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Hatfield Faq
Hatfield Faq
List of questions -
The A set’s are used to reduce the volume or intensity of your workout , along with
working on specific muscle groups on different days, avoids constant and heavy
training stress that leads to the signs and symptoms of overtraining.
Q: How do you do a C set, I don't get it?
A: First off it doesn’t really matter what exercise you choose to do for your C set,
nothing is set in stone when it comes to this program, so just relax it’s not
complex. Some are better than others but not all of us can do all the lifts, we are
limited by injuries we have picked up over the years.
A Giant set ("C" workouts) is a set of 5 reps, a set of 12 reps and a set of 40 reps
done without rest between sets. This means you will be doing ALL reps in a row
with no rest.
Of course, you can take time to change weights and move to a different exercise
nd rd
for your 2 or 3 sets, but that is a matter of 5-10 seconds. Yes, it can be done!
You may need to lower the weight used a bit, but not much.
The 40 reps in a giant C set are slow reps (2/2 cadence, but that is not a strict
rule) and continuous. Don't stop between reps! A slight pause between the other
sets is ok.
The 5 reps are performed at 85% of your 1RM, the 12 reps are at 65% and the 40
reps will vary from person to person, just shoot for a weight that you can hit all 40
on without stopping or 20% of your max.
Another helpful tip for completing a successful C set is to have a variety of weights
available for you to grab quickly and easily during the 130+ repetition set. What I
mean is, if using dumbbells, say Lateral Raises, it is highly likely that you will start
off with a certain weight, maybe 50lb, and by that last set for Lateral Raises during
the C set, it's a probability you will be down to 35lb or maybe even 30lb. Having
the lower weight readily available makes the C set flow a lot smoother!
FORMAT:
5 explosive reps.
12 normal reps.
5 explosive.
12 normal.
5 explosive.
40 continuous.
5 explosive.
12 normal.
40 continuous.
5 explosive.
So right from the beginning we see that the goal of anyone using GVT is not
hypertrophy, but endurance of strength in the 10 rep range.
GVT is built on 3 main principles
1. The Principle of Progressive Load
2. The Principle of Training Frequency
3. The Principle of Adaptation
Hatfield on the other hand has designed his ABC system of bodybuilding training on
the seven rules of training. These rules are not new, nor can anyone claim to have
discovered them. Over the years, these rules have gained acceptance as "laws;"
they are set in stone. These principles are:
4. The SAID Principle: Your muscles and their respective sub cellular
components will adapt in highly specific ways to the demands (adaptive
stress) you impose upon them in your training. This applies as well to
various bodily systems and tissues other than your muscles. This is the
"SAID" Principle, an acronym for "Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands.
A: Any good book store should have copies of Hardcore Bodybuilding: A scientific
approach by Frederick C. Hatfield, Ph.D.
If you are after a cheap second hand copy, there were and could still be a number
of copies for sale on half.com
Other than that the internet is your play ground use the search button! Remember
there are two editions to this book,
get the book published in 1993.
Q: Cliffs?
A: There are far too many pages to provide in depth cliffs, if you have a question
post it the forums, we’ll do our best to answer them.
Some highlights from
My routine has been f*cking sick in terms of results! Awesome!
Are:
Post # 670 a sample spreadsheet
And
Post # 3815 for two spreadsheets a 28 day ABC plan and a 3 day a week split.
A: Okay. Let me hit you right between the eyes up front. The answer is so simple,
yet hardly ever, heard ANYONE utter it.
Here it is:
• You can’t lose fat unless you’re on a negative calorie balance diet
• You can’t gain muscle tissue unless you’re on a positive calorie balanced
diet
• You can’t lose fat and gain muscle unless you alternate periods of negative
calorie balance with periods of positive calorie balance.
It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to lose total body weight, stay at the same total
body weight or gain total body weight. The zigzag rule applies to everyone. All the
time.
There are five rules to the process
Rule One: Always eat at least 5 meals a day (preferably 6 or 7). Two or three
meals simply isn't often enough. Your blood sugar levels will be controlled (and
thus your cravings), you'll get protein in small amounts throughout the day to
support growth and recovery, and (most important) the enzymes that store fat will
be produced in far smaller amounts, making your body far less capable of storing
fat! Simply, by providing your body with a consistent and frequent supply of
calories -- life-giving energy -- its need to store fat is significantly reduced.
Conversely, when you eat infrequently, your body recognizes a “famine” situation,
and the enzymes are produced in large quantities to “swoop down” on every calorie
you consume in order to store it as fat in preparation for the “famine” to come.
Rule Two: Remember the 1-2-3 rule. In each of your 5 meals, approximately 1
part of the calories should come from fats, 2 parts from protein and 3 parts from
carbohydrates. This is a guideline, not a hard-and-fast law. Just keep the fat intake
down to a low level (do not eliminate fat, as some fat is essential for maintaining
good health), consume enough protein to support growth and recovery, and
carbohydrates commensurable to your energy output (carbos are your body’s
preferred energy fuel source). Remember that protein and carbohydrates both
have 4 calories per gram, while fat has 9 calories per gram.
Rule Three: When you sit down to eat, ask yourself, "What am I going to be doing
for the next three hours of my life?" Then, if you're taking a nap, eat less than the
average amount of carbos; if you're planning on being active, eat more than the
average amount of carbos. For average between-meal activities, eat an average
sized meal. Always keep your protein intake up to an appropriate level. This simple
system ensures that you'll never put fat on from eating excess calories, or
cannibalize your muscles from eating too little.
Rule Four: Another thing to remember whether you're trying to lose fat or adding
lean muscle is to "zigzag" your caloric intake. For example, if you want to lose fat,
reduce your calories during the week, but "pig out" on Friday night and Saturday.
This will 1) readjust your BMR upwards, 2) support lean tissue building, and 3) give
you a psychological "lift." Remember, in Rule One you learned that your fat storing
enzymes were no longer a threat, so you CAN pig out once in awhile! In fact, if you
want to put on lean muscle, you MUST! There is no way you can maximize lean
muscle mass while on a calorie-restricted diet.
Rule Five: Your reduced intake of calories makes it almost impossible to get all of
the nutrients your body needs to remain healthy and active. So, it's important to
supplement your diet with vitamins, minerals and other carefully selected
substances to ensure maximum progress toward your fitness, health and fat loss
goals. Also, no matter how hard you try, no matter how good a cook you are, or
where you buy your food:
NEVER attempt to gain or lose "weight!"
Instead, you should always strive to gain muscle and lose fat!
A: Every muscle in your body has an origin and insertion. The practice of twisting
and turning which way and that while doing an exercise is generally not effective in
affecting the shape a muscle will eventually assume. Your genetic predisposition
will determine each muscle's shape.
But you CAN get each muscle bigger! Then, having done so, hope that the good
Lord was being nice to you when the genes (your lineage -- your family) were
doled out.
Your muscles' origin is usually the connection closest to the midline of your body.
That means it’s the non-moving end of the muscle. Your job is to force the
insertion point of the muscle toward the origin point -- through the "belly" of the
muscle -- while placing it under adaptive (overload) stress. Most often, that means
that you should just pile on a lot of pig iron and lift the bar!
SHRUGS
Your trapezius muscles (called "traps") elevate and support your shoulder girdle
(i.e., pull your shoulders toward your ears). Simply hold a bar in front of you and
"shrug" your shoulders straight upwards. You don't have to rotate your shoulders -
- just shrug.
An alternative method is to shrug with heavy dumbbells while either seated or
standing. The straight bar must be held out in front of you, while seated dumbbell
shrugs allow the arms to hang naturally at your sides. This makes dumbbell shrugs
a bit more comfortable and definitely easier on your low back. Holding a heavy bar
in front of you requires strong contraction of your erector spinae muscles.
Normal shrugging technique (as explained above) activates the two upper portions
of your trapezius (i.e., trapezius I and II). By leaning forward (about 20-30
degrees), and then shrugging straight up -- not toward your ears, but vertically
toward the ceiling -- you will activate trapezius III and IV. You may wish to support
your upper body against a padded surface (like a preacher curl bench) in order to
alleviate unnecessary stress on your lower back while leaning forward.
FRONT RAISES
The traditional method of exercising your frontal deltoids is to raise either
dumbbells or a bar upwards and to the front of your body with slightly bent elbows.
If dumbbells are used, they can be raised alternately or simultaneously.
I think there's a "better" way.
Using dumbbells, alternately raise them upwards and to the front as described
above, but with one significant difference. Before raising the dumbbell in your right
hand, lean 20-30 degrees to the right. And, before raising the left one, lean to the
left in a similar fashion. The dumbbells are raised to about head height to arm's
length in front of your face.
The rationale for this departure from traditional technique is that your frontal
deltoids originate and insert at about that angle from the vertical plane of your
body. Bending sideward while performing the dumbbell raises places the targeted
frontal delt perpendicular to the floor, thereby making its contraction (force output)
more efficient. Do that, and the adaptive stress is improved.
BENCH PRESS
Your pectoral muscles ("called "pecs") are developed with bench presses. It's
potentially dangerous, so have a spotter close by at all times. NEVER bench press
alone! Have your spotter help you lift the bar out of the uprights and to a position
directly over your chest. Lower the weight to your chest and press it back up to
arms' length again. Then, after performing the required number of reps, have the
spotter assist you in placing the bar back on the uprights. You can emphasize your
"pecs" more if your elbows are away from your sides (perpendicular to your torso)
during the movement, and your front deltoids more if your elbows are kept close to
your sides during the movement.
Much of the danger inherent in this exercise can be eliminated by using a "Monolift"
machine. This new device allows you to position the bar directly over your chest
BEFORE you unrack the bar. While bench pressing, special spotting platforms
ensure that, should the bar be dropped accidentally or should you miss the lift, the
weight will not come down on you. Then, rather than your training partner helping
you rack the bar, he rotates the cradle hooks under the bar while it's still held over
your chest.
There are two particularly troublesome techniques I see all too often among bench
pressers. One is the dangerous practice of using a thumbless grip. The notion that
a thumbless grip will somehow alter the angle or quality of stress you're delivering
to your pecs is outrageously dumb. Keep your thumbs around the bar!
The second practice is just as outrageous. I've heard benchers say that by keeping
your feet off the floor -- suspended over the bench or resting on the bench --
somehow improves the isolation of the pecs and therefore the adaptive overload
being delivered to your pecs. The truth is that while your feet are off the floor,
you're always slightly off balance on the narrow bench you're lying on, and various
stabilizer muscles are attempting to keep you from falling off the bench. This
superfluous muscular activity is detracting from the stress you can deliver to the
pecs. It is certainly NOT improving it! Besides, being off balance while a heavy
weight is hovering over your face and throat is downright asking for trouble!
But these two troublesome techniques pale in their potential for disaster in
comparison to the design of the bench itself! Consider: Lying on your back with
300-400 or more pounds in your hands pressing your scapulae into the flat bench
beneath. You lower the bar to your chest. But the scapulae are pinned to the bench
and cannot slide inwards as you lower the bar. And neither can they slide outward
as you raise the bar off your chest. This is not good! It causes undue stress on the
tendons of the long heads of your biceps. The results?
◦ Nagging long-lasting pain from biceps tendonitis
◦ You can’t lift as much
◦ Far less strength is developed
◦ Poor sports performance.
On top of that, all benches are made to be around 16 or so inches off the ground.
Just because the rules of powerlifting dictate it. This is downright dangerous for
shorter athletes who have to go into spinal hyperextension in order to keep their
feet flat on the ground for better stability. The results?
◦ low back trauma
◦ less stability during training and therefore greater exposure to injury and
less weight being lifted
◦ poor sports performance, or (worse)
◦ ruined sports career from unnecessary injury
Now picture this: Same weight, same bench. But with a little patented gizmo built
into the bench that allows your scapulae to slide in as you lower the bar, and back
out as you press it back upward. This is how Mother Nature intended for your
shoulder girdle to operate. The results?
◦ Far less chance of biceps tendonitis or rotator cuff trauma
◦ Up to 10 percent more weight lifted
◦ greater strength is developed
◦ no unnecessary trauma to the lumbar spine
◦ better sports performance, not only because you’re stronger but because
you’re healthier!
You just won’t believe it until you’ve experienced it! You and your clients are gonna
LOVE it!
PULLDOWNS
With a wide grip on the overhead pulley bar, pull the bar straight down as though
you were pulling the bar straight through the middle of your head. Of course, you
can't do this, so simply flop your head back out of the way. Don't lean backwards
while doing lat pulldowns, as this will tend to involve other (non-targeted) muscles
of your upper back. This exercise is done exactly like chin-ups, except the bar
comes down instead of your body going up. It's great for developing your lats, and
NOT so great for developing your other back or shoulder muscles.
Some bodybuilders like to do pulldowns behind their neck. I'm not convinced that
this is a wise technique. Doing so requires that you contract all of the non-targeted
muscles of your upper back (i.e., all four aspects of your trapezius, your rhomboids
and your posterior deltoids) in order to get the bar down behind your head. Why do
this? It tends to rob you of maximum overload for your lats (your "targeted"
muscles).
Also, pulling the bar so far down that your forearms are not perpendicular to the
floor, but instead almost parallel to the floor, involves the inward rotators of your
upper arm (rotator cuff muscles). Again, this tends to rob your lats of maximum
overload.
One variation to lat pulldowns that I introduced a few years ago while training a
few strength athletes is catching on in a big way in bodybuilding circles. It's called
"lat shrug-downs." Using more weight than you can pull down to your chin, attach
your hands to the bar with lifting straps and have your partner pull you down so
you can hook your legs under the thigh pads. Then "shrug" downward with the
weight by activating the lats. Do NOT pull with your arms; leave your arms totally
uninvolved. I believe this variation to be more effective than the traditional "full
range" pulldowns at developing mass and strength.
And, here’s another one! Has it ever occurred to you that the technocrats -- the
"Denizens of the Drawing Board" who have until now ruled the sports training
equipment industry -- have been pulling the wool over your eyes? You have two
hands right? Two arms, two lats. Two sides of your body. So, ummm, how come
you only have one handle to pull down on? And only one weight stack?
Good question, right? It’s like this: Some sports movements require that one limb
or single-limb movement be stressed at a time. Also, greater overload can be
delivered to one side as opposed to two sides simultaneously exercising (a
neuronal input difference is involved). I believe that this one-at-a-time technique
should be more the rule than the exception. When you do pulldowns for your lats
using a conventional bar (tapered at each end), your hands are what? Three feet
apart? What does that do to 1) your range of motion, 2) your flexibility, 3) your
lats (the biceps are the weak link in the pulldown), and 4) your sports specificity?
ZILCH! Or nearly so. The same holds true for doing low rows ( sometimes called
seated long cable pulls). Needed: Some double-sided twin weight stack machines!
BACK EXTENSIONS
Picture this: The great Olympic weightlifter Vasily Alexeev’s ponderous body draped
over a gymnastics long horse with his feet wedged between the stall bars of an
unbelievably archaic training gym in Moscow’s Lenin Institute of Sport. With four
hundred pounds precariously perched behind his head, he explodes for five reps of
back raises. There is virtually NO hip extensor involvement, only pure erector
spinae contraction. That means 1) tremendous low back limit strength and speed-
strength is developed far beyond what any other low back exercise could possibly
accomplish, and 2) virtually NO trauma to the tenuous intervertebral discs of the
lumbar spine, which is something no other low back exercise ever conceived can
claim.
By far the biggest muscles of your lower back are the "erector" muscles. They're
also the most visible. Your erector spinae muscles are designed to extend (and
hyperextend) your spine. They do NOT act on your hip joint, so there's no reason
to engage in exercises which require hip joint movement (i.e., traditional
"hypers").
The best way to target your erectors is with "back extensions." This exercise
requires the use of a specialized bench quite unlike the ones you're probably used
to seeing around the gyms (the "hyper" benches you are used to seeing are, in my
opinion, relatively worthless). The bench of choice is called (by its inventor, Dr.
Mike Yessis) a "glute-ham-gastroc machine." He called it that because those
muscles are the ones the Soviets target with a similar exercise which Dr. Yessis
improved upon. Glute-ham-gastroc raises are discussed in the section (below)
dealing with leg and hip exercises.
To use this device to target your erectors, your feet are secured by the two foot
pads which are backed by a metal plate that prevents your feet from slipping
through. Your "belly button" is placed in the middle of the padded support. Your
knees are bent. Then, your feet push against the metal plate in order to "lock" your
upper legs against the padded bench. All of this ensures that only your erector
muscles are targeted, and NOT your hip extensors (gluteals). Simply assume the
described position and flex your spine (round your back downward). Hold as much
weight behind your head as you can, and extend your spine (straighten it back out
again). You should not raise way up by arching (hyperextending) your back, as
doing so places too much strain on the intervertebral discs of your lumbar spine.
Repeat for the desired number of reps.
This exercise is quite probably the ONLY low back exercise you will ever have to
do. It is that effective.
Noted exceptions are deadlifts, squats, glute-ham raises and explosive high pulls,
all of which involve the lower back muscles as either stabilizers or synergists.
However, none is done for the express purpose of developing your lower back, and
are probably unsuitable for most trainees outside clinical and sports-specific
applications.
PRESTRETCH CRUNCHERS
Sometimes the old way is the best way. But sometimes it’s not. Sport scientists
agreed way back in the 50’s that "sit-ups" were bad for your back, and that
"crunches" performed with bent knees were better. Many different abdominal
exercise devices have been marketed over the past fifteen years, all of which
simulated the "crunch" technique.
But that was then. "Better" replaced "good." In conventional crunches, you are
able apply resistance to your abdominal muscles for only 50 percent of your
potential range of motion. And crunches performed in the ab machines currently on
the market usually require naught but static contraction from your abs while your
hip flexors move the resistance.
Compare that to the 100 percent greater range of motion afforded by pre-
stretching your badominal wall. For each crunch you perform, you do twice the
work. That means twice the effect. Putting it another way, twice the work means
the same effect in HALF THE TIME! Partial movements have their place in sports
training. Yet, incredibly, full range ab work has been virtually overlooked by
training experts over the years.
This variation of crunchers is by far the most effective abdominal exercise there is.
I developed this variation during the seventies, and patented the first abdominal
machine ever. The patent was successfully protected when a large equipment
company tried to infringe upon it. That's why you don't see this particular design
element incorporated into any of the dozens of different designs of abdominal
machines.
But you can do it with no specialized equipment. Simply follow the directions given
for regular crunchers, but do so with about 6-8 inches of padding under your lower
back. When lying back, your shoulders have to go all the way back until they touch
the floor or bench, thereby "prestretching" you abdominal muscles prior to
contracting them during the crunch movement.
This prestretch offers the advantage of having to contract through roughly double
the normal range of motion afforded by regular crunchers or other ab machines.
That equates to roughly double the adaptive stress and double the benefits.
A few more points to remember:
◦ It's a myth that you can "isolate" the upper from the lower abs --
electromyographic studies show that the minute you apply resistance, both
your upper and lower abdominals kick into action together
◦ Other ab machines on the market are difficult to get into and out of, are
principally hip flexors (the abs are forced to statically contract while the
iliopsoas concentrically contracts to bring your torso forward or your knees
toward your chest), and -- if at all -- involve only a half range movement
capability
◦ It's a myth that you should do hundreds of reps of crunches -- your abs, like
all other muscles in your body, respond best to PROGRESSIVE RESISTANCE
training
◦ Full range crunches are twice as productive than half range crunches
RUSSIAN TWISTS
The Russians are famous for their great athletes. One of the exercises that all
Russian athletes do for the abdominal muscles, the internal oblique muscles and
the external oblique muscles has become known as "Russian Twists." Every time
you twist, swing a bat, or throw, you use these important muscles. As for its
usefulness to bodybuilders, this exercise tightens the entire midsection in a "girdle"
effect.
Study the accompanying photo of this exercise. Notice that your lower back
remains in contact with the ground (or, better yet, in contact with an "SI pad" for
your sacroiliac, or lower back), and your feet are positioned close to your buttocks
(knees bent). Holding a small weight directly over your face at arms' length, twist
all the way to the right and then to the left several times. Do not allow your torso
or shoulders to come in contact with the ground while twisting back and forth. This
is a difficult exercise -- it's great!
SAFETY SQUATS
Now here is a GREAT way to do squats right! The specially designed bar makes it
easier to get deep enough into the squat position, easier to keep your back
straight, and with far less danger of injuring your lower back or knees.
Safety squats are also more comfortable because of the padded yolk that's resting
on your shoulders. This special bar is called a "safety squat bar," although it has
become widely referred to as the "Hatfield Bar" because of my longstanding
endorsement of its benefits. It allows you to use your hands to both hold yourself
in a perfect, upright squatting position as well as "spot" yourself if the weight
becomes too heavy. In my opinion, every bodybuilder should do squats this way.
GLUTE-HAM-GASTROC RAISES
Picture this: Valery Borzov, the great Russian sprinter (Olympic gold medalist in
1972) in the same archaic setup doing explosive hip extensions followed by an
immediate bending of the knees to simulate the glute-ham pull characteristic of
sprinters in full stride. He carries 7-0 pounds behind his head. That means 1) far
greater gluteal and hamstring speed-strength, which is something no other sprint
training exercise can claim, and 2) almost one hundred percent injury-proofing
against hamstring pulls, which is also something no other sprint training exercise --
or any exercise for that matter -- can claim.
Your "butt" muscles are called the gluteus maximus (or "glutes" for short). Your
hamstrings ("hams") are the backs of your upper leg. And, your calf muscles are
called your "gastrocnemius" muscles (or "gastrocs"). So, a "glute-ham-gastroc"
exercise is one that sequentially strengthens all three of these muscles in one
movement.
This is an exercise developed in Russia, and perfected by an American sports
scientist named Dr. Mike Yessis. It is the single best weight training exercise there
is for improving speed and explosiveness in running and jumping.
Bodybuilders can also benefit markedly from this exercise for the same reasons
cited for explosive high pulls. You use your "glutes" to raise your body to a straight
(horizontal) position. Then, your "hams" continue the movement to pull you up to a
bent-knee level, and the "gastrocs" help the hams finish the movement.
You will need the specially-built machine described in the section above on back
raises in order to do this exercise.
The higher your body fat percentage, the fewer calories you'll burn (lower activity
level, and less muscle to burn calories). The lower your body fat percentage, the
more calories you'll burn (bigger muscles burn more calories than little ones).
Thus, it becomes much easier to get rid of fat permanently by increasing your
metabolic rate. You do this by increasing both your muscle mass and your activity
level. You can (and SHOULD) gain muscle mass and lose fat at the same time.
Never sacrifice muscle tissue during the fat loss process. Instead, build more
muscle to burn more calories. You'll lose more fat faster, and you'll be more likely
to keep it off. The KEY is to control your calories!
For example, Bob Jones weighs 161, and his lean body weight is 159 (fat weight is
9) with 5.7% body fat. His BMR is 1750. Let’s look at his day (Table Four).
* The caloric value of each meal is predicated on the caloric cost of upcoming
activities. Then, approximately 400 calories are added to workout days and
subtracted from days in which there is either no workout or workouts for smaller
muscle groups. In this example, that would equal 80 calories added to or
subtracted from each of 5 meals. This “zigzag” pattern ensures both muscle gain
and fat loss.
Illustrations
Q: What about drop sets for the 3x40 or the 10x10?
A: In bodybuilding and weight training, using drop sets is a technique for continuing an
exercise with a lower weight once muscle failure has been achieved at a higher weight. It
is most often performed on weight machines because reducing the weight quickly is
thought by some to be extremely important, but it can also be performed with dumbbells
and other free weights.
Example
While performing a bicep curl, the person lifting the weight would start with a 25-pound
dumbbell and do as many repetitions as possible without significantly compromising form.
Then a 20-pound weight would be used until exhaustion is reached. One could continue to
"drop" down as many times as he or she wishes.
So can you use drop sets to complete the 3x40 or the 10x10?
Yes you can, there is no reason why you can’t use the drop set method, remember nothing
is set in stone. However I would not use it as a constant method performed on the above
sets, but more of a muscle endurance and strength enhancer to help get you on your way to
completing these sets using a constant weight throughout.
Using drop sets may also help you break through plateau's leading to increased weights
when do these sets at a constant weight.
You could look to use drop sets every second to third workout as something new into the
routine, this also gives you a good cardiovascular workout throughout all the reps as it gets
your heart rate up. So you’re basically getting an interval cardiovascular workout while
strength training.
The rational behind introducing drop sets in every second to third workout is that you want
to break down your muscles and then let them repair/rebuild this is how you gain muscle.
If you break down your muscles with these intense exercises and never lay off you are not
giving your muscles time to repair/rebuild. Hence you are losing muscle gains.
By following the A B C B A cycling and only using drop sets once or twice; through
periodization you will allow enough time for targeted muscles used in your drop sets to rest/
repair.
The way to insure you get the best benefits from using drop sets in your workout is to have
a partner, they’ll be able to switch out the weights for you as quickly as possible so that you
don't have to take time to rest in between the reps. You should not rest until the set is
completely over.
A: One thing that's of note, most of the microtrauma (muscle tearing that causes delayed
onset muscle soreness-and later hypertrophy) occurs during the eccentric phase of the
negative movement. Concentrating on doing this on every set would almost certainly lead to
over training-due to lack of proper recovery.
The use of negatives on this program will come down to timing, due to the stresses involved
and the time required for recovery, using this principle on an already demanding program
requires that you spread out your negative sessions, to one maybe two body parts per
week. This is only a rough guide and not "Do as I say" approach.
Leave this to the advance lifters out there - You'll know if you are one of these
guys.
I'll just stress two key factors if you decide to incorporate negatives:
1. Keep it to a minimum
2. Allow plenty of rest between sessions that incorporate the use of negatives
In saying the above, don't go and schedule a heavy day of 2 C set exercises right after
the day your did your negatives, this will lead to over training.
A: The problem is, that each muscle group's tolerance to exercise probably differs. Each
exercise you do for each body part can - and often does - possess entirely individual rep
ability at 80 percent max. To discern your specific tolerance level for each body part, follow
these simple instructions:
1. Determine your approximate one rep maximum (1RM) for each exercise.
2. Load 80 percent on the bar (machine) & rep out with it for one all-out effort to see
how many reps you can do.
3. Apply this information to the table below to determine each body part's exercise
tolerance.
4. Take into account ALL of the factors listed above that can affect your exercise
tolerance.
5. Critically evaluate whether your predicted exercise tolerance levels stand up to what
you know from experience to be true. Remember, “low tolerance” means that you
probably make easy gains for that body part, and “high tolerance” means that
you’re probably a hard gainer for that body part.
Here is an example of in regards to exercise tolerances for fast gainers, average gainers and
slow gainers. Perhaps you'll find these figures and estimations to be pretty close estimates,
or perhaps you won't.
One thing is clear you must look! Your continued progress toward your maximum potential
may well depend on it!
By critically evaluating your individual muscles' tolerance to exercise, you can more easily
"fine tune" your training regimen to provide maximum gains in the shortest possible time.
But don't forget the other factors that may affect your recovery rate. Look at the list again
(above). How have you accounted for each of these variables’ effect on your progress?
Have you raised or lowered your reps and sets accordingly? Have you increased or
decreased the frequency of your workouts commensurably? Training intensity?
Have you taken into account your ratio of white versus red fibre, and adjusted your exercise
load and movement speed accordingly?
A: One thing to keep in mind is that bad workouts don’t just happen; there is
always an explanation. Lets look at a few of the factors outside of the actual training
that may be contributing to your training problems and can be done about them.
This seems pretty straightforward and it is a bit of a refresher from the repeated rest
message through this document but this is advice that always bears repeating. For
some reason, when it comes to grip training, many people tend to throw logic out
the window. For example, it is a commonly held belief by many people that “because
the hands and forearms are small muscle groups they will recover faster and I
can train them hard everyday.”
2. Sleep to grow
Are you getting enough sleep at night or staying up to the wee hours playing video
games (or otherwise screwing around) when you should be resting? Several weeks of
restful sleep every night can make you grow like a weed. Eight hours is
recommended though I know that with so many things going on in your life,
sometimes that just isn’t going to happen. For the amount of sleep you are able
to get, try to make that as restful as possible.
How about your diet, good wholesome food or pop and potato chips? A Ferrari isn’t
going to run as well as it can when you pump it full of low quality fuel and neither
will your body. If your diet is a case of Garbage in, garbage out then you have to
make a change. There is nothing better than wholesome, real food. Also don’t make
the mistake of trying to live off supplements only. They are called supplements for a
reason, because they supplement the real food you eat.
Darn, there’s real life getting in the way of my workout again! With some things, you
just have to do what you have to do. If you are under a lot more stress lately than
you have had to deal with in the past, there is a good chance that you are going to
have to adjust your workout. Of course a workout can be a great stress reliever on
its own but don’t assume that you can train the same way under high stress
situations than you did when things were going a lot smoother. For example during
exam week, I always had to cut my workouts down by about half. I knew I had only
so much energy to expend and needed to devote it to studying. That way I could
keep making good progress in my workouts, even if in a few things, as well as get
my studying done.
5. Alcohol or tobacco
You’d be better off dropping these altogether for a lot of reasons. I won’t go into all
the ways that these will put a big time damper on your potential. It should be pretty
obvious.
There is no doubt that It is important to recover between workouts but you will
actually hinder your progress by "veg-ing" out on the couch too often. I have always
found that being somewhat active between workouts helps me to recover at a much
greater rate. This helps get the blood pumping, warm up the joints and get rid of the
lactic acid and other waste products in the blood. It doesn't take much even just a
light jog can work wonders for this kind of thing.
This one is building off #6 and is directed specifically toward hand and grip strength
development. Yes, I feel the same rules apply as in #6, some active rest work
between workouts will go a loooong way as far as enhancing your progress. BUT this
kind of thing is very easy to put off and I know that I have that problem at times.
There are other factors but I would say these are the most straightforward.