Learn how to structure the weight training portion of your muscle gaining program.
As I talked about last week, the structure of muscle gain program is very important for the success of this program. Not only does a muscle gain program require all the different aspects I talked about last week, it also requires a structured weight training program.
As was said in the last article, you want to work your big muscle groups (legs, chest, and back) because these are the muscles that release the most growth hormones. The more growth hormones released, the faster your entire body will put muscle on.
When structuring a muscle gain program, the first thing many people think of is to lift heavier weight with fewer repetitions. The number one thing to remember with putting on muscle is volume. Muscle gain programs should consist of high volume training, not low volume training. If you do 3 sets of 12 compared to 3 sets of 6, you actually are performing a higher volume of repetitions with 3 sets of 12 (36 reps compared to 18 reps). We will go more in depth with this in a little bit.
To start a program, you want to actually start with a corrective exercise type phase. This phase focuses on just what it says, correcting any muscle imbalances you have. For example, if you have rounded shoulders, then you most likely have a tight chest and a weak back. This is very common in today’s society because of how many people are slouched over a computer all day. It’s also very common because of how so many people focus on how much they can bench instead of how much they can row. Having this focus can lead to a tight chest and a weak back. With the corrective exercise phase, focus on fixing problems such as these through stretching the tight muscles and strengthening the weak muscles. If you don’t do this, when you try to bulk up, your muscles won’t be in proper balance and injury or slower results can occur.
After correcting your imbalances, and everybody has them, focus on a stability type phase in your program. Performing exercises on a stability ball or one foot, for example, will help you increase your core strength (area around, above, and below the pelvis), as well as wake up all the little stabilizer muscles throughout the body. Let’s picture a tug-o-war game. When you play tug-o-war in the mud compared to tug-o-war on grass, what’s the difference? Obviously you’re not able to pull as hard standing in mud compared to on the grassy, solid ground. The grassy surface is more stable than the muddy surface. The same can be said with putting on muscle. If you don’t have your stability where it needs to be, then you can’t lift as heavy as you’re capable of, which means you won’t put on muscle as fast as you’re capable of either. Picture a pirate ship; with a pirate ship there’s the center mast, as well as ropes coming off the mast to the front, back, and sides. There are also a ton of ropes at the base of the mast that keep the mast strong. What happens if the front ropes are too tight (your chest being tight)? The mast will bend forward and can snap. What if the ropes at the base of the mast are strong (improving your stability)? The mast will be strong, just as your core will be strong. So correct the muscle imbalances and improve your stability.
Once you develop that stability, focus on an endurance type phase. This phase is done with higher repetitions per set (a set being a group of repetitions), and will train your muscles not to become worn out easily. Why is this important? When you’re working out, if you find yourself getting tired very easily and having to take longer than normal rest breaks in between sets, then you won’t achieve results as fast as you could. By training your muscles to have some endurance, you’ll be able to lift harder and longer without having to take as much rest. This equals faster results.
Once endurance in the muscle is built up, you can focus on a muscle gaining phase. This phase requires volume training and incorporating the big muscle groups. When I work with clients, I typically focus on chest, back, and legs. No matter what the workout is, I’ll start off with my client doing a squat or deadlift. These two exercises incorporate the largest amount of big muscles in your body, which means the largest amount of growth hormones is released to be used throughout the workout. After one of these exercises, then I’ll stick with working the chest and back or legs depending on the workout. The biceps are worked with back exercises, the shoulders and triceps are worked with chest exercises, so it isn’t crucial to work these muscles separately. As your chest and back develop, your smaller muscles will develop with them. As far as a repetition range for the bulking phase, I typically have my clients perform 3-5 sets of 6-12 repetitions with 0-60 seconds rest.
When talking about the length of this entire program, take the approach of about 1-6 weeks for the corrective exercise phase, 4 weeks for stability, 4-6 weeks for the endurance phase, and 4 weeks for the bulking phase. After you have completed this, return to an endurance phase or stability phase depending on what needs to be worked on again. Go through these phases back to a bulking phase and keep repeating this process.
Picture a pyramid; this entire article can be seen as a pyramid. If the base of a pyramid is destroyed, the entire pyramid is destroyed. The base in this program is corrective exercises. The next level up is stability, followed by endurance, followed by a bulking phase. If this order isn’t followed, then your results won’t turn out right. This process can be complicated, so if you feel uncomfortable with it, either contact me or consider seeking the help of another personal trainer.
Dan Falkenberg is the co-founder and co-owner of Your Live Trainers. He can be reached at DanFalkenberg.com.