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With Any Of These 9
Techniques
It's always a challenge to keep your workouts exciting. One week will be
amazing, the next will be satisfactory. It happens to the best of us.
Here are some ways to change up your workout to keep the intensity up,
avoid boredom in the gym, and keep those muscles growing.
1. Change Your Whole Workout.
It's surprising how many of us are stuck on the same general workout
program for years, the same rep scheme, the same exercises, and worst of
all the same minimal gains. One of the easiest ways to get some life
into those workouts is to have a complete change. There are a number of
ways this can be accomplished. A great idea is to check out the
bodybuilding.com workout database.
You can search for specific programs that will fit your schedule, and
give you that spark to shock your muscles into growing. Try a number of
different things you've never tried before. Hiring a personal trainer
can be one of the smartest things you can do to improve your training.
I have to say, there are a lot of under qualified personal trainers
working out there, but do some research and pay the money, you will not
be disappointed with a fresh new perspective on training. You will be
surprised at how well completely changing your workout can work, even if
it is just for a short time.
2. Keep A Workout Log.
Keeping a workout log can be annoying, but by looking back on previous
lifts and always striving to one up your previous workout in some way
can ensure you are always improving.
Whether it's keeping the same weight but pushing for one more rep, or
keeping the same reps but increasing the weights, by knowing what you've
done previously you can use that as motivation to constantly improve.
 
3. 2nd Set Max.
Many people use their third set as their heaviest. It is well known that
much of the muscle gained is due to the heavy stress the muscle is put
under during your heaviest set. It makes sense then to bump your
heaviest set up to your second set.
The famous Dorion Yates would do only one quick warm-up set and move
right to his heaviest set. This can be a great way to shock your
muscles. Typically, when following this protocol, a general warm-up is
done (five minutes of stationary bike). This is followed by thoroughly
warming up the joints involved in the lift of the day.
At the beginning of the workout, it is best to do approximately 3 sets
of a thorough warm up exercise. This is only done at the beginning of
the first exercise. After you are thoroughly warmed up, grab a weight
(approximately 50% of your max) and push out about 60-70% of failure.
For your second set grab a weight (90-100% of your max) and with a
spotter, push out your maximum set.
After your second set, rep out at about 80% of your max for as many reps
as possible. Continue this protocol throughout your workout and watch
the muscles grow.
4. Try Some New
Supplements.
It's always great to add a new supplement into your current supplement
stack. Do your research though from reliable sources, and pick using
good judgment. Some supplements with a lot of scientific research
backing their use is Creatine, Caffeine, Glutamine, and Protein powders.
Adding something new can give you a 'placebo' affect. Just knowing you
spent the money on something you're using can boost your workouts. As
always you can find any supplement on bodybuilding.com at the best
prices available.
5. Do One Thing Different Every Workout.
You can keep the same general workout program you enjoy and have enjoyed
and still add a change. I try to do at least one thing different in
every workout. Whether it's a super set, giant set, drop set, or a new
exercise at the end of the workout this can help to avoid boredom and
constantly put your muscles through something new without making too
drastic a change. Try even reducing or increasing your regular rest
times. This can increase the intensity or allow for increased maximum
lifts respectively.
6. Backwards Workouts.
Use your regular workout routine, but run through it backwards. Start
what is normally the last exercise performed and end with what is
usually performed first. By doing this your weights will change
dramatically, but it is a quick easy way to change up your regular
routine and shock your muscles into growing.
7. Nutrition Is #1.
All too often people training to reach specific goals are doing all the
right things in the gym, but aren't seeing the gains they should because
of improper dieting. Read everything you can on nutrition, but be
careful as to who you listen to.
Nutritional theory is constantly changing. I look back at some of the
articles I wrote during my first year of university and am the first to
admit there is much room for improvement. Make sure the source of
information is qualified to give nutritional advice. For the record, I
am currently in year four of a double major in Human Nutrition and Human
Kinetics.
A registered dietitian (RD) can help anyone overcome their nutritional
troubles, and although it may be initially expensive, you need to think
of the money you will be saving by no longer wasting money on foods that
aren't going to be helping you reach your goals.
8. Try A Short Cutting Phase.
It can be frustrating to see minimal results when trying to gain mass.
The great thing about cutting up is the results come fairly quickly.
Take three or four weeks during your mass building phase and change it
up by doing cardio, and eating cleaner to cut up.
Try tanning as well. These result in fairly immediate changes. As well,
when you return to your mass gaining protocol you can be ahead of where
you left off due to calorie cycling.
9. "Full Pump".
This is a simple way to get a great workout in without changing your
routine. Try doing one set of each exercise you have planned for the
day. Follow this with a second and a third etc. For example, for
shoulders you may do one set of shoulder press, followed by a set of
dumbbell lateral raises, and finish up with a set of upright rows.
This will be repeated three to four times to finish the workout. What
you are doing is hitting the entire muscle equally. In a traditional
workout of three sets per exercise before moving on to the next, certain
muscles are hit harder than others.

For example when doing a traditional shoulder workout if you hit your
anterior deltoids for the first two exercises, your posterior deltoids
can tire preventing you from maximizing the potential benefits of
working your posterior deltoids at the first of the workout. This
technique is one of my favorite ways to change up my workout.
In Conclusion
These are just a few of the many ways to spice up your workouts and make
them interesting. Let me know if any of you have any questions at all
via email, and as always, train hard, and remember...it's not a game.
Nutrition Tip:
Rather than taking your creatine immediately after your workout, try
this. Take your serving of creatine for the day and mix it in your water
for the day. Drinking this throughout the day has shown to allow more
absorption than traditional methods.
In a study at St. Francis Xavier University, subjects had two jugs, one
with five grams of creatine mixed into the water, the other empty, used
only to collect the urine the subject secreted throughout the day. This
was compared to a schedule of consuming the same amount of creatine
taken in only two separate doses. The creatinine secreted in the first
groups urine was less than that of the second, meaning more creatine was
absorbed by using the first method.
Give it a try, but no need for the urine container, just take my word on
it.
Best of luck
Ryan Swan
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Ryan
Swan
BSc.
Human Kinetics
BSc. Human Nutrition (2006)
Can Fit Pro Personal Trainer Specialist
CSEP Certified Fitness Consultant
Ryan Swan is a
bodybuilding competitor and author from
Nova Scotia, Canada.
Ryan can be reached at his website at
http://www.ryanswanonline.com/ |
Natural
Bodybuilding at its Finest - Lift for Life.com |
