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Steve · 07-30-07, 08:25 AM

Alright, we can open up this thread to discussion if anyone has any questions or comments now.

It could be argued that this is all the novice needs. These 4 lifts. Your entire body would be hit with these movements. While they take a high degree of learning and execution compared to machine exercises, many people make them out to be rocket science. They're not.

If you have no pre-existing pathologies that would be at risk performing such exercises, I think it would be wise for anyone to learn these movements. Chances are they're abnormal for your gym. It's unfortunate, but a vast majority of trainees in gyms today are training incorrectly for their goals. Don't follow the crowd, because the crowd is ignorant. Trust me. Cut your own path that, if done properly, will lead to your goals.

If I were going to personally add something to the list of exercises, I might throw something like chin-ups and pull-ups into the mix. That's actually what Rippetoe does in his Practical Programming book

What I see as a recurring theme around gyms today is trainer's idea that complex programming must be present in a novice's program in order for the client to realize results. Also, due to a host of variables that we don't need to get into at this time, novice trainees feel this need to do more than is required to elicit a positive training effect.

Training for the novice is very simple. Learn form. Once learned, practice progressive overload in the major lifts as mentioned above using very minor increases in weight lifted from week to week. It's really that simple. Sorry to let you down. You should actually be happy. Once this nice, clean type of programming is milked for all the strength gains it's worth, programming can get quite confusing. Still not rocket science, but certainly more complex than straight linear progression training as noted here.

Before the question is asked, let me show how these could very neatly be placed into a program. By now, most of you know my take on programs. I don't believe in the rigidity of the modern concept of programming. Don't take this as the bible. This is just one way that's proven itself effective for setting up a routine using the major lifts.

I like the concept of 3 full-body sessions per week, preferably something like a Monday, Wednesday, Friday split.

Not only does this fit nicely with most people's schedules, giving them the weekends off from training, but it also fits the novice's physiological recovery rates. You see, the main concept for any lifter, novice or advanced, is to train a movement. The movement and load provide a stress. This stress causes a depression in state as the body is broken down. Proper fuel (food) and rest provides the required variables for recovery back to your pre-training state. BUT, a nifty little thing happens when any stress is placed on the body. It supercompensates, taking it to a higher state relative to your pre-training state. The idea is simple. Train while in supercompensation so that you are continually building upon a higher and higher state. This is linear programming/progression/loading in a nutshell. It's what's happening behind the scenes. For the novice, supercompensation happens every 48-72 hours, thus, making a MWF training split very suitable for the novice.

So where would you plug in the exercises?

As outlined in Practical Programming, I love the very simple split that follows for novices:

Day 1:

Squat -- 3x5
Bench Press -- 3x5
Chin-ups -- **

Day 2:

Squat -- 3x5
Overhead Press -- 3x5
Deadlift -- 1x5

Day 3:

Squat -- 3x5
Bench Press -- 3x5
Pull-ups -- **

** Chin and Pull-ups are done for 3 sets to failure. For many novices, assistance will be required. Luckily, most gyms have a machine that allows you to select how much assistance you want in the upward portion of the chin or pull-up. With assistance or none, once you reach a max of 15 reps across for 3 sets, it's time to up the intensity.

Every day you add weight to the various exercises. A novice should be able to make significant gains following a routine of this nature for quite some time. Eventually progress will slow. Be sure to milk it for as long as you can. This is where the very small, incremental step-ups in weight lifted is critical. Don't be stupid. Remember, it's not a competition. It's not the amount of increase in weight that creates the positive adaptation response. It's simply the fact that there's an increase.

Progress will certainly stall. We can't get stronger/bigger/better forever. But when you stall, ask yourself why. Is there a lot of stress in your life? Are you getting enough sleep on a consistent basis? Are you eating correctly to fuel the recovery portion of the stress/recovery cycle? Are you training intelligently with very minor ramp-ups in weight or are you being greedy and adding weight at too fast a rate to the bar?

If you are doing things incorrectly, your stall may have been premature and you simply need to rest and get right back into the training parameters as established here. If you've honestly milked this type of periodization for all it's worth, it might be time to step up to the next level of periodization which is DEFINITELY for a later thread.

Most novices can make gains on this type of routine for a solid 6-12 months or more.

If you are doing things right, and you stall, this doesn't mean that you need some drastic change in periodization. This simply means you need to back off for a little bit. This is what some of you have seen me label "detraining."

There are many ways to go about this, but, suppose you hit a wall in your progression. Instead of adding weight from workout to workout, you find yourself not completing the given rep ranges and your performance is fading. This doesn't mean you are done. It's simply time to back off.

A simple reduction in load lifted by 10-15% is usually enough to kick start your progression again. Drop the load by this amount and start right back to incrementally adding weight to the bar each workout from this reduced weight.

I think I should add too, that this is a fine way of training while dieting. And for those of you who've never lifted before... or who've never lifted with *real* exercises, you can certainly expect a lot of strength gains and possibly even some body recomposition... even while you are dieting. Typically, and especially for more advanced trainees, they'll be lucky to hold onto their current strength and muscle levels while dieting. But the playing field is a bit different for the novice.

07-30-07, 08:25 AM	#6 (permalink)
Steve Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 228	General Thoughts and Applicability Alright, we can open up this thread to discussion if anyone has any questions or comments now. It could be argued that this is all the novice needs. These 4 lifts. Your entire body would be hit with these movements. While they take a high degree of learning and execution compared to machine exercises, many people make them out to be rocket science. They're not. If you have no pre-existing pathologies that would be at risk performing such exercises, I think it would be wise for anyone to learn these movements. Chances are they're abnormal for your gym. It's unfortunate, but a vast majority of trainees in gyms today are training incorrectly for their goals. Don't follow the crowd, because the crowd is ignorant. Trust me. Cut your own path that, if done properly, will lead to your goals. If I were going to personally add something to the list of exercises, I might throw something like chin-ups and pull-ups into the mix. That's actually what Rippetoe does in his Practical Programming book What I see as a recurring theme around gyms today is trainer's idea that complex programming must be present in a novice's program in order for the client to realize results. Also, due to a host of variables that we don't need to get into at this time, novice trainees feel this need to do more than is required to elicit a positive training effect. Training for the novice is very simple. Learn form. Once learned, practice progressive overload in the major lifts as mentioned above using very minor increases in weight lifted from week to week. It's really that simple. Sorry to let you down. You should actually be happy. Once this nice, clean type of programming is milked for all the strength gains it's worth, programming can get quite confusing. Still not rocket science, but certainly more complex than straight linear progression training as noted here. Before the question is asked, let me show how these could very neatly be placed into a program. By now, most of you know my take on programs. I don't believe in the rigidity of the modern concept of programming. Don't take this as the bible. This is just one way that's proven itself effective for setting up a routine using the major lifts. I like the concept of 3 full-body sessions per week, preferably something like a Monday, Wednesday, Friday split. Not only does this fit nicely with most people's schedules, giving them the weekends off from training, but it also fits the novice's physiological recovery rates. You see, the main concept for any lifter, novice or advanced, is to train a movement. The movement and load provide a stress. This stress causes a depression in state as the body is broken down. Proper fuel (food) and rest provides the required variables for recovery back to your pre-training state. BUT, a nifty little thing happens when any stress is placed on the body. It supercompensates, taking it to a higher state relative to your pre-training state. The idea is simple. Train while in supercompensation so that you are continually building upon a higher and higher state. This is linear programming/progression/loading in a nutshell. It's what's happening behind the scenes. For the novice, supercompensation happens every 48-72 hours, thus, making a MWF training split very suitable for the novice. So where would you plug in the exercises? As outlined in Practical Programming, I love the very simple split that follows for novices: Day 1: Squat -- 3x5 Bench Press -- 3x5 Chin-ups -- Day 2: Squat -- 3x5 Overhead Press -- 3x5 Deadlift -- 1x5 Day 3: Squat -- 3x5 Bench Press -- 3x5 Pull-ups -- ** Chin and Pull-ups are done for 3 sets to failure. For many novices, assistance will be required. Luckily, most gyms have a machine that allows you to select how much assistance you want in the upward portion of the chin or pull-up. With assistance or none, once you reach a max of 15 reps across for 3 sets, it's time to up the intensity. Every day you add weight to the various exercises. A novice should be able to make significant gains following a routine of this nature for quite some time. Eventually progress will slow. Be sure to milk it for as long as you can. This is where the very small, incremental step-ups in weight lifted is critical. Don't be stupid. Remember, it's not a competition. It's not the amount of increase in weight that creates the positive adaptation response. It's simply the fact that there's an increase. Progress will certainly stall. We can't get stronger/bigger/better forever. But when you stall, ask yourself why. Is there a lot of stress in your life? Are you getting enough sleep on a consistent basis? Are you eating correctly to fuel the recovery portion of the stress/recovery cycle? Are you training intelligently with very minor ramp-ups in weight or are you being greedy and adding weight at too fast a rate to the bar? If you are doing things incorrectly, your stall may have been premature and you simply need to rest and get right back into the training parameters as established here. If you've honestly milked this type of periodization for all it's worth, it might be time to step up to the next level of periodization which is DEFINITELY for a later thread. Most novices can make gains on this type of routine for a solid 6-12 months or more. If you are doing things right, and you stall, this doesn't mean that you need some drastic change in periodization. This simply means you need to back off for a little bit. This is what some of you have seen me label "detraining." There are many ways to go about this, but, suppose you hit a wall in your progression. Instead of adding weight from workout to workout, you find yourself not completing the given rep ranges and your performance is fading. This doesn't mean you are done. It's simply time to back off. A simple reduction in load lifted by 10-15% is usually enough to kick start your progression again. Drop the load by this amount and start right back to incrementally adding weight to the bar each workout from this reduced weight. I think I should add too, that this is a fine way of training while dieting. And for those of you who've never lifted before... or who've never lifted with real exercises, you can certainly expect a lot of strength gains and possibly even some body recomposition... even while you are dieting. Typically, and especially for more advanced trainees, they'll be lucky to hold onto their current strength and muscle levels while dieting. But the playing field is a bit different for the novice.