BryantheRyan.com Challenging conventional wisdom about nutrition, fitness and overall health

The High Intensity Exercise Post

Lately a lot of people have been asking me for workout routines. Here is what I do on a weekly basis.

I lift weights at least once per week, sometimes two. My motivations are not centered on the popular belief of achieving as many reps as possible over a 3 set period. I lift using a method developed and popularized by Arthur Jones and has gained much popularity among weight lifters. It is called High Intensity Weight Training.

High Intensity Weight Training is exactly what it says. Lifting weights at a very high intensity.

How do I achieve such high intensity?

My lifts are slow and deliberate, 3-5 seconds up on a rep and 3-5 seconds down. This diminishes momentum and puts constant load on the muscle group that I am working.

When I lift I do not get angry or try to take my aggression out on the weights. That is how injuries occur. I use all of my energy to focus on the lifts that I am performing. I first heard of this concept from Anthony Johnson. He runs a great health blog called thedreamlounge.net.

I perform each rep deliberately and I push myself past the point of being uncomfortable, to the point of complete exhaustion. This results in extremely heavy breathing and working my muscles to complete failure. I only perform one set of each exercise and 6-8 exercises per session. The entire process only takes 20 minutes or so.

The main focus of lifting this way is to put the maximum amount of stress on a muscle. I do not care how many reps of a certain weight that I do. My only concern is working my muscles to complete failure. This forces my body to create muscle.

The first time I ever performed a High Intensity workout, I was sold. The "after set" burn felt like nothing I had ever experienced before. It was out of this world. After my first set of squats, which only had the bar (45 lbs, I know...weak) on my back, I could not even walk. My roommate PJ was there and can serve as my witness. The same went for all other exercises that I did.

* For the last 4 years I was a typical weight lifter. Performing 3 sets of each exercise until I was moderately uncomfortable or to a predetermined amount of repetitions. Performing High Intensity Weight Training has introduced me to a new level of muscle exhaustion.

When we go to the absolute point of failure we gain two very important benefits. First, we call into play small (fast twitch muscle fibers) to help perform the movement. Muscle fibers that would normally lay dormant if not called upon in an intense moment of need (when the muscle is failing).

Second, it is the single best way to monitor improvements and  muscle gains. On a workout to workout basis, it is very easy to see rep and weight increases. Let's face it, some days we do not want to work out. This has an impact on the intensity of a workout. Lifting to failure forces us to push past those mental blocks (when we would normally quit) to ensure the maximum amount of work is being performed by a muscle.

My Workout

I have written down every workout I have done for the last 3 months. I write down the weight lifted, the amount of reps and the order in which I performed my exercises. The order that we perform exercises is extremely important. Obviously, the earlier in the workout the exercise is performed, the more energy the body has to give to that movement. The later the exercise, the more fatigued the body is which can result in decreases in reps and weight. Switch up the order to ensure you maximize total body gain.

Also, the lifts I perform encompass muscle groups, not single muscles themselves. This is much more efficient and to be honest, in the real world we use our muscle groups much more than single muscles. What everyday movement simulates a bicep curl?

As of right now I perform seven exercises.

1) Dumbbell Bench Press

- I use dumbbells for a couple of reasons. First I do not need a spotter, I can just let them drop when I am done with a set. Second, I believe that working our limbs individually is more beneficial* than using both limbs on a barbell.

*Forces the muscles to stabilize the weight independently which uses muscles we normally would not use with a barbell.

2) Barbell Over Head press (A barbell is just another name for a standard 45lbs bar)

- As I just wrote about how single limb lifting is more beneficial, I find that I am actually doing a lift that I could be doing with dumbbells! Anyway, this lift encompasses almost the entire shoulder and upper back area. I perform this lift with my legs split. Which has taken pressure off of my lower back.

3) Chin-ups

- These are one of the hardest exercises I do. I have not seen the gains that I was hoping for, so I am going to add weight (via a dip belt) hoping to create improvements. Always adjusting and evolving if something is not working.

4)Rear Leg Elevated Split Squats (RLESS)

- Of all the exercises I do, squatting is the most difficult. RLESS squats are one legged squats with a barbell resting on the back.  The leg that I am not lifting is resting behind me on a bench. I set the support bars on the squat rack high, so when I get to failure I can set the weight down without injuring my back. Check out this video of how a Rear Leg Elevated Split Squat is performed here.

When I first started this kind of lifting I could honestly do 45lbs for 8 reps with both legs (a traditional squat). I am now up to 75lbs/5reps per individual leg! Converted to a traditional squat that is 150 pounds. A 105 pound increase in 3 months. Not bad.

When I am done doing a set of one-legged squats (and even when I did normal squats) I cannot walk. My muscles become so fatigued that even standing up is difficult.

5) A back exercise

- It has taken me a while to find a back exercise that is beneficial for me. I started doing a bent over row, which I hated because it put a lot of pressure on my lower back. I then moved to a seated cable row. I did that for a while, but I did not see the gains that I wanted. Now I am performing a Yates Row. Which is like a bent over row, just standing up straight.

6) Calf raises

- These are very difficult. Focus on keeping your balance, then add weight.

7) Bicep Curls

- Reluctantly I have added these to my work out. I know that they serve no outside purpose, but I want to see if I can build some bigger biceps. For the ladies of course!

After a few days of rest, I do a sprint interval workout. I alternate two different sprint workouts.

Wind Sprints

My sprint workout consists of a 20 second as-fast-as-I-can-go sprint, followed by 40 seconds of rest. This is repeated 6 times. (Yesterday I did 7!). This workout only takes 6-8 minutes to complete. It is brutal, trust me.

Sprints on the stationary bike

This workout is also a lung burner. I pick a resistance on the bike that I can maintain for 30 seconds. I then pedal as fast as I can for 30 seconds. A minute of rest follows. I repeat this 8-10 times. Takes 12-14 minutes and is the definition of a work out.

Drew Baye once said that if you are having trouble with the intensity of a workout, picture a person standing next to you with a gun pointed at your head threatening to shoot you if you do not perform another rep!

I have fallen in love with High Intensity Weight Training. Not because of the burn, but because I only work out for over an hour............ per WEEK!! I am increasing my muscle mass, improving my cardiovascular system and freeing up tons of time in my life to do things that I want to do.

Give it a shot! And if you want more information on high intensity training visit Drew Baye's High Intensity Weight Training Blog at baye.com, and Anthony Johnson's fitness blog www.thedreamlounge.net.  They both go into much more detail and know tons more than I do!

Join my health journey by subscribing via the RSS Feed button at the top of the screen!

If you want to personally contact me, please email me at bryantheryan@gmail.com