Experiences with low volume/high frequency workouts

[Mike_Rojas]

I've tried a few different training styles over the last year or so. Looking over my logbook, I realize that I made my best gains when I followed a workout that was very similar to HST - that is, high frequency, low volume, moderate intensity. I've made gains on other systems, but not as much.

It's kind of interesting - if you look at how people trained in the OLD days, they did a full body workout on M, W, F. Perhaps they had something there?

Training to failure generally burns me out very quickly.

I've been following a WSB split, but I've been feeling really burnt out lately, so this week I decided to take it easy. I planned on just taking an easy week, then get back into my WSB split, but I'm kind of liking this. This is what I've been doing this week on M, W, F (all for 1 set of 10 - not to failure- and a couple warm up sets of course).

Bench
Incline
Barbell Row
Pullups
Squat
Reverse Hypers
Hanging ab holds

Could any of you share your experiences with this type of training? Also, I would be interested to know what exercises you've done for a full-body workout.

 

[Arnold'sApprentice]

hi mike. i'm not a huge fan of high frequency even if the volume is low,,,but it can be very effective a la dogcrapp.

here is an interesting lil routine bro (not sure if you don't ever go to failure tho)

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/hitworkout.htm

 

[Arnold'sApprentice]

how hard do you train? if you don't go to at least a few reps shy of failure ,ie hard,not brutal..then i'm not sure 6 work sets is enough,

would be very interested to see what debaser and casual think.

with volume that low i would think you need to build up to some decent level of intensity

 

[Backlash]

I did one HST cycle and I really enjoyed it. In fact, I plan on doing another. Low volume, high frequency definitely does not mean an easier workout

 

[Mike_Rojas]

how hard do you train? if you don't go to at least a few reps shy of failure ,ie hard,not brutal..then i'm not sure 6 work sets is enough,

would be very interested to see what debaser and casual think.

with volume that low i would think you need to build up to some decent level of intensity

Like I said, this was basically a "week off" for me - I wanted to take an easy week to recover. The funny thing is I actually got a decent amount of soreness from my little workout. That's probably because I did sets of 10 instead of my usual low rep sets.

IF I stick with this kind of routine, I would increase the weights gradually. I really don't believe training to failure is necessary. In fact, I would go out on a limb and say training to failure all the time is not a productive way to train for most people (just my opinion).

 

[Arnold'sApprentice]

i think the whole issue of whether or not to intensity cycle is very interesting..failure can be your best friend or worst enemy IMO

 

[casualbb]

For an experienced lifter such as yourself, you may need more than 1 set per exercise. I'd suggest 2 on the upperbody stuff and maybe even 3 on squats since it's your only lowerbody one.

 

[Mike_Rojas]

For an experienced lifter such as yourself, you may need more than 1 set per exercise. I'd suggest 2 on the upperbody stuff and maybe even 3 on squats since it's your only lowerbody one.

Yeah, good point casual. I should have pointed out that I actually did 3 sets on the reverse hypers and 1 on the other exercises. Those hit the lower body hard.

My exercise selection wasn't really thought out very much - I just wanted to "maintain" for a week, but now I'm thinking of doing something similar for a few weeks to see what happens. It already seems like I've put on some size and strength in just 1 week, but that's probably just my imagination.

 

["PrinceCharming"]

i prefer low volume 2 sets for chest 2-3 sets for back1 set for legs 2 sets for sholders 1 set for bi's and tris

and low frequency like once a week

 

[coolcolj]

Mike

my belief is that even if you vary max effort exercises, you don't really get around loading the CNS, you just slow it down, but it will get to you eventually.

So unload every 3-4 weeks

 

[guldukat]

Could any of you share your experiences with this type of training? Also, I would be interested to know what exercises you've done for a full-body workout.

Absolutely. You're one of my favorites here...it'd be criminal for me to NOT say something (Or, given the length of my typical post, might the inverse be true? LOL.)

Ok, seriously, I've never tried a full-body split with sub-failure sets. Shortly after I started training in Feb. '93, I was a 14 year-old kid that'd eat glass if I thought it'd make me bigger. A few months after I'd been working seriously, my uncles turned me on to the old Art Jones style routines, similar to what you're talking about but with everything to failure.

I grew pretty well. I started out at an artifically low bodyweight, so even on a near starvation diet I went from 120 to 155 in four months. I'd say the Jones routine accounted for 10 lbs. of that.

I even had a 27" waist then. *sigh*

Anyway, everything was going pretty smoothly for a bit, then I hit a brick wall. I got stuck at 160 lbs., and by that point I was eating a lot better (read: MORE). My bench press had skyrocketed to that point, going from 155x1 to 240x1 I think. Then, BAM, nothing.

What did I do? I increased the intensity, and worked myself deeper into overtraining. I was constantly tired, and on days I didn't train, I'd come home and collapse after school.

You're significantly stronger than I was then, so IF you were taking everything to failure as I did (and beyond), even 1 set of 8-10 basic movements, 3 times a week, should quickly result in overtraining.

Since you don't plan to take things to failure, you've got more room to work with. A periodized TUL/intensity approach, like with HST, works wonders for most with the same frequency and volume (if not more, as per Casual's post).

Without those kinds of adjustments, though, and assuming you trained at 80-90% capacity thrice weekly, I'd still have to caution against overtraining. A few advanced guys have been overtrained on DC's default routine, sometimes even without the rest-pauses; and though it also has you training 3 days a week, each bodypart is "only" trained 3 times in 2 weeks--half what you're planning.

That said, as Casual said to me once, overtraining isn't quite "plastic." It's largely cumulative, setting in after a few weeks of hard training. You might be able to go a month hard, take it easy for a week, then start over again with this schedule. You're the best judge of how long you can take it.

If I had my druthers, though, I'd advise you concentrated on one exercise per bodypart/training day. I'd dig something like this. A couple or three sets for some movements, so long as you avoided failure, would be cool I think:

Monday Wednesday
Bench Incline
Pull-ups Row
Squat SLDL
Reverse hyper? Calves? Biceps curls?
ab hold

Friday
Bench again
Pull-ups ' '
Squat
etc.

That's the basic idea. I think with that many bench variants, your delts *might* get enough work, but a good argument could be made to the contrary. (There's also the fact that some guys benefit from training the medial delts "directly," though I use that loosely.)

In that case, you could always do two angles of bench, and on Wed. do militaries. Throwing a set of fairly strict laterals in once a week wouldn't hurt, nor would skullcrushers or BB curls for the arms.

Obviously, there are a lot of ways to approach an abbreviated routine I suggest you try the routine as you've planned it first for a good two weeks, and see how you feel. If it goes well, do another week. At that point if you show signs of slowing down, tweak things a little bit. Within reason, of course, less can be more...working bench hard 2x/wk. instead of 3 might help at that point.

I know that's scatterbrained If anything's at all unclear, let me know.

 

[coolcolj]

Mike, also obviously the way I train is more or less a wholebody split

 

[Mike_Rojas]

Thanks for the comments, Dukat and CoolColJ.

CCJ - Your comment about max effort exercises has been my experience. I can't make a PR every week without backing off once in a while.

Dukat - Your posts sure are long . I appreciate you sharing your experiences. I like your plan of alternating exercises.. I was actually thinking of doing something similar. I should add in some curls, militaries, and such also.

I think just changing your rep scheme from time-to-time can make a big difference. I've been doing low rep sets on the main moves for months now (5 or less reps per set), and doing sets of 10 just kills! I SO wanted to stop at 5 on my squats...LOL. And I'm sore from the tiny volume I did.