Weight Training Advice
Heavy Duty Routine
(which is something you should only know because they are there when you get to the gym, and still there when you leave), yet they never seem to get any bigger or stronger. They are probably overtraining. You certainly don't want to fall into this trap. One routine you can try to do some high intensity weight training in a short time and build more muscle mass is the Heavy Duty routine.
The Heavy Duty weight training routine was created by 1970s professional bodybuilder Mike Metzer. He claimed that most of the professional bodybuilders of that time were weight training way too much and not giving themselves enough time to recover. While this is dabatable since we all know that many bodybuilders who used a high volume approach were successful, especially Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, the Heavy Duty routine can work wonders if you're a natural weight trainer who doesn't have the time to spend hours at the gym.
The Heavy Duty workout routine calls for infrequent workouts done in a short time but with a lot of intensity. Metzer advocated doing as few as 2 sets total per bodypart with both sets done to total positive failure, and training 3 days a week. You may do a bunch of sets to failure when you weight train, but how much are you really getting out of the last few sets? You probably aren't training with very much intensety when you've been in the gym for over an hour anyway.
Most people are probably better off trying a modified Heavy Duty weight training routine with a few more sets per muscle group. Let's face it, to get enough work out of only 2 sets you have to really know your body. If you're still relatively new to weight training, you need to learn how to do your exercises with proper form and find out how much weight you can handle, among other things. Because of this, Metzer claimed that you should actually train less with a Heavy Duty routine as your muscles get bigger and stronger since a larger muscle will take longer to recover properly.
If you've been overtraining for some time, a Heavy Duty routine might be perfect for you. Your body may finally be able to catch up to all of work your muscle have done.
For most people, it's probably a good idea to experiment with how many sets and exercises they do. You don't need to constantly do more and more sets and exercises, you simply need to get bigger and stronger. If you can follow a Heavy Duty routine and gain muscle size and strength from just a few sets per muscle group, you'll be training much more efficiently.
How many people do you see at the gym who just kind of go through the motions when they weight train? You've seen them for years, using the same weights and working out for 2 or more hours per session
