Sun 1 Nov 2009
Early Bird WOW 11/01/09
Posted by Doug McGuff under Uncategorized
I was working day shift in the ER today, so I woke at 5am so that I could work out at 6am and then get to work by 7am. There was only one catch…I forgot to “fall back”. So I actually got up at 4am, worked out at 5am and showed up for work at 6am (I’m sure my night shift partner was thrilled). As I like to say… “trust me with your life”…doh!
My Little 6 was as follows
Med X Heel Raise- same weight and TUL
Med X abdominal –same weight and TUL
Nautilus Plate load Bicep- up 2.5 lbs/TUL down 20 seconds
Tri Push down- same weight and TUL
Thick Bar wrist curl-same weight, up 6 seconds
Thick Bar wrist extension-same weight, up 7 seconds.
I am now at the weight on the plateloader bicep and MedX abdominal where I always get stuck. The major issue seems to be the counterlever effect that occurs at this weight. The movement arm pulls me up from the seat to the extent that form gets compromised just trying to stay stable. This occurs in conjunction with fatigue and sticking point isssues which make progression very tough if not impossible. Like Ed Hovinak, I may have to back off on weight or select another movement. I will try a couple more rounds and see what happens. Perhaps it is time to start an A-B-C rotation as Al Coleman suggests.
Despite these issues, it was a great WOW.
Post your WOW’s and your thoughts.
Doug McGuff
10/29/09
All Nautilus Nitro equipment.
Chest Press 228lbs @49sec
Pulldown 240lbs @62sec
Overhead Press 177lbs @60sec
Seated Leg Curl 192lbs @47sec
Leg Press 502lbs @58sec
Total workout time: 10:29
Improvements:
Pulldown up 1/2 rep
Overhead press up 1/2 rep
Seated leg curl up 1lb
Leg press up 1lb
Workout viewable on Greyhound Fitness Youtube page (Click on my name and then youtube logo on website).
Thanks.
Doug,
I experience the same counterlever effect with the Nautilus Nitro leg extension in my B routine. My form completely fell apart in my last video due to the weight; I can’t pull myself into the seat hard enough. Coupled with growing concerns that the leg extension may place too much force within the knee joint and I may start looking for an alternative B routine exercise, or reduce the weight and increase the TUL.
Leg press nautilus 370 for 20 top range zone reps then dropped down using powerpins to 250 for about 3 low range zone reps, then dropped to about 200 and did about 3 or 4 more low range zone reps, and then did about 6 full range reps with pause at top…(occurs to me, I can do traditional 20 rep breathing squats on a leg press machine, by using my hands to hold knees just short of lockout and taking my breaths between reps)… 20 rep breathing squats make sense? I remember Ken Hutchins feeling continuous tension was better??
Halloween WOW 10/31/2009
Lower back stable wt.; stable TUL
Leg press up 5 lbs.: down 9 sec.
Inclines stable wt.; up 12 sec.
Lat pull stable wt.; up 3 sec.
Declines stable wt.; up 7 sec.
Rows stable wt.; down 9 sec.
This was supposed to be my “make or break” workout with regard to continued weight progression or backing off. I did improve slightly on the two chest exercises and the lat pull. I also had a “good” mild soreness and what felt like growth stimulation, b-u-t I noticed slight twinges of pain in my shoulder.
I do enjoy what I’m doing on the lower back–I’ve cut the weight but do 30-45 second reps each way. I do not come out of the seat and the movement is smooth (constant motion without stops or jabs similar to Vee’s ultra slow chinup.)
With regard to the other exercises, I feel I’ve put too much emphasis on the “increase the weight at all cost” mentality and have sacrificed proper form. This becomes evident when the first rep almost feels like a maximum lift in which I can’t control the positive portion of the rep to fall into the 10 second guideline. I will terefore cut these to what I was doing a few months ago and strive for better form.
The way I view the workout protocol is I see three philosophies. Ken Hutchins prefers a moderate weight with a 2-3 minute TUL (low force-high intensity. Drew Baye prefers heavier weight with a 40-60 second TUL (still high intensity with higher force). Dr. McGuff takes a mid line approach with a 90 second to 2 minute TUL.
If you look at each type from a risk to reward factor, although the greater hypertrophy may occur with Drew’s style, it also poses the greater risk of injury, especially for people over 60 like myself. And Ken’s approach was originally intended for older folks who suffered from osteoporosis so he had to be concerned with injury by too much force.
So I’ve decided to do the middle ground that BBS espouses. I will progress the weight more slowly, will make sure TUL’s stay within the mid range of 90-120 seconds and will attempt to keep form and concentration impeccable or as close as I can get to it.
Ed H
10/30/09 (9 days since previous WOW)
Smith squat- 305/55 23 reps
Up 15 lbs, stable TUL, up 2 reps
Smith press- 225/43 16 reps
Up 5lbs, stable TUL, up 3 reps
incline Dumbbell curls- 40×2/43 6 reps
Up 5 pounds each arm, down 13 seconds, up down 1 rep
hammer strength plater loaded pullover- 198/55 13 reps
Doug, like you I noticed I was being pulled out of the seat more and more as I increase the weight on the Lat pulldown (pulley) machine. The machine itself was a not a great model, and there was nothing I could do to stop that effect. So, I decided to try a Hammer Strength Pullover instead. I did the same ROM as I did previously on the lat pulldown- it worked very, very well from what I could tell. Very intense and was belted into the seat. In fact I felt it worked my entire back so well that I omitted the low row from my workout that day, and will continue to do so.
tricep pressdown- 100/33 8 reps
Up 10lbs, down 15 secs, down 6 reps
Too much weight, too short a TUL, will see if I can hit 40 seconds next WOW, otherwise will drop it back down to 90.
dumbbell heel raise- 65lb L=11 R=10
Right stable, left up 1. Was very very close to making the 11th rep on the right though.
nautilus ab machine- 165/41 19 reps
Stable weight, up 2 seconds, up 4 reps
Get pulled out of the seat on this one as well, but still walk away feeling that I used my abs more than I would anywhere else in the gym. Not overly worried about working them directly either since they are used in other exercises.
Went in fasted, waited one hour until eating after the WOW. Had a really wild night, woke up, felt more sore than I have in a while- especially my back. I believe this was the first time in a while I felt that sore in less than 24 hours.
-Anthony
*On dumbbell incline, up 1 rep since the last time I used 40lbs, down 1 rep from last week (using 35s).
Oct 31 WOW;
Nautilus Pullover
MedX Avenger Overhead Press
Nautilus Pullover
Nautilus Leverage Bench Press
Hammer Leg Press
Metabolic conditioning getting better and my strength still improving. Weights were up and I hit or surpassed all goals for the workout.
Had a check up at the VA last week, weight down 14 lbs from 6 weeks ago, BP lower than it has been in 3 years, resting heart rate looking great, O2 uptake getting back in the normal range!! I am seeing a reversal of alot of the blast and chemical damage. I feel better than I have in the past three years!
Dr McGuff, thanks for all your help. Doug Holland you are THE MAN!
My WOW for Oct 31st - Program D - Results are:
Rotary Torso 60 lbs 1 min, 37secs (each side)
Pull Downs 90 lbs 1 min, 21 secs
Overhead Press 62.5 lbs 1 min, 26 secs
Leg Press 120 lbs 1 min, 58 secs
Calve Raises 210 lbs 1 min, 30 secs
Total TUL 9 min, 29 secs
Total Time 12 mins
% TUL/Total 79%
I am still tweaking my resistances as I am in a different gym with different machines.
RT,
You made my day. THIS is why John and I wrote BBS.
Doug McGuff
This is my 4th week of doing only 1 exercise per day and my gains continue to amaze me. I have not hit a plateau once yet, my daily workouts average in the 90 second range, and my workout time for the week continues to be under 10 minutes. The only thing I dislike is my HUGE appetite increase since changing to 1 exercise per day. It seems like no matter what or how much I eat, my body never feels satisfied. Constantly walking around with that gnawing feeling in my stomach because I refuse to eat more just for the sake of eating. I’m currently eating around 5-6 small meals a day and staying in the 2200-2500 range for calories. Has this happened to anyone else or does everyone else here still train only once per week?
That’s how I feel all of the time-mainly because I am so used to restricting calories I’m actually comfortable with hunger. You maybe growing-who knows. Have you seen any actual muscle gains or are they all strength gains at this point? Any body weight increases with your increased strength?
Blain, I did do the one exercise per day thing for a while. Frankly, I’m guilty of not sticking with things long enough to see if they work… I do remember it being psychologically very satisfying to be able to do “something” every day, and a great way to wake up in the morning. I don’t remember appetite being affected significantly. I seem to remember John Little commenting about sleeping the body as a unit, and working it as a unit, in deference to what I was doing…(forgive John if my memory fails me and this is inaccurate)… I do think I can relate, and guess most can, to what Alex Fee quoted John as saying in terms of being “addicted to the stimulus”…. this being my last week before competition my diet coach is advising some exercise every day; I don’t usually follow his training advice, but find myself eager to do so to have an “excuse” to work out more often. I’ve heard it commented that it is odd, that not more champions train hit, but I don’t find it that surprising, as they are the most likely to be “addicted to the stimulus” in my opinion, and I myself find it takes more discipline to work out once a week or less than it does to do it more often, once the habit is ingrained. Some might say it’s a healthy addiction, but like anything, too much is toxic. Any way, end of ramble, here is today’s progress…
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167.2 this morning, with 4 days to go, compared to 163.4 last year… up for two days in a row, but I think mirror looks better, yesterday was higher carb day and did legs… expecting significant drop and still think 165-166 is where I will be on Saturday… 9 days till cruise!!!
Off downstairs to do just calf raises…
Doug, did you receive the webcam?
In regard to TUL:
THE SIZE PRINCIPLE AND A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE UNSUBSTANTIATED HEAVIER-IS-BETTER
RECOMMENDATION FOR RESISTANCE TRAINING
Ralph N. Carp inelli
Human Performance Laboratory, Adelphi University, Garden City, New York, USA
…”The correct interpretation of the size principle and its practical application should help dedicated trainees understand what constitutes a proper stimulus for resist¬ance training and how to apply that stimulus. That is, the size principle does not support the popular resistance training recommendation to use a maximal or near maximal resistance. The size principle and interpolated twitch studies support the contention that if maximal motor unit activation is desired, a maximal or near maximal effort at the end of a set of repetitions— regardless of the amount of external resistance—will elicit maximal motor unit activity. Effective resistance training does not require the use of a maximal or near maximal force to stimulate the available motor units and produce significant increases in muscular strength.
The preponderance of studies strongly suggest that effective resistance training simply requires the selec¬tion of a desired range of repetitions (e.g., 3–5, 6–9, 10–12 RM), which is based on a personal preference rather than a specific goal, and a progression of the resistance to stay within the desired range of repetitions (Carpinelli et al. 2004). Very high RMs (e.g., loads lighter than 20 RM) or an extensive time under load (e.g., longer than 2–3 minutes) may involve mechanisms of fatigue that are not conducive to stimulate optimal increases in muscular strength. Despite the plethora of opinions in the resistance training literature, the specific mecha¬nisms of fatigue and exactly what constitutes an optimal stimulus for strength gains are unknown. If a maximal— or near maximal—effort is applied at the end of a set of repetitions, the evidence strongly suggests that the dif¬ferent external forces produced with different amounts of resistance elicit similar outcomes If the size principle was correctly applied, effective resistance training may appeal to a larger proportion of the population. This would include competitive and recreational athletes as well as those in the general population who perceive resistance exercise as the lift¬ing of very heavy weights and therefore potentially dangerous. Because some people may have a fear of injury—that need not exist—the heavier-is-better percep¬tion may actually be a deterrent to resistance training, which deprives those most in need of health-related benefits. These potential health-related benefits include the prevention of osteoporosis, falls, fractures and dis¬ability, changes in risk factors associated with cardio¬vascular disease, some cancers, diabetes (improvements in glucose tolerance and insulin resistance), enhanced lipid profiles, elevated resting metabolic rate, decreased resting blood pressure, reduced back pain and subse¬quent disabilities, and greater functional ability (Winett & Carpinelli 2001)—all in addition to muscular hypertro¬phy and strength gains.”
Blain have you tried eating less frequently? I’ve eaten once or twice a day for many months now…hunger rarely bothers me.
Rick, Thomas, and Anthony,
To answer all of your questions… I’m not sure if there are any muscle gains, or weight increases at this point. I’m much too busy to take my measurements, and never really cared about how much I weigh as long as I continue to stay lean. I let the mirror be my judge. Although the strength increases continue to amaze me. I went down to the weight room during my lunch today and hit (once again) an all time record. I got 11 strict slow reps with 85lb dumbbells. 10 reps was my previous best. I spoke with Dr. Darden yesterday and he told me that if this is working for me, than stick with it and see what happens. I plan to. Anthony, no I have not tried eating less frequently. I tend to eat 5-7 small meals consisting of about 200-300 calories each. Since you only eat 1-2 times per day, what is your caloric intake? Are they huge meals? Just wondering.
Tony Robbins Update
Doug & John
Any updates on when your segment will air on the Tony Robbins show?
Best
John
Dr. McGuff,
I posted this on the other thread in response to a question about training kids but it never did appear. I’ve had some decent luck training my 12 year old son using statics. It seems to be easier for him to just focus on holding the weight still than it is to use good form. Do you ever use Max Contraction style training in your own workouts? I noticed that Dick Connor seems to be experimenting some with it.
Thanks,
David
Last night after closing the gym we did the following:
Amy’s workout:
incline press
- 60 sec rest-
overhead press
deadlift
overhead press
chin up
I did my usual every other week set of squats.Last night was 23 reps.
I was really wired afterwards,so I stayed up and watched the entire Saints/Falcons game,slept for four hours,and then came back in to work.
@Blain
I detailed on my blog the other week exactly what I’m eating. Short version, I usually have eggs or a shake in the morning.
If it’s eggs, usually half a dozen, fried in coconut oil.
If it’s a shake, it’s usually a bit bigger than half a dozen eggs, including 3 raw egg yolks, a whole can of coconut milk (some 70+ grams of saturated fat), 30 grams of whey, some berries, some grass fed butter…and you get the idea.
At night I usually eat a bunch of meat, or sometimes eggs if I didnt have them in the morning. This can vary depending on how hungry I am, ranging from 1-3.5 pounds of meat.
On my WOW days, I usually only have one meal, that is eaten slower, and very large (and its always after my workout).
As for calorie count…never been a fan of trying to count. Only thing I’ll monitor is carbohydrate intake. Lately I’ve been a bit disillusioned with calorie counting to, after reading Catching Fire: How Cooking Made us Human.
My thoughts right now are along the lines of calorie counting being damn near impossible for the average person. Labels are only estimations, and can be very misleading. Compile that with your body not extracting everything from what you eat…and you’re kinda left in the dark IMO.
Dr. McGuff:
Do you feel that you any metabolic/cardiovascular effect from the “Little 6″ workout?
Thanks,
Marc
167 this morning, with 3 days to go, compared to 162.8 last year…. (interesting that I’m not really losing despite being in caloric deficit…. was 166.6 3 days ago… big drop coming?) 8 days till cruise!!! Off to do chest, delts and tri’s….
To all,
Any insight on how BBS principles can be implemented into a corporate wellness program? First, it does not lend itself to the group classes people are accustomed to, so any recomondations on logistic, please. Second all of you know what I mean; the expectations, belief and preponderance of activity being the end all (daily,endless cardio type workouts) is incredibly dificult to overcome. Thanks
wed 04.11. big 3 (rush factor ok)
1. squat - 15 reps ntf
2. chin negative only - 5 slow (>10s) reps
3. dip negative only - 5 slow (>10s) reps
Rick,
No camera yet. Hopefully tomorrow.
John,
The show will air in January, but date is uncertain thus far.
Marc,
Not nearly as much metabolic effect as a Big 5, but apparently enough to prevent decompensation.
David,
I rarely use Max Contraction in my workouts. Most machines don’t offer enough resistance for this. The one exception is my pulldown where there is enough weight. I incorporate it once every few months, as it is very demanding and I need a trainer to help pull the weight into the contracted position.
Doug McGuff
4 November
Right, time to settle to some consistency, I’ve been dotting around from routine to routine too long.
Big 5, gym at work using Life Fitness machines. Order was as follows because this is the order in which the machines were free….
Seated Row, seat no 5, 45kg, 6 reps, 96s TUL too light
Press seat 5, 25kg 5 1/2 reps, 96 secs TUL too light
Pulldown 40kg 8 reps 160 secs TUL - too light
Chest Press 45kg 6 reps, 85 secs TUL
Leg Press seat 7, 105kg , 6 reps, 116s TUL too light
A lot of this was finding appropriate resistance on the machines as a starting point.
Hi Doug,
“Thanks to Mum” or the Power of Mum”
I know that many people who blog here use MedX I thought I would share this story with those people. I discovered a small gym with MedX equipment. I asked the owner when and why he purchased the MedX equipment. In 1993 at a cost of approximately $7,000 (Australian dollars) he purchased the MedX equipment. He looked at a lot of other exercise equipment and from all the exercise equipment his “mum” insisted that he buy the MedX equipment. The Medx equipment is still in excellent condition and biomechanically the best exercise equipment you can buy. Sixteen years later that investment in MedX equipment has proven to be a very good purchase.
I am still in rehabilitation from my shoulder operation so I basically do my leg exercise and one arm exercises using the various MedX machines.
166.6 this morning, 162.6 last year with 2 days to go… did one set of abs not to failure today… tomorrow, am going to attempt one 60 sec up and down chin for my back/bi’s workout…
Good Luck Rick!
It’s over… did not place in top 5, (didn’t expect to) but I don’t think I was last either, (that was goal to avoid lol)… now retired… on to other goals! Thanks to all for encouragment. Conference was cool… thanks to Dr. McGuff skype presentation… was highlight for the day for me… very informative, well explained and tactfully discussed. Class act all the way!
I also wanted to commend the following and thank all for coming out and giving of their time and knowledge…
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Come and gone… was fun… some great contributions from Doug McGuff, Michael Petrella, Mark Houghton, Michael Lipowski, Andrew Shortt, Bill DeSimone and Alex Fee and excellent discussions from all attendees, Jim McBride, David Fellenbaum, Maurice Chartrand, Stephen Downs, Brandon Robitaille, Valerie Clement, Amanda (Styles?) (sorry Amanda) and I apologize if I’m forgetting someone.
November 8, 2009
1. Leg Press: 900 lbs / 1:40
2. Torso Arm: 304 lbs / 2:02
3. Overhead Press: 246 lbs / 1:41
4. Rowing Torso: 140 lbs / 1:26
5. 10° Chest (NAUT): 175 lbs / 1:02
6. Lumbar Ext.: 220 lbs / 1:40
Duration: about 18 minutes
My WOW for Nov 7th (Program A)
Ab Crunch (first time) 60 lbs 1min 50secs
Back Extensions 50 lbs 2mins 10secs
Seated Row 100 lbs 1min 26secs
Horizontal Chest Press 75 lbs 1min 10secs
Flies 40 lbs 1min 17secs
Horizontal Leg Press 150 lbs 1min 20secs
Total TUL 9mins 25secs
Total Time 17mins