C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

Workload as an Important Factor in the Quest for Size and Strength      What follows is nothing more than some of the thoughts that have been rattling around in my training-filled brain since writing my last couple essays, the first on the “ Old School Way ” and my most recent one entitled “ Train Through the Soreness ,” both of which were also precipitated by my series on “ Tailoring Your Workout Program .”      I think it’s fair to say, or write in this instance, that modern gym-goers believe gains in muscle or strength (or both) comes down to “hard” training coupled with rest, recovery, and eating enough calories and protein.  I think that is true but only partially so.  Since it’s not the entire truth, however, it can hold you back from achieving (potentially) even better results in the gym.      The “whole truth” of muscle growth contains several factors.  If you want to prioritize muscle gr...

Tips and Advice for Tailoring Your Training Routine Part 2: Selecting a Program      In post-modern philosophy, there is a term that is important to understand.  I’m not a post-modernist myself—I am, if anything, an integralist , one who integrates different philosophies, East and West, into a singular whole—but I feel this concept is important.  It’s called “the myth of the given.”  The “myth” is when we take our given perception of things to be how they actually are.  We do this more often than we think.  It’s easy to understand this concept when it comes to simple objects, but less so when it comes to ideas.  We may not like how something tastes—raw oysters,for example—so we think oysters are simply bad.  Others, however, may love raw oysters—I could eat them by the bucket.  In this instance, it’s easy to see the myth of the given at work.  Even though you may find oysters personally unsettling, and it befuddles yo...

A 10-Week Mass Building Regimen for Lifters Struggling to Pack on Size      I don’t like the term “hardgainer.”  I don’t mean to imply that some lifters don’t find it harder to pack on muscle size than others.  Some certainly do.  It’s just that when a lifter is labelled a “hardgainer” he (or she) often resorts to the kind of training that may not necessarily be what they really need.  I won’t go into all of the details here for why I find that to be the case.  If you want more information on that , then read my essay from last year “ The Myth of the Hardgainer .”      The gist of my theory, however, is that many lifters struggle to pack on muscle size because they do standard high-volume workouts, only to find that sort of training doesn’t work for them.  After that, they proceed to low-frequency, “high-intensity” workouts, but those don’t work, either.  It’s at that point that the lifter, or his lif...