[quote]glenn pendlay wrote:
[quote]pumped340 wrote:
[quote]glenn pendlay wrote:
I wrote an article a few years ago for some website or another, can’t remember which one, that attempted to explain why some people could consistently work at very high levels of maximum without burning out, and others could not.
My analysis was as follows… Those who have developed the ability to lift close to maximum on a consistent basis do it because they are able to lift maximally or close to maximally without any “psyching up”, and they are able to get more training effect because of this. Then there are the lifters who require emotional arousal for anything over 80% it seems. These folks cannot do big weights on a consistent bases, not because the heavy weights kill them, but because the constant psyching up kills them.
One of the things that I try to do with lifters that I coach is to develop the ability to lift heavy without arousal. I do this by encouraging a set pre-lift routine, and encourage them to concentrate on calmly focusing on the task at hand… doing it in such a way as to not raise the heart rate.
This is a skill that has to be practiced, just like any other. [/quote]
That last paragraph is very interesting and actually something I was going to make a separate post about. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter.
Before I do a heavy set, especially DB bench, I can feel my heart rate go up and beat against my chest. It’s not really from being tired from the workout, but rather being anxious about doing well and at least matching what I did last time (being on a cut I worry about losing strength). Does this go along with what you’re saying, being too amped up to try to lift heavy? I don’t think this is the only reason but my pressing strength has decreased more than my pulling and leg strength, with which I don’t know as much anxiety right beforehand. [/quote]
Before I give my opinion I will say that I hope CT also comments. Obviously my expertise is not with physique athletes. I think Christian can probably give you some insights that I can’t.
But having said that, here is my opinion. I dont know if your arousal level is enough to be detrimental to your training. The only way I know to determine this is by dead reckoning… being there in the gym with an athlete that I have experience with and making a judgement call. I do know that there is some Eastern European research on the ideal heart rate to start a set at, I am thinking that it is 120bpm, but I could be wrong and I just moved and all my research is still in boxes in the garage and isnt going to be coming out of those boxes for a while, so take that with a grain of salt.
But, I think more important is the fact that you are going right up to failure every time you do this exercise, and are so emotionally hung up on your reps. Everyone has an exercise that they are prone to get too emotional about. One exercise that they base some of their “self image” on, or base an inapropriate amount of their feelings of going forward or backward in training on.
You have to fight that shit, and fight it hard. The more you can divorce emotion from the training process, the better. Training is a process of loading the body a certain amount that causes an adaptation to that load. It is not a process of coming to the gym and proving how strong you are or proving that you have not lost strength or muscle, etc.
Now maybe that is a total rant, and not applicable to you… entirely possible that I interpreted your post incorrectly. If so feel free to ignore. If not, then maybe you could try this…
Take your DB press. Think of a weight that you think might be your best ever set of 5 reps. Or, if you want, use 3 reps, or 6 reps, or whatever. Now, subtract some weight from that number. Lets say you have at one point done 150lb dumbells for 5 reps. But you know, any day, any time, any condition that you could do 140lb dumbells for 5 reps. This number could be 130lbs, or 145lbs, take your pick, you know yourself much better than I do. Work up slowly over however many sets are comfortable to a set at that number, for our example, 140lbs for 5. Do that set, do it fast, kick its ass. Then, the workout STARTS. You now have your 5 sets to do. Lets call the reps 8, of course 6 or 10 would also do. Drop an appropriate amount of weight, enough to let your first set of 8 be doable no matter how you feel, and easy in most circumstances. You now “auto-regulate” the next 4 sets! You adjust the weight each workout to try to work as hard as possible without any undue possibility of failure.
Now, the sets and reps and obviously weights arent that important. Its the idea. You NEVER do an “ego-driven” set. You go to a heavy weight, but one that you know you can do, and simply try to do it in as dominant a fashion as you can. Having done that, you drop weight, and do WORK. Thats all it is, work. I think CT uses the term mechanical loading. I dont use that term but its useful. you are just loading the muscle. Over 5 sets you just load the muacle as much as you can that day. Some days you will have a higher capacity for loading than others. This has little to do with strength. Your ability to load as hard as possible that day is based off your skill and realism when adjusting the weight between sets.
This is how the athletes that I coach train most of the time. Its also how very many of the elite athletes in a number of sports that are strength oriented train. It works. It builds muscle and strength… AND, it encourages a person to become more and more able to do heavy weights and hard sets without engaging the ego or becoming emotionally aroused.
Hope some of these ideas are useful.
glenn[/quote]
Awesome post Glenn, so true about doing Work. Also spot on the not trying to prove anything in the gym, and I think this goes a long way in having a long successful career as a strength/physique athlete. For me it’s an important part of training; knowing what I’m doing works and not worrying about what others in the gym think whether the movement may look goofy or the weight sub-maximal.
