|
Understanding The
Progressive Resistance System
by Troy C. Pearsall
The progressive resistance system is the
most forgotten system in bodybuilding today. It allows for any individual to
monitor his/her progress and be assured that proper muscle hypertrophy takes
place.
By using the progressive
resistance system correctly, you will be able to monitor your strength increases
and muscle growth better than any other system there is. Many people use
the progressive resistance system and don’t even know it. They instinctively
know that this is the correct way to workout.
Ronnie Coleman once said in
an interview in Flex magazine that he has basically used the same routine for
many years that he does not change much from one workout to another, and he is
Mr. Olympia many times over! How dare him use such a simple and effective
system to develop one of the most freakishly phenomenal bodies known to man.
The progressive resistance
system states “In order to continually see progress (muscle development) the
intensity of the workout must increase as your body adapts the workout.” I
personally believe that there is only one true system that works. It is the
progressive resistance system. You start to use it as a novice trainer and 10 or
15 years later you are still applying it to your workout.
The progressive resistance
system is the only system I use and the reason in
 obvious.
All other system revolves around the principles of progressive resistance. I
don’t subscribe to other workout systems because they may cause injury and I
have had enough in my time. Most champion bodybuilders follow the progressive
resistance system in one form or another. They may employ other principles, like
superset, tri-sets, giant sets, drops sets, railroad (this is old school) flush
sets pre-exhaust sets, and post-exhaust sets and numerous others but the system
remains the progressive resistance system.
How
do I know a Principle from a System?
Simple. A system is the application of principles, for instance; If I wish to
continue to see results I must increase the intensity of my workout as by body
adapts to the previous load. (Progressive Resistance System)
In order to increase the
intensity of my workout I employ one to the principles discussed below. (
remember a system is the application of principles )
The Five Principle Ways
to Increase Intensity
There are five ways to increase the intensity of a workout they are;
-
Increase the weight being used for a given exercise Increase the amount of repetitions used in a given set.
-
Decrease
the amount of time resting between sets.
-
Increase the amount of sets used during a given workout. (The
volume of the training)
-
And of course, any combination of the above four.
So if you are applying one
of the five principles with the goal of increasing the intensity to match your
body’s adaptation to pervious stress of exercise, then you are using the
progressive resistance system.
Reps Determine Weight
used; Not the Reverse.
The repetitions ranges determine the weight not the weight determine the reps.
What I mean by this is that the goal is a rep range, when doing the progressive
resistance system, not the weight used. For instance, if you can only do 1-4
reps on your first set then you are a power lifter not a bodybuilder. One rep
max are use only to determine what weight to use on muscle building sets. If
you can only do 5-8 reps during your first set then I am doing heavy weight.
If you can only do 9-12 reps
during your first set then you are lifting moderate weight. And if you can only
do 15- 25 reps then you are lifting light weight.
Of course you understand
that if you can only do these number on your first set then the numbers get less
and less on all the set that follow. Further more I think for successful leg
training you need more reps than the rest of the body, somewhere between 15 to
25 reps seem to work best for most.
Now when you do that same
weight on your next workout for that body part you should be able to lift one to
three reps more (Those not in very good shape see much better results than those
is fairly good shape) on the first set, and maybe an additional rep or two on
the sets that follow. When you can complete all the sets for the given number of
repetitions then its time to increase the intensity (I suggest that for people
with under a year of training that you only increase the weight)
Her is a typical workout for someone doing 4 sets of
barbell curls
Remember all sets are done to what I call natural
failure ( when reps can no longer be done with moderate form)
| Warm up |
Set 1 |
Set 2 |
Set 3 |
Set 4 |
| |
12 reps |
12 reps
12 some loss of form |
10 to 11 reps |
8 to 10 reps |
You can see the above would be a moderate of light to
medium weight used
| Warm up |
Set 1 |
Set 2 |
Set 3 |
Set 4 |
| |
8 reps |
7 reps |
6 reps |
4 reps |
 Of
course the graph above shows 4 sets of heavy reps in the 8 rep range. An
individual would continue to use the same weight and try to increase his reps
until at each workout until he was doing 8 reps in all fours sets. At that time
he would increase the weight, if is goal is to get bigger and stronger.
Ok, when should I
increase intensity and how?
Real simple. Increase intensity for three reasons;
-
To get bigger
and more massive (in the winter months/ build size)
-
To get deeper separation (
Spring or Fall)
-
To get define
and ripped (Contest or Beach Shape depending on your goals)
Summer / Contest
If you are trying to drop body fat develop deep cuts, and you are on a low
carbohydrate, low fat or calorie restricted diet then intensity is increased by
increasing the amount of reps being used on a given set. And the amount of set
used in a workout. You may have to increase the duration of the workout by about
25% and drop the weight about 5 to 10% but I don’t suggest a larger drop than
that.
Many bodybuilders drop the weight so much during the
contest and summer months in an effort to develop that ripped look that they
loose muscle size. I don’t believe in lowering calorie intake for diet I just
increase aerobic activity.
Spring / Fall
You should be either just starting to watch what you eat (spring), or are
coming off a great diet (fall). In either case you need to increase your aerobic
activity if its spring, and cut back the aerobics if it fall. This will allow
you to more easily transition into the coming seasons and the workout style that
is associated with them.
 To increase intensity you will need to increase the amount
of sets used during a given workout while holding the workout to the duration.
In the winter
You will be on your mass cycle you will be getting as big and as strong as
possible. You will have to drop the amount of sets in you workout. And increase
intensity by increasing the weight being used. You workout should consist of all
compound movements.
This is the time most people get injured. I suggest that
you start with a weight and every 6 week you take two workout days off and drop
all weights by one half the weight you increased over the last six weeks.
In a nut shell that is the Progressive Resistance System.
God Bless
Troy Pearsall
The Best Exercises You've never Heard of!
Psalm 84:11
For the Lord God is a sun and a shield, the
Lord will give grave and glory. No good thing will
he withhold from them that walk uprightly
| 
)
)
)
)