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| World and Olympic Champion John Davis was one of the first lifters to make effective use of divided workout schedules in his training. |
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Two quick notes and then we'll talk iron.
1. The January Dinosaur Files
In case you missed it, go here to grab the
January issue of The Dinosaur Files:
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html
You can grab the Oct, Nov and Dec
issues at the same link - so if you
need to get caught up, it's easy to
do.
2. The Strength Secrets Group
John Wood has set up a private Facebook
group called Strength Secrets.
It's a good place for serious discussion
about strength training and Iron Game
history.
You need to apply to join the group - and
you can do it right here. Tell John you
heard about it here - I'm sure he'll let
you join the group if you're a Dino:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/strengthsecrets/
3. Some Thoughts on Total Body
Workouts
On the training front, I'm getting a ton of
questions from Dinos about doing total body
workouts two or three times a week.
By total body, they mean five to ten different
exercises, including squats, deadlifts, and
upper body exercises in each workout.
"Would it work?" they ask.
And the answer is -- it depends.
Total body workouts are great for beginners.
It lets them do the basic exercises often enough
to learn how to perform them properly and
efficiently.That's obviously a very important
skill to develop.
Luckily, beginners are not strong enough
to outrun their recovery ability with a total
body session. So for beginners, a total body
workout is an excellent idea.
For intermediates and advanced trainees,
things are different.
Intermediate and advanced trainees are strong
enough to handle weights that are so heavy that
it becomes very difficult to recover from a total
body workout.
You also have the problem of doing more sets
as you grow stronger -- because you need to
do more progressively heavier warm-up sets to
get to your working weight -- and that means
the workout grows longer and longer.
As I've often noted, I hit a plateau in my 20's
where I could not gain an ounce of muscle or
add any weight to the bar no matter how hard
I tried.
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| After several years of abbreviated training and divided workout schedules, my strength and power went through the roof. That's a partial push press with 440 pounds - more than I could squat when I was doing total body workouts. |
At the time, I was doing a nine exercise total
body workout three times a week. I did 5 x 5
on almost all of the exercises. And I did squats
and deadlifts in every workout -- which really
over-trained my lower back.
I switched to abbreviated training and a divided
workout schedule, and made enormous progress,
both in strength and muscle mass.
I cover the details in Strength, Muscle and
Power and Dinosaur Training Secrets, Vol. 1,
Exercises, Workouts and Training Programs.
If you're thinking about a total body workout,
you ought to give them a read. What you learn
might save you years of wasted training.
Let me repeat that: What you learn in these two
books might save you years of wasted training -
which is why I write books and courses. I'm
trying to save you wasted time and wasted
energy - and to help you train as productively
and efficiently as possible.
By the way, let me note that the vast majority
(if not all) of our older Dinos use the divided
workout system and abbreviated programs.
It lets them maximize their recovery - and
recovery is critical as you get older. See each
issue of The Dinosaur Files for reports from
your fellow Dinos on what works for them.
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| At age 61, I still use abbreviated and ultra-abbreviated workouts - and I still train with divided workout schedules. |
Also, let me remind everyone that divided
workouts are NOT a conventional five or
six day per week split routine. It's exactly
what it sounds like. You take your total
body program and divide your exercises
into two or three workouts - and you hit
each workout once a week - and you train
a total of 3x per week.
No, it's not "a lot" of training - and that's
the point. It's the RIGHT amount of training
to build strength and muscle.
And after all, that's the goal.
Building strength and muscle.
Not logging endless hours of gym time.
As always, thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, make it a good
one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Go here to grab Strength, Muscle and Power:
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
P.S. 2. For Dinosaur Training Secrets, Vol. 1, go
here:
Hard-copy
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets_01.html
Kindle e-book
http://brookskubik.com/dinosaursecrets01_kindle.html
See the list of PDF books and courses at our
products page:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 3. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:
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| The little blue book that many call "the Bible of Strength Training." |
Hard-copy and PDF
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
Kindle
http://www.brookskubik.com/kindle.html
P.S. 4. Thought for the Day:
"What works best in your training will
change over time. That often takes a
long time to understand."
-- Brooks Kubik
BEFORE YOU LEAVE . . .
We have more than 25 Dinosaur Training books and courses in the Kindle
bookstore - here are several of them - head on over and take a look at the others:
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