photo by kuwait on flikr
Sadly summer is over and Fall has arrived, but this doesn’t mean to quit hitting the gym. This is the best time to keep building up, this is the time when you train your ass off for people to say “shit what the F have you been doing?”. To help you look like a bad ass, I thought I’d go over some basic programming tips for lean gains.
Lift Heavy
This has been redundantly stated but I believe people either go WAY over or barely do jack shit. It’s a tough call but you should be able to struggle with the weight and also move the bar with speed too. To better put it, you should goto your technical maxes– this is where you lift till your technique breaks- for heavy lifting. The lifter should NOT fail on the attempt but should be able to struggle a bit.
Lift for Volume
I’m a big fan of volume training. Volume is where you grow but with out strength volume doesn’t mean too much. They work cohesively, this is why I put “Lift Heavy” first :). Think about it, if one lifter is squatting 135lbs for 5’s vs. 275lbs for 5’s, who has the size?
For our Fusion Performance Training clients, I like to focus on concurrent training -build all at the same time- we program the ‘core lift’ or ‘main lift’ with heavier weights for the day and the auxiliary as a more volume lift.
*there are exceptions but generally speaking this is how we program.
Here’s an example:
- 1A) Squat- Technical Max to 3’s drop down clusters of 3x 3(3) (High Intensity and medium volume)
- 2A) Overhead Press 4×8 (Medium intensity and volume)
- 2B) Pull Ups 4×8 (weighted) (Medium intensity and volume)
- 3A) Reverse Lunges 3×12 (High Volume, low intensity)
- 3B) Isometric Back Extension 3x20sec (High Volume, low intensity)
- 4A) Dips 3×15 (High Volume, low intensity)
- 4B) Curls 3x20sec (High Volume, low intensity)
You can also split it so that the core lift is focused on high volume BUT make sure that you do program a strength day too.
Example: (High volume Day)
- 1A) Squat- 5×10+ (low-med Intensity and high volume)
- 2A) Bench Press 3×5+ (medium intensity and low volume)
- 2B) Rows 3×12+ (low intensity and high volume)
- 3A) Rack Snatch Pulls 3×5 (medium volume, medium intensity)
- 3B) Reverse Flys 3x20sec (High Volume, low intensity)
- 4A) Tri’s 3x20sec (High Volume, low intensity)
- 4B) Curls 3x20sec (High Volume, low intensity)
*(+) indicates to goto technical failure but must surpass the prescribed reps.
Keep in mind that there are many ways to develop size/strength and it’ll also be dependent on your past history. With that said, the premise is that you should challenge yourself in both volume and intensity throughout your workouts.
Diet
Finally the diet, we all know that you ‘grow’ outside of the gym. The damage you do in the weight room gets fueled by eating. Eat like shit and look like shit- that is of course if you’re drug free.
We all know what we need to eat – veggies, lean protein, and good fats- but what we fail to forget is to develop habits and preparation. I find that those that jump into a hardcore diet without the right mindset or proper background generally bounce back to their old ways quickly. Developing a habit of cutting out sodas with meals or desserts at night will go a long way- this example is for beginners but you get the point. Finally preparation is also imperative, without having the right foods ready and you’re potentially setting yourself up for failure. When you’re coming home late night, the last thing you want to do is prep and cooking your meal…but if you have your food prepped, you’ll be good to go.
Hope this helps,