and making it work for you.

  A client of mine persuaded me to have a read and i was really pleasantly surprised by its contents. The author is plain speaking.. i can dig that lol...   I can understand the appeal of someone saying go for it, have a couple of glasses of wine each evening..he does.. we all have vices and moderation is the the key. However the key to any routine and diet is the understanding and interpretation of them. This i beleive is where the author fcuks up on some very sound ideas and doesnt explain how to get yourself into a position for them to work.   I love low volume, low frequency training, for the typical average dude or lady you`ll get better results with it than if you live in the gym. However groundwork must be done for the routines to work. A typical new trainer isnt capable of training hard enuff with good form to train in 10 week cycles using 95% of their 1 rep max.[i am to be fair picking on one rep range he mentioned] However if you train for 6 months using common sense techniques  adding a small amount of weight to the bar each week for the 6 months of hard training, forgetting extreme weight loss ideas or 20lbs of muscle in 10 weeks for now, you`ll get yourself into a position where you can lift 95% of your 1 rep max for reps in good form. I`ve found that 8-10 reps is the ideal rep range for a new trainer. Less reps per set and the weight will stop you doing justice to your set and you`ll fail early. 15 rep set will have your stamina failing early.

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Myth Busted

15 rep sets are deemed good for toning. What a load of old pants! Theyre deemed that cos 15 reps done for the amount you can truly do takes real determination and experience. Thats something that can only come with time, the same as but from the opposite direction as 6 rep sets. I`ve trained for 6 rep sets and 10 rep sets but true justice to 15 reps still eludes me..mainly because i found stamina sets too hard and i copped out. One day i calculated my 6 rep personal best on bench press as a 15 rep set. i completed a set of 6, took 3 minutes rest and tried for 15.. i got 14 and then 13.. 15 rep sets are bad mo fo`s and not just for ladies toning their butts! So if you want to try a rep range you must train for it and i mean taking 3 months or even 6 months for the change.   Do this and then if you go into a workout with only 4 reps per set of maybe only 3 exercises, you`ll be able to do justice to to the routine. I`ve seen it myself, i`ve spent an hour typing out and expalining a routine that is tried once, completed in 30 minutes and is deemed too easy and was never tried again. Results take time and patience. Yes the client trained hard for the few sets and reps i`d given him, but only hard for him.. he`d never cycled his poundages before, just relied on brute strength. The same routine would take me an hour and i`d NEED 5 minutes rest between sets, because i`d spent a year building up my deadlift poundges to something fearfull!!! My trap bar deadlift workouts are a routine all of theyre own, but theyre only ever just a taster.. My client was an online one and altho we still chat and he always asks how to lose weight but he really never listens.. He probably did each exercise flat out, but because he was used to training his chest with 12 sets over 4 exercises he didnt know how to cripple his chest in 3 sets like i train clients too. Its so common these days to believe in the standard 3-5 day split promoted by most magazines. Did you know that those routines are all based on steroid users? Think about it... where does information come from? Athletes of course and their coaches. The very same athletes who regularly get banned for failing drug tests. Can you name me a male sprinter who`s won the Olympics or World Championships? who hasnt failed tests? As it goes there is Kim Collins who won both during a crackdown with the slowest times for years and with the physique of a gazelle rather than the muscular powerhouses you regualrly see. He is the exception to the rule. So! interpretation is the key to an effective routine. I would recommend reading a book Called Brawn by Stuart Mcrobert as a must read book which will make clear what the 4 hour body can do for you. Brawn changed my training life. Therefore as  corny as it sounds Brawn changed my life too as training is now my job too.. lol it`d been my life for years... I digress lol, i`m good at going off on tangents.. another of my current stable of clients had also read the 4 hour body. His interpretation was interesting.. Instead of the slow carb diet his diet had turned low carb, not usually maintainable for long, but a bottle of wine in the evenings kinda kills carb cravings. We`re on the slow road to correcting his diet and within a month he`s noticing a flatter stomach and better muscle tone. the low carb diet was actually only maintained for a few meals at a time topped up with visits to dominos heh heh! If you make sure you include some carbs in each meal-ideally complex ones, even more ideally beany type ones that tim suggest you wont crave later in the day..you`ll make better food decisions. Anyone can give out a diet, but getting a diet that a client can stick to is an art form in itself! Thats what i pride myself at being rather good at. In time we`ll get him eating more beans pulses and legumes but little steps are surer than the ones of the warrior who`s fortitude wains as quickly as it shines.  

Ill be honest

I`d completely forgotten about beans, pulses and legumes and how much protein they packed as a carb source. Thats free protein without evening trying dudes! Ive been swapping out mashed potatos for refried beans and lentils for rice.. Also forcing a quick shot of protein down within 30 minutes of waking..yes i`d always been slack and had my morning pint of coffee before being able to face food.. ive stopped being a pussy about a shot of protein in 2 inches of water... the reality is it barely interrupts the coffee. I then have a proper full sized meal replacement type shake that i make myself and described in my food section when i finished my coffee and topped up on nicotine. Yes thats my vice, a personal trainer who smokes. I do drink i just don`t choose to very often. I do try and cut down using a device called a personal vaporiser also called an electric cigarette which i`ll talk more about in another article.

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Vices

Training is good for helping moderate vices, its also a proven way to maintain mental health and deal with stress and anxiety. I`ve had great success helping clients moderate themselves. When training is going well and results are noticeable, you will gradually do less of your chosen vice. Its not a magic cure, fcuk! i`m proof of that.. but in time it will happen, youre training will be more important to you because of the changes youre seeing.   Like Tim i dont do BS, i like to experiment with ideas and rather than rely on what you`ve heard or read actually try it for ourselves ad see what the real world results are.   i like to think i keep it real.. and one day like Tim i`ll be training world champions...