The High-Frequency Training Manifesto

 

Part One:
How to Select and Utilize High-Frequency Training Programs
Plus an Example Ready-to-Use “Easy Strength” Program

     I have been touting the benefits of high-frequency training (which we’ll refer to simply as HFT for the remainder of this essay) for over 20 years now.  And I’m here to tout it again.  If you’ve spent most of your training life on either high-volume training programs done infrequently (what most gym-goers seem to do these days), H.I.T. style training, or anything in between, you owe it to yourself to give HFT a go.  You may be quite pleasantly surprised at the results.

     The problem that a lot of people face once they decide they actually want to try HFT is in deciding what sort of program to utilize and how to use it.  HFT, in general, can be a little “complicated” for the majority of lifters—at least the ones here in America who aren’t accustomed to this style of lifting, as opposed to lifters from, say, Eastern Europe where they are accustomed to it due to their exposure to the training of Olympic lifters—because of the degree of thought it takes (at least at first) to properly program it.  When you follow a typical “bro split,” you don’t have that problem.  If every Monday is International Arm Day (as I’m fond of referring to it), you can just go to the gym, “bomb and blitz” your arms with countless sets of several exercises, then wait a week before training arms again.  Same goes for all your other bodyparts.  It really is that simple to program, and there are a lot of lifters who do get good results training in such a manner.  But there are also a lot that don’t.  And if that sort of training hasn’t worked for you, give one of the programs I’m going to suggest here, at the very least, a test run.  You may find that HFT is the most effective form of training that you’ve ever performed.

     For the remainder of this essay, I will explain just what I mean by HFT, and then I will give you an example program using one of the methods.  In subsequent essays, I will cover a variety of HFT programs.  You can select the program in this series based on your strength/hypertrophy level, your goals, your genetic predisposition to different modes of training, and, of course, time available for you to train during the course of a week.

What is High-Frequency Training (HFT)?

     Though different strength coaches and writers may define HFT in a different manner, I simply define it as any program where you train a muscle group and/or lift at least 3-times-per-week minimum or as many as 7-days-per-week (that’s right; on some HFT programs, you train every single day of the week).  This means that whether you’re on a basic, 3-days-per-week full-body routine, a Sheiko-style Russian powerlifting program packed with volume, or an “easy strength” method such as Dan John’s 40-Day Program, you’re utilizing HFT.

The Two Different “Modes” of HFT

     I think it’s fair to say that you, essentially, have two different modes of HFT (although these two modes might end up overlapping at times, especially for the more advanced strength athlete).

     The first would be so-called “easy strength” methods of HFT—the aforementioned 40-Day Program or my 30-Rep Program are examples, although there are several other methods—use moderation, or what we might simply call “reasonable” workouts, at each session.  Every workout of the program is essentially the same.  You simply show up, do a few reps of a few exercises, then go home.  It almost seems absurdly easy—which, of course, is why it’s called easy strength.  These programs work because of the accumulated workload over several weeks.

     The other side of the HFT coin utilizes undulating workloads, where some of the workouts are heavy, some are moderate, and some are downright light.  Bill Starr’s classic heavy/light/medium method is the most obvious example.  But what we might call “Russian” methods of training also fit into this mode.  Sheiko training, which I have long extolled, uses this method in a fairly complex manner, whereas a program such as the Smolov squat program uses it in a more simplified way.  Whatever manner is used, simplified or complex, the weights “wave” up and down throughout the course of a week.

     Despite my proclamation that there are just two modes that should be used doesn’t mean that there aren’t many programs that can be “run through” using both of these modes, so I don’t want you to think that the program I’m going to present here is just one of two options you have.  There are many programs that can use either mode of HFT.

     There is also, to be fair, what we might call a 3rd mode: the system of training often referred to as “the Bulgarian method,” where you actually max out on a lift at every single workout, whether you train that lift 3-days-weekly or as many as 7!  The Bulgarian method can be effective, at least in the hands of a strength coach that really understands how to manipulate it for his athletes.  I even wrote an article about it several years ago for Planet Muscle magazine, albeit with a program at least slightly more palatable for the typical American bodybuilder.  However, we won’t discuss it here, as it is NOT the kind of HFT program you should start on.

Selecting a Mode of HFT for Your Needs and Goals

     One word of caution here first: these suggestions are meant for lifters who have at the absolute minimum a few months of training under their belts.  If you are new to training, then you most certainly should use a HFT program, but nothing more than a basic full-body workout with minimal exercises and minimal sets performed three times weekly.  The following suggestions (in both the program here and all following HFT programs in this series) presuppose that you are past that level, that you understand your body and how it responds to training, enough to at least make a fairly informed decision.

     My first idea for ensuring you select the correct style of training may seem obvious, maybe even too obvious.  Choose a style of training that you believe you will most enjoy.  Because the number one way to ensure a program works—whatever that program may be—is to be consistent.  And it’s hard to be consistent and stick with a program if you don’t enjoy it.

     If you like the idea of just doing moderate, sort of “easy” workouts throughout the program, and if you know you can go to the gym on an almost daily basis, then choose any sort of easy strength program.  If, however, you can’t stand the thought of going without an occasional hard workout, then select a Bill Starr-style heavy-light-medium program or a Russian-inspired program that has one or two hard workouts every 7 to 10 days.  I would start with the H-L-M program, however, if you’re really new to this sort of training.  It will teach you the benefits of light and medium sessions through easily programmable workouts, and you will learn that it’s okay to train while you’re still sore from previous sessions.

     What’s your goal while utilizing HFT?  Are you after primarily hypertrophy—albeit with a markedly strength side effect—because you’ve tried high-volume and/or “high-intensity” programs but to no avail?  Is primarily strength, and only strength, your goal?  Or are you just looking for a program that will make you decisively big and strong?  You need to know these answers because you need to know what it is that you want whenever you take up any lifting program.

An Example Easy Strength Program

     If you simply don’t know where to start, begin with my advice here.  This is a good way to start this kind of training no matter your goals.  Just keep your ultimate goal in the back of your mind, so that when this program stops working, you can move on to something more strength or hypertrophy oriented.

     Select a handful of exercises that you want to get strong on.  If you’re after more muscle size, make sure that you select more leg and back movements.  Those are the ones that will pack on the muscle and not pectoral or arm exercises, no matter how good you want those to look for your upcoming beach trip.  In fact, training your leg and back muscles hard will make your chest and arms grow all the more.  If you’re strong and big already, and want to specialize on some upper body work, then you could select more upper body movements.  Just don’t lie to yourself about what it is that you need to train.

     These handful of exercises should all be big, bang-for-your-buck movements.  The answers, of course, are your usual culprits: squats, bench presses, weighted chins, weighted dips, barbell curls, deadlifts, power cleans, power snatches, and overhead presses.  Pick 5 of those, or one of their variations, and focus, primarily, on those 5 movements throughout the program.  You can, of course, utilize more movements throughout the program if you’re a more advanced athlete.  (That’s basically the premise behind my “30-Rep Program.”)  If you’re advanced, for instance, instead of doing barbell squats at each session, rotate in some bottom-position squats, some front squats, or some good, ol’ fashioned barbell hack squats.

     Train these 5 movements, or their variations, at each session.  Train 4 to 6 days-per-week.  Lift 2 or 3 days in a row, take a day or two off, and repeat.  At each workout, do 3 sets (on average; this will change as the program continues) for each exercise.  If you think you need more volume after a little bit, then add a set or two to one or all of the exercises.  Keep your reps fairly low.  In the past, I would have probably told you to not let your repetitions go over 5 reps on any of the sets, but I think it’s okay to push some of your sets to around 8 reps.

     Here is what a week of training might look like:

Day One

• Squats: Begin your new HFT program by starting with the barbell back squat, the granddaddy of them all.  Work up over 3 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps, but don’t go for any sort of “max effort” set of 5 on the last set.  If you would usually, say, squat 275 for one hard set of 5 reps, then do sets something such as this: 135x5, 185x5, 205x5.  Don’t worry if this seems too easy.  That is the point!  You will be training this lift frequently, and as you do so, you will slowly, with ease, begin to add weight to this lift (and all the others).  

• Barbell bench presses: For your 2nd exercise, do some bench presses.  Most guys, let’s admit, want to have a strong bench press for no other reason than to have a strong bench.  That’s fine.  And this method will help you get there quicker than other methods that tire and fatigue your bench press muscles too much.  Do 3 sets of 5 here in the same manner as the squats.  Do not let your ego get in the way here.  If you’re at the gym, and you want to impress all the girls there with your 225-pound one-rep-max-strength, you MUST refrain.  This is not strength testing, this is strength training.

• Chins: For your 3rd movement, do 3 sets of chins.  Don’t worry about adding weight.  Simply do 3 sets, and stop before they get difficult.  If your chin max is 6 reps, you might do a set of 3, then two sets of 2 reps.  Anything similar will work. Just do NOT push it, as this is the sort of exercise that a lot of trainees will train too hard on.  Remember, we’re coaxing our muscles into more growth and strength not forcing them through “intense” sessions.

• One-arm dumbbell overhead presses: For your next movement, do 3 sets of one-arm overheads (each arm) in the same manner as the squats and bench presses.

• Power cleans: Finish off the “weighted” portion of the workout with some sort of pull, preferably a quick lift such as some sort of clean, snatch, or high pull.  I would refrain from deadlifting too frequently, so save that exercise for one—maybe two, at the most—session(s) per week if you decide to start adding them to the program.  For the cleans, do a set of 5, followed by a set of 3, and then a set of 2.  Once again, none of these should be hard.  If your max power clean for a single is 225 pounds, then your sets might look like this: 135x5, 155x3, 175x2.

• Loaded carry of your choice: finish the session with one set of some sort of carry movement.  Do some farmer walks or maybe some sandbag or stone carries.  The choice is yours.  Just don’t go all-out.  Do one fairly hard set, but make sure you’re not completely fatigued.  You can also add an abdominal exercise if you choose.

Day Two

• Repeat Day One.  That’s right, repeat the workout you just did the day before.  Now, this doesn’t mean that you necessarily (although you might) repeat the previous day’s workout verbatim.  For instance, if you feel at all fatigued on any movement, you may find yourself not using as much weight on your last set of that lift compared to what was utilized yesterday.  And on the chins, you may find that you do a rep or two less on one or two sets.  Conversely, it could be the opposite.  You may find your last set of an exercise to be naturally heavier than yesterday, or you may find yourself easily doing an additional rep on your chin sets.  The point is that this should all be very easy and, as I will probably keep repeating, natural.  This means, also, that throughout these workouts, your weights will naturally wave up and down, but they will, over the course of several weeks, consistently go up.  But remember: this won’t be anything that you try to do.  The weight increases should simply feel easy.  Natural.

Day Three

• Off Day.  This will be your first off day.  As the workouts continue, you will find yourself training 3, or even 4, days in a row.  But don’t force your extra days, either.  Just let them come to you as naturally as the increase in weights on your exercises.

Day Four

• If you guessed “repeat the workout from days one and two” then your guess is correct.  Do everything that you did the first two days, and only go heavier if it feels natural.  Now, based on my experience of lifters trying these methods, I will say that it is common to feel pretty strong on this day.  Some days you may, in fact, be surprised by how strong you feel.  Always go heavier on these days, but don’t overdo it.  Make this your motto: let it be natural.

Day Five

• Off Day.  This is your second, and final, off day of the week.  

Day Six

• On Day Six, you are going to repeat the workout but you are going to change the set/rep combinations.  On this day, do 5 progressively heavier sets of 2 reps on each exercise (except for the chins; those can be performed the same as the other days).  5 sets of 2 achieves two purposes.  First, it allows you to sort of “test” your strength.  No, you’re not going to a max set of 2 reps, or anything like that, on your last double.  But you will be training heavier than your other days which will give you a good idea for how heavier weights are beginning to feel on this program.  Second, even though you’re going to train heavier and with more sets, this day will actually cause your total workload to decrease.  5 sets of 2, even with heavier weights, simply doesn’t add up to quite the workload of 3 sets of 5.  As the weeks go on, you would just do a 5 sets of 2 day whenever you feel that you want to test your strength just a little bit.

Day Seven

• Repeat the same workout you did on days 1, 3, and 4, utilizing the same set/rep schemes as those days.

     After a week of training, you should have a feel for how these workouts are going to go throughout the program.  It could be that it takes you a couple of weeks to adjust if you’re not accustomed to this sort of training, but I don’t think that will be a problem if you were on a basic, brief, full-body program done 3x weekly before starting this one (as I recommend).  Here are some more tips to keep in mind while using this program:

• Let me repeat one more time, just so it completely sinks in: the weights should go up naturally throughout the program.

• After that first week of training, you can take a day off, then repeat the same seven days of training, but you don’t have to.  If you feel as if you already have a “feel for it,” then just train however many days in a row you want before taking a day off.  Some lifters might find that they enjoy training 6 days straight before taking a day off.  Others will find that they like to train on something such as a 2-on, 1-off, 1-on, 1-off throughout the course of it, because they like to consistently use the same pattern of lifting and they find that they respond better to less training days each week.  But I think most lifters who enjoy training the easy strength way simply take off whatever days they feel like.  You may train 3 days in a row, then train 5 days in a row, then take 2 days off, then train every other day for a few days.  As you train on the program for a few weeks, you will begin to discover what works best for you.  For instance, I always found that I liked training on a 3-on, 1-off, 2-on, 1-off program just so that I could train on the same days each week.  For me, most of the time this meant Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday were always training days, and Wednesday and Saturdays were always my off days.  At other times, I followed the same split but made my training days Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday (I sometimes did this 2nd option since I had more time Friday through Sunday for training compared to during the week).  But do not try to figure out what days off you want to use beforehand.  Let the program itself, and how your body responds to it, be your guide!

• As the program advances, you may want to start changing your set/rep combinations.  You can use 5 sets of 3 reps, 3 sets of 3 reps, 8 sets of singles, 3 sets of 5,3,2 (but on the exercises other than power cleans), and even some higher rep combinations such as 2 sets of 8 or even 1 set of 15-20 at times, if nothing but for a change of pace.  If you opt for some higher reps, make sure you don’t overdo the work sets.  1 set of 15 is okay.  3 sets of 15 and you’re simply pushing up your workload too much for such frequent training.

• You can also change exercises after two to three weeks.  Always remember when changing to a new lift: same but different.  The exception to this frequency would be more advanced lifters.  If you’re advanced, feel free to utilize three or four different variations of each movement.

• Use this program for 6 to 8 weeks.  After that, you can go back to your more conventional style of training, or you can opt for another form of HFT, which we’ll cover in upcoming essays.

     As this series progresses, we will cover more easy strength programs, some geared more toward hypertrophy and some geared almost exclusively to strength.  I will also cover different “heavy/light” programs where the training workload ends up varying quite a bit from session to session, with the different programs also emphasizing either strength or hypertrophy.

     Until part two, try the above program.  If there are any questions you have that I didn’t cover in this essay, please send me an email or leave a question below in the comments section.  Also, if there are certain other HFT programs that you have questions about or that you want to see covered in future installments, let me know that as well.