Fadi
...
The war is raging in bodybuilding as to what constitutes the right workout routine. Which routine is better in giving bodybuilders the muscles they are working so hard for? Is the routine built upon high intensity and low volume, or high volume with lower intensity?
Now if you have not spotted the problem with my question by now, then you’d need to sit down and contemplate a bit. I mentioned the word “routine” three times in my first paragraph. The literal meaning of that word and the multitude of bodybuilders who stick to it like glue is a major part of the plateaus you see around the gyms worldwide.
I went on the net for a quick check on the American and British bodybuilding forums to see if the issue of my topic at hand had changed; not a chance, it remains a scorcher out there. Go ahead and ask away in your gym, if bodybuilders there know something about the difference in muscle fibers and if training to failure is a precondition to muscle growth. Ok, let’s get cracking…
So it’s the smart and productive program we want to talk about here. However before I get ahead of myself, there’re few essentials that need to be known.
Here’s what every bodybuilder ought to know and be familiar with: the 3 different types of muscle fibers, you’ve got to know them!
Type I Muscle Fibers: Type 1 muscle fibers have the slowest-contractile speed, (not good for weightlifting where explosiveness in lifting is key), the smallest cross-sectional area, the highest oxidative (aerobic) capacity, and the lowest glycolytic (anaerobic) capacity. They contract slowly and are able to hold a steady paced twitch for long durations without fatigue. Type I muscle fibers are predominately used in endurance activities. Long distance runners, swimmers, and cyclists mostly use Type I fibers. Ah, but don’t make the same mistake that many ill informed bodybuilders make and that is, to discount this type of fiber and ignore its potential for growth (which makes about 50% of your body’s total muscle fibers). Now you know what you could be missing out on if you don't include some high reps from time to time in your training. I’m speaking from experience here: sticking around the 3 rep mark as a weightlifter, I had neither use nor the time to waste on this type of fiber. My legs got bigger yes, when I in-cooperated some sets of 10 reps in my squats when I came over to bodybuilding. I dared not venture out to the 20+ territory in squatting, fearing I’d upset the “Gym Gurus” who taught me a thing or two when changing sport. It was only when I in-cooperated the 20+ reps in my squats and seated rowing etc, that incredible muscle growth began to develop. When was the last time you bench pressed 100lbs for a 50+ reps? 100lbs may seem like a joke to some, but let me tell you it’s nothing short of the hardest hardcore set that any human being can perform!
Type II-a Muscle Fibers: These fibers fall in between type 1 and type II-b. They are the intermediates, the happy medium fibers if you will. They offer bodybuilders the best of both worlds: the low rep world of the type II-b and the high rep world of the type 1 fibers. Is it any wonder bodybuilders like to hang around this station? The problem begins when a bodybuilder over stays his or her welcome and begins to set up camp here. That’s part of the problem I was talking about in my very first paragraph with the routine issue.
Type II-b Muscle Fibers: A lion is after you and there’s a tree 50m ahead. This dynamite of a fiber will be what you’d be using to race to that tree then explode into a leaping jump upwards. This is definitely weightlifting territory and it was home for three years of my life.
Type II-b muscle fibers have the fastest-contractile speed, the largest cross-sectional area, the lowest oxidative capacity, and the highest glycolytic (anaerobic) capacity (which means you don’t ask a weightlifter to perform aerobic activities unless you want to kill him). They are ideally suited for short fast bursts of power (now you know why my 1 minute burpees are exceptional, only to slow down miserably when doing 100 of them). These muscle fibers are used in such activities as sprinting, powerlifting, weightlifting, bodybuilding and definitely the world’s strongest man grueling activities.
I do a full body workout 3 xs per week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And if for some reason I had not recovered to my own satisfaction, I then add days on top of the three days I’ve already mentioned. Now I’m sure that has confused the hell out of you, right? How can I add more days to the Mon, Wed, and Fridays if I hadn’t recovered? Easy, it’s called active recovery and you don’t have to go back to your gym to do it. But first, another lesson is in order so we know where we’re heading.
Look at my photo, (I included it for a reason), now look closely at my chest. What do you see? I personally see an underdeveloped chest area. Let’s move to my shoulders now; what do you see here in comparison to my chest? You got it! Now the why and what I’ve learnt about this issue, I would like to share with you here and now.
My chest area has the poorest blood circulation out of all the muscles in my body. Do you want to take a guess which muscles have the best blood circulation of all? That’s correct, my whole shoulder area from the neck all the way down to my front deltoids. Now in order for my muscles to grow, I first have to stimulate them with some intelligent training. Ok, granted I’ve done that, now what? Now I’ve got to supply these babies with the right nutrients so they can begin to grow. Here’s your answer: my blood supply to my chest was extremely poor, (the exact opposite of my shoulders). Poor circulation meant fewer nutrients could get delivered to my chest, which meant less recovery, (that’s what we’re talking about here remember) and less supercompensation after training, which actually made my chest smaller rather than bigger.
Enter the 100 REPS! Ah, not for growth mind you, not directly anyway. You see, this 100 reps are done with very light weights (hence no need for a gym trip, a 5kg d/bell or a 10kg barbell will do just fine thank you very much). This is NOT the 20+ rep squats I mentioned above. This here is serving a totally different purpose. What purpose? The purpose of increasing capillarisation in muscle tissues as well as increasing the capillary’s density. What does this mean to your precious muscles? Well it simply means that more oxygen and nutrient dense blood will be delivered to them. I can start a new thread here on how to add an inch onto your biceps or whatever body part is lagging behind, in one month flat. I’d be saying do your normal workout, eat like a horse and do a set of 50+ reps with very light weight at the end of your workout on that lagging bodypart. Then sit back and watch the magic take place!
That was my answer to what I’d do if a muscle had not recovered. So on a Tuesday for example, I’d grab a 5kg dumbbell and do a 100 rep bench press with it. That will flood the area with nutrient dense blood which will greatly facilitate my recovery and have me ready to go for another workout on a Wednesday.
Look at the illustration I’ve included of a capillary.
The capillary is what looks like a sausage, and the muscles are the “clouds” above and below. That sausage can only multiply and get bigger when you include some serious high reps in your workout.
I do NOT believe in going to failure. I don’t want to even remotely offset the growth stimulus I just achieved and blunt the anabolic response which I busted my ass to get. Going to failure WILL give you more muscle fiber microtrauma which will / may result in greater muscle building. But at what expense? Training to failure imposes greater stress on the CNS which will extend the recovery period compared to stopping sets at 1 rep short of failure. Examples around you abound. Would you sun tan under the intense midday sun for an hour and risk burning, or would you rather sun tan using shorter intervals and arriving safely at your desired colour? Would you stop eating short of bursting or would you continue to eat until you couldn’t possibly fit another mouthful in? Any wonder bodybuilders today need a total week of recovery time; performing between 12 -20 sets per a single body part whilst at the same time going all the way to failure? Don’t take my word for it. Test it for yourself next time you hit the iron. Do a set of bench press or whatever and go to failure on your first set. I bet you won’t be able to achieve the same rep numbers for your second set. Doesn’t that take away from the intensity your aiming so hard to maintain; you’ve just lost a rep of your set. Ah, but you’re getting tired or you haven’t really recovered from the first set yet: that’s exactly the point I’m trying to get across over here. All these and I haven’t even touched on the potential for injury, (which almost every bodybuilder feels immune to until he or she falls victim to it).
6. Cedrick, (1995). Strength and Conditioning Journal 17
7. BENEDICT, TAN, 1999: Manipulating Resistance Training Program Variables to
Optimize Maximum Strength in Men: A Review. The Journal of Strength and
Conditioning Research: Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 289–304.
8. HARRIS, GLENN R., MICHAEL H. STONE, HAROLD S. O'BRYANT, CHRISTOPHER M.
PROULX, ROBERT L. JOHNSON, 2000: Short-Term Performance Effects of High
Power, High Force, or Combined Weight-Training Methods. The Journal of Strength
and Conditioning Research: Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 14–20
9. Hoeger, Werner W.K., Sandra L. Barette, Douglas F. Hale, David R. Hopkins,
1987: Relationship Between Repetitions and Selected Percentages of One Repetition
Maximum. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 11–
13
10. Ruther, Christine L., Catherine L. Golden, Robert T. Harris, Gary A. Dudley,
1995: Hypertrophy, Resistance Training, and the Nature of Skeletal Muscle
Activation. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 9, No. 3, pp.
155–159
11. Fukui, Y. et al. (1986). High-resolution immunofluorescence for the study of the
contractile apparatus. In "The Contractile Apparatus and the Ctyoskeleton"
("Structure and Contractile Proteins", Meth.Enzymol.134, Part D), ed R. B. Vallee,
Academic Press, pp. 573-580.
12. Henneman, E et al "Functional Significance of cell size in spinal motor neurons."
Journal of Neurophysiology 28: 560-580. 1965.
21. Pauletto, Bruno, 1985: Let's Talk Training #1: Sets and repetitions. National
Strength & Conditioning Association Journal: Vol. 7, No. 6, pp. 67–69.
Bye for now.
PS: don't forget to check this: http://ausbb.com/general-topic/9120-who-you.html
Fadi.
Now if you have not spotted the problem with my question by now, then you’d need to sit down and contemplate a bit. I mentioned the word “routine” three times in my first paragraph. The literal meaning of that word and the multitude of bodybuilders who stick to it like glue is a major part of the plateaus you see around the gyms worldwide.
I went on the net for a quick check on the American and British bodybuilding forums to see if the issue of my topic at hand had changed; not a chance, it remains a scorcher out there. Go ahead and ask away in your gym, if bodybuilders there know something about the difference in muscle fibers and if training to failure is a precondition to muscle growth. Ok, let’s get cracking…
So it’s the smart and productive program we want to talk about here. However before I get ahead of myself, there’re few essentials that need to be known.
Here’s what every bodybuilder ought to know and be familiar with: the 3 different types of muscle fibers, you’ve got to know them!
Type I Muscle Fibers: Type 1 muscle fibers have the slowest-contractile speed, (not good for weightlifting where explosiveness in lifting is key), the smallest cross-sectional area, the highest oxidative (aerobic) capacity, and the lowest glycolytic (anaerobic) capacity. They contract slowly and are able to hold a steady paced twitch for long durations without fatigue. Type I muscle fibers are predominately used in endurance activities. Long distance runners, swimmers, and cyclists mostly use Type I fibers. Ah, but don’t make the same mistake that many ill informed bodybuilders make and that is, to discount this type of fiber and ignore its potential for growth (which makes about 50% of your body’s total muscle fibers). Now you know what you could be missing out on if you don't include some high reps from time to time in your training. I’m speaking from experience here: sticking around the 3 rep mark as a weightlifter, I had neither use nor the time to waste on this type of fiber. My legs got bigger yes, when I in-cooperated some sets of 10 reps in my squats when I came over to bodybuilding. I dared not venture out to the 20+ territory in squatting, fearing I’d upset the “Gym Gurus” who taught me a thing or two when changing sport. It was only when I in-cooperated the 20+ reps in my squats and seated rowing etc, that incredible muscle growth began to develop. When was the last time you bench pressed 100lbs for a 50+ reps? 100lbs may seem like a joke to some, but let me tell you it’s nothing short of the hardest hardcore set that any human being can perform!
Type II-a Muscle Fibers: These fibers fall in between type 1 and type II-b. They are the intermediates, the happy medium fibers if you will. They offer bodybuilders the best of both worlds: the low rep world of the type II-b and the high rep world of the type 1 fibers. Is it any wonder bodybuilders like to hang around this station? The problem begins when a bodybuilder over stays his or her welcome and begins to set up camp here. That’s part of the problem I was talking about in my very first paragraph with the routine issue.
Type II-b Muscle Fibers: A lion is after you and there’s a tree 50m ahead. This dynamite of a fiber will be what you’d be using to race to that tree then explode into a leaping jump upwards. This is definitely weightlifting territory and it was home for three years of my life.
Type II-b muscle fibers have the fastest-contractile speed, the largest cross-sectional area, the lowest oxidative capacity, and the highest glycolytic (anaerobic) capacity (which means you don’t ask a weightlifter to perform aerobic activities unless you want to kill him). They are ideally suited for short fast bursts of power (now you know why my 1 minute burpees are exceptional, only to slow down miserably when doing 100 of them). These muscle fibers are used in such activities as sprinting, powerlifting, weightlifting, bodybuilding and definitely the world’s strongest man grueling activities.
I do a full body workout 3 xs per week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And if for some reason I had not recovered to my own satisfaction, I then add days on top of the three days I’ve already mentioned. Now I’m sure that has confused the hell out of you, right? How can I add more days to the Mon, Wed, and Fridays if I hadn’t recovered? Easy, it’s called active recovery and you don’t have to go back to your gym to do it. But first, another lesson is in order so we know where we’re heading.
Look at my photo, (I included it for a reason), now look closely at my chest. What do you see? I personally see an underdeveloped chest area. Let’s move to my shoulders now; what do you see here in comparison to my chest? You got it! Now the why and what I’ve learnt about this issue, I would like to share with you here and now.
My chest area has the poorest blood circulation out of all the muscles in my body. Do you want to take a guess which muscles have the best blood circulation of all? That’s correct, my whole shoulder area from the neck all the way down to my front deltoids. Now in order for my muscles to grow, I first have to stimulate them with some intelligent training. Ok, granted I’ve done that, now what? Now I’ve got to supply these babies with the right nutrients so they can begin to grow. Here’s your answer: my blood supply to my chest was extremely poor, (the exact opposite of my shoulders). Poor circulation meant fewer nutrients could get delivered to my chest, which meant less recovery, (that’s what we’re talking about here remember) and less supercompensation after training, which actually made my chest smaller rather than bigger.
Enter the 100 REPS! Ah, not for growth mind you, not directly anyway. You see, this 100 reps are done with very light weights (hence no need for a gym trip, a 5kg d/bell or a 10kg barbell will do just fine thank you very much). This is NOT the 20+ rep squats I mentioned above. This here is serving a totally different purpose. What purpose? The purpose of increasing capillarisation in muscle tissues as well as increasing the capillary’s density. What does this mean to your precious muscles? Well it simply means that more oxygen and nutrient dense blood will be delivered to them. I can start a new thread here on how to add an inch onto your biceps or whatever body part is lagging behind, in one month flat. I’d be saying do your normal workout, eat like a horse and do a set of 50+ reps with very light weight at the end of your workout on that lagging bodypart. Then sit back and watch the magic take place!
That was my answer to what I’d do if a muscle had not recovered. So on a Tuesday for example, I’d grab a 5kg dumbbell and do a 100 rep bench press with it. That will flood the area with nutrient dense blood which will greatly facilitate my recovery and have me ready to go for another workout on a Wednesday.
Look at the illustration I’ve included of a capillary.
The capillary is what looks like a sausage, and the muscles are the “clouds” above and below. That sausage can only multiply and get bigger when you include some serious high reps in your workout.
I do NOT believe in going to failure. I don’t want to even remotely offset the growth stimulus I just achieved and blunt the anabolic response which I busted my ass to get. Going to failure WILL give you more muscle fiber microtrauma which will / may result in greater muscle building. But at what expense? Training to failure imposes greater stress on the CNS which will extend the recovery period compared to stopping sets at 1 rep short of failure. Examples around you abound. Would you sun tan under the intense midday sun for an hour and risk burning, or would you rather sun tan using shorter intervals and arriving safely at your desired colour? Would you stop eating short of bursting or would you continue to eat until you couldn’t possibly fit another mouthful in? Any wonder bodybuilders today need a total week of recovery time; performing between 12 -20 sets per a single body part whilst at the same time going all the way to failure? Don’t take my word for it. Test it for yourself next time you hit the iron. Do a set of bench press or whatever and go to failure on your first set. I bet you won’t be able to achieve the same rep numbers for your second set. Doesn’t that take away from the intensity your aiming so hard to maintain; you’ve just lost a rep of your set. Ah, but you’re getting tired or you haven’t really recovered from the first set yet: that’s exactly the point I’m trying to get across over here. All these and I haven’t even touched on the potential for injury, (which almost every bodybuilder feels immune to until he or she falls victim to it).
6. Cedrick, (1995). Strength and Conditioning Journal 17
7. BENEDICT, TAN, 1999: Manipulating Resistance Training Program Variables to
Optimize Maximum Strength in Men: A Review. The Journal of Strength and
Conditioning Research: Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 289–304.
8. HARRIS, GLENN R., MICHAEL H. STONE, HAROLD S. O'BRYANT, CHRISTOPHER M.
PROULX, ROBERT L. JOHNSON, 2000: Short-Term Performance Effects of High
Power, High Force, or Combined Weight-Training Methods. The Journal of Strength
and Conditioning Research: Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 14–20
9. Hoeger, Werner W.K., Sandra L. Barette, Douglas F. Hale, David R. Hopkins,
1987: Relationship Between Repetitions and Selected Percentages of One Repetition
Maximum. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 11–
13
10. Ruther, Christine L., Catherine L. Golden, Robert T. Harris, Gary A. Dudley,
1995: Hypertrophy, Resistance Training, and the Nature of Skeletal Muscle
Activation. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 9, No. 3, pp.
155–159
11. Fukui, Y. et al. (1986). High-resolution immunofluorescence for the study of the
contractile apparatus. In "The Contractile Apparatus and the Ctyoskeleton"
("Structure and Contractile Proteins", Meth.Enzymol.134, Part D), ed R. B. Vallee,
Academic Press, pp. 573-580.
12. Henneman, E et al "Functional Significance of cell size in spinal motor neurons."
Journal of Neurophysiology 28: 560-580. 1965.
21. Pauletto, Bruno, 1985: Let's Talk Training #1: Sets and repetitions. National
Strength & Conditioning Association Journal: Vol. 7, No. 6, pp. 67–69.
Bye for now.
PS: don't forget to check this: http://ausbb.com/general-topic/9120-who-you.html
Fadi.
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