Training Logically by Joe Meeko |
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TRAINING LOGICALLY by Joe Meeko Bodybuilding and many other single participant physical sports are totally individualistic. What works for one person may or may not work for another. But there are basic guidelines that will work for everyone. I can only give you my opinion on what I think works best from a logical view of which muscle groups to train together. This also is determined by a muscle fatigue factor and from a psychological view which I will explain later on. You then must decide which workout routine fits your time schedule and individual likings. In this next series of articles we will go through every body part and how they should be trained – together or separately, one or two major body parts together. Again this information is only from how I trained them through thinking logically about the muscle groups and how I felt during the many different routines I have experienced throughout my Bodybuilding career. And believe me I’ve tried them all. For instance there are many who work their Chest first then Triceps after. I have tried that routine and didn’t care for it. Why? Logically when you work Chest you are also using your triceps heavily during any chest pressing movement. Since the triceps are basically shot after working chest there is no way you can put full effort into your tricep exercises afterwards. My triceps would not pump at all or very little after chest. So I got thinking logically about it and I switched to working Chest and Biceps. Since the biceps are not used at all in any Chest exercises they had full power still in them so I could give it my all during the Bicep workout. Does that sound right to you from a logical basis and also from a muscle fatigue standpoint? It does to me. BUT if you like working triceps after your Chest routine or biceps after back and you’re growing from it and getting a good pump – then just stick with it. But it just didn’t fit me. This is what Bodybuilding is all about (do what works for you and stay with it). Why change success? The same goes for Back training. Most do Back first and then train Biceps after. Logically your Biceps are used very heavily in Chin Ups, Cable Rows, Lat Pull Downs etc. If I trained Biceps afterwards they were already so burned out from my back routine that they just didn’t pump. I also couldn’t pull much weight on any bicep exercises. So I switched to Back and then Triceps and it worked perfectly. I could put full effort into Back and then full effort into Biceps afterwards. Both body parts pumped very well and I had maximum strength while training both. Now lets look at training from a psychological view. Some train two major body parts during their daily workout back to back or one after another. To me I put so much effort into the first main body part that even thinking about trying to work another after the first defeats me. This is due to the extreme effort put into the first body part such as Chest. If I were to try and train Back afterwards I have already psyched myself out by thinking “oh boy I have to train Back yet after this”. You can see how that can defeat you before you even start training the second major body part. However if you have the luxury of going home eat and rest a few hours, then hit the other major body part later on in the day. This could be OK and you should be recuperated enough to put full effort into that body part also. When I speak of a major body part I’m talking about the following - Chest, Back, Legs, Shoulders and Arms. Of course a Bodybuilder also needs Calves and Abs and they should never be neglected. But since they both are very small muscle groups I consider them a Minor body part. Most people will not have the time to train a major body part go home eat, rest and hit the gym again hours later. Most work a full time job; have families and other responsibilities they have to take care of also. So if this fits most of you just do the best you can and find a routine that fits your time allotted at the gym. But at least thing logically about how you group your body parts together. Chest and Back are Ok since neither gets a fatigue from working the other. There are many ways to group body parts together but the routine that I ended up doing and still use today is as follows. Day one Chest and Calves, day two Back and abs, day 3 Legs (including hamstrings) day four Shoulders and Calves, day five Arms and abs, day off or I just repeated the cycle during an up coming contest with no rest day. This means that I was basically hitting the major body part only once a week. Some like to hit their major body parts twice per week - some three times. Since I was blasting the major body part with 25 to 35 sets each workout it needed the five days just to recuperate. I tried working it twice but it was too much. I grew my best on the once every five day routine. Probably because trying to do that many sets twice a week led to over training and muscle shrinkage. If I felt psychologically stale from that routine (which seldom happened) I would switch to training Chest and Triceps, Back and biceps, Legs separately, Shoulders, abs and calves for a while. But I always went back to the prior routine. It just worked great for me. To me training legs should be done all by themselves and not grouped with anything. Squatting, front squatting, leg presses etc. require so much effort that I don’t think anyone can put full effort into training any body part there after. You have to figure that during Legs you are working half of your entire body hard and also straining almost every muscle group up top just from squatting - that takes allot out of you logically speaking. Now you have to find out what works best for you. Until next time… Love in Christ Joe Meeko |
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