How I Train & How YOU Should Train

 Some Slightly Rambling Thoughts, Musings, and Reflections on How One Should Train (and How I Train)

     The other day I received a question from a reader who asked how I really train.  He said that, since I write about a lot of different training methods, he wanted to know how I actually trained.  He wanted to know this because he was confused about how he should train.  He said that he read a lot of the articles here on the blog, but he was confused because I seemed to recommend so many different training methods, and it left him a little bit bewildered and conflicted over the correct training methods for him—those weren’t his exact words, but I’m just paraphrasing in my own vernacular.

     I have received questions such as this one before.  I even wrote an article over ten years ago entitled “My Training Philosophy” because of the confusion about the various lifting methodologies I recommend, but I figure it’s about time to write something such as that again.  My training philosophy has been altered a little bit since that time.  So what follows are some thoughts about how you should train and I will also discuss the way I train personally.  This might be a slightly rambling essay, so bear with me, and maybe you can find some nuggets of training gold buried within.

     The things you must look at when deciding upon a training program are: your age, your training history, your genetics and abilities, and, last, but—most important of all—your goal.  The reason I write that your goal is the most important is because you must have a goal when you go into the gym, otherwise you won’t have a training plan.  Are you after more muscle mass?  Are you after strength?  Are you after a combination of both?  Are you trying to lose bodyfat while maintaining muscle?  Are you an athlete trying to get bigger, stronger, or faster for your particular sport?  Once you answer those questions, you will know your goal(s) and then you can put together a training plan to reach them.

     One of the main problems that I see is that your average gym-goer will say that he/she is after one thing, but their training doesn’t reflect that fact.  In the introduction to my book “Ultimate Mass and Power,” I wrote this: There seems to be quite a bit of confusion out there—whether it’s on the internet or at the gym—about how to train for BOTH hypertrophy and serious strength gains. The first problem seems to be that some folks just don’t know how to do either. Guys go to the gym to “get big” but then spend most of their time attempting to max out on a lift. Or, conversely, a guy wants to be massively strong but spends too much of his time training for a pump or doing a lot of repetitions.  This problem of training incorrectly pops up in all sorts of ways when the lifter will say she’s after one thing, but then does a program—I would be hesitant to actually label it a “program” but you know what I mean—that is actually geared toward achieving something else.  Of course, you could say that most of these “lifters” who do this sort of thing just don’t know how to train in the first place.  And you’d be correct.  But there are plenty of lifters out there who are knowledgeable but simply select the wrong program for their goals   because they don’t take in the other factors mentioned above—age, training history, genetics, etc.  If you’re in your 50s (like me) and you were an incredibly strong lifter (like me) but have had a lot of injuries (like me), and are now attempting to get as big and strong as possible just like your good ol’ “glory days” then you are in all likelihood—unless you’re a downright genetic freak—probably training incorrectly.  It’s not that you don’t know how to train, it’s just that you’re not taking into account your age and limitations, so perhaps you need a different goal from the outset, one you can achieve.  Because your goals must be achievable.

     Okay, now I’m going to tell you how I actually train.  And first off—let me just get this out of the way—I don’t usually write about my own training because I’m afraid it will appear too “random” to readers, and they might get the wrong impression about how they should train.  So just remember that this type of training is, in all damn likelihood, not for you unless you have my same background.

     I have been training regularly for 36 years, since I was 15 years old.  I started training some when I was 14—I believe that’s correct; it could have been 13—when my father bought me one of those DP sets with the cement-filled plastic weights.  They probably still make those, but if you were a teenager in the ‘80s then, by golly, you probably trained with one of those too, so you know what it is I write of.  But at the age of 15, I began training consistently in the gym that was right next to the Karate dojo where I trained as well.  Which also brings up another point, the fact that I have been working out—though not with weights—for over 40 years, since I was 9 when I started martial arts.  Conditioning in Karate consisted of such things as running, push-ups (often on knuckles or fingertips), bodyweight squats, and sit-ups, to say nothing of all the kicking and striking—it still does for me.

     Since the time I first gripped a barbell, I have trained in various things, which is why I have insight into how to train in those arenas, and it’s why I also write different types of training programs.  Different training strokes for different lifting folks.  Anyway, at first, I was only interested in bodybuilding.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I also wanted to get better at Karate, but mainly I wanted to look like Bruce Lee or Jean Claude Van Damme, rather than acquiring their skills.  Bodybuilding was my first lifting love.  It will always hold a special place in my iron-centric heart.  It’s the reason that I still write about old-school bodybuilders to this very day—you just can’t forget your first love.  In my early 20s, I switched over to powerlifting, and absolutely fell in love (sorry, bodybuilding) with all things heavy, not just powerlifting but strongman, highland games, Olympic lifting, and just getting all-around-strong-at-everything.  Almost all of the training programs I write—there are exceptions—reflect this second love.  It’s what I know.  It’s what I lived for so long that I can write about it with my eyes closed—well, almost with my eyes closed; there’d be some errors.

     I competed in powerlifting until my mid ‘30s, when I had to hang up competitive lifting due to several injuries, but most consequently a neck injury that required surgery on some herniated disks.  Since that time, I’ve also had a couple of other surgeries, though less minor.  Now I still have some disks in both my lower back and neck that sometimes cause me problems, along with a heap o’ arthritis throughout the entirety of my spine.  To be honest, I’m not sure if it was powerlifting that did this to me, although it obviously didn’t help, since I have a very small bone structure and would routinely squat and pull over 500 pounds for reps on a regular basis.  But I think that my injuries were most likely caused by full-contact kyokushin competition along with just regular, intense sparring.  (This isn’t the place for a full discussion on this matter, but if I had to do it over again, I would stay away from a lot of hard, almost full-contact sparring, the kind of training we did in the dojo of my youth.  I think you can get results that are just as good—and perhaps will keep you from incurring injuries—from lighter sparring that is more “play” than intense fighting.)

     Once I stopped competing in powerlifting, I still trained damn heavy up until my mid 40s, when I decided it was time for less heavy powerlifting-style training and more “fitness” type training.  Although I do still train pretty heavy once every few weeks.  And I have also maintained my martial arts practice.  (I acquired a black belt in ITF-style Taekwondo when I was 48 just to do something new.)

Here I demonstrate some kicking combinations.  Not bad for a dude in his 50s.

     I write all of that personal stuff—I’m typically more vague when it comes to my personal life and training, just giving small tidbits here and there—so that you can put my current training into proper context.

     Since I train in two different disciplines—martial arts and lifting—I focus on one more than the other periodically throughout the year.  On average, I will focus on one for 3 months, followed by the other for 3 months, but this isn’t set in stone, as there are times when I spend even longer focusing on one.  During August, September, and October of this year, I focused on hypertrophy and strength.  Starting in November, I began to focus on martial arts again, with lifting my secondary practice.  This is a point that everyone needs to keep in mind, even if you’re training in something other than martial arts in addition to your lifting.  You don’t have to organize your training the way I do, but you can’t get great at two things at the same time.  Even if you’re a lot younger than me, if you were to attempt to lift heavy-as-hell and all-out along with martial arts training, your martial arts training would suffer.  You might be the strongest martial artist at your dojo/dojang/MMA center, but you simply wouldn’t be as good on the mat or in the ring. You need to spend time at some points in the year focusing on increasing your strength—the off-season is the correct answer to “when” if you’re a competitive athlete—followed by less frequent, less voluminous workouts during the in-season.  Dan John explains the reasoning for this in his book “40 Years with a Whistle”: “The athlete uses high levels of strength training before the competitive period.  Save for lifters, as strength levels go down, performance can improve.  I learned this years ago from John Powell, the great discus thrower.  The explanation was so simple I nearly cried: The body, especially the nervous system, can only be asked to do so many things at once.  I continually encourage people to get strong earlier in the year, then focus on the other qualities for the sport.”

     Right now, with my martial arts-forward approach, I will go for a morning walk/jog/sprint 4-to-5-days-per-week with my dog Kenji for 3 to 5 miles.  Kenji sets the pace for the most part.  When he runs, I run.  When he walks, I walk.  Some days there’s more walking than jogging.  Some days vice versa.  I do sprints periodically throughout the walk/run for very short distances.  Also, we do all of this in the woods, at one of the local parks, so it’s actually trail-running.  To be honest, I do it as much for my mental health as I do my physical health.  I have suffered at times with severe, almost debilitating depression most of my life, and hard cardiovascular activity, combined with regular weight training, of course, does absolute wonders for my mental/emotional health.  Being outside in nature and getting plenty of life-giving sun doesn’t hurt much either.

My dog Kenji pauses to rest during one of our runs.  His full name is "Miyamato Ninjago Kenji Musashi," which drives my girlfriend crazy when she attempts to pronounce it.  He's part black Labrador and part Rodesian Ridgeback.

     When I return from my morning run—my dog tired but satisfied that he got in his morning “fix”—I hit my garage gym for an “easy strength” workout.  This morning, for example, Kenji and I jogged 5 miles, and when I got home, I did a workout of 3 sets of chins for 5, 3, and 2 reps, 3 sets of weighted dips for the same rep scheme, and 3 sets of 5 reps on kettlebell cleans.  Before this month, when I was focusing on hypertrophy/strength, I took the opposite approach.  I would train first thing in the morning, utilizing more volume and intensity (similar to my “Mass-Volume Program”) and then I would do my cardio immediately afterwards, typically just walking for 2 to 3 miles.

     In the evening, I work on my martial arts skills.  I may just “play around” with some different kicking or striking combinations.  I may practice some katas.  I may hit the heavy bag.  Or I may just do some light ki movements for developing internal energy.  Once a week, on average, I go to the local dojang where I train.  I do that on days when I’m prepared for a hard, tough workout, since I typically end up sparring men half my age who are also larger than me (although I do hit harder than most of them).  The workout at the dojang may last two hours, whereas my martial arts workout at my home dojo (which is half of my garage; the other half being my gym) may only last 20 to 30 minutes.

     When I take a day off, then I take that day completely off.  I eat more food on that day, and relax as much as possible.

     After a couple weeks of training, I will take a “deload” week where I will walk only about a mile 2 to 3 days a week, and I will do a couple of light martial arts sessions, and only a couple of weekly easy strength sessions.  At my age, my body needs these breaks or I wouldn’t be able to keep up this kind of training.

     I know my body after all these years of training.  There are weeks when I do even more work than what I described above, and there are weeks where I take off completely.  I think once this past year, I took off for 2 weeks straight—didn’t do a thing, but just sat around and relaxed as much as possible, wrote some articles, took some naps during the day, and made my dog unhappy that he wasn’t going to any of his favorite state parks.

     My girlfriend tells me on occasion that I do too much for a man my age.  I disagree.  I may not be able to outlift a lot of younger guys.  (Well, actually I probably could, but I would pay for it afterwards in too much damn pain and inflammation.)  But I can out train them.  That’s the thing.  If you’re an older lifter who has trained for decades (there’s the important caveat), then you have a much greater work capacity, on average, than younger guys.  You can handle a lot of work.  So put that to use.

     Okay, the question now is: How does all of that apply to YOU?

    First things first, of course, know your goal.  If you don’t have a clearly defined goal, you simply won’t succeed.  Also, make sure your goal is achievable.  If you’re 135 pounds and 5’6” (my weight and height when I graduated high school—it’s still my height), then the chances are that you won’t ever be a successful strongman.  You’re just too short.  But you might be a good powerlifter.

     Your goal must be something that you want with all of your heart, and all of your being!  That’s a key, as well, though it might not have as much to do with the rest of this essay, other than it should definitely help you determine how to train.  Because if you want something completely, wholeheartedly, and without reserve, then, by God, you will make sure you do everything to achieve it, and that includes getting on the right program and training correctly for that goal, whatever the hell it might be.

     We’ve already covered “age” with my personal training, so I won’t go into it too much right here.  But to reiterate, make sure that your goal, and the program to achieve that goal, are possible for your age.  If you’re really young and reading this, then congratulations!  You have a lifetime of training ahead of you, and the joy is in the journey not the destination, so pick a goal and go at it.

     Even if you are young, you still need to look at your genetics and your training history.  Both of which will determine your abilities to apply a program.  Shucks, this goes for young lifters, lifters older than me, and everyone in-friggin-between.

     If you are just beginning to train, no matter your age, and don’t have any kind of training experience—or just athletic experience in general—then make sure you start with a basic program.  You should do full-body workouts 2-times-per-week to start, then 3-days-per-week.  Stick with that kind of program for an extended period of time.  Just make sure the “style” of training that you do is reflective of your goals.

     Your genetics are another factor.  But it’s not a factor that you should worry too much about at first.  Sure, you can look in the mirror and tell whether you’re short, tall, fat, skinny, muscular, or lack any muscle tone whatsoever.  And, yes, whatever you are will determine how you should train, but there’s also genetic factors that you won’t understand until you actually spend some time training.  These genetic factors will determine how you respond to different training stimuli.  Are you a high-volume or low-volume guy?  Are you a gal that thrives on frequent or infrequent training.  Do you get the best results when you train incredibly hard and “intensely” or are you a lifter that responds best to “moderate” sets?  These are all things that you need to discover, and you can only discover that by lifting.

     Once you look at all these factors, then you need to get on a program.  The only exception to this are those of you who have trained for years and you know your body well enough that you can, essentially, do whatever-the-hell you want in the gym.  But as I’ve written in another essay, that kind of “instinctual” training isn’t for the newbie, or even the intermediate lifter.  It’s for you only if you are quite advanced.  So get on a program and stick with it.  Consistency is the key no matter the kind of training that you choose.

     I hope this essay has at the very least gotten you to think about how you need to train.  Maybe you need to make some changes that you didn’t think about before.  Or, hell, maybe you figured out that you are on the correct path already, and this just reinforced that to you.  And if you need to find some training programs to start with, then, please, look over my blog.  I have an absolute plethora of different programs, from beginner to advanced.  I have full-body programs and split programs galore.  I have programs for powerlifters, bodybuilders, power-builders, and even ones for those of you who want nothing more than just to look good naked, male or female, doesn't matter.

     Discover your goals, find your training path, and you will succeed.