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Thread: General Mass Specific Routine?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
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    4

    Default General Mass Specific Routine?

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    Hey,

    My name is Paul and I'm a big fan of your training literature. I do have a
    question though about Practical Programming. As far as I remember, and
    correct me if I'm wrong, you don't go into a specific (or even general for
    that matter) routine for mainly hypertrophy. I know you specialize in the
    training of athletes, but what would you recommend to put on general mass
    everywhere? Do you think this routine
    (http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow...Linear_5x5.htm) is the
    best? Or is there something else you'd recommend?

    Thanks for your time.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    North Texas
    Posts
    53,557

    Default

    Madcow's program based on our models in PPST are quite sound, and he does a wonderful job of explaining the basics of training. But any program that works has to be designed with respect to the level of training advancement of the lifter. A novice lifter is going to grow more rapidly on even a poorly designed program than an advanced lifter would on the best program ever written, so technically a good novice program is the best hypertrophy program there is. Novices make rapid progress in strength and hypertrophy if the linear progression model is followed closely and enough protein and calories are available for recovery. And there is something special about whole milk that makes it the best supplement for lifters is this phase of training. I have had many gifted trainees gain 30 lbs. of good bodyweight in 3 months, and 50 lbs. in a year doing this type of program.

    For more advanced lifters that are beyond the point of novice adaptability, hypertrophy becomes a more specialized adaptation because the easy, initial growth that takes place across all fiber types has already occurred. In general, any program that increases strength for an advanced lifter HAS to cause some hypertrophy, since the neuromuscular effects have already occurred. Hypertrophy training for more advanced lifters is best accomplished with an emphasis on higher reps and less rest between sets, to stress the substrate supply adaptations which involve the aspects of hypertrophy that occupy the greatest amount of intracellular space. Bodybuilders are famous for sets of 12-15 with short rest for this reason. This is quite outside my Area Of Expertise, and I am not prepared to answer detailed histological questions here. Just remember that growth requires continued adaptation, and that after a point an adaptation for hypertrophy requires a specialization of training that emphasizes the aspects of the muscular components that occupy the most volume.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Posts
    4

    Default

    Yeah, I've been doing the Starting Strength novice program for a few months and have made good gains on it. I've had to reset once, but I think that was a mix of being sick and also using too many sets (5 sets across instead of three, I misinterpreted the book. Though since I did have to take a back off period I wanted to starting thinking about what my next routine was going to be.

    And I guess I should've said hypertrophy with a good strength component, which is what I understand Madcows program to be designed for, mainly because he posted on on bodybuilding oriented forums. I just remember you mentioning a bodybuilding routine in practical programming, but I understood such a routine to be strictly bodybuilding oriented with no focus on strength besides increasing lifts to overload. Thanks for the advice on Madcows routine. I care about "efficient mass" so I don't just want to gain mass for the sake of getting big, I also want substantial strength to go with it. I should have probably worded my question to be more specific. I'm going to stick with the novice routine until it stops working for me completely then I'm going to switch to Madcows routine. I've heard of people making excellent gains when they actually need a intermediate routine, and I just wanted to ask you about it because it's similar to some of the ideas in Practical Programming except not as sport specific.

    Thanks for your time.

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