Easy Strength Meets Easy Muscle

A Hybrid High-Frequency Training Program for a Combination of Size and Strength

     For more than 20 years, I have preached the benefits of high-frequency training (HFT) programs.  First in the pages of some of the major bodybuilding magazines, such as IronMan magazine and Planet Muscle, and then on the blog when I started it in 2009.  For the most part, the training I recommended was for strength first, with size, if it occurred, as more of a side-effect of the strength and power training.  And for more than a decade, one of my favorite ways to use HFT is through so-called easy strength methods.  However, I have in the last couple years proposed the theory of using an “easy muscle” approach, where you largely keep the “tenets” of easy strength but do it for higher repetitions, with the sole goal of hypertrophy.

     I’m not alone in thinking that this might be a good method for many seeking gains in muscle mass.  If you’re familiar with his earlier writings, you might be surprised that the bodybuilding coach Scott Abel, before his retirement and retreat from the physique world, recommended high-frequency, (relatively) high-rep, full-body workouts.  He wrote about this in a couple of his last books, “The Hardgainer Solution” and “Physique After 50.”  In “The Hardgainer Solution,” he tells a story about training with the legendary Bill Pearl in the ‘80s, when both of them were at a weeklong workshop of well-known bodybuilding coaches.  He said that he would get up early every morning in order to train at the well-furnished gym before everyone else.  He tells how the only other person in the gym during the wee hours was Pearl.  Humorously, he mentions how—after several days of watching Pearl train—he wanted to tell Pearl he was training wrong.  But, of course, you don’t tell arguably the greatest bodybuilder of all time such a thing.  Why did he feel that way?  Because every morning, for a week straight, Pearl trained his entire body for multiple sets of moderate to high reps.  Eventually, Abel worked up the courage to talk to Pearl about his odd training.  In his 50s at the time, the legend explained to Abel that he found full-body, highly frequent workouts to be the key for building muscle as one ages.  Not only that, however, Pearl thought that form of training was best for any hardgainer—once you’re over 50, you’re kind of in the “hardgainer” camp no matter how great your genetics.  By the time Abel wrote those two books, he agreed.  (By the way, I don’t really care much for the term “hardgainer,” mainly due to misunderstandings over how a supposed hardgainer should train.  If you want to know more about these thoughts, read my essay “The Myth of the Hardgainer.”)

     But Pearl and Abel aren’t alone.  Bill Starr recommended the same kind of workouts for older strength athletes and even for younger lifters who had minimal equipment and trained at home.  The “Iron Guru” Vince Gironda, when he needed to whip a bodybuilder into shape quickly, favored full-body workouts performed 6 days a week.

     What Pearl, Abel, Starr, and Gironda didn’t recommend—at least, they didn’t create any programs for it—was heavier workout routines (at least, not ones that used a really high-frequency).  In this article, however, I want to suggest a way that you might combine both easy strength and easy muscle workouts into one effective program that will garner low-rep strength gains and induce hypertrophy.

     For a training program to be effective, you must properly manipulate the 3 training variables of volume, frequency, and intensity—intensity referring to percentage of your 1-rep maximum and not how hard you train.  Effective programs, generally, have 2 of the variables high with the other variable low, the exception being if all of the variables are “moderate.”  So, for a HFT program to work, you either have to have high-intensity and low-volume (easy strength) or high-volume and low-intensity (easy muscle).  How to combine the two?  You could do the easy strength portion at the start of the workout and then finish with the easy muscle portion.  However, I believe that, for the most part, programs are most effective when only one method of training is used at one workout.  Take Westside Barbell as an example.  Louie Simmons was opposed to workouts that combined maximal effort with speed work at the same session, despite the fact that some powerlifters did (and still do) train that way.  He believed that you achieved the best results—he would often cite research to prove his point—when disparate methods were performed on separate workouts.  So, for this program, we will do easy strength on one training day and easy muscle the next.

Program #1

     If you’re new to HFT, this is an ideal program for you to start with.  (It might even be good if you have been utilizing more intense high-frequency programs, as it will give your body, and your mind, a bit of a break.)  Here, you will train 5 days per week, alternating between low-rep and high-rep sessions.  For each day, you will select 5 exercises.  You can use the same movement on your high-rep day that you utilize for your low-rep days, or you can select something different.  If you don’t want to go to the gym each day, you could use bodyweight movements for your high-rep days.  In the example program below, however, I have selected different movements for each day.

     On the “strength” days, you will perform 2 sets of 5 reps for each exercise.  To begin the program, I suggest using a weight that is 90% of your 10-rep max.  That’s right, your 10-rep max not your 5-rep max.  This will allow you to add weight at each session until you are at 90% of your 5-rep max or beyond.  The reasoning?  Here’s a quote from Pavel Tsatsouline that can explain it as well as I: “You will start with a conservative ten-rep max instead of an aggressive five-rep max to meet the requirements of ‘cycling’. This fundamental principle of training states that your progress will cease if you are always training at your limit. For best gains you must start easy, build up to a PR, and back off to easier training again before climbing the next peak. I know that starting out light and training not to failure will mess with your HIT brainwashed head, but that is between you and your therapist.”*  For exercise selection, I have picked squats, thick-bar deadlifts, bench presses, overhead presses, and barbell curls.  You can do dumbbell versions of the bench presses and overhead presses if you want.  If you choose other movements, just make sure they’re same but different.

     On the “endurance” days, you will do 1 set of 20-30 reps.  Select a weight on each exercise where 30 reps will be tough, but you’re pretty sure that you can get it.  Stop the set once your reps slow down, not once you reach failure.  When you reach the point that you can do 30 reps without slowing down, add weight to the movement.  For exercises, I have selected double-kettlebell front squats, double kettlebell cleans, incline presses (barbell or dumbbell, your choice), behind-the-neck presses, and cable (or band) curls.

     If you so choose, you can also add an abdominal movement to either day (or both).  The ab wheel would be good on your strength days and steep incline sit-ups for the high-rep sessions.

Week One

Monday, Wednesday, Saturday:

• Barbell squats: 2x5

• Thick-bar deadlifts: 2x5

• Barbell bench presses: 2x5

• Military presses: 2x5

• Barbell curls: 2x5

Tuesday and Friday:

• Double kettlebell front squats: 1x20-30

• Double kettlebell cleans: 1x20-30

• Incline bench presses: 1x20-30

• Behind-the-neck presses: 1x20-30

• Cable curls: 1x20-30

Week Two

Monday, Wednesday, Saturday:

• Double kettlebell front squats: 1x20-30

• Double kettlebell cleans: 1x20-30

• Incline bench presses: 1x20-30

• Behind-the-neck presses: 1x20-30

• Cable curls: 1x20-30

Tuesday and Friday:

• Barbell squats: 2x5

• Thick-bar deadlifts: 2x5

• Barbell bench presses: 2x5

• Military presses: 2x5

• Barbell curls: 2x5

     This means that during the first week, your easy strength session gets 3 workouts while your easy muscle session gets 2.  It then swaps on week 2.  On the 3rd week, you will, of course, return to week one’s workout, alternating back and forth in this manner during the course of your program cycle.  If you want to train on different days, just make sure it adheres to a 3-on, 1-off, 2-on, 1-off rotation.

     Run this program for a minimum of 6 weeks.  8 weeks is probably ideal.  If you are getting good results at the 8-week mark and want to continue with it, you will need to start cycling your loads.  For instance, once you reach the point that it is difficult to get your 2 sets of 5 reps, you either need to drop down in weight the next week or rotate to some new movements.  If you rotate to new movements, start again with a weight that is approximately 90% of your 10-rep maximum.

Program #2

     This program is for more advanced lifters or for lifters who have already used other HFT programs for an extended period of time, such as my 30-Rep Program.  On this one, you will train 6 days a week, 3 days for easy strength and 3 days for easy muscle.  Unlike the first program, it will use varying set/rep ranges.

     You will once again use 5 exercises at each session.  For the example workout, I have selected the same movements at Program #1, but if you run that program first, and now want to try some different movements, here are some suggested replacements for the easy strength portion: front squats, bottom-position squats, power cleans, power snatches, weighted dips, bottom-position bench presses, one-arm dumbbell overhead presses, push presses, e-z bar curls, and cheat curls.  And for the easy muscle portion: walking lunges, barbell hack squats, pushups between boxes, wide-grip bench dips, dumbbell overhead presses, dumbbell lateral raises, seated dumbbell curls, and incline curls.

     On the strength days, you will rotate between heavy, light, and medium workouts.  For the heavy days, you will do 5 sets of 2 reps.  The light days will be 2 sets of 5 reps, performed the same way as Program #1.  And the medium days will be 3 sets of 5, 3, and 2 reps.  When you start the program, 5 sets of 2 reps should be done with 90% of your 5-rep max, 2 sets of 5 reps with 90% of your 10-rep max, and the 3 sets of 5, 3, and 2, reps should be progressively heavier sets, working up to the weight used on the heavy day for your sets of 2.  Each week, add approximately 5 to 10 pounds to your lifts—10 pounds for large movements and 5 pounds for smaller ones.

     The “endurance” days will also rotate between heavy, light and medium.  On the heavy days, you will do 3 sets of 15 reps, using a weight that you would use for 1 all-out set of 20 to 25 reps.  On the light days, you will do 1 set of 15 reps with a weight lighter than the heavy day.  The medium days will be 2 sets of 15 reps with a weight in between the heavy and light days.  When in doubt, especially when you first start the program, use a lighter weight on any of the days.

Monday - Heavy

• Barbell squats: 5x2

• Thick-bar deadlifts: 5x2

• Barbell bench presses: 5x2

• Military presses: 5x2

• Barbell curls: 5x2

Tuesday - Heavy

• Double kettlebell front squats: 3x15

• Double kettlebell cleans: 3x15

• Incline bench presses: 3x15

• Behind-the-neck presses: 3x15

• Cable curls: 3x15

Wednesday - Light

• Barbell squats: 2x5

• Thick-bar deadlifts: 2x5

• Barbell bench presses: 2x5

• Military presses: 2x5

• Barbell curls: 2x5

Thursday - Light

• Double kettlebell front squats: 1x15

• Double kettlebell cleans: 1x15

• Incline bench presses: 1x15

• Behind-the-neck presses: 1x15

• Cable curls: 1x15

Friday - Medium

• Barbell squats: 3x5,3,2

• Thick-bar deadlifts: 3x5,3,2

• Barbell bench presses: 3x5,3,2

• Military presses: 3x5,3,2

• Barbell curls: 3x5,3,2

Saturday - Medium

• Double kettlebell front squats: 2x15

• Double kettlebell cleans: 2x15

• Incline bench presses: 2x15

• Behind-the-neck presses: 2x15

• Cable curls: 2x15

     Every few weeks, take a “down” week.  On this week, you have a few options.  One, you could eliminate either the “strength” or the “muscle” days altogether, so that you’re just training 3 days in that week.  2nd, you could train 4 days, eliminating the light or medium days.  If you eliminate the medium days, then train your light sessions on the days where you would usually train medium.  And 3rd, you can just reduce the poundages during this week so that you’re using only 50-60% of what was used the week before.

The Sum of Things

     Give either, or both, of these programs a try.  Combining low-rep workouts with high-rep sessions might be just the program you need for growing stronger and bigger.

     These programs are good for you if you’re trying to build muscle or get lean.  The key is in how you eat.  As I’ve written elsewhere, and many people have said before me, you can’t out-train a bad diet.  So, if you’re chasing leanness, eat your protein and veggies, and cut out all of your unnecessary carbs.  Conversely, if you’re looking to be one big mo-fo, then you need to eat plenty of calories on a daily basis.  Shoot for at least 20 times your bodyweight in calories on a daily basis and ensure that you get at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight every day.  For more mass-building nutritional information, I suggest reading part 6 of my Bill Starr series.  Its subtitle is “getting bigger.”  It contains Starr’s advice (and some of my own) for those seeking lean bulk.

     Don’t be afraid to experiment.  Now, I don’t suggest that for a beginner or someone who’s never used HFT before, but if you’re well-versed in it, then take some of my ideas in this article and see what you can come up with.  Part of the joy in the training journey—and in all journeys, really—is the exploration.  Strength training and muscle-building are no different.  Consider this program another step on your own muscle-building, strength-gaining journey.

*Pavel’s quote comes from his book Beyond Bodybuilding and was in relation to a workout program in that book where you do 5 rep sets at 50%, 70%, and 100% of your 10-rep max.  He obviously felt the need to explain why you would use 5-rep sets on some movements when a lifter could get 20 to 30 for one all-out set.