Iron Man's HIT Training Explained
Found this on another site,,,,,,,think I'm going to try it.
I've had several request asking me to elaborate about my off season mass building routine. I will do my very best to explain it. If you have questions please feel free to ask as it can be hard to explain things with just one post.
First let me start by saying that our muscles contain two types of tissues, (type 1) and (type 2) fibers.. Type 2 fibers contain the most growth potential so those are the ones you will want to concentrate on if your a bodybuilder. Theres 3 sub-categories of these type-2 fibers. "A-fibers", "B-fibers" and "C-fibers." When all three type-2 fibers are worked it will make the difference between a guy who looks big and a guy who looks BIG!!!
Type A can be stimulated by hitting failure on a weight that will allow for the performance of 11-15 reps. Type B fibers with 6-10 reps and type C fibers will be stimulated by hitting failure in the 1-5 rep range. Good form is always a must!
Wait a good 3 minutes between sets to allow ATP/CP levels to replenish so the most weight can be used per set.Lactic acid builds up when one moves too rapid to the next set or when using advanced techniques such as pre-exhausted super sets. LACTIC ACID will destroy the bodies ability to regenerate ATP/CP. How affective your AAS program regimine works in conjunction with your training program will be determined by how well your body regenerates ATP/CP levels. When levels of ATP are made low they trap (ANDROGEN RECEPTOR SITES) and block the signal for the body to grow. Diet and proper rest between sets has a positive affect on ATP/CP.
As most have already figured out, it's the Big Basic Exercises not the "puny isolations" exercises that will put the most mass/strength on your body. Show me a man who can use 350 lbs on the shoulder press and I'll show you a man with a big set of capped shoulders. Isolation exercises will not build deltoids to such monsterous proportions.
One heavy set of 1-5 reps will stimulate the C fibers such as that of powerlifting program and this will build up strength that cannot be achieved on a typical bodybuilding rep scheme of 8-12. Added strength allows one to break down more muscle tissue over a period of time forcing the muscles to expand in size. Just look at the muscle size on some powerlifters! While low reps have been know to tear down joint cartliage tissue over a period of time, the high reps I have included in this program will help compensate for this by reconstructing/re-building those joints back up.
I ask? "why would anyone want to use a (chop stick) to eat with when they could be using a (shovel)"? Chop sticks are comparable to isolation exercises such as leg extensions for the quads, and the shovel would be squats for that same muscle group. If you want to improve on the exercises that contribute the most to making progress in the size/strength category you need to "BUILD" your workout around those exercises.
I believe in leaving isolation exercises for pre-comp/cutting "only" when more time under tension will be needed through the use of drop sets to burn calories and work the muscles more intensely. Bodybuilders should try and put less drain on the already vulnerable CNS during a cutting phase. Isolation movements can be incorporated to allow for more volume, yet cause less drain on the CNS as compared to adding in more energy draining compound movements. In additon, "OVER-USE INJURIES" can be avoided when dieting down by adding isolation exercises. A higher level of volume will be needed and using "ONLY" compound movements could result in "OVER-USE" injuries.
NOTE: Cortisol and Estrogen levels are much "lower" during a cutting phase placing more demand on our joints.
Lifting "heavy" on a long term basis with heavy isolation movements in the off season has damaged many a joints because they are not considered a natural movement for our bodies! However, if you have a lagging body part that doesn't seem to be responding well to basic movements only it will be okay to add one isolation exercise so that "4" sets will be performed twice each workout for each body part instead of "3".
NOTE: If you decide to add an isolation exercise in for a lagging body part later on down the road, you would do a medium and heavy set for the basic exercise and 2 high rep sets for the isolation or second exercise you choose. For e.g.; Incline bench for 2 sets-medium/low rep sets and flat bench flyes for 2 sets of 11-15. Or you could do declines for a medium and heavy set then do 2 high rep sets of inclines. Everthing else in the program laid out below stays the same. Give the basics only training a minimum of 4-6 months before adding in any isolation exercises because much of the time a bodybuilder won't give a routine time to see if it will produce for a given body part. It's quite common for trainers to feel that an (isolation movement such as lateral raises) are really "lighting" up their delts when the same "pump" could have been produced from using high reps on (compound movements/ over head pressing).
If your joints becomes irritated with a particular basic exercise simply change to another basic exercise if needed. For instance, if inclines begin bothering your rotator cuff switch to declines. But its imperative to use the exercise that makes your particular body grow best, not what is working best for your training partner. We all differ a bit in how our bodies respond to certain exercises. I prefer 15 degree declines for overall chest development where as a 30 degree decline works my arms and shoulders too much. My old mentor likes 15 degree inclines best. My other training partner excels with flat presses. GO FIGURE! If changing exercises doesn't help the joint irritation issue at hand simply rest the injury so it can heal.Then get back after it!!!
It's been provben that the shape of our muscles cannot be changed. In other words you will in no way turn a blocky person into a small waisted symmetrical one by using certain exercises such as those of the isolation version, or by not using certain exercises like heavy compound movements.
Many trainers use mostly "incline presses" for chest but their lower chest still grows the most because it's the way their chest genetics are laid out. Simply stated, there is no such things as an upper chest and a lower chest. A muscle contracts as a whole.
Think about it, "what musculoskeletal muscles would be out of balance if "ONLY" one basic exercise (the most important one) per body part was performed"?
If you think about it Ronnie Coleman is really only doing "3" sets to failure per body part twice a week not "12" if you where to exclude all his time consuming warm up sets.
Theres 4 reason that working a muscle group "TWICE" each week is better than only "ONCE." (#1) If you can break a muscle down more frequently and then let it re-build you will get more growth cycles. (#2) You are able to use the most weight for any rep range on the first 3 sets for any particular muscle group, therefore you'll break down more muscle tissue with 3 more intense sets done twice weekly as opposed to 6 sets done only once a week.(#3) Each body part has it's own individual (protein turn over rate) and I think every body part needs to be treated as a lagging body part. Training any body part with more frequency produces more "circulatory androgens" similar to that of a site-injection protocol.That's why you will frequently hear of trainers hitting a "weak" muscle group (twice per week) as opposed to (once). (#4) Another very important advantage to be gained by working every muscle group "TWICE" each week as opposed to only "ONCE" is being able to rotate different exercises for a particular muscle group once the body reaches a plateau with that one particuar exercise you have decided works best for each body part. After a period of time the body develop what is know as fiber recruitment pattern burnout from doing the same exercises over and over. "BUT" changing to another exercise altogether leaving while the "MAIN MASS BUILDER" up on the shelf for a period of time (for example 6-8 weeks) is a BIG MISTAKE!!! What happens is the bodies neural pathways goes into "DE-TRAINING" where it has to "re-learn" the (MAIN MASS BUILDING) exercises all over again much like someone learning how to walk again after being involved in a bad accident. My program is designed so that you find that "ONE" main mass building exercises for a muscle group that works best for your particular body, then you milk that exercises for all it's worth until it quits producing results. Once you discontinue to show improvements with that exercise alternate your MAIN MASS BUILDING EXERCISES (for e.g.; declines) with the ALTERNATE EXERCISE (for e.g.; inclines) every other workout until you start seeing strength gains once again. It's best to discontinue using the "ALTERNATE" exercise altogether and do only the "MAIN" exercise once the plateau has been broken by 10 lbs on upper body exercises and 20 lbs on lower body exercises. However if you are experiencing joint problems in for a particular muscle gropu it can be of great benefit to alternate between 2 or even 3 exercises each time you train so you can avoid overusing that joint.
NOTE: On and on I could go but I think you get the point. Keep in mind you get the most for your efforts with the first 3 sets. After 3 sets you get less results for your efforts. So spend your energy on the exercises (that count the most) with the first 3 sets (that count the most) by attacking the A-B-C type- 2 fibers, which (count the most) and by using that one and only exercise that (counts the most). Leave the rest of your success to genetics, nutrition, drugs, and rest.
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