Hey there! How would I go about incorporating strength training into my bodybuilding routines? I’ve tried following westside programs and others but there just isn’t enough volume for me, I don’t feel like I’ve worked out that much.
To clarify, is your goal to get stronger while you get bigger, or to feel like you’ve worked out enough each workout?
As in, if you had a program wherein you get bigger and stronger from following it, but it was lower volume, would you follow it, or do you need to feel like you’ve been blitzed at the end of each workout?
[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
To clarify, is your goal to get stronger while you get bigger, or to feel like you’ve worked out enough each workout?
As in, if you had a program wherein you get bigger and stronger from following it, but it was lower volume, would you follow it, or do you need to feel like you’ve been blitzed at the end of each workout?[/quote]
Yeah, I’d like to get stronger while I get bigger. I enjoy the style of training that powerlifting implies (singles and speed work) but, this has little relevance in bodybuilding. How should I go about using those in a bodybuilding split? I use it as a means of stress relief and to help me get through classes without going bonkers. I like to feel tired and blitzed after a workout, like I can’t walk. Powerlifting just didn’t do that for me!
Paraphrase of Matt Mills “Train your compound moves like a powerlifter, accessory moves like a bodybuilder, and condition like a strongman”
[quote]chobbs wrote:
Paraphrase of Matt Mills “Train your compound moves like a powerlifter, accessory moves like a bodybuilder, and condition like a strongman”[/quote]
I really like this, thanks for sharing.
And Confinative,it’s definitely a viable option employed by many top bodybuilders of the 50s and 60s like Chuck Sipes and Marvin Eder plus has been proven effective by modern experts like Dan Trink in the article below. Just hit the first exercise as a compound movement in the lower rep range such as 1-6 and then move into hypertrophy work for the pump , muscular damage and lactic acid build up.
For example chest would be your standard bench press using a low rep range followed by flys and/or dumbbell presses in the 8-12 range.
Triceps could be close grip bench followed by overhead extensions and/or press downs ect.
Or if you train chest and back together hit both compounds first then isolations.
Or you can follow the ideology of alternating heavy and moderate bodybuilding style days . Guys like Robby Robinson use that exclusively.
Or…You can do your exercises with varying rep ranges for example…
Bench press : 8 reps, 6 reps, 4 reps , 15 reps .
There is a lot of options that have all worked , find what you prefer with experimentation and an open mind.
I hope that helped /gave you a few ideas, good luck!
P.S here is that article indicating your considered approach is probably best for hormone optimization anyway.
https://www.T-Nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/a_training_program_for_hormone_optimization
[quote]Confinative wrote:
How would I go about incorporating strength training into my bodybuilding routines?[/quote]
Based on some of your previous threads, I thought you were primarily into powerlifting and not using a bodybuilding split. So I’m confused.
What does your current training look like - days, exercises, sets, and reps?
Understand that feeling like shit after a workout absolutely does not mean you had a useful or productive workout. I get that you want to vent some stress in the gym, but a “feel like death or nothing at all”-attitude will eventually lead to burnout, or injury.
Want to feel tired and not walk right after a workout? Train fasted and without water breaks, and finish each session with “Angie”, a CrossFit WOD of 100 pull-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 bodyweight squats as fast as possible. (Average time is around 20 minutes, but some experienced CFers bang it out in less than half that).
Or you could design a well-designed program that actually gets you closer to your goals. Like the guys have said, it’s not all that hard to get stronger while getting bigger. You just need to train smart.
[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:
[quote]Confinative wrote:
How would I go about incorporating strength training into my bodybuilding routines?[/quote]
Based on some of your previous threads, I thought you were primarily into powerlifting and not using a bodybuilding split. So I’m confused.
What does your current training look like - days, exercises, sets, and reps?
Understand that feeling like shit after a workout absolutely does not mean you had a useful or productive workout. I get that you want to vent some stress in the gym, but a “feel like death or nothing at all”-attitude will eventually lead to burnout, or injury.
Want to feel tired and not walk right after a workout? Train fasted and without water breaks, and finish each session with “Angie”, a CrossFit WOD of 100 pull-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 bodyweight squats as fast as possible. (Average time is around 20 minutes, but some experienced CFers bang it out in less than half that).
Or you could design a well-designed program that actually gets you closer to your goals. Like the guys have said, it’s not all that hard to get stronger while getting bigger. You just need to train smart.[/quote]
Exactly, I missed the want to feel beat down comment.
Almost all bodybuilders I’ve talked to recommend having just a little left so you come back to “pick it back up” . Feeling energized as you leave isn’t a bad thing.
[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:
[quote]Confinative wrote:
How would I go about incorporating strength training into my bodybuilding routines?[/quote]
Based on some of your previous threads, I thought you were primarily into powerlifting and not using a bodybuilding split. So I’m confused.
What does your current training look like - days, exercises, sets, and reps?
Understand that feeling like shit after a workout absolutely does not mean you had a useful or productive workout. I get that you want to vent some stress in the gym, but a “feel like death or nothing at all”-attitude will eventually lead to burnout, or injury.
Want to feel tired and not walk right after a workout? Train fasted and without water breaks, and finish each session with “Angie”, a CrossFit WOD of 100 pull-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 bodyweight squats as fast as possible. (Average time is around 20 minutes, but some experienced CFers bang it out in less than half that).
Or you could design a well-designed program that actually gets you closer to your goals. Like the guys have said, it’s not all that hard to get stronger while getting bigger. You just need to train smart.[/quote]
Right now it’s the main 3 lifts done in a sort of pyramid up to 1-2 reps max followed by the rest being bodybuilding sets/reps. For example a chest day would consist of:
flat bench - WU, 135x5, 155x5, 185x3, 205x2, 225x1, 235x1
Inc bench - 3x5
decline hammer press - 4x5-6
cable flyes - 3x10
incline DB flyes - 3x8
then i’d prob do some lat raises and a couple tricep exercises.
[quote]Confinative wrote:
Right now it’s the main 3 lifts done in a sort of pyramid up to 1-2 reps max followed by the rest being bodybuilding sets/reps. For example a chest day would consist of:
flat bench - WU, 135x5, 155x5, 185x3, 205x2, 225x1, 235x1
Inc bench - 3x5
decline hammer press - 4x5-6
cable flyes - 3x10
incline DB flyes - 3x8
then i’d prob do some lat raises and a couple tricep exercises.[/quote]
You’re kinda saying one thing but you’re doing something else. 3x5 and 4x5-6 aren’t what most people would consider “bodybuilding sets/reps”. For that, you want more volume. Anything in the 3-5x8-12 range, as a rule of thumb. So give that a shot. For the accessory work, don’t drop under 8 reps. That alone will slightly increase your volume and help you feel like you’re killing it in the gym.
I’d also address the redundancy of doing two different flye movements in the same workout. It’s rarely necessary.
5/3/1 bodybuilding template half way down…