C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

An Effective Training Approach for Muscle Growth      I write a lot about high-frequency training (HFT).  I think it’s one of the most effective methods of training.  One of the main reasons that I write about it is because I believe it’s underused.  At least, it is among modern trainees in most gyms throughout the land.      Because it is a really popular way to train among modern lifters, I also write quite a bit about low-frequency programs, but ones that use high-volume and high-intensity.  Since it is so popular, I figure I might as well write about good programs that use that methodology.      But there is another way to train that can be highly effective for a lot of lifters.  It’s not flashy.  It’s not “sexy.”  And it’s without a doubt nothing new.  You might call it the everything moderate approach.  Moderate frequency.  Moderate volume.  Moderate...

    Variety for Gains in Size and Strength      I knew a super-heavyweight powerlifter at one time who never changed his training program.  And I mean never .  On top of that, he had been a highly competitive powerlifter since the ‘70s.  When I got to know him around 15 years ago, he told me that he had been doing, essentially, the exact same program for at least the previous 35 years.  He was also incredibly strong (even though he was older then than I am now).  And incredibly massive.      His program worked.  It might work for you, too, but I doubt it.  Most lifters—bodybuilders, powerlifters, Crossfitters, and everyone in between—need more variety.  And even if your body responds well to the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to training, your mind, at the very least, needs a bit more variegation.  I have a feeling, however, that the majority of lifters do need variety...