So glad I listened to this guy. I'm new to bodybuilding but kind of experienced in powerlifts. The training this dude teaches is kind of nice. It just feels nice. Good amount of sets, no soul crushing weights and no wasted time in resting periods. I'm done in 30-75 minutes and my quads feel like mush. Instead of not feeling my quads at all, after 2 hours of squats and my broken soul leaving out of my butthole.
When you squat so much you feel your soul leaving your butthole but then you realise it isn't your soul at all and now you gotta work out how to come home with disaster pants without your loved ones disowning you.
@@RenaissancePeriodization where can I purchase a beginner program for a 40 year old who takes all this into account? No, I’m not a lazy fuck, I just have a family and a job but I still want to build muscle, naturally. I would appreciate a response. Thank you very much
I’m 47 and go to the gym every 3 days (use to go 5-6). I concentrate on quality reps and working to fatigue. I find I am so much fresher every workout because of the rest I get and clean food. Getting older sucks but IT’s awesome when you find a routine that clicks and has results.
I turned 47 and still do 5 days a week but I might switch to what you're doing. Not sure yet. Seems like the gains might be better with more rest in between.
Well if it works for you thats great, it depends purely on your goals. If you want to maintain muscle, thats enough. If you want to build something, I would say you would need to prioritize one big muscle group(+maybe one small) and train it both days in some kind of a FBW program.
I started resting a lot more now too. Eliminated a lot of fatigue and junk volume. Following a Dorian Yates 4 day routine. Now I look forward to my gym days.
@@HotRodM4 I've been looking at Yates' routine. Got there thru Mentzer. Mentzer just doesn't seem like enough, Yates takes the concept and adds to it. Seems like it's a decent balance
About a year ago, I also made the switch from 6 days to 3 and have liked the results. And Even more importantly, i like the way I feel. Not saying that i wont hit a 4th day once in a while if I feel like it but 6 gym days a week for years and years begins to take a tole on the joints when you also work in construction 5 days a week. So for me, 3 days is best but I'm also not aiming to be the biggest guy in the room. I like training hard. Never been a big d load guy so id rather train hard every time and have less sessions. To each his own
Yes, i pretty much over trained my entire life... Its hard to cut back on volume, what is considered high volume today is way less than what i ever did... plus i went heavy to failure, forced reps and negatives...At 63 now i am getting much better with the correct workouts my body needs...i wish i knew all this 50 years ago...
@@AJPMUSIC_OFFICIAL yes, only muscle mags for information... i worked out for years before i even learned about how important food was... i pretty much started trying to grow since i was 9...
You have a few years on me but I feel the same way. I wish I knew better or rather controlled my ego. Once I started reducing my sets and increased my reps I noticed big gains. I only wonder how much better I would look now if I started this years ago.
I literally just got back from hitting chest on a monday and my workout was literally flat barbell press, incline barbell press, chest fly machine, dips, cable flies. This video could not have been more relatable and helpful, thank you so much for the information!
Yeah, I'm glad I clicked on this channel. I've only recently started working out with weights and needed to hear a lot of the things he says (including this).
Yeah it’s really common for so many people to do way too much volume if they’re natural lol, 2 exercises (incline press and one fly/dips) are all you need for your chest each session 👍
Much respect sir. Love/Hate you. My work outs have been so much more painfully good. I also can no longer go to the gym without seeing everyone else lifting incorrectly. Just turned 53. Spent my first 23 as an athlete. Got married at 175lb 25 years later topped out at 410lb. Changed things and educated my self 4 years ago and now am at 234lb. Now I find you when I start the building process again. Thank you so much.
I am guilty of overtraining, because I love working out. I'm now looking forward to quality gains, with less chance of injury, by following this outstanding advice! Thanks for the great content!
I recently hurt my back during a lifting session, and the heal time has lead me to rethink how I do things in the gym. Thank you for your wealth of knowledge! Can’t wait to get back to it with what I’ve learned for this channel.
I have a nasty back injury...Basically what happened to ronnie Coleman, just not as many disc's. I have had to completely overhaul my training, adjust my attitude, and most importantly I've had to check my ego n
2 hours of walking? That’s a waste of time, I would do 30 min walking and 20 min of lifting, which will be massively more productive. Then spend remaining time with kids.
i knew it! I've been following this for the last 10 years. Always felt that 3 sets of 3 or 4 per "group" was plenty to stimulate muscle growth. SO glad dr Mike confirmed this.
@@dawidgrabarz2413I do two exercises per muscle (I've cut back from 3 or 4), say incline dumbbells and peck deck (for chest). I do a decent warm up for the first exercise then I go all out for 3 sets, sometimes 4 if I didn't start at the right weight, then go do 3 sets on the peck deck. I'll increase it to 4 sets if I feel the first set wasn't quite right. As for reps, I do no less than 8. I aim for 10 and sometimes get to 12.
@arcibald42 for assistance work, the same moves. For primary moves, different. Let's say 10 sets of bench is challenging, then two sessions of 6 sets is better quality and more total volume per week without the risks and fatigue of an endless session.
Dr. Mike's hamstring workout example (2 sets SLDL and 4 sets of hamstring curls later in the week) is exactly what I have in my plan. Glad to hear I am doing something right 😂
Yeah but that doesn’t include warm up sets and whether you’re going to failure or not. If you’re intermediate I think 4 sets is the way to go for SLDLs. Especially if you’re peaking in your meso
@@TheJackOfAllTrades777 100%. I have hammies at maintenance, finished this meso with two sets. More than enough for me and might of even been above maintenance with the other day having leg curls
Really nice to know all this. Ive been a amateur lifter for years. And I've kind of stumbled on a good muscle gain work out. This took years of trail and error. This video took 30min to equal years of trail and error working out. Thanks again for the science!
Been scratching my head over this for so many years! Freshman in college, my back session was inspired by them big boys from the Golden Era of bodybuilding - 5 exercises,4 sets each! :) You can imagine the fatigue,frustration and disappointment that followed. Now - 20 years later, I do no more than 8 sets per muscle group(4 or 5 days rest period),usually a main lift(progress in weight and reps strictly recorded!) , followed by light finisher - around 15 reps,preferably cable,concentrated on squeeze and burn. Works like a charm!
@@binchili Just keep them on constant rotation. I train Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. So - Tuesday-push, Wed-Pull, Fri-Legs, Sat-Push, Sun-Pull, Tue-Legs, Wed-Push, Fri-Pull.... and so on forever :) You have to be very mindfull of the volume and intensity though. A pull training every 4-5 days is basically 2 back exercises and 2 biceps exercises for 3-4 sets each(mostly 3), 1 rear shoulder, 1 traps, 1 forearms exercise(once in a while) , 3(4) sets each. Not all of those to faliure. Not at all.
@@RenaissancePeriodization just found you Dr Mike. Your work is incredible. Science is a beautiful thing with fitness. Thank you for all you fuckin do man!! Ive been overtraining since 2010. Not anymore! Frequency of workouts > junk volume workouts
I feel like I'm back in my professor's classes again as a Kinesiology graduate. You've got great knowledge and a great way of explaining concepts of exercise physiology!
So glad I found RP. Helped me realize what I was doing right and what I was doing wrong or could do better. The focus eccentric has been a game changer!!
I frigging love this content. Eye opening, and overtraining is a big issue of mine, plus workouts that are too long and not functional for an everyday life. Studying is power and for sure resistance training is science. Super glad this channel popped in my recommended.
Thanks dude, I've created a gym plan ready to start next week however i had too many excersizes without realising. I've optimised it with your advice so thank you.
You only need 2-4 exercises to hit each muscle appropriately, depending on the muscle. It doesn't matter when you do those exercises. As long as you do those exercises after you are fully recovered. Listen to your body and pick exercises that you feel like you will be strong at. If i haven't trained back in 10 days but my back is still sore, i wilI wait to work it out until I am fully recovered. Life itself can make muscles sore depending on work and everyday lifestyle. For example one day I can do pull-ups and rows, 3 days later I can do deadlifts and shrugs or I can split the the same exercises 3 times within a week. It allows my body to recover but I can also hit the same muscle group 2-3 times a week. Adjust your reps and sets based on strength and size goals. Adjust your diet based on physique goals. Do this and I promise you that you will start making progress.
I'm 67 work go to the gym 5 days a week. Mon Wed Fri - pull ups, flat bench, inclined bench, bicep curls, triceps extension, military press. 30 min on Stationary bike. Tue and Thur, tread mill 30 min, 150 push-ups. Upright row, and shoulder rolls forward and back.
Dude...I LOVE your content. Absolutely awesome stuff. I do have a question/request. Could you possibly do a vid on bodybuilding for seniors? I saw your vid on WHY us older folks should train, but I'm looking for more of a HOW we should train. As in, what would be good splits...volume...etc. Thanks!
It's on my list of shit to do, and the plan is a whole series about it. It's gonna be a little while because we have so much content stacked up before it, but IT WILL COME! - Dr. Mike
@@RenaissancePeriodization I'm turning 60 next month, I found your content about a year and a half ago. This plus what I've learned from another RUclipsr (who I won't mention here) have really changed my whole philosophy on lifting. I've seen your prior video about starting lifting at different decades in life, and I felt a little disheartened that I was getting into this in my late 50s. But I have seen body composition changes and a small amount of new muscle on top of that. So I WILL wait for series targeting us older dudes! PS, THE RP DIET BOOK 2.0 WAS A REAL EYE OPENER!
I'm about 6 months in (at age 43) and just starting to get into the swing of it to where training has become routine, this video is great. Thanks a lot.
I only do 1-2 exercises per body part and 3 - 4 sets each. Heaviest weight the first set, tapering down to get good muscle contraction and a pump. I track my progress and I don't get any stronger quicker doing a higher volume. I already know how well Im going to do the next time I walk into the gym if I've had enough sleep, been eating well.
I do almost the same. Movement on first set. Getting the squeeze, mind muscle connection. Then hard next set and contraction on the 3rd. Sore almost always
This is pretty much how i do it. Normally a compound exercise coupled with an isolation for each body part. My muscles feel like they're going to be ripped apart with any more than that
33 year old natty here and I’ve completely switched to this style and have been injury free since doing so. All those exercises are overkill and 3-4 exercises per body part is plenty.
It always took a toll on me going to gym after work and doing 80 mins workout and 30-50min running. I had so liitle time to rest i just went to sleep lol. But now I'll train with less exercises so ill have time to run and rest more
This is the reason upper/lower is the best. The flexibility is amazing cause you don't need to do a million exercises. You just do a heavy strength day followed by a volume hypertrophy day. Heavy day. Flat bench, barbell row, dips, Pull-ups/ Squats, romanian deadlifts. Volume day (lighter, more reps). Incline dumbbell, decline cable flys, horizontal wide cable row, supported one Arm dumbell row/ Leg curls, leg extensions, calf raises. All 3 sets of each, pretty much hits everything on a upper/lower split. You can throw arms in depending on recovery but they get work on the compounds, especially dips and Pull-ups. The thing of this split is I skip legs less. Say you do upper on Monday, you can't train upper till Thursday. This almost forces you to do legs cause you have nothing else to do and I like the gym. It's the main bonus of the split. Would you add anything else Mike?
As someone who has watched the majority of your videos, I really love this video. This helps me put my workout into perspective. I do 3 sets of 3 different exercises per muscle group, usually the same weight used. That's 9 total sets. By set 7-8 I'm running real low on energy. If I go any lighter in weight I breeze through the muscle group workout without any challenge. I will now implement lighter weight into a few of the 9 sets. Thank you Dr Mike.
22yrs in and I never really put much effort into a true weight lifting routine. I would go off of memory and how I would feel that day. This year I’m going to take it to the next level. Your scientific knowledge is a great motivator
I'm about 20 years in😊 Just use the Notes (no fancy apps) in your phone to type in your exercises,weight and date. That's how I keep track of all my workouts now for the last 10 years or so. Easy as.
I've only been subscribed to RP for a few days now, but I've been watching Dr. Mike's videos religiously during that time and I think this may be the single most eye-opening video for me! It makes me feel incredibly confident that I'll be able to build my own plans continually and be able to keep my muscle's gains fresh with new exercises every few months to avoid plateau. Thank you so much!!! Edit: typo
I do 4 excercises /session for Chest and Back, and 3 /session for Triceps and Biceps. 3 working sets each excercise. Used to do more... very glad I dialed it down. That much volume was killing my gains.
Love what you added about technique and stimulus increasing as you do more sets Set #2 of leg extensions and leg press are always the hardest for me. I almost always get to a mental block considering quitting the set, then once I get to set #3 I often feel much better and it helps motivate me through the rest of the sets!
@@keysersoze5920 not the original OP but I did squat, leg extension and leg presses last night lol. I had to walk out form the gym after those 3 because I had no energies left for calf raise and leg curl.
Here is my bottom line. I do one exercise per muscle group. 4 main exercises per session, plus 1 ancillary exercise (forearms, calves, core). More frequency is more important than more volume for me. I'm natty. It means every muscle group gets a day of training and rest 3 times a week. A warm up followed by 3 HARD sets for each exercise, up until failure of form. I did start 3 x 6-8 but now I do 3 x 10-12 because I feel like I can recover from that slight increase in volume in the same period. I will adjust as my gains slow down. I've gone from 74kg to 82kg in 4 months. My body fat level appears to have dropped, but it's hard to tell whether it's due to increased muscle showing, or my body fat has actually dropped. Dr Mike's videos have proven to be a godsend for me, especially the emphasis on doing HARD reps/sets, and the most optimal exercise execution. Essential because of the low volume, one bad exercise is a waste of a training day for that muscle.
I used to train for so long every single day on top of having a very physical job. I would lift 5-6 days a week doing at least 15 sets per muscle group. I was exhausted all the time and didn’t understand why I wasn’t gaining any size at all. In fact, sometimes it seemed like I was losing size. It wasn’t until I got the advise to dial it back drastically and decrease my volume and focus on the quality of sets that I started seeing a lot of growth. I started doing full body workouts 3 times a week instead of the typical bro split and focused almost entirely on compound movements (squats, bench, deadlift, rows, dips, overhead press, etc.) Young guys get it in their heads that if you’re not pushing yourself to exhaustion every day, then your nit doing enough. We get stuck in that more is better way of thinking and it’s a harder habit to break that you would think.
When I workout, I just do the exercises I enjoy and go by feel. When my form starts to go or my muscles feel gassed at all, I move on to the next exercise. Coincidentally, my volume falls exactly in the parameters you are outlining here. I'm convinced some people like to just hang out at the gym I'm in and out in 60 mins usually.
I am on the opposite extreme of what is criticised here - I do only one exercise per muscle group per day, usually 4-5 sets. For example, in a day I might do flat barbell bench 4x10, pullups 4x10, leg extensions 4x12. I try to go fairly hard on each individual muscle group and then move on and focus on the next one. This way, I end up hitting one muscle group 2-3 times per week, but not more than once per day. So far, it has worked out for me, but I don't think many people do it. What does Dr. Mike think?
Ten sets for chest? Holy mackerel. Though I'm a former athlete, not a bodybuilder, so my focus is different, that's insane. This guy really makes sense. I also like that he's not as flashy as a lot of bodybuilding gurus but just shares knowledge. Full disclosure: My chest routine is dumbbell presses at the slightest incline the bench allows and cable crossovers (or pec dec). I also do pullovers, but that hits both back and pecs so I'm not sure where to put it. I work this twice a week, with a daily undulating periodization spanning two weeks: - Day 1: Rest-pause for hypertrophy. Lighter weight for 10-13 reps to failure/ 15-second rest/ mini-sets to failure until I hit 20 more reps, - Day 2: Strength & Power: 3 sets, 6-9 reps, favoring the higher range. - Day 3: Bulk Strength: 4 sets of 3-5 reps, favoring 3-4 reps.
I was spending at least an hour in the gym and making progress, but I cut down to 30-45 minutes after watching some of your videos and noticed I feel better and seem to be making faster progress. I picked 4-5 of the most mechanically effective exercises for each muscle and split them up between two days a week in a PPLPPL split to keep things interesting. Thanks for the clear and concise content!
@@BungieStudios I did not, but I have heard of it happening. I meant that I was trying to do all the things all the time when it’s not necessary. Find movements that work for you, trim the fat and fluff, and go from there. I do probably 4-5 movements per muscle group now because that’s all I need.
This made me think about the Blood and Guts videos of Dorian Yates training. He pretty notably used HIT training back while he was winning all those Mr. O's. He definitely subscribed to 1 working set per exercise but would 4-6 exercises per body part, legs and back he do like 8-10. He obviously was genetically gifted but he did probably understand a lot of the same stuff Dr. Mike knows and shares now. That'd be an amazing video for RUclips, Dr. Mike reacts to Blood and Guts. It be awesome meathead content and I'm sure Dr. Mike could speak to some of things Dorian was doing back then that applies to his knowledge and content(full ROM, RIR, etc.) Think about it Dr. Mike!
6 for legs, quad ext, leg press, hack squats, leg curl, stiff legs and standing calf raise. 2 sets for bicep, 3 for chest, 4 or 5 for back including deadlifts. So not that many.
Thank you Mike for confirming that I am not lazy. I usually tell my buddies (other gym guys) that I only do 3-4 different exercises with 4 to 5 sets per exercise ( rep depending). My buddies would keep stating "thats not enough exercises man, you gotta add more" to which i always replied "more is not always better, plus the gym is busy so waiting/setting up a machine takes me more time in the gym. I give myself about 1.5 to 2 hours for a sesssion in the gym and its more than plenty.
@elemer2089 how many times a week per muscle group? I've been trying to do arms, legs, and chest day every week. 5 exercises 3 sets 8 to 12 reps. I'm not hitting any PRs. What are you doing right?!
@@tylercriss6435 i dont know, we're all different, what works for you wont work for me and vice versa. I do 3 exercises for every muscle group, 3×10 rep for each exercise, last set to failure and drop set when on machine, so last set actually ends up 15-20 rep. I do full body 3x a week. Worth mentioning that i startee working out at the beginning of this year, i did work out in the past but always stopped sfter 2-3 months. So my gains are mostly newbie gains and some muscle memory.
how long have you been lifting for? Elemer has made some good gains it sounds like but 20 lbs over a span of what time frame is left out. Could be 20 lbs of lean muscle or a combination of fat. I used to weigh 130 lbs and it took be the better part of 3-5 years of consistent lifting to gain 30 lbs. I was probably also not eating enough before lifting. If youre young (under 25) just enjoy lifting, eating good quality food the gains will come. Just be patient and try to focus on quality lifts over how much weight youre lifting. @@tylercriss6435
I love this freaking guy! Today is the first time I've ever watched any of his content, and I have found myself binge watching. Between 1991 and 1993 I studied for the person trainer exam twice, and never took it because I could never save up enough money. This guy speaks my language! I can't believe how much I have forgotten.
Been looking for this video for ages. I've started about 7 weeks ago and have been doing at least 5 exercises per muscle group. All be it I have only been able to train each type once a week. I'm now going to five days a week total and this week really help me split this up and not overwork myself
Doing the right exercises, with the right volume, with the right intensity, is all you need. But understanding this combo requires lifting knowledge. Sub-optimally you can add more exercises, sets and time, and spend more time in the gym. Some people think that more is better, so much more is even better. I see it all the time in my gym, but I don't see the intensity part. Knowledge will make your lifting time shorter, with better results. My back day is exactly as you prescribe. Thanks, Dr. Mike.
I don't have a strict program (bodybuilding is not my main focus anymore) but I very much still keep the training going consistently. Something that's helped me avoid junk volume is asking the question "can I do 3 _good_ *hard* sets on another exercise for this muscle group?" If the answer is yes, we hit it, if no, we're done hitting that muscle for the day. Has really helped keep pump and intensity up not only within the individual session, but across sessions cus of SFR
@@moonknight4053 Monday: bench press 69.420% 1RM for 7 sets of 5 pec dec fly 8.73 RPE 3 sets of 19 flipflop cable top 13 reps to failure, dropset and do a handstand complimenting the gym bros 4 sets of 1 superset with hugs and kisses
For back I do pull ups, bent over barbell rows and individual dumbell rows. Usually 4 sets each and that lights me up. For chest flat bench, inclined and flys. Keeping it simple really is the key.
I used an article from the RP site in 2017 to do my very first leg workout and another on this topic in 2018 to design my first program. So this one felt really cool to see - on a personal level. Cheers to RP helping us in our lifting journey 🤝
Love SLDLs. Did 3x10 hard sets a few days ago. It felt good and thought, bump up the weight next time. Edited my program in app to add 10 lbs. But it's now 4 days later and time for leg day again and my hams are still sore. Went ahead and set the weight back to the same as last time lol.
@@skair5425Actually, you can solve that problem by adding a set in week 3. That way your hams get better at handling volume. Of course, I wouldn't go beyond 3 or 4 because SDLs are brutal with just a few sets.
Love the lecture. In Spain trainers still put 3 sets x exercise and 7-8 exercises per session... tons of redundancy and very time consuming. Like every person is a pro searching to maximize hypertrophy. Many of us are normal folks that want to go in ~1 hour and out.
Pros don’t do that level of volume either. On gear or not there’s junk volume and becoming more prone to injury. You can only stimulate those fibers so much.
I used to do 8 working sets of Squats and 4 Sets of Leg Extensions per leg day (twice a week). Worked for a few weeks but then my strength went back and I was thinking maybe I´m having too much volume (coincidentally I watched the RP video about MEV and MRE at that time). Reduced it to 4 Sets of Squats and 4 Sets of Leg Extensions and I´m making really good gains since then.
@@ghfjfghjasdfasdf Yes, looks out of proportion to be honest. Especially because I'm only doing minimal work for my upper body at the moment. But yeah not too much of a problem, it's not like anyone would ever see my thighs.
@@ghfjfghjasdfasdf I'm 5'6 and my thighs are 22.5" :) I havent done barbell squats since december due to ankle surgery. I do have about 10 -15lbs to lose. Love adding leg extension myo-reps(thanks Dr. Mike) about twice per week, and mainly focus on lunges and goblet squats/cyclist squats to regain ankle mobility. 27" waist and 16.5" calvs.
This is some bomb ass info!!! Been training for a while and had a mixture of info from different people. Especially the “2 sets to failure per exercise” is enough. Thanks Doc. Appreciate this heavy! 💯
As someone who has trained for over 20 years the best advice I'd give you younger guys is to do whole body routines. I did the old school training splits and ended up picking up all sorts of chronic tendinitis and injuries which eventually ground my training down to a complete halt. After resting for a decent period I came back and started doing whole body routines and I've had just as good results without triggering any of my old injuries off. It may not be the absolute optimal way to train but I'm convinced it keeps you from getting injured.
Full body workouts are up there in terms of my preferance too, but they still have some flaws, especially if you are advanced and an exercise maximalist. Frequency is nice and the volume and intensity are evenly distributed throughout the week, but still the overall fatigue just gasses you out. The last exercises will always be more impacted by the overall fatigue, even if they train muscles that werent trained directly before, during the workout. It just feeds to much into the "how am I going to survive this workout?" problem, since the sessions tend to be lengthier and also involve more compounds at a time. I am currently running a push pull legs upper lower upper lower, the only exception is I train my upper back and lats during every session since I feel they can take more punishment. I also like the concept of having volume days and intensity days and full body workouts dont really allow that to happen.
I think it also depends on how you train.. splits are perfectly fine and can be optimal for hypertrophy. Bad form leads to injuries. I see terribly executed form all the time as a result of ego lifting.
I've been training for close to 2 decades too and I HATE full body. HATE it. It's kind of like this video how he says you have that awkward 2 or 3 sets to just get in the groove. Well, it also takes 1 or 2 movements of a muscle group to get into a groove. I like some combination of body part splits. Lots of ways to do it.
Barbell bench is overrated for hypertrophy, I find that benching with dumbbells gets a MUCH better stretch on the pecs and a better pump. Although using a cambered bar you can achieve pretty much the same thing.
I’ve being doing mainly 3 exercises per workout for the last few years, I thought I was lazy. I just wanted to be able to put more energy into each move was my main goal.
Same. When I looked at Athlean x videos, I was like no way I can do that all. Then I saw Greg doucette videos and now this I can do. The same thing Mike says here.
Can you critique this? Chest Flat Bench Incline Dumbbell(machine chest press optional) Pec Deck(cable flys optional) Usually do pushups at home Back Lat Pull Down T Bar Row Seated Row Hammer Row as well another day Shoulders Seated Shoulder Press(Machine or Dumbbells) Dumbbell Lateral Raise(Cable raise optional) Shrugs Triceps Press downs Overhead extension Seated extension Biceps Dumbbell curl Hammer curl Preacher curl(standing ez bar curl optional) Legs Leg extensions Leg Press Hamstring curl Abductor/Adductor Also, various core movements throughout the week and 20-30 minutes of cardio each session. Where do I fit Face pulls into this equation if ever?
I really enjoyed this video. I am an over trainer, and look forward to the challenging myself to have less, more challenging sets! Thanks Mike and crew. See you at the end of the transformation contest ;)
Same here..I've gone from training hard 6 days a week to 3 days a week and much fewer sets. Honestly I am stronger now than I was. Now I see how important days off and recovery is.
Such a great informative video dude. When I hit the gym I'm usually doing 5 different workouts for every body part and I've gained some strength and size but I always feel wasted after the workout and I'm in the gym for 2hrs. Your info makes so much sense and I will try this out starting today with chest and bi's
started going gym after 2 years break. weight got up to 86kg, had ussual head aches, felt lazy, stressed and a bit depressed. now after 2 month of going to the gym min. 4days per week. I have lost 3kg and have seen great improvement in mental state aswell as physically. Love Dr baldy he is funny and informative. Thanks
I’ve been lifting for 26 years … because of a shoulder injury - started a “full” body each day .. just changing the exercise each time .. ie flat , inclined next day , decline the next day , lighter weight to start the week and by the end of the week I was heavy .. and my body really responded well … variety is the key .. the the body is so efficient and adaptive to exercise … change is a positive thing for growth
Excuse me and I apologize if this question has been repeated. When we say “10-14 sets for triceps” we talk about triceps as the main muscle? Because in chest press for example, we use our triceps either. Chest press count for both? Triceps & chest? Even for front delts! It’s so important for everyone to understand this thing. Thank you in advance
I suggest to not overthink it. Personally, I only track the main muscles in a workout and only change the program based on secondary muscles if they get too fatigued from exercises in the workout that aren't targeting them as a main muscle (for example, my current program includes a ton of exercises that indirectly target the forearms, and although I want my forearms to get hammered, my current focus is more dispersed than just arms, so I switched some of my exercises to ones that are less taxing on that region)
this is great to hear!! I have always wondered when working out at the gym I would take a while and over nuke everything. I will definitely be implementing this and wont go as crazy. I was one of those people who would be doing the incline, flat and decline thinking yea it's the chest but it's different fibers so its different. This is why I would eventually fatigue and get tired of the gym a month in because I was overtaxing my body. Thank you for this information and all the work you do!
Good info, I recently changed over from PPL to a bro split and loving just doing 1 muscle group per week, allows me mentally to go harder which I was missing doing 2x per week since I was subconsciously holding back a bit knowing I had to hit some stuff later that week. Also just works better now that I'm further from gym and it's way busier then previous gym. Just end up doubling up on what Dr. Mike suggests, knowing it's not 100% optimal but it fits for what I need, I don't feel like death walking, and i'm still seeing good results.
High volume works for certain individuals in my opinion the bro split is perfect as by hitting a body part once a week I train it hard knowing I've got plenty of time to recover and I don't feel exhausted when leaving the gym , also I'm ni and out the gym in just over an hour
I did bro splits for about 10 years and didn’t realize PPL until early this year and I’ve made more muscular and strength progress in the last 8 months than I did the last 4-6 years on a high volume bro split. Sadly, I didn’t research and was arrogant to think my training was most optimal. Learning to be disciplined with lowering your volume and training it twice a weak with optimal effort is way better I promise. You’re doing yourself a disservice going to bro split if you’re natural.
@@imbrzyant no your not ' I've been training over 30yrs and my experience will tell you different I've always trained bro split as I am old school , last year I experimented with a ppl for 8 weeks and it did nothing for me infact I lost strength, as in my opinion if you train a bodypart hard enough no way can you hit it again a second time , unless your one of these people who train half heartedly and are always on their phone, there is no optimal way to train as everyone is different the advice I always give is experiment and find the routine that works best for you,
@@imbrzyant I'm on opposite side. PPL for past 6yrs and now on to brosplits. I want to only be in gym 4 days a week and I'm not super concerned about the 100% most science backed workout anymore. Is PPL more scientifically beneficial then bro splits? For sure, but bro splits are more fun and enjoyable which adds more value. Though I do sometimes hit chest and back on last day of week too if I feel I didn't demolish them properly on their specific day
Always great content. I appreciate the time you took to sit down and talk recovery methods. I can better manage my time. Would you consider a segment on connective tissue please? Some of us are militant: mission accomplishment, suffer in silence. But this has led to ripping muscles off my bones. I tore a distal bicep tendon. Only then realized I had torqued my tendons with consecutive years of high volume training and extreme stress. I didn’t know to deload, worked around pain, slept no more than 4-5 hours a night, and did everything in the book wrong to a frivolous degree. Training was all I had. A loaded barbell might sink in a small boat but it was my life preserver. How can we walk back the damage? Full range of motion under resistance is ideal, but what if sprains, inpingements, knots, or strains restrict it? How can you improve and maximize your range of motion? How much time should be expected, in a sitting/over time? Can you train your connective tissue? Can you explain how to train properly considering your lacking or healthy connective tissue? Also, is it normal to crack like a glow stick? Appreciate every video, old and new! In strength 💪
that was exactly my chest workout in college minus the dips. 12 years later I've been doing 9-11 sets (2-3 exercises) per group and getting the best results ever. Stronger and bigger than I've ever been this bulk.
@@roflolmaomgf ive been doing less frequency, 1-2 times a week on everything. rather would stay uninjured as much as possible. im not in a rush ya know? i kinda disagree with a lot of people promoting 2-3 times a week per group.
@@everydaybodybuilding2282 Yeah I'm on the same boat as you, never cross the upper limit of training a body part twice a week 10-15 sets per muscle group
@@RYRHYMES 10 sets for a full workout yeah. My leg day is just 5 sets of squats an my second leg day is 5 sets of deads. I've put 3 inches on my thighs in the last year and a half, faster than theyve ever grown. natty 235 6 ft, bulked ofc. would be beach lean at like 195 prob
This is a great video. Since I started working out, I always stressed the simplicity of my workouts. Typically, I only cycle through about 5-6 variations of compound movements throughout the week. Each session I only do that one compound variation for 10 sets (8-10 reps). Only break for 45 seconds between each set. Each rep is full ROM, squeezing throughout the rep. Chest Press (Barbell or Dumbell) Squat Deadlift Shoulder Press (Barbell or Dumbell) Pull-Ups 50 Burpees plus 5 sets of a “leg raising type” of core exercise at the end of each session. Add in a good diet with some cheat days 1-2 days per week, and you’re golden. Don’t overcomplicate your workouts. I get in and out of the gym in less than 40 mins.
I was pretty unsure about my perspective on this subject and this guy just confirmed that I'm okay. Literally his examples are the same I've used and I'm glad I found this clip. Golden advice! Keep up the good work, kings.
So glad I listened to this guy. I'm new to bodybuilding but kind of experienced in powerlifts. The training this dude teaches is kind of nice. It just feels nice. Good amount of sets, no soul crushing weights and no wasted time in resting periods. I'm done in 30-75 minutes and my quads feel like mush. Instead of not feeling my quads at all, after 2 hours of squats and my broken soul leaving out of my butthole.
Hahah that butthole not keeping souls in like it used to! Glad you're having good workouts man! - Dr. Mike
When you squat so much you feel your soul leaving your butthole but then you realise it isn't your soul at all and now you gotta work out how to come home with disaster pants without your loved ones disowning you.
Many don't realize this is the actual cause of hemorroids
Who needs a soul anyways when one can be strong instead?
@@RenaissancePeriodization where can I purchase a beginner program for a 40 year old who takes all this into account? No, I’m not a lazy fuck, I just have a family and a job but I still want to build muscle, naturally. I would appreciate a response. Thank you very much
I’m 47 and go to the gym every 3 days (use to go 5-6). I concentrate on quality reps and working to fatigue. I find I am so much fresher every workout because of the rest I get and clean food. Getting older sucks but IT’s awesome when you find a routine that clicks and has results.
I turned 47 and still do 5 days a week but I might switch to what you're doing. Not sure yet. Seems like the gains might be better with more rest in between.
Well if it works for you thats great, it depends purely on your goals. If you want to maintain muscle, thats enough.
If you want to build something, I would say you would need to prioritize one big muscle group(+maybe one small) and train it both days in some kind of a FBW program.
I started resting a lot more now too. Eliminated a lot of fatigue and junk volume. Following a Dorian Yates 4 day routine. Now I look forward to my gym days.
@@HotRodM4 I've been looking at Yates' routine. Got there thru Mentzer. Mentzer just doesn't seem like enough, Yates takes the concept and adds to it. Seems like it's a decent balance
About a year ago, I also made the switch from 6 days to 3 and have liked the results. And Even more importantly, i like the way I feel. Not saying that i wont hit a 4th day once in a while if I feel like it but 6 gym days a week for years and years begins to take a tole on the joints when you also work in construction 5 days a week. So for me, 3 days is best but I'm also not aiming to be the biggest guy in the room. I like training hard. Never been a big d load guy so id rather train hard every time and have less sessions. To each his own
Yes, i pretty much over trained my entire life... Its hard to cut back on volume, what is considered high volume today is way less than what i ever did... plus i went heavy to failure, forced reps and negatives...At 63 now i am getting much better with the correct workouts my body needs...i wish i knew all this 50 years ago...
Fair play, the big guys of the day were basically like more is more if you aren't getting success go harder.
Amen
@@AJPMUSIC_OFFICIAL yes, only muscle mags for information... i worked out for years before i even learned about how important food was... i pretty much started trying to grow since i was 9...
You have a few years on me but I feel the same way. I wish I knew better or rather controlled my ego. Once I started reducing my sets and increased my reps I noticed big gains. I only wonder how much better I would look now if I started this years ago.
Preach, man. I wish I knew this shit 20 years ago! - Dr. Mike
I literally just got back from hitting chest on a monday and my workout was literally flat barbell press, incline barbell press, chest fly machine, dips, cable flies. This video could not have been more relatable and helpful, thank you so much for the information!
Yeah, I'm glad I clicked on this channel. I've only recently started working out with weights and needed to hear a lot of the things he says (including this).
Exactly my chest rutine now, but i will cut out some stuff now hopefully, feeling the injuries...
Same here, same here haha
Too many exercises
Yeah it’s really common for so many people to do way too much volume if they’re natural lol, 2 exercises (incline press and one fly/dips) are all you need for your chest each session 👍
Much respect sir. Love/Hate you. My work outs have been so much more painfully good. I also can no longer go to the gym without seeing everyone else lifting incorrectly. Just turned 53. Spent my first 23 as an athlete. Got married at 175lb 25 years later topped out at 410lb. Changed things and educated my self 4 years ago and now am at 234lb. Now I find you when I start the building process again. Thank you so much.
Maybe try focusing on yourself instead of judging others
Yep mind your own business and concentrate on your own workout it's got f£%k all to do with what other people do?🤡
I maximize muscle growth by being the first commenter on an RP video
They say being first on an RP video is like taking anabolics.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@noank9175 TREN? Or like anavar 😒
@@noank9175 00000
Love your Mind/Muscle connection there.
I am guilty of overtraining, because I love working out. I'm now looking forward to quality gains, with less chance of injury, by following this outstanding advice! Thanks for the great content!
How is it going?
@@SplutendousBonclarious Mehhhh🤣
As guilty as I'm...gym is the only place I fight my devil's and so...let me be guilty
Same here!
Start focusing on muscles that you might have overlooked, and train them isolated if possible.
I recently hurt my back during a lifting session, and the heal time has lead me to rethink how I do things in the gym. Thank you for your wealth of knowledge! Can’t wait to get back to it with what I’ve learned for this channel.
Yes ! It’s better to dial it back a bit and be in the game long term than to tear a muscle and forever hindered .
I have a nasty back injury...Basically what happened to ronnie Coleman, just not as many disc's. I have had to completely overhaul my training, adjust my attitude, and most importantly I've had to check my ego n
why did you do that? Seems like a bad idea.
2 hours walking per day, push-ups til you cry, 3 minute staring contest in the mirror, 1 dad joke, proven, effective.
Everyone knows you need upper, lower, and middle dad jokes twice a week bro. Get it together.
Lame
@@Perseus6797and you're gay
@@Drewzilla95I've just finished a meso with 15 sets of dad jokes 6 days a week. There is no such thing as overkill on these.
2 hours of walking? That’s a waste of time, I would do 30 min walking and 20 min of lifting, which will be massively more productive. Then spend remaining time with kids.
i knew it! I've been following this for the last 10 years. Always felt that 3 sets of 3 or 4 per "group" was plenty to stimulate muscle growth. SO glad dr Mike confirmed this.
So how many exercises per one group per one week my friend? 3? 3 exercises, 3 sets, 3 repetitions?
@@dawidgrabarz2413I do two exercises per muscle (I've cut back from 3 or 4), say incline dumbbells and peck deck (for chest).
I do a decent warm up for the first exercise then I go all out for 3 sets, sometimes 4 if I didn't start at the right weight, then go do 3 sets on the peck deck. I'll increase it to 4 sets if I feel the first set wasn't quite right.
As for reps, I do no less than 8. I aim for 10 and sometimes get to 12.
Stop adding Jared as click bait IT WORKS EVERYTIME
Adding a second session a week is much more productive for me than a single, endless session.
Is you secondary push training the same as first one or you change something?
@arcibald42 for assistance work, the same moves. For primary moves, different.
Let's say 10 sets of bench is challenging, then two sessions of 6 sets is better quality and more total volume per week without the risks and fatigue of an endless session.
Dr. Mike's hamstring workout example (2 sets SLDL and 4 sets of hamstring curls later in the week) is exactly what I have in my plan. Glad to hear I am doing something right 😂
@@Rinshun_ “Stimulate, don't annihilate.”
Yeah but that doesn’t include warm up sets and whether you’re going to failure or not. If you’re intermediate I think 4 sets is the way to go for SLDLs. Especially if you’re peaking in your meso
SLDL?
@@michaelchristie4756 stiff legged deadlifts. Get ready for some DOMS, bro. I would start with 1-2 working sets
@@TheJackOfAllTrades777 100%. I have hammies at maintenance, finished this meso with two sets. More than enough for me and might of even been above maintenance with the other day having leg curls
Really nice to know all this. Ive been a amateur lifter for years. And I've kind of stumbled on a good muscle gain work out. This took years of trail and error. This video took 30min to equal years of trail and error working out. Thanks again for the science!
Been scratching my head over this for so many years! Freshman in college, my back session was inspired by them big boys from the Golden Era of bodybuilding - 5 exercises,4 sets each! :) You can imagine the fatigue,frustration and disappointment that followed. Now - 20 years later, I do no more than 8 sets per muscle group(4 or 5 days rest period),usually a main lift(progress in weight and reps strictly recorded!) , followed by light finisher - around 15 reps,preferably cable,concentrated on squeeze and burn. Works like a charm!
Wait,4-5 days rest between sessions?what program u use?
@@binchili push, pull, legs, 4 times a week, sometimes 5 times
@@alcek01 4 times a week like push pull legs,push ?
@@binchili Just keep them on constant rotation. I train Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. So - Tuesday-push, Wed-Pull, Fri-Legs, Sat-Push, Sun-Pull, Tue-Legs, Wed-Push, Fri-Pull.... and so on forever :) You have to be very mindfull of the volume and intensity though. A pull training every 4-5 days is basically 2 back exercises and 2 biceps exercises for 3-4 sets each(mostly 3), 1 rear shoulder, 1 traps, 1 forearms exercise(once in a while) , 3(4) sets each. Not all of those to faliure. Not at all.
@@alcek01 3 sets is ur base and 4 is sometimes?how many of those are to failure or are u more of a passive volume trainee
This is some of the best content Ive come across on my lifting journey. Thank you Iron Compatriot!
Oy! Daniel, you're a real mensch! I HAD TO MAN!!! All in good fun, best wishes! - Dr. Mike
@@RenaissancePeriodization amazing video but next time for a civilian like me pictures of the exact points in the back would of helped
@@RenaissancePeriodization just found you Dr Mike. Your work is incredible. Science is a beautiful thing with fitness. Thank you for all you fuckin do man!! Ive been overtraining since 2010. Not anymore! Frequency of workouts > junk volume workouts
Iron Dome
I feel like I'm back in my professor's classes again as a Kinesiology graduate. You've got great knowledge and a great way of explaining concepts of exercise physiology!
This explanation has been the best I have ever heard that makes your brain click toward how you need to train. Great stuff.
So glad I found RP. Helped me realize what I was doing right and what I was doing wrong or could do better. The focus eccentric has been a game changer!!
I frigging love this content. Eye opening, and overtraining is a big issue of mine, plus workouts that are too long and not functional for an everyday life. Studying is power and for sure resistance training is science. Super glad this channel popped in my recommended.
overtraining is a myth
@@doyourownresearch7297 especially on steroids...
nonsense@@doyourownresearch7297
@@doyourownresearch7297 lol dumbass
Thanks dude, I've created a gym plan ready to start next week however i had too many excersizes without realising.
I've optimised it with your advice so thank you.
You only need 2-4 exercises to hit each muscle appropriately, depending on the muscle. It doesn't matter when you do those exercises. As long as you do those exercises after you are fully recovered. Listen to your body and pick exercises that you feel like you will be strong at. If i haven't trained back in 10 days but my back is still sore, i wilI wait to work it out until I am fully recovered. Life itself can make muscles sore depending on work and everyday lifestyle. For example one day I can do pull-ups and rows, 3 days later I can do deadlifts and shrugs or I can split the the same exercises 3 times within a week. It allows my body to recover but I can also hit the same muscle group 2-3 times a week. Adjust your reps and sets based on strength and size goals. Adjust your diet based on physique goals. Do this and I promise you that you will start making progress.
If you havent recover after 10 days clearly something is wrong with u.
Ni way you only need to train back again after 10 days ffs 😂
I'm 67 work go to the gym 5 days a week. Mon Wed Fri - pull ups, flat bench, inclined bench, bicep curls, triceps extension, military press. 30 min on Stationary bike. Tue and Thur, tread mill 30 min, 150 push-ups. Upright row, and shoulder rolls forward and back.
Mike was my professor in college.. Jared was my RA.. small world. Expected this from them. Mike has always been a great speaker
Dude...I LOVE your content. Absolutely awesome stuff.
I do have a question/request. Could you possibly do a vid on bodybuilding for seniors? I saw your vid on WHY us older folks should train, but I'm looking for more of a HOW we should train. As in, what would be good splits...volume...etc. Thanks!
It's on my list of shit to do, and the plan is a whole series about it. It's gonna be a little while because we have so much content stacked up before it, but IT WILL COME! - Dr. Mike
@@RenaissancePeriodization I'm turning 60 next month, I found your content about a year and a half ago. This plus what I've learned from another RUclipsr (who I won't mention here) have really changed my whole philosophy on lifting. I've seen your prior video about starting lifting at different decades in life, and I felt a little disheartened that I was getting into this in my late 50s. But I have seen body composition changes and a small amount of new muscle on top of that. So I WILL wait for series targeting us older dudes! PS, THE RP DIET BOOK 2.0 WAS A REAL EYE OPENER!
I'm about 6 months in (at age 43) and just starting to get into the swing of it to where training has become routine, this video is great. Thanks a lot.
Nice me too! I’m 6 months in at age 43 :)
Nice man. Keep at it !
I only do 1-2 exercises per body part and 3 - 4 sets each. Heaviest weight the first set, tapering down to get good muscle contraction and a pump. I track my progress and I don't get any stronger quicker doing a higher volume. I already know how well Im going to do the next time I walk into the gym if I've had enough sleep, been eating well.
I do almost the same. Movement on first set. Getting the squeeze, mind muscle connection. Then hard next set and contraction on the 3rd. Sore almost always
This is pretty much how i do it. Normally a compound exercise coupled with an isolation for each body part. My muscles feel like they're going to be ripped apart with any more than that
Wouldn't it be better to warm up first though?
33 year old natty here and I’ve completely switched to this style and have been injury free since doing so. All those exercises are overkill and 3-4 exercises per body part is plenty.
Watching this and cringing thinking about my 2.5 hour back workouts when I was 19…
WHAT DID YOU?? I toned it down from taking almost 3 hours to 2 hours and I am in now at 1:30 total time
It always took a toll on me going to gym after work and doing 80 mins workout and 30-50min running. I had so liitle time to rest i just went to sleep lol. But now I'll train with less exercises so ill have time to run and rest more
This is literally the video I've needed my whole gym life. Thanks Doctor Mike! 💪
This is the reason upper/lower is the best. The flexibility is amazing cause you don't need to do a million exercises. You just do a heavy strength day followed by a volume hypertrophy day.
Heavy day. Flat bench, barbell row, dips, Pull-ups/ Squats, romanian deadlifts.
Volume day (lighter, more reps). Incline dumbbell, decline cable flys, horizontal wide cable row, supported one Arm dumbell row/ Leg curls, leg extensions, calf raises.
All 3 sets of each, pretty much hits everything on a upper/lower split. You can throw arms in depending on recovery but they get work on the compounds, especially dips and Pull-ups.
The thing of this split is I skip legs less. Say you do upper on Monday, you can't train upper till Thursday. This almost forces you to do legs cause you have nothing else to do and I like the gym. It's the main bonus of the split.
Would you add anything else Mike?
As someone who has watched the majority of your videos, I really love this video. This helps me put my workout into perspective. I do 3 sets of 3 different exercises per muscle group, usually the same weight used.
That's 9 total sets. By set 7-8 I'm running real low on energy. If I go any lighter in weight I breeze through the muscle group workout without any challenge. I will now implement lighter weight into a few of the 9 sets. Thank you Dr Mike.
Do total 6 sets for a workout hit twice a week
A big old boy in the gym did the same told me as a kid . Did I listen no definitely over trained . 3 x 3 is working out for me now
Thank you so much Dr. Mike, pure logic, I was always confused with my back exercises and ended up doing 4 exercises.
22yrs in and I never really put much effort into a true weight lifting routine. I would go off of memory and how I would feel that day. This year I’m going to take it to the next level. Your scientific knowledge is a great motivator
Women say they love the dad bod but they're all liars.
I'm about 20 years in😊
Just use the Notes (no fancy apps) in your phone to type in your exercises,weight and date.
That's how I keep track of all my workouts now for the last 10 years or so.
Easy as.
I've only been subscribed to RP for a few days now, but I've been watching Dr. Mike's videos religiously during that time and I think this may be the single most eye-opening video for me! It makes me feel incredibly confident that I'll be able to build my own plans continually and be able to keep my muscle's gains fresh with new exercises every few months to avoid plateau. Thank you so much!!!
Edit: typo
I do 4 excercises /session for Chest and Back, and 3 /session for Triceps and Biceps. 3 working sets each excercise.
Used to do more... very glad I dialed it down. That much volume was killing my gains.
Yes me too make sure to skip leg day
"There has to be a good reason to go to the next bar". Best analogy ever! I am willing to die on this hill.
Love what you added about technique and stimulus increasing as you do more sets
Set #2 of leg extensions and leg press are always the hardest for me. I almost always get to a mental block considering quitting the set, then once I get to set #3 I often feel much better and it helps motivate me through the rest of the sets!
Why don’t you squat and scrap leg extensions and leg presses?
@@keysersoze5920 not the original OP but I did squat, leg extension and leg presses last night lol. I had to walk out form the gym after those 3 because I had no energies left for calf raise and leg curl.
@@phamhung3998 6X5 squats, 3X5 SLDL/RDL, abs; that’s it!
Here is my bottom line. I do one exercise per muscle group. 4 main exercises per session, plus 1 ancillary exercise (forearms, calves, core). More frequency is more important than more volume for me. I'm natty. It means every muscle group gets a day of training and rest 3 times a week. A warm up followed by 3 HARD sets for each exercise, up until failure of form. I did start 3 x 6-8 but now I do 3 x 10-12 because I feel like I can recover from that slight increase in volume in the same period. I will adjust as my gains slow down.
I've gone from 74kg to 82kg in 4 months. My body fat level appears to have dropped, but it's hard to tell whether it's due to increased muscle showing, or my body fat has actually dropped.
Dr Mike's videos have proven to be a godsend for me, especially the emphasis on doing HARD reps/sets, and the most optimal exercise execution. Essential because of the low volume, one bad exercise is a waste of a training day for that muscle.
I used to train for so long every single day on top of having a very physical job. I would lift 5-6 days a week doing at least 15 sets per muscle group. I was exhausted all the time and didn’t understand why I wasn’t gaining any size at all. In fact, sometimes it seemed like I was losing size. It wasn’t until I got the advise to dial it back drastically and decrease my volume and focus on the quality of sets that I started seeing a lot of growth. I started doing full body workouts 3 times a week instead of the typical bro split and focused almost entirely on compound movements (squats, bench, deadlift, rows, dips, overhead press, etc.) Young guys get it in their heads that if you’re not pushing yourself to exhaustion every day, then your nit doing enough. We get stuck in that more is better way of thinking and it’s a harder habit to break that you would think.
When I workout, I just do the exercises I enjoy and go by feel. When my form starts to go or my muscles feel gassed at all, I move on to the next exercise. Coincidentally, my volume falls exactly in the parameters you are outlining here. I'm convinced some people like to just hang out at the gym I'm in and out in 60 mins usually.
I am on the opposite extreme of what is criticised here - I do only one exercise per muscle group per day, usually 4-5 sets. For example, in a day I might do flat barbell bench 4x10, pullups 4x10, leg extensions 4x12. I try to go fairly hard on each individual muscle group and then move on and focus on the next one. This way, I end up hitting one muscle group 2-3 times per week, but not more than once per day. So far, it has worked out for me, but I don't think many people do it. What does Dr. Mike think?
Full Body x5 per week is very good routine, i implement this once a month tobreak any pattern build ups
Ten sets for chest? Holy mackerel. Though I'm a former athlete, not a bodybuilder, so my focus is different, that's insane. This guy really makes sense. I also like that he's not as flashy as a lot of bodybuilding gurus but just shares knowledge.
Full disclosure: My chest routine is dumbbell presses at the slightest incline the bench allows and cable crossovers (or pec dec). I also do pullovers, but that hits both back and pecs so I'm not sure where to put it. I work this twice a week, with a daily undulating periodization spanning two weeks:
- Day 1: Rest-pause for hypertrophy. Lighter weight for 10-13 reps to failure/ 15-second rest/ mini-sets to failure until I hit 20 more reps,
- Day 2: Strength & Power: 3 sets, 6-9 reps, favoring the higher range.
- Day 3: Bulk Strength: 4 sets of 3-5 reps, favoring 3-4 reps.
I was spending at least an hour in the gym and making progress, but I cut down to 30-45 minutes after watching some of your videos and noticed I feel better and seem to be making faster progress. I picked 4-5 of the most mechanically effective exercises for each muscle and split them up between two days a week in a PPLPPL split to keep things interesting. Thanks for the clear and concise content!
A lot of people waste too much time in the gym. Some people end up with Rhabdo.
@@BungieStudios I did not, but I have heard of it happening. I meant that I was trying to do all the things all the time when it’s not necessary. Find movements that work for you, trim the fat and fluff, and go from there. I do probably 4-5 movements per muscle group now because that’s all I need.
This made me think about the Blood and Guts videos of Dorian Yates training. He pretty notably used HIT training back while he was winning all those Mr. O's. He definitely subscribed to 1 working set per exercise but would 4-6 exercises per body part, legs and back he do like 8-10. He obviously was genetically gifted but he did probably understand a lot of the same stuff Dr. Mike knows and shares now. That'd be an amazing video for RUclips, Dr. Mike reacts to Blood and Guts. It be awesome meathead content and I'm sure Dr. Mike could speak to some of things Dorian was doing back then that applies to his knowledge and content(full ROM, RIR, etc.) Think about it Dr. Mike!
I agree this could be a great video
You say he understood the same stuff dr Mike does, but your description of what he does is the exact opposite of what dr Mike advises? Wtf
6 for legs, quad ext, leg press, hack squats, leg curl, stiff legs and standing calf raise. 2 sets for bicep, 3 for chest, 4 or 5 for back including deadlifts. So not that many.
Would watch 💯
Just started going to gym after many years of being lazy! So glad I found this channel. Such good info and so well communicated!
Hel yeah 💪 proud of you
Thank you Mike for confirming that I am not lazy. I usually tell my buddies (other gym guys) that I only do 3-4 different exercises with 4 to 5 sets per exercise ( rep depending). My buddies would keep stating "thats not enough exercises man, you gotta add more" to which i always replied "more is not always better, plus the gym is busy so waiting/setting up a machine takes me more time in the gym. I give myself about 1.5 to 2 hours for a sesssion in the gym and its more than plenty.
Even 4 5 sets are overkill, i do 3 exercise/muscle group and 3 sets for each exercise, last one to failure. Gained 20 pounds so far this year natty
@elemer2089 how many times a week per muscle group? I've been trying to do arms, legs, and chest day every week. 5 exercises 3 sets 8 to 12 reps. I'm not hitting any PRs. What are you doing right?!
@@tylercriss6435 i dont know, we're all different, what works for you wont work for me and vice versa. I do 3 exercises for every muscle group, 3×10 rep for each exercise, last set to failure and drop set when on machine, so last set actually ends up 15-20 rep. I do full body 3x a week. Worth mentioning that i startee working out at the beginning of this year, i did work out in the past but always stopped sfter 2-3 months. So my gains are mostly newbie gains and some muscle memory.
how long have you been lifting for? Elemer has made some good gains it sounds like but 20 lbs over a span of what time frame is left out. Could be 20 lbs of lean muscle or a combination of fat. I used to weigh 130 lbs and it took be the better part of 3-5 years of consistent lifting to gain 30 lbs. I was probably also not eating enough before lifting. If youre young (under 25) just enjoy lifting, eating good quality food the gains will come. Just be patient and try to focus on quality lifts over how much weight youre lifting.
@@tylercriss6435
I love this freaking guy! Today is the first time I've ever watched any of his content, and I have found myself binge watching. Between 1991 and 1993 I studied for the person trainer exam twice, and never took it because I could never save up enough money. This guy speaks my language! I can't believe how much I have forgotten.
Been looking for this video for ages. I've started about 7 weeks ago and have been doing at least 5 exercises per muscle group. All be it I have only been able to train each type once a week. I'm now going to five days a week total and this week really help me split this up and not overwork myself
Doing the right exercises, with the right volume, with the right intensity, is all you need. But understanding this combo requires lifting knowledge. Sub-optimally you can add more exercises, sets and time, and spend more time in the gym. Some people think that more is better, so much more is even better. I see it all the time in my gym, but I don't see the intensity part. Knowledge will make your lifting time shorter, with better results. My back day is exactly as you prescribe. Thanks, Dr. Mike.
I don't have a strict program (bodybuilding is not my main focus anymore) but I very much still keep the training going consistently. Something that's helped me avoid junk volume is asking the question "can I do 3 _good_ *hard* sets on another exercise for this muscle group?" If the answer is yes, we hit it, if no, we're done hitting that muscle for the day. Has really helped keep pump and intensity up not only within the individual session, but across sessions cus of SFR
I mean that’s pretty strict lol what does strict look like to u?
@@moonknight4053 Monday:
bench press 69.420% 1RM for 7 sets of 5
pec dec fly 8.73 RPE 3 sets of 19
flipflop cable top 13 reps to failure, dropset and do a handstand
complimenting the gym bros 4 sets of 1 superset with hugs and kisses
I feel personally attacked ... that's what I did when I started lifting in college... that was the same order and everything
Not much to it thats the norm finish with flys while you have a pump
For back I do pull ups, bent over barbell rows and individual dumbell rows. Usually 4 sets each and that lights me up. For chest flat bench, inclined and flys. Keeping it simple really is the key.
I love how this guy talks. Cracks me up and provides solid ass info
I used an article from the RP site in 2017 to do my very first leg workout and another on this topic in 2018 to design my first program. So this one felt really cool to see - on a personal level. Cheers to RP helping us in our lifting journey 🤝
Love SLDLs. Did 3x10 hard sets a few days ago. It felt good and thought, bump up the weight next time. Edited my program in app to add 10 lbs. But it's now 4 days later and time for leg day again and my hams are still sore. Went ahead and set the weight back to the same as last time lol.
for some reason my hams will have an Okay pump when im actually doing it but the days after is when i really feel them sore af.
@@jj4829 Yeah that's usually the case for me aswell
@@jj4829 Exactly. After the set I'm like "That wasn't so bad. Let's up it next time"
3 days later: Nah, I don't need to increase it lol
I literally do one set of SLDLs every week because any more and they're sore all week 😭😭
@@skair5425Actually, you can solve that problem by adding a set in week 3. That way your hams get better at handling volume. Of course, I wouldn't go beyond 3 or 4 because SDLs are brutal with just a few sets.
Bodybuilder/comedian. Love this dude.
thanks brother, this is my other account.
@@EriPagescan confirm, this is our 3rd channel btw. One for each of our personalities.
This is like listening to a good friend who master’s a subject and is explaining it to you like to a child. Excellent content, subscribed.
Thank you for making it so simple. Hitting the chest from every angle might be from looking up workouts on RUclips.
Love the lecture. In Spain trainers still put 3 sets x exercise and 7-8 exercises per session... tons of redundancy and very time consuming. Like every person is a pro searching to maximize hypertrophy. Many of us are normal folks that want to go in ~1 hour and out.
Pros don’t do that level of volume either. On gear or not there’s junk volume and becoming more prone to injury. You can only stimulate those fibers so much.
I used to do 8 working sets of Squats and 4 Sets of Leg Extensions per leg day (twice a week). Worked for a few weeks but then my strength went back and I was thinking maybe I´m having too much volume (coincidentally I watched the RP video about MEV and MRE at that time). Reduced it to 4 Sets of Squats and 4 Sets of Leg Extensions and I´m making really good gains since then.
How tall and what do your thighs measure?
@@ghfjfghjasdfasdf Ok so just took the measurements: 175cm tall, R/H thigh 58cm, L/H thigh 57cm.
22 inches lools pretty big on a 5’8 fella I imagine. I have 23” myself, but I’m 6’3 so it doesn’t look like much.
Have a good one.
@@ghfjfghjasdfasdf Yes, looks out of proportion to be honest. Especially because I'm only doing minimal work for my upper body at the moment. But yeah not too much of a problem, it's not like anyone would ever see my thighs.
@@ghfjfghjasdfasdf I'm 5'6 and my thighs are 22.5" :) I havent done barbell squats since december due to ankle surgery. I do have about 10 -15lbs to lose. Love adding leg extension myo-reps(thanks Dr. Mike) about twice per week, and mainly focus on lunges and goblet squats/cyclist squats to regain ankle mobility. 27" waist and 16.5" calvs.
Ive swapped down to just doing bench, dips, and overhead pressing for my pushing movements and the simplicity and time saved have been great.
Pushing upwards, pushing forward, and pushing downward. Pretty comprehensive
Yep. Good point. Time is gold. Set it up and keep rolling.
This channel is becoming my favorite source of information for all things strength training.
I don't know, Dr. Mike.. Been running the Bieber Cycle since you posted the video and I've gotten some pretty good nipple hypertrophy since then.
Beibs would approve! - Dr. Mike
@@RenaissancePeriodization Justin Biebers approval is literally all I want in life.
Been following you for about a week now and already can feel the difference from your advice! Kudos to you doc you are the man. Love from uk
This is exactly the thing I was thinking about this week….you amazing piece of person man🙏🏽
Same bro. I'm cutting down exercises and just focusing on a few movements. I spend way too much time in the gym.
This is some bomb ass info!!! Been training for a while and had a mixture of info from different people. Especially the “2 sets to failure per exercise” is enough. Thanks Doc. Appreciate this heavy! 💯
Damn this guy’s smart as hell. Wish I had heard this advice 20 years ago.
Thank you!
As someone who has trained for over 20 years the best advice I'd give you younger guys is to do whole body routines. I did the old school training splits and ended up picking up all sorts of chronic tendinitis and injuries which eventually ground my training down to a complete halt. After resting for a decent period I came back and started doing whole body routines and I've had just as good results without triggering any of my old injuries off. It may not be the absolute optimal way to train but I'm convinced it keeps you from getting injured.
Push pull didnt work for you either?
Whole body is the old school way actually. Look at Eugen Sandow. Or Tommy Kono.
Full body workouts are up there in terms of my preferance too, but they still have some flaws, especially if you are advanced and an exercise maximalist.
Frequency is nice and the volume and intensity are evenly distributed throughout the week, but still the overall fatigue just gasses you out.
The last exercises will always be more impacted by the overall fatigue, even if they train muscles that werent trained directly before, during the workout.
It just feeds to much into the "how am I going to survive this workout?" problem, since the sessions tend to be lengthier and also involve more compounds at a time.
I am currently running a push pull legs upper lower upper lower, the only exception is I train my upper back and lats during every session since I feel they can take more punishment.
I also like the concept of having volume days and intensity days and full body workouts dont really allow that to happen.
I think it also depends on how you train.. splits are perfectly fine and can be optimal for hypertrophy. Bad form leads to injuries. I see terribly executed form all the time as a result of ego lifting.
I've been training for close to 2 decades too and I HATE full body. HATE it. It's kind of like this video how he says you have that awkward 2 or 3 sets to just get in the groove. Well, it also takes 1 or 2 movements of a muscle group to get into a groove. I like some combination of body part splits. Lots of ways to do it.
Barbell bench is overrated for hypertrophy, I find that benching with dumbbells gets a MUCH better stretch on the pecs and a better pump. Although using a cambered bar you can achieve pretty much the same thing.
Do you not program barbell bench presses at all? I’ve debated doing dumbbell bench presses only. Flat bench on one day and incline bench on another.
I’ve being doing mainly 3 exercises per workout for the last few years, I thought I was lazy. I just wanted to be able to put more energy into each move was my main goal.
Same. When I looked at Athlean x videos, I was like no way I can do that all. Then I saw Greg doucette videos and now this I can do. The same thing Mike says here.
@@Sh1ro_Yaksha if you were juiced like x you could probably do it, 😂
How many sets?
Can you critique this?
Chest
Flat Bench
Incline Dumbbell(machine chest press optional)
Pec Deck(cable flys optional)
Usually do pushups at home
Back
Lat Pull Down
T Bar Row
Seated Row
Hammer Row as well another day
Shoulders
Seated Shoulder Press(Machine or Dumbbells)
Dumbbell Lateral Raise(Cable raise optional)
Shrugs
Triceps
Press downs
Overhead extension
Seated extension
Biceps
Dumbbell curl
Hammer curl
Preacher curl(standing ez bar curl optional)
Legs
Leg extensions
Leg Press
Hamstring curl
Abductor/Adductor
Also, various core movements throughout the week and 20-30 minutes of cardio each session.
Where do I fit Face pulls into this equation if ever?
Forgot about Dips. I do those as well.
Opens up my eyes to what I couldn’t figure out, thank you senior mr dr Mike, you the man,
I really enjoyed this video. I am an over trainer, and look forward to the challenging myself to have less, more challenging sets! Thanks Mike and crew. See you at the end of the transformation contest ;)
Same here..I've gone from training hard 6 days a week to 3 days a week and much fewer sets. Honestly I am stronger now than I was. Now I see how important days off and recovery is.
Such a great informative video dude. When I hit the gym I'm usually doing 5 different workouts for every body part and I've gained some strength and size but I always feel wasted after the workout and I'm in the gym for 2hrs. Your info makes so much sense and I will try this out starting today with chest and bi's
I was definitely overtraining. Great advice 🙌🏼
started going gym after 2 years break. weight got up to 86kg, had ussual head aches, felt lazy, stressed and a bit depressed. now after 2 month of going to the gym min. 4days per week. I have lost 3kg and have seen great improvement in mental state aswell as physically. Love Dr baldy he is funny and informative. Thanks
I’ve been lifting for 26 years … because of a shoulder injury - started a “full” body each day .. just changing the exercise each time .. ie flat , inclined next day , decline the next day , lighter weight to start the week and by the end of the week I was heavy .. and my body really responded well … variety is the key .. the the body is so efficient and adaptive to exercise … change is a positive thing for growth
Suffering through you dad jokes? Sir, that's why we come here...
I'm guilty of trying to hit every muscle from every angle in every workout lol... I need to change up my ways, thanks doc.
Lol omg me too
It's def. Not necessary,your better off throwing away the junk volume and sticking to basic generally heavier weight exercises.
I'm currently doing no exercise, so I'm looking how best to start. I would rather not get so overwhelmed I quit.
Thank you Dr. Mike, you’ve changed my approach to training myself and others for the better
Can’t thank you enough my friend
Excuse me and I apologize if this question has been repeated.
When we say “10-14 sets for triceps” we talk about triceps as the main muscle? Because in chest press for example, we use our triceps either. Chest press count for both? Triceps & chest? Even for front delts!
It’s so important for everyone to understand this thing.
Thank you in advance
I suggest to not overthink it. Personally, I only track the main muscles in a workout and only change the program based on secondary muscles if they get too fatigued from exercises in the workout that aren't targeting them as a main muscle (for example, my current program includes a ton of exercises that indirectly target the forearms, and although I want my forearms to get hammered, my current focus is more dispersed than just arms, so I switched some of my exercises to ones that are less taxing on that region)
Your videos answer all my questions!
Which ones? I don't understand.
this is great to hear!! I have always wondered when working out at the gym I would take a while and over nuke everything. I will definitely be implementing this and wont go as crazy. I was one of those people who would be doing the incline, flat and decline thinking yea it's the chest but it's different fibers so its different. This is why I would eventually fatigue and get tired of the gym a month in because I was overtaxing my body. Thank you for this information and all the work you do!
You're probably the most useful channel I've found on RUclips. Easy to understand, and great advice.
Good info, I recently changed over from PPL to a bro split and loving just doing 1 muscle group per week, allows me mentally to go harder which I was missing doing 2x per week since I was subconsciously holding back a bit knowing I had to hit some stuff later that week. Also just works better now that I'm further from gym and it's way busier then previous gym. Just end up doubling up on what Dr. Mike suggests, knowing it's not 100% optimal but it fits for what I need, I don't feel like death walking, and i'm still seeing good results.
High volume works for certain individuals in my opinion the bro split is perfect as by hitting a body part once a week I train it hard knowing I've got plenty of time to recover and I don't feel exhausted when leaving the gym , also I'm ni and out the gym in just over an hour
I did bro splits for about 10 years and didn’t realize PPL until early this year and I’ve made more muscular and strength progress in the last 8 months than I did the last 4-6 years on a high volume bro split. Sadly, I didn’t research and was arrogant to think my training was most optimal. Learning to be disciplined with lowering your volume and training it twice a weak with optimal effort is way better I promise. You’re doing yourself a disservice going to bro split if you’re natural.
@@imbrzyant no your not ' I've been training over 30yrs and my experience will tell you different I've always trained bro split as I am old school , last year I experimented with a ppl for 8 weeks and it did nothing for me infact I lost strength, as in my opinion if you train a bodypart hard enough no way can you hit it again a second time , unless your one of these people who train half heartedly and are always on their phone, there is no optimal way to train as everyone is different the advice I always give is experiment and find the routine that works best for you,
@@imbrzyant I'm on opposite side. PPL for past 6yrs and now on to brosplits. I want to only be in gym 4 days a week and I'm not super concerned about the 100% most science backed workout anymore. Is PPL more scientifically beneficial then bro splits? For sure, but bro splits are more fun and enjoyable which adds more value. Though I do sometimes hit chest and back on last day of week too if I feel I didn't demolish them properly on their specific day
@@barrybarnett731 "If you train a muscle group twice per week, you're not going hard enough, bro!" Sounds like top tier cope lol.
Mike "the back is kinda like asia" Israetel
Always great content. I appreciate the time you took to sit down and talk recovery methods. I can better manage my time.
Would you consider a segment on connective tissue please?
Some of us are militant: mission accomplishment, suffer in silence. But this has led to ripping muscles off my bones. I tore a distal bicep tendon. Only then realized I had torqued my tendons with consecutive years of high volume training and extreme stress.
I didn’t know to deload, worked around pain, slept no more than 4-5 hours a night, and did everything in the book wrong to a frivolous degree. Training was all I had. A loaded barbell might sink in a small boat but it was my life preserver.
How can we walk back the damage? Full range of motion under resistance is ideal, but what if sprains, inpingements, knots, or strains restrict it? How can you improve and maximize your range of motion? How much time should be expected, in a sitting/over time? Can you train your connective tissue? Can you explain how to train properly considering your lacking or healthy connective tissue? Also, is it normal to crack like a glow stick?
Appreciate every video, old and new!
In strength
💪
Most informative and entertaining man on RUclips.
that was exactly my chest workout in college minus the dips. 12 years later I've been doing 9-11 sets (2-3 exercises) per group and getting the best results ever. Stronger and bigger than I've ever been this bulk.
I’m at 4 sets per muscle group, that works amazing too.
Weekly? Or do you have multiple training sessions per muscle group that week?
@@roflolmaomgf ive been doing less frequency, 1-2 times a week on everything. rather would stay uninjured as much as possible. im not in a rush ya know? i kinda disagree with a lot of people promoting 2-3 times a week per group.
@@everydaybodybuilding2282 Yeah I'm on the same boat as you, never cross the upper limit of training a body part twice a week 10-15 sets per muscle group
@@RYRHYMES 10 sets for a full workout yeah. My leg day is just 5 sets of squats an my second leg day is 5 sets of deads. I've put 3 inches on my thighs in the last year and a half, faster than theyve ever grown. natty 235 6 ft, bulked ofc. would be beach lean at like 195 prob
Started doing this about a month ago and I’m more sore than I’ve ever been! Walking hurts for 2-3 days after only 2 hard sets for one muscle group
sore means nothing
Wow cool! I’ve been doing between 6 to 12 sets per muscle group a week. Settled on that number just out of personal experience. Works for me 💪
Appreciate the video. I’ve been doing too many sets and mentally feel fatigued as a result. Going to scale back and see how it goes 🤜🏼
I feel like this guy is the best in the industry. Not just the info but the presentation too and he's super jacked not skinny ripped like most
If you don’t have a pump after 2 exercises for a muscle group, what a hell are you doing ?!
Does a pump in the lower back count? Asking for a friend.
Chasing the pump is the wrong approach in my eyes
How long have you been taking Growth Hormone?
I'm going to try doing less junk volume. I'm not sure what I'll do with all the extra free time.
😁😁
This is a great video. Since I started working out, I always stressed the simplicity of my workouts. Typically, I only cycle through about 5-6 variations of compound movements throughout the week. Each session I only do that one compound variation for 10 sets (8-10 reps). Only break for 45 seconds between each set. Each rep is full ROM, squeezing throughout the rep.
Chest Press (Barbell or Dumbell)
Squat
Deadlift
Shoulder Press (Barbell or Dumbell)
Pull-Ups
50 Burpees plus 5 sets of a “leg raising type” of core exercise at the end of each session.
Add in a good diet with some cheat days 1-2 days per week, and you’re golden. Don’t overcomplicate your workouts. I get in and out of the gym in less than 40 mins.
I was pretty unsure about my perspective on this subject and this guy just confirmed that I'm okay. Literally his examples are the same I've used and I'm glad I found this clip. Golden advice! Keep up the good work, kings.