Timestamps: 01:02 How important is equipment to be the best bodybuilder 05:24 Mike's take on effective reps 16:55 What to do nutritionally while travelling? 19:36 Pump and causative role in hypertrophy and NO supplements worth taken 21:26 Pre-exhaustion before heavy compounds beneficial for hypertrophy 30:09 MIkes thoughts on pause reps and slow tempo 32:40 Approach to trying a new exercise for the first time and not growing from it at the beginning? 41:32 Mike shares insight on his current training split 45:16 Most surprising result/experience for Mike and talks about effective reps concept 54:08 Weighted vest experiment for fat loss or contest prep
Revive Stronger great video!! Bigfoot would be jealous of Mike’s chest hair though!! JK. Can you help with a question? I never understood how hard I should push for hypertrophy. For instance, does me mean that you should go shy of failure on every set even at the end? So say if you are doing a pull day. At the end, the last set of biceps, if I pyramid and push to total failure, does this mess with hypertrophy or would I have been better off finishing just shy of failure and knowing I could have burned it out? I guess you have to look at next week also right? Like if I do that much, I might not recover enough for the next week? In my mind I’m thinking that failure is needed to grow but I guess this isn’t the case? Just curious what you think. Little muscles recover faster also? Just curious thanks!!
We still don't know to what extent pushing to failure leads to hypertrophy. Studies suggest that being 1-2 reps away from it yield the same amount of hypertrophy, however, I do think that more experienced individuals probably need to go to failure more often. So, in your case, pushing to failure every now and then is probably fine. Especially in a week before a deload and on single joint exercises - Pascal
Mike breaking down the lean- traveler question was impressive. He's got the science, but also the experience of an accomplished athlete to reflect upon. Thoughtful and concise.
Was about to post asking about pre-exhaustion for intermediates, but you beat me to it. Good job at asking the questions we need, Steve. Tricep pre-exhaustion seems like it works for everybody, as you both alluded to.
I love Dr. Mike's rant about taking the long view. I do research, and I advocate being skeptical of all studies until there have been several meta-studies done on the subject. And even then, it's good to keep a skeptical eye and keep in mind limits in validity, effect size, etc even if the p-values are significant. The replicability crisis in psychology is a cluster fuck that every scientist, or person whose epistemology is based on science, should learn from. Never be a first adopter, never overstate the power of a study; the way to do this is to be patient and admit your own ignorance. Science is a long-term project.
Oh by the way, I think your podcasts are the best! Not too long, not too short. And the podcast is really about what your guests has to say about the topics.
One of the most informative channels out here on RUclips about training. Honestly you learn more from channels like this one, than from textbooks and other books (personal experience)
SQUAAAAAAAAAAD! 🔥 I was actually kinda worried that there wouldn’t be a podcast today! 😱 I didn’t get the weekly newsletter in my mail, so I sort of lost all hope for a good weekend.. 🤷♂️ But here we are! Thanks you guys! PS: actually should’ve known that this was coming, I submitted a question, myself 😂 Thank you doctor, thank you Steve, thank you Pascal! 🙏 We love you! #nohomo 😘
Right! This works perfectly with their idea of training closer to failure being more fatiguing, it makes sense to reduce total workload as you increase effort. Steve says this doesn’t work with progressive overload but I disagree, by the end the number of repetitions it takes you to fail if you used the same load from beginning of meso to end of meso will be far greater than the beginning of the meso. you will be performing an equivalent amount of stimulating reps, the increase in effort over time IS progressive overload so I disagree with both of them on this issue. I’m not sure why but Mike does not discuss the force velocity relationship and how this relates to mechanical tension on muscle fibers which is literally the stimulus that signals muscle growth. Maybe he isn’t aware of this concept or maybe he didn’t think to bring it up at this time. Based on the force velocity relationship I also think that reps greater than 6rir contribute NO growth stimulus to anyone who has been training for a while. Noobs are of course the exception to this
Around 57:00 Mike talks about using will power to increase NEAT. I find that any calories I burn when I try to move around is offset when I stop focusing on moving. Instead of dancing while I make dinner, I’m leaning on the counter and can barely hold my head up. Do I have to focus on staying active 14 hours a day to ensure my NEAT actually increases? How do I fight my body’s natural tendency to slow down in a caloric deficit?
I try to be aware of the habits I had when I wasn't dieting and try to replicate that style throughout the deficit. For example, intentionally planning in walks, etc. - Pascal
I wonder do an IFBB pros who actually make money from bodybuilding (not coaching which is not the same) actually watch this. Its nice to hear that you can potentially make some extra progress from an amazing gym, but for most, the impact on moving or commuting for a better gym would just have so much more impact on other areas of life that are much more important. Living closer to family, friends, less time in the car and more with your family or more time to work on your hobbies, reading, relaxation, family time. I have an amazing gym about 40 minutes drive, but an average one less than 8 minutes walk, time and time again I try make it to the better one, but I'm always frustrated when I realise I've used an extra 2 hours of my life commuting and I love where I live.
Yes there are. What about Terrence Ruffins & Jared Feather just to name the ones I'm absolutely certain about :) But I totally agree with what you're saying, I think that most overthink what they actually need while in reality, they just need the most fundamental things. - Pascal
Never heard pre-exhaust explained so well. I have a little bit of a shoulder issue and will try it for chest. This may allow me to get the work done with lower loads on the barbell.
At 15:00 Mike says you will grow a lot of muscle doing 10 sets at 5rir. I think this would be true for beginners but for trained individuals I don’t think this is the case. This sounds like a DELOAD workout and I can’t fathom how this could create a hypertrophy response in a trained individual, and this is just a hypothesis of Mike’s, certainly you could argue the research proves this in the case of untrained individuals, but I believe it’s silly to imply someone who has made good hypertrophic adaptations could benefit from something this easy. Mechanical tension grows muscles and from what we currently understand about how this works is with the force-velocity relationship you must accumulate repetitions where some degree of bar speed is lost from the beginning of the set due to fatigue, which I do not believe can happen at 5rir
If you mean 10 weekly sets definitely not. If you mean 10 in one session with 20 total then I’d say it’s not optimal but should be somewhat effective. I think the best route is starting a workout with the max effort method on a compound so you get in the most effective reps and then go into your volume work. Next session I’d say start with lower intensity still with the conjugate principle of rotating variations. Otherwise doing this is just gonna get you snapped up Example Session 1 -Max out swiss bar bench (not getting too close to 100% max should be more like RPE 9.5) -3x10 flat bench -3x10 incline dumbbell press Session 2 -3x5 floor press -3x10 close grip bench -3x10 dumbbell bench Most advanced lifters you’ll notice use 4 variations of a lift by default, conjugate just takes it to the next step with a bit more variation to further decrease injury risk and build more muscle from doing new lifts you suck at. If you’re worried about losing specificity on the volume work you just adjust it to fit those needs -3x5 floor press -3x10 close grip floor press -3x10 dumbbell floor press
Hey dude, I've been listening to your podcasts for a time now, thank you for your awesome content. I've a question : What is the stability of supplements in water ( whey, creatine, etc.) ? For example, when I'm at school or at work, I often prepare my whey-creatine with water and consume it like 3 hours laters? Is it bad? Should the drink be consumed imediately? Thanks
Revive Stronger damn Pascal are u serious? It's not about evaporing LMAO Chemicals interact each other and degrade in other chemicals. Whey could interact with water and degrade in something else after a day, so when you drink it you will absorb something different than whey drinked straightaway
@@Euphytos what chemicals do you have in your water then? At least in the EU, drinking water has extremely strict guidelines with mineral content. The mineral content is very much what you consume in meals as well. Also, what about prepacked protein shakes?! Seems like they don't get toxic and I doubt that they're using distilled water.
With regard to the topic on rotating in exercises: I have pretty exclusively done back squats for quads for years. Recently I tried changing to front squats and I lost a lot of strength on my back squats after just two 6 week cycles off. Does anyone have any recommendations? Should I just have kept in a couple of sets not lose so much on the squat or is losing quite a bit if strength on exercises when rotating them out like this normal?
I think Front Squats are a poor substitution for back squats. It's probably mostly neurological and technical efficiency. Once you're getting back to BS, it comes back quickly - Pascal
I experienced something similar when I started working on front squats. What I've been doing is front squats Mon and Wen and then heavy back squats again on Friday. My front squats started super weak, but are gradually moving up now. In another month or so I'll probably switch to rotating every other training day...so one week back squats will get 2 day's and front squats 1 and then the following week the opposite. I don't consider them a substitute for each other, but I like the advice of being general strong all over.
I have a question about RIR during a meso-cycle. Am I right in thinking that this is how it works. Assume a 4 week hypertrophy phase proceeded by one week of a deload. The first week, we start out with our MEV, low volume, and 4 RIR. Second week we increase to 3 RIR, and higher volume. Third week, higher volume and 2/1 RIR. Finally last week, highest volume and 1/0 RIR. Along the way we try and increase weight on the bar wherever possible. Then deload and repeat. Not sure if this is the correct way of interpreting Mike's strategy.
@@ReviveStronger Legend Pascal, glad to see I'm on the right track! I guess my concern was that if I'm increasing volume, increasing load, and increasing intensity (lower RIR) it may be too much! Also, if I may add something I've thought about (you don't have to answer this). If I'm working on a mesocycle where I'm aiming for between 6-8 reps. Week 1 with a 4 RIR would mean 2 reps (assuming 6 reps is failure) which seems kind of absurdly low!
@Revive Stronger I have 1 big question. When a programm says 70%. Some say base that on your alltime estimated 1RM (so guessing to the high end). Like I did a 550lbs grinder ugly deadlift months ago. I might be able to do 555lbs now. So for training I will do 70% of 555lbs. Or should you say 550lbs from a few months ago was an absolute grinder. I can't do that every few days. What I can do is 520lbs with perfect form every week without a problem. So for training I will do 70% of that. Which one should I choose. And when people like Mike say hypertrophy comes between 0-6RIR. Is that from 0 total outgoing ugly grinding failure or goodform failure??
Hi Steve,I have a question. I want to try the progression scheme you talk about but I was thinking: 1) is it ok if my mesocycle is of 4 weeks(not an advanced lifter but an intermediate) , starting from RIR3 to arrive at RIR 1 and 0 on single joint movements, and deload on week 4 2)Or would be better ,for example, to stay two weeks on RIR 2, so that the accumulation phase is of 4 weeks(deload week 5)?thanks
Question. During a fat burning phase, can the calories from body fat burned contribute to muscle building during a cut? Every once in a while I'll take a break from eating, and then go through a growth spurt. not sure whats happening there.
I wonder for something like DC Training, where they go to failure... if maybe instead, for more trained individuals, we go to RPE 8(2 RIR), then terminate, rest pause, then again, shy of true failure, and do this more times than the regular 2 rest pause(3 times to failure). Instead, do 6 times to 2RIR, or finish at 1RIR or failure on final one. You could do more because of less fatigue accumulation, and maybe even get better results?
I'm honestly not versed on DC training, but the suggestion makes sense to me. If you could get more out of more sets with less fatigue and same or more stimulus.. Yup. Thanks for watching! - Coach Jess
@@Creature1009 it's more of a relationship to minimizing fatigue accumulation or minimizing CNS fatigue. Your doing more volume, with around same or less accumulation. This is also due to the RIR curve and how close 2RIR is to stimulation, as going to full mechanical failure. So yes, more volume, less fatigue accumulation. Anyone who has done powerlifting knows CNS fatigue is a real thing.
@@dozermendoza okay but hear me out, research on CNS fatigue is new but what we currently have indicates that higher numbers of repetitions are harder to recover from than lower number of repetitions, likely due to the fact that other systems beyond the muscular one are at play and requiring energy as well. At the end of the day I believe the outcome from either scenario will be similar, and this minutiae and this constant fear of overly fatiguing yourself from (checks notes) a couple sets to failure is not as big of a deal as it’s made out to be
@@dozermendoza not to mention the body ADAPTS to the stress it endured, so I believe training to failure more frequently will lead to adaptations that negate the initially greater fatigue from going to failure
Can citrullin malat can gives you greater Hypertrophy (maybe a Little Bit ober The natty Limit? Or Just faster?) Because Its Help you to get more Reps and lower The fatique ? Or is ITS Just Like Beta alanine ( you can get more Reps but you must do them, because Its decreased metabalic stress. ITS seems to be that Beta alanin cant increase growth)
everything old is new again. Since I have been following bodybuilding starting back in like 1982, I have always heard "train to within 1-2 reps of failure" lol. The advice is as old as Methuseluh, but if we call it "effective reps" we can act like something new has been discovered lol
I asked him exactly this on an Insta live vid chat. He said deadlift doesn't count to leg volume as a stimulus but it does for fatigue. So if you count it ob leg day it will reduce your effective volume.
A good measure it once the tempo slows down. Hard on isolation lifts though, but hardly ever is it recommended to go there with isolation anyway - Pascal
Hello, about the equipment/exercise variation part: this is actual thing for me. In the next half year I wont have access to any gym, just a dumbbells set (with lot of weight). Okay I can train upper body well (rows/bench/overhead etc...) but what about leg? Is there any way to train legs effectively with dumbbells? Or it will be a disaster ? I know its absolutly not an optimal scenario for strength but can I achieve hypertrophy with dumbbells for legs?
Cseszka Cseszka you can do dumbbell Hamstring Curls by laying face down and holding the dumbbell between your feet. Weighted lunges, goblet squats, RDL, sissy squats, Bulgarian split squat
Hi, I know your not asking me but I think Bulgarian split squats are a fantastic option with dumbbells. There is some research out there stating Bulgarian split squats are as effective as squats themselves. For the posterior chain Romanian deadlifts with the dumbbells are a great option. Other single leg work such as dumbbell step ups, reverse lunges may also be worth considering and trying out.
@@Creature1009 Yep, the low intensity/high rep (clueless approach) had it's place to build the habit as someone new (at the time) to any intentional muscle building exercise. For now once I've completed 12reps x 4 working sets, I increase the weight & lower the reps and have been making progress over the last year doing that. I know that's probably still light but 8-12reps/set seems to be a good range for my body to avoid injury and sustainably progress. Eventually I want to get into the heavier low rep movements but feel like I'm better off building a bit of a base (might take a year) and getting in a ton of good reps before that.
@@onezerotwofour184 that sounds like a really slow way to progress weights. Waiting until you can do 4x12 means those first three sets were not very stimulating at all. I train 1-2 working sets per exercise and I aim to increase weight reps or both, pretty easy way to get strong, simple way to ensure progressive overload, and I’m not calling three sets that weren’t hard at all a work set
@@Creature1009 Yeah it is definitely slow progression but it is very sustainable for me as someone who has other physical hobbies and there are recovery/performance tradeoffs if I train too heavy. If I only lifted I would 100% train closer to what you suggest (btw I don't think I necessarily know what's best, it's just what works with my routine). Anyways thanks, and when I have more recovery time I'll strongly consider working with lower rep ranges. Edit: fwiw 12x4 is only at the very end. most of the time I'm around 8reps/set, and the last movement I added weight to (OHP) I started at 6reps x 4sets (not all 'working sets' I agree). The OHP progression so far with new weight was 6reps x 4sets 6x3, 7x1 6x2, 7x2 6x1, 7x3 7x4 yesterday next will be 7x3, 8x1 Was still planning on working back up to 12x4, but if that is waiting too long (I'm honestly not sure, 12x4 is a long ways away for me), when would you increase the weight again?
Dr Mike has definitely changed his opinion on slow eccentrics from then till now lol Mainly because the research suggests and has shown that muscles being stretched underload with a slow controlled eccentric provide more muscle growth stimulus than normal reps and sets?
The Ostrowski study would disagree. This study took trained individuals and put them on the same program split into 3 sets 6 sets and 12 sets and found no meaningful difference in hypertrophy outcomes between groups, all groups made great gains
Sir, for example 1) 60kg weight 8 reps (RIR 0) volume is 480 2) 37 kg weight 20 reps (RIR 10) Volume 550. Even though 2nd case has more volume 1 st case get significantly more gains. So Effective reps is Real.
Dr Mike said 4 to 3 RIR was significant, and 3 to 2 was good but 2 to 1 no. Ok so wouldnt 3 reps out of 5RM be best sets in terms of STF. Because 2 RIR (3/5) and only 60% of way to failure (3/5)
Effective reps (1 RIR) is the concept numero uno if you do not do big compounds. I believe classic compound exercises will disappear from hypertrophy training altogether. Stimulus to fatigue ratio is really bad along with higher risk of injuries and strains.
There are so many compound lifts for every body part that you can always find one that is not injurious for you and has good stimulus to fatigue ratio, especially for higher reps. For example instead of squats you can do trap bar squats, Jefferson squats, Bulgarian squats, lunges etc.
Bodybuilders have no reason to barbell bench squat or deadlift beyond enjoying doing those lifts. There are much better options to grow muscle than these.
Regarding effective reps, I'm a bit upset that Mike only talked about comparing 4RIR to 0-1 RIR for sets where presumably complete rest is taking place, thereby increasing effective reps on the back end by pushing closer to failure and DID NOT discuss increasing effective reps on the front end by using a shorter rest interval and beginning each set in a semifatigued state. I'm assuming this is because he thinks resting too little would cause a reduction in total volume, but only if you track volume in terms of sets rather than total reps. If you took a cross fit style approach and said, "using a 10RM load, complete 50 reps in as little time as possible, taking each mini set to RPE8-9" I think this is the best approach. Then just increase your total rep target throughout the accumulation block...
I don't think it's a sustainable nor good approach when hypertrophy is the goal. Sure, in a metabolite block it may be feasible but overall for the specificity of max muscular development, I have my doubts. - Pascal
The research has been quite clear; 3+ minute rest periods see the greatest gains in both strength and muscle size, with shorter rest being inferior by a marginal amount, like pascal said, beneficial for metabolite accumulation but probably not for growth
Mike needs a throne, an axe, some roasted carcass, and a flagon of strong ale. He looks like he just returned home from a day of raiding and pillaging.
Time Stamp 41:00- Mike explains that if you give excuses for everyone who rotates exercises every week and all you do is complain. You will be the smallest angriest fuck on the internet. Lol
This guy sure knows how to overcomplicate things. Bodybuilding is easy. Too many people on social media now over complicate things. For Eg RIR! Come on man! Train with intensity, diet on point and rest.
These are really basic concepts that can help structure your training, if not just an addition of knowledge and perspective for the interested. This is not graduate level physics. Training in general is indeed simple, but if you're a professional or simply an enthusiast it would be in your interest to consume as much information as possible.
@@Allyourheroswenttohell Greg Nuckols said in his second to last podcast he is not convinced of overreaching for the sake of hypertrophy goals. If you are a regular lifter, pushing the MAV to the limit very well may be as far as you need.
Timestamps:
01:02 How important is equipment to be the best bodybuilder
05:24 Mike's take on effective reps
16:55 What to do nutritionally while travelling?
19:36 Pump and causative role in hypertrophy and NO supplements worth taken
21:26 Pre-exhaustion before heavy compounds beneficial for hypertrophy
30:09 MIkes thoughts on pause reps and slow tempo
32:40 Approach to trying a new exercise for the first time and not growing from it at the beginning?
41:32 Mike shares insight on his current training split
45:16 Most surprising result/experience for Mike and talks about effective reps concept
54:08 Weighted vest experiment for fat loss or contest prep
Revive Stronger great video!! Bigfoot would be jealous of Mike’s chest hair though!! JK. Can you help with a question? I never understood how hard I should push for hypertrophy. For instance, does me mean that you should go shy of failure on every set even at the end? So say if you are doing a pull day. At the end, the last set of biceps, if I pyramid and push to total failure, does this mess with hypertrophy or would I have been better off finishing just shy of failure and knowing I could have burned it out? I guess you have to look at next week also right? Like if I do that much, I might not recover enough for the next week? In my mind I’m thinking that failure is needed to grow but I guess this isn’t the case? Just curious what you think. Little muscles recover faster also? Just curious thanks!!
We still don't know to what extent pushing to failure leads to hypertrophy. Studies suggest that being 1-2 reps away from it yield the same amount of hypertrophy, however, I do think that more experienced individuals probably need to go to failure more often. So, in your case, pushing to failure every now and then is probably fine. Especially in a week before a deload and on single joint exercises
- Pascal
big hairy muscle daddy back again
APEX ALERT I was expecting the hairy muscle daddy comment! 😂
Oh boi
- Pascal
The science bear
Even in my next incarnation I won't forget this channel
Haha, amazing!
- Pascal
A Revive Stronger podcast with Mike Israetel?
Today is a good day
That's the spirit!
- Pascal
Mike breaking down the lean- traveler question was impressive. He's got the science, but also the experience of an accomplished athlete to reflect upon. Thoughtful and concise.
Agree!
- Pascal
Mike's split:
(Heavy 5-10 reps, Moderate 10-20 reps, Light 20-30 reps)
Mon am: Heavy legs
Mon pm: Heavy push & shoulders
Tue am: Heavy pull, biceps & grip
Tue pm: Moderate legs
Wed am: Moderate push, shoulders & shrug
Wed pm: Moderate pull, biceps & grip
Thu am: Moderate legs
Thu pm: Moderate push (tricep emphasis) & shrug
Fri am: Moderate pull, biceps & grip
Fri pm: Light legs
Sat am: Light push, shoulders & shrug
Sat pm: Light pull, biceps & grip
Crazy °-°
Here is my personal bit of wisdom: "if Greg and Mike agree on something ,the it is true"
Hehe, most likely^^
- Pascal
Must be really cold in the Doc’s apartment for him to be wearing a sweater.
He shaved himself
- Pascal
The Pre-exhaustion advice was awesome!
Happy to hear that :)
- Pascal
Was about to post asking about pre-exhaustion for intermediates, but you beat me to it. Good job at asking the questions we need, Steve.
Tricep pre-exhaustion seems like it works for everybody, as you both alluded to.
There you go ;)
- Pascal
I love Dr. Mike's rant about taking the long view. I do research, and I advocate being skeptical of all studies until there have been several meta-studies done on the subject. And even then, it's good to keep a skeptical eye and keep in mind limits in validity, effect size, etc even if the p-values are significant. The replicability crisis in psychology is a cluster fuck that every scientist, or person whose epistemology is based on science, should learn from. Never be a first adopter, never overstate the power of a study; the way to do this is to be patient and admit your own ignorance. Science is a long-term project.
Amen!!!
- Pascal
Oh by the way, I think your podcasts are the best! Not too long, not too short. And the podcast is really about what your guests has to say about the topics.
Thanks for this :)
- Pascal
This was fantastic! Thanks Steve! The idea of effective reps is very intriguing
Thanks so much Caleb :)
- Pascal
Where do myo-reps fall compared to effective reps, hard sets, RIR? Thanks for another great show.
You may find this interesting; borgefagerli.com/myo-reps-in-english/ (If you haven't read it yet)
Probably in the same categorie. It's a method that can be used every once in a while
- Pascal
Thanks for the triceps pre-exhaustion tip (super chest dominant guy here)
Always great to hear Mike!
It really is!
- Pascal
One of the most informative channels out here on RUclips about training.
Honestly you learn more from channels like this one, than from textbooks and other books (personal experience)
Agreed, also easier to listen to! Thanks for watching and Happy New Year!
- Coach Jess
YES STEVE AND MIKE !!!!
You got it!
- Pascal
Amazing! Dr Mike is the GOAT
Hey, this isn't 2 years ago! This is now!
Don't get it but I like
- Pascal
@@ReviveStronger
Every time I watch fitness content, it's always 1 to 2 years old.. It caught me off guard that I was being contemporary for once 🤷♂️
@@Kaymen1980 Aaaah, I see!!
SQUAAAAAAAAAAD! 🔥
I was actually kinda worried that there wouldn’t be a podcast today! 😱 I didn’t get the weekly newsletter in my mail, so I sort of lost all hope for a good weekend.. 🤷♂️
But here we are! Thanks you guys!
PS: actually should’ve known that this was coming, I submitted a question, myself 😂
Thank you doctor, thank you Steve, thank you Pascal! 🙏 We love you! #nohomo 😘
Squad? What are you? 5 years old?
Thanks as always!
- Pascal
This guy just cracks me up!
Can somebody link the conversation (5:45) between Chris Beardsley and Mike Israetel on effective reps?
I'd like to read that too
Question: 16:00. what's wrong with this idea of starting at low RIR with tons of sets, then decreasing sets and working towards failure?
Right! This works perfectly with their idea of training closer to failure being more fatiguing, it makes sense to reduce total workload as you increase effort. Steve says this doesn’t work with progressive overload but I disagree, by the end the number of repetitions it takes you to fail if you used the same load from beginning of meso to end of meso will be far greater than the beginning of the meso. you will be performing an equivalent amount of stimulating reps, the increase in effort over time IS progressive overload so I disagree with both of them on this issue. I’m not sure why but Mike does not discuss the force velocity relationship and how this relates to mechanical tension on muscle fibers which is literally the stimulus that signals muscle growth. Maybe he isn’t aware of this concept or maybe he didn’t think to bring it up at this time. Based on the force velocity relationship I also think that reps greater than 6rir contribute NO growth stimulus to anyone who has been training for a while. Noobs are of course the exception to this
Around 57:00 Mike talks about using will power to increase NEAT. I find that any calories I burn when I try to move around is offset when I stop focusing on moving. Instead of dancing while I make dinner, I’m leaning on the counter and can barely hold my head up.
Do I have to focus on staying active 14 hours a day to ensure my NEAT actually increases? How do I fight my body’s natural tendency to slow down in a caloric deficit?
I try to be aware of the habits I had when I wasn't dieting and try to replicate that style throughout the deficit. For example, intentionally planning in walks, etc.
- Pascal
I figured it out. The answer was caffeine.
I wonder do an IFBB pros who actually make money from bodybuilding (not coaching which is not the same) actually watch this. Its nice to hear that you can potentially make some extra progress from an amazing gym, but for most, the impact on moving or commuting for a better gym would just have so much more impact on other areas of life that are much more important. Living closer to family, friends, less time in the car and more with your family or more time to work on your hobbies, reading, relaxation, family time. I have an amazing gym about 40 minutes drive, but an average one less than 8 minutes walk, time and time again I try make it to the better one, but I'm always frustrated when I realise I've used an extra 2 hours of my life commuting and I love where I live.
Yes there are. What about Terrence Ruffins & Jared Feather just to name the ones I'm absolutely certain about :)
But I totally agree with what you're saying, I think that most overthink what they actually need while in reality, they just need the most fundamental things.
- Pascal
Never heard pre-exhaust explained so well. I have a little bit of a shoulder issue and will try it for chest. This may allow me to get the work done with lower loads on the barbell.
Hope it works well for you!
- Pascal
At 15:00 Mike says you will grow a lot of muscle doing 10 sets at 5rir. I think this would be true for beginners but for trained individuals I don’t think this is the case. This sounds like a DELOAD workout and I can’t fathom how this could create a hypertrophy response in a trained individual, and this is just a hypothesis of Mike’s, certainly you could argue the research proves this in the case of untrained individuals, but I believe it’s silly to imply someone who has made good hypertrophic adaptations could benefit from something this easy. Mechanical tension grows muscles and from what we currently understand about how this works is with the force-velocity relationship you must accumulate repetitions where some degree of bar speed is lost from the beginning of the set due to fatigue, which I do not believe can happen at 5rir
I'm not too sure exactly for who he meant that, but agreeing with you!
- Coach Jess
If you mean 10 weekly sets definitely not. If you mean 10 in one session with 20 total then I’d say it’s not optimal but should be somewhat effective. I think the best route is starting a workout with the max effort method on a compound so you get in the most effective reps and then go into your volume work. Next session I’d say start with lower intensity still with the conjugate principle of rotating variations. Otherwise doing this is just gonna get you snapped up
Example
Session 1
-Max out swiss bar bench (not getting too close to 100% max should be more like RPE 9.5)
-3x10 flat bench
-3x10 incline dumbbell press
Session 2
-3x5 floor press
-3x10 close grip bench
-3x10 dumbbell bench
Most advanced lifters you’ll notice use 4 variations of a lift by default, conjugate just takes it to the next step with a bit more variation to further decrease injury risk and build more muscle from doing new lifts you suck at. If you’re worried about losing specificity on the volume work you just adjust it to fit those needs
-3x5 floor press
-3x10 close grip floor press
-3x10 dumbbell floor press
I agree! I think effective reps has become more true than ever and lengthened partials are now debunked as the be all end all.
Great QnA
Cheers buddy :)
- Pascal
Always great training insights and wisdom from Dr. Mike 💪
Happy to hear that :)
- Pascal
Mike is growing bigger and bigger
He has a streak!
- Pascal
Hey dude, I've been listening to your podcasts for a time now, thank you for your awesome content. I've a question :
What is the stability of supplements in water ( whey, creatine, etc.) ? For example, when I'm at school or at work, I often prepare my whey-creatine with water and consume it like 3 hours laters? Is it bad? Should the drink be consumed imediately?
Thanks
It is probably fine, i think you are just overthinking it!
cali23 yeah i don't know thanks for the reply
Where will it go? I don't think it'll evaporate and thus, it should be fine.
- Pascal
Revive Stronger damn Pascal are u serious? It's not about evaporing LMAO Chemicals interact each other and degrade in other chemicals. Whey could interact with water and degrade in something else after a day, so when you drink it you will absorb something different than whey drinked straightaway
@@Euphytos what chemicals do you have in your water then? At least in the EU, drinking water has extremely strict guidelines with mineral content. The mineral content is very much what you consume in meals as well. Also, what about prepacked protein shakes?! Seems like they don't get toxic and I doubt that they're using distilled water.
With regard to the topic on rotating in exercises: I have pretty exclusively done back squats for quads for years. Recently I tried changing to front squats and I lost a lot of strength on my back squats after just two 6 week cycles off. Does anyone have any recommendations? Should I just have kept in a couple of sets not lose so much on the squat or is losing quite a bit if strength on exercises when rotating them out like this normal?
I think Front Squats are a poor substitution for back squats. It's probably mostly neurological and technical efficiency. Once you're getting back to BS, it comes back quickly
- Pascal
I experienced something similar when I started working on front squats. What I've been doing is front squats Mon and Wen and then heavy back squats again on Friday. My front squats started super weak, but are gradually moving up now. In another month or so I'll probably switch to rotating every other training day...so one week back squats will get 2 day's and front squats 1 and then the following week the opposite.
I don't consider them a substitute for each other, but I like the advice of being general strong all over.
Cheers for the replies. Will definitely consider this in future programming.
Epic as always! 💪🏼💪🏼
Thank you :)
- Coach Jess
I've seen it all now.
When you think you've seen it all...and then there comes more ;P
- Pascal
I have a question about RIR during a meso-cycle. Am I right in thinking that this is how it works. Assume a 4 week hypertrophy phase proceeded by one week of a deload.
The first week, we start out with our MEV, low volume, and 4 RIR. Second week we increase to 3 RIR, and higher volume. Third week, higher volume and 2/1 RIR. Finally last week, highest volume and 1/0 RIR. Along the way we try and increase weight on the bar wherever possible. Then deload and repeat. Not sure if this is the correct way of interpreting Mike's strategy.
We got a podcast coming out (EP176) where things are being explained quite well. But generally, you're not off :)
- Pascal
@@ReviveStronger Legend Pascal, glad to see I'm on the right track! I guess my concern was that if I'm increasing volume, increasing load, and increasing intensity (lower RIR) it may be too much! Also, if I may add something I've thought about (you don't have to answer this). If I'm working on a mesocycle where I'm aiming for between 6-8 reps. Week 1 with a 4 RIR would mean 2 reps (assuming 6 reps is failure) which seems kind of absurdly low!
I love this channel to the death
Thanks so much!!
- Pascal
@Revive Stronger I have 1 big question.
When a programm says 70%. Some say base that on your alltime estimated 1RM (so guessing to the high end). Like I did a 550lbs grinder ugly deadlift months ago. I might be able to do 555lbs now. So for training I will do 70% of 555lbs.
Or should you say 550lbs from a few months ago was an absolute grinder. I can't do that every few days. What I can do is 520lbs with perfect form every week without a problem. So for training I will do 70% of that.
Which one should I choose.
And when people like Mike say hypertrophy comes between 0-6RIR. Is that from 0 total outgoing ugly grinding failure or goodform failure??
I'd always strive for perfect form and take this as your baseline
- Pascal
Hi Steve,I have a question. I want to try the progression scheme you talk about but I was thinking:
1) is it ok if my mesocycle is of 4 weeks(not an advanced lifter but an intermediate) , starting from RIR3 to arrive at RIR 1 and 0 on single joint movements, and deload on week 4
2)Or would be better ,for example, to stay two weeks on RIR 2, so that the accumulation phase is of 4 weeks(deload week 5)?thanks
Both seem like valid options, depending on your total volume and also training experience :)
- Pascal
Question. During a fat burning phase, can the calories from body fat burned contribute to muscle building during a cut? Every once in a while I'll take a break from eating, and then go through a growth spurt. not sure whats happening there.
Sure, it's potential energy that can be used for this.
- Pascal
Can I start with myoreps to somewhat fatigue the muscles in some exercises to increase effective reps?
Good thought but I think due to it being highly fatiguing, you'll actually reduce the total workload
- Pascal
I wonder for something like DC Training, where they go to failure... if maybe instead, for more trained individuals, we go to RPE 8(2 RIR), then terminate, rest pause, then again, shy of true failure, and do this more times than the regular 2 rest pause(3 times to failure). Instead, do 6 times to 2RIR, or finish at 1RIR or failure on final one. You could do more because of less fatigue accumulation, and maybe even get better results?
I'm honestly not versed on DC training, but the suggestion makes sense to me. If you could get more out of more sets with less fatigue and same or more stimulus.. Yup. Thanks for watching!
- Coach Jess
So you would rather do like 7 sets to get most likely equivalent results to 2-3? Sounds like a lot of wasted time to me
@@Creature1009 it's more of a relationship to minimizing fatigue accumulation or minimizing CNS fatigue. Your doing more volume, with around same or less accumulation. This is also due to the RIR curve and how close 2RIR is to stimulation, as going to full mechanical failure. So yes, more volume, less fatigue accumulation. Anyone who has done powerlifting knows CNS fatigue is a real thing.
@@dozermendoza okay but hear me out, research on CNS fatigue is new but what we currently have indicates that higher numbers of repetitions are harder to recover from than lower number of repetitions, likely due to the fact that other systems beyond the muscular one are at play and requiring energy as well. At the end of the day I believe the outcome from either scenario will be similar, and this minutiae and this constant fear of overly fatiguing yourself from (checks notes) a couple sets to failure is not as big of a deal as it’s made out to be
@@dozermendoza not to mention the body ADAPTS to the stress it endured, so I believe training to failure more frequently will lead to adaptations that negate the initially greater fatigue from going to failure
Can citrullin malat can gives you greater Hypertrophy (maybe a Little Bit ober The natty Limit? Or Just faster?) Because Its Help you to get more Reps and lower The fatique ? Or is ITS Just Like Beta alanine ( you can get more Reps but you must do them, because Its decreased metabalic stress. ITS seems to be that Beta alanin cant increase growth)
The literature on CM is still very unclear. Some studies support it, some don't
- Pascal
Where can I put my opinion about the most informative fitness channel in the internet?
Itunes review is always helpful. Other than that, just listening, commenting, being part of the community helps big time :)
- Pascal
everything old is new again. Since I have been following bodybuilding starting back in like 1982, I have always heard "train to within 1-2 reps of failure" lol. The advice is as old as Methuseluh, but if we call it "effective reps" we can act like something new has been discovered lol
Would love to hear Mike's take on deadlifting on pull day vs leg day
Me also. My own experience dl on leg day = big time fatigue. Stopped pulling from the ground and my recovery aint interrupted anymore
I asked him exactly this on an Insta live vid chat. He said deadlift doesn't count to leg volume as a stimulus but it does for fatigue. So if you count it ob leg day it will reduce your effective volume.
In the exercise selection roundtable he discusses Deadlifts with Menno. Both aren't fans of it for hypertrophy
- Pascal
@@Allyourheroswenttohell dunno, don't follow him :)
I'm not a big fan of deadlifts for hypertrophy either :)
Love it
There you go ;)
- Pascal
How does one really know when you’re 4 reps in reserve, or 2 reps from failure, etc.?
A good measure it once the tempo slows down. Hard on isolation lifts though, but hardly ever is it recommended to go there with isolation anyway
- Pascal
YES!!!
🖒🖒awsome as always
Thanks Mike!
- Pascal
Hello, about the equipment/exercise variation part: this is actual thing for me. In the next half year I wont have access to any gym, just a dumbbells set (with lot of weight). Okay I can train upper body well (rows/bench/overhead etc...) but what about leg? Is there any way to train legs effectively with dumbbells? Or it will be a disaster ? I know its absolutly not an optimal scenario for strength but can I achieve hypertrophy with dumbbells for legs?
Cseszka Cseszka you can do dumbbell Hamstring Curls by laying face down and holding the dumbbell between your feet. Weighted lunges, goblet squats, RDL, sissy squats, Bulgarian split squat
Hi, I know your not asking me but I think Bulgarian split squats are a fantastic option with dumbbells. There is some research out there stating Bulgarian split squats are as effective as squats themselves. For the posterior chain Romanian deadlifts with the dumbbells are a great option. Other single leg work such as dumbbell step ups, reverse lunges may also be worth considering and trying out.
Lots of things you can do! The guys covered it nicely :)
- Pascal
So 20 rep sets for dips aren't ideal when I can realistically manage 30.
Guessing I should add weight then.
It'd be a good idea!
- Pascal
Ten plus reps in the tank means you’re training like a kitten. Smart training is hard training
@@Creature1009 Yep, the low intensity/high rep (clueless approach) had it's place to build the habit as someone new (at the time) to any intentional muscle building exercise.
For now once I've completed 12reps x 4 working sets, I increase the weight & lower the reps and have been making progress over the last year doing that.
I know that's probably still light but 8-12reps/set seems to be a good range for my body to avoid injury and sustainably progress.
Eventually I want to get into the heavier low rep movements but feel like I'm better off building a bit of a base (might take a year) and getting in a ton of good reps before that.
@@onezerotwofour184 that sounds like a really slow way to progress weights. Waiting until you can do 4x12 means those first three sets were not very stimulating at all. I train 1-2 working sets per exercise and I aim to increase weight reps or both, pretty easy way to get strong, simple way to ensure progressive overload, and I’m not calling three sets that weren’t hard at all a work set
@@Creature1009
Yeah it is definitely slow progression but it is very sustainable for me as someone who has other physical hobbies and there are recovery/performance tradeoffs if I train too heavy.
If I only lifted I would 100% train closer to what you suggest (btw I don't think I necessarily know what's best, it's just what works with my routine).
Anyways thanks, and when I have more recovery time I'll strongly consider working with lower rep ranges.
Edit: fwiw 12x4 is only at the very end.
most of the time I'm around 8reps/set, and the last movement I added weight to (OHP) I started at 6reps x 4sets (not all 'working sets' I agree).
The OHP progression so far with new weight was
6reps x 4sets
6x3, 7x1
6x2, 7x2
6x1, 7x3
7x4 yesterday
next will be 7x3, 8x1
Was still planning on working back up to 12x4, but if that is waiting too long (I'm honestly not sure, 12x4 is a long ways away for me), when would you increase the weight again?
Dr Mike has definitely changed his opinion on slow eccentrics from then till now lol
Mainly because the research suggests and has shown that muscles being stretched underload with a slow controlled eccentric provide more muscle growth stimulus than normal reps and sets?
Volume would make all the difference. 3 sets to near failure as opposed to 8 sets big difference
Thanks for watching :)
- Coach Jess
The Ostrowski study would disagree. This study took trained individuals and put them on the same program split into 3 sets 6 sets and 12 sets and found no meaningful difference in hypertrophy outcomes between groups, all groups made great gains
Sir, for example 1) 60kg weight 8 reps (RIR 0) volume is 480
2) 37 kg weight 20 reps (RIR 10)
Volume 550.
Even though 2nd case has more volume 1 st case get significantly more gains. So Effective reps is Real.
Who trains at RIR 10?
- Coach Jess
@@ReviveStronger I have just told. I am going to tell that Last reps are important.
Buy this man a shirt
He doesn't need a shirt. He wears his natural shirt
- Pascal
Dr Mike said 4 to 3 RIR was significant, and 3 to 2 was good but 2 to 1 no. Ok so wouldnt 3 reps out of 5RM be best sets in terms of STF. Because 2 RIR (3/5) and only 60% of way to failure (3/5)
I train ever session like it’s peak week
Why is Mike wearing a sweater?
Probably quite hot in Philly atm.
- Pascal
Gyms with legit equipment usually are a different environment as well fwiw
Yeps!
Effective reps (1 RIR) is the concept numero uno if you do not do big compounds. I believe classic compound exercises will disappear from hypertrophy training altogether. Stimulus to fatigue ratio is really bad along with higher risk of injuries and strains.
There are so many compound lifts for every body part that you can always find one that is not injurious for you and has good stimulus to fatigue ratio, especially for higher reps. For example instead of squats you can do trap bar squats, Jefferson squats, Bulgarian squats, lunges etc.
I have to disagree with that statement.
- Pascal
Bodybuilders have no reason to barbell bench squat or deadlift beyond enjoying doing those lifts. There are much better options to grow muscle than these.
Dr. Mike BearMode Israetel
Siberian Bearmode. Next level
- Pascal
He's been doing his rack pulls above the D
Regarding effective reps, I'm a bit upset that Mike only talked about comparing 4RIR to 0-1 RIR for sets where presumably complete rest is taking place, thereby increasing effective reps on the back end by pushing closer to failure and DID NOT discuss increasing effective reps on the front end by using a shorter rest interval and beginning each set in a semifatigued state. I'm assuming this is because he thinks resting too little would cause a reduction in total volume, but only if you track volume in terms of sets rather than total reps. If you took a cross fit style approach and said, "using a 10RM load, complete 50 reps in as little time as possible, taking each mini set to RPE8-9" I think this is the best approach. Then just increase your total rep target throughout the accumulation block...
I don't think it's a sustainable nor good approach when hypertrophy is the goal. Sure, in a metabolite block it may be feasible but overall for the specificity of max muscular development, I have my doubts.
- Pascal
The research has been quite clear; 3+ minute rest periods see the greatest gains in both strength and muscle size, with shorter rest being inferior by a marginal amount, like pascal said, beneficial for metabolite accumulation but probably not for growth
Mike, i love you. Also, the same trimmer you use on you're face will work on your back and shoulders.
Strong words from the guy named grizzlyman
If you dont like grizzly longcut winter green, then we're about to have words.
IDK what you're talking about, Dr. Mike's sweater looks great
tru
Russian Beer is made from Mike's hair, full of protein!
Mike needs a throne, an axe, some roasted carcass, and a flagon of strong ale. He looks like he just returned home from a day of raiding and pillaging.
Who says that he doesn't own these things already? ;)
- Pascal
Hairy muscle daddy 😂!
Ohhh we eatin todayyyy
It’s like...I’m playing the episode on 1.75 speed to save time. But on the contrary I want more to listen to lol
Daniel Bazak you trynna eee?!?!?
segason6 what?
Daniel Bazak nvm. Just a bs phrase
segason6 damn I ruined the joke didn’t I...
yuh
Jeff Nippard references this show ruclips.net/video/xiJKa41Fsxo/видео.html
Ouw, amazing. Thanks for sharing :)
- Pascal
Time Stamp 41:00-
Mike explains that if you give excuses for everyone who rotates exercises every week and all you do is complain. You will be the smallest angriest fuck on the internet. Lol
Haha, yeps^
- Pascal
Did he say Olympic lifting shoes, belt, and straps for $100? Lol
Sounds close. Good oly lifting shoes don't have to be expensive, same with straps, that just leaves the belt.
I don't think everything needs to be taken by exact words. Stylistic devices ;)
- Pascal
Mike is actually half gorilla
This guy sure knows how to overcomplicate things. Bodybuilding is easy. Too many people on social media now over complicate things. For Eg RIR! Come on man! Train with intensity, diet on point and rest.
well he squats 500x10 lbs and OHP 125x10 kg. For a regular who doesn't lift really heavy, maybe such cookie-cutter advice is sufficient.
This is for people who love bodybuilding/theory want to be the best even if it means only 5% better results. I don't use RIR either though.
These are really basic concepts that can help structure your training, if not just an addition of knowledge and perspective for the interested. This is not graduate level physics. Training in general is indeed simple, but if you're a professional or simply an enthusiast it would be in your interest to consume as much information as possible.
Bloatlord Your username made my day 😂
@@Allyourheroswenttohell Greg Nuckols said in his second to last podcast he is not convinced of overreaching for the sake of hypertrophy goals. If you are a regular lifter, pushing the MAV to the limit very well may be as far as you need.