The Growth Phase of our 10 week program ended yesterday. See the entire 10 week routine which I've reproduced at the end of this blog.
We're back on one body part per day in the gym as follows:
Day 1 - Quads/Hamstrings
Day 2 - Chest/Calves
Day 3 - Back/Forearms
Day 4 - Shoulders/Traps
Day 5 - Biceps/Triceps
Through the 10 weeks from Active Recovery to Loading to Growth, our strength went up, way up, and to a lesser degree so did the body weight by intention. For example, I went from 163 to 172 during this period.
Now, we are going cut off any added fat through increasing cardio and decreasing carbs and I will get down to 10% body fat (legit) and see how much of that 9 pounds was muscle.
NOTE: Just as there was a mental barrier in gaining weight (even though that was the goal) there will now be a barrier to losing it because with some of the weight will go some of the added strength we have enjoyed.
Bottom line: You are either building or cutting -- nothing in between that I know of. If you're building, you're going to get stronger and you're going to get a little smoother, too. If you're cutting, you're going to lose some of that strength but you will cut up, get vascular, and frankly, look better. It is a trade off, plain and simple.
Before we leave our 10 week program about which I have discussed much in this blog, I have reproduced it all below. Hope you enjoy it. If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Workout parameters are determined by the phase of the program you are in. There are three phases that we will be repeating over and over again.
The first week will be an “Active Recovery Phase”. In this phase you will only train with weights twice a week on a full body routine before you start the next phase which will be called the “Loading Phase”.
The “Loading Phase”, which is three weeks in duration, is going to be a high volume phase with short rest between sets. Training volume gradually increases over the course of the three weeks in order to stress the body almost to the point of overtraining.
Then the next three weeks are going to be a higher intensity/lower volume phase (heavier weights) with longer periods of rest between sets. This phase is called the “Growth Phase”, as volume is reduced but weights are increased in order to let the body catch up and super compensate (grow muscle size and strength).
The Active Recovery Phase
The Active Recovery Phase has three main functions:
•First, according to leading strength expert Tudor Bompa, Ph.D., “you are trying to adapt the anatomy of the body to the upcoming training so that you can create, or produce an injury free environment”. Essentially, your tendons and ligaments should be strong enough to support the stressful periods that will follow.
•Second, this phase is a great time to address any strength imbalance that your body might have. This is the reason why mostly dumbbell work will be used during this phase.
•Finally, this phase will act as a great time in which the body will re-charge its energy stores and allow for complete physical and mental recuperation.
The Loading Phase
During the Loading Phase the body is stressed with an increasing high volume of work that if kept for too long will eventually result in overtraining and injury. During this phase, three things will happen:
•The growth hormone output goes through the roof due to the short rest interval between sets and the high volume.
•Hypertrophy (muscle growth) occurs by the body increasing the levels of creatine, water and carbohydrates inside the muscle cell. This phenomenon is called muscle voluminization.
•The body’s recuperation capabilities are upgraded in response to the stress imposed by the increasing volume of work coupled with short rest intervals.
The Growth Phase
During the Growth Phase the body is not stressed by volume. This time the stimuli are heavy weights. If this phase would be kept for too long eventually the body would cease to stop making strength gains and you would plateau. This is the reason why you always need to go back to a Loading Phase. During this phase the following three things will happen:
•The testosterone levels go through the roof in response to the longer rest in between sets and the heavier weights.
•Hypertrophy (muscle growth) occurs by the body increasing the actual diameter of the myofiber (the muscle fiber size) through increased protein synthesis (Note: protein synthesis is creating protein strands through DNA and RNA and it takes place in the cytoplasm of the cell.)
•Since your body’s recuperation abilities were built up to the maximum by the previous phase and the volume has gone down dramatically, these extra recuperation abilities are used to increase strength and build more muscle mass. The reason the body does this is in order to be prepared for another stressful period like the one it just went through. This adaptation mechanism is the one that ensures the survival of the species.
Even if you are training for fat loss, your main goal should always be to stimulate growth. Otherwise, if you were to drastically reduce training poundage in order to perform a lot of high reps, there would be no reason for the body to keep the muscle around. Because of this, you should always train with muscle growth in mind and let the nutrition and the cardiovascular exercise take care of reducing your body fat levels.
Here is the training cycle we used:
Week 1 – Active Rest
Monday/Thursday:
Modified Compound Superset:
(Rest 1 minute after the 1st set of exercise 1 and then do the first set of exercise 2. Then rest a minute and go back to exercise 1. Continue this pattern until both exercises are done for the prescribed amount of sets).
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
One Arm Dumbbell Rows 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Dumbbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Pulldown to Front 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Bent Over Lateral Raises 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Incline Dumbbell Curls 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extensions 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Dumbbell Lunges 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Leg Curls 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Squats 2 sets x 10 reps (2 minute rest)
Calf Raise 3 sets x 10 reps (2 minute rest).
Weeks 2, 3, and 4 – Loading Phase
Notes: If unable to train 6 days a week, then perform Day 1 on Monday, Day 2 on Wednesday and Day 3 on Friday.
Day 1 – Shoulders & Arms (Monday/Thursday):
Superset:
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 4 sets x 10-12 reps (30 second rest)
Bent Over Laterals 4 sets x 10-12 reps (30 second rest)
Superset:
Dumbbell Curls 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extensions 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Incline Curls 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extensions 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Wrist Curls 3 sets x 15-30 reps (No rest)
Reverse Wrist Curls 3 sets x 15-30 reps (No rest)
On Week 3, add:
Superset:
Bent Over Laterals 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Concentration Curls 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Triceps Pushdowns 3 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
On Week 4, add:
Superset:
Lateral Raises 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Hammer Curls 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Triceps Dips 3 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Day 2 – Legs (Tuesday/Friday)
Superset:
Squats 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Wide Stance Squats 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Standing Leg Curls 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Adductor Machine 3 sets x12-15 reps (No rest)
Abductor Machine 3 sets x12-15 reps (No rest)
Superset:
Standing Calf Raises 4 sets x 10-12 reps (30 second rest)
Seated Calf Raises 4 sets x 15-20 reps (30 second rest)
On Week 3, add:
Superset:
Leg Extensions 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Seated Leg Curls 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
One Legged Calf Raises with Dumbbells 3 sets x 15-20 reps (1 minute rest)
On Week 4, add:
Superset:
Leg Press 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Dumbbell Stiff Legged Dead lifts 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Calf Press (on Leg Press Machine) 3 sets x 15-20 reps (1 minute rest)
Day 3 – Chest & Back (Wednesday/Saturday)
Superset:
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front (Palms facing away from you) 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Chest Dips 4 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Close Grip Pull-up (Palms facing you) 4 sets x 10-12 reps (1 minute rest)
Superset:
Dumbbell Shrugs 3 sets x 10-12 reps
External Rotations (for strengthening of the rotator cuff) 3 sets x 15-20 reps
Superset:
Leg Raises 4 sets x 25 reps (30 second rest)
Crunches 4 sets x 25 reps (30 second rest)
On Week 3, add:
Superset:
One Arm Rows 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Dumbbell Bench Press 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Knee-Ins 3 sets x 25 reps (1 minute rest)
On Week 4, add:
Superset:
Stiff Arm Pulldowns 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Incline Flyes 3 sets x 10-12 reps (No rest)
Side Crunches 3 sets x 25 reps (1 minute rest)
Weeks 1, 2, & 3 – Growth Phase
Day 1 – Shoulders & Arms (Monday/Thursday)
Modified Compound Superset:
Military Press 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Rear Delt Rows (Performed on T-Bar Row Machine, elbows and upper arms away from torso in order to primarily stimulate the Rear Delts and not the Lats) 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
E-Z Curls 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Lying E-Z Triceps Extensions 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
E-Z Preacher Curls 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Triceps Dips 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Superset:
Wrist Curls 2 sets x 15-30 reps (No rest)
Reverse Wrist Curls 2 sets x 15-30 reps (No rest)
Day 2 – Legs (Tuesday/Friday)
Modified Compound Superset:
Squats 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Wide Stance Squats 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Standing Leg Curls 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Superset:
Adductor Machine 2 sets x 12-15 reps (No rest)
Abductor Machine 2 sets x 12-15 reps (No rest)
Superset:
Calf Press 4 sets x 8-10 reps (No rest)
Seated Calf Raises 4 sets x 15-20 reps (30 second rest)
Day 3 – Chest & Back (Wednesday/Saturday)
Modified Compound Superset:
Incline Barbell Bench Press 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front (Palms facing away from you) 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Chest Dips 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Close Grip Pull-up (Palms facing you) 4 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6 reps (90 second rest)
Superset:
Dumbbell Shrugs 2 sets x 10-12 reps (No Rest)
External Rotations (for strengthening of the rotator cuff) 2 sets x 15-20 reps (No Rest)
Superset:
Hanging Leg Raises 4 sets x 25 reps (No Rest)
Crunches (performed on Decline Bench) 4 sets x 25 reps (30 second rest)
Week 4 – Active Rest
Monday/Thursday
Modified Compound Superset:
(Rest 1 minute after the 1st set of exercise 1 and then do the first set of exercise 2. Then rest a minute and go back to exercise 1. Continue this pattern until both exercises are done for the prescribed amount of sets).
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
One Arm Dumbbell Rows 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Dumbbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Pulldown to Front 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Bent Over Lateral Raises 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 2 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Incline Dumbbell Curls 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extensions 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Modified Compound Superset:
Dumbbell Lunges 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Leg Curls 3 sets x 10 reps (1 minute rest)
Squats 2 sets x 10 reps (2 minute rest)
Calf Raise 3 sets x 10 reps (2 minute rest)
Training Routine Notes
Notice on the routine above that some exercises for body parts like forearms, traps, rotator cuff, and inner/outer thighs are still performed for high repetitions in superset fashion (one after the other with no rest in between). The reason for this is because these are auxiliary muscle groups that get enough indirect stimulation from the rest of the basic exercises. Therefore they do not need to adhere to the same cycling principles that the other muscle groups require.
In addition, notice that while we do vary the volume of exercise for Abs and Calves, we still adhere to using supersets and pretty high repetitions. This is because these type of muscles are endurance type muscles and therefore respond better to heavy weights performed for a relatively high number of repetitions. This is true of the abdominals as well. As soon as you start being able to do more repetitions for the abdominal muscles than what is recommended in the routine, feel free to start adding resistance to the movement. This will bring a quality to the muscle that is not seen on bodybuilders that do not train their abs with weights.
Train hard; diet harder!
Jim
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