il pensiero di ian king sulla forza e l'ipertrofia muscolare
Back in college I used a lot of Cliff’s Notes. Don’t get me wrong, I always read the books I was supposed to read but let’s face it, many college profs think that fine literature is defined by how fast the student nods off. The faster the student’s head thunks down on his desk, the finer the literature must be. So I’d jack myself up on Vivarin, trudge through those boring tomes and then read the Cliff’s Notes. Sure enough, with the help of my pal Cliff everything clicked into place and I understood what the hell Shakespeare and Dante were talking about.
If you haven’t followed the writings of a particular strength coach for some time, reading one of their articles is sort of like going from Marvel Comics to Shakespeare. Sometimes it’s good to take a step back and look at what certain experts in their fields have given us, sort of like reading their Cliff’s Notes just to get the highlights of their expertise and to summarize all the really good stuff they have to offer.
And this is what bodybuilding is all about — absorbing everything the gurus have to offer, then putting together your own programs that combine their expertise with your personal needs and goals. TC did this many moons ago in his Simpleton’s Guide to the Poliquin Principles article. Basically he summed up all the important ideas behind Poliquin's training programs, sort of like fast forwarding through all the talking scenes in a porno film and getting right to the meaty stuff.
Out of all the incredible coaches that contribute to T-mag, the way I train has been influenced more by Ian King than any other. Sure, I pick up a thing or two from every coach, but Ian has really influenced the way I design training programs for myself and others. So in the spirit of my buddy Cliff, I’ve attempted to sort through all the 12-week programs, columns, and articles Ian has given us so far and summarize the dominating principles. Plus I’ll toss in a few of the little interesting tidbits that may not qualify as "principles" but are darned cool nonetheless.
Note: Ian will be the first to tell you that he didn’t invent all of this stuff, but it’s safe to say he popularized and brought many of these ideas to light for T-mag readers.
Overtraining
"If in doubt, do less!"
As weight trainers, we’ve always known about the perils of overtraining. But most of the stuff we read in bodybuilding mags just talks about the signs of overtraining and inevitably says to just take a couple of days off when we see them. Ian took this a few steps further by talking about not just the signs of overtraining but how to prevent it, how to optimize recovery, and how to rationally step back and evaluate your condition. Here are a few of the things Ian has taught us in this area:
The Rest Week: One overriding concept here is to take the steps necessary to prevent overtraining before it occurs. One way to do this is to take a rest week, or half-week, every three weeks or so. Now if you’re an average gym rat, this is a hard pill to swallow. Ian assures us that we won’t shrink during this short time away from the gym; in fact, we may end up getting bigger and stronger in the long run because we’re better recovered and less prone to injuries.
How do you know when it’s time to take a recovery week? Ian recommends you set aside your fears of "shrinking" and unemotionally ask yourself these questions:
1) Do I feel stronger every week?If you answer "yes" to all of these question, then you’re on the right track. If you answer "no" to a couple of them, then it’s time to take a half-week to a week’s rest. This can be a week of "active rest" if you want, where you take in some outdoor activities and occasional light exercise. Just stay away from the heavy iron during this time.
2) Do I remain excited about training every week?
3) If my goal is to put on weight, is it happening?
4) Am I sleeping well?
5) Do I wake up feeling refreshed each morning?
Now, if your diet is perfect, your training schedule is optimized, and you have pretty good genetics, you may be able to train with weights regularly for up to 12 weeks. But after 12 weeks, even Superman needs a week off.
Sets: Do only 10 to 20 work sets per workout (not per muscle group, Arnold Jr.!) Ian notes that the average, drug-free guy who has a job, family responsibilities or school can only realistically handle 10 to 20 work sets per workout, with 12 being about right for the average dude.
There may be times when more sets are appropriate within a periodized plan, but there are also times when 5 to 15 sets may be even better for you. This may be the biggest pill of all to swallow for those of us that grew up on Arnold’s Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding and two hour workouts. But let’s face it, most of us don’t have Arnie’s freaky genetics or his access to "Vitamin S."
Length of Workout: Ian is a big believer is short workouts. By short he means to keep your workouts to an hour or less, not counting stretching and warms-ups. This is because after about 60 minutes of training, things like your body’s natural androgen levels tend to plummet. This is coupled with an increase in cortisol, which is a catabolic (muscle wasting) agent. Combine these negative hormonal responses with diminishing stores of ATP-CP and neurotransmitters and you’d better get your arse out of the gym in an hour or less if you want to make decent gains.
Lifestyle: Ian was one of the first coaches in his field to stress the importance of lifestyle, or stuff that happens outside of the gym. Stress is the big culprit here and those who have high stress jobs, family demands, and money worries aren’t going to recover quickly. This needs to be taken into consideration or you’ll end up making poor progress. Ian has even gone so far as to say that those who have a lot of stress in their lives may not be able to lose fat easily! Other factors that affect recovery would be nutrition, supplementation, sleep patterns and the amount of physical activity you get outside of the gym.
To most people, Ian seems a little too cautious when it comes to overtraining. But let me ask you this: are you completely satisfied with your progress in the gym? If not, then why not try some of these things out and see what happens? You have nothing to lose and possibly a lot of muscle to gain.
Training to Failure
"At the end of the workout, you should only feel smashed some of the time, not all of the time!"
Here’s another one that takes most bodybuilders a while to accept: you don’t have to train to failure to grow. This relates to overtraining as well. In a nutshell, the average guy can’t train to failure and beyond (forced reps, etc.) without overtaxing his system and halting his progress in the gym.
Some coaches would tell you not to train to failure at all. Coach King has a better idea. Based on his vast experience in the real world, Ian suggests you only train to failure or near failure about once every three weeks. Since most of Ian’s programs involve three week cycles within a larger twelve week plan, this make perfect sense.
Here’s how it works. Let’s say you’ve planned out your training for the next tree weeks. You’ll be using the same exercises and generally the same reps ranges, tempos and rest periods. On week one, you concentrate on perfect form and leave a few reps "in the hole" at the end of each set. If your goal is to get eight reps with a certain weight, use a weight that you can actually lift 10 or 11 times.
On week two you get a little closer to failure, but still fall a rep or two short. Finally, on week three, Ian allows you to go all out and train to failure. He’ll still tell you that forced reps (where you train beyond failure with the use of a partner) are counterproductive for most natural lifters and that such techniques are to be used only on a limited basis and within a periodized plan.
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