Changing up routine every week.

[SteelWeaver]

How many people here do the same routine, i.e. same exercises, in same order for 6-8 weeks at a time, then change it?

How many people change it up every week? And how radically do you change it?

How many people just stick with a routine until it doesn't work anymore, then change?

I've always been under the impression that periodising is most effective - i.e. going for 6-8 weeks on same routine, then changing, because the body makes gains, then adapts, then you change, etc. Changing every week doesn't allow for the adaptation to take place.

I know this has been discussed before, but I'd like to know what people here and now are doing, and reasons.

 

[new@gettinbig]

I usually group the same bodyparts and use a lot of the same exercises but not every time..I may start with a different exercise or incorporate a different one..but all basic movements..I usually start with whatever I will be training heavy.

 

[KBgrl]

it generally takes the body 6-8 weeks to adapt to a certain stress...so thats why its an ideal time to change it up at 6-8 weeks.

 

[Debu]

My wo is different just about every time. Not because I am trying to but because the gym gets too crowdy. I don't like to wait for a machine or db so I grab what I can to keep going.

 

[Gladiola]

Personally, I do the same muscle group split for 6-8 weeks, then change.

I always do the same muscle first, and usually lead with the same things (i.e. legs start with squats, & chest starts with bench), but otherwise I change my exercises quite a bit. For example, sometimes flies on a slight incline, sometimes cable crossover.

I like that flexibility mostly b/c it doesn't become a huge detriment if someone is on the one cable machine at most places where I work out. I don't like to rest more than 1 minute between sets, so I'd rather not have to "work in" with someone. Also I prefer it mentally, the flexibilty is appealing.

I've been searching for the answer if this is good of bad, and I haven't found a conclusive answer (let me know if you do!) it mostly seems to be opinion.

I can't see a significant detriment if my tricep workout Week 1 looks like:
close grip bench
one arm pull downs on cable
reverse dips

Week 2:
Diamond push ups
cable extensions
Cheek crushers (one arm extensions with palm towards feet)

Week 3: Another mix.

I'm breaking down the fiber both ways. Challenging the muscle in different ways. As far as I know, none of those 6 exercises are significantly superior to the others. I keep bench & squat as staples b/c I've read they ARE superior.

 

[SteelWeaver]

Hmm - just wondering, because as usual I'm trying to perfect things. For the past year or so, I've kept squats as my core first ex. for legs, and always a pressing movement for chest - incline or flat, usually b/b, sometimes d/b. Back has been a bit mixed, was lat pull-downs for a long time, then rows for a while, but since I started DL's, there's no question of what should go first.

Someone told me that the exercise and rep scheme of only the first exercise for a muscle group matters - this, I'm sure, is purely anecdotal. Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? If it's true, then theoretically, what you do after that is simply to fry the muscle, and it wouldn't matter what exercise it is.

I've been following the 6-8 week periodisation plan for a long time. I don't always change the split, but if I don't, I change the rep scheme. What's interesting though is that a few months ago I did flat bench first for six weeks, and improved by about 3 kilos or so, then I did incline bench first for 6 weeks - improved by about 2.5 - 3 kilos on that one, then went back to flat bench, which was EXACTLY the same as when I'd left off on it!!!! How does one explain this? And what does it mean for periodisation?

 

[Gladiola]

because as usual I'm trying to perfect things

Girl after my own heart!

"Someone told me that the exercise and rep scheme of only the first exercise for a muscle group matters"
-Nope, never heard that.

I hear a lot of mixed info regarding periodization & such. Seems to me that if there is one method definitely proven better than another, there would be a consensus. Well, OK, maybe not necessarily, but one would hope.

Anyway, I suppose it's a matter of experimenting to see what works for each body. I guess this is where a training journal would be helpful.

 

[SteelWeaver]

I hear a lot of mixed info regarding periodization & such. Seems to me that if there is one method definitely proven better than another, there would be a consensus. Well, OK, maybe not necessarily, but one would hope.

Anyway, I suppose it's a matter of experimenting to see what works for each body. I guess this is where a training journal would be helpful.

Yeah - NOOO consensus - there seem to be a zillion different training programmes, and their proponents are always fervently certain that "this is the one".

Training journal - heh heh - I have every single rep of every single set of every single exercise of every single workout, with notes, documented from May 2000, which was a couple of months after I started training seriously.