C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

  Discover the Secrets to Developing Serious Strength Using Infrequent Workouts      I have long been a fan of high-frequency training (HFT), and I will continue to sing its praises, as I think it might be the best form of training—when done correctly—for natural bodybuilders and lifters who want to gain as much strength and muscle mass in the shortest time possible.   If you have read even a few articles and essays here on my blog, then you probably know this already.   What you might not know is that I also believe you can build a tremendous amount of strength and power utilizing low-frequency, high-volume workouts when, once again, they are done correctly.   So, read on and discover my tips for making this kind of training work for you .      This article was precipitated by an email I received—as are, probably, 1/3 of my essays—from a reader who had a particular question.   I’ll leave out all of the odd little de...

Reimagining a Classic Bodybuilding Method for Strength and Power      When I first started lifting—not to mention reading bodybuilding magazines—in the mid to late ‘80s, most bodybuilders trained the same way.  By and large, although there were exceptions, mind you, so I don’t mean this as an entirely blanket statement, the majority of bodybuilders trained on either a 6-on, 1-off split, or a 3-on, 1-off split.  The body was split 3 ways.  Typically, one followed either a push (chest, shoulders, triceps)/pull (back and biceps)/legs split or an “antagonistic” split where you trained your chest and back one day, your shoulders, bis and tris the 2nd day, and, finally, your legs on the 3rd day.      Although this seems as if it’s a lot of volume, especially if you’ve been drinking the Kool-Aid of “high-intensity” training, it was actually less work than bodybuilders from previous eras.  Arnold, for instance, trained on a ...

       When a lot of lifters or bodybuilders first take up “briefer-is-better” workout programs such as H.I.T., the “Heavy Duty” programs of Mike Mentzer, or the strength-oriented training programs of Dr. Ken Leistner, they are often surprised at how much hypertrophy or strength gains they make in such a relatively short period of time.  This is especially true if they've been “killing it” in the gym beforehand with much more voluminous, frequent training programs.  But then the gains stop, and the lifter just can’t quite figure out what went wrong.      One problem—and this might just be the problem that plagues the average gym-goer—is the thinking that it is the workout that produces results.  I often refer to this as the erroneous belief of letting the means (the workouts themselves) justify the ends (the results seeking to be obtained) .  You see this approach in things such as “cardio classes” or “workout...