15 the 3rd day..
This looks like a perfect routine for me. I quickly get burned out on things and this routine gives me the advantage of changing my lifts without changing the routine. I should have no problem getting my 3 workouts a week and they look to be relatively short (under an hour). I'm on an extremely tight schedule and I think this will fit in. Everything looks great!
the days where you do 2 sets of 15 or 18 i would think are to increase muscular endurance, theres more to it but thats what i figure. also remember the whole idea behind the program is periodization, which doesnt mean one day do 12 reps and the next day do 13, there has to be more of a gap. anyway im starting that program either next week or the week after, so we'll see how it goes.
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And major action will certainly make you feel a bit uncomfortable, which is absolutely fine. You've gotta get excited about feeling uncomfortable, you've gotta love feeling slightly uncomfortable, because you know that you're stepping outside the boundaries that you used to create.
Zach Even-Esh
I've made some huge mistakes, but they were necessary, because without them I wouldn't have learned anything.
-Dave Tate
HGM is an awesome routine. The first two months are a super burly full body circuit. I am at the end of the second month and have seen great results so far. It is definitely challenging (you might even puke) but well worth the effort.
the days where you do 2 sets of 15 or 18 i would think are to increase muscular endurance, theres more to it but thats what i figure. also remember the whole idea behind the program is periodization, which doesnt mean one day do 12 reps and the next day do 13, there has to be more of a gap. anyway im starting that program either next week or the week after, so we'll see how it goes.
I hate this whole concept of "muscular endurance." I personally think its crap, and that the benefits of working with such high reps are outweighed by the befits of lower rep training.
That said, I've seen Chad incorporate high rep days as recovery work, and I think it can be very beneficial. I also like the way he puts routines together. This should be a good routine for you.
Anyone else have any thoughts on "muscular endurance"?
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i think the benefits of low reps are much greater than any benefits from high reps when you are talking strength, size, etc. but i still think that higher reps will increase endurance better than doing sets of 5 reps. sure if you're doing supersets or a circuit then you can be increasing your endurance while using low reps, but i would think high reps are better for that one purpose. anyway im not a professional so dont listen to me, theyre just my thoughts.
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And major action will certainly make you feel a bit uncomfortable, which is absolutely fine. You've gotta get excited about feeling uncomfortable, you've gotta love feeling slightly uncomfortable, because you know that you're stepping outside the boundaries that you used to create.
Zach Even-Esh
I've made some huge mistakes, but they were necessary, because without them I wouldn't have learned anything.
-Dave Tate
I don't know a whole lot about lifting but I like the idea of the rep changes. I'm not in the best of shape so I could most likely benefit from some endurance training. Although, 18 seems really high, I like the fact the program is constantly changing...which will hopefully leave me excited about my next workout.
Thanks for all the feedback and I'll keep you guys updated. I'll probably post some before and after shots....who knows.
quote: the days where you do 2 sets of 15 or 18 i would think are to increase muscular endurance, theres more to it but thats what i figure. also remember the whole idea behind the program is periodization, which doesnt mean one day do 12 reps and the next day do 13, there has to be more of a gap. anyway im starting that program either next week or the week after, so we'll see how it goes.
I hate this whole concept of "muscular endurance." I personally think its crap, and that the benefits of working with such high reps are outweighed by the befits of lower rep training.
That said, I've seen Chad incorporate high rep days as recovery work, and I think it can be very beneficial. I also like the way he puts routines together. This should be a good routine for you.
Anyone else have any thoughts on "muscular endurance"? [/quote]If you are going for straight strength, then low reps are better.
For maximal hypertrophy though, one should utilize higher rep ranges as well as they increase muscle size in a different way than do lower reps.
I hate this whole concept of "muscular endurance." I personally think its crap, and that the benefits of working with such high reps are outweighed by the befits of lower rep training.
That said, I've seen Chad incorporate high rep days as recovery work, and I think it can be very beneficial. I also like the way he puts routines together. This should be a good routine for you.
Anyone else have any thoughts on "muscular endurance"?
In the book "Rock, Iron, Steel" by Steve Justa he has a chapter on stength endurance. He doesn't believe that you can consider yourself truly strong unless you can sustain the strength over an extended period of time. There is a carry over from strength endurance to maximum strength. For example, if you start out doing 50 reps of 250 on the squat for 20 minutes and a few weeks later you are up to 275 for those same 50 reps, then you could say you have gained strength. I would be willing to bet that your reps at higher weights will have increased also.
I really wish that Lou or Alwyn would get in on this discussion. I know Lou especially has some pretty strong opinions on working with really high reps.
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sharkbait,
If you really look at the 50/20 strength endurance thing, I think that the reps are not that high compared to a regular workout. For example, if you are using a 5x5 program, in a given workout your total reps would easily exceed 100. The 50/20 thing is based on EDT. There is no set reps pattern. You set a rep goal in the alloted time and get there any way that you can. Most of the time I do a 5,3,2 sequence, but as I tire at the end, I go to 2,2,2 and then singles. So, I look at it not as high reps, but as compressed rest. It is a very unrestrictive way of lifting.
agreed [img]smile.gif[/img] or, as i prefer to say, touche.
However, I still think sets of anything higher than 12 reps are a complete waste of time (with, of course, the exception of recovery days, done the day after a low rep workout, where your goal is to stimulate blood flow to an area and speed up recovery).
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It's not so much the higher reps as it is the higher volume they induce that promotes hypertrophy. More work = more lactic acid, which induces muscle growth. Also, higher rep sets typically allow for short rest periods, which also leads to increased lactic acid build up.
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"It's not so much the higher reps as it is the higher volume they induce that promotes hypertrophy. More work = more lactic acid, which induces muscle growth. Also, higher rep sets typically allow for short rest periods, which also leads to increased lactic acid build up. "
but in this program the days with 15 or 18 reps calls for a longer rest period than the days with fewer reps. for example, the day you do 3x5 you rest for 60s. but the day you do 3x18 you rest for 120s.
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And major action will certainly make you feel a bit uncomfortable, which is absolutely fine. You've gotta get excited about feeling uncomfortable, you've gotta love feeling slightly uncomfortable, because you know that you're stepping outside the boundaries that you used to create.
Zach Even-Esh
I've made some huge mistakes, but they were necessary, because without them I wouldn't have learned anything.
-Dave Tate
Understood... I'm not a fan of higher reps either. I'm making a new program I want to start in two weeks when i get home from Aussie (finallY!). I lift three days a week. Day 1 is strength specific (low reps), Day 2 is hypertrophy specific (medium reps, 7-10), and Day 3 is explosive training (oly lifts and explosive lifts with lower weight).
I have a question regarding the reps/volume. The program starts with the strength day consisting of sets of 5 reps. Every 3 weeks, I change the rep scheme, and decrease the number of reps on my strength day by 2 (so during the second phase, I would be doing sets of 3 reps). On my hypertrophy day, do you think it makes more sense to increase my reps by 1 or 2 (to add more volume), or decrease the number of reps? Thanks!
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"but in this program the days with 15 or 18 reps calls for a longer rest period than the days with fewer reps. for example, the day you do 3x5 you rest for 60s. but the day you do 3x18 you rest for 120s."
Yea, i found that weird. I know Chad likes short rest periods for low rep lifting because it's more athlete practical. As an athlete you need to flush lactic acid quickly from your body, and short rest periods will (hypothetically) condition you for that. I'm not sure why he has such long rest periods for the higher rep stuff though. Seems unneccessary to me!
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check out the new book The New High Intensity Training book http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...ooks&n=507846. it has great pictures of workouts and great pre-made workouts in it. also as another option check out http://www.fitrex.com where you can customize your own full body workout depending on your goals and time schedule.
Originally posted by sharkbait31: It's not so much the higher reps as it is the higher volume they induce that promotes hypertrophy. More work = more lactic acid, which induces muscle growth. Also, higher rep sets typically allow for short rest periods, which also leads to increased lactic acid build up.
Not exactly. Microtrauma to the muscle cell induces hypertrophy.
I was not talking about volume either. In what i'm referring to, 5x5 doesn't equal 2x12.
Two types of hypertrophy.
1. myofibrillar hypertrophy - an increase in the size of the contractile fibers
This is caused by heavier loads and lower reps
2. sarcoplasmic hypertrophy - an increase in non-contractile components of the muscle such as glycogen, water, minerals, mitochondria, etc.
Originally posted by mAtThEw: the days where you do 2 sets of 15 or 18 i would think are to increase muscular endurance, theres more to it but thats what i figure. also remember the whole idea behind the program is periodization, which doesnt mean one day do 12 reps and the next day do 13, there has to be more of a gap. anyway im starting that program either next week or the week after, so we'll see how it goes.
The whole purpose of the incorporation of a day with 2 sets of 15 for chads TBT program, is not only for enhanced recovery, but also to apply chads philosophy towards training(Training a bodypart 2-3 times per week).
This type of training day is beneficial towards the CNS as well, as it wont be taxing on the central nervous system. You'll get the added stimulation+recovery.
A great program from Chad!
And to comment on the training day being devoted towards muscular endurance. I'm not quite sure training once a week at 2sets of 15-18 will be sufficient in increasing muscular endurance, especially for an athlete that has training experience.
Although I could be wrong, I am fairly certain the training day is for recovery+added stimulation, and not towards building muscular endurance.
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