Auto regulated training explained

[coachcalande]

Anyone who’s ever followed baseball understands “power surges” and “biorhythms “ as it relates to performance and hot streaks.

What if I told you that bodybuilders and powerlifters also have hot streaks in their performance and would be wise to break the shackles of planned progression and instead take advantage of the power surge and get after it in the gym?

In real life, there are variables that your planned progression program just can’t account for. Stress, sleep, hydration, nutrition changes, injuries, illness, energy, motivation and mood changes, hormone changes….are all things that will impact an athletic performance.

Training is an athletic performance.

[coachcalande]

So then what does it mean to self regulate or auto regulate training? Does it mean you have no system? No actual program and no way to make progress? Of course not.

There are several ways to make progress in the gym. You can overload your muscles *examples* with;
1- a greater amount of weight in a desired rep range
2- a greater volume of work, total sets and reps, poundage lifted in a set amount of time
3- metabolic stress, increased time under tension with things like drop sets, forced reps, supersets, giant sets or even the mysterious restricted blood flow training.

In the end, no matter how you cut it, you progress by being able to do bigger lifts and or more reps and sets.

So How does one autoregulate in a workout program?

[coachcalande]

1- start by examining your own availability for training. How many hours are you willing to invest each week? Consider the law of diminishing returns in your training. That’s the first thing to really understand about auto regulated training. More work is better but not proportional and after a certain point, can cause overuse injury or create a feeling of being a slave to the gym. Your enthusiasm may wax and wane over the weeks, months, years and even decades of training. Create a plan that will work for decades, not weeks.

2- a sensible template - there’s no reason to reinvent the wheel- start with proven programming and adjust based on your experiences. For the sake of this discussion I’ll offer an example of beginner, intermediate and more experienced training routines but all three will be based on just 3-4 days a week in the gym. All three will require less than 90 minutes in the gym. By no means are we going to say that any one split or routine is a holy grail and self regulated training folks need to choose what works for them. That’s the point.

[coachcalande]

All of the following starts with the basic approach of making the body bigger, faster, stronger through a series of pushing, pulling, squatting movements. Powerlifters/weightlifters are most interested in practicing the tested lifts while bodybuilding includes that approach combined with a greater variety In exercises, angles and volume in a slightly higher rep range.

Power building is an approach that most natural auto regulated trainers would do well to explore. The idea her is to gain as much strength and size as possible. Master the big basic lifts and gradually introduce greater variety and more angles later. Understand this newbies…you really can’t cut and shred what you don’t have.

Here are three basic lists of exercises for an every other day approach:

Beginner level:
Squats 3x 5-8
Bench 3x5-8
Row 3x5-8
Military press 3x5-8
Situps 3 x AMRAP

After about two -four weeks move to advanced beginner

Squats 4x5-8
Bench 4x5-8
Rows 4x5-8
Military press 4x5-8
Barbell curls 3x6-10
Pushdowns 3x6-10
Situps 3xAMRAP

After about 6 -8 weeks progress to intermediate and split upper body/lower +arms into separate days. This allows for greater effort, time, volume of work as well as more rest days between workouts. These are 60-90 min at most

Lower plus arms
Squats 4x5-8
Leg press 3x5-8
Leg curls 3x 6-10
Calf raises 3x15-20
Barbell curls 3x6-10
Pushdowns 3x6-10
Db curls 3x6-10
Triceps ext 3x6-10


Day off

Upper
Bench 4x5-8
Incline bench 4x5-8
Rows 4x5-8
Pulldowns 4x5-8
Military press 4x5-8
Upright rows 4x5-8
Situps 4x AMRAP

Day off

Repeat

As soreness disappears and if enthusiastic training is obvious, consider advanced intermediate training :

Lower plus arms
Squats
Leg press
Leg ext
Leg curls
Calf raise

Barbell curls
Pushdowns
Db curls
Triceps ext

Day off

Bench press
Incline press
Dips or flyes
Rows
Lat pulls
Db rows or narrow pulldowns
Shoulder press
Upright row
Db side lateral raise
Situps

Day off

[coachcalande]

Ok, so what then is the progression method now that there’s a basic understanding of gradually adding sets and movements to target each muscle group.

First notice a gradual increase in sets. Each of us eventually knows what we can handle in terms of work, and it goes without saying that it does take time to know your body and your ability to recover. For most of us, 6-12 sets for a targetted muscle group is going to provide results and allow for continuing enthusiastic training. If you start to regularly over reach into say 20-25 sets per body part, there’s a greater chance for burnout or injury.

Right around 8 sets of right around 8 reps has been referred to as “an honest workout “ that even the pros can enjoy. That’s essentially two movements, four sets each for each body part.

To me, auto regulated training would include daily decisions on exercise selections (am I going to do two, three or even four movements today for the targetted muscles?) and it would include choices on rep ranges for each movement as well. For example:

Bench press 4 sets 3-5 reps, really after recruiting muscle fibers fast.
Incline bench 4 sets 6-8 reps in a sweet spot for size and strength
Flyes or pec deck, 4 sets 6-10 reps squeezing and holding, that mind muscle connection…isolating the targetted muscles.

When pressed for time auto regulated training might mean just two movements but five or six sets each if after the same total sets.
Maybe it’s bench press and DB inclines that day hitting some sets of 8-10, some 6-8, some 3-5 in a pyramid as well.

One of the key components to self regulated choices on movement, sets, reps, poundages is this…none of it will make you smaller! Work hard.

[coachcalande]

Understanding that multiple studies have shown that training at least close to failure if not actually reaching failure with a variety of rep ranges (think % of 1 rep max) will cause adaptations resulting in BOTH hypertrophy and an increase in 1 rep max. Training does not need to be boring! You , as you gain experience, can add variety in movements, sets, reps and resistance amounts provided you carry sets close to failure.

For simplicity, whenever you reach the upper guide to your desired reps (with perfect form), you then progress or graduate to a higher weight.

If , when self regulated, you were to set your weights too light, no worries, simply add weight
And perform another set. It’s not going to make you smaller or weaker!

There are some considerations. Always make decisions that allow you to live to lift another day. You might have just crushed a new PR (personal record ) on deadlifts and chomp at the bit for more…depending on your performance and form you may decide to go for it or be happy with it and break that PR next time!

It’s very exciting to have a monster day in the gym where multiple PRs are set, this is part of auto regulated training and biorhythms…you might have a day where movement after movement your upper guide limits for reps are reached and crossed…

You might also have days where you are training at less than optimal sleep or inadequate nutrition…real life…and can simply automatically adjust your training..”I’m going to stay in the 10-12 rep range and just really feel the movement and muscles contract.”

That’s ok.

[coachcalande]

So what then can be done to track progress?
1- monitor your strength in push/pull/squat

* This is one reason I love power building- train in bench, deadlifts and squats and see that total increase while also enjoying bodybuilding training with various movements and reps/volume.

2- monitor your “rep records”

Set up a chart like this ( has your best lift for each rep)for each movement you choose to include in your tracking (you really don’t need to track every set/rep youre going to do over decades)

Bench press
Rep- record lift
1- 405
2-385
3-375
4-370
5-365
6-345
7-350
8-325
9-310
10-295
11-285
12- 275

Each time you do a set, no matter your exercise order, set number or split, if you beat your previous rep record, update your chart. You may be smart to put a date and notes/comments.

Doesn’t it make sense that progress is progress no matter the rep range and you will build more muscle with variety in reps, sets and movements.
2

[WolfRose7]

Preferences for arrangement and intensity selections aside.

Quality posts

[coachcalande]

I am going to post my thoughts as I work through my own training this am.

It’s a legs/arms day and though I had busy Friday and Saturday I am fairly refreshed and ready to train. I really don’t know exactly what my workout will be but I am squatting first. I am choosing smith machine squats as I have some Achilles pain and heel pain related to running hill sprints and jogging. I am wrapping my knees and will start very light and high reps for a warmup and pretest of my injury and performance ability…

To me, on squats anything from 3-20 reps is golden. I will surely do at least five sets. Here we go…

[coachcalande]

First set…135x17
Going to add 30 lbs…

[coachcalande]

After letting my breathing return closer to normal my second set..
165x15

I’m going up another 30 pounds. No pain in heel or Achilles. Everything feels great!

[coachcalande]

Set three gave me 195x11…going up another 30 lbs, huffing n puffing after that one.

[coachcalande]

Set four, 225x8, thigh pump arrives.

[coachcalande]

Set five gave me 255x6. Going up another 30…In the 3-5 rep range, it’s much less cardio!

[coachcalande]

Gonna rest another minute and get my breathing under control and my mind right..

[coachcalande]

Set six 285x5…adding 40

[coachcalande]

Set seven…after all those reps 325 might as well be 500. Got a mind set that anything over 1 is gravy…here we go?!

[coachcalande]

Set seven gave me 325x2. Considered a third…going up instead…

[coachcalande]

Taking a powerlifters rest…maybe a nap ha ha.

[coachcalande]

Final set 340x2.

I’m gonna front squat now.

Same approach, fewer sets…

[coachcalande]

Reset the weight at 135 for smith front squats which really target the quads.
I’m happy with my squat effort, a lot of volume, high intensity to or near failure, decent poundage considering the total reps and time under tension…

Now got to focus the mind on the quads here…piston like tempo..

[coachcalande]

Front squat set 1 135x9

Tiny mild soreness left surgically repaired knee. To be expected.

Adding 10 lbs…

[coachcalande]

Smith fronts set 2 145x 8…going up 10 more…

[coachcalande]

Set three on fronts 155x7…going up another 10

[coachcalande]

Set 4 165x6…had wear gloves, dripping with sweat and having trouble locking up the bar when hands are wet ….one more…adding ten.

[coachcalande]

Set five on smith front squats…175x5

Onward to the torch burn o leg extensions…

[coachcalande]

Leg ext

1- 144x14…

[coachcalande]

Leg ext
2- 166x11

[coachcalande]

Leg ext
3- 188x9

[coachcalande]

Leg ext
4- 198x8( last two were 3/4 reps)