anyone do a muscle only once/week?

[MANWHORE]

I used to do this and got really good strength increases.... for the past 6 weeks or so,i've been pretty much keeping reps around 5 .. maybe 6-7 but not much usually just 5. My strength has been going up pretty steady,but as you know,i am on Tren,so who knows what would come natural. .. What i am saying is that i was natural when i trained a muscle once/week but now i train a muscle 2X/week. When i trained a muscle 1/week,i was using about 10-12 sometimes alot more sets and now i use 3-4 sets. I don't spend much time on single joint movements right now,so what i am thinking of doing is changing my workout to training 1 muscle or 1 muscle GROUP per day and hitting it harder with more sets,then letting it rest the rest of the week. So basically like an HD frequency,but with more volume. I really like the heavy weight with lower reps,than i am used to doing .. It's been doing very good for me ... ,but i think i would benefit more with higher volume each group and lower frequency for each muscle group. I am getting joint pain .. it's not much but i think it's because i'm hitting the muscle again too soon without giving the area time to recover enough to handle the weight in the next session .... It's what i am going to do,i just wanted to see some opinions. thanks

 

[Bob Smith]

IMO, not a good idea. Hitting a muscle every 5 days would be about the least frequent I would do it.

 

[hendrixsolo]

IMO, not a good idea. Hitting a muscle every 5 days would be about the least frequent I would do it.

What about the 5x5? bench is only once a week...same with shoulders.

 

[HeadDoc]

age is a factor. At 61, once per week is enough to permit strength and size increases.

 

[j martini]

I only train a muscle group once a week, but i dont train 5x5 mind you.

My routine is a more typical bodybulider routine with high volume 15-20 sets a bodypart and i train only one muscle group a workout.

I have always responded very well to this type of training, but have above average genetics and i am very disciplined as far as diet is concerned. My only real concern is bulding muscle ,added strength is nice but not the reason i train.

 

[Grizzly]

What about the 5x5? bench is only once a week...same with shoulders.

Where do you read this shit? You say you're reading the stickies, but the stickies clearly(leastways, AM's and JS') clearly have the workouts labeled

Squats
Bench
Rows

Squats
OHP
Deads
Chins

Squats
Bench
Rows

TWO times/week. Shoulders take a beating on all three days being that shoulders are heavily involved in the bench press.

 

[MANWHORE]

I only train a muscle group once a week, but i dont train 5x5 mind you.

My routine is a more typical bodybulider routine with high volume 15-20 sets a bodypart and i train only one muscle group a workout.

I have always responded very well to this type of training, but have above average genetics and i am very disciplined as far as diet is concerned. My only real concern is bulding muscle ,added strength is nice but not the reason i train.

What rep range do you train in? I'm just guessing 8-12 reps per set? I like the 5-6 rep range because it's easier to go intense with such few reps but i think it's taking away from my stamina. i really think i need more sets and more time to rest after. Tomorrow is my 1st NEW workout and its' leg day so wee will see ..

 

[hendrixsolo]

Where do you read this shit? You say you're reading the stickies, but the stickies clearly(leastways, AM's and JS') clearly have the workouts labeled

Squats
Bench
Rows

Squats
OHP
Deads
Chins

Squats
Bench
Rows

TWO times/week. Shoulders take a beating on all three days being that shoulders are heavily involved in the bench press.

I meant deadlifts and shoulders...easy now...

 

[j martini]

What rep range do you train in? I'm just guessing 8-12 reps per set? I like the 5-6 rep range because it's easier to go intense with such few reps but i think it's taking away from my stamina. i really think i need more sets and more time to rest after. Tomorrow is my 1st NEW workout and its' leg day so wee will see ..

Well for the big compound exercises like squats,deadlifts and barbell rows i will go down to 5-6 reps on my 4th and last set.

All other exercises pull downs, curls etc are 8-12 reps.

 

[AnimalMass]

"Deadlifts" is a movement, not a bodypart. "Shoulders" are a bodypart.

The back gets worked every training session, as do the shoulders, since bench press and overhead press both greatly work the shoulders, especially the front delts.

Matt

 

[MANWHORE]

"Deadlifts" is a movement, not a bodypart. "Shoulders" are a bodypart.

The back gets worked every training session, as do the shoulders, since bench press and overhead press both greatly work the shoulders, especially the front delts.

Matt

Animal,you said you like the 5x5 over other training programs,right? What do you think of HST? I believe you also said 5X5 will make you a better athlete,but what do you mean by Athlete? Do you mean strength athlete? Also,do you ever train to failure and what do you think about training to failure for increasing stamina and losing fat? thanks

 

[AnimalMass]

MW,

HST is excellent for hypertrophy work. The overall daily volume is a bit much for me, but to each is own. Actually, it wasn't the volume itself, but rather the fact that you perform an exercise for each "muscle group" each training session.

I do like full body training sessions, especially for my athletes, but we train movements rather than specific bodyparts. That said, for a person looking to purely put on size with strength as a secondary factor, HST can be really good, though I would still focus it around the major musle movements: squats, pulls, and heavy presses - the rest is icing on the cake.

Do I train to failure? Yes - all the time. I missed a squat today. I did bench the other day and hit 365x6, and missed number 7. So do I train to "movement failure"? Absolutely. Do I train to absolute "muscle failure"? Absolutely not.

What's the difference you ask? Well, when I missed rep number 7 with 365 the other day I could have done 2-3 forced reps, then 2 more negatives, then a drop set with 225. Then another drop set with 135...You get my idea. That crap is overkill and will destroy your muscles and overtrain your CNS.

Instead, 3 days later I came back and worked the bench "movement" again. Do you think I would have been able to do that if I had hit absolute musculer failure 3 days before? Not a chance. But now, in one week I've worked the movement twice and given my body double the stimulus to grow without burning myself out.

That is why we train movements rather than bodyparts and why myself and all my strength buddies (like Phreezer) look like f'ing Clydesdales.

Matt

 

[Grizzly]

I meant deadlifts and shoulders...easy now...

Yeah, occassionally, I get a bit testy at times. I think the primary reason for that is that deadlifts are too taxing on the CNS to be done more frequently than that. Such a shame, too, because I'd like to DL everyday.

 

[BRICK]

I have been training each muscle group once/wk for quite awhile now and have been very pleased with the results. It allows you to really blast that muscle group hard and allows enough recovery time 'till you hit it again. I also find it easier on my joints only training 3x's/wk. When I was training 5-6 times per wk, I always felt sore and my joints ached most of the time. To me, this indicated that I was over-trained and not recovering enough between sessions. Here is my routine:
Mon: Chest/Tri's
Wed: Should/Bi's
Fri: Legs/Back
*approx. 8-12 sets per bodypart
My rep range is from 3-12, depending on the week. I alternative heavy and light. Light days range from 8-12, Heavy days from 3-6 and occassional will max out on bench press for a single.(430 lbs)
IMO there is no one best rep range. The idea is to keep your body guessing and to vary your workouts every 6 wks or so. I also take a week off of training every 10-12 wks to let my joints recovery and to keep from getting stale.

 

[AnimalMass]

Brick,

As we've always said, stick with what is working until it isn't working anymore.

That said, I believe there are much better ways to train for buth hypetrophy and strength then 3 days per week and hitting bodyparts only once per week (my opinions are based on coaching and training with literally hundreds of other lifters, many of whom are elite level strength athletes).

I don't understand why you would devote 8-12 sets to biceps and 8-12 sets to "back"? How can you do that? Also, how do you train your entire legs and full back enough in just one day? Do you squat heavy and then deadlift, and then do heavy rows, and then do heavy pullups or pulldowns?

You've taken the two biggest muscle groups in the entire body (the two which most people pay the leats amount of attention to) and crammed them into one days' session.

Doesn't make sense to me.

Matt

 

[Grizzly]

You've taken the two biggest muscle groups in the entire body (the two which most people pay the leats amount of attention to) and crammed them into one days' session.

Doesn't make sense to me.

Matt

That part bothered me, too.

 

[j martini]

That part bothered me, too.

Me too, there is no way you can effectively train legs and back together.

 

[AnimalMass]

Legs and lower back, yes - Legs and entire back, no. - Especially not once per week.

Matt

 

[Girth]

I feel you Grizz, but I'd prefer to squat every day. That and push my Jeep around the block. Problem with the latter is that the wife doesn't like to steer all the time.

I hate to speak out against Matt, but I train back and legs together, twice a week. Cleans, Squats, and chins one day. Deads, Squats, Rows, and rev. hypers on the other. Yes, it's rough, but I don't see cleans or deads as only lower back exercises.

 

[MANWHORE]

MW,

HST is excellent for hypertrophy work. The overall daily volume is a bit much for me, but to each is own. Actually, it wasn't the volume itself, but rather the fact that you perform an exercise for each "muscle group" each training session.

I do like full body training sessions, especially for my athletes, but we train movements rather than specific bodyparts. That said, for a person looking to purely put on size with strength as a secondary factor, HST can be really good, though I would still focus it around the major musle movements: squats, pulls, and heavy presses - the rest is icing on the cake.

Do I train to failure? Yes - all the time. I missed a squat today. I did bench the other day and hit 365x6, and missed number 7. So do I train to "movement failure"? Absolutely. Do I train to absolute "muscle failure"? Absolutely not.

What's the difference you ask? Well, when I missed rep number 7 with 365 the other day I could have done 2-3 forced reps, then 2 more negatives, then a drop set with 225. Then another drop set with 135...You get my idea. That crap is overkill and will destroy your muscles and overtrain your CNS.

Instead, 3 days later I came back and worked the bench "movement" again. Do you think I would have been able to do that if I had hit absolute musculer failure 3 days before? Not a chance. But now, in one week I've worked the movement twice and given my body double the stimulus to grow without burning myself out.

That is why we train movements rather than bodyparts and why myself and all my strength buddies (like Phreezer) look like f'ing Clydesdales.

Matt

Yes,i understand what you meant about movement failure but when i think MUSCLE failure,i think just having the muscle fail at a point in that last rep. I don't think of forced reps and all that other stuff. To me that would surely be overkill but i used to do fast partial reps at the point where i fail in the movement just for a little more intensity... Sometimes I even use very heavy partials for the whole exercise but that may be 1 day week,if that. So you do push with everything you have during that last rep and then when the bar doesn't move anymore,you stop the set? ... The foundation of my workout is Oly Squats,Incline bench,Heavy and deadlifts. I do some heavy curls,heavy close grip bench,heavy ab work and heavy calf raises but that's basically it. ... The major reason i was using the smith machine for squats was because it is on the other side of the gym with the calf raises and ab machine which i also did during leg day .. My friend uses that also so i worked out with him too but now i switched to Oly Squats in the power rack and i feel much better. The smith machine restricted my movement some,so go ahead BOB just say it " You told me so" ... Saturday is my best day and leg day ( well mostly leg day) because i get a good hr in the gym. See the gym opens at 5Am during the week and by the time i get there at 5:30,i can get in maybe 1/2hr. I train pretty hard so i feel good after that 1/2hr but i do need to start getting in earlier .. possibly AT LEAST 5:15am,so i can get in a better workout. See 1/2hr is nice for me,but i have some things going on and i have to talk to some people when i get there so that takes up some time too. ... OK so here is what my weights look like. Now before you laugh at me i will remind you that i am only 180lbs (very happy with fat though) and i never go for 1RM ... so here goes ... Today i felt pretty good .. went to the gym for the 1st time AFTER work because my wife said it was OK she would watch my son and i got 335lbs for 3 reps on Deadlift .. i don't deadlift from the floor,i use a platform made for deadlifting but with a straight freeweight bar it's just that the plates are allowed to go at least a good 5" below my feet,so i think that's pretty good if i say so myself .... Now I don't do flate bench just incline barbell and the other day i got 225lbs for 4 reps without all out effort because i have no spotter so i don't want to chance it. that was my 3rd chest workout that week so i'm not sure if that hurt me or not since the other workouts weren't extremly intense .. yeah i know why don't i come up with a few more excuses ... I just changed from smith machine squats this Sat to power rack OLY Squats and i ended with 235lbs for 3 reps .. again no spot so i won't try another rep if i don't feel it ... Squats : I do all reps with a steady controlled negative,go as far as i can,which is basically having my hams touch my calfs,stop just enough to keep from any bouncing and then explode up. Sometimes i will take a second or 2 at the top to catch my breath. .. Deads : I squat down to the bar,bottom of plates being about 7-8" lower than the bottom of my feet, I then take my grip and explode upwards until my back is straight,sometimes i will take 1-2 sec during last reps to catch my breath then lower the weight in controlled manor almost all the way back to the pins ... Incline Barbell Bench Press : I take the weight off the pins,lower the weight pretty slow and try to get a good stretch,then i touch my chest waiting about 1 sec and then i explode upwards. Normally i won't take any rest when i complete a rep in Bench but the squats and deads take alot out of me,so sometimes if i want more reps,i really need that second or 2. .. Don't know why i explained my whole workout ... i guess just to see what you think of it,really. .. I don't think i'm replenishing carbs like i should be after my workout. I was thinking about this the other day because sometimes i feel lactic acid setting in very fast and i get tired but other times i feel great. I hear Maltodextrin is good for this. Maybe i should fix that problem for one. thanks