Unspoken Rules to Size Up Your Session
Here are three things I knew before training for competitions or hiring a new PR during a session.
1. Order matters
We often find different beliefs where the elevator comes first. We hear from a camp1 that the energy consumption after training will not vary significantly depending on the strength training method. In other camps, we understand that strength training (RT) is dramatically affected by the training order and other prescribed variables, which De Salle 2 says include, but are not limited to, volume, intensity, pace, and rest intervals. In my experience, however, the order of the exercises is mainly determined by the program objectives.
If you are not in a program, this is already a recipe for disaster. Choose your poison if you want (they'll all hurt):
Fortunately, there is a method for the proverbial madness of training. The order of the exercises becomes critical in situations such as hitting PRs for power lifting, weight lifting, and sports in general. Heavier compound movements are at the top, while secondary work remains secondary. Bodybuilder connections will continue to be the top priority, but additional work will be just as important for developing an overall balanced body.
Still, sacrificing a higher volume, higher intensity deadlift to get PR on curly hair or low rows of cables is ridiculous. Complete gym tasks that require the most setup and effort first. As you become more experienced, you can consider options. Lift hard and heavy to build muscle and lift for good biomechanics.
2. Good biomechanics
Good biomechanics often remain unaffected when we start discussions about drop setting, super setting or circuits. However, if the exercises are arranged so that general fatigue subsides after the tiredness within the workout, this is the money. In order to understand this, one has to understand the phases before and after the exhaustion of the training. For example, leg extensions are an excellent exercise before and after exhaustion on quad-focused leg days, while lying curls of the Nordic hamstring are best suited for post-exhaustion work.
Pre-exhausting exercises have a higher tendency to negatively impact performance on heavy compound lifts, while being most useful in warming up the intended muscle group. In this case, the cluster setting with similar movements may be more effective than warming up for five minutes for a total of one or two sets.
Post-exhausting work is then best left to work on tissues from a different angle that could not previously be reached and on secondary muscles that are not directly isolated.
3. Experience equals results
According to the principle of adaptation, muscle tissue needs new stimuli in order to achieve effective growth. This happens both at the neurological and musculoskeletal level. If we expose a muscle to different stimuli over time through a larger selection of exercise options, 3 a muscle becomes all the more mature4. This is not an excuse to spend more time in a single session.
Sessions are periods in which a careful amount of time is spent training muscle tissue by training it in its implementation. For example, if a program requires 90% 1rpm for three consecutive sets followed by five accompanying exercises totaling 120 repetitions, it doesn't make sense to spend two and a half hours in the gym. If anything, this wastes time to replenish your muscle tissue, i.e. overtraining.5 However, we all learn from experience to improve time management for both training and nutrient timing to prevent accidental regression.
As a natural bodybuilder, I often thought of hitting my muscle tissue in the floor to cause pain on consecutive days to stimulate growth.
Still, I learned that recovery is far more critical. What is the use of a muscle if it can hit almost maximum strength only once every few months?. Of course, everyone will peak and therefore a series of wavy periodizations6 This may be necessary for muscles and joints to function optimally.
References
1. Da Silva, Rodrigo Lavinas; Brentano, Michel Arias; Kruel, Luiz Fernando Martins, "Effects of Different Strength Training Methods on Post-Workout Energy Spending", Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: August 2010. Volume 24, Issue 8, pp. 2255-2260.
2. Simão, R., de Salles, B.F., Figueiredo, T. et al. "Sequence of exercises in strength training." Sports Med 42, 251-265 (2012).
3. Charles Poliquin, "Five steps to making your strength training program more effective." NSCA Journal Vol 10, Number 3, 1988.
4. K. C. Darr and E. Schultz, "Stress-induced activation of satellite cells in growing and mature skeletal muscles". J of Applied Physiology 1987, 63: 5, 1816-1821.
5. E. Randy Eichner, "Overtraining: Consequences and Prevention", Journal of Sports Sciences. 1995, 13: sup1, S41-S48.
6. Zourdos, Michael C .; Jo, Edward; Khamoui, Andy V .; Lee, Sang-Rok; Park, Bong-Sup; Ormsbee, Michael J .; Panton, Lynn B .; Contreras, Robert J .; Kim, Jeong-Su, "Modified model of daily wavy periodization produces higher performance than a conventional power lift configuration," The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: March 2016, Volume 30, Issue 3, pp. 784-791.