Easy Muscle

 

Are High-Frequency, High-Rep Programs Good for Building Muscle?

READ ON AND FIND OUT!

     With some of my recent writings—specifically, my article for DragonDoor on “The 30-Rep Program” and my “Powerlifting with the 3 to 5 Method” here on the blog—I have written quite a bit about what is generally referred to as easy strength methods of training.  For that reason, I suppose, I received an email from a reader today asking if I ever recommend, or have utilized, high-frequency training programs that also use high-repetition training.  He then asked me if I did use them, what would such programs look like?

     This essay is my answer.

     First off—and let’s just cover this briefly in case you’re not familiar with easy strength methods—easy strength refers to high-frequency training done with minimal sets and reps but with fairly high intensity.  Now, intensity is used here as it is by weightlifters and powerlifters.  It’s a percentage of your one-rep maximum.  The closer you are to your one-rep max, the higher the intensity.  In bodybuilding circles, of course, “intensity” often refers to training close to momentary muscular failure.  Thus, in modern bodybuilding terminology, “intensity” is about effort, but that’s not how it was used by bodybuilders for the 50 years before “H.I.T.” and that’s not how it’s been used by lifters since then to this day.  So, please, don’t confuse the two.  (I often use both definitions of intensity here on the blog, depending on whether I’m writing a hypertrophy piece or one that is strictly on strength and power.)

     It’s important, too, that you understand the three training variables of volume, frequency, and intensity.  No matter what form of training you utilize—and this goes for bodybuilding, strongman training, powerlifting, Crossfit, Olympic weightlifting; doesn’t matter—your program will manipulate (or should) these three training variables.  One of the variables, ideally, should be high, while a second of the variables should be moderate-to-high, and, lastly, the remaining variable should be low.  Exceptions to this would be programs where all of the variables are essentially moderate—such as with Bill Starr’s “The Strongest Shall Survive” H/L/M methodology—or programs for advanced strength athletes where the lifters have built up the work capacity to handle two, or even three, of the variables in the “high” range.

     Along these lines, I believe that, for the most part, lifters respond best to either volume, frequency, or intensity.  I write “for the most part” because I believe some lifters may do best through variety by rotating between different programs that place more emphasis on one of the three variables, and no one should train on the same sort of program all the time.  Whatever form of training that you respond best to, you also have to decide which of the other variables will be moderate and which one will be low.  Using this logic means that there are essentially 6 kinds of training programs:

• High volume, moderate intensity, low frequency

• High volume, moderate frequency, low intensity

• High intensity, moderate volume, low frequency

• High intensity, moderate frequency, low volume

• High frequency, moderate intensity, low volume

• High frequency, moderate volume, low intensity

     That is, perhaps, a little bit of a generalization—and it doesn’t account for programs where all of the variables are moderate—but I think that you can slot just about any program within one of these, with some understanding that there will always be overlapping of the workouts, especially as a lifter/bodybuilder gets more advanced (and with really advanced lifters, the lines can blur completely).  This might be another slight generalization, but the high-volume programs tend to work best for hypertrophy, and they are what are used by most bodybuilders (at least the ones training in America), whereas the “high intensity” and “high frequency” groups can be good for either strength or hypertrophy.

     As mentioned, easy strength is a high-frequency, moderate-to-high intensity, and fairly low volume approach.  It works well—in fact, when you first use it, you will probably find it more effective than anything you’ve used before—but seems to be almost too easy, hence the moniker of easy strength.  It will build strength, by the way, in anyone who attempts it, but it can also, possibly, add muscle to those lifters that respond best to frequency over everything else.  Which sort of, finally, brings us around to this essay’s form of training: high-frequency but with fairly high to moderate volume, and low intensity.  Can this form of training produce what we might call “easy muscle” for hypertrophy gains in the same way that “easy strength” builds strength and power?

     If you gain muscle with easy strength methods, then this is absolutely a good way for you to train for hypertrophy.  In fact, the additional volume here may make it the best way for a “frequency” lifter to train for muscle growth.  And even if you, all-in-all, respond better to either intensity or volume for muscle growth, the methods here that follow would still be good to use on an occasional basis.

Vince Gironda’s “Break-in” Program

     Gironda is probably most known these days—because of how much information there is about these programs on the internet—for his 8x8 program or his 6x6 routine.  (He’s also well-known for his high-fat diets, such as “the steak and egg” diet and his “heavy cream and raw eggs” diet.)  But when he needed to get someone into shape fast—or if he had a beginner that he was working with—he recommended a full-body workout performed 6-days-per-week.  He had them train Monday through Saturday with Sundays the only off day.  (And if the original “trainer of champions” thought that high-frequency, high-rep, low-intensity training was good, maybe we’re on the right track with this sort of training, after all.)

     Gironda’s method involved between 8-12 exercises per workout, done for only one set the first week.  You didn’t go to failure, but, rather, simply stopped once the set got extremely tough.  In the 2nd week, you increased your training to 2 sets per exercise.  And in the 3rd week, you increased it to 3 sets per movement.  After that, depending on how the trainee was progressing, he may have them switch over to just 3-days-per-week.  Reps for each set were typically 10 to 12.

     If you would like to give this a try, I recommend the following program.  For the first week, do each exercise for 1 set of 10-12 reps.  The 2nd week, 2 sets for 10-12 reps.  The 3rd week, 3 sets for 10-12 reps.  In the 4th week, go back to just 1 set of 10-12 reps.  If you want to continue after the 4th week, then repeat the 4-week training block, but add weight to each exercise, or switch over to some different exercises.  If you choose the latter route, just remember to think same but different when selecting new movements.

1. Dumbbell incline bench presses: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

2. Wide-grip chins (or lat pulldowns): 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

3. Behind-the-neck presses: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

4. Triceps pushdowns: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

5. Barbell curls: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

6. High-bar, Olympic-style squats: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

7. Stiff-legged deadlifts: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

8. Calf raises: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

9. Ab exercise of your choice: 1-3 sets of 10-12 reps

The 3-to-5 Method for Repetitions

     I wouldn’t perform this method until you’ve spent at least 4 weeks on the above program, or unless you are already a “seasoned” high-frequency lifter.

     This one’s simple.  Use all the parameters of a typical 3-to-5 method, but increase the reps to 10 or more on each set.  Here are the “rules”:

• Train 3 to 5 days each week.

• Perform 3 to 5 exercises at each workout.

• Perform 3 to 5 sets of each exercise.

• Keep your reps at 10 or more.  If you are including bodyweight exercises—which are good for high-frequency, high-rep training—then you can do sets of as high as 50 reps on things such as bodyweight squats or walking lunges.

• Unlike the “regular” rule of resting 3 to 5 minutes between sets, here you can keep your rest to a minimum.  As soon as you’ve recovered your “oxygen debt,” or slightly before, you should do another set.

     A week of workouts might look like this:

Monday

1. Barbell bench presses: 3 sets of 12 reps 

2. Wide-grip chins: 5 sets of close to max reps

3. Bodyweight squats: 5 sets of 20 reps

4. Barbell curls: 3 sets of 15 reps

5. Farmer’s walks: 2 sets for distance

Tuesday

1. One-arm dumbbell overhead presses: 3 sets of 10 reps (each arm)

2. Dips: 3 set of 12 reps

3. Walking lunges: 3 sets of 20 reps (each leg)

4. Ab work of your choice: 1 to 2 sets

Wednesday

1. Deadlifts: 5 sets of 20 reps

2. Push-ups: 4 sets of 20 reps

3. Bulgarian split squats: 3 sets of 12 reps (each leg)

4. Seated dumbbell curls: 4 set of 15 reps (each arm)

5. Sled drag: 2 sets for distance

Thursday: OFF

Friday:

1. Dumbbell (or kettlebell) clean and press: 4 sets of 20 reps (sit the ‘bell down on each rep, so that you have to clean then press all repetitions)

2. Bodyweight squats: 5 sets of 20 reps

3. Incline dumbbell bench presses: 4 sets of 12 reps

4. Ab work of your choice: 1 to 2 sets

Saturday:

1. Dips: 3 sets of 12 reps

2. Walking lunges: 3 sets of 20 reps (each leg)

3. Skullcrushers: 3 sets of 15 reps

4. Sumo deficit deadlifts: 4 sets of 20 reps

5. Sandbag carries: 2 sets for distance

Sunday: OFF

     Next week, you could repeat this same workout, or opt for some new exercises.  Just be leary of doing too much variety, especially if you’re not an advanced lifter.  You really just want a handful of exercises to select from each week to ensure that you’re progressing on them.

     The frequency and the volume are what build the muscle here, so keep that in mind when determining “intensity” of a set.  You want to leave several reps in the tank on each set.  And at the end of each session, you should feel better than when you started.  If you feel fatigued and exhausted at the end of each workout, you’re simply doing too much.

Closing Thoughts

     There are several other workouts that I could have written about that would work for this form of training, but, since I have a feeling this post is long enough as is, we’ll just stop right here.  Those two workouts above should give you some good ideas for other ways that you may want to experiment with training in this manner.

     Remember that, if you choose to design your own program, frequency is the most important and volume 2nd.  If you think that you’re overdoing it with the intensity in a workout, then you probably are.  This sort of training should leave you feeling refreshed and not burned out at the end of a workout.

     Anytime that you feel as if you’ve “overdone” it in a workout session, feel free to take some extra days off.  It won’t hurt.  And sometimes it’s exactly what you need to recharge your batteries for another few workouts.