Tip of the week tip: How to look like you're working out

It doesn't matter how heavy you can go. If you leave THIS out of your training program, you won't build much muscle mass.

The pump vs. heavy weights

Those who love to feel the muscle burn and get a pump tend to neglect sets with heavy weights and low reps. This is a mistake. But the opposite is just as bad. There's a new interest in training to get strong, which is great, but if you want to look like you're working out, then you also need to train with lighter reps and do higher reps.

Volumization training

Perform an endurance/volumizing exercise for each muscle group you want to build. Sure, doing sets of more than 10 or 12 reps is great for increasing endurance, but you probably won't care about that. What you care about is the visual effect that comes as a result of performing burning and sore sets with higher reps.

Training in this higher repetition range obviously extends the time under tension and it is the longer time under tension that stimulates muscle growth.

Since this hypertrophy that comes from high repetition sets is not primarily based on an increase in the contractile component of the muscle (actin and myosin filaments), it is often referred to as non-functional hypertrophy, which is a very misleading term.

If we disregard the semantics, then when we talk about an increase in the size of a muscle, you can think of it as volumization - an increase in the cross-sectional area of a muscle via an increase in the size and/or number of mitochondria, capillaries, an increase in the size of the sarcoplasmic reticulum, etc.

How many repetitions

Generally speaking, sets of 12 to 20 repetitions are ideal for stimulating muscle volumization. The cosmetic result tends to include rounder, fuller looking muscles. Keep in mind that if your goal is to get bigger muscles, you want to increase all components of the muscle. If you don't, you are potentially giving away possible gains.

Tip: Make this decision, achieve bigger gains

Before you set foot in a gym, you have to make a decision. This decision will determine everything. Here it is.

By Paul Carter

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/tip-make-this-decision-make-more-gains

It is possible to build strength and mass at the same time, but these two attributes and their training have very specific differences. This means that maximizing one means limiting the other. Here's how you should train for each of them.

Selection 1: Build maximum strength

This goal has a strong neural connection. Repetitive effort and specificity are a big part of building strength in a given exercise. So if strength is your main goal, then your program should focus on the exercises where you want to improve the most. You need to focus a large portion of your time and energy in the gym on performing these exercises to maximize your efficiency on these exercises.

Lower reps with a high degree of speed and high volume are usually best when trying to achieve this.

However, if you are chasing the max weights, then you need to decide how to build up this phase. Here are some examples of the big three basic exercises:

• Squats: 5 sets of 8 reps with 65-70% of your 1RM weight (max weight for one rep)
• Deadlifts: 3 sets of 3 repetitions with 75-80% of your 1RM weight
• Bench press: 5 sets of 8 repetitions with 70% of your 1RM weight and 1 to 2 back-off sets at reduced intensity (60%) with as many repetitions as possible.

Selection 2: Build maximum amounts of muscle mass

On the other hand, if you want to get as muscular as possible, then you need to learn to isolate muscle groups effectively, feel the muscle doing the work and build as much tension as possible in the area you are training.

There is a huge difference between these two ideologies. A bodybuilder doing bench presses will try to feel the pecs doing the work. If building muscle mass is the goal, then moving maximum weights for 1 to 3 reps is not the most efficient method.

For hypertrophy, perform 3 to 5 sets of 8 to 12 repetitions for the upper body and 3 to 5 sets of 12 to 20 repetitions for the lower body (not forgetting the warm-up of course).

This is merely a mass-focused program and not a rule set in stone. You can also benefit from things like sets of 100 reps depending on the exercise used and what you are trying to achieve.

Try to start with 4 to 6 exercises per training session to address the areas that need the most work.

The lesson

First determine what you want to focus on so that you can plan your program accordingly. Base your entire training structure on one goal: muscle mass or strength - and not both.

Sure, there's always overlap, but choose one goal to focus on and you'll be much more likely to achieve that goal. And if you want to change your goal later, you can always do so.

Tip: Get tough and defined with density training

Do you want to replace cardio training with training with weights? Then increase your training density.

By Christian Thibaudeau

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/tip-get-shredded-with-density-training

Density dominant training

The term training density technically refers to the amount of work performed per unit of time. When it comes to strength training, the easiest way to increase training density is to gradually reduce the rest periods between sets.

With density-dominant training, you perform a moderate volume of work for each muscle group (9 to 12 total sets) and use very short rest intervals (15 to 40 seconds). Alternatively, you can also use techniques to increase training density such as antagonistic supersets (e.g. one chest exercise and one back exercise as a superset). Two ways of progression:

1. Use more weight without pausing longer
2. Use the same weight while resting for less time

How it works

This approach has the advantage of stimulating a hormone release that burns more fat. Contrary to what the name suggests, growth hormones mobilize fatty acids. By increasing the release of growth hormone, it is possible to positively influence the amount of fat you burn during exercise.

For this reason, training density dominant workouts are good for a fat loss phase and well suited for endomorphic individuals who are normally not efficient when it comes to mobilizing fat. However, such training is not optimal for those who are training to build muscle mass or are performing a pure strength phase.

Tip: full body training vs. split training

Should you train one or two muscle groups or the whole body per day? Here are the pros and cons of both methods.

By Tim Henriques

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/tip-total-body-training-vs-body-part-splits

Should you use a split by muscle group or a full body workout? That depends on who you are and what you need. Both methods have significant benefits. And most people would benefit from spending some time doing both.

A split by muscle group generally means that you train one or two muscle groups per training session. A total body workout means that you perform one exercise from each of the following categories during a training session:

1. Upper body push exercise (chest and/or shoulders)
2. Upper body pull exercise (latissimus)
3. Lower body multi-joint exercise (gluteus, quadriceps and hamstrings)

Here are the pros and cons of both methods. Use this to decide which is the most appropriate approach for you.

Advantages of a full body workout

• Most fitness experts agree that a full-body workout is ideal for beginners
• You are relatively 'fresh' with each exercise as you train one area of the body and then move on to the next. This means there is not too much cumulative fatigue.
• It's easier to incorporate full body exercises like Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics and strongman stuff into this type of training.
• A total body workout can better prepare an athlete to deal with body-wide fatigue (as occurs in many sports) than a split program.
• A total body workout involves a greater percentage of the body's total motor units than a split program.
• Since you are training the entire body, a total body workout may be better when it comes to burning calories and promoting fat loss.
• It's good for recovering from injury or time off training as the intensity is reduced by default, so you can get more out of training more often to improve your technique.
• If you miss a session or two in a week, you'll still get some training stimulus for the whole body rather than neglecting certain areas of the body.
• It's easy to incorporate supersets (antagonistic sets) into your training to save time.
• Light total body workouts are easier than light split days (think of a full body workout vs. an arm workout).
• You won't get the kind of heavy muscle soreness with a full body workout that you can get with a split program.
• You can get a good overall workout in just three days a week.

Disadvantages of a full body workout

• High frequency combined with high intensity can lead to overtraining in certain areas of the body (shoulders from pushing three days a week, tendonitis in the elbows, etc.).
• It is difficult to train more than three days a week in a full body workout, otherwise you would start to train the same muscles on two consecutive days
• A full body workout may not allow for enough recovery if you train at high (relative) intensity or move a lot of weight (high absolute intensity).
• A full body workout may not allow enough training to improve weak areas.
• You may be tempted to reduce the training intensity as you will essentially be training the same thing again in a few days.
• Total body training may not build the same level of local muscle endurance or resistance to fatigue (lactate threshold) as split training.
• It is difficult to incorporate most intensity techniques (descending sets, compound sets, etc.) into a total body workout due to the short recovery time (in days) before the muscle is trained again.
• You don't get much pump in a specific muscle group, which some exercisers like.

Advantages of a split program

• Split training always allows you to maximize intensity levels regardless of how advanced you are.
• Repeated sets for a fatigued muscle builds muscle endurance better, which is especially true for muscle endurance over multiple sets.
• Split training allows you to train more than three days a week.
• Additional training days allow you to spend more time improving weak points in your development or performance.
• Split training gives your muscles more time to recover.
• Most fitness professionals agree that split training is better for bodybuilders and figure class athletes.
• Split training recruits a higher percentage of the total number of motor units in the body than a full body workout. When a muscle is fatigued, you recruit more motor units, which is better for your hypertrophy.
• The heaviest split day is usually heavier than the heaviest full body day (think of a leg day compared to a full body workout).
• It's easy to incorporate intensity techniques such as descending sets, compound sets, etc.
• A split workout may be better suited to teaching a trainee to train intensely.
• You tend to get a lot of muscle soreness and feel the muscles you worked out for several days afterward (some exercisers like this feeling, others don't).
• Split training is better if you want to train several days in a row.

Disadvantages of split training

• After the first exercise for one muscle group, you will be a little exhausted, which means that further training in that area will require a slight reduction in training weight.
• A split program must be planned correctly in advance to avoid overtraining muscle groups that are prone to this (lower back, front shoulder muscles, etc.).
• It is difficult to integrate full body exercises or combination exercises such as thrusters and Olympic weightlifting exercises into a split program.
• Split training may not promote body-wide fatigue, which can result in the exerciser not being prepared for this.
• You may not be stimulating your muscles intensely enough to require such a long recovery time (in days).
• You may feel the need to train 4 to 5 days a week, which means that your training requires more time.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/tip-how-to-look-like-you-lift

By Clay Hyght, DC