C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

Build Even More Size, Strength, and Power with Multiple Sets of Low Reps      Of all the training articles that I have written the last couple months, the most popular article by far is my recent High-Set, Low-Rep Workout Variations for Size and Strength that I posted on July 11th.  In it, I covered (primarily) different variations using workouts of 8 to 10 sets of 3 to 5 reps.  I won’t go back over the training in that article, so if you haven’t read it, and you think it might b e a training method that you’re interested in, then check it out.  In this article, I’m going to go over some additional workout ideas, including some advanced ones for lifters who have already spent a few training cycles using the methods discussed in the prior post.  Based on the interest in the previous article, I figured more lifters would want to know about some additional training ideas. Rep Ladders      With rep ladders , you use th...

The Ultimate Workout Routine for Getting Massively Big and Incredibly Strong?      In my previous essay Go Heavy or Go Home , I discussed some ways to train using Pavel Tsatsouline’s seven “Russian rules” of training.  This article will be, in many ways, just a continuation of that one.  I’d recommend reading it first, but you don’t have to.  That article contained a few workout suggestions using Pavel’s 7 maxims.  In this one, I want to propose a workout that I believe is the ultimate for building a combination of size and strength.  This routine isn’t for beginners.  You need to be at the “intermediate” stage before even attempting this routine.  So, you’ve been warned.  If you attempt this without having the work capacity to handle it, it’ll be too much.  At the very least , spend about 3 months doing one of the workouts in the prior essay before moving on to this one.      This routine u...

Some “Secrets” to Heavy Training and Continued Progress      There are a lot of pithy sayings out there for lifters, strength athletes, and just casual gym-goers.  Almost everyone, even folks who have never picked up a barbell a single day in their lives, has heard (or read) the phrase “no pain, no gain.”  When I started training in the ‘80s, and I’m pretty sure it became even more popular in the ‘90s, a common saying was to “go heavy or go home.”  There’s some truth in these, and other sayings, but also some misinformation.  Pain isn’t always good, for example.  Heck, that phrase—no pain, no gain—has probably caused just as much harm as help.   Maybe not to the same degree, but you could argue that “go heavy or go home” has also caused the derailment of more than a few workouts and routines.      Context is important.  Pain can be good, but it can also be decidedly bad.  You should never train t...