I just wanted to post this up for those of us who have ever been stuck in the following scenario:
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1x week frequency feels like too little. By Monday, we’re itching to get to our Wednesday leg workout.
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2x week frequency is a bit too much for us now, because we’ve really started to push the envelope as far as volume and intensity are concerned.
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The 7-day week is our only option and our career and schedule don’t allow for us to do 4 on 1 off, or 2 on 1 off, etc.
Solution? Perhaps it’s obvious, but not everyone thinks of it at first!
Stick to 3 or 4 day cycles and fit them into the same days of the week on a repeating cycle. Here’s a few examples:
You want to run push/pull/legs and can only train M, Tu, Th, F.
M: push
T: pull
Th: legs
F: push
Then the following monday you start with pull.
Say you want to do chest/delts, legs, back, arms a la JM’s prescription, but want to train M-F.
M: legs
T: chest/delts
W: back
Th: arms
F: legs
Then following Monday is chest/delts.
There ya go. Fit your split to the standard work week and land yourself somewhere in between 1 and 2x frequency. You can find your “sweet spot,” which IMHO is very rarely gonna be 1 or 2.
I like that idea.
I saw the following splits written by Tom Venuto and the Phillips brothers before, which is similar to your idea here.
Sunday: off
Monday: Chest, shoulders, triceps
Tuesday: Back, biceps
Wednesday: off
Thursday: legs
Friday: chest, shoulders, triceps
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
Then follow that sequence for training and off days from there.
You feel alright training biceps the day after back?
You look amazing in your new avi. Congratulations on your transformation. Phenomenal!
[quote]BrickHead wrote:
I like that idea.
I saw the following splits written by Tom Venuto and the Phillips brothers before, which is similar to your idea here.
Sunday: off
Monday: Chest, shoulders, triceps
Tuesday: Back, biceps
Wednesday: off
Thursday: legs
Friday: chest, shoulders, triceps
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
Then follow that sequence for training and off days from there.
You feel alright training biceps the day after back? [/quote]
I actually prefer it. It forces me to minimize how much I use bis on all pulling movements and keeps my ego in check on bis, so I focus on feel.
That’s the exact same split I posted in my original example btw =/
This is an excellent post OP. The 7 day rotation doesn’t seem to work with me very well either. Recently I have been adding a “booster shot” set for a muscle four days after training it. By the time I come back to the day to train (1 week later) I feel a little fresher. The only problem is that it is hard to keep track of everything.
I think you are on to something because, as you said, once a week is not enough and twice is too much.
[quote]BrickHead wrote:
You look amazing in your new avi. Congratulations on your transformation. Phenomenal![/quote]
Thanks! It’s very sad though, to be honest, cuz once I put on a t-shirt people can’t even tell I lift =p
(On a serious note, I’ve gotten 10-fold more comments and people asking for me to make them diet and training plans at 175 then I ever did at 200 and up. It’s almost like it’s about symmetry and aesthetic and not all about size!!)
[quote]jskrabac wrote:
(On a serious note, I’ve gotten 10-fold more comments and people asking for me to make them diet and training plans at 175 then I ever did at 200 and up. It’s almost like it’s about symmetry and aesthetic and not all about size!!)[/quote]
IMO it shows much more understanding of the tiny details that optimal nutrition can have on a physique. It’s not always just “eat big/lift big”
S
Funny you made this thread today J.
I was literally just talking to my fiance about changing my split. I want to be able to get everything done in 4 days, Mon Tue thur Fri.
Chest/shoulders Mon, back Tue, legs Thu, bis/tris Fri.
With my busy school schedule and working full time all summer on top of classes, I just need more time for regular life lol.
Just FYI, the OP’s approach is essentially what Clay Hyght advocated in his articles a few years ago, largely because research seems to support the notion that overcompensation peaks to the point of full recovery after 5 days. He ultimately said, if I recall, that he sticks with 7 days because it’s just more convenient for him.
[quote]The3Commandments wrote:
Just FYI, the OP’s approach is essentially what Clay Hyght advocated in his articles a few years ago, largely because research seems to support the notion that overcompensation peaks to the point of full recovery after 5 days. He ultimately said, if I recall, that he sticks with 7 days because it’s just more convenient for him.[/quote]
Right on. Thanks for pointing that out. Lots of respect for that guy.