HighIntensity.net View Mike Mentzer Bodybuilding Topic

Hi all,

I′ve been following a few threads here for a while and got some great ideas. I′ve been on HIT for around 6 weeks now and finding the 1 session per week working well. I′m around 5′11" 180lb at 15% BF. Back in High school I did weights for about 12 months and have been on and off since (mostly off). So this is my first real crack at weight training.

My current routine is:

Deadlift/Squat alternate around 240lb
Dips BW+30lb
Chins BW+30lb
OH Press 140lb
Row (sometimes)

However if do all 5 I′m usually wiped out for at least two days so I′m think of dropping back a bit. Also, the gains on the Chins and OH Press arn′t really happening like the Dips, Squats, Deads.

The plan is to do something like this.

Week 1
Squats
BB Row
OH Press
Barbell Curl
Forearm flex/ext

Week 2
Deadlift
Dips
Chins
French Press
Calve raise

The idea is to throw some isolation exercises in to reduce the overall strain on the body but still keep 5 exercises/workout. Even while writing this I′ve rearranged some excercises to avoid to much crossover. I guess I′m just trying to get the most productive mix of the above exercises.

Look foward to hearing some thoughts and making some more contributions to the forum.

Cheers.

Dex.

Welcome,

Good job on trying to avoid the crossover. I would say you have a pretty solid routine there, full-body routines are the best for beginners and intermediates. I′m switching from the Ideal routine to a full-body one that will be done around twice a week. Are you going to do any ab work, you might want to(hanging leg raises are good). Also you might not need any direct forearm workouts, because most upper body exercises take care of that, and especially dead lifts. It was said that mike had the best forearms in the business and he supposedly never did any direct work.

I too progress the best on squats and deads, i think thats the the same for everyone.

Make sure and record the weight and reps your doing in a journal. And if you feel like it keep posting each workout so we can see your progress and help you further.

peace

I was going to split them up to give the muscle group two weeks between workouts like follows:

deadlifts
Chins
Rows
BB Curl

Squat
Dip
OH Press
French Press

What got me thinking was that last week I didn′t work the chest and this week it felt much stronger and it′s really feeling worked. Think there might be a bit more of the shock factor involved when you give the addition rest?

I always record my weight, reps, TUL and body weight. I′ll be starting this new routine after a move next week so I′ll start posting my workouts here.

I see crossover still on both workouts. Honestly i know this is hard to do, but for best results you might just want to switch to the consolidation routine. Its very simple and you should be able to progress each time. Unless you have Great genetics or are taking some roids, I would stop that routine and just go to the consolidation. I wish some other people on here could give you some advise too, usually people are very helpful on this forum.

I′m going to take a crack at explaining why your feeling more of a "shock factor". This is just a Theory. I noticed my muscles were more sore when I started HD training also. I′m guessing because, they are trained less frequently and with less volume but with the most intensity possible. And being that they are now trained less frequently and with only one set they will become less conditioned so they will get sore easier. I think volume and frequency will condition a muscle, but that is not the best way to gain strength and might even be counter productive depending on ones genetics.

Dexy,

With your workouts, I would personally do:

Squats
Rows
Overhead press
Curls

Deadlifts
Chins
Dips
Calf raises

because I would like to keep overlap to a minimum within each workout so that one exercise doesn′t affect the following one as much.

If you go with your 2nd routine, I would leave out the curls and tricep presses since chins and rows would work biceps hard, and overhead presses and dips would work your triceps hard, so I doubt you would have much progress on those arm exercises.

I think "shock factor" has to do with trying something new, in which case, it would be better referred to as a new stimulus. "Shock factor" sounds like more of those pseudo-science catch phrases. If you took 2 weeks off between bodyparts, what you experienced was increased rest. However, I would go by the progress on your workout log, not by how you′re feeling. Feelings can be misleading depending on a lot of factors. Keep us updated.