I’m a long-time follower of Mike Mentzer since 1993 after a phone consult, currently doing his ideal routine with 5-7 days between workouts. Had been stagnant for a bit but making new gains with the added rest days.
I have heard of Ellington Darden over the years but just now decided to explore his teachings further. The 30-10-30- protocol looks like fun to do, fun meaning I like torture.
Thinking about doing 1 exercise per workout doing this, i.e. on shoulders and arms day do BB curls with 30-10-30. Also considering doing the complete full-body style for the summer as I do a lot of cycling and would be easier to fit in my schedule.
Any suggestions or thoughts?
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I prefer 2 workouts per week doing 30-10-30 full body with an NTF workout ( i call it an accessory workout
Monday 30-10-30
Leg press
Pec deck
Nautilus incline press
Nautilus Pullover
Machine row
Nautilus Shoulder press
Nautilus Preacher curl
Wednesday accessory 12 reps NTF
Hip abduction
Hip adduction
Calf press
Twist machine
Reverse curl
Nautilus lower back
Ab coaster
Friday 30-10-30
Nautilus leg ext
Lying leg curl
Nautilus chest press
Nautilus pulldown
Nautilus lateral
Triceps ext
Nautilus ab crunch
I love this workout at almost 60 years old…all workouts is no more than 15 minutes in length
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Nice combination of exercises. I’m 66 and would probably take a few more days in between. Do you go to failure or stop just shy on the last 30-second negative as I’ve read El now recommends. I like hitting the same muscle group with a slightly different exercise each time, much I like I do with MM Ideal routine. I have a well-equipped home gym and can duplicate most of these with the exception of pullovers. I have a vertical leg press, leg extension and curl, pec deck, supported row, cable crossover, smith machine, and plenty of DB’s, power rack, preacher curl, etc. Thanks for the input.
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I aim for 5 to 8 reps…failure if i can’t reach 8…not failure if i reach 8
but failure is also not the grinding, grunting, face making, squeezing the handles type either
Simple Answer: DB Pullovers. Use only the first 3/4 of the movement.
Alternate: You can approximate POs if you have an overhead pulley. Set it up with a close-grip attachment or 2 single handles. At the top, your head will be bent forward and the handle(s) will be behind you head; your arm angle will be close to 90deg. Initiate with your lats and concentrate on ONLY rotating at the shoulder joint. As you pull down (and slightly back), move you head back after the handle clears your face and thrust your chest forward. Try to take the rep all the way til your wrists hit your upper abs.
Great idea! I had forgotten that I once used my adjustable cable machine and leaned forward on an incline bench to approximate pullovers. Thanks for the suggestion
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Im doing the 30 10 30 and have a real hard time getting to the next machine in 30 secs. Im at a commercial gym as well. And his workout then goes to 25 then 20 sec. I wonder how important that is.
Is it because its crowded or is there another reason?
I wouldn’t sweat that part for most exercises. How you do each exercise is much more important. Now, when you get to Pre-Exhaust techniques, setting those movements up as close together as possible will much more crucial.
Not really because i go at 3am.its just that the machines i use are spread out and i cant set up a machine and hold it.
Ok cool thanks!
I go at 5am and there are only 5 to 8 people in the gym so i have no issue
i think if you can get to the next exercise with-in a minute you will be fine
sometimes, if someone is using a specific machine…i move on to another and go back at the end of workout
Perfect! sometimes I get so caught up in these programs and in my mind they have to be exact or they won’t work. Thanks for relaxing my anxiety.
Consistency and variety works
I had same question about time between sets. I train in my home gym but it takes time to switch between things, move benches around, unload and reload bars, etc. Last night did 8 exercises in 20 minutes and will work on reducing that a bit if I can. I use JE Fit to track my workouts and it has a timer between sets. I set it at 60 seconds and try to beat it. I’d guess my sets are taking about 60-80 seconds. I’m trying to gauge weights so I come close to failing on the last 10 second negative but so far I’m lowering them much slower than that.
Seven exercises range from 12 to 15 minutes
however, i reduced my ten reps to 6 to 8 reps…when i reach 8 reps, I increase the weight next workout and my rep cadence is 2 pos and 3 neg
i also do a hybrid of 15 to 30 sec negative…all depends on how i feel that day
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Agree on the cadence. Trying to go 1/2 feels like I am not controlling it. Sounds like we are doing the same thing on negative. I’m using roughly the exercises you recommended, going with what I have in my gym. Debating whether to do laterals. I have DB’s and cables but without having a machine they tend to hurt my elbows.