Hypertrophy/Bodybuilding Routine

[atgbrahsrs]

Or you can just keep increasing your weight with in your given rep range, which will also give you gains more consistently.

I am starting to think anything outside of the OP is not required to see more gainz



SRS

[Jasonk282]

I am starting to think anything outside of the OP is not required to see more gainz



SRS

The problem, IMO, is that people try to reinvent the wheel. Not saying Sonny is doing that, but he talking a very simple system and wants to make it more complex.

I mean how much more difficult do you need to make...

12+ reps increase weight next session
30-50 reps a lift, per session
2x or 3x frequency
deload every 3rd week

[atgbrahsrs]

The problem, IMO, is that people try to reinvent the wheel. Not saying Sonny is doing that, but he talking a very simple system and wants to make it more complex.

I mean how much more difficult do you need to make...

12+ reps increase weight next session
30-50 reps a lift, per session
2x or 3x frequency
deload every 4th week

did you start doing scheduled deloading also ? I was going by feel but since someone asked and auto-regulation doesn't work for the majority of people according to Kelei I started doing every 4th week thing too

[sonnydfrizzy]

did you start doing scheduled deloading also ? I was going by feel but since someone asked and auto-regulation doesn't work for the majority of people according to Kelei I started doing every 4th week thing too

I am forced to deload because I hate my life after 4 weeks straight doing this workout lol

[Kelei]

The entire point of an accumulation (loading) phase is to overreach, you're supposed to train with too much volume. If you don't come back stronger after a deload your volume is simply too low, you'll still make progress but not at an ideal rate.

Use some trial and error and keep gradually increasing your volume during each subsequent loading phase until you start coming back stronger after deloading, this is how you find your individual volume threshold/requirement, it varies from person to person. As you become more advanced you'll notice that your volume threshold/requirement will increase.

[xxx_jfb_xxx]

Is it a good sign to deload when you start LOSING some strength? I'm not talking about a lot. I went in on Tuesday and put up 215 for 9 reps on bench press. My previous session I got 10 reps and felt good like I could have gotten an 11th if I really wanted to. After 9 I was toast. I think that's a good sign a deload may be in order, but just wanted to hear your opinion.

[Kelei]

Is it a good sign to deload when you start LOSING some strength? I'm not talking about a lot. I went in on Tuesday and put up 215 for 9 reps on bench press. My previous session I got 10 reps and felt good like I could have gotten an 11th if I really wanted to. After 9 I was toast. I think that's a good sign a deload may be in order, but just wanted to hear your opinion.

No, it's not uncommon for some lifters to lose 20% of their strength during a loading phase and then still rebound well beyond their initial strength levels after a deload. Admittingly not many people here are going to want to or be able to go to such extremes but the point I'm trying to make is that losing a bit of strength is nothing to be alarmed/concerned about, it's quite a common thing during dual factor (loading/deloading) routines.

[time007]

thanks for this guide Kelei. I am going to try it out tomorrow

[VicRattlehead]

Kelei, could I get your current 'official' stance on training 3 days per week? Full body or 2 split hitting everything every 4-5 days with greater volume?

I'm running full body currently but find I'm toast after about 5 exercises with any decent volume so I'm thinking of cutting down to an a/b routine of

DB Rows
Flat Bench
Front Squat
Db Curl
Calves

Chins
Inc Bench
RDL
Overhead Tri ext
Calves

Or the alternative is running upper/lower with most of the exercises in the current OP.
Thanks for any guidance, Dazza

[kush007bond]

^^ Good to know. Today again on flat BP ( I am continuously trying to increasing 10-12RM), my resting time was going up so after 30 sets I just decreased the weight by about 10% and finished 50 sets. But after that on incline BP i have to go further down on weights.

On another note, Kelei what are your views on essential supps/food? I recently got blood tested, and found my vit D levels are on lower side ( 27 ng/dl) but have B12 on higher side ( tested since I found some grey hairs on beard).

my majority of earlier diet has been mostly chicken/eggs/wheat/rice/whey/crea/ very few veg over last few years.


i am upgrading my food habits with following modifications:
- Lots of veggies/fruits and a quality multi ( i know should have done this long back)
- Nuts, EV Olive, Coconut oil, D3/fish-oil supp
- cu,paba for hair
thinking of supplementing with calcium too. Can't help but think that am deficient in some vit/mineral because of the less than average progress i'hv have made.

[GeraltOfRivia5]

The entire point of an accumulation (loading) phase is to overreach, you're supposed to train with too much volume. If you don't come back stronger after a deload your volume is simply too low, you'll still make progress but not at an ideal rate.

Use some trial and error and keep gradually increasing your volume during each subsequent loading phase until you start coming back stronger after deloading, this is how you find your individual volume threshold/requirement, it varies from person to person. As you become more advanced you'll notice that your volume threshold/requirement will increase.

And what would be TOO much volume, how do we know if we are doing TOO much? Are we supposed to always reach 3 weeks of loading, or would it be just as fine to be exhausted after roughly 2 weeks? Is the goal to get exhausted as fast as possible (as in 2 weeks is better/just as fine as 3 weeks of loading), so we can deload faster and also "come back stronger" faster? Or is 3 weeks the "sweet spot" we should always aim for -- Lower the volume if we can't reach 3 full weeks of loading?

Thanks

[smeyichou]

Deload means no gym at all for the week, or just exercise with lighter weights and staying away from failure? Or is it personal preference?

[Jasonk282]

Deload means no gym at all for the week, or just exercise with lighter weights and staying away from failure? Or is it personal preference?

Personal preference

[Jasonk282]

And what would be TOO much volume, how do we know if we are doing TOO much? Are we supposed to always reach 3 weeks of loading, or would it be just as fine to be exhausted after roughly 2 weeks? Is the goal to get exhausted as fast as possible (as in 2 weeks is better/just as fine as 3 weeks of loading), so we can deload faster and also "come back stronger" faster? Or is 3 weeks the "sweet spot" we should always aim for -- Lower the volume if we can't reach 3 full weeks of loading?

Thanks

If you are unable to recover for you next session then your volume is probably too high. It's always better to start of low and add volume.

Or you can do say 40-50 reps as a target goal and if you are really feeling it push to 50 if not, just do your 40.

[benh2]

Deload means no gym at all for the week, or just exercise with lighter weights and staying away from failure? Or is it personal preference?

I lift three times per week so I just miss my third workout (a Friday) so it means I don't lift for five consecutive days. That's my deload.

[standalj]

Hello everyone! I am happy to report that I am back! Some of you may recall that I was making really good progress with Kelei's routine last year until I strained my left shoulder in September 2014. This is what I looked like prior to the injury (don't have a before/after pic):



After my injury I saw several doctors, specialists, physical therapists, etc. Complete waste of my time in my opinion because they never really found the root cause of my injury. An X-ray found a minor amount of arthritis in my glenohumeral joint. An ultrasound revealed some inflammation and thinning of my bicep tendon. I was given some anti-flammatory pills and referred to PT.

Anyways, last week was the first time I was able to get back to the gym in 7 months. Needless to say I lost all the strength, conditioning, tone, etc. that I had worked hard to achieve. I am back to square one. I am going to take it slow to make sure I don't re-aggreviate my previous injury. I am glad to be back though! Happy lifting and may the gains be with you!

[64509chvl]

Hello everyone! I am happy to report that I am back! Some of you may recall that I was making really good progress with Kelei's routine last year until I strained my left shoulder in September 2014. This is what I looked like prior to the injury (don't have a before/after pic):



After my injury I saw several doctors, specialists, physical therapists, etc. Complete waste of my time in my opinion because they never really found the root cause of my injury. An X-ray found a minor amount of arthritis in my glenohumeral joint. An ultrasound revealed some inflammation and thinning of my bicep tendon. I was given some anti-flammatory pills and referred to PT.

Anyways, last week was the first time I was able to get back to the gym in 7 months. Needless to say I lost all the strength, conditioning, tone, etc. that I had worked hard to achieve. I am back to square one. I am going to take it slow to make sure I don't re-aggreviate my previous injury. I am glad to be back though! Happy lifting and may the gains be with you!

I feel your pain buddy, I'm in the same boat...good to see you back & keep on chippin at it!

[atgbrahsrs]

Hello everyone! I am happy to report that I am back! Some of you may recall that I was making really good progress with Kelei's routine last year until I strained my left shoulder in September 2014. This is what I looked like prior to the injury (don't have a before/after pic):



After my injury I saw several doctors, specialists, physical therapists, etc. Complete waste of my time in my opinion because they never really found the root cause of my injury. An X-ray found a minor amount of arthritis in my glenohumeral joint. An ultrasound revealed some inflammation and thinning of my bicep tendon. I was given some anti-flammatory pills and referred to PT.

Anyways, last week was the first time I was able to get back to the gym in 7 months. Needless to say I lost all the strength, conditioning, tone, etc. that I had worked hard to achieve. I am back to square one. I am going to take it slow to make sure I don't re-aggreviate my previous injury. I am glad to be back though! Happy lifting and may the gains be with you!

woke up feeling a bit depressed due to non-gym related stuff

this fueled today's motivation workout\

good luck to you, too.

[standalj]

I feel your pain buddy, I'm in the same boat...good to see you back & keep on chippin at it!

Thanks buddy! I am doing the beginner routine from this thread:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=162992991

I am doing a whopping 30 reps per exercise (more for calves). I am limiting the weight of my upper body exercises (probably ~10 lbs short of actual 10RM) to really ease back in to it. I will give it about a month and start increasing the weight. I am really anxious to get back to the intermediate routine (not just from a strength perspective) because I left the gym feeling so fulfilled. On the beginner routine I leave the gym with a fair amount left in the tank.

My morale is so much better when working out and being on a strict diet. I completely went off my diet when I stopped working out. Went from 10% BF to probably 14-15% right now (yep disgusting!).

[standalj]

woke up feeling a bit depressed due to non-gym related stuff

this fueled today's motivation workout\

good luck to you, too.

That's great to hear! I am a true success story of Kelei's routines working. There is no BS behind them. Follow his routines, diet/supplements, etc. and you WILL make gains. Period.

Prior to starting Kelei's routine last year, I was doing the Body for Life program. I was following that program for about 7 months, and prior to that I hadn't worked out in over a decade. In the following picture, the pic of me on the left is me being on the BFL program for 7 months and Kelei's for just less than 3:

[atgbrahsrs]

That's great to hear! I am a true success story of Kelei's routines working. There is no BS behind them. Follow his routines, diet/supplements, etc. and you WILL make gains. Period.

Sick.

Pretty sure you will get back to this level.

And thanks, doing the OP. It has been swell. Cutting , though.

[standalj]

Sick.

Pretty sure you will get back to this level.

And thanks, doing the OP. It has been swell. Cutting , though.

I am on a cut as well. I am more concerned with getting my BF back down and then I will start a bulk/cut phase.

[atgbrahsrs]

I am on a cut as well. I am more concerned with getting my BF back down and then I will start a bulk/cut phase.

In real life, for physique goals, that is pretty much more important.

Apart from that, scientific evidence suggests that bulking above 15-17 percent bodyfat will like yield more fat gainz and less muscle ( in contrast to if the trainee was in the low double digits).

[sonnydfrizzy]

In real life, for physique goals, that is pretty much more important.

Apart from that, scientific evidence suggests that bulking above 15-17 percent bodyfat will like yield more fat gainz and less muscle ( in contrast to if the trainee was in the low double digits).

There is no evidence of that man ^^^ I have done my digging and nothing besides *potentially* negatively effecting insulin sensitivity has come up.

Those are just suggestions thrown out by the experts like Lyle Mcdouche to ensure that individuals with the "physique goal" stay within the realms of relatively lean even when bulking.

Also once you hit around 15-17% bf, it is really difficult to visually track fat gain:muscle gain. Once you go above that given range, you start to get those "eff it I am already fat" feels and then it gets worse from there hahaha

Better way to bulk and cut if physique is your goal... bulk til your abs are almost gone and cut until you can see them again

[atgbrahsrs]

There is no evidence of that man ^^^ I have done my digging and nothing besides *potentially* negatively effecting insulin sensitivity has come up.

Those are just suggestions thrown out by the experts like Lyle Mcdouche to ensure that individuals with the "physique goal" stay within the realms of relatively lean even when bulking.

Also once you hit around 15-17% bf, it is really difficult to visually track fat gain:muscle gain. Once you go above that given range, you start to get those "eff it I am already fat" feels and then it gets worse from there hahaha

Better way to bulk and cut if physique is your goal... bulk til your abs are almost gone and cut until you can see them again

Whatever, lab-rats who look like an average human being, such as Lyle McDonald, and people who jerk off to PubMed studies and are neither average nor a lab-rat, such as Jason Blaha, are none of my concern.


Agree on the psychological factors.


edit: wait, "Better way to bulk and cut if physique is your goal... bulk til your abs are almost gone and cut until you can see them again"

What I said never suggested disregarding bulk/cut cycles lol.


Bulk till your abs are almost gone.... you basically said what I said instead of numbers of BF you used definition of abs.

[Chicago1287]

If you are unable to recover for you next session then your volume is probably too high. It's always better to start of low and add volume.

Or you can do say 40-50 reps as a target goal and if you are really feeling it push to 50 if not, just do your 40.

When I did this routine, it was very obvious within the workout if the volume was too high. I've had workouts where my arms would just fail to even move a 5lb dumbbell.

[Jasonk282]

There is no evidence of that man ^^^ I have done my digging and nothing besides *potentially* negatively effecting insulin sensitivity has come up.

Those are just suggestions thrown out by the experts like Lyle Mcdouche to ensure that individuals with the "physique goal" stay within the realms of relatively lean even when bulking.

Also once you hit around 15-17% bf, it is really difficult to visually track fat gain:muscle gain. Once you go above that given range, you start to get those "eff it I am already fat" feels and then it gets worse from there hahaha

Better way to bulk and cut if physique is your goal... bulk til your abs are almost gone and cut until you can see them again

Which is all the same thing as once you get above 15% you tend to gain more fat than muscle. Same goes for the longer you are in this game.

If you do things correctly then after a few years you cane really only out on a few pounds if muscle a year...so it's far better to remain as lean as you can rather ham bulking and cutting and gaining fat over muscle and looking the same when you cut.

[DamonX]

You also fail to establish a set point if you do something like that. Constantly going ham on bulking, and then shredding.. doesn't really give time to establish a new set point for your body.

[ThatOneLurker]

This may seem like common sense in this thread but my triceps have always been a weak point aesthetically imo and I figured exercise variety was the answer because of the increased motor unit recruitment but in the past 4-6 months out of other priorities and laziness my variety has dropped a lot and the only tricep workout I've done are pressdowns.


My triceps have seen a huge improvement in that time frame just by increasing weight on pressdowns. I'm near the end of the stack at this point.

[SXElifter]

This may seem like common sense in this thread but my triceps have always been a weak point aesthetically imo and I figured exercise variety was the answer because of the increased motor unit recruitment but in the past 4-6 months out of other priorities and laziness my variety has dropped a lot and the only tricep workout I've done are pressdowns.


My triceps have seen a huge improvement in that time frame just by increasing weight on pressdowns. I'm near the end of the stack at this point.

This is how I train often now.. I do a workout with a few select exercises and do a **** load of sets with them. For example, yesterday I performed 20 sets of flat bench press, about 15 sets of flyes (machine), and about 15 sets of tricep pressdowns.

Whenever anyone asks about how I train, I tell them my main training philosophy (in other words: what I've learned from Kelei lol) is always performing as many reps as possible in every single set, and training with very high volume.