[quote]drm17 wrote:
thanks for your comments guys. i know i dont have to destroy myself in the gym…but i didnt even break a sweat or get out of breath. ill jus work my ass off to try and up the weight. i used to be a runner so my strength as of now is low.[/quote]
Just give it some time. Everything will come together. And one good thing about having been a runner, is that mass gains will come quickly. At least they did for me after stopping high endurance training-my body just seemed primed and hungry to put on muscle. And give CW’s programs a chance and some time. I started my last bulk with a standard 1-bodypart-per-week-fry-the-muscle routine. I gained A LOT of mass, but I also felt consistently crappy and grumpy. I was definitely overtraining. The second half I used CW’s ABBH. I gained at least as much muscle and felt much better and more energetic. I was able to enjoy the rest of my life much more and still make good progress.
[quote]drm17 wrote:
well i guess im a “newb” since i cant lift that much weight. my 1rm was only around 205lbs…so i did about 170 lbs on the bench n then paired it w/ 120 lbs rows. waited 60 seconds between sets. maybe its jus not hard cuz im not pushin enough weight. however its hard for me to keep progressing weight w/ proper form. i jus get to a point to where my form fails n i jus cant move any heavier weight.[/quote]
unless your a bigger dude (200+ is big to me I’m maybe 5’6 so shut your trap!) your strength sounds at least decent.
Also if your not comfortable under bigger weights I think this is a great rep scheme for you to work in. You will get good volume and the intensity is high enough to get strength benifits without pushing real close to your max. Also alot of trainies their form falls off more the further into a set they get, so keeping reps low should help you keep good form.
I would say stick with this rep scheme on some of your bigger movements (bench/rows/squats/deads) and slowly move up in weight. I think If you do 10x3 for 4-6 weeks you will crush your previous 205lb max bench
well today i did 10X3 for dips w/ 45lbs and pullups w/ 5lbs. def more challenging this time. i must not have used enough weight before. i plan on using a 10X3 format but now only using it on 1 exercise per workout.
I would suspect that your are relitivly new to training hard, and because of your newness you arnt able to recruite as much muscle when you lift, (or as much as a experanced lifter would). Give your self a few years, and try a 10x3 workout again it will be tough.
Good luck
Will42
exactly will… i have been lifting for 4 yrs with the same body composition. this past few months is when i started to buckle down…eat more, rest more, and lift smarter.
It is definetly relative. At a 400 lbs. max 80% is 320 lbs. 10 sets of 3 at that is pretty tough whereas a max of 275 your working weight is only 220.
Chad, this does bring up a question for me though. Just as powerlifters don’t usually work at 5 x 5 too often due to the amount of weight they can move, for a person that is pretty strong already and is using your methods would an 8 x 3 maybe be better? I’m OK with being way off here…just let me know. Thanks!