C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

Some Thoughts and Ideas on Designing a Workout Plan Made for You      I’ve mentioned in other essays that what makes training so unique and ultimately rewarding—though also downright frustrating for many, though I ain’t one of ‘em and proud of it, despite “pride goeth before the fall” and all that—is that training itself is unique to you .  What builds muscle—sometimes a whole heapin’, heckuva lot of muscle—for one person in spades doesn’t do jack-squat for another lifter.  If that guy you know who grows huge arms with 2 heavy, super-intense sets and a workout that lasts a grand total of 15 minutes done twice per week attempted a high-volume, 15-20 sets per muscle regimen, he’d make near-zero gains.  But if my buddy Mac, who thrives off 25 sets per bodypart workouts, tried the Heavy Duty dude’s system, he’d shrivel up worse than Charles Atlas’s scrawny beach geek who got sand kicked in his face and his gal taken away from him by the muscle-bound j...

Tips and Advice for Tailoring Your Training Routine Part 3: Sets, Reps, and Training Frequency      Click on these links if you would like to read the first 2 parts of this series: Part 1 & Part 2 .      In part one, we covered the basics of “workload” and in part 2 we covered how to “select a program” for your individual needs and goals.  This essay may not make as much sense if you don’t read the first two parts, so if you just jump in here, you’ve been warned.  With that out of the way, let’s get right to it.      Originally, I was just going to sub-title this part “sets and reps,” but as I began to put pen to paper—I almost always handwrite my articles before I type them—I realized that training frequency must come first and it should determine the set/rep range that is then utilized.  Since we have been covering primarily full-body workouts done 3 days per week, we will start with the b...