Alternate Periodization Article

Training Bodybuilding
1

I’ve been doing quite a bit of reading about periodization, and ran across an article that went against the grain:

SECRETS for Steroid-Free Muscle Gains
by Scott Carrell
ISMA Certified Personal Trainer
Member, IDEA-International Association of Fitness Professionals
1st Place, 1985 Knoxville Bodybuilding Championships (Open)
1st Place, 1982 Tennessee Mixed Pairs Championships (Open)

http://staff.washington.edu/griffin/carrell_period.html

He talks about bodybuilding for natural guys. He makes the claim that doing ONE working set for each lift in a workout is sufficient for maximal stregth AND size gains. Here are two direct quotes from the article regarding the number of sets:

“When I started periodization, I did three. Then results slowed down, and I dropped to two. Results slowed again, and I dropped to one. Now I’m always well rested and progressing, and I can’t seem to do less than one set (darn it).”

“One maximum set IS sufficient for maximum strength and size gains.”

Do any of you guys know of anything supporting one set per lift? Have any of guys tried anything like this??

2

Considering he says he will do only two chest exercises on chest day, I doubt that he in fact does only one set, and thus that day in the gym is only 3 sets total (2 exercises for chest, and 1 for triceps: in his Q&A he said only one exercise for triceps and “destroying” the triceps with it.)

He likes to COUNT it that way.

It is unlikely that the other sets performed were actually negligible in effect. Regardless of belief by some that the only reps that count are the ones near “failure.”

What you might find is that his “I do only one working set per exercise” example of 245x6 may well be:

45: 20 reps
135, 185, 205, 225, 245: all 6 reps

Or something like this.

I just doubt that the guy really does only 3 sets on his trip to the gym that day.

Besides that, he later says “one maximum set.”

It wouldn’t be the “maximum” set if there weren’t others.

There are people that LIKE to claim/say/believe “one set” and also people who love the word “failure.” You can’t assume that these people necessarily actually do only one set or in fact regularly do anything that actually involves failing.

They just like saying these things this way. It makes one part of an “in” group of sorts to say these things and maybe feels hardcore for them, or perhaps they believe it sounds hardcore.

Of course, gotta say you train with “intensity” too so everyone will know you’re a tough guy.

The reason I am putting emphasis on their decision to use words contrary to what they mean, and the need to understand that this is going on, is that readers quite naturally become deceived by these things. They will actually go to the gym and do one set of bench press, one set of flyes, and one set of pushdowns, and be done for the day and think they are doing just as this guy has won contests with.

The periodization is fine. I’ve never done it that way, but often have done for example from 9 reps down to 3, dropping a rep each week. He has good points on that.