C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

Training Ideas and Workout Plans for Power and Mass      I think one of the best methods for your workouts, no matter your goals, is rest-pause training.  Although when it is used, it’s done so by bodybuilders more than strength athletes, it can also be a valuable lifting tool for those seeking strength above all else.  In this article, I’ll offer some different workout ideas using rest-pause training and some ways to incorporate the ideas into different programs.      Rest-pause training, in my view, is great because it allows you to use “density” workouts, where you can get an incredible amount of work within a short period of time.  Remember, the more work that you are capable of doing in a limited time, the better your results will be.  Now, this doesn’t mean just doing more work is the answer—you need to have the work capacity to handle the workload.  But rest-pause training is a good way to incorporate de...

Variations on the 10 Sets of 10 Reps Method for One-Exercise-Per-Bodypart Training      Since the ‘90s, I’ve preached the benefits of one-exercise-per-bodypart workouts in articles I wrote for Ironman magazine and MuscleMag International .  The very first method that I touted was the 10 sets of 10 reps workout.  Back in the last century, when I still trained as a bodybuilder before my “conversion” to powerlifter, I did most of my hypertrophy workouts using the standard multiple exercises per muscle group for multiple sets—typically 3 to 4 lifts per bodypart for 3 to 4 sets of (somewhere between) 6 and 12 repetitions.  I’d hazard that’s still the way most bodybuilders train in today’s gyms.  Back then, I was “chasing the pump” in most of my workouts.  I noticed something, though. I would often start a workout with a good pump on my first exercise but when I switched to a new one, I would lose my pump or it would diminish somewhat.  ...