invictuskaizen’s BodyBlog

By: Ian Matthews

In my last article I said I think our definition of intensity needs to be changed, however intensity in training is definied by the percentage of maximum effort exerted in a single moment. Therefore, the closer a weigh is to a maximal lift, the higher the intensity will be. In addition, true high intensity in a non-maximal set will only be achieved when a set is taken to failure, and maximum effort will only be achieved on the last repetition.

What’s interesting to note in both of these cases is that when maximum intensity is achieved, the type IIb muscle fibers are activated at the greatest level. Therefore, the type IIb muscle fibers must be involved in high intensity training. This may seem to contradict my previous suggestions of training in a high repetition range some weeks, and of course extremely low repetition training is not the most conducive method for building muscle.

What Rep Range Is Best For Gains In Muscular Size?

Bodybuilders seem to realize the best gains in muscular size when keeping their repetition range between 6-10, while strength gains are most obvious with lower repetition ranges. Due to progression and the correspondance of strength to muscular size, one would assume there is no reason to lift in a higher repetition range, but I have explained that lifting in higher repetition ranges will improve recovery by bringing more blood into the muscle and giving the tendons more time to recover.

The higher repetition ranges stress the type I (slow-twitch) muscle fibers more so than lower repetition ranges, and increase mitochrondria and red blood cell density in the muscle. Both of these factors can limit overall muscular growth, but the individual needs to find a balance between working in repetition ranges that are more effective for muscle hypertrophy and working in repetition ranges that that are more effective for recovery and priming the muscle cells for greater hypertrophy.

Since the type II fibers experience a greater increase in hypertrophy than the type I fibers, it makes sense to focus training on the type II fibers. However, there are both type IIa and type IIb muscle fibers, and research has detected even more varieties of type II muscle fibers. Type IIb fibers produce maximal force, but are fatigued quickly and are slower to recover. Type IIa fiber are fast-twitch fibers that have endurance properties similar to type I fibers. Also, type IIb fibers can change to type IIa fibers and type IIa fibers can change to type IIb fibers.

It is impossible to use type II fibers exclusively. During any muscular contraction, type I fibers are activated first. If the type I fibers are not strong enough to get the job done, type IIa fibers and then type IIb fibers are called upon. Therefore type IIa fibers and especially type IIb fibers are only recruited if the intensity is sufficient enough. During the most intense contractions, all fiber types are used in conjunction.

Type IIb Fibers

So now that I’ve explained intensity as it relates to fiber recruitment, one may think that to maximize muscular gains they should increase IIb fibers as the total percentage of muscle fiber, however this is not the case. Strength athletes have the greatest percentage of type IIb fibers, but they are certainly not the most muscular. They do exert more intensity on their maximal sets, but the duration is not sufficient enough to cause maximum muscular hypertrophy. If these same lifters were to lift in higher repetition ranges, they would achieve greater hypertrophy, however some of their type IIb fibers would become type IIa fibers.

This may not be a bad thing since type IIa fibers are recruited before type IIb fibers and would receive more work in sub-maximal training, therefore reulting in a greater increase in size for more muscle which would be able to become type IIb fibers once the repetition range was lowered. This conversion between the type IIa and IIb fibers could benefit the bodybuilder as well. By training in extremely low rep ranges, type IIb fibers will be maximized and strength will be increased.

When the lifter returns to higher repetition ranges, they will be able to use more weight and thus increase their intensity for greater gains. The repetition range progression I detailed before took advantage of this, but improvements for the individual could be made. Individuals respond differently to different repetition ranges and their recovery varies. An ideal HIT program for maximum muscular development would have an individual varying between a repetition range of 1-5 reps for building strength and a repetition range of 6-10 for building size.

Now, you may ask, what happened to my suggestions of a week at 18-30 reps and a week at 13-17 reps? I already explained that such repetition ranges are for recovery and priming the muscle cells for greater hypertrophy. It is now up to the individual to decide when and how often these repetition ranges should be used. For recovery, the 18-30 repetition range should be used. To prime the muscle cells for new growth if strength or hypertrophy begins to stagnate, the 13-17 repetition range should be used. In my HIT program, the 18-30 rep range week follows the 3-7 rep range week to make sure my tendons recover from the heavy lifting.

The next week I continue with a 13-17 rep range to prime my muscles for maximum hypertrophy during the 8-12 rep range week. I then follow it up with a 3-7 rep range week to continue building muscle while focusing on building strength. The high rep range weeks are not wasted time either as muscle hypertrophy still occurs.

Remember, when the force of a repetition becomes too great for the type I fibers, the type II fibers must be recruited to continue moving the weight. Even if the repetition range is high, if the force of the last few reps is sufficient (which it should be if a reasonably heavy weight is taken to failure), the type II fibers will be recruited.

By: Sean Nalewanyj

Those of you who read my articles know that I’m a big believer in the basics. I confidently preach low volume, infrequent workouts which are based around the universal laws of overload and progression. Anyone who truly understands the fundamentals of strength training realizes that these basic guidelines are all one needs in order to reach their goals of increased muscle mass and strength. I mean seriously, how much more is there to it than that?

My Theory

Train at a high level of intensity with the minimum amount of stimulation needed to yield an adaptive response, and then give the muscle adequate rest and nutrients. The following week increase the weight or repetitions. Done. Boom. That’s it. Okay, okay, maybe it’s not THAT simple. But in the grand scheme of it all, that IS the bottom line. You see, many people make strength training out to be much more complex than it really is.

In actuality there really is nothing complicated about the concept of muscle growth. Sorry to burst the bubble of all you muscle mag gurus out there, but the reality is that you do not need “The 6 Week Program to Mind Blowing Chest Gains” or “Ronnie Coleman’s Killer Bicep Blaster”. If a muscle magazine’s goal was to teach you everything you ACTUALLY need to know, no doubt they would be able to cover it in half an issue. Why? Because it’s SIMPLE!

As I press on further and further into my training endeavours I have less and less patience for the utter stupidity that is all-too prevalent in gyms everywhere. Set foot in any gym across North America and I guarantee you will see the same things over, and over again. Buddy #1 is in the corner doing 3 sets of 10 on 4 different bicep exercises. Buddy #2 is putting forth intensity that would make Justin Timberlake look like a Greek God. Buddy #3 is wearing sweatpants to the gym every session to cover up his untrained legs.

Where does it end? Quite obviously the answer is that is does not, and never will. Starting to sound familiar? For those of you who have made the genius choice of reading my articles you will begin to realize that I have said this all before. Well, hear it again, because it will never end. I will continue to pound this information into your skull until it is permanently tattooed in your memory. Then maybe, just MAYBE you will begin to apply this information and make gains like you never thought possible. Anyway, that ends my opening rant. At least I now know that we are on the same page.

Get Big In Only 45 Minutes

What if I told you that you could get bigger and stronger than you’ve ever been by training twice per week for 45 minutes? Most likely the uninformed sceptics would call me a liar, the multi-setters would stop reading, and the easy-way-out slackers would stare wide eyed with an unjustified gleam of hope that building muscle IS easy after all. Well I’m sorry lazy one, but this seemingly easy way of training is much more difficult than the naked eye could ever fathom.

It is that select, understanding breed who would continue reading and realize that I am promoting the all-too-sensible yet all-too-difficult concept of HIT. Otherwise known as Highly Intensive Training (a name well earned), HIT is bar-none the most difficult and most effective training program out there. HIT is a very broad term and can have many variations, but the basic concepts remain constant.

HIT is based around infrequent workouts done at a high level of intensity, focusing on compound movements and progression. However, the type of training that I am talking about is “traditional” HIT which utilizes full body workouts done twice per week. To understand why HIT is so effective we must first establish that building muscle is a simple concept. I’m not talking about the nitty-gritty, detailed and precise biochemistry behind the processes of protein synthesis, anabolic hormones and muscular hypertrophy. I am simply referring to the basic idea or “bottom line” of muscle growth. Although I realize that I have covered this in a previous article I will refresh your memory anyway. Every single process that occurs within the human body is centered around keeping you alive and healthy.

Throughout thousands of years of evolution the human body has become quite a fine-tuned organism that can adapt well to certain conditions placed upon it. We become uncomfortable when we are hungry or thirsty, we acquire a suntan when high amounts of UV rays are present, we build calluses to protect our skin, etc. So what happens when we break down muscle tissue in the gym? If you answered something to the effect of “the muscles get bigger”, then congratulations! You are absolutely correct. By battling against resistance beyond the muscle’s present capacity we have posed a potential threat to the musculature.

The body recognizes this and as a natural adaptive response the muscles will hypertrophy (increase in size) to protect the body against this threat. As we systematically increase the resistance the body will adapt accordingly and the muscle tissue will continue to swell. Sound simple? It is. Basically in a nutshell we must focus on training with 100% intensity so that the body truly believes it is in danger, and then gradually increase the workload (in terms of resistance and repetitions, NOT volume) each week. You see, everybody THINKS they train hard. Most people believe that they do go all out and do take every workout to the max.

In actuality, very few people train as hard as they possibly can. This is the main factor that separates those who make great gains from those who make only modest gains. Let me say this once and hopefully it will sink in: If you truly train with 100% intensity, it is physically impossible to train with high volume or for a long period of time! Read that again. Good. Now apply it. Sit down and really think hard about your training intensity and most likely somewhere in the back of your head you will quietly admit to yourself that you COULD be training harder.

It is absolutely essential to train with every ounce of strength you can muster in order for this program to be effective. If you do not train as hard as physically possible, it will NOT work for you. Many people complain that low volume does not work, but these are simply the people who require more days in the gym because they do not train hard enough. With that in mind, we must understand that the relationship between intensity and duration is inversely proportional. That is, as one’s workout intensity increases, the volume must decrease.

Makes sense, right? Think about the last time you did an all out sprint versus the last time you went for a jog. Quite obviously you were able to jog a lot farther then you were able to sprint. Why? Because you simply cannot maintain 100% intensity for long periods of time. We must now take that knowledge and apply it to our workout program. You see, with most things in life the more we put in, the more we get out.

This is not true in the case of bodybuilding. More is NOT better. Nor is less. PRECISE is just right. The goal should be to train with the minimum amount of volume needed to yield an adaptive response. Once we have pushed ourself beyond our present capacity and triggered our thousand year old evolutionary alarm system, we have done our job. Any further stress to the body will simply increase your recovery time, weaken the immune system and send our body into catabolic overdrive.