SHOP TALK - Episode 11: Efficient training strategies for time restrictions

In today'e episode, Tyler and Trevin discuss a review article from 2021 about designing time-efficient training programs for strength and hypertrophy. 

Article Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8449772/

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:01

Welcome to Shop Talk. I'm Tyler. And I'm Trevin. We are here to break down the latest trends in rehabilitation, strength, and conditioning all through a lens of evidence-based practice. Our goal is simple. Cut through the noise in the fitness industry and talk about what actually works, why it works, and how you can apply it. On today's podcast, we will be discussing time-efficient training strategies for building strength and hypertrophy. So, Trevan, go ahead and take it away.

SPEAKER_00 0:25

Hey guys, so question I have for you to start off the podcast is what are some of the strategies that you use to maintain or develop your strength andor conditioning when life outside of the gym gets busy?

SPEAKER_02 0:38

Okay. So I read this question right before we started and I started thinking about it. I'm like, man, what do I do? Um, at least in most recent times here in the clinic while building my clientele, hiring people, everything like that. It's like it's hard to stay on top of my strength. But at this point, I'm like in this maintenance phase. So as long as I'm hitting some squats, some bench throughout the week and like hard, difficult sets near failure, I'm happy with that. But I by no means am I like ready to get on the powerlifting stage and you know go compete or anything like that. I'm not as strong as I used to be. My numbers are still great. I'm still happy with where they are. Like I said, I'm just more in this maintenance phase, but I try to at least have three workouts a week. So push, pull kind of thing, legs if necessary. But my favorite thing is like I'm always down to squat. I'm always down to squat more and more and more, but like getting in to be able to work on bench press and overhead press and stuff like that is a little bit more difficult, especially when I'm pressed on time. And as much as I thought when first starting the clinic that I would be like, oh, between patients, I could just do a quick workout, blah, blah, blah. It doesn't work like that. It really doesn't. Like, even though I'm surrounded by all the equipment and stuff, there's always stuff to do in terms of um documentation, um, hiring process, payroll, whatever it might be. So there's always just more on the table than what I really think. So I'm just doing my best to hopefully like throughout the week have three decent exercise, you know, layouts is my goal.

SPEAKER_00 2:15

So nice, man. Yeah, different phases of life, right? For sure. So yeah, you're busy in the shop, so that totally makes sense. Yep. Yeah. What about you? Before we move on, what about you? What do you do to try to maintain? I wrote this down. Um, I really liked the question that I'd asked, but for myself, right? So I used to be an all-in or not at all kind of guy. So I would get extremely frustrated when my training time was interrupted. My unhealthy relationship with exercise consumed me at times and oftentimes pulled me away from value-based action. It took me a really long time to break this cycle of this really poor relationship that I had. And I know that it had a lot to do with the mental health battles that I was fighting during that time. So for me, the gym was more of a kind of like an escape from some other things. And I think it became a little bit more excessive and extreme than it probably should have. Um, the gym's always been something within my control, but I would, like I said, take it to this extreme in regards to the amount of time I was dedicating to it and the attitude I had about missing training days. But now I employ a much healthier approach to health when it comes to time-efficient strategies. One that I always come back to is as simple as a daily walk. So it's super boring, right? But incorporating at minimum a morning walk as something that has grounded me. This time allows me the opportunity to be grateful for the smaller things like the sun coming up and a hot cup of coffee. Uh, the simple thing that I love um has nothing to do with optimizing performance, but it's in effect a way to improve my quality of life.

SPEAKER_01 3:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:55

So and that's important, right?

SPEAKER_02 3:57

I I really like that you were all in or not at all. That's how I was throughout high school and undergrad. Is like if I could not hit a session as hard as I possibly could and get the most benefits and whatever, then it's like I'm just skipping. And then I'd be pissed off. I'd be so angry the rest of the day, or even it would throw off my week because I'm like, oh, I missed a chest day, right? Because I was a very competitive individual. So I I like that you've had this new kind of approach because so have I. I've got kind of been forced to at this point with everything going on here at the clinic, but it's been great. Um, it just I think it's nice to have the research that you provided to kind of show that, hey, it's okay to do more time-effective things and you can still gain strength or hypertrophy where needed, but it doesn't have to be seven days a week training as hard as you can, kind of thing.

SPEAKER_00 4:50

So and I think that has come with just educating ourselves, right? I think over time we've learned that less is more, but when we were younger, that isn't necessarily what we were advertised, yeah. Right. So it's kind of funny as we get older, we're almost taking the advice of what those before us had told us, like, hey man, take it easy. And we were kind of like, nah, man.

SPEAKER_02 5:11

Yeah, yeah, push harder, have to be exhausted, have to be sore, have to be tired all the time, right? If we want to be the if we want to be the best or the strongest.

SPEAKER_00 5:18

So yeah, but no, I I think that segue segues us really good into our topic, right? So our topic for today, it stems from a narrative review that discusses the most effective ways to develop strength and hypertrophy for individuals with limited training availability. We give full credit and respect to the authors of this review as well as the countless bodies of work that are referenced in the study. We have included the link to this review in the show notes. And as we discuss discuss each of these topics, we will add our thoughts and give insight into our own experiences. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 5:54

That's what I'm most excited for reading through this. Um, I talked to you before the podcast that this is something that I kind of break down with every single patient, right? Because every patient that I see, they're like, Well, I'm too busy. I'm too busy to do exercises at home and stuff like that. So I'm excited to dive into the, I don't know, the way we can strategize to help people still get stronger and feel better and get out of pain without kind of it consuming their life.

SPEAKER_00 6:22

So yeah, absolutely. So our first topic is time availability. So lack of time is a common self-reported barrier to engagement and structured exercise. This barrier has created a need for compromised training programs that utilize the latest research to develop individualized training programs that flow with the chaotic changes of life that we all have to manage. The concepts we are discussing can be used as a guide to keep you on track and get you consistent results even when time availability is limited. So hustle culture will have you convinced that if you don't have time to train, you have to sacrifice all other desires that are out that are also of high value to include sleep, time with family, or pursuing other goals outside of the gym. We have guys, for example, rushing to the doctor for testosterone therapy because apparently we can't operate at natural levels anymore. Right? So anything to stay irrelevant. Anything but being honest about your results, getting good sleep, a consistent diet, and being patient. So take this for what it's worth. Please stop following the crowds and do your own research before you jump on the next fitness trend that will lead you back to square one or worse. The advice we are repackaging for you today is great, evidence-based advice and will help move the needle in the right direction. So let's stop buying into the bullshit that is sold online and start using a method that's actionable, right? Believe it or not, life isn't all about PRs, six packs, and sex pill. It's also not about over-optimizing every aspect of your life that you actually forget to live it.

SPEAKER_02 8:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:03

That last part's my favorite, right?

SPEAKER_02 8:05

Um, because it is about living your life, right? Absolutely. Everyone wants to be healthy, everyone wants to look good, everyone wants to have people look up to them and oh, what's your gym routine? Oh, what's your diet like, blah, blah, blah. But it's just like, dude, at the end of the day, like, are you enjoying it? Like, that's what's most important to me. Like, are you enjoying your time in the gym in the gym, stuff outside of the gym, time with family, friends, whatever? Like, that's what's most important to me. So I like that you mentioned that, you know, stop over optimizing every aspect of your life because on like social media, dude, it is nonstop with the dudes that are like, yep, I'm up at 3 a.m. ready to work out, and this is workout number one of the day, blah, blah, blah. And then they go work 10 hours and then they'll work out again. And it's just like, oh my gosh, like you're gonna die by the time you're 46, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 8:54

So it seems to be the thing right now, in terms of popularity on social media, is the over optimizing of everything. Everything, right? So sauna, cold plunge, getting up early, multiple workouts a day, red light therapy. And all that shit is so unnecessary, dude.

SPEAKER_02 9:11

It's so unnecessary when you truly dive into the research. It's like cold plunge. Sauna has some good benefits, right? With heat proteins and everything like that in terms of recovery. Cold plunge, absolutely not, right? And then there's some of my patients that are like, hey, do you recommend like doing cold therapy? And dah dah. And I'm like, if you like it and it gives you like motivation and everything like that, go for it, stick with it, right? But the research is not good. And no, it does not help with muscle soreness. Same thing with stretching, does not help, right? So, anyway, I like that. Let's just call it what it is. It's a waste of time. If it feels good, keep doing it, great. If you enjoy it, keep doing it, awesome, whatever. But stop leaning into all the social media bullshit about it.

SPEAKER_00 9:54

Oh, absolutely. Right. It's crazy. I mean, exercise isn't meant to exercise is meant to improve your quality of life, not restrict it. We shouldn't be slaves to some exercise routine. We have to figure out what works for you and then apply it in a way that promotes consistency and flow. All of these optimization techniques, I would argue, aren't very consistent, right? Like it looks really pretty on Instagram. Yeah, but if you look at the routines that people are advertising, like who has the time for that? Actually, if you have other things in your life that you value, friends, family, relationships, um, work obligations, right? Like it's not all about fitness. We love fitness, right? Like it's you're and I's probably biggest hobby, right? We love being here, but it's not the only thing that we enjoy doing, right? Yeah, and it's a lesson that you and I have both learned over time is that it's important, but is it like that important? Like we put it on such a high pedestal at times where I think we've neglected other parts of our life. 100%.

SPEAKER_02 10:53

So 100%. Something that I wanted to mention really quick, and you know, this is at a commercial gym and it was a pretty cheesy quote, but they had it up above the mirror, like in this huge uh it was actually um axiom in Boise, actually. Yeah. And it's like it's something that I want to do here at the physio shop, like have some sort of quote like this, because it said train in here so you can live out there. Right. So it was talking about like your actual life, right? Like, yes, go to the gym, train hard, work hard so you're healthy, but then actually uh live your life. Like that's the whole reason we train is so we can actually be I don't know, enjoying our life for longer, our quality of life improves, I guess. So, anyway, that's a that's a little quote. Like it's cheesy, but I want something like that here at the physio shop where it's like, yeah, train hard and here so you can actually live your life. So I love that, right?

SPEAKER_00 11:45

Yep. So diving into our next topic here, so it's training frequency and volume. So training frequency is typically defined as the number of training days or sessions that someone participates in over a week's time. Weekly training volume, simply put, is the total amount of work accomplished throughout the week and is represented by the total amount of sets and/or repetitions accomplished. Okay, so although multiple set training is superior, performing single sets per muscle group two to three times per week can be advantageous for individuals just getting started on their fitness journey. And although single set training is less than optimal, data does suggest that the minimal effective dose for individuals with over one year of resistance training experience, single set exercises of six to twelve reps, using about 70 to 85% of your 1RM two to three times per week is enough to produce meaningful results. So, what does this mean? It means that when time is limited, meaningful results for both novice and experienced individuals can happen with as little as one set of an exercise per muscle group, as little as two to three times per week. This also has huge implications for strength and hypertrophy maintenance during weeks when the gym availability is less than ideal. So I thought that was extremely important to put on here. A lot of people out there that are training don't actually even know what the minimal effective dose is for building strength and hypertrophy. They're kind of just going with the flow and doing what they have time for. So that is such a little amount of work just for maintenance level, right? So one set per muscle group, two or three times per week. So you could come into the gym and do probably four or five exercises, one set of each exercise, and probably be out of the gym within like 20 or 30 minutes. Minimal effective dose, right? And it's super effective for people that are just getting started on their fitness journey. So we start talking about people that are thinking that they have to spend hours and hours in the gym and do these marathon training sessions to get results, especially for beginners. It's just not true, and the data supports it. And even for people that have a ton of experience in the weight room, let's say a year or more, they are also getting results with maybe even one set per muscle group two to three times a week. That is more maintenance level, but the episode we're talking about today is for those that don't have the time. Right. So when time is an issue, don't get super upset with yourself if you only have time to do a 30-minute workout and one set per muscle group, because that's plenty. It's enough, and data supports that.

SPEAKER_02 14:24

Yeah. So tying this into my scope, right? So you're talking about individuals just getting started on their fitness journey, which I love because I'm all about that here and all gym members. But what about the PT patients that have never touched weights before, that have never been inside a gym before, right? And that's that's been multiple patients of mine already. So they are brand new to this, and it is so fun explaining that, like, yeah, you don't need to show up and go absolutely balls to the walls right off the rip, like be doing multiple sets, multiple push variations, multiple pull variations, like whatever, right? Like bodybuilder type stuff. Like you don't need to have that kind of volume when you're just starting out. It can be very, very basic and it still shows them results very, very quickly, right? Because they're brand new, right? So it's awesome. Um, and it's very, very meaningful in PT. And a lot of PTs don't realize this. We've talked about this before, where okay, let's say somebody has some uh weak proximal hip musculature, right? So like glute medius is always the one that PTs like to blame, right? Dude, there will be PTs, and I've seen this in person before, like on clinical rotations, on my um what's called like integrated clinical rotations as well, where it's like, oh, they have weak hips. So it's like they do lateral leg lifts, they do single leg stance, then they do clamshells, and they do like four or five exercises isolating this one muscle group. And I'm just like, what is going on? Like that is so overkill that it's not even necessary. It's like, let's get them to squat a little bit, let's get them to hinge a little bit, then we can do some more isolated work if necessary. But it's like, dude, like you said, the minimal effective dose is so much lower than what most people think. And that's what's really fun, kind of having the CSCS along with PT is because I have that background of just starting with somebody who's never touched weights before and be able to provide this kind of research, because this is not talked about in PT school, right? The thing in PT school is like three sets of 10, right? Like that's the classic on any exercise, we're doing three sets of 10, right? And that's just from old, old research where it's like, oh, three sets is the minimal effective dose, blah, blah, blah. Right. But it's like, no, if we're getting close to like, um, I like in this paper, it talked about volitional failure, right? Yep. So actual like muscle fatigue and doing that across one to two sets, it's like, dude, that's great, especially if I'm seeing that patient three times a week. It's like, that's all I need. Oh, yeah. So anyway, I thought that was really meaningful.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

No, I think that's great, but it is important to note, right? So in terms of strength and hypertrophy, so it actually can increase up to 46 and 40% when using multiple set training compared to single set training, right? So multiple set training in almost all research indicates that you're gonna get better results with multiple set training days rather than single set training. But again, we're talking about time efficiency. The training effect is gonna be much larger when we look at single sets compared to, let's say, a two to three set, but the data also shows that when you compare two to three set training days to four to six sets, the influence is actually far less. So, what this means is that single set training is effective specifically for beginners, but just by increasing training volume from one set per muscle group up to two to three sets per muscle group, two to three times per week, the training effect is statistically relevant. So optimally, a multiple set program is ideal, but meaningful results can still happen with as little as a single set training program when time is limited. And to go back just a little bit, the data is showing that when you look at a two to three set training program to a four to six set, there isn't much of a difference. So when we talk about time efficiency, if you do have time to do a multiple set training day, let's say doing two sets instead of one, your 46% that there's a 46% chance that you're gonna get a that much more increase in strength and hypertrophy, right? Just from going to one set to maybe two or three sets. So if you have the time, obviously go for a multiple set program. But once you start diving into like four to six sets per muscle group, it's not trash volume, but it's almost unnecessary for people that are just trying to work on general fitness and don't have the time to maybe do four to six sets, but they do have time for maybe two or three.

SPEAKER_02 18:43

Yeah. Right. Yeah. So then once again, diving back to like that example of weak glute mead, right? The easy example where it's like, okay, two to three sets, fantastic, right? Of like doing leg lifts, but then two to three sets of like clamshells. It's like, what are we doing? Okay. And then two to three sets of like single leg stance for a minute. What are we doing? Right. Then that's just excess volume and diminished returns and making the patient so sore that they can barely walk. Do you know what I mean? So I'm all for having multiple sets, but it's like, why are we targeting the same muscle and in isolation for so many sets and exercises? You know what I mean? Why not just do okay? Let's say clamshells, right? That's a super easy one, super basic PT exercises. Yeah, three sets of that, fantastic. That's awesome. But we don't need to beat the dead horse by doing five other exercises with that same muscle. Do you know what I mean? Like this research article just also talked about multi-joint exercises basically being the king, and we know that, right? Um, and yeah, just talking about isolation stuff with all these sets that that PTs want to do, it drives me nuts. Oh, absolutely, right?

SPEAKER_00 19:52

So we did just discuss training frequency, right? Um, training frequency still might be a challenge for some people. So when people hear, oh, I have to go to the gym two or three days per week, for some people, that is still pretty intimidating and hard to manage, right? So you and I love going to the gym. It's not hard for you and I to get to the gym two or three times a week, but to try to convince somebody that has a really bad relationship with exercise and is almost almost has like anxiety about the idea of going to the gym, that can be kind of tough, right? Not like, and again, they might just be busy with family stuff, relation stuff. They have kids. Um, there is evidence, right, that suggests that similar results can be achieved for strength and hypertrophy when training once a week is compared to higher frequencies, as long as the training volume is equated. So training a muscle group one day per week may result in similar strength and/or hypertrophy gains as long as the total training volume is the same as higher frequency training weeks. So for individuals trying to minimize training time, it is more efficient to focus on weekly training volume rather than focusing on training frequency. So to make this make a little bit more sense, you could train two to three times a week, or you could just train once and just increase the volume a little bit, and the training results are gonna be about the same. People have it in their head that they need to work out a certain amount of days per week when in all reality it's volume that's gonna be the driver for the majority of your results, not necessarily training frequency. So for days where you have a little bit more time, you can do a multi-set program. But maybe a day where you are a little bit, you know, busy, maybe you do just do one set, right? But as long as the weekly volume is equated to what your goals are and what you're trying to achieve, you're totally fine. You don't have to get in your head of like, oh shoot, I didn't make to the gym three times this week. I'm screwed. Well, maybe just add a little bit more volume on one day and maybe take off some volume on another. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:48

I like it because it it can shift throughout the week. I think that's the most important part that you mentioned is like being able to adjust day by day on days where you're super busy, can't really make it in, or maybe you Can make it in for 20 minutes or something like that, right? So you can hit that volume later on, and you know, it's not as detrimental as what one time I used to believe, right? Where if I miss certain pressing days or whatever, that I would be losing all my gains and I'd be getting weaker, blah, blah, blah. And it's like, no, it's like you can just kind of shift that down and you know, weekly volume through all of my research and through getting my degree and everything like that. That's the most important part. Like you said, it's the main driver. Volume is the easiest thing to track, I feel like, too. Honestly, it's like, yeah, you can do tonnage. Like, if you've ever done tonnage programs before, okay, basically, like how much weight are you moving per session, right? So, like you're doing this many reps with this many weight, this much weight, and that's your tonnage, and you increase your tonnage week by week or whatever. It's like, dude, that's such a pain in the ass. It's like, let's just do volume, right? Because that's the easiest way to track it. Because you can just be like, well, how many sets did I hit and how close did I get to failure?

SPEAKER_00 22:55

So absolutely great. Um, it is important, right, to note that higher training frequencies do allow for higher training volumes throughout the week and are associated with improvements in strength and hypertrophy. So for those trying to maximize muscular strength and hypertrophy, it is basically expected that higher training frequencies are used. That's just because you can spread the volume out over multiple days throughout the week, because if you are trying to make drastic changes in your muscle mass, you have to train a lot, right? So trying to stack all of this volume within one training day isn't necessarily going to be ideal for somebody that's trying to make huge leaps and bounds in the gym. But again, for people that have a time limit on the amount of time they can spend in the gym, knowing this, you can make those adjustments. Like you said, when I'm busy, I can get away with one set. When I don't when I'm not busy and I have time, I can do a little bit more, right? So it's kind of like this balancing act that you can play throughout the training week without getting so frustrated and locked in on the number of days that you need to go to the week and rather just focusing on the volume.

SPEAKER_02 23:59

Yeah. And I think for general population, I feel like that's really important, right? I know that we keep kind of bouncing back. Well, it's like the same thing with the sets that we talked about, right? Where it's like, well, yeah, of course, more sets is going to lead to greater hypertrophy and strength and everything like that. But what we're trying to get at, everyone who's listening, is like for general population, if the gym isn't your thing, but you still want to be functional, you still want to be strong, you still want to have good fitness, it's like you can make it work. You know what I mean? With really low weekly volume, low sets. It's just like we just want to make sure that we're kind of hitting on both ends here, where it's like, yeah, okay, of course, we can make gains, we can be in this maintenance phase with really low volume, low sets. But of course, if you have different fitness goals, you're gonna have to crank up the volume a little bit, crank up the sets a little bit and everything. So we keep kind of bouncing back and forth for a reason because it's important that, yeah, for the general population who the gym isn't their thing, yeah, absolutely. Pay attention to all this, you know, these resources that we're providing. But then on the other side, we have to be like, well, yes, if you want the best results possible, right? If you're trying to really get big, really get strong, whatever, then yeah, you got to bump it up a little bit, right? Absolutely. Turn up the dial.

SPEAKER_00 25:14

Yeah, in terms of this, there is a strategy that some people can use, and it is it's called microdosing. So microdosing strength or hypertrophy training can be an effective way to make improvements. So this is done through short duration, 15-minute training sessions. Although there's only a small bit of research around micro-dose training sessions, it is very much in line with the idea that as long as training volume is equated throughout the entire week, training frequency may be irrelevant. Small doses of training may be more practical for busy individuals. So if you do only have 15 to 20 minutes a day, that you know, the accumulated volume over the week is going to be the same as going to the gym maybe once that week, right? So using micro doses might fit for somebody that does only have like 15 to 20 minutes or 30 minutes or wants to do an exercise training program at home because that's all they have time for. It still works. We have to get out of this idea of the all-in or not at all mindset that we talked about at the beginning of this episode, where it's like, well, if I don't have 60 minutes to dedicate to my training session, then eff it, I'm not gonna do it anyways. Yeah. Right, which is a poor attitude to have when research shows that you can get great results in just a 15-minute training session as long as you're doing that consistently throughout the training week.

SPEAKER_01 26:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 26:33

And I think that's where hopefully the whole idea came from in the PT world, like home exercise programs. Absolutely. Right. Trying to increase that weekly volume. Um, for anyone who's listening who's been to PT. Yeah, we really do push home exercises because it's like if I'm only seeing you once or twice a week, and yeah, there's certain things that we really want to focus on when you're in the clinic for sure, but sometimes it's not quite enough. So that's why we send you home with exercises to just increase that. But it doesn't. Here's the thing about home exercises, man. And I stress this with all my patients. I'm like, this should be quick. This should be 20 minutes or less, like, period. This should be super fast. It should not be a big deal, but it should be effective. That's the only thing that I'm worried about, right? Increasing that weekly volume so that when I see you again, we can still work on things, but we don't have to spend all of our time trying to pack in all of our volume with one session, if that makes sense. So that's the whole idea, I guess, behind home exercise programs that I prescribe.

SPEAKER_00 27:33

So, so people know. So, in terms of strength and hypertrophy, current guidelines now suggest two to four sets per muscle group, two or three times per week, right? So this is a weekly training volume of four to 12 sets per muscle group. Although this is a pretty wide range, it is clear that significant improvements can be made at the lower end of this recommended range of training volume. So if I know, okay, weekly training volume is four to twelve sets per muscle group. So I have that in my head. As long as I can get that within one week, regardless if I have a 15-minute training program that's microdosed or a 60-minute training program, as long as I hit that four to 12 sets per muscle group throughout the week, I'm good. Check the box irregardless of how much time you spend in the gym or how many days you were in the gym, right? So think of that four to 12 sets per muscle group.

unknown 28:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:23

If you can remember that, I think that's a good place to be. It's a great place to start, absolutely, right?

SPEAKER_02 28:27

Even on the lower, lower range of that. I think that's great. So so yeah, go ahead. No, no, I was just gonna say, like, it's it's just great that we're talking about this because oftentimes in PT things are underdosed, truly. Um, weight-wise, volume-wise, everything like that. So even me sticking to these guidelines, like it's hard to get that across to patients, but it's important. And I'm just I'm happy that we're talking about it because it's like there's a huge range, like you talked about, four to twelve, dude. That's a lot, like that's a pretty wide range. But it's like we can start at the bare minimum, right? Just getting that minimal effective dose that we keep talking about, and then slowly increasing it. It it makes it so much easier and much more digestible for my patients or my clients that are just starting out that have never been in the gym before. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:18

So and there is a wide range, but we also have to understand that not everybody in the gym is trying to be a world-class athlete. So we talk about like test and reassess. You can play with these numbers of like, hey, I like how I feel when I'm towards that six sets, you know, a week per muscle group. I like how I look, I like how I feel. I don't really need any more than that. That's a good place to be. For high performers, it's gonna be a little bit higher. But that's where the individualization of training is great. You don't have to do what everybody else is doing, but as long as you follow some of these principles and you just apply them to yourself and what you want and what your goals are, you're gonna be in a good spot.

SPEAKER_01 29:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 30:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:00

So one more thing. I know we're moving into load and repetitions here. Um, so I'm sure we'll talk more about this. But oftentimes what I see in the PT world is we're hitting really, really high volume, a lot of sets per week of this muscle group or whatever, but it's not even close to failure, right? Or even close to even discomfort, right? That's what drives me, I think, the most up the wall or the most insane is it's like, why are we doing all these really, really easy exercises for all these sets and all these reps, really high rep range? What are we doing, right? When it's like we could cut back on that volume and we just focus on is it hard, right? Is it difficult, right? So anyway, I'm sure we're gonna talk more about that.

SPEAKER_00 30:48

So go for it. I have some things here that go very much in line with what you just said. Perfect. So, in terms of training load and repetitions, training intensity is typically defined by a target repetition number to muscular failure. For example, a six repetition maximum or as a percentage of one rep max. So data suggests that intensity is actually the most important variable in regards to building strength. The typical intensity in rep ranges for strength is one to six repetitions at about 80 to 100% one RM. And for hypertrophy, it's six to twelve repetitions, around 67 to 85% of your one repetition max. So the data shows that hypertrophy can be seen through a variety of rep ranges and intensity as long as each set is carried close to failure. This means even rep ranges up to 40, although that's more of the muscular endurance side of things, as long as it's close to muscular failure, you're gonna see hypertrophy benefits. And although strength can be seen with low intensity training, strength gains are superior when high intensity loads are used. So, in regards to time efficiency, using heavy loads for both strength and hypertrophy saves time due to the lower number of repetitions used in the training session. High reps are also associated with high levels of discomfort when compared to lower repetition training. Additionally, heavier intensities don't demand regular training to failure to stimulate muscular growth and strength. Therefore, it is more time efficient and reasonable to emphasize a 6 to 12 repetition max range to develop strength in hypertrophy.

SPEAKER_02 32:32

So the thing that I wanted to bring up in um I still need to find that chart. Um, you know what chart I'm talking about for sure, but um that strength still can be um I don't know, happening at any rep range, if that makes sense. Yeah, right. Um, where this old chart, you know, we thought that it was just like okay, power, then strength, then it's like, you know, you move up in rep range and it's then it's like muscular endurance and everything like that, that classic chart, the table that we've talked about. Yeah. But I've seen now where it's like strength is across that whole band. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? And oftentimes it relates to what the load is like, but the strength benefits can come from basically any rep range. So I just wanted to mention that. I think that's the only thing I have to say about that, because otherwise, anywhere between six and twelve, that's always what I'm kind of prescribing.

SPEAKER_00 33:29

Absolutely. I think sweet spot for the majority of people that want strength and hypertrophy training. If you're staying between the six and 12 rep range at a high intensity, close to muscular failure, you're solid. So that's a good thing to remember. If you have no idea how to even load the bar, eight to nine RPE, right? Just make it hard. Make it hard.

SPEAKER_02 33:49

That's yeah. I show so many people that RPE chart, man. It's it's one of the best tools that you can use for early training, right? And just asking people, hey, zero to 10, how hard was that? Right. It's one of the easiest things you can do.

SPEAKER_00 34:01

And in terms of building strength and hypertrophy, we need a high level of an intent of intensity. So when you are using a method like a 15-minute microdose training session or a one set per muscle group, you got to make that one set pretty damn heavy if you want to get some adaptation, right? Don't do some half-assed one set, you know, per muscle group exercise. It has to be a little bit heavy. For sure. So diving the next thing, I know you're in a bit of a hurry. Oh, okay. Is exercise selection. So it is recommended that multi-joint exercises are prioritized over single joint due to the greater amount of muscle mass that can be trained in a shorter amount of time. There is little data to support that single joint exercises provide more benefit than multi-joint, more specifically for those under a time crunch. When comparing free weights to machine-based equipment, there is no evidence that supports one over the other in terms of muscular strength and hypertrophy. The difference between the two comes down to the specificity of the exercise as it relates to the real world and sports-specific movement. The evidence is strong and suggests that free weight training is far superior than machine-based training in regards to movement pattern adaptability to the real world. So, although machines may be convenient, free weights provide versatility, allowing for a variety of movement patterns to be accomplished with very little equipment and improves the efficiency of a training session. So, to put this all together, if you're in a time crunch, prior tours prioritize multiple joint exercises, squats, deadlifts, bench press, overhead presses, presses, bent over rows, things like that. And using barbells and dumbbells over a machine-based equipment, just in terms of time efficiency, because you're activating multiple muscle groups through one exercise.

SPEAKER_02 35:49

Yeah. That stability factor isn't there when you use machines, right? And I like that you mentioned machines are easy. Machines are, I don't know, more user-friendly oftentimes. If it's like a selectorized machine for the weight plates and everything, like I get it. I get the draw to it and it feels easier. Um, and you can really crank out the reps. But it's like if you are limited on time, it's like grab the barbell, man. Grab the barbell, grab the dumbbells, and do something that's actually challenging. Don't just stick to machines the whole time. Absolutely. Machines can be great for high rep hypertrophy work for bodybuilders and stuff like that. But if you notice here, I have one selectorized machine. One. And it's my leg extension and leg curl. That's it. Absolutely. Um, everything else is barbell, dumbbell, kettlebell.

SPEAKER_00 36:33

So no, and I love it. And a lot of it has to come, a lot of it comes down to preference and availability. If you don't have availability to exercise equipment like machines, dude, don't stress. As long as you have a barbell, you're good. Yeah. Right. But if all you have is you go into like an anytime fitness or you're at a hotel gym because you're on vacay and all they have is machine-based equipment, also don't freak the hell out. Like you can still get you know good gains using machine-based equipment. Right. There's no data that suggests that strength is better you you improve strength and hypertrophy more using a barbell over machine-based equipment. There's no data that supports that. Where the data does support is that the specificity to movement patterns, right? We know that free weight exercises have more transferable ability towards like real life scenarios and sports. So that's why we like to bias free weight exercises. But for those just getting started, machine-based equipment is just fine, especially if that's all you have access to. For sure. So diving into rest periods here. Um, when time's limited, rest between sets is usually the first thing to go. It seems practical, but rest between sets is a critical training variable, especially for strength and hypertrophy. Reductions in rest restrict your ability to maintain high levels of muscular force in between your sets. Limited rest is also highly, highly associated with overall reductions in training volume. And as we discussed earlier, training volume is a very critical training variable for enhancement. So what that means is if I'm taking very minimal rest between sets, my overall training volume throughout the week actually goes down because I've accumulated so much fatigue that I can't actually complete my second or third set. It's probably fine if you're using a single set system, but if you're using a multiple set system and you're only taking 15, 20 seconds between strength or hypertrophy exercises, you're gonna either have to reduce the intensity of the weight, which isn't gonna be optimal for strength or hypertrophy, um, or you're just gonna reduce the amount of volume that you're, you know, performing throughout the training week. So rest periods are very associated with reductions in training volume. So the optimal guidelines for rest between sets is three to five minutes for muscular strength and about one to two minutes for hypertrophy. But research has shown that rest intervals less than one minute can produce significant improvements in maximal strength in untrained and trained individuals. It is important to note, though, that these improvements are less than optimal compared to those with longer rest intervals. So, based on this review, it is recommended that untrained individuals use a rest interval of about one to two minutes, and trained individuals use an interval of at least two minutes for strength and hypertrophy work. There's nobody saying that you're not allowed to reduce rest period to get the amount of training done that you need. There's optimal and then there's get the work done. I think a lot of times, especially in our field, we get so obsessed with the optimized way of training when in reality it should just be like just get the shit done. I am somebody that I am very strict with my rest periods. I think I could use a little bit of like, like who gives a shit, just get the work done kind of an attitude, right? Just get the work done. As long as you're taking a couple minutes of rest between sets, you're probably fine. If you want to take a little bit less than that, you're still probably fine. It's not going to be optimal, but it's okay.

SPEAKER_02 39:59

Here's the thing about rest periods. I I like that we're talking about this. Um, you would be surprised with how many PT patients or personal training clients that when they come in and let's say super easy example, lap pull down, right? And I'm like, okay, we got four sets of 10, right? We got four sets of ten here. I want it to be difficult by the last set. Dude, they will almost always want to hit them back to back to back, like like as quick as possible. And I'm like, hey, let's talk about rest periods for a second, right? And like what our goals are here and why it's important. Um rest periods, I think the easiest way to think about it is let like let your muscles breathe for a second, right? So then you can actually put in effort on the next set. So anyway, if you have questions about rest intervals or anything like that, like please reach out because it's something that I have to talk about with damn near every single person I work with. Absolutely. And it's shocking to me because for me, when I'm training heavy, like I need that rest period, right? Like I need that rest period because I'm exhausted. Like I got close to failure, whatever, blah, blah, blah. But everyone else, it's like when they're first getting started and we're trying to gauge, like, okay, this should be our starting weight here, starting weight here, or whatever. And they're untrained individuals, they just want to crank out the reps. And then they take like 10 seconds and they're like, okay, let's go again, right? And it's like, it's like, no, no, no, let's slow down, right? So that tells me that last set was a little bit easy. So we bump it up, a little bit longer rest periods, blah, blah, blah. So anyway, I could talk about rest periods for a long time because it's super important. I do agree with you that yes, there are there's a certain time where you're just like, yep, just get it done, right? Like we're trying to get in and out of the gym pretty quick. But for best benefits, honestly, rest periods are just as important as the work that you're putting in, truly. Because if you're taking really shitty rest periods and then you try to hit your next set, that next set's gonna feel like garbage, right? And you're not gonna be able to actually put in effort where you need. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:57

I mean, and you're not, I mean, we don't need to get into the physiology, right? But your your high threshold motor units are fatigued, right? So the muscle fibers that are most prone to adaptation in terms of strength and hypertrophy may not even be activated because they're fatigued. And now we're dipping into maybe a little bit of muscular endurance rather than strength and hypertrophy. Yeah, right. There's still gonna be some strength and hypertrophy benefit there for sure. But specifically with strength, like rest periods are extremely, extremely important. Absolutely. So, but yeah, I mean, I've got one more if you got time for it. Let's do it. Okay. Um, this one I I know everyone's familiar with, at least most people, and that's I just put superset training on here. So, superset training is a performance of two or more exercises in succession with limited or no rest between them. This method decreases the amount of time spent at rest and improves training density, meaning more training is happening and less time. Supersets can be done in several different ways, but the most popular are either the agonist superset or antagonist superset. This means you either pair two exercises that target opposing musculature, so like chest and back, or you pair two exercises that target the same musculature, like a bench press and a chest fly. It is suggested that antagonist supersets are more efficient, time or more time efficient and practical for the general public. Some studies support supersetting and have shown that training time can be cut in half without jeopardizing training volume when training is taken close to failure with an 8 to 12 rep range using supersets in compared to traditional training. So just by using superset training, you're cutting your training time in half with still getting very similar adaptations in terms of strength and hypertrophy. Yeah. So, I mean, plain and simple, if you're short on time, just pair two exercises together that are opposing exercises. I'm gonna do bench press and bent over row with maybe minimal rest between them. You're just fine. Yeah, it's a good way to cut down on time and. And and I think the benefits far outweigh the, you know, I'm losing optimal, you know, training effect here. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 44:07

Um, and it makes your workout feel more beneficial. I'm not gonna lie. I do a lot of superset training. I think it's super beneficial and it makes me feel more tired, more fatigued for sure, but it happens in a quicker time frame, which I love right now. So superset training is fantastic. I think an issue that a lot of coaches can run into though is they start prescribing too much, right? Because you are cutting training time seriously in half by pairing exercises together. But how often have you seen these collegiate football programs, right, where it's like exercise 1A, one B, and then it's like exercise two A, two B, right? And it's like all these supersets. At a certain point, you're getting into junk volume, right? Where it's just like complete overkill. It's like if you're supersetting, like make them hard, right? And make them beneficial, but you don't need to be hitting six different supersets throughout your your workout. Supersets are a great way to cut down on time and still make it effective, not how many exercises can we cram into an hour. Yeah, I hate that marathon training. Yeah, it's absolutely terrible. Um, I use superset training a lot for PT, actually, right? Because you got to think when a patient's coming in to see me, I have to check in with them, right? And then we do some sort of warm-up, whether it's exercise specific or general warm-up. And then after that, it's like, okay, we have about 40 minutes. And that doesn't take into account like scheduling at the end of the session either. So that's another five minutes, right? So we're down to like 35, right? So to actually have an effective session with me, it's oftentimes superset stuff, which is awesome. I think it's really fun, it keeps the patient engaged, um, and not a lot of just sitting around. So no, I love that.

SPEAKER_00 45:44

And the last thing that I'll add to that is if all we did is followed an exercise structure that is optimal, we'd all be doing the same damn thing and we'd all be bored out of our minds, right? If you always did what was optimal, training would be boring as shit. So I think superset is a method that you can use to make your training fun. There are a lot of different methods that you can use that sure data and research is going to argue that, oh, that's not optimal. You're not gonna get the best results. Okay, well, the best results come from consistency, and the people that I've seen have the best consistency within the gym are those that enjoy exercise. Yeah, so you can take a little bit away from the optimization world of super long rest periods and straight sets and whatever else, and just have a little bit of fun with your training and just stick pretty close to the training principles that we've talked about today and have fun with your training. Yeah, consistency is going to be the biggest thing in terms of getting long-term results. So it's okay to not always be optimal. Yeah, just know where where to be optimal and and where you can maybe not be.

SPEAKER_02 46:46

Yeah, it's like where we started, like all this other shit that's so unnecessary. It's like you don't have to optimize everything in your life. It's like, let's make it enjoyable, right? Absolutely. It doesn't have to be cold plunge at 4 a.m. kind of stuff every single time, right? And if you enjoy it, if that keeps you going, awesome, go for it, right? But anyway, I think that's a that's a good place to to end it. So I think that's awesome. Um, once again, like Trevin said, we will be adding the article in the um actual notes of this podcast. But otherwise, we will see everyone hopefully next week on Monday. So, all right, everyone. Adios.