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DEL.ICIO.USSTRENGTH & MUSCLE TRAINING
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With small changes to your current training routine, you can see considerable improvements in the amount of strength you gain or muscle that you develop. All you really need to do is alter the sequence of and vary the rest times between your current exercise routines.
How much rest is enough?
There is no definitive answer to this question but it could be generally agreed that 30 to 90 seconds between sets is sufficient to increase strength and muscle mass over a twelve-week period. The actual amount of rest that each of us needs is really linked with recovery since the body must be allowed to recover from the strenuous demands of strength training. As a ‘rule of thumb’ 48 hours should elapse between sessions, avoid training sore muscles.
Sequencing matters!
If you are trying to achieve the most effective workout with the least amount of work, it is important to design the workout so that the most important movements are put at the beginning of the session
A factor to consider when deciding the order of exercises in a session is the impact of overall fatigue. For example, performing squat jumps after squats makes for effective training in experienced athletes, but not their recreational counterparts. This is because recreational athletes find the squats tiring and are less able than trained athletes to activate the potentiation response, whereby one exercise enhances the impact of the next one. Therefore, a factor to consider when deciding the order of exercises in a session is the impact of overall fatigue.
In Conclusion
The order of exercises should be selected to promote power or strength and should also have planned in rest periods at the appropriate times. If training strenuously, you will find it extremely difficult to maintain the same level of lifting at each session, and the total poundage lifted in each session would be better to be varied (e.g. a high, low and medium volume session) each week. .
Be Safe and maintain health.
Comments
By John from Dunwoody
December 13, 2006 02:39 PM | Link to this
SITTIN’ AROUND JUST SINGING “AWE”
By Thrash
December 14, 2006 08:58 AM | Link to this
Using a “pyramid” method of lifting is also effective if you’ve never tried it before. Start with your high weight on a machine, do 8 reps. Notch the weight down (say 100lbs to 90lbs) and add 2 reps. Continue until you reach a weight where you are at 20 reps (6 sets). The theory is that even though your muscles aren’t efficient with the heavy weights any longer, they still have lifting ability and you’re “wringing” out what’s left with the long sets at lower weights.