Is Over Training Possible?
As a 20 year veteran Austin personal trainer, you can be sure that I have seen my share of different people as well as different needs, in different scenarios, etc. I also have been asked a multitude of questions regarding nutrition, weight lifting, physical therapy, weight loss, and so on. Women tend to inquire more about how to go about losing weight, while men, on the other hand, tend to want to build muscles, and as quickly as possible.
Yesterday afternoon was no exception, as a young man asked me how he could get big quickly. A loaded question if ever there was one! He explained that he lifts every body part twice a week and it takes about 2-3 hours to do this each time.
When I inquired as to his nutrition as well as supplementation, he answer, while not perfect, was somewhat in the ballpark and he stood a fair chance of reaching his goals, if he was to put everything in the proper order and execute every step consistently. While he wasn’t going to be getting big muscles quickly, he at least was on target to get some… provided he stop spending all that time in the gym!
What he’s doing is actually undermining his efforts by over training. If you over train a muscle, it simply will not grow. For growth to occur, you need to work the muscle, feed it, and then rest it. All 3 are equally important components for success. I suggested to him, since he was an intermediate level trainee, to hit every muscle group 1 time weekly with 9-12 working sets per group. This way there’s adequate recovery time. One good thing about this approach, is that there will be overlap, so you’re actually training a lot of the muscles twice weekly. For example, if we do chest on Mondays, and shoulders coupled with triceps on Fridays, you’re actually hitting shoulders and triceps twice, as they are an integral part of any chest workout. Another good thing about my suggested approach, is it spares him from being in the gym for 3 hours daily, which too, is counterproductive. Your testosterone level plummets after the first hour as do your glycogen stores. It’s best to get it done in an hour if possible.. Work the muscles efficiently and properly, feed them and then rest them. Then do it all over again.
Ready to Get Started?
Andy
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