Junior Member
I meant to ask, when you do decline bench do you, or the people you train, find that it works your rear delts as well? My rear delts have been just as sore as my chest ever since I did chest on monday. The only thing that I can figure is that it must be decline, cause that's the only thing that I've really added that's different. My rear delts need to come up a little anyway, so I'm not complaining, just curious.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Your rear delts weren't use to stabilizing that much weight, for that many sets, at a new angle. Sore rear delts after declines is generally rare but happens on occasion. You'll get over it!Originally Posted by Tenmoney
Junior Member
I figured as much, and ya I'll get over it.
Senior Member
this program is definitely proving its worth. im getting stronger each week, im adding size with minimal increases in bodyfat %...what more can you ask for from a program? This is not just another get-huge-quick-scheme like someother programs out there.
New Member
Maybe I missed it but I assume that the rep ranges are to be used as double progression? For example using the 4-6 rep range once you get 6 reps with your work weight you up the weight next workout and shoot for 4-6 again? Thanks.
Senior Member
yes te2te...this is correct you can check out my Slingshot log in the workout forum
New Member
Moush, I see you're using the 5 days a week routine. I'm taking a serious look at the 3 day routine; however, I'm not sure about doing back width one workout and then back thickness the next. I think I understand the reasoning due to the muscle groupings, I'm just not sure my upper back and shoulders will be able to recover.
Anabolic Member
I'm really interested in this program enough to follow through with it... But just need a few clarifications:
1. I'm on PCT right now so I'm just cruising through...can I start the slingshot system with no gear but hgh/slin after PCT? obviously I can't prime on PCT, i'll catabolize like crazy.
2. Can clen be used during the priming phase?
Answers from doc, guru, moush or anyone experienced will be much appreciated. Thanx in advance
cheers
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Your back will recover just fine because you are working two different muscle
groups within the back. Rows work the thickness muscles and pull-ups work the part of the muscle that produces width. It's comparable to doing chest presses and then doing over-head shoulder presses 2 days later. The chest presses mostly works the chest and over-head presses moslty work the deltoids.
Our muscles actually recover very fast. It's the joints and CNS that holds us back.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
1) Yes! You can use Slingshot Training is every imaginable scenario. The prime can be done while on PCT by simply eating less saturated fats and hi GI carbs. You do not have to actually lose weight during a 2 week prime. The goal is to increase insulin sensitivity by hardening the musculature. Most people make the mistake of priming too agressively their first time around. Yes, growth hormone and slin can be used as your anabolics for the 6 week mass phase.
2) Clen works well for a prime.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
You can use double progression or you can stay in the lower range of each scale by adding more weight.
Anabolic Member
Guru, I need a SHORT summary of what is the point of Anabolic cruise becaise I am 26th day of Anabolic Blast and I need to set up my wokrout routine.
Well from what I read, it is to accept all the gains made during the 28 day blast.
Basically cut the volume and keep one really heavy set at low rep?
Ex.
Flat barbell
135x12 warm-up
205x6 prep
245x6 work
Thanks
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
2 week Anabolic Cruise:
Adaptation begins to set in after a four-week blasting phase and a 2-week anabolic cruising phase is taken to allow the muscle-strength gains to become fully manifested. This is accomplished by using medium volume to create a de-loading effect. Lifting heavier weight loads over-time will increase muscle size.
SAMPLES BELOW-
2 WEEK “ANBOLIC PRIME”
Chest-
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
4 WEEK “ANBOLIC BLAST”
Chest-
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2 exercise is a secodary exercise-15 degree incline flyes
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC CRUISE”
Chest-
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 11-13-2007 at 11:46 AM.
Anabolic Member
Thanx bro for the prompt replies... I understand about the priming now....I can see why people would overdo it the first time round...they probably confuse it with some sort of cutting when its more of a de-progamming of sorts
cheers
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
If you need any more help just let me know. You're going to love this program!
Anabolic Member
Guru,
It would be great if there was some kind of post explaining the sercrets of dropping fat to really low levels. As low as 4% - 8%. Also, keeping as much muscle as possible.
I have never seen such post.
Take care!
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Uber my friend, this is a very good question. I will get to it in a day or two. I promise!
First, I am going to post a summary of the entire STS starting in the thread below to provide everyone with a better understanding of Slingshot Training.
Ronnie
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Post 138 Slingshot Training Revised!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PRIME/BLAST/CRUISE
The Slingshot Training System
By Ronnie Rowland author of the “Slingshot Training System.”
WARNING: READ FIRST
No liability is assumed by the author for information contained within. Anabolic steroids are illegal in many countries and are not condoned by the author. All readers, are advises that any form of supplements or drugs described may be illegal, prohibited, or used only with a doctors prescription. The author does not participate, advocate, or encourage in any illegal activities. Readers must consult with appropriate legal and medical authorities if not certain about what has been stated in this article.
Important Note: Sample training splits begin on post 144 in this thread! Beginner routines are located at the bottom of post #146.
Introduction:
When many bodybuilders hit a plateau, what do they do? They begin to push even harder by adding more intensity or exercises to their routine. This kind of thinking is wrong because a muscle has to be exposed to something it is not used to doing without over-training the nervous system and joints. Adding additional exercises or trying to use beyond failure techniques is widely accepted for producing frustrated bodybuilders!
It's no secret that progressively adding more weight to every lift is a sure-fire way to increase total lean body mass, given the diet, training volume, and exercise selection is spot on. Almost everyone starts out using low volume. They grow at a phenomenal rate until the body adapts and quits responding. Because some feel the gains were so great using the lower volume approach, they begin to try and lift heavier weights while using the same program for extended periods of time. They put continued pressure on themselves to try to beat personal records each training session in hopes it will somehow further their muscle mass. Unfortunately, they end up with nothing more than chronic injuries and stagnation as a result.
The intelligent trainer's switch-over to using more volume, while the less fortunate keep thinking less is always more! The next mistake comes into play by the trainees who have switched over to using the higher volume approach. Many bodybuilders become so overwhelmed with their newly found muscle mass after having increased the volume that they begin to reason with themselves thinking more must always be done from that point on. They quickly hit a point of diminishing returns and eventually develop over-use injuries and an over-trained nervous system, instead of reverting back to using a lower amount of volume that worked so well at the beginning.
Sometimes their training will take the form of more sets-reps, exercises, intensity, training sessions, etc. Some are in constant search for the latest routines that will shock their muscles even further. However, all this does is hold them back even more because no one can overcome diminishing returns or keep using the same routine for extended periods of time and expect to make good gains!
** As a bodybuilder you will be going up against giants. In biblical times David used a "slingshot" to destroy his largest opponent of all, Goliath. Slingshot Training will dramatically change your physique in a short amount of time, trust me on this one.* *
Every time I browse the internet it’s the same old question being asked over and over again; “What’s the best training routine to gain lean muscle mass and strength?” Many of you are jumping from program to program and it’s not really making any noticeable differences in your strength or appearance. Some of you were making gains but have now reached a plateau. Others believe that a properly structured routine won’t really make much difference in comparison to other training programs and you tend to be either an obsessive-compulsive high volume bodybuilder (always going for a pump) or an obsessive-compulsive low volume bodybuilder (always trying to gain more strength). If you fall into any of these categories, I want to share with you what I have found optimal for making forward progress as an off-season bodybuilder.
First, not everything that works is good. You can be sincere in what you believe and still be wrong. So far, so good, doesn’t mean you’re not going to have some serious issues with joint and tendon pain later on down the road. All too often a hero on this months muscle magazine turns into a zero a few months down the road because they become injured and can no longer train. Listen carefully, opinions and trends come and go. I get a head ache just thinking about all the high-intensity training techniques such as pre-exhaustion, forced reps, negative reps, partial reps, down the rack, rest-pause, super sets, burns, drop sets, and the list goes on, and on!
Let me be clear, various training techniques have nothing to do with genetic capablitlies. There is not one single variable that is the total downfall of not being able to gain more muscle size. Forced reps, rest pause, drop sets, etc will all depict some form of muscular hypertrophy. However, a major problem (other than these techniques being less effective at stimulating muscular size-strength and putting more strain on the joints, tendons, and CNS) is that they take in a very selected group of principles and apply them. The theory of combining all different training techniques to increase muscle hypertrophy is short-sighting the way the human body responds. If genetics dictated the needs for a different training style, then some could use rest-pause or drop-sets and get bigger/stronger than what they could obtain with straight sets, and we know this is not the case! Time has proven that the gentically superior will respond better to all forms of training methods when compared to the genetically inferior. Simply changing the way you create damage by employing various beyond failure training methods does not alter the fact that over¬training of the CNS and joints/tendons will out pace muscular damage. So, it all boils down to finding that one training method that’s not only the most effective for all genetic types, but the safest. It just so happens that straight sets is that one training method. In final, straight sets is the superior training style that out does all the rest when periodized properly!
* * Just because something has been shown to work doesn't mean it’s the best way**
A lot of talented people fail because they don't have a strong work ethic or they get poor information and stick too it. It's very important to get the right information. Do some investigating. Our projection of things is how all of us make our decisions. And all too often, people tend to believe something just because they have heard others say it over and over again. You must resist letting others condition or brainwash you into believing something that is not altogether true. Be skeptical when someone is trying to sell you something. It pays to be defensive because there is always something being promoted as "new and amazing" that turns out to be pure garbage. I'm not telling you that Slingshot Training is the only one way to success, or that all other training systems are wrong. I'm all about teaching others what I have found to be optimal. I get tired of all the silly debates on the internet that means absolutely nothing. For every article debunking a certain method, 25 can be found supporting it. Studies are fine, and theories are great, but reality hits hard and the paper studies that are put out become worthless when the truth is finally revealed. When someone gives the default answer "Well there's not an effective off-season program that will work for everyone in terms of maxing out their genetics potential," I realize they are basically admitting they do not understand how the human body responds to outside stimuli.
The big picture is learning what it takes to create an effective progressive over-load (lift more weight) without getting injured and then taking those strength gains and proceeding forward to create a true progressive over-load (performing more sets with heavier weight loads) without developing over-use injuries and over-training. Add the proper nutrition into the mix and that’s how you get results. I refer to this as using a slingshot approach (hurling intensity to the muscles).
If you gain strength but fail to gain some muscle size over time, it’s because you are not eating enough calories. If you gain strength but neglect to increase training volume during a period of using more calories to put on weight, you will gain more body fat and less muscle size. Combining more volume with extra calories and increased strength gains is what causes maximum growth. Then you must periodize these 3 factors so progress and recuperation can be made year round.
Training has to do with adaptation. Volume, Intensity, Frequency and Strength have their limitations. None of them are infinite. For e.g.; If you perform 1 intense set of heavy barbell curls twice a week, the neural pathways will eventually adjust themselves by getting stronger so they can handle an even heavier weight load next time you train. Yes, the biceps will get stronger, but not a lot bigger. Stay with me here! When you take advantage of the added strength gains made by using less volume and then co-mingle those added strength gains with additional training volume while not over-training, you can be assured you will grow bigger muscles. That is how you create a true progressive overload! You can use all the fancy beyond failure training methods such as drop sets and rest-pause for hours on end and never create a true progressive overload because limitless adaptation equals a heavier workload in conjunction with additional volume to breakdown down more muscle tissue, while never going past the point of diminishing returns.
A progressive over-load and a true progressive over-load are not one in the same. Creating a progressive over-load is brought forth by being able to lift more weight using the same form, amount of work sets, and rest periods between sets. A true progressive over-load (a phrase I coined) is also brought forth when you can lift more weight using the same form, and rest periods between sets, but the amount of work sets performed must be greater than what’s required to produce a progressive over-load!
After each subsequent set that follows the first work set, the type-1 fibers tire out earlier in the set and the type 2 fibers that are most responsible for giving you muscle size-strength take over the load for longer periods of time. By the time you have done only 2-3 intense sets, the endurance fibers are shutting down much earlier in the set and it's mostly the type-2 fibers lifting the weight. This is why volume training works well for pro-bodybuilders. The type-2 fibers must be made to adapt to lift more weight for longer periods of time in order to grow larger. In order to accomplish this feat, you must handle heavier weights over time. By training each bodypart only once a week as a "baseline" you will produce the most size gains with the least amount of effort while sparing the joints and central nervous system. Once the body adapts to once a week bodypart training you'll need to periodically hit each muscle group twice a week in order to keep progressing forward at the fastest rate humanly possible! Always training each muscle group once a week or always training a muscle group twice a week stops being productive for the more advanced bodybuilder. Once the muscles have adapted to the training frequency it must be changed if you are to continue to force the body to adapt. When done correctly this leads to further growth and strength gains!
Multitudes of people, especially our youth, are often guilty of listening to those who are taking or have taken a ton of anabolic drugs. Not that there’s anything wrong with adults taking anabolics if they chose to do so, but when these individuals use their stats to bolster arguments in favor of some idiosyncratic approach to training and dieting, it becomes the flavor-of-the-month approach to bodybuilding. The truth is, a lot of drug- enhanced bodybuilders make impressive initial gains, but are not making continued gains because they do not know what constitutes proper diet and training. My suggestion to everyone is to approach training in a simplistic manner. There's no reason whatseover to be filled with doubts. The best thing you can do is not over analyze and just train consistently hard and what ever can happen will happen in the long run. This will put you on the right track!
Note: Research has clearly shown that worry, negative thoughts, stress and (Type-A behavior) will cause cortisol to spike throughout the day–hence fat storage/muscle loss becomes inevitable!
Due to all the chaos, we now have much division in the bodybuilding community. On one side we have the low volume crowd screaming everyone’s over training! On the extreme opposite end we have the high volume advocates preaching that anyone who uses low volume is lazy and are not doing enough work to stimulate muscle growth! Then there’s the moderate volume crew who believes low volume and high volume bodybuilders are nothing more than a bunch of extremist! Next, we have the powerlifters claiming the only way to obtain size is to lift with heavy weights and low reps! Last, we come to the radicals who have given up on finding any truth and go around telling everyone all they need to do is lift until they drop and eat like a mad man!
Next, we come to the fad diets. On one side we have the high carb crowd claiming if you eat dietary fats they are more likely to be stored as bodyfat. Then, we have the high fat diet advocates teaching that carbohydrates are a menace because they increases insulin levels causing our body’s to store fat. Yes, there are also groups who teach you should never eat carbs and fats in the same meal or eat carbs at night. Other self-proclaimed experts are saying the body is only capable of digesting a certain amounts of protein in each meal and the rest is stored as bodyfat or eliminated by the body. Last, we have the radicals who believe the more protein you eat the bigger and stronger your muscles will become. So, if you’re tired of all the chaos, and I know you are, you have finally found the right training system!
The advantages of Slingshot Training over other routines is that it’s fun and exciting, it's not a cheesy cookie cutter routine, there’s training splits and exercises that will fit everyone’s daily schedule, it allows you to work on weak points, there's a diet plan to fit everyones needs, it’s easy to follow and it will allow you to reach your utmost full-genetic potential in muscle size at a faster pace without becoming injured or over-trained. Many of you are fed up with not looking any different and you do not want to spend the next few years wasting time jumping from program to program and being confused by all the different opinions. Slingshot Training is precisely what everyone is looking for in this day and age of complexity and over-analysis!
Important Note: I've received a ton of emails on various boards concerning training splits. For the record-I do not believe in "cookie cutter routines" because they do not work for everyone! Everybody has a unique training preference. This includes both exercise selection and the way the body parts are split. No one split can be said to be holy grail because so much is dependent on individual preferences. The training splits I have listed are mere samples that have worked extremely well for many bodybuilders. But, you can use your own customized split. Just keep the sets and 3 training cyles (PRIME/BLAST/CRUISE) as I have outlined. DO NOT use poor splits were a lot of over-lapping occurs between bodyparts if you want Slingshot Training to work for you!
Straight sets
I am of the opinion that all beyond failure training techniques are just an egotistical way to promote a radically different training method! I have developed an advanced training system that will work for anyone that is willing to give it a chance. It goes against a lot of the Muscle Mag Dogma that’s continually being rehashed. There’s no rest-pause, drop sets, super sets, forced reps, etc. Many training systems sound whacky because they are whacky! If you do something extreme, it’s going to be something you can’t live with so it’s bound to fail. No one has nor will they ever, devise a training technique that will work as good as straight sets for building size and strength. There’s a very good reason that most veterans in this sport have stopped using extreme training techniques. It doesn’t matter if beyond failure training techniques are used in the lower rep-ranges or the higher rep-ranges because the burn and stress still carries over to the vulnerable joints and tendons-hence greatly increasing your odds of developing tendonitis and tearing a tendon. Using beyond failure training methods like rest-pause, forced reps and drop sets will force you to train with less volume and weight. Therefore, you won’t be able to keep the training volume and weight loads high enough for a long enough period to experience maximum muscular growth.
Power-lifters and those who compete in the world’s strongest man competitions are some of the largest men to ever walk on the face of this planet. They obtain their massiveness by utilizing nothing other than straight sets. Every training method other than straight sets has fallen short of what I consider optimal for providing fast, safe, and efficient results. There has never been any evidence to show that any training method regardless of how many bells and whistles it comes equipped with can increase your muscle mass and strength as efficiently as straight sets. Trust me on this one! Who do you think would make the most gains; a guy who does 4 sets of 10 reps using 400 lbs on the vertical leg press machine or the guy who does 1 triple drop set using 400 lbs, 350 lbs, 300 lbs and finally 270 lbs? The obvious answer is the guy who used more weight on all 4 sets. Why? Because straight sets allows you the power to lift a greater weight-load range. With beyond failure techniques such as drop sets, you’re basically breaking down less muscle tissue yet annihilating the nervous system and joints. The same rule applies to rest-pause training as well because with each subsequent set you are using fewer reps with the same amount of weight. A rest-paused set done in the 8-12 rep range will not create the same kind of strength gains that are obtained by using a straight set for 4-6 reps simply because you cannot lift heavy when training near the point of non-stop. Straight sets give you the best of both worlds because it allows you to stay within the bodies recovery limits while building maximum size and strength. Using beyond failure training methods will force you to train with less volume-hence you won’t be able to keep the training volume high enough to experience maximum muscular growth.
* * There’s a lot to be said for being logically consistent* *
Important Note: Researchers from Truman State University (Kirksville Missouri) investigated whether the amount of rest taken between sets had an impact on the immune system/CNS. What they found was something I have known for some time: "Nine male college students performed two workouts of 10 sets of 10 reps of the leg press, resting either 1 minute or 3 minutes between sets. They found that the one-minute rest periods caused more strain on the subjects immune systems compared to 3-minute rest periods". The graphs shown in this article suggest that higher-intensity training techniques by way of shortening rest periods by only 2 minutes increases strain on the immune by an extra 60% on the Lymphocytes scale and 40% on the Monocytes scale. . Now just imagine how much more of an an increase you would get by using beyond failure techniques!!! Regardless of what anyone claims, no ones body does well moving rapidly between sets or pushing beyond failure. It's just not as effective for increasing weight load-range and workload capacity as common power-lifting fundamentals. If so, every power-lifter and strongman on the face the planet would be using beyond failure training techniques instead of straight sets and we know that’s not the case. When over-training of the CNS occurs you are exhausting all the neurotransmitters in the nerves so that now they have trouble telling the muscles how to contract with optimum efficiency!
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 05-01-2008 at 05:30 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Biography
My name is Ronnie Rowland. I am 41 years old and have been a personal trainer for over 20 years. My passions for helping others gain as much size and strength as humanly possible has turned into a life time obsession. Years ago, I dreamed of designing the most logically consistent off-season training system in the world. I'm glad to have the opportunity to share with you what I believe are the finest bodybuilding principles. For those of you who have a basic understanding of training and diet, the STS will make sense.
My body type falls into the category of your classic skinny-fat-man with poor vascularity. Before you laugh too hard at my non-training picture, I want you to realize my genetics represent the largest population of today’s bodybuilders; the hard gainer! Due to having surgeries, I was unable to train. I lost all the muscles I had worked for in only 2 years time. This occurred when I was in my early 30’s. Below are some before and after pictures showing you what Slingshot Training has done for me. The after pictures were taken last week at age 41. I am using 200 mgs of testosterone for HRT (doctor prescribed) and creatine. The picture of me holding up the fish was taken when I was unable to train. I know, it was sad...LOL......
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 03-14-2008 at 05:59 AM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Biography: Tricky Jackson
The STS is just as effective for someone with good genetics. I’ll let you read a quote from a professional bodybuilder named Tricky Jackson. Lonnie Tepor of Ironman Magazine referred to him as the greatest light weight bodybuilder of all time. A quote from Tricky Jackson himself: “Many have asked what my "secret" is for putting on lean muscle mass during the off-season. To make a long story short, it wasn't until the year 2004 that I met long time professional trainer Ronnie Rowland out of Aiken South Carolina. He introduced me to an unconventional approach to bodybuilding called the STS (Slingshot Training System). I thought I had heard it all, but he opened up my eyes to what bodybuilding could be and showed me how to cycle my workouts in conjunction with my diet-supplements in order to mimic the way chemically enhanced bodybuilders make their best gains. In 2004, I was an advanced competitive bodybuilder wei***ng in at 198 lbs during the off- season and my gains, had all, but stopped. I gained only one pound of muscle that whole year stepping on the stage at 170 lbs. As you can imagine I was getting a bit frustrated. Rowland convinced me to give his off-season training system a try during the 2005 off-season. To my surprise, I increased my body weight considerable and was able to maintain 8 pounds of pure muscle after I dieted down for my show. This allowed me to step on stage at a ripped 178 lbs. It wasn't until getting my pro-card, that I fully realized just how far this training system had taken me. In 2006, I was about 221 lbs off season and a whopping 190 lbs on stage. That’s 12 more pounds of pure muscle in only a year’s time!!! It gets even better. I almost won my first pro show this past weekend by placing 2nd to Silvio Samuals in the Europe 210 lbs and under Division and came in 9th in the open. My experience with the STS is beyond measure-"literally"!
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 11-19-2007 at 07:40 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
12 STS Training Principles
12 Slingshot training principles: 1) Use only safe and effective straight sets to spare the Central Nervous System, joints and tendons.
2) You need some repetitive motion because adaptation is what produces muscle growth and strength. Choose 2 exercises (a key exercise and a secondary exercise) for each bodypart that works the muscle from different angles. The secondary exercise can be another compound exercise or an isolation exercise. The exercises you shoe should agree with your biomechanics so you can make strength gains and increase volume during specific training phases without experiencing pain in the joints/tendons. The exercises listed in the routines below are mere sample exercises. You must insert the exercises that work best for you so the muscles will get fuller and fuller from set to set. Do not use the exercises I have listed if they are not right for you! You can choose up to 3 different exercises for each major bodypart and use up to 12 work sets once you have become a very advanced bodybuilder and are using the 4 or 5 day split. You can choose up to 2-3 exercises and use up to 10-12 work sets for any major body part when using the 4-5 day split. You do not need to hit a muscle group from a lot of different angles. You can choose 2 exercises and use up to 8-10 set with the 3 day per week split based routine. All you really need is one KEY movement that produces a good stimulus to the bulk of the muscle and one SECONDARY movement that does a better job isolating and/or hitting the weaker regions of that muscle group. A third exercise can be thrown in if desired when using the 4 or 5 day split.
3) Perform multiple sets in the 8-10 rep-ranges to build the most muscle size possible. Perform 1 heavy set in the 4-6 rep-ranges with compound exercises to make continued strength and size gains. Utilize 1 set in the 12-15 rep-ranges to build endurance, sarcoplasmic growth and aid in healing. This is how you obtain total bodypart mass and full-blown muscle-belly development.
4) Train to the point of not being able to get another good repetition during every work set except the prep-set. I define this as good failure. If you neglect to use great intensity, you will not fully stimulate the type-2 muscle fibers.
5) Do your heaviest low rep work sets at the beginning instead of waiting around towards the end when you are too fatigued to push maximum weight loads. Perform a “prep-set” by stopping 1 rep shy of good failure before proceeding to the heavy-low rep set when using key movements. The medium rep-range prep-set is still considered a work set and is designed to awaken and optimize the firing of the neural pathways so more weight can be used with key exercises on the following set.
6) You must train hard and heavy when using isolation exercises and secondary exercises. These movements work different secondary and supportive muscles allowing you to get stronger on key movements. They can also build up the neural pathways because it's a more concentrated effort.
7) A key movement is the exercise that provides you with the ability to build the most mass and strength. For the torso and legs, the key exercise should be a compound exercise. A key movement for the arms can be an isolation exercise. Secondary exercises for the legs and torso can be either a compound exercise or an isolation exercise.
8) Bodybuilding and power-lifting are not one in the same and if you want to be good at either you'll do well to remember this! When lifting weights you can develop muscles or injuries-the choice is ultimately yours! Use a controlled negative taking about 2 seconds to lower the weight. The positive stroke of each repetition should be somewhat explosive yet controlled to the point it's working the muscles to the fullest extent. Make sure and do a slight pause before doing each rep in order to make the muscles do all the work and to prevent injury. Concentrate on feeling the muscles squeeze and contract as you lift. Anyone who has been in the iron game for any length of time knows they’ll experience much better muscle development when they use less weight and a controlled form that allows the muscles to work harder without the use of momentum. The muscles are clueless as to how much weight is being lifted because they only know tension. It’s been proven that trainees who focus on the muscle being trained as opposed to how much weight is being lifted will activate more muscle fibers. I’m not saying our muscles only react to stress because no top-level competitor could have obtained their size if they where still lifting the same weight loads used as a novice. The muscle building progress occurs by making the exercise as hard as humanly possible and then gradually adding weight to the bar over a period of time while simulataneously using proper periodization. With compound movements smoothly explode the weight faster with full power after completing approximately one fourth of the complete repetition. It should take you about a second to a second and a half to complete the positive stroke when performing heavy compound movements. With isolation movements, you should wait and move the weight faster at about the half way point of the repetition. With full-stretch exercises the muscle and tendons are easily damaged with sudden burst at the beginning of the movement. With isolation movements the positive stroke should take you around 1 ½ seconds to complete! The controlled negative should be around 2 seconds for both categories of exercises. The negative phase builds both muscle and strength! A very critical component that many avoid is peforming a slight pause before engaging in the positive stroke. Most injuries occur during the transition phase between the negative and positive portions of the movement. For example: A rapid lowering of the weight (negative stroke) prior to moving the weight upwards (positive stroke) will create a scene where momentum comes into play. When these forces come together it can exceed the strength of your muscles, joints, and tendons. This is why you must lower the bar with complete control. This does not mean you should do a long pause, but there should be a very brief stopping of the weight to keep momentum out of the picture. You won’t be able to lift as much weight on the positive stroke when you do a brief pause at the beginning of each repetition followed by a deliberate movement, but in the long run you'll build a lot more muscle and inguire a lot less injuries. I think a lack of education and an inflated ego is to blame for the bad form being used in gyms across the world. Why some bodybuilders refuse to focus on form and contraction is beyond me? Instead, they go for as much weight as they can possibly lift-hence they end up using other muscles trying to get the weight up besides the targeted muscle group!
9) Perform up to 3 non-fatiguing warm up sets starting at 12 reps and working your way down to 4-6 reps before working cold muscle groups with intense work sets.
10) Take about a 2 minute rest between work sets involving isolation movements and about 3 minutes when using compound movements. With legs you may need around 4 minutes.
11) You’ll need to do moderate intensity aerobics as opposed to HIIT or HIT if at all possible during the entire off-season if possible or you can struggle with being able to fully restore the sympathetic nervous system used during intense weight lifting.
12. Perform no more than one cardio session per week during the 4-8 week anabolic blast if possible because too much cardio during a high volume phase will decrease insulin sensitivity.
Important Note: You have the option of increasing sets and/or adding 1 additional exercises for ancillary bodyparts like traps if they are lagging behind. When using 10 sets for traps choose 1 key movement and 1 secondary exercises. It could go as follows: 5 sets of seated dumbbell shrugs and 5 sets of standing barbell shrugs during the blast. "Forearm work" is optional but highly recommended for most. I would suggest adding some wrist curls and reverse wrist curls to your regimine. Perform approximately 4 to 6 sets of each exercise during a high volume blast. As with traps no heavy low-rep sets are required during the second work set.
12 Slingshot nutrition principles:
1) You must increase overall-caloric intake to put on muscular weight. This needs to be done during a time the body is very sensitive to insulin and other anabolic hormones so more of those calories will be stored as muscle instead of ugly bodyfat. Slingshot training is designed to increase food intake during the 6 week mass phase. The 6-10 week mass phase is made up of a 4-8 week “anabolic blast” and a 2 week “anabolic cruise”. Aim to gain 1-2 pounds of body weight per week when going for mass if you need to gain weight. If you only want to harden up, then simply eat at maintenance level during the mass phase while making sure to get in enough protein and healthy fats to help build additional muscle tissue. Calorie intake should remain the same on non-training days in order to aid in repair of damaged muscle tissue.
2) You’ll need to consume 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight on a daily basis. After meeting your protein deductible, consume about 2 grams of carbs for every 1 gram of dietary fat. Going over board with carbs produces too much insulin (a fat storage hormone) which causes you to gain body fat and accelerates the development of chronic diseases. By replacing some carbs with healthy fats (non insulin producing) you can put on muscular weight without as much bodyfat.
3) Those of you with fast metabolisms will need more carb and fat calories to accompany your protein deductible because a fast metabolism burns off carbs and fats at a faster pace than someone with a slower metabolism.
4) Turn catabolic periods (morning on non-workout days and morning/post workout on training days) into anabolic periods by spiking insulin, cholesterol, amino acids/protein and over-all calories during a 6-10 week mass phase.
5) Those of you who tend to gain bodyfat easily will need to try and eat fewer calories derived from carbs later in the day. But, some carbs are needed for a good nights sleep.
6) Bodybuilders who gain fat easily will need less over-all hyperinsulinemia (an insulin response to the extreme caused by combining saturated fats from protein sources like red meat and hi glycemic index carbs like baked potatoes).
7) The majority of your calories should come from lean protein sources, lower glycemic carbs and healthy fats like ***** 3’s- 6’s, ***** 3 enriched eggs, almonds, smart balance peanut butter, macadamia nut oil, olive oil ,etc. Total calories determined how much weight you will lose or gain, but its macronutrient ratios and the quality of calories that will largely impact how much muscle you lose or gain while making those adjustments. Protein builds muscle, fats help increase strength so you can lift more weight and carbs provide energy to crank out repetitions.
8) You’ll need to reduce your protein intake dramatically the first 3 days upon entering the blasting phase so when normal amounts of protein are added back into the diet ,your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and build new muscle tissue. Replace protein calories with clean carbs and keep fat intake about the same. Return to eating normal amounts of protein 3 days later so your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and start building new muscle tissue. I would take in no more than about 100 grams of protein per day for those 3 days. If you advance to 12 week training cycles you can decrease protein intake by about 50% for 7 days as opposed to 3! Advanced bodybuilders should begin reducing protein intake during the last 4 days of the prime while returning to normal amounts 7 days later. Understand here that a very high protein diet can also cause insulin resistance. Obviously this is a problem for off-season bodybuilders. This means that long term bulking with moderate amounts of carbs that accompany protein will be more inclined to increase your blood glucose levels. Monosaturated fats are safe unless over indulged from a calorie stand point.
9) When you gain bodyfat, the body becomes insulin resistant. So, you must increase your sensitivity to insulin and other anabolic hormones during the anabolic prime. If you are already lean then it’s not necessary to lose any body weight during this 2 week prime. All that would be required to increase insulin/hormonal sensitivity for lean people is simply dropping all fast-acting anabolic supplements and decreasing the amount of saturated fats and hi-glycemic carbs consumed. If you need to drop weight during the prime but cannot do cardio or the extra cardio is not enough, simply decrease carb calories. Those of you who struggle with gaining bodyfat easy or who have gained too much adipose tissue during the 6 week mass phase will need to try and lose about 1-2 pounds of body fat per week during the 2 week anabolic prime. Do not go overboard by losing too much weight. You should never go hungry during the prime. This is not pre-contest it’s simply a prime. All body types will be required to eat less saturated fat and hi GI carbs during the prime. The leaner you become the more saturated fats and hi GI carbs you'll be able to consume during an anabolic prime and still increase hormonal sensitivity. This means being able to come back and gain additional muscle tissue during the following mass phase without as much body fat!
10) Eat 5 to 6 meals per day.
11) Drink some caffeine before you train with weights but do not over do it. Caffeine awakens the nervous system and decrease pain during intense training.
12) Carb cycling is the superior way to "gain muscle" during the mass phase and "lose fat" during the prime. Keeping carbs/calories in check 5 days per week during the off-season is the best way for all somatotypes to add lean muscle mass without putting on as much bodyfat and getting too smooth. On the other hand, aggressively increasing caloric and carb intake twice a week will actually help prevent the build-up of adipose tissue. The body responds in a positive manner when 2 non-consecutive calorie/carb up days are included each week. It does so by driving up anabolic hormones and increasing thyroid hormone output-hence speeding up the metabolism and increasing lean muscle mass. When carbs are constantly kept in check, your body adapts and the metabolism slows down. Insulin is needed for muscle repair. Keeping carbs under control for too long will sabatoge muscle gains and your bodys fat burning potential since muscle burns calories. Carbing up must be done as I have suggested or you will gain bodyfat and decrease insulin sensitivity. In general, I would sugest you increase overall carb calories by 1500 during one day of the week and by a whopping 2000 on the second carb up day (cheat day). Keep in mind that a carb up day and a cheat day are not one in the same! Eating less carbs/calories 5 days per week helps keep body fat levels in check while increasing carbs/calories intake twice a week encourages your body to burn more body fat for fuel. Focus on making one calorie/carb up day a clean eating day full of complex carbs and have some junk food like pizza during the second calorie/carb up day (preferably after leg day). A good plan is to have one calorie/carb up day the day after training legs because that’s when you’ll find your self the hungriest. Bumping up the nutrition the day after training back is another good idea since it’s also a very demanding group to train. By using this approach you will kill two birds with one stone! If you begin to gain to much bodyfat during the 6 week mass phase simply take away some carb calories even if it puts you below the 2-1 carb to fat ratio. If your carbs are already low then you will need to reduce fats inorder to have an adequate supply of glycogen to fuel workouts. Set aside a designated cheat day once a week (my preference is Saturday after leg day) where you go wild on the unclean carbs within reason. Splurge according to your metabolism. Start carbing up twice a week during the 2nd week of the 6 week mass phase and continue throughout. No need in counting calories with unclean carb up/calorie up day. You can have Pizza, Mexican food, etc. Make sure and consume adequate protein. Drink a protein shake with these meals if needed. Low fat products like cereal, oats, baked chips, fat free pancakes and syrup, wheat thins, fruit, fat free ice cream, etc work great. The extra sugar is going to boost your metabolism, make you sharper in regards to your diet the rest of the week and give you something to look forward to-“big-time”. You have to be disciplined but you need a day to look forward to each week where you can ease the cravings for junk food. By night-time your muscles will be absolutely full and vascular from all the extra glycogen stored in the muscles. You should use a 3 lower-1 higher-2 lower-1 higher carb/calorie rotation. Monday-low, Tuesday-low, Wednesday-high (carbs clean on the first carb up day (day 3), Thursday-low, Friday-low, Saturday-high (cheat day), Sunday-low. Add in some junk food carbs like pizza on the second carb up day (day 6 Saturday). Increase calories by around 1500 as a baseline on the first carb up day (for i.e. Wednesdays) and by around 2000 as a basleine on the second carb up/cheat day (for i.e. Saturdays). Carb up/calorie up according to your metabolism. There is no set limit in the offseason. For starters, I recommend 2 carb grams for each fat gram consumed after having met your protein deductible. You have the option of matching carb grams for fat grams on lower carb days to make even leaner gains after reaching your protein deductible or you can consume around 1.5 carb grams for each fat gram consumed. Increase cals gradually in 300-500 weekly increments to keep bodyfat levels low. Experiment to find your sweet spot!
To recap:
A) Cycle carbs during prime, 3 low, day 4 +1500 or so, 2 days low, day 7 +2000 or so. The figures above are just a baseline. You'll have to experiement to see which works best for you! Some may eat upwards of an additional 2,000 cals or so on their biggest carb up day..
B) You need two carb/cal up days during the first week of the prime but no cheat days because saturated fats and hi GI carbs are to be avoided as much as possible. A lot of body weight should not be lost in the 2 week prime, if any at all. Just some body fat if needed.
C) Beginning week 2 of the blast-2 carb loading days should be utlized with the second carb load being more pronounced (a cheat day).
Think of it as the same things as the 3 lower-1 higher-2 lower-1 higher weekly carb rotation used by pro-bodybuilders to get ripped before a competition, in exception to the fact, you will be trying to shock your system to gain muscle weight as opposed to losing body fat. Monday-low, Tuesday-low, Wednesday-high (carbs clean on the first carb up day (day 3) after training lats a hard body part, Thursday-low, Friday-low, Saturday-high (have cheat day) because leg training on friday will make you hungry, Sunday-low. Add in some junk food carbs like pizza with the second carb up day (day 6 Saturday). The results will be dramatic-moslty in muscle weight gain with less adipose tissue!
When priming the body for future gains you should try and cut out as much saturated fat and hi GI carbs as possible (dependent on your metabolism) but you can keep the two higher carb days in tact. So, no insulin spikes are needed during the 2 week prime and this includes post-workout and breakfast! I recommend having only 1 cheat meal on the cheat day when priming. When you take the lower insulin route, the body drops some bodyfat. On the other side of the coin, your metabolism will stall over-time. The body adapts very fast so increasing carbs/cals twice a week during the prime helps keep the metabolism from slowing down and it keeps you from losing too much muscle weight. I cannot stress enough how imporant it is not go overboard as some have already done with calorie restrictions during the prime. Doing so will create a catabolic state (muscle wasting) as opposed to a controlled catabolic state (preserving muscle and priming the body for future growth).
Eating for more muscle mass
The anabolic prime involves adding more aerobics if needed to improve insulin sensitivity and/or dropping a small amount of calories from carbs and or fats, as well as dropping all anabolic supplements along with most saturated fats and high glycemic index carbs for 2 weeks. During the anabolic prime, the diet will consist mostly of lower glycemic index carbs, healthy fats, and slow releasing proteins to harden the musculature and enhance hormonal sensitivity. You'll need to prime the body to improve insulin resistance so you can enter a mass phase (composed of a 4-8 blast and a 2 week cruising phase) and put on more muscle weight as opposed to fat weight. A person with a poor metabolism won’t be able to grow muscle and keep bodyfat levels low because they are insulin resistant. Anyone who wants to succeed in building a better body must establish outstanding insulin sensitivity by changing their BMR.
You drop protein intake by around half for a whole week while you prepare to enter a mass phase. This is to be done during the last 4 days of the prime and during the first 3 three days upon entering the anabolic blast. On day 1 of the anabolic blasting phase you can start taking anabolic supplements like creatine and leucine to increase nitrogen retention and protein synthesis. After a two-week prime, you have now created an environment for amazing muscular-strength gains. During the blast you have the option of making muscular weight gains or just getting leaner by eating at maintenance level the proper calories and macronutrient ratios. An increase in overall calories is made through eating a clean-balanced diet that now includes a few more saturated fats from protein sources, some higher glycemic index carbs for breakfast and post workout, and any anabolic supplement you chose to use. The faster your metabolism, the more saturated fats from protein sources and the more hi glycemic carbs you can consume without compromising energy levels and health.
Carb/calorie cycling works best! Low carbs days have fewer calories, while higher carb days, have more calories. Fats should remain the same so the muscles will fill out to the max. The body gets accustomed to a repetitive diet and one should also manipulate their carb/calorie intake while leaving fats and proteins alone.
Keeping carbs/calories in check 5 days per week during the off-season is the best way for all somatotypes to add lean muscle mass without putting on as much bodyfat and getting overly smooth. In addition, aggressively increasing caloric and carb intake twice a week will actually help prevent the build-up of adipose tissue while increasing lean mass. The body responds in a positive manner when 2 non-consecutive calorie/carb up days are included each week because the extra carb/calories tricks the metabolism into working harder to burn off the extra food. It does so by driving up anabolic hormones and increasing thyroid hormone output-hence speeding up the metabolism and increasing lean muscle mass. When carbs and calories are constantly kept in check, your body adapts and the metabolism slows down. Insulin is needed for muscle repair. Keeping carbs under control for too long will sabotage muscle gains and your body fat burning potential since muscle burns calories. Increasing caloric intake by way of carbing up is best done as I have suggested or you can gain more bodyfat and decrease insulin sensitivity at a much faster rate. Loading up on carbs/calories twice a week increases protein synthesis by increasing amino acid up take in muscle cells.
Eating to lose bodyfat
Just as you have to periodize your training, the nutrition plan must also be periodized. Staying on a low calorie/low carb diet for too long will not just lead to fat loss, but a lot of muscle loss as well. A huge mistake most people make when trying to lose body fat is sticking with the same exact calorie-carb reduced meal plan seven days a week. This will not work optimally because the body has a finely tuned system that protects itself from starvation mode. When the body feels threatened it begins to store bodyfat as opposed to releasing it after only a short few weeks. By including two weekly carb up/calorie up days it tricks the human body into believing it’s getting a huge calorie surplus and –hence negating the slowing down of the metabolism that comes from calorie depletion. Protein does not need to be reduced twice a week when dieting down because the body can readily use protein for fuel when in a calorie deficit.
Relying on fibrous carbs helps improve ones conditioning. Everyone should think of high-fiber foods as a diet aid. Every carb you take in should have a decent amount of fiber in it. Slowing down carb absorption also helps keep your energy up longer during the day when dieting. If you take in 50 grams of carbs that are absorbed quickly, you're going to process them quickly, and then you're going to feel tired and depleted. When you take in the same amount of carbs with a high amount of fiber, they'll stay in your system longer, and you'll have a lot more energy. The fiber also slows down the digestion of protein. The longer that it takes your body to process the protein, the more efficiently it will use each gram!
I continue to read a lot about the separation of carbs and fats in the same meal.
It's been my experience that separating carbs and fats is the best route when trying to lose bodyfat or when staying at maintenance levels and leaning out. When trying to gain as much size-strength humanly possible you need to eat both carbs and fats in the same meals along with your protein. Doing so produces a synergistic muscle building effect that trumps what the separation of carbs and fats can provide.
Take this information and apply it to your goals. My fat intake is pretty low right now since I am in a cutting phase using carb cycling. Most of my fats are for dinner in the form of olive oil/meat and my pre-bedtime meal is smart balance peanut butter/whey shake. Carb/protein meals are utlized earlier in the day for energy when carb cycling. At night you need less carbs unless you train late. When you are not in ketosis you'll need the carbs for energy. When you are in ketosis you need more fats for energy. I am of the opinion that carb cycling is safer when used long but ketosis is still a great way to lose bodyfat and preserve muscle size when calories are reduced gradually. When following carb cycling or ketosis, calories can be reduced by around 300 in weekly increments when cardio is not used. If you eventually reach a sticking point with cardio cals can still be reduced.
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 05-26-2008 at 11:37 AM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
12 Slingshot Nutritional Principles
12 Slingshot nutrition principles:
1) You must increase overall-caloric intake to put on muscular weight. This needs to be done during a time the body is very sensitive to insulin and other anabolic hormones so more of those calories will be stored as muscle instead of ugly bodyfat. Slingshot training is designed to increase food intake during the 6 week mass phase. The 6 week mass phase is made up of a 4 week “anabolic blast” and a 2 week “anabolic cruise”. Aim to gain 1-2 pounds of body weight per week when going for mass. Calorie intake should remain the same on non-training days in order to aid in repair of damaged muscle tissue.
2) You’ll need to consume 1.25-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight on a daily basis. After meeting your protein deductible, consume a bout 2 grams of carbs for every 1 gram of dietary fat. Going over board with carbs produces too much insulin (a fat storage hormone) which causes you to gain body fat and accelerates the development of chronic diseases. By replacing some carbs with healthy fats (non insulin producing) you can put on muscular weight without as much bodyfat.
3) Those of you with fast metabolisms will need more carb and fat calories to accompany your protein deductible because a fast metabolism burns off carbs and fats at a faster pace than someone with a slower metabolism.
4) Turn catabolic periods (morning on non-workout days and post workout on training days) into anabolic periods by spiking insulin, cholesterol, amino acids/protein and over-all calories during a 6 week mass phase.
5) Those of you who tend to gain bodyfat easily will need to try and eat fewer calories derived from carbs later in the day. But, some carbs are needed for a good nights sleep.
6) Bodybuilders who gain fat easily will need less over-all hyperinsulinemia (an insulin response to the extreme caused by combining saturated fats from protein sources like red meat and hi glycemic index carbs like baked potatoes).
7) The majority of your calories should come from lean protein sources, lower glycemic carbs and healthy fats like ***** 3’s- 6’s, ***** 3 enriched eggs, almonds, smart balance peanut butter, macadamia nut oil, olive oil ,etc. Total calories determined how much weight you will lose or gain, but its macronutrient ratios and the quality of calories that will largely impact how much muscle you lose or gain while making those adjustments. Protein builds muscle, fats help increase strength so you can lift more weight and carbs provide energy to crank out repetitions. During this 4 week “anabolic blast” you want to try and consume around 1 gram of fat for every 2 grams of carbohydrates. This means if you ingest 200 grams of carbs you’ll want to try and get in about 100 grams of fat. It may sound like a lot of fat grams to some of you, but this is the best kept nutritional secret for making leaner muscle mass gains and increasing strength! It has been exciting for me as a professional trainer to watch physical transformations by those who have never utilized higher amounts of calories through healthy fats such as olive oil and ***** 3-6s. When bodybuilder’s consume the same total calories per day as they had been prior to switching over to a higher fat intake, they not only lose bodyfat, they also are able to increase both muscle mass and strength. I’m here to tell you, healthy dietary fats makes a huge difference in how many calories you can consume without getting fat! It’s the same scenario as having to bump up essential fatty acids in order to see improvements in body composition when dieting down for a competition. This is simple to explain. Since essential fatty acids do not elicit an insulin response like carbs and protein, less of those calories will be stored as adipose tissue. Healthy fats such as fatty fish, olive oil, flax seed oil, macadamia nut oil, mixed nuts, almonds and natural peanut butter/butter like Smart Balance are great for gaining muscular weight. Whole eggs contain a mixture of both saturated fats and ***** 3’s. You can consume as many whole *****-3 eggs (egglands best brand) as you desire since most of the saturated fat has been replaced with Heart Healthy *****-3 Fats. Many healthy fats can be added to your protein shakes, oatmeal, put on salads, and put on top of baked foods such as chicken to increase the body’s production of an anabolic substance called prostaglandins and to increase testosterone levels. Most love baked fish or chicken in macadamia nut oil or olive oil. Get creative! Healthy fats spare the burning of glycogen allowing less carbs to be eaten and making the carbs you eat go a further distance before being burned for fuel. They also accelerate the formation of new glycogen by stimulating the receptors on the muscles to draw carbs into the muscle. Healthy fats not only help burn off body fat they are anabolic and are used as a fuel source to spare protein. Muscle cells are made up of both protein and fat. You won't build a lot of additional muscle tissue without consuming both fat and protein. You must eat enough of both to repair your cell membranes. Eating more healthy fats is not just about increasing anabolic hormones; it's about muscle repair!!!
It’s only when carbohydrate intake is very low for your particular body type that you have to worry about the body using amino acids as a fuel source. If you have a very physical job or play sports then you can bump up the carb intake as needed. Consuming a higher ratio of carbohydrate grams than fat grams offers better gains and faster recovery. There is absolutely no question about this. Carbs provide the energy necessary for intense workouts more efficiently than fats and protein and are necessary for amino acids to work. You want to be holding a little water in the off-season. When carbs replenish glycogen in the muscles, it makes them more anabolic. Consuming too many carbs during a mass phase will definitely result in bloating and unwanted fatty deposits. A serious problem with most weight lifters off-season diets is they consume way too many calories through the ingestion of carbs and begin to get puffy and fat. This is because their bodies are never called upon to use the stored bodyfat for energy. If you consume carbs in excess you are going to under-feed your body with protein and fats needed for maximum protein synthesis. When your glycogen deposits are already full, excess carbs will be turned into unattractive bodyfat when in a calorie surplus!
In the off-season you’ll need to have less concern of gaining some additional body fat. You cannot build muscle during the 6 week mass phase without accumulating some adipose unless your a rich person who can afford to inject 10 ius or more of Growth Hormone on a daily basis. If you attempt to stay lean year-round, you will sabotage your efforts in becoming as muscular as humanly possible. If you want more muscle size you cannot be constantly worrying about body fat levels. If you are a bodybuilder trying to put on pure lean muscle without any added body fat, you are going to have very small gains! It’s okay to have that smooth look in the off- season because your body needs that time to grow from eating higher calorie foods in order to pack on muscle size. The top pro and amateur bodybuilders do not look in contest shape all year long as some of you may have been led to believe. The pictures you see in the muscle magazines are taken the day after a contest after they have dieted down hard for many weeks using stimulants and are using diurectics.
Understand here that muscle is much harder to build than fat. I also want you to understand it’s easier to lose fat than muscle because muscle is rather easy to maintain while dieting off body fat. All too often people have a hard time comprehending the fact that when they can gain 4 pounds of muscle and 2 pounds of bodyfat during a 6-week mass phase they’re actually becoming leaner. Obviously if you gain 4 pounds of bodyfat and only a half pound of muscle your losing leanness, but even if you gain 4 pounds of muscle and 4 pounds of bodyfat you still come out even-hence you’ll have more muscle mass than ever before. After the 2 week priming phase you will keep the muscle and lose fat-hence improve your lean body mass to bodyfat ratio even further!
The key to the entire muscular weight gaining process is learning how to manipulate both training and calorie factors. Diet is not 90% of how you look unless it’s right before a bodybuilding competition. Diet is about 50% and training makes up the rest. You can eat the perfect diet, but if you don’t lift to get progressively stronger by reducing training volume in a highly specialized training phase or you neglect to increase training volume in a highly specialized training phases in order obtain a full muscle pump after having made additional strength gains, you will not be turning a lot of heads when you walk down the street unless you are a genetic freak. On the other hand, you can eat what’s considered a less than optimal diet for gaining size and people will still take notice as long as you train properly. By combining the proper nutrition with the proper training you get the best of both worlds!
Insulin spikes should be kept to only 2 per day on weight lifting days and at peak times for everyone in order to stay leaner and have steadier energy levels. The body performs best with 2 daily cholesterol, amino acid, insulin and calorie spikes from foods like whole milk, eggs yolks and red meat to increases size-strength to the maximum on the days you weight train. Only one spike is needed on the days you do not lift weights and this spike should occur during breakfast. Saturated fat is a natural precursor to testosterone. And foods such as red meat is choke-full of pro-inflammatory fats that increase muscle mass. It should be no surprise that a steak and potato combo will result in serious muscle growth. Additional calories should be consumed throughout the day (depending on your metabolism), especially during the 2 most catabolic periods of the day (breakfast and post workout) in order to minimize fat gains caused by insulin, cholesterol, amino acid, and calorie spikes. On non-training days the second “anabolic meal” can be eaten at any time that’s convenient for you-“my preference is dinner”. If you created very high insulin levels and consumed just as many calories during the 3-4 smaller meals, less would end up in muscle stores to promote recovery and more of those calories would be stored as fat- hence body composition would get worse over time. When you consume more calories and spike insulin, cholesterol, and amino acids during breakfast and after exercise, more calories will be absorbed and go towards muscle recovery and growth as opposed to being stored as fat. This means body composition will improve over time! And the body's metabolism revs up more efficiently after a somewhat "dirty meal” than after a “clean meal” when eaten during catabolic periods. That said, the bulk of your dietary fat and carb intake should still come in the form of healthy fats like raw nuts/oils and carbs ranging on the lower end of the glycemic index scale such as steel cut oats. **Total calories determined how much weight you will lose or gain, but macronutrient ratios determines how much muscle you will lose or gain while making those calorie adjustments. * *
8) You’ll need to reduce your protein intake dramatically the first 3 days upon entering the blasting phase so when normal amounts of protein are added back into the diet ,your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and build new muscle tissue. Replace protein calories with clean carbs and keep fat intake about the same. Return to eating normal amounts of protein 3 days later so your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and start building new muscle tissue. 8) You’ll need to reduce your protein intake dramatically the first 3 days upon entering the blasting phase so when normal amounts of protein are added back into the diet ,your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and build new muscle tissue. Replace protein calories with clean carbs and keep fat intake about the same. Return to eating normal amounts of protein 3 days later so your muscles will latch on to that extra protein and start building new muscle tissue. As you advance you can decrease protein intake by about 50% for 7 days as opposed to 3! Advanced bodybuilders should begin reducing protein intake during the last 4 days of the prime while returning to nornal amounts 7 days later. Understand here that a very high protein diet can also cause insulin resistance. Obviously this is a problem for off-season bodybuilders. This means that long term bulking with moderate amounts of carbs that accompany protein will be more inclined to increase your blood glucose levels. Monosaturated fats are safe unless over indulged from a calorie stand point.
9) When you gain bodyfat, the body becomes insulin resistant. So, you must increase your sensitivity to insulin and other anabolic hormones during the anabolic prime. If you are already lean then it’s not necessary to lose any body weight during this 2 week prime. All that would be required to increase insulin/hormonal sensitivity for lean people is simply dropping all fast-acting anabolic supplements and decreasing the amount of saturated fats and hi-glycemic carbs consumed. If you need to drop weight during the prime but cannot do cardio or the extra cardio is not enough, simply decrease carb calories. Those of you who struggle with gaining bodyfat easy or who have gained too much adipose tissue during the 6 week mass phase will need to try and lose about 1-2 pounds of body fat per week during the 2 week anabolic prime. Do not go overboard by losing too much weight. You should never go hungry during the prime. This is not pre-contest it’s simply a prime. All body types will be required to eat less saturated fat and hi GI carbs during the prime. The leaner you become the more saturated fats and hi GI carbs you'll be able to consume during an anabolic prime and still increase hormonal sensitivity. This means being able to come back and gain additional muscle tissue during the following 6 week mass phase without as much body fat!
10) Eat 5 to 6 meals per day.
11) Drink some caffeine before you train with weights but do not over do it. Caffeine awakens the nervous system and decrease pain during intense training.
12) 12) Keeping carbs/calories in check 5 days per week during the off-season is the best way for all somatotypes to add lean muscle mass without putting on as much bodyfat and getting too smooth. On the other hand, aggressively increasing caloric and carb intake twice a week will actually help prevent the build-up of adipose tissue. The body responds in a positive manner when 2 non-consecutive calorie/carb up days are included each week. It does so by driving up anabolic hormones and increasing thyroid hormone output-hence speeding up the metabolism and increasing lean muscle mass. When carbs are constantly kept in check, your body adapts and the metabolism slows down. Eating less carbs/calories 5 days per week helps keep body fat levels in check while increasing carbs/calories intake twice a week encourages your body to burn more body fat for fuel. Focus on making one calorie/carb up day a clean eating day full of complex carbs and have some junk food like pizza during the second calorie/carb up day (preferably after leg day). A good plan is to have one calorie/carb up day the day after training legs because that’s when you’ll find your self the hungriest. Bumping up the nutrition the day after training back is another good idea since it’s also a very demanding group to train. By using this approach you will kill two birds with one stone! If you begin to gain to much bodyfat during the 6 week mass phase simply take away some carb calories even if it puts you below the 2-1 carb to fat ratio. If your carbs are already low then you will need to reduce fats inorder to have an adequate supply of glycogen to fuel workouts. Set aside a designated cheat day once a week (my preference is Saturday after leg day) where you go wild on the unclean carbs within reason. Carbs should replace fat calories for the most part. Splurge according to your metabolism. Start carbing up twice a week during the 2nd week of the 6 week mass phase and continue throughout. No need in counting calories with unclean carb up/calorie up day. You can have Pizza, Mexican food, etc. Make sure and consume adequate protein. Drink a protein shake with these meals if needed. Low fat products like cereal, oats, baked chips, fat free pancakes and syrup, wheat thins, fruit, fat free ice cream, etc work great. The extra sugar is going to boost your metabolism, make you sharper in regards to your diet the rest of the week and give you something to look forward to-“big-time”. You have to be disciplined but you need a day to look forward to each week where you can ease the cravings for junk food. By night-time your muscles will be absolutely full and vascular from all the extra glycogen stored in the muscles! You should use a 3 lower-1 higher-2 lower-1 higher carb/calorie rotation. Monday-low, Tuesday-low, Wednesday-high (carbs clean on the first carb up day (day 3), Thursday-low, Friday-low, Saturday-high (cheat day), Sunday-low. Add in some junk food carbs like pizza on the second carb up day (day 6 Saturday). Increase calories by around 500 as a baseline on the first carb up day (for i.e. Wednesdays) and by around 1000 as a basleine on the second carb up/cheat day (for i.e. Saturdays). Carb up/calorie up according to your metabolism. There is no set limit in the offseason. As a baseline I recommend 2 carb grams for each fat gram consumed after having met your protein deductible. You have the option of matching carb grams for fat grams on lower carb days to make even leaner gains after reaching your protein deductible or you can consume around 1.5 carb grams for each fat gram consumed. Experiment to find your sweet spot!
Important Note: When priming the body for future gains you should try and cut out as much saturated fat and hi GI carbs as possible (dependent on your metabolism) but you can keep the two higher carb days in tact. So, no insulin spikes are needed during the 2 week prime and this includes post-workout and breakfast! I recommend having only 1 cheat meal on the cheat day when priming. When you take the lower insulin route, the body drops some bodyfat. On the other side of the coin, your metabolism will stall over-time. The body adapts very fast so increasing carbs/cals twice a week during the prime helps keep the metabolism from slowing down and it keeps you from losing too much muscle weight. I cannot stress enough how imporant it is not go overboard as some have already done with calorie restrictions during the prime. Doing so will create a catabolic state (muscle wasting) as opposed to a controlled catabolic state (preserving muscle and priming the body for future growth).
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 04-22-2008 at 08:37 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Prime/blast/cruise
Returns you get for your effort.
You get the most returns for your efforts with the first 3 sets for any given body part. Regardless of how many different exercises you perform for a given bodypart the ability to generate intensity is reduced considerably by the time you finish set # 5. Considerably less and less muscle tissue will be broken down with each consecutive set there after. After that point, the curve starts to taper off but 6 sets still provides gains. After 6 sets the curve continues to slope down and you will obtain even less results for your efforts! This must be taken into consideration when trying to gain strength.
There's a strong correlation between getting the most returns for your efforts during the first 5 sets of an exercise and increasing your odds of developing an over-use injury when exceeding 5 sets. Your ability to generate intensity using only 1 exercise for a particular body part will be greatly diminished by the time you've finished 5 sets. By switching over to a second exercise after doing 5 sets of the first exercise, you will increase the returns you get for your efforts during the second exercise because you'll be working from a different angle. The second exercise will fully breakdown down the remaining muscle fibers that are present within the muscle group. This means trying to go past that point by inserting a 3rd exercise would be a complete waste of time because the entire muscle has already been broken down. By doing 5 sets a piece with your two main exercises you will break down more muscle tissue and gain more strength than if you were to perform 20 sets with 5 different exercises. Performing upwards of 16-20 sets for a body part in one session will cause you to waste a lot of time because a muscle no longer fires with optimal force once you go past doing 10-12 sets. Regardless of how many different exercises you use for a particular body part, the ability to generate intensity is over with after 12 work sets. This must be taken into consideration when trying to gain size.
Performing more than 10-12 sets for any body part will make you refrain from using great intensity on every work set. For instance, if you were on your 5th set for quads, and you knew you had 15 sets left using 3 different exercises, you wouldn't push yourself nearly as hard as if you were on your 5th set for quads, and you knew you only had 5 sets left with only 1 other exercise. After completing 10-12 sets for a body part, it's virtually impossible to generate enough intensity to further break down any substantial amount of muscle tissue. By trying to do so, it creates a scenario where the Central Nervous System and joints have to work harder to keep moving the weights while the muscles are working less. You can only stimulate the muscles so much in any given training session. After reaching the point of diminishing returns, high volume trainers who train each body part using 16-20 sets have to over-strain to try and make up for the muscles inability to put forth effort. This creates tons of stress and possible injuries to the muscles, tendons, and joints. When fatigue is so great that stabilizers and synergists (which generally give out faster than the prime movers) become too tired to allow maintenance of proper form, you're asking for an injury. Train till the muscles gives out; not the joints!
FACT: Adding in a few extra sets after the completion of 10-12 work sets is not going to do anything but lengthen your workout and hamper the recovery process. The muscle is sufficiently stressed and fatigued already. Lastly, the extra sets would expose you to injury through over-use!
Training past good failure.
Powerlifter’s and those who compete in the strongest man/woman competitions have learned the value of preventing injuries and nervous system destruction by not training beyond momentary muscular failure. Taking less away from the body allows it to recuperate faster, meaning the overcompensation process (where strength and growth occurs) can conclude sooner and with consistency. Using excessive body english to reach absolute muscular failure or beyond (the point you can no longer budge a weight), especially with heavy work loads, creates great demand on the tendons, joints, and nervous system.
Your goal as a bodybuilder should be to increase the weight on the bar through a Progressive Overload and train with great intensity, not training to the point where someone has to pull the barbell off your chest on the last rep or assist you on the final repetition. Your goal as a bodybuilder is not to avoid training to failure; it’s to avoid training to the wrong kind of failure. The ideal situation is to reach as close to muscular failure as possible, but in a way that will induce maximum stimulus to the muscle fibers without causing injury or impairing the Central Nervous System. I call this good failure because it is the absolute best way to train for maximum size.
* * I’ve experimented with training past failure and was very un-satisfied with the results. After making the switch to stopping at good failure, everyone’s results, including my own, have been nothing short of miraculous in comparison.* *
Slingshot Anabolic Cycles
It’s very common for fast acting anabolic/androgenic steroids to be used by the drug enhanced bodybuilder for 6 weeks at a time. After gaining mass-strength for 6 weeks they take 2 weeks off (prime the body for future growth) and begin another 6 week mass cycle of different steroids or more of the same. Top level bodybuilders do not run long steroid cycles and then go off the drugs for lengthy periods of time. Doing so would keep them in a viscous cycle of making gains then losing most of the gains they worked so hard to obtain. This is very important to understand because the same rule applies to natural bodybuilders using legal anabolic agents like creatine and amino acids in various forms.
Top level competitive bodybuilders who are chemically enhanced make much better gains and keep more of their gains by doing long drawn out cycles. In fact, most never go off all the drugs. Their base drugs usually consist of a slow acting testosterone and/or a slow acting anabolic. These top level competitors run these drugs as their base throughout the whole duration of the off-season. In order to free more testosterone during a 6 week mass phase they generally add a fast acting oral steroid and/or a fast acting ester of the injectable version and run it along with the base at a high dose. Some even opt to throw in a different slow acting ester than what’s used for the base. Upon completion of a 6 week mass cycle, they drop all the drugs for a 2 week period in exception to the base. This is done in order to prime the body so they can make additional gains by going back to the same drugs or changing over to different drugs altogether for another 6 weeks. They also drastically reduce training volume during the 2 week period when fewer drugs are used. You might ask "Why would they reduce their dosages for two weeks as opposed to continuing"? It’s because at that point their body will become desensitized to the powerful drugs and their receptors will be fully saturated. If you steroid users stay on fast acting drugs past the 6 week point and continued with the same protocol, you begin doing more harm than good because SHGB levels will begin elevating and cortisol levels will increase-hence gains come to a screeching halt. Drugs like insulin are often added during a 6 week mass phase while growth hormone is usually run as a base throughout most of the year. A positive nitrogen balance is a primary anabolic indicator of an anabolic agent and this will dissipate if the dosages are not continually increased or cycled properly.
The same dosage of synthetic testosterone starts losing it’s effectiveness after having been active in the body for only 6 weeks. The same rule applies to anabolic agent like creatine that can be purchased over-the–counter by natural bodybuilders. People who administer a slow acting testosterone begin having an increase in libido during their 3rd week of administering the drug. The majority of their gains are made during week 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. A decrease in libido occurs after 8 weeks into the cycle. What this means is they have already begun to enter a catabolic state after having the drug peaking in their system for 6 weeks. Your goal should be to use enough legal anabolics and/or anabolic/androgenic steroids to stimulate your receptors so muscle and strength gains can be achieved while avoiding over-saturated receptors. Receptor down regulation, which is a decrease in the amount of a steroid being utilized by a cell, will begin to occur in about 6 weeks whether a person is natural or drug enhanced. You might ask? “What does this have to do with natural bodybuilding?” Everything!!! The Slingshot Training System is about working with the body’s Action/Reaction factors. It takes manipulating training volume along with use of enough legal anabolics (including the proper combinations of food) to stimulate the receptors so muscle and strength gains can be achieved while avoiding over-saturated receptors. Receptor down regulation, which is a decrease in the amount of a steroid being utilized by a cell, will begin to occur in about 6 weeks whether you are a natural or a drug enhanced bodybuilder. the body can be coached into producing more of its own anabolic steroids under the right conditions. By adding the most powerful legal anabolic substances known to man for 6 weeks, you will coincide with the way many steroid users make their best gains.
I have done extensive research on the muscle building effects of anabolic steroids and how advanced bodybuilders use them to get big. You simply start out by intentionally creating a controlled catabolic state over a 2 week time span in order to down-regulate anabolic hormones and receptor sites for androgens. During this time you do very little weight volume and add aerobic work. Protein calories remain unchanged while carbs and/or fat calories are slightly decreased. During this period you’ll need to drop more carb calories than fat because moderate intensity aerobics burns off more fat calories than carb calories even though a mixtire of fuel is always being used. Effort is put into consuming more lean proteins, healthy fats and slow burning carbs. After a 2 week “anabolic prime”, muscle mass gains are maximized by proceeding into a 4 week “blasting phase” when androgen receptor sites are up-regulated and every anabolic hormone in the body is at its peak. During this highly anabolic state, training volume and weight load capacity are increased in order to break down additional muscle tissue while all forms of aerobic work are dropped. Extra calories are consumed in the form of more carbs and fats while daily protein intake remains at around 1.25-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
To increase lean body mass further the most powerful legal anabolic supplements are added to the 6 week mass phase to increase strength, increase protein synthesis, and decrease protein breakdown. These anabolic supplements are always taken during the two most catabolic periods of the day (before breakfast and after working out) to enhance their rate of absorption. Adaptation begins to set in after the 4 week “blasting phase” and then a 2 week “cruising phase” is taken to allow the muscle-strength gains to become fully manifested and also give the body time to ensure the gains are permanent. During this 2 week period the only things you’ll do differently as compared to the 4 week blasting phase is drop weight training volume. Diet and supplement usage will remain unchanged and aerobics are increased to keep nutrient absorption at a high level. The bigger your muscles become by following these 3 anabolic training cycles, the more receptors they create. Thus, you increase your body’s capacity to use larger amounts of exogenous hormones (its own naturally produced hormones).
I refer to this entire 8 week macro-cycle as Slingshot Periodization. These legal anabolic cycles mimic the illegal anabolic cycles being used by many top level professional bodybuilders behind the scenes, making it the best system in existence for gaining size and strength when utilized by natural and drug enhanced bodybuilders.
Slingshot Pyramiding
I have found Slingshot Pyramiding to be the best way to increase both strength and muscular size. Warming up the right way and starting out with a medium rep set 1 rep shy of absolute failure before performing a heavy low rep set with key movements allows you to take a much bigger jump in weight during a low rep set without becoming injured. For example: Here's a chest work using 2 exercise for 10 sets during the blast. Decline bench press- 1st warm up set 135lbs-12 reps, 2nd warm up set 175lbs-6 reps, 3rd warm up set 185 lbs-4 reps, 1st work set 250 lbs for 8 reps (“PREP SET” stopping 1 rep shy of good failure). 2nd work set/heavy-set 350 lbs-4 reps to good failure)-“wait an extra minute before performing this 2 work set”, 3rd work set 275 lbs for 8 to good failure, 4th work set 265 lbs for 8 reps to good failure, 5th work set 225 lbs for 12 reps to good failure.
More weight can be used during the low rep set (4 to 6 reps) when utilizing the Slingshot Pyramiding Scheme. I’ve had multitudes of trainees obtain a new personal record on key movements the first time using this pyramiding scheme and they continue doing so because they are doing it right for the first time in their life! If you tried doing the heaviest set during the first work set, the muscles would not be pumped sufficiently to contract at full force-hence the chance of being injured would be greater. On the other hand, if you wait until the third or last work set to go heavy, it will decreases performance due to excess fatigue-hence increase your chance for injury. You’ve got to do the heaviest work set when the muscle is at its strongest! The advantage is catching the body off guard! I call this Slingshot Pyramiding because it “hurls” a burst of intensity to the muscles during the “heaviest work-set” on the key movements for each bodypart. The best way to surprise the muscles on the final work set when using key movements during the “anabolic blast” is with an intense burn out set composed of higher reps (12-15). These will completely fatigue the stronger regions of the muscle and in return activate some of the more stubborn dormant muscle fibers. Next you would change to the 2nd exercise for that body part. It could be an isolation exercise or another compound movement (which ever works best for you!). No prep set is needed because the heaviest work set is performed last. Work set # 1 would be a high rep set to good failure. Work set # 2 would be a medium rep set to good failure. Work set # 3 is medium rep set to good failure. Work set # 4 is a medium rep set to good failure and work set # 5 would be a low rep set to break down the muscle group in its entirety. Secondary exercises are considered a more un-natural movement and this is the reason for doing the lowest rep set last when not as much weight can be lifted. This will help preserve the joints and tendons.
Sample using 2 exercises for 3 sets during 2 week prime.
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
(3 high rep sets during anabolic prime when using 2 exercises per major body part)
Sample using 2 exercises for 10 sets during 4 week blast:
"1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky
twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Sample using 2 exercises for 6 sets during 2 week cruise
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
__________________________________________________ _______________
Sample using 3 exercises for 4 sets during 2 week prime.
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree Decline incline press
1st set 12-15 reps to good failure.
2nd set 12-15 reps to good failure.
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree incline barbell press.
1st set 12-15 reps to good failure.
3rd exercise is a second secondary exercise- 15 degree incline flyes
1st set- 12-15 reps to good failure.
(4 high rep sets during anabolic prime when using 3 exercises per major body part)
Sample using 3 exercises for 12 sets during 4 week blast:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree Decline incline press (5 sets)1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree incline barbell press (4 sets)
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 6-8 reps
3rd exercise is a second secondary exercise- 15 degree incline flyes (3 sets)
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Sample using 3 exercises for 8 sets during 2 week cruise.
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree Decline incline press (3 sets)
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree incline barbell press (3 sets)
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
3rd exercise is a second secondary exercise- 15 degree incline flyes (2 sets)
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Every advanced power-lifter I have worked with soon realizes they must hit their heaviest set on key movements before the neural muscular pathways weaken yet while they have some pump in the muscle. This is important because when a muscle is fresh, ATP (the chemical responsible for energy and contraction) and stored glycogen in the muscle are at their highest. That's when you can really lift some heavy weight loads. Stopping 1 rep shy of good failure on the first work set will keep the CNS strong and will awaken and optimize the firing of neural pathways for the heaviest work set to follow. I call this the “prep set” and it’s far more fatiguing than a warm up set. You must never train to good failure during the prep set or it will exhaust the CNS before the heaviest set. One prep set must be done prior to the heaviest set in order to optimize the firing of the neuro-pathways so more weight can be lifted. And you’ll need to wait an additional minute or so before going to your heaviest work set (set # 2). Power-lifters are known for doing a prep set and then waiting around 5 minutes or more before doing their heaviest set to increase weight load range and workload capacity. You’ll be required to wait around 4 minutes as a bodybuilder before doing your heaviest set on compound movements and 3 minutes for main isolation exercises for body parts such as the arms. Then go back to 3 minutes between sets for the rest of the compound lifts and 2 minutes for isolation movements.
Using more than 3 warm-up sets for any cold body part (for i.e. chest and quads) will hurt your performance. If you need more than 3 warm up sets your doing something wrong (for i.e.; ego lifting). If a muscle group is completely cold, you should always start using 1 high rep warm-up set of 12-15 reps followed by 1 to 2 heavier warm-up sets using only 6 reps. If you fail to warm up properly you won’t be able to bring enough blood flow (pump) into the muscles before performing the heaviest set even though you’ve done a PREP SET and this will increase the risk of getting injured. In addition, a muscle that is not warmed up sufficiently will contract and stretch with less efficiency and this means less muscle fiber stimulation.
On the other hand, if you over exert yourself during the warm up sets by using more than one high rep set or using too much weight, you will become to fatigued to produce the desired training effect during the work sets. Warm ups are designed to bring blood flow into the muscle not break down muscle tissue or exert yourself. Using too much weight during warm-ups sets or pushing too much intensity is a huge mistake being made by many bodybuilders and it’s really hurting their ability to increase weight load range and workload capacity. A moderately pumped muscle responds better to heavier workloads and it takes a non-fatiguing high rep set followed by one or two moderate low rep sets to make this happen if the muscle is completely cold. Anytime you do not feel adequately warmed following a high and a low rep warm up set, you’ll need to add an additional low rep warm up set using the same amount of weight used in the second set. Adding more weight to the third set would produce too much fatigue and would do nothing to further prepare the joints for the heavy workload to come.
One low rep set is usually sufficient for the deltoids because they are to be trained directly after chest. When training bicep after lats, a warm up set is generally not needed before proceeding to the work sets. If you feel the need to use more warm-ups set for the delts or biceps because it’s an area that’s been injured in the past, you can use a total of 2 low rep sets of 6 repetitions. In these particular cases, you would need to shun high reps during the warm up because of the fatigue already present from training the chest and lats. This rule applies to every body part. Performing countless warm-up sets for a body part that’s already filled with blood is counter productive and only wasting valuable gym time. It’s not mandatory to work your way up the ladder within each rep-scheme. Stay in the designated rep-range the best you can and add weight when applicable. If for some reason you are not able to use a particular rep-range due to joint pain, simply work in a rep-range where no pain is experienced.
Important note: Bodybuilders wanting to follow more of a powerlifting oriented approach can substitute the 3rd set on key movements for another low rep set (4-6 reps).
Slingshot Aerobic Cycling
The body rapidly adapts to any form of aerobics. If you try and burn a lot of calories through aerobic training, the body catches on as usual by slowing down your metabolism. Thyroid hormones have a partioning effect upon muscle-to-fat ratios. Our endocrine systems manufactures many hormones. For example, anabolic, catabolic and thyroid hormones can be manipulated by our diet and/or training regimine. During the tail end of the 2 week anabolic prime, T-4 conversion, to the more active T-3, begins to decrease-hence making bodyfat loss slower and muscle loss much eaiser. When too much cardio is added to a 6 week mass phase, the body will become less anabolic nor will it respond as well to cardio during the 2 week anabolic prime or when dieting down for a contest. An abundance of T-3 is needed during the 6 week mass phase to increase transport of creatine and increase androgen receptor site/insulin sensitivity. Aerobics will decrease anabolic hormones and type 2 muscle fibers. Another problem with doing a lot of cardio during a 6 week mass phase is that it will slow down recovery and muscle growth. This also slows down your metabolism over time. During weight training you actually stimulate the metabolic rate so that it stays higher for longer than when doing aerobics. There's a vast difference between losing weight and becoming leaner.
There's a lot of catch 22's in training and dieting so it's important you understand that adding a bunch of extra cardio in the off-season is the wrong answer! It's far better to keep carbs and/or over-all calories under control so energy can be spent on weight training. One thing that some bodybuilders fail to realize is that they cannot be bodybuilders as well as marathon runners at the same time. You've got to commit to putting on mass and strength or cutting because trying to do both at the same time causes over-training. A lot of cardio will keep you from gaining maximal muscle size during a 6 week mass phase because it deters insulin senstitivity when coupled with the needed weight training volume to gain maximal size. Put most of your extra energy into building muscle size-strength, not into becoming a cardio monkey.
The problem with aerobic training is the more you perform the better you'll become at it. If you try and run farther each session it will eventually become too easy and you'll reach a point you can't get the same benefits. To break this cycle, you'll need to manipulate aerobic work in eacvh of the desigated training phases (PRIME/BLAST/CRUISE) so you can avoid adaptation and a sluggish thyroid/nerbvous system. I coined the phrase Slingshot Aerobic Cycling to define alternating back and forth between periods of doing more cardio and less cardio.
The proper cardio for burning fat is done by staying in your target heart rate for fat burning which is about 70% of your max heart rate. Anytime you get the heart rate up to around 80% max or over, the body stops using less fats for fuel and switches over to burning more carbs. When you burn up too many carbs with high intensity cardio, you're body will break down muscle tissue and turn that into carbs during an anabolic prime. While intense exercise will burn more calories, it can also burn the wrong kind of calories on top of your intense weight training. Your goal as a bodybuilder is to burn more fat calories and spare the CNS when dieting down during the prime not burn away muscle calories or avoid giving the a break.
Cardio should be longer in duration and lower in intensity when bodybuilding. High intensity cardio or high intensity interval training can over-train the CNS when coupled with intense weight training sessions. The idea situation is to drop carb calories and burn off more fat calories to keep glucose levels stable during a prime. Use moderate intensity aerobics in conjunction with cutting carb calories, not HIT or HIIT aerobics or you might not be able to fully restore the sympathetic nervous system used during intense weight training.
When utilizing moderate intensity cardio you will need to drop more carb calories because moderate intensity cardio emphasizes the burning of calories coming from dietary fats mroe than carbs. If you have a slow metabolism you may need upwards of 60 minutes after weight training sessions during the anabolic prime. If you have a fast metabolism you may get by with 15 minutes or no cardio whatsoever. But, I highly recommend some cardio for everyone during the prime so they will return to the mass phases in good cardio shape!
Aerobics create a slight catabolic environment when coupled with a very low volume-high intensity weight training program during the anabolic prime because they put you in a calorie deficit. This keeps those in need from having to drastically drop the calories during a priming phase while still being able to burn a ton of bodyfat and prepare the body for future gains.
Some bodybuilders think cardio makes you shrink during the off-season, but the right amount of cardio for your metabolism during an anabolic prime will help you gain muscle mass when you return back to the mass phase. It's only when you have a very fast metabolism or low bodyfat levels that aerobics will make you shrink during a prime! Think about the rapid muscular gains those bodybuilders makes after doing a show when all form of aerobics is stopped and it will begin to make sense to you. Trying to use extra resistance training to burn bodyfat during an anabolic prime will causes chronic joint/tendon pain, along with sympathetic overtraining symptoms. Aerobics allow you to burn additional calories while sparing the joints, tendons, and muscles. With moderate intensity aerobic training you are more susceptible to parasympathetic over-training which is less common.
Note: If you are invloved in sports and must use HIIT or HIT cardio, Slingshot Training will still work. The above scenario is the optimal way of doing cardio for bodybuilders during a mass up phase but it's not the only way, especially for athletes!
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 04-22-2008 at 08:35 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
5 Day Per Week STS..
The Slingshot Training System
The Slingshot Training System is the authoritative guide to reaching your utmost genetic potential as a bodybuilder. Both natural and drug enhanced bodybuilders should train in cycles that mimic the action/reaction factors of 8 week anabolic steroid cycles. The same dosage of synthetic testosterone enanthate starts losing it's effectiveness after having been active in the body for only 6 weeks. The same rule applies to anabolic agent like creatine that can be purchased over-the-counter by natural bodybuilders. The secret lies in doing 3-Anabolic Phases (PRIME/BLAST/CRUISE)!
2 week Anabolic Prime:
The 2-week “anabolic prime” is about intentionally creating a controlled catabolic state over a two-week time span in order to down-regulate anabolic hormones and receptor sites for androgens. The decrease in volume de-condition the muscles, heal the tendons/joints and increase insulin sensitivity/hormonal sensitivity through losing body fat so that when the muscles are exposed by the following higher volume 4-week “blasting phase” they will experience a very rapid training effect. This is accomplished using low volume to cause de-training without experiencing any muscle loss. Lifting heavier weight loads over time during the anabolic prime will help maintain muscle mass gained during each 6-week mass phase. The 4 week blasting phase and the 2 week cruising phase makes up a 6 week mass phase!
Note: You get the most returns for your efforts with the first 2-3 sets for any given body part. This must be taken into consideration during an anabolic prime when utilizing the least amount of work needed for muscle maintenance and de-training.
Think of your tendons as a cable on a winch. When the cable gets frayed from over-use the cable weakens. Two weeks of using only low sets/high reps will help prevent and repair the tiny frays in the tendons from the heavy-higher volume lifting done during the 6 week mass phase. Those who neglect the 2 week prime eventually move backwards because of nagging injuries. It's comparable to those who neglect to repair the cable on their winches when they begin to fray. Remember, you cannot see tendon damage occuring or go buy a new set of tendons at the local Wamart like you can a cable for a winch when it goes bad! I cannot stress enough how important it is to perform a 2 week prime after 6 weeks of heavy-higher volume lifting. You'll be amazed at how much better your joints/cns/tendons feel by utilizing a two week prime. Two weeks of using only low sets/high reps is all it takes to help prevent and repair the tiny frays in the tendons from the heavy-higher volume lifting done during the 6 week mass phase. Those who neglect the 2 week prime eventually move backwards because of nagging injuries. It's comparable to those who neglect to repair the cable on their winches when they begin to fray. Remember, you cannot see tendon damage occuring or go buy a new set of tendons at the local Wamart like you can a cable for a winch when it goes bad! I cannot stress enough how important it is to perform a 2 week prime after 6 weeks of heavy-higher volume lifting. You'll be amazed at how much better your joints/cns/tendons feel by utilizing a two week prime. Tendon repair is slow. But, prevention techniques work relatively fast. Meaning reducing weight loads and volume for only 2 weeks before a 6 week mass phase can spell the difference between training pain free or having to deal with nagging injuries. The 2 week "Anabolic Prime" has more to do with prevention but inflammation can really improve in 2 short weeks.
High reps will help gather lactic acid (the burning sensation from high reps) into the area where tendons are attached. This stimulates both the tendons and joints to get stronger because lactic acid keys off the fibroblasts to signal for collagen synthesis to occur. The anabolic prime is not about gaining size or strengthening the muscles connected to the tendons/joints per se, rather it's about creating a burn in the area in order that collagen synthesis can be increased. Keeping the sets low with higher reps produces lactic acid while putting less wear and tear on the muscles/tendons/joints/cns preparing the body once again for a 6 week mass/strength gaining phase!
The high rep "burn-out sets" done during the 6 week mass phase are a conditioning technique and are also a means to prevent tendonitis later on as you progress in size strength. They also increase functional strength and increase sarcoplasmic growth.
4 week Anabolic Blast:
After a two-week anabolic prime, muscle mass and strength gains are maximized by proceeding into a four-week anabolic blasting phase where androgen receptor sites are up-regulated and every anabolic hormone in the body is at its peak. During this 4-week phase you will go for a full pump and fully traumatize the muscle tissue to create an increase in muscle size-strength. This is accomplished using high volume to fully stimulate the type-2 muscle fibers. Lifting heavier weight loads with volume will increase muscle size over-time.
Note: A muscle no longer fires with optimal force once you go past doing 10-12 sets. Regardless of how many different exercises you use for a particular body part, the ability to generate great intensity is over with after 12 work sets. This must be taken into consideration when trying to fully break down the type-2 muscle fibers to maximize muscle size during a high volume blasting phase.
2 week Anabolic Cruise:
Adaptation begins to set in after a four-week blasting phase and a 2-week anabolic cruising phase is taken to allow the muscle-strength gains to become fully manifested.
This is accomplished by using medium volume to create a de-loading effect. Lifting heavier weight loads over-time will increase muscle size.
Note: Regardless of how many different exercises you perform for a given bodypart the ability to generate intensity is reduced considerably by the time you finish set # 5. Considerably less and less muscle tissue will be broken down with each consecutive set there after. After that point, the curve starts to taper off but 6 sets still provides gains. After 6 sets the curve continues to slope down and you will obtain even less results for your efforts. This must be taken into consideration when trying to gain strength during a medium volume cruising phase.[/color]
Slingshot Training Splits:
1) 5 days per week
2) 4 days per week
3) 3 days per week
(5 Day per week Slingshot Training System)
8 week training cycle in sequence for the 5 day per week training split.
Muscle Definition and de-conditioning (the "anabolic prime") 2 weeks
Mass and Strength (the "anabolic blast") 4 weeks
Strength and Mass (the "anabolic cruise") 2 weeks
There are 3 phases to each 8 week training cycle:
1. Prime: 2 weeks in duration, 1 set per exercise with one additional high rep set for primary movements "low volume" (3-4 sets per major bodypart)
2. Blast: 4 weeks in duration, 3-5 sets per exercise, "high volume" (10-12 sets per major bodypart)
3. Cruise: 2 weeks in duration, 2-3 sets per exercise, "moderate volume" (6-8 sets per major bodypart)
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC PRIME:
Up to 5 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized any day of the week to increase insulin/hormonal sensitivity and lose bodyfat. Cardio can be done after leg and back day since its low volume. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 45 minutes per session.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC BLAST
Perform only 1 cardio session per week on a day you do not train legs and back unless you are involved in some sport were cardio is required. Performing cardio during a high volume phase can decrease insulin sensitivity.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC CRUISE
Up to 3 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized to increase insulin sensitivity since you’ll be doing less weight training. Cardio should be avoided on the days you train legs and back. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session.
SUPPLEMENTS: Fast acting over-the counter anabolics such Creatine and Leucine can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Fast acting drugs such as Test Propionate, Trenbolone Acetate, Winstrol, D-bol, Anavar, etc can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Both fast acting over-the counter anabolics and fast acting drugs should be discontinued during the 2 week anabolic prime. Slow acting drugs like Test Enanthate can be ran as a base during the prime. You can use stimulants such as green tea extract for an increased thermogenic effect during the 2 week anabolic prime.
EXERCISES -Choose a key exercise and one or two secondary exercises for each major muscle group. Perform all exercises in the same training session once a week. If your best chest movement is 15 degree declines, simply start out with that exercise and do the lowest rep-set during the second work set. Next, finish off your chest with a secondary exercise such as 15 degree incline flyes or presses. Since it’s considered a secondary movement, do the lowest rep-set during the final work set. You’re hitting each bodypart once a week. The volume changes during each of the 3 training phases but the split remains the same through the entire 8 week training phase. Perform as many warm-up sets as you need before going into your work sets. That can be anywhere from no warm up sets for a muscle group that is getting warmed up indirectly or up to 3 warm-up sets for a cold muscle group or areas that are prone to injury. Perform the 3 non-fatiguing warm up sets starting at 12 reps and working your way down to 6 before doing intense work sets. As you become more advanced you can use upwards of 3 exercises and 12 sets per major body part if desired.
Prime-1 high rep set for each of the 3 exercises and 1 additional high-rep set for each primary movement.
Blast-5 sets for the key exercise, 4 sets for first secondary exercise and 3 sets for second-secondary exercise.
Cruise-3 sets for the key exercise, 3 sets for first secondary exercise and 2 sets for second-secondary exercise.
REPS- Other than prep-sets all work sets are performed to good failure (the point at which no further reps are possible in good form). Low rep sets should fall between 4-6 reps for all key compound exercises and 6-8 reps for all key isolation exercises. Low rep heavy sets should fall between 6-8 reps for all secondary exercise whether compound or isolation. Medium rep sets should fall between 8-10 reps for both key and secondary exercises. High rep sets should fall between 12-15 reps for both key and secondary exercises.
SETS- Perform your work sets as follows
During each phase organize your workouts as follows:
A.
Chest
Calves
B.
Lats
Abs
C.
Deltoids
Traps
D.
Arms
E.
Legs
F:
Off
G:
Off
H. Repeat training cycle.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC PRIME”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest-
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Calves-
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
Day 2 would be Tuesday and would consist of:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium/wide grip pull-up
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-close grip pull-ups palms facing each other.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-MTS Hammer low row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-MTS hammer high row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Abs (optional)
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise-crunch
1 sets using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
1 set using only your bodyweight
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Reverse cable flyes.
1set set- 12-15 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
Day 4 would be Thursday and would consist of:
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set-12-15 reps
2nd set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
4 WEEK “ANABOLIC BLAST”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 12-15 reps
4th set 12-15 reps
5th set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
3rd set 12-15 reps
4th set 12-15 reps
5th set 8-10 reps
Day 2 would be Tuesday and would consist of:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-bent arm pull-over
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Bent over barbell rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-supported t-bar row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Abs (optional)
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise-crunch
3 sets using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
3 sets using only your bodyweight
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Unilateral bent over rear cable raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Day 4 would be Thursday and would consist of:
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 6-8 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC CRUISE”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
Day 2 would be Tuesday and would consist of:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-bent arm pull-over
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Bent over barbell rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-supported t-bar row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Abs (optional)
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise- crunch
2 sets using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
2 sets using only your bodyweight
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Unilateral bent over rear cable raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
3rd set 6-8 reps
Day 4 would be Thursday and would consist of:
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 04-22-2008 at 08:10 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
4 day per week STS
(4 Day per week Slingshot Training System)
8 week training cycle in sequence for the 4 day per week training split.
Muscle Definition and de-conditioning (the "anabolic prime") 2 weeks
Mass and Strength (the "anabolic blast") 4 weeks
Strength and Mass (the "anabolic cruise") 2 weeks
There are 3 phases to each 8 week training cycle:
1. Prime: 2 weeks in duration, 1 set per exercise with one additional high rep set for primary movements , "low volume" (3-4 sets per major body part)
2. Blast: 4 weeks in duration, 4-5 sets per exercise, "high volume" (8-12 sets per major bodypart)
3. Cruise: 2 weeks in duration, 2-4 sets per exercise, "moderate volume" (5-8 sets per major bodypart)
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC PRIME:
Up to 4 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized any day of the week to increase insulin/hormonal sensitivity and lose bodyfat. Cardio can be done after leg and back day since its low volume. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 45 minutes per session.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC BLAST:
Only 1 aerobic session is allowed to manintain cardiovascular conditioning. Performing more than 1cardio session during a high volume phase can decrease insulin sensitivity. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session. Cardio should be avoided on the days you train legs and back.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC CRUISE
Up to 2 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized to increase insulin sensitivity since you’ll be doing less weight training. Cardio should be avoided on the days you train legs and back. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session.
SUPPLEMENTS: Fast acting over-the counter anabolics such Creatine and Leucine can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Fast acting drugs such as Test Propionate, Trenbolone Acetate, Winstrol, D-bol, Anavar, etc can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Both fast acting over-the counter anabolics and fast acting drugs should be discontinued during the 2 week anabolic prime. Slow acting drugs like Test Enanthate can be ran as a base during the prime. You can use stimulants such as green tea extract for an increased thermogenic effect during the 2 week anabolic prime.
EXERCISES -Choose 1 key exercise and 1 secondary exercise for each major muscle group. Then use both of those exercises in the same training session once a week. If your best chest movement is 15 degree declines, simply start out with that exercise and do the lowest rep-set during the second work set. Next, finish off your chest with a secondary exercise (for i.e.; 15 degree incline flyes or presses). Since it’s considered a secondary movement, do the lowest rep-set during the final work set. You’re hitting each bodypart once a week. The volume changes during each of the 3 training phases but the split remains the same through the entire 8 week training phase. Perform as many warm-up sets as you need before going into your work sets. That can be anywhere from no warm up sets for a muscle group that is getting warmed up indirectly or up to 3 warm-up sets for a cold muscle group or areas that are prone to injury.
REPS- Other than prep-sets all work sets are performed to good failure (the point at which no further reps are possible in good form). Low reps equal 4-6 reps for all compound movement and 6-8 for all isolation movements. Medium rep sets equal 8-10 reps for both compound and isolation movements. High rep sets equal 12-15 reps for both compound and isolation exercises.
As you become more advanced you can use 10-12 sets while sticking with 2-3 exercises and up to 4-5 sets a piece per major body part if they are lagging or if you just want more size. If you approach 12 sets make sure and pyramid exactly as I have laid out for the standard 5 day split. You also have the option of increasing sets and/or adding 1 additional exercises for ancillary bodyparts like traps if they are lagging behind. For major body parts choose 1 key movement and 1 or 2 secondary exercises. The standard amount of sets would go as follows:
During each phase organize your workouts as follows:
A.
Chest
Biceps
Forearms
B.
Calves
Legs
Abs
C.
OFF
D.
Shoulders
Triceps
E.
Back
Rear delts
Traps
F:
Off
G:
Off
H. Repeat training cycle following week on Monday.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC PRIME”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Wrist curls
1 set of 12-15 reps
Reverse wrist curls
1 set of 12-15 reps
Day 2 would be Tuesday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
Quads:
1st exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 12-15- reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
Abs
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise-crunch
1 set using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
1 set using only your bodyweight
Day 3-Wednesday=Off
Day 4 would be Thursday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 12-15
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of-
Back:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- partial dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-close grip pull-ups with palms facing each other.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-MTS Hammer low rows
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-MTS Hammer high row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Rear delts:
Reverse cable flyes
1st set- 12-15 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15
2nd set-12-15 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
4 WEEK “ANABOLIC BLAST”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep shy of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set).
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Wrist curls
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th ser 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Reverse wrist curls
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Day 2 is Tuesday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps (heavy medium rep- set)
3rd set 12-15 reps
4th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
3rd set 12-15 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
Quads:
1st exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
2nd exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Abs
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise-crunch
3 sets using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
3 sets using only your bodyweight
Day 3 is Wednesday-Off
Day 4 would be Thursday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Day 5 is Friday and would consist of:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- partial dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-close grip pulls palms facing each other
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
5th set 6-8 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-MTS Hammer low rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-MTS Hammer high row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 6-8 reps
Rear delts:
Reverse cable flyes
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 6-8 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
3rd set 8-10 reps.
4th set 8-10 reps.
5th set 6-8 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC CRUISE”
Day 1 is Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Wrist curls
1st set -12-15 reps
2nd set -8-10 reps
3rd set -6-8 reps
Reverse wrist curls
1st set -12-15 reps
2nd set -8-10 reps
3rd set -6-8 reps
Day 2 is Tuesday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Quads:
Ist exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
2nd exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Still legged dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Abs
1st exercise is a 1 key exercise-crunch
2 sets using only your bodyweight
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-reverse crunch
2 sets using only your bodyweight
Day 3 is Wednesday-Off
Day 4 is Thursday and would be-
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Day 5 is Friday and would consist of-
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-medium grip pullups with palms facing each other.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-MTS Hammer low rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Thickness:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-MTS Hammer high row.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Rear delts:
Reverse cable flyes
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
3rd set 6-8 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 04-24-2008 at 07:05 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
3 day per week STS
(3 Day per week Slingshot Training System)
8 week training cycle in sequence for the 3 day per week training split.
Muscle Definition and de-conditioning (the "anabolic prime") 2 weeks
Mass and Strength (the "anabolic blast") 4 weeks
Strength and Mass (the "anabolic cruise") 2 weeks
There are 3 phases to each 8 week training cycle:
1. Prime: 2 weeks in duration, 1 set per exercisewith one additional high rep set for primary movements , "low volume" (2-4 sets per major body part)
2. Blast: 4 weeks in duration, 3-5 sets per exercise, "high volume" (6-10 sets per major bodypart)
3. Cruise: 2 weeks in duration, 2-3 sets per exercise , "moderate volume" (4-6 sets per major bodypart)
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC PRIME:
Up to 3 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized any day of the week to increase insulin/hormonal sensitivity and lose bodyfat. Cardio can be done after leg and back day since its low volume. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 45 minutes per session.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC BLAST:
Only 1 aerobic session is allowed to maintain cardiovascular conditioning. Performing more than 1 cardio session during a high volume phase can decrease insulin sensitivity. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session. Cardio should be avoided on the days you train legs and back.
CARDIO FOR ANABOLIC CRUISE
Up to 2 days of moderate intensity cardio can be utilized to increase insulin sensitivity since you’ll be doing less weight training. Cardio should be avoided on the days you train legs and back. Do not exceed a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session.
SUPPLEMENTS: Fast acting over-the counter anabolics such Creatine and Leucine can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Fast acting drugs such as Test Propionate, Trenbolone Acetate, Winstrol, D-bol, Anavar, etc can be used during the 6 week mass phase. Both fast acting over-the counter anabolics and fast acting drugs should be discontinued during the 2 week anabolic prime. Slow acting drugs like Test Enanthate can be ran as a base during the prime. You can use stimulants such as green tea extract for an increased thermogenic effect during the 2 week anabolic prime.
EXERCISES -Choose 1 key exercise and 1 secondary exercise for each major muscle group. Then use both of those exercises in the same training session once a week. If your best chest movement is 15 degree declines, simply start out with that exercise and do the lowest rep-set during the second work set. Next, finish off your chest with a secondary exercise (for i.e.; 15 degree incline flyes or presses). Since it’s considered a secondary movement, do the lowest rep-set during the final work set. You’re hitting each bodypart once a week. The volume changes during each of the 3 training phases but the split remains the same through the entire 8 week training phase. Perform as many warm-up sets as you need before going into your work sets. That can be anywhere from no warm up sets for a muscle group that is getting warmed up indirectly or up to 3 warm-up sets for a cold muscle group or areas that are prone to injury.
REPS- Other than prep-sets all work sets are performed to good failure (the point at which no further reps are possible in good form). Low reps equal 4-6 reps for all compound movement and 6-8 for all isolation movements. Medium rep sets equal 8-10 reps for both compound and isolation movements. High rep sets equal 12-15 reps for both compound and isolation exercises.
As you become more advanced you can use 8 sets per major body part while sticking with 2 exercises if they are lagging or if you just want more size. If you approach 8-10 sets make sure and pyramid exactly as I have laid out for the standard 4 day split. For example:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep shy of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set).
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
4th set 6-8 reps
You also have the option of increasing sets and/or adding 1 additional exercise for ancillary body parts like traps if they are lagging behind. For major body parts choose 1 key movement and 2 secondary exercises. The standard amount of sets would go as follows:
During each phase organize your workouts as follows:
A.
Chest
Back
Traps
B.
Off
C.
Shoulders
Biceps
Triceps
D.
Off
E.
Legs
Abs (optional)
F:
Off
G:
Off
H. Repeat training cycle.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC PRIME”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Back:
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-15-15 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-close grip pullups with palms facing each other.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-MTS Hammer low rows
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-15-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise- MTS Hammer high rows
1st set is 12-15 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15
2nd set-15-15 reps
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 12-15
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Unilateral bent over rear cable raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set-12-15 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 12-15- reps
2nd set-15-15 reps
Abs-Reverse crunches
1 set of high reps using only your body weight
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Monday, Wednesday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
4 WEEK “ANABOLIC BLAST”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep shy of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set).
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-bent arm pull-over
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Bent over barbell rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
3rd set 8-10 reps.
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Unilateral bent over rear cable raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 12-15 reps
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 12-15 reps
3rd set 8-10 reps
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
3rd set 8-10 reps
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd set 6-8 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
3rd set 12-15 reps
Abs-Reverse crunches
3 sets of high reps using only your body weight
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Monday, Wednesday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
2 WEEK “ANABOLIC CRUISE”
Day 1 would be Monday and would consist of:
Chest:
1st exercise is a key exercise-15 degree barbell decline press
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps) (heavy set)
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-15 degree Incline dumbbell flyes using inward pinky twist while bringing hands to lower chest during contraction.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Overall back thickness:
1st key exercise- dead-lifts
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Width:
1st exercise is a key exercise-medium grip pull-up
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Lat Width:
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-bent arm pull-over
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Lat Thickness:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Bent over barbell rows
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
Traps:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell shrugs
1st set- 12-15 reps.
2nd set 8-10 reps.
Day 3 would be Wednesday and would consist of:
Shoulders:
1st exercise is a key exercise-seated dumbbell presses
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-leaning one arm at a time dumbbell lateral raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
3rd exercise is a secondary exercise- Unilateral bent over rear cable raises.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Biceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- seated Incline dumbbell curls on a 45 degree angle
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is uni-lateral inverted preacher curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Brachialis/Forearms:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Seated dumbbell hammer curls.
1st set- 12-15 reps
Triceps:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying tricep extensions using ez-bar
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 6-8 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Tricep pulley pushdowns.
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Day 5 would be Friday and would consist of:
Calves:
1st exercise is a key exercise-Standing calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 8-10 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is a secondary exercise-Seated calf raise
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Quads:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Barbell squats
1st set- 8-10 reps (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps (heavy set)
2nd exercise is secondary exercise-Leg extensions
1st set- 12-15 reps
2nd set 8-10 reps
Hams:
1st exercise is a key exercise- Lying leg curl
1st set- 8-10 rep (1 rep short of good failure)
2nd set 4-6 reps
(Weekends off)
Day 8 would be the following Monday (week 2) and would be the same workout as done on day one (Monday of first week)
And the cycle continues on- Monday, Wednesday, Friday, weekends off, etc.
STS TRAINING ROUTINES FOR BEGINNERS!
3-4 day per week basic STS for beginners to be used up to 3 months before progressing to once a week muscle group training.
Note: As a beginner there is not need to prime or cruise. You'll need to blast for an entire 3 straight months! Those of you who need to de-program yourself from beyond failure training methods and/or over-training can use the beginner program for 6-8 weeks.
Low reps= 4-6 reps with key movements and 6-8 reps with secondary movements.
Medium reps = 8-10 (All prep sets/first work sets on key movements are stopped one rep shy of failure)
High rep=12-15 reps
Alternate back and forth between day 1 and day 2 when training 3 days per week using a 2-way split. For example:
WEEK 1
Monday (Day 1)
Tuesday (Off)
Wednesday (Day 2)
Thursday (Off)
Friday (Day 1)
Saturday (Off)
Sunday(Off)
WEEK 2
Monday (Day 2)
Tuesday (Off)
Wednesday (Day 1)
Thursday (Off)
Friday (Day 2)
Saturday (Off)
Sunday(Off)
REPEAT WEEK 1 AND SO ON!
(Week 1)
Monday (Day 1)
Chest-
10 degree Decline Press- 3 sets (M/L/H)
10 degree Incline Flyes- 2 sets (H/M)
Shoulders-
Dumbbell over head shoulder presses- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Lateral raises- 2 sets (H/M)
Lats-
Medium/wide grip pull-ups- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Close grip puldowns (plams facing each other)- 2 sets (H/M)
Barbell rows 3 sets- (M/L/H)
T-bar rows-((H/M)
Note: A hammer strength MTS low row and hi row can be used for all rowing movements.
Rear delts-
Reverse cable flyes 1-2 sets (H/M)
Traps-
Seated Dumbbell shrugs-3-4 sets (HMML)
Abs-
Crunches-2 sets for reps
Reverse crunches-2 sets for reps
Wednesday (Day 2)
Biceps-
Standing barbell curls 3 sets (M/L/H)
Preacher curls 2 sets (H/M)
Seated dumbbell Hammer curls (2 sets) (H/M)
Triceps-
Lying Tricep extensions 3 sets (M/L/H)
Tricep pushowns with small straight bar 2 sets (H/M)
Quads-
Squats- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Dead-lifts -1 set of medium reps after 1 low rep warm up set.
Leg extensions 2 sets (H/M)
Hams-
Leg curls 2 sets (H/M)
Stiff legged deadlifts 1 set (H)
Calves-
Standing calves raise 3 sets H/M/H
Seated calf raise 2 sets (H/M)
Friday (Day 1 Workout)
(Week 2)
Monday (Day 2 Workout)
Wednesday (Day 1 Workout)
Friday (Day 2 Workout) Continue with cycle!
Important Note:
1) You are training each muscle group twice a week to improve neural pathways.
2) You can do 15-20 minutes of cardio on non-training days or up to 30 minutes of cardio 3 times per week.
Those who want to train using a 4 day split will need to perform Day 1 and Day 2 on back to back days. For example:
Monday (Day 1)
Tuesday (Day 2)
Wednesday (Off)
Thursday (Day 1 again)
Friday (Day 2 again)
Saturday (Off)
Sunday(Off)
Monday (Day 1)
Chest-
10 degree Decline press- 3 sets (M/L/H)
10 degree Incline Flyes- 2 sets (H/M)
Shoulders-
Dumbbell over head shoulder presses- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Lateral raises- 2 sets (H/M)
Lats-
Medium/wide grip Pull-ups- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Close grip puldowns (plams facing each other)- 2 sets (H/M)
Barbell rows 3 sets- (M/L/H)
T-bar rows-((H/M)
Note: A hammer strength MTS low row and hi row can be used for all rowing movements.
Reverse cable flyes 1-2 sets (H/M)
Traps-
Seated Dumbbell shrugs-3-4 sets (HMML)
Abs-
Crunches-2 sets for reps
Reverse crunches-2 sets for reps
Tuesday (Day 2)
Biceps-
Standing barbell curls 3 sets (M/L/H)
Preacher curls 2 sets (H/M)
Seated dumbbell Hammer curls (2 sets)
Triceps-
Lying Tricep extensions 3 sets (M/L/H)
Tricep pushowns with small straight bar 2 sets (H/M)
Quads-
Squats- 3 sets (M/L/H)
Dead-lifts -1 set of medium reps after 1 low rep warm up set.
Leg extensions 2 sets (H/M)
Hams-
Leg curls 2 sets (H/M)
Stiff legged deadlifts 1 set (H)
Calves-
Standing calves raise 3 sets (HMH)
Seated calf raise 2 sets (H/M)
Wednesday-Off
Thursday- (Same workout as Day 1 Workout on Monday)
Friday- (Same workout as Day 2 workout on Tuesday)
Saturday-Off
Sunday-Off
Continue with same cycle every week!
Important Note:
1) You are training each muscle group twice a week to improve neural pathways.
2) You can do 15-20 minutes of cardio on non-training days or up to 30 minutes of cardio 3 times per week.
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 04-22-2008 at 08:25 PM.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Slingshot Cutting Routines
The Slingshot Training Cutting System!
You should perform 8-12 sets per major body part only once a week while utilizing 2-3 exercises per body part hwne trying to get ripped. For example, quads could be 4 sets of squats, 4 sets of lunges on smith machine and 4 sets of leg extensions. You will want to start out with high reps and finish with a low rep set. No need in working in the 4-5 rep range when cutting and there's certainly no need for doing a power set during the second set with a key movement. When dieting down the risk of injury is too great for such training. Basically, you are blasting the entire duration to eat up glycogen levels and burn calories. Here's how you want to pyramid after warm up sets if you do 4 sets per exercise-
Squats-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
4th set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
Smith machine lunges-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
4th set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
Leg extensions-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
4th set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
Here's how to pyramid using 3 sets per exercise to good failure
Squats-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
Smith machine lunges-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
Leg extensions-
1st set is a high rep set (12-15 reps) to good failure
2nd set is a medium rep set (8-10 reps) to good failure
3rd set is a low rep set (6-8 reps) to good failure)
This program will work using any split. Here's a sample diet plan using the 5 day per week training split.
Eating to lose bodyfat
Just as you have to periodize your training, the nutrition plan must also be periodized. Staying on a low calorie/low carb diet for too long will not just lead to fat loss, but a lot of muscle loss as well. A huge mistake most people make when trying to lose body fat is sticking with the same exact calorie-carb reduced meal plan seven days a week or redcuing calories too much up front. This will not work optimally because the body has a finely tuned system that protects itself from starvation mode. When the body feels threatened it begins to store bodyfat as opposed to releasing it after only a short few weeks! By including two weekly carb up/calorie up days it tricks the human body into believing it’s getting a huge calorie surplus and –hence negating the slowing down of the metabolism that comes from calorie depletion. Relying on fibrous carbs helps improve ones conditioning. Everyone should think of high-fiber foods as a diet aid. Every carb you take in should have a decent amount of fiber in it. Slowing down carb absorption also helps keep your energy up longer during the day when dieting. If you take in 30 grams of carbs that are absorbed quickly, you're going to process them quickly, and then you're going to feel tired and depleted. When you take in the same amount of carbs with a high amount of fiber, they'll stay in your system longer, and you'll have a lot more energy. The fiber also slows down the digestion of protein. The longer that it takes your body to process the protein, the more efficiently it will use each gram!
I continue to read a lot about the separation of carbs and fats in the same meal.
It's been my experience that separating carbs and fats is the best route when trying to lose bodyfat or when staying at maintenance levels and leaning out. When trying to gain as much size-strength humanly possible you need to eat both carbs and fats in the same meals along with your protein. Doing so produces a synergistic muscle building effect that trumps what the separation of carbs and fats can provide.
Take this information and apply it to your goals. Fat intake should be low during a cutting phase using carb cycling. Most of your fats should be for dinner in the form of olive oil on a salad, etc, meat and a pre-bedtime meal such as smart balance peanut butter or almonds and awhey shake. Carb/protein meals are utlized earlier in the day for energy when carb cycling. At night you need less carbs unless you train late. When you are not in ketosis you'll need the carbs for energy. If you decided to use ketosis you need more fats for energy. I am of the opinion that carb cycling is safer when used long but ketosis is still a great way to lose bodyfat and preserve muscle size when calories are reduced gradually. When following carb cycling or ketosis, calories can be reduced by around 300 in weekly increments when cardio is not used. If you eventually reach a sticking point with cardio cals can still be reduced. WHen follwing the ketosis diet take in no more than 40 grams for carbs each day. Have one designated day (example:Sunday) were you carb up for a meal or two. You will be back in ketosis by the next morning.
When carb cycling, I would start out using a three low, one high-two low, one high carb rotation. On the low carb days take in about 100-125 grams of carbs and 250 or more carb grams on high carb days. So, you should use a 3 low-1 high-2 low-1 high weekly carb/calorie rotation. Monday-low, Tuesday-low, Wednesday-high (carbs clean on the first carb up day (day 3) after training lats a hard body part, Thursday-low, Friday-low, Saturday-high (have one cheat meal) because leg training on friday will make you hungry, Sunday-low. Add in some junk food carbs like pizza in one meal with the second carb up day (day 6 Saturday). The extra sugar is going to boost your metabolism, make you sharper in regards to your diet the rest of the week and give you something to look forward to-“big-time”. You have to be disciplined but you need a day to look forward to each week where you can ease the cravings for junk food. By saturday night your muscles will be absolutely full and vascular from all the extra glycogen stored in the muscles. Do this for 8 weeks!
Cardio should be kept low up front and bumped up every 2 weeks if needed. For example:
Weeks 1-2 could be 15 minutes of cardio 5 days per week post training or in morning on empty stomach.
Weeks 3-4 could be 30 minutes of cardio 5 days per week post training or in morning on empty stomach.
Weeks 5-6 coud be 45 minutes of cardio 5 days per week post training or in morning on empty stomach.
Weeks 7-8 could be 60 minutes of cardio 5 days per week post training or in morning on empty stomach
Last edited by Ronnie Rowland; 05-26-2008 at 11:59 AM.
Senior Member
thanks Ronnie...working with you and using the STS program to the dotted I will hopefully project me into another class. The Results are Real!!!
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
I'm getting hit with a lot of pm's but I will get to everyones questions (where ever they may be) ASP.
I feel lazy from all the Thanksgiving carbs...
Associate Member
I'm really liking how this routine looks I just have one question when you say Do up to 3 warm up sets using a 12-6-6 rep scheme do you do that for all the exercises?
Senior Member
no just the 3 warmups then (during your blast phase) you do one "prep set" of 8-10 reps then one low rep set of 4 reps, 2 medium rep sets of 8-10 and one high rep set
the only time you do warm ups if when you are using a unworked muscle for a compound movement. So for the second exercise for chest you do not do any warmups, however the rep scheme changes, almost in reverse order from above
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Here's a very descriptive version-
Every advanced power-lifter I have worked with soon realizes they must hit their heaviest set on key movements before the neural muscular pathways weaken yet while they have some pump in the muscle. This is important because when a muscle is fresh, ATP (the chemical responsible for energy and contraction) and stored glycogen in the muscle are at their highest. That's when you can really lift some heavy weight loads. Stopping 1 rep shy of good failure on the first work set will keep the CNS strong and will awaken and optimize the firing of neural pathways for the heaviest work set to follow. I call this the "prep set" and it's far more fatiguing than a warm up set. You must never train to good failure during the prep set or it will exhaust the CNS before the heaviest set. One prep set must be done prior to the heaviest set in order to optimize the firing of the neuro-pathways so more weight can be lifted. And you'll need to wait an additional minute or so before going to your heaviest work set (set # 2). My power-lifters are known for doing a prep set and then waiting around 5 minutes or more before doing their heaviest set to increase weight load range and workload capacity. You'll be required to wait around 4 minutes as a bodybuilder before doing your heaviest set on compound movements and 3 minutes for main isolation exercises for body parts such as the arms. Then go back to 3 minutes between sets for the rest of the compound lifts and 2 minutes for isolation movements.
Using more than 3 warm-up sets for any cold body part (for i.e. chest and quads) will hurt your performance. If you need more than 3 warm up sets your doing something wrong (for i.e.; ego lifting). If a muscle group is completely cold, you should always start using 1 high rep warm-up set of 12-15 reps followed by 1 to 2 heavier warm-up sets using only 6 reps. If you fail to warm up properly you won't be able to bring enough blood flow (pump) into the muscles before performing the heaviest set even though you've done a PREP SET and this will increase the risk of getting injured. In addition, a muscle that is not warmed up sufficiently will contract and stretch with less efficiency and this means less muscle fiber stimulation.
On the other hand, if you over exert yourself during the warm up sets by using more than one high rep set or using too much weight, you will become to fatigued to produce the desired training effect during the work sets. Warm ups are designed to bring blood flow into the muscle not break down muscle tissue or exert yourself. Using too much weight during warm-ups sets or pushing too much intensity is a huge mistake being made by many bodybuilders and it's really hurting their ability to increase weight load range and workload capacity. A moderately pumped muscle responds better to heavier workloads and it takes a non-fatiguing high rep set followed by one or two moderate low rep sets to make this happen if the muscle is completely cold. Anytime you do not feel adequately warmed following a high and a low rep warm up set, you'll need to add an additional low rep warm up set using the same amount of weight used in the second set. Adding more weight to the third set can produce too much fatigue and do nothing to further prepare the joints for the heavy workload to come. However, it's okay to add a few more pound to the 3 3rd warmup set and drop teh reps back to only 4.
One low rep set is usually sufficient for the deltoids because they are to be trained directly after chest. When training bicep after lats, a warm up set is generally not needed before proceeding to the work sets. If you feel the need to use more warm-ups set for the delts or biceps because it's an area that's been injured in the past, you can use a total of 2 low rep sets of 6 repetitions. In these particular cases, you would need to shun high reps during the warm up because of the fatigue already present from training the chest and lats. This rule applies to every body part. Performing countless warm-up sets for a body part that's already filled with blood is counter productive and only wasting valuable gym time. It's not mandatory to work your way up the ladder within each rep-scheme. Stay in the designated rep-range the best you can and add weight when applicable. If for some reason you are not able to use a particular rep-range due to joint pain, simply work in a rep-range where no pain is experienced.
A 60 second rest should be used between warm-up sets. Upon completion of the warm up sets wait about 2 minutes before starting the first work set or prep set depending on the phase (no prep set is needed during the anabolic prime only the blast and cruise). Rest about 3 minutes between each work set when utilizing compound movements and about 2 minutes between isolation movements. With compound movements, smoothly explode the weight faster with full power after completing approximately one fourth of the complete repetition. It should take you about a second and a half to complete the positive stroke when performing heavy compound movements. With isolation movements, you should wait and move the weight faster at about the half way point of the repetition. With full-stretch exercises the muscle and tendons are easily damaged with sudden burst at the beginning of the movement. With isolation movements the positive stroke should take you around 1 and a half to 2 seconds to complete. The controlled negative should be around 2 seconds for both categories of exercises. The positive stroke should be somewhat explosive yet controlled to the point it's working the muscles to the fullest extent. Moving the weight too slow (for i.e. a 4 second negative or 3 second positive) won't allow you to use enough weight to fully break down the type 2 muscle fibers due to lactic acid build-up. Always make sure and use a brief pause before beginning each positive stroke to prevent injury and increase muscle fiber stimulation. As you approach the end of a work set, you'll need to increase the explosiveness within each repetition (not speed of the repetition itself) as your muscle begin to fatigue and build up lactic acid. This is what constitutes impeccable form!
Senior Member
I wanted to provide an update. I weigh 215 lbs. I feel great and I love it....I definitely feel huge using the Slingshot Training System and it shows through my clothes (the sleeves are tighter, the chest and shoulders are tighter).
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Wow!
A 35 pound weight gain on the scales and you still have your bicep veins... No wonder everyone around you keeps saying "your muscles look bigger"!!!!!
Congradulations moush, you now hold the new STS record for the most weight ever to be gained in a single 8 week training cycle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
Sorry Uber, I forgot about this question.
In short, stay in ketosis 6 days a week, have one carb up day each week, blast with weights, do enough cardio in increments to strip away bodyfat and lose no more than 2 pounds of body fat per week.
Senior Member
yea i started at 182 and actually went up to 225 lbs during the blast phase! Once I was in the next prime i was down to a much leaner and vascular me. I cant wait to cut down to single digit bf levels with the muscle mass ive gained. Its gonna be even better because I also decided to do the tummy tuck surgery in Febuary of 2008. I will definitely be out of commission for a good 6-8 weeks atleast but the finished product without excess skin is gonna be pretty sweet
Associate Member
Ok Guru-
Everything here seems to make a lot of sence. I ran my first cycle of AAS and my last shot is this week. I would really like to implement your training program, but I don't know if I have the money to stay on AAS as you say "enhanced" builders should so...
after my last shot should I start the cruise phase, then transition into the anabolic prime? Should I stay with the two weeks recommended for each or stretch them out a little to cover my PCT and have my hormone levels more stable before I hit the anabloic blast? I ran 550mg Test C for a 12 week cycle and I am using Nolva/Clomid/Relacore/Myogenx pct to get my system back up and running.
I am excited to give this program a try- It seems like most of the exercises could be done in about an hour or maybe even a little less. That sounds way better then the 1 1/2 to 2 hours I'm in the gym trying to "slam" my muscles.
Work smarter not harder I guess.
http://forums.steroid.com/showthread.php?t=316204
^^^^
There is a link to my cycle log for all of my info. You are the man GURU.
Author of Functional Training with a Fork
SDiZZle, I do no recommend that recreational steroid users stay on drugs year round due to health reasons. The best way to make it to the top level in bodybuilding is to stay on anabolic year round but, it doesn't sound too me like you fall into that category!
Go ahead and begin the 2 week anabolic cruise immediately. Next, begin the 2week anabolic prime during PCT. By then your test production should be stable enough to start blasting.
P.S. Do not reduce calories by much at all during the priming phase or you will lose some muscle!
Associate Member
Guru i have a question about this part:
"You will disregard the 2 anabolic meals in this phase-hydro whey should be taken in conjunction with a meal containing healthy fats and protein from food sources not 10-30 minutes prior".Could u explain a bit more what u say a post workout meal and breakfast must be while ur in the anabolic prime?
Associate Member
i am not asking 4 a meal plan!I am just wondering if u say that i should not eat the same amount of carbs as with the other faces
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