Bodybuilding Routines for Complete Recovery

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bodybuilding

Full Body Routines For Complete Recovery

My last article in Hard Gainer issue 77 seemed well received I got a few calls and a couple of letters. The conversations centred on the gains I mentioned that I made, while following the all body program in late 2000. This article elaborates on this point and was sparked in my mind by the fantastic series of articles by Steven Wedan, the Cubist Chronicles. I found these to be brilliantly written, entertaining and informative, I could relate so much to them, especially the theories of Arthur Jones. I, like Steven, found some flaws with the high intensity approach. But also found many positives. I would like to explain how I came about training all body workouts; the gains I made and modifications I introduced to my programs to keep me moving forward. I would also like to try to unravel why I think these principles are so successful. The aim was to progress in weight or reps, or both. A brief warm up was done on the large basic movements and equipment was set up before starting the workout. I did my workout then my partners in turn. This was to incorporate as Steve Wedan put it, the rush factor moving from one exercise to another with very little rest. At times doing the entire workout in around thirteen minutes. This I found hard but manageable, although I must agree with many of Steves points in issue 76. I felt a much more productive workout could be had without incorporating the rush factor. I did it running around but wondered if an increase in a few minutes time on a workout would make it less affective. This I was reluctant to try, as my gains were fantastic. It was not until later that I made adjustments as I became more in-tune with how much intensity I needed to put forth and I became confident enough to know I was doing the right thing. I also did not incorporate forced reps and other intensity tweaks as I felt that going to my own failure and adding weight in small increments was more than enough to stimulate gains in muscle mass. Odd times when I did add forced reps and negatives the gains slowed and recovery felt sluggish. My belief is that the reduction in volume and the extended recovery time was the major factor in the gains I received. Cleans and hammer curls have now been dropped and dips have moved from workout one and replaced dumbbell inclines. Twice a week I do cv work for twenty to thirty minutes in the form of a run, bike or skipping. This not only keeps my heart and lungs in shape but abs and calves to.

Why as a Whole?
For years I followed a split routine and upon seeing this type of program, above, on paper I would not have believed it was possible to make gains from it. It took spending time with Mick and Sue to show me the benefits of hard brief exercise. Also Steve Wedans words for me question the rush factor and intensity of my workouts for maximum progress. Also Steve for showing me what can be achieved in the future through correct exercise style and progression.

September 2000 and I am at the gym counter, when in walks a lad I have not seen in a while. Paul comes to see me now and then for a workout, as he lives not close enough to be a regular with us. Wow you have gained some size, what the hell have you been doing? He looked at least a stone bigger, I know it was nothing sinister as he is natural like myself and competes in the ANB. He told me that he had been training under the guidance of Mick and Sue. A couple that operates a small garage size gym on the outskirts of Barnsley. Now, he had been training with these two, years ago and had decided The Gain. to go back and make some gains. They had Paul doing all My weight on Oct 1st 200 was body workouts, two to three 159lb in the morning after a; days a week based on the you know, a visit to the loo. I Arthur Jones principles. I was had competed at 150lb in

I truly believe that training my body, as a whole is the major factor to recovery and gains I have been enjoying. I simply tried to fathom it out and here is why I think it works. I remember reading an article by Ken Leister were he had

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Bodybuilding Routines for Complete Recovery

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October of 99 and was very sharp at that. 159lb saw me looking lean at 8% body fat, done with callipers over 9 points of the body. I had over the past years been heavier, but I liked to stay leaner as every time I went over 161lb I would look too smooth. I was obviously not gaining any muscle even though I was training as hard as I could. The Paul arranged to take me and only difference that I could see, introduce me. I put it to my partners and on September the in the new light of things was the recovery factor. I was now 21st we set off for a workout that would change our views on on my new program allowing recovery to take place I gained muscle building in a single on this program by keeping night. tabs on and increasing my calories slightly when I needed The Workout from Hell to. aware of Arthur Jones, well anything-high intensity and abbreviated. I had trained that way for years, or what I thought. I had done the low sets and trained three to four days a week. But I had never done high intensity all body workouts before. I had to meet these two and have a workout.

described an autopsy and how the human body is a mesh of interweaved muscle fibres where all muscles are tied into others overlapping and under-laying. This proved to him that the body works as a unit and that you cannot totally isolate any one area. He also went on to say, and I think Arthur Jones said something similar. you must train you body as a system and not as a conglomeration of body parts. The physiological/biochemical system that in effect supports any gains you might stimulate. Is just that, a system. You dont eat breakfast for our arms and back and lunch for your thighs. You dont sleep Monday for We were there at 7.30 pm In the period from Oct 1st 2000 your upper body and Tuesday prompt, after introductions and for your lower body. I agree to March 9th 2001, some 24 a little explaining on the basics with this whole-heartedly we weeks I gained a ton of of the workout, by Mick. I was muscle. During October 2000 I know that when we train it is the first to start the workout of was 159lbs in bodyweight and the nervous system that is my life. Following a brief warm 8% body fat with lean mass of worked. It is this system that up I started on squats with a breaks down when over 146lb. By November 2000 I plate and a ten on. At first I training sets. i.e. you dont say was 168lbs and 9% body fat thought this would be to light as to your partner I am not and 152lb lean mass. By I had done three times this in training today as my chest and march 9th 2001, I was 171lb my time. How wrong I was, I and 8% body fat and 157 lean calves are over trained. You was made to do twenty reps feel absolutely shattered; the mass. Strength shot through with a pause at the bottom and whole system is worn out. You the roof and it was only the no lock out at the top. This was mistakes I made while dieting get cold or an injury and you also done in a very slow can hardly pick yourself up out for a body building show that controlled, flawless technique of bed in a morning. So its held back the gains and style, something that was very your system. Lets look at this regressed them but that is a new to me. In the years past I the common sense way and different story. have been guilty of not training compare the two approaches. as strict as I could, I was in agony. I racked it and was on A typical split system, one I the leg extension in the blink of use to follow, lets say chest an eye, for twenty slow and back Monday, rest on controlled held at the top reps. Tuesday, shoulders and arms When I failed, the weight was on Wednesday, rest on dropped until the goal of twenty Thursday and legs on Friday. was reached. Hardly able to You are never recovering from stand I was pushed under the this, only the weekend gives squat again. Same weight, your system the chance to twenty again, I thought I was slightly recover. But you do not going to die. I dont know how I grow, you stay the same. Your did it, but when twenty was body has recovered from the reached I racked the bar and last workout but has not had fell to the floor. Get up, chins enough time to lay down any now Sue said. Underhand grip muscle. This only happens chins, again very strict and when you miss a session or slow. Holding the stretch and two or have a holiday. Isnt it contraction, I got twelve funny that you seem to feel agonising reps. From there with bigger when you dont train for no rest at all I was on to decline Watching and Learning. After 3-4 days or when you are on press with a plate and a ten on, the show I set myself up for your hols! gaining again with a few I killed myself to get twelve. I failed a couple of times but was alterations. They were, no made to complete the set. Next isolation exercises and no rush up was low rows, again no rest factor. As now I was retired from competitions, I felt that at slow and controlled, I got last I could let go, of those soaround twelve again. I say called shaping exercises. Now around because at this time I

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I was training for me and not for an event. My goals now were to look to the future, now at 36 my aim was to be lean, large, healthy and strong right into my 40s 50s and 60s. Many of my ideas for my new program came from many older athletes that trained at my gym. One in particular, a chap named Steve, at 58 years old he is incredible, muscular, strong and healthy. I have watched him train on many occasions and noted his perfect style on the basic movements he uses. At around 5 foot 7 and around 190lb of lean separated muscle he always reminds me of a silver back gorilla as I have never seen so much hair on a man in There was more to come. my life. Some of the weights I Shoulder press with a barbell then dips then curls all one after witness regularly are standing another no rest. There was just barbell press with over 180lbs for sets of 10, with no belt. two more to go and these finished me off big style. Rope Dead lifts with 350lbs for sets of 10 again no belt. Incline pushdowns and dips, I got around twelve on the ropes but dumbbell press with 90s for only 3-4 on dips. Not to worry, I again reps. Steve also trains all body in one workout, every four was made to do negatives till or five days, and a couple of that magic twelve, which was times a week he will do some the nail in the coffin. I then cv work. Steve has trained on made a quick exit outside and and off, mostly on, for nearly was as sick as a dog. I could forty years. He has no bad hardly stand I was pumped to back, no shoulder problems the point of pain. My only and no knee injuries. I see this pleasure was watching my is as a reward for years of buddies put through hell, one treating his body right. There is after another. only a slight injury to his right forearm that came from years The day after I had time to of digging graves for a living reflect on what had passed all these years of working out, as I this prevents him from doing barbell curls, but not was on Holiday. I had a good dumbbells. time with my family, even though I could hardly walk. I Now seeing this guy you would truly could not move or sit in any one position for any length expect him to rub off on you, he did. I cleaned up my act of time, sleeping was even even more, I had picked up worse as I could not get comfortable. The positive was I many safety- training points, had time to think. I realised that from Mick and Sue and now I had not trained strict all these exercise performance was years, as they had pulled me up priority over just getting the weight up. Steve trains hard, on using momentum and but you never see a rep technique constantly. I also realised that the bare minimum squirmed out, he always gets of exercise is needed as, every, his rep goal then adds a little and I mean every muscle ached bit of iron the next workout, in my body. I had four days rest sounds familiar doesnt it, I mirrored Steves ways. Could I and on the Tuesday I tried to make gains by not training to train but was unable to do hardly anything as I was still to failure like Steve? I was now sore. So I did a little chest back sold on the idea of all body workouts as an aid to and delts and called it a day. I recovering. My body had made spent the rest of the week great gains from resting more recovering and reading books by Arthur Jones I had printed off days. Something I would have was in a world of pain.

Maybe you could, still thinking this through as I write, still split your bodyparts up and still rest 3 days in between workouts which would give your system time to rest in between workouts but would leave too long between a movement worked. I.e. squats would only get done every nine days or so- maybe not bad thing but it would take you forever to add weight to it. But now lets look at this whole body system the way I see it, the logical and common sense way. You train your whole body with about 7-10 exercises, like the ones I outlined above. Work them for 1-3 sets per movement after warm ups I say three sets if you are new to the game and as you get stronger reduce the sets. Rest 4 days then train again with maybe some different movements: Then rest again for 4 days. So now we have worked the whole body twice in ten days. Lets say, making this easy, 30 days in a month, thats 6 whole body workouts.

Versus the whole body worked once a week, split over three workouts. Thats say, four weeks to a month, four whole

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Bodybuilding Routines for Complete Recovery

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not believed a few years ago. Had I in the past trained to hard? Pushed too much, making myself sick, was I The time reading and planning delving to deep into my nervous energy? Would the was well spent as now I could gains come the same by plan a workout program for pushing a little less? Yes, I was myself. I now knew that the workout I did with Mick and Sue right, the gains in size and strength came at an alarming was a shock workout for the rate, granted I was gaining legs. These workouts were designed to bring up areas that muscle back I had lost prior to the show, but they came. Dont are not developing as well as get me wrong I trained hard others. Arthur had these workouts planed to emphasise and strived to gain strength, different body parts though out but did not go to ultimate fail. Steady progression was the working year. He also enough. It took seeing Steve to stressed that if advanced, that prove it to my mindset. two workouts per week was right and not three. I personally after a few weeks, found a workout every fourth to fifth day was ideal. As I work a lot of hours and have a family and they all take a toll on your recovery. the Internet, I was now getting to grips with what I had experienced. Armed with my new information, my partners and myself embarked on this program on Sunday 1st of October. Squats Leg extensions Chins Decline press Dead lifts Shoulder press machine (hammer) Curls thick bar Pushdowns Dips Calve raise Each one was performed for 1 set with no rest in between exercises and twelve reps was the aim, if I failed around twelve I would add weight the next workout. If I failed under I would stay at that weight until I got twelve for however many workouts.

body workouts. But this has taken 12 system- working workouts to achieve this, versus only six workouts on all body. You are actually covering more but taking less out. The whole body program allows you to fully recover and get more sessions of benching, more squats per month than you would doing a split routine. This allows your strength to shoot through the roof because you are recovering, as a whole, along with this your size gains will increase. Just think about it, it makes so much more sense. You train as a whole, rest as a whole with no overlaps of exercises on a different day. Each time you train you are strong and refreshed and you grow. Take care Ian.

My workout was now, Squats. Squats in Rack. Bench Press. Dumbbell Inclines. Dead Lifts. Chins. Standing Press. Cleans. Dips. Close grip Press. Curl. Hammer curl. Neck & Grip. Neck & Grip. Each workout was spaced 4-5 days apart for one to two sets of each movement after warm ups. Five months on at the time of writing not much has changed regarding the program apart from now I do a little less.

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