Minimalism is great
Until it stops working.
Hey there!
I just turned 34 - and decided to celebrate it by doing 34kg chin ups EMOM style until failure. If you want to hear some perspectives on trying to win the fight against aging - check my latest YT video:
Now, today's message:
I experienced a few small plateaus un the last 18 months of high intensity training. Rather, I took inspiration from his Ideal Routine, changed the exercises to fit my goals, and as the months of training passed, I made several tweaks to suit my needs and preferences.
Today we'll focus on the second major disagreement I with Mike Mentzer's approach to high intensity training.
Never doing a second set
Plateaus happen. They're inevitable. Even in the best way of training I've tried -progress still isn't perfect. Perfect doesn’t exist. It's an illusion.
Think you've perfected something? That's a delusion.
The human body is more complicated than we know, there are more variables than we can rigorously control. You can’t progress indefinitely, and inevitably, even if you're trying to control for all the variables in all of your exercises - one of them will always stall.
This is a wonderful opportunity.
To learn. To grow. To master a new technique or strategy.
For me - it was bicep curls. for 2 months my growth was grinding to a halt.
Weight - stalled until Mid March, when steady progress begins again
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Total reps - notice it doubles in March when I add 1 set
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After several sessions being unable to progress on the bicep curls, I decided to add a second set. Mike is very insistent in his book that a second set is always counterproductive, just digging the recovery hole deeper while yielding no more stimulus.
I didn't find that to be the case.
This immediately helped bust though the plateau. Once I added a second set, my progress immediately restarted - I was ticking my way, adding reps or weight session on session.
So what did I do specifically? I’d start with a ‘heavier’ set for 7-10 reps. Then I’d rest, and take some weight off and do a lighter set aiming for 15 or so reps. Both sets to failure, with partials on the first, and partials and eccentrics on the second.
Avoiding Dogma
The lesson here? Avoid dogma. I believe in putting others' ideas to the test, giving them the benefit of the doubt - but not being afraid to tweak, adjust, or just plain abandon things that don't work for you.
I love training just 1 set to failure. It's so fast and fun. And for most exercises, most of the time, it seems to be enough for me.
But when it isn't - I don't want to lie to myself. If it's broke - fix it.
Adding a second set seems to be a great way to bust through plateaus on a high intensity plan. Since this time, I've dropped back to 1 set and am still making gains.
Have a strong & openminded day, my friend.
-John
P.S. Need help getting unstuck in your fitness journey?
