-MeV-
Swapping!
Nunca viene mal refrescar los conceptos básicos de los parámetros que rigen nuestro entrenamiento: volumen, frecuencia, densidad, intensidad, "intensidad" (concepto HITero).
Este artículo de Thib lo explica bastante bien:
VOLUME VS. FREQUENCY VS . DENSITY VS. INTENSITY VS. INTENSIVENESS
There are a myriad of training programs and training systems in the strength training field. All of them can basically be grouped into two main groups: the illogical/ineffective/counterproductive ones and the ones that are logical and effective.
Illogical programs normally offer no basis in science and are often designed and 'marketed' by using seduction rather than reasoning. These programs fail to provide an adequate mean of progression and are generally based on the 'more is better' or the 'no pain no gain' mentality. A second type of illogical program is actually the opposite: it's based on doing a ton of cute stuff but nothing that will really stimulate muscle growth and strength increases.
This first category of illogical programs is based in 'driving your body through the ground'; it doesn't really matter what you are doing in the gym as long as you are 'burning' or 'destroying' your muscle. This approach will not work for 99% of the population. It will work with genetic freaks who are on heavy doses of anabolic steroids, but that's about it. Workouts in this category often include up to 25-30 sets per muscle group along with several intensive techniques such as drop sets, supersets, rest/pause, etc. Yes it's painful, yes you feel like a mack truck just ran you over when you leave the gym, but NO it doesn't mean that you will Grow! Stimulating growth is about progression: challenging your body on a systematic basis, that's true. However you must no exceed your capacity to recovery otherwise not only will you not progress, you will actually go backwards! In this 'system' you do a high volume of work, at a high frequency
The second type of illogical program is the opposite in that the actual amount of effort you put in the gym is laughable. This type of training will include every single 'cool' training method under the sun... swiss balls, wobble boards, BOSU ball and other unstable training as well as dozen of cute movement that as so isolated that you'll barely be able to use any weight in them.
I had a friend fall into that trap when he started his college studies in applied kinesiology. Before that he was a decent athlete, a sprinter who would perform squats, power cleans, romanian deadlifts, presses, etc. And he was pretty strong and powerful at hat time. When he started his degree and began to learn the biomechanical function of every single muscle in the body. As a result his 'new' lower body session included around 12-15 exercises. One to isolate the gracilis, one to target the vastus lateralis, one for the sartorius, you get the point... but no heavy lifting, no hard training, no real progressio. And you guessed it: no real gains! Don't get me wrong, it is important to know the function of each muscle group so that you are able to correct weaknesses if you find them. But the basis of everry singly single effective program will be hard work and weekly progression... not 'cute' training.
So now that we have a better idea of what is logical and effective, let's try to find out what 'is' effective.
Well first of all the basis of ALL effetive programs revolves around the three same things: progression, effort and consistency. Without these three elements a program falls back to the first category of training (illogical/ineffective/counterproductive). On the other end, any program that is based on these three principles will work, to some extent. It might not be ideal and optimally to your body-type and psychological profile, but it will work. That's why I find it funny when I see proponents of different training methodologies argue about the superiority of their own approach over all others; listen: there is no universal best program. However provided that progression, effort and optimal recovery is provided any program will work. The thing is finding the program that works best for you.
There are five types of program dominance out there. That is, five elements on which a program can be based on. And unless you have a very profound understanding of all the intricacies of the biological and neural processes involved in training you should stick to focusing on only one of these five elements when designing a program. What are these five elements you ask? They are:
Volume
Frequency
Density
Intensity
Intensiveness
While all five will come into play in every single program, when designing a workout you should focus on only one of them, making it the central element in the program. Depending on your body-type, objective, recovery capacity and dietary approach any of those five dominances can either be optimal or not.
So here are the main type of basic programs you can have:
a) Volume-dominant: this type of program utilize a high number of sets per muscle group to stimulate growth. When used with heavy weights the goal is to 'drill' a movement, enhancing neuromuscular coordination (this requires doing a lot of sets, but of a few number of exercises). But when it comes to building muscle we are talking more about using cumulative fatigue from all the sets to stimulate growth. With this type of training 16-24 sets per muscle group are normally performed. Because of the high volume of work for a muscle group, only one or two muscle groups can be trained in a session which also means that you can (and should) train each muscle group only once per week. This type of training is normally better suited to endomorphs and mesomorphs who have a large base of training experience (and thus can handle a lot of strength work) but it is far from being adequate for an ectomorph or an individual who has problems gaining weight. Note that when someone is using a high-volume approach he should not use intensive techniques such as drop sets, supersets and the likes. This is sure to put even the freakiest genetic phenom in a state of under-recovery and stagnation (or even regression).
b) Frequency-dominant: this approach relies on training each muscle group frequently, 3-6 times per week. It works by improving neural drive to the muscle and 'forcing' the body to add muscle because it needs them to work hard almost every day. With this type of training the volume of work needs to be super low, otherwise:
you won't allow your muscles to recover between two workouts
your workouts will be too long. With a frequency dominant approach you are training at least half of your body at every session, if you perform even a moderate amount of work for each muscle group the workout will end up lasting more than 2 hours and this will put you in a catabolic (muscle wasting) state.
This type of training is effective with beginners who have an inefficient neural drive. It is also effective when strength performance without muscle gain is desired (because the system improves neural efficiency more than mass) but I find it to be an inferior system when it comes to building muscle mass in the non-beginner.
c) Density-dominant: density refers to the amount of work being performed per unit of time. When it comes to strength training, the easiest way to increase density is to gradually reduce the amount of rest between sets. With this type of training you perform a moderate volume of work for each muscle group (9-12 sets) and use very short rest intervals (15-45 seconds) or density techniques such as antagonist supersets (e.g. Supersetting a back and a chest exercise). You progress in this system either by using more weight without resting more or by using the same weight while resting less.
This training approach has the advantage of stimulating the release of hGH, more so than other training systems. Contrary to what it's name implies, growth hormone's main function in adults is the mobilization of fat. So by increasing hGH release you also positively affect the amount of fat that you burn during your workout.
For this reason, density-dominant workouts are good for a fat loss phase as well as for endomorphs (who are normally not efficient at mobilizing fat). However it is not an optimal method for ectos or during a mass-gaining or strength phase.
d) Intensity-dominant: in the strength-training field 'intensity' refers to the amount of weight lifted in relation to your maximum. For example if you are capable of a 300lbs bench press and that you are using 240lbs on your sets, your intensity level is 80%. Intensity does not refer to the feeling of working hard or going to the limit. So an intensity-dominant system revolves around the use of heavy weights, in the 85-100% range. During that type of training the number of sets per exercise is fairly high (to maximize neural stimulation) but the overall volume of work is fairly low because you focus only on 1-2 exercises per muscle group. In a good intensity-dominant phase you should use 2 (sometimes 3) exercises per muscle group for a total of no more than 16 total sets per muscle group, 12 being better in most cases. Reps are in the 1-5 range.
With this type of training the mean of progressing is the amount of weight used: each weak you should strive to handle more and more weight (with proper form).
The guys best suited for this type of training are endo-mesomorphs: guys who are muscular but also carry some fat. Muscular but super lean guys might not do as good on this type of training because of a lack of 'joint cushioning'.
Ectomorphs are not well suited to this type of training as their joints are normally too small and their limb too long to perform this type of lifting safely and effectively.
e) Intensiveness-dominant: now we are talking about taking it to the limit of pain! This type of training takes every set to muscle failure and beyond. The goal is to turn every single set into a torture session; basically ending the set when it is impossible to contract the muscle! To do so you resort to methods such as drop sets, rest/pause, partials, holds, negatives, etc. (as explained in an earlier table). Because each set is so brutal you absolutely cannot and should not perform a high volume of work when training this way. Sessions should last 30-45 minutes and include around 4-6 work sets per muscle group (up to 8 for back since it's a very complex structure).
This type of training is well suited to ectomorphs and anybody who has trouble gaining muscle weight. However not everybody can train this way:
You've got to be tough enough to take each set deep into the loins of hell! If you do not go to the limit on your sets, it's a waste and you will not get results from this system. So to benefit from this type of training you have to be mentally tough and have a very high pain threshold.
You've got to be disciplined enough to avoid doing too much work. Every single person I've seen not get results with this type of training failed because they could not accept doing so little work. They would bump the sets to 10-14 per muscle group or not take the required 2-3 days of rest per week which are necessary to grow on this system.
Este artículo de Thib lo explica bastante bien:
VOLUME VS. FREQUENCY VS . DENSITY VS. INTENSITY VS. INTENSIVENESS
There are a myriad of training programs and training systems in the strength training field. All of them can basically be grouped into two main groups: the illogical/ineffective/counterproductive ones and the ones that are logical and effective.
Illogical programs normally offer no basis in science and are often designed and 'marketed' by using seduction rather than reasoning. These programs fail to provide an adequate mean of progression and are generally based on the 'more is better' or the 'no pain no gain' mentality. A second type of illogical program is actually the opposite: it's based on doing a ton of cute stuff but nothing that will really stimulate muscle growth and strength increases.
This first category of illogical programs is based in 'driving your body through the ground'; it doesn't really matter what you are doing in the gym as long as you are 'burning' or 'destroying' your muscle. This approach will not work for 99% of the population. It will work with genetic freaks who are on heavy doses of anabolic steroids, but that's about it. Workouts in this category often include up to 25-30 sets per muscle group along with several intensive techniques such as drop sets, supersets, rest/pause, etc. Yes it's painful, yes you feel like a mack truck just ran you over when you leave the gym, but NO it doesn't mean that you will Grow! Stimulating growth is about progression: challenging your body on a systematic basis, that's true. However you must no exceed your capacity to recovery otherwise not only will you not progress, you will actually go backwards! In this 'system' you do a high volume of work, at a high frequency
The second type of illogical program is the opposite in that the actual amount of effort you put in the gym is laughable. This type of training will include every single 'cool' training method under the sun... swiss balls, wobble boards, BOSU ball and other unstable training as well as dozen of cute movement that as so isolated that you'll barely be able to use any weight in them.
I had a friend fall into that trap when he started his college studies in applied kinesiology. Before that he was a decent athlete, a sprinter who would perform squats, power cleans, romanian deadlifts, presses, etc. And he was pretty strong and powerful at hat time. When he started his degree and began to learn the biomechanical function of every single muscle in the body. As a result his 'new' lower body session included around 12-15 exercises. One to isolate the gracilis, one to target the vastus lateralis, one for the sartorius, you get the point... but no heavy lifting, no hard training, no real progressio. And you guessed it: no real gains! Don't get me wrong, it is important to know the function of each muscle group so that you are able to correct weaknesses if you find them. But the basis of everry singly single effective program will be hard work and weekly progression... not 'cute' training.
So now that we have a better idea of what is logical and effective, let's try to find out what 'is' effective.
Well first of all the basis of ALL effetive programs revolves around the three same things: progression, effort and consistency. Without these three elements a program falls back to the first category of training (illogical/ineffective/counterproductive). On the other end, any program that is based on these three principles will work, to some extent. It might not be ideal and optimally to your body-type and psychological profile, but it will work. That's why I find it funny when I see proponents of different training methodologies argue about the superiority of their own approach over all others; listen: there is no universal best program. However provided that progression, effort and optimal recovery is provided any program will work. The thing is finding the program that works best for you.
There are five types of program dominance out there. That is, five elements on which a program can be based on. And unless you have a very profound understanding of all the intricacies of the biological and neural processes involved in training you should stick to focusing on only one of these five elements when designing a program. What are these five elements you ask? They are:
Volume
Frequency
Density
Intensity
Intensiveness
While all five will come into play in every single program, when designing a workout you should focus on only one of them, making it the central element in the program. Depending on your body-type, objective, recovery capacity and dietary approach any of those five dominances can either be optimal or not.
So here are the main type of basic programs you can have:
a) Volume-dominant: this type of program utilize a high number of sets per muscle group to stimulate growth. When used with heavy weights the goal is to 'drill' a movement, enhancing neuromuscular coordination (this requires doing a lot of sets, but of a few number of exercises). But when it comes to building muscle we are talking more about using cumulative fatigue from all the sets to stimulate growth. With this type of training 16-24 sets per muscle group are normally performed. Because of the high volume of work for a muscle group, only one or two muscle groups can be trained in a session which also means that you can (and should) train each muscle group only once per week. This type of training is normally better suited to endomorphs and mesomorphs who have a large base of training experience (and thus can handle a lot of strength work) but it is far from being adequate for an ectomorph or an individual who has problems gaining weight. Note that when someone is using a high-volume approach he should not use intensive techniques such as drop sets, supersets and the likes. This is sure to put even the freakiest genetic phenom in a state of under-recovery and stagnation (or even regression).
b) Frequency-dominant: this approach relies on training each muscle group frequently, 3-6 times per week. It works by improving neural drive to the muscle and 'forcing' the body to add muscle because it needs them to work hard almost every day. With this type of training the volume of work needs to be super low, otherwise:
you won't allow your muscles to recover between two workouts
your workouts will be too long. With a frequency dominant approach you are training at least half of your body at every session, if you perform even a moderate amount of work for each muscle group the workout will end up lasting more than 2 hours and this will put you in a catabolic (muscle wasting) state.
This type of training is effective with beginners who have an inefficient neural drive. It is also effective when strength performance without muscle gain is desired (because the system improves neural efficiency more than mass) but I find it to be an inferior system when it comes to building muscle mass in the non-beginner.
c) Density-dominant: density refers to the amount of work being performed per unit of time. When it comes to strength training, the easiest way to increase density is to gradually reduce the amount of rest between sets. With this type of training you perform a moderate volume of work for each muscle group (9-12 sets) and use very short rest intervals (15-45 seconds) or density techniques such as antagonist supersets (e.g. Supersetting a back and a chest exercise). You progress in this system either by using more weight without resting more or by using the same weight while resting less.
This training approach has the advantage of stimulating the release of hGH, more so than other training systems. Contrary to what it's name implies, growth hormone's main function in adults is the mobilization of fat. So by increasing hGH release you also positively affect the amount of fat that you burn during your workout.
For this reason, density-dominant workouts are good for a fat loss phase as well as for endomorphs (who are normally not efficient at mobilizing fat). However it is not an optimal method for ectos or during a mass-gaining or strength phase.
d) Intensity-dominant: in the strength-training field 'intensity' refers to the amount of weight lifted in relation to your maximum. For example if you are capable of a 300lbs bench press and that you are using 240lbs on your sets, your intensity level is 80%. Intensity does not refer to the feeling of working hard or going to the limit. So an intensity-dominant system revolves around the use of heavy weights, in the 85-100% range. During that type of training the number of sets per exercise is fairly high (to maximize neural stimulation) but the overall volume of work is fairly low because you focus only on 1-2 exercises per muscle group. In a good intensity-dominant phase you should use 2 (sometimes 3) exercises per muscle group for a total of no more than 16 total sets per muscle group, 12 being better in most cases. Reps are in the 1-5 range.
With this type of training the mean of progressing is the amount of weight used: each weak you should strive to handle more and more weight (with proper form).
The guys best suited for this type of training are endo-mesomorphs: guys who are muscular but also carry some fat. Muscular but super lean guys might not do as good on this type of training because of a lack of 'joint cushioning'.
Ectomorphs are not well suited to this type of training as their joints are normally too small and their limb too long to perform this type of lifting safely and effectively.
e) Intensiveness-dominant: now we are talking about taking it to the limit of pain! This type of training takes every set to muscle failure and beyond. The goal is to turn every single set into a torture session; basically ending the set when it is impossible to contract the muscle! To do so you resort to methods such as drop sets, rest/pause, partials, holds, negatives, etc. (as explained in an earlier table). Because each set is so brutal you absolutely cannot and should not perform a high volume of work when training this way. Sessions should last 30-45 minutes and include around 4-6 work sets per muscle group (up to 8 for back since it's a very complex structure).
This type of training is well suited to ectomorphs and anybody who has trouble gaining muscle weight. However not everybody can train this way:
You've got to be tough enough to take each set deep into the loins of hell! If you do not go to the limit on your sets, it's a waste and you will not get results from this system. So to benefit from this type of training you have to be mentally tough and have a very high pain threshold.
You've got to be disciplined enough to avoid doing too much work. Every single person I've seen not get results with this type of training failed because they could not accept doing so little work. They would bump the sets to 10-14 per muscle group or not take the required 2-3 days of rest per week which are necessary to grow on this system.
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