Some of my favourite training programs, methods, principles

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SOME of MY favourite training programs, methods, principles:

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1. Lactic acid training – using 6 -12 -25.

Lactic acid is a by-product of working your muscles when there is no oxygen to fuel the metabolic processes - usually the same case when lifting weights. Your muscles use glucose instead of oxygen to fuel contractions, and the glucose eventually breaks down into lactic acid. When your muscles reach their limit, the amount of lactic acid created intensifies to the point that it causes a burning feeling in your muscles. This burning sensation is a indication that lactic acid is slowing down muscle contractions to avert cell damage.

As well as causing a burning feeling, lactic acid also causes an increase in both growth hormone and testosterone secretion in the body. Growth hormone stimulates muscle function while testosterone helps to break down fat. Lactic acid training forces your body to produce high quantities of lactic acid, increasing both muscle growth and loss of fat. During lactic acid training – the total of growth hormone released can be up to nine times more than under normal circumstances.

Lactic acid training is based upon three principles - high volume, high intensity, minimal rest. My preferred way of incorporating lactic acid training is through the 6-12-25 rep range – starting on 6 heavy reps, 12 medium reps, 25 light reps – obviously 25 reps being lactic acid focused.

2. 6-12-25 rep scheme

This is extremely hard rep range style training. These rep ranges vary from strength, to hypertrophy and finally to muscle endurance; combining the three into a tri-set with short rest periods. For example you may start off on squats and perform 6 reps at a heavy weight – move on to walking lunges where you will do 12 reps at a medium weight and finally completing 25 reps on the leg extension. 2 minutes rest after the tri set and repeat 3-5 times.

3. Training to failure

This principle is only good to add in the mix sometimes. Utilising it too much can lead to overtraining and injury. Training to failure defines training in a way where each set is continued to the point where additional concentric repetitions ‘in good form’ cannot be completed. The notion of failure is inevitably connected to the magnitude of effort and capacity to endure pain and fatigue.

4. Intensity techniques - Supersets - Drop sets - Negative sets - Static holds

Supersets are two exercises performed in a row without stopping. They can be utilised to hit the same muscle group for two continuous sets OR they can be used to hit two, usually opposing muscle groups for two continuous sets.

Drop set: When you come to the end of a set and you can’t do another repetition – it doesn’t mean that all of the fibres in that muscle are fully fatigued. It just means that enough fibres are to prevent you from lifting the weight that you are trying to lift. If you were to drop the weight you would be able to lift it for more repetitions, therefore placing overload on the targeted muscles. This is the concept for drop sets. At the end of a set when you cannot do any more reps on the weight you have, you put the weight down, take some weight off and do as many more reps as you can. Sometimes you may even drop the weight again and again. Normally you do a drop set on your last exercise. One thing to remember when doing drop sets is that you need to be really quick in taking the weight off the bar. The aim is to minimise the time that you are not actually lifting the weight. This is why it is helpful to have a training partner – however if you don’t, cable and machines are a better option when incorporating drop sets.

Negative sets are also known as eccentric training – a powerful technique for strength gains. Negative sets cannot be done without a training partner. Negative training involves loading the resistance over your maximum and only performing the exercise in the eccentric movement (muscle-lengthening). The opposite of this is concentric movement and this involves the contracting of your muscles.

Static hold: With static training you pick up the weight and hold it in a fixed position for numerous seconds. This idea is built on the notion that by forcing the muscle to work only when it is maximally contracted and using the heaviest weight possible, you can optimise its growth potential. You can either do one static hold or multiple of them. For example you may do it on the leg extension and do a static hold beginning at 20 seconds, going down by 2 seconds each time until you reach 0.

5. Tabata

The Tabata method is a variation of HIIT – developed with the intention of creating a workout that burns fat in a short period of time. The basic principle of the Tabata method is you exercise at maximum exertion for 20 seconds, then rest 10 seconds. This is repeated 8 times, making the workout 4 minutes in duration.

6. German volume training

German volume training is excruciatingly hard but is an effective way to build muscle and burn fat. This method is sometimes referred to as the Ten Sets method. The goal of GVT is to complete ten sets of ten repetitions with the same weight for each exercise. It is recommended that you start off with a weight that you could lift for 20 reps to failure. An example of GVT would be A1. Squats 10 reps – 90 second rest – A2. Leg extension 10 reps – 90 second rest – repeat x 10.

7. Advanced German volume training

Similar to normal GVT however the goal of Advanced GVT is to do ten sets of five reps with the same weight for each exercise. It is recommended that you start off with a weight that you could life 10 reps to failure. A normal program will have two exercises that you will superset 10 sets of 5 reps and then you will move on to a second superset 3 sets of 6-8 reps.

8. The 5 x 5 program

This program is designed for intermediate lifters and is good to gain strength and build muscle mass. The set-up of this program is to perform three main exercises that target the main muscle groups in the body – both upper and lower body are in the same workout. Perform five sets of five repetitions. You can add in isolated exercises at the end of the workout but it is not required for this program.

9. Upper/lower split training

This program is typically performed on a two on, one off schedule and allows you to hit each muscle group twice per week. It is good for beginning lifters looking to build muscle as it allows enough rest over the week.

10. Cluster training

Cluster training involves using short, inter-set rest periods (usually ranging from 10-30 seconds), which allows you to do more reps with a heavier weight. For example – in traditional lifting you would do your sets of deadlifts of 5 reps, rest for 2-3 minutes in between sets and then move on to the second set. In cluster training, what would happen is that set of 5 reps would be broken down in to 4 mini sets of 2 reps with a 10-15 second break in between each mini set. The benefit of cluster training comes from the ability to do more reps with a heavier weight. Whenever you’re able to keep intensity high whilst doing more reps, you’re always going to see an immediate carry over to improvements in strength and muscle gain. Depending on what your goal is- you can operate the sets/reps/rest aspects of cluster training to make it more prejudiced to encouraging strength or hypertrophy gains. Another benefit of cluster training is its ability to break through strength plateaus.