07-11-2015, 05:50 AM
If you've been out of lifting for several years, you're basically a newb and the rec is train muscle groups 3X a week....twice at least. In fact, if you're not using drugs and/or near your max potential, then it's most likely sub-optimal NOT to hit muscle groups at least every 4-5 days.
I've been studying this a lot just getting back in myself, and the weekly volume seems pretty consistent for all levels from what I've read. What seems to change is the more advanced you get, the more volume you need to do in a workout to stress the muscles to promote growth. So maybe a spankin' newbie does 4 sets of 8 3X a week, while an advanced trainee does 12x8 once a week.
The vast majority of people overtrain, ESPECIALLY the people who do hard cardio PLUS weights 5x a week or more. If you're training properly for muscle growth, then you're already getting a solid 30 minutes of intense anaerobic exercise in a session. That's why bodybuilders are relatively fit - they won't win any ironman competitions, but that's mainly because they're lugging around en extra 60+ lbs of muscle. It's not endurance training, but the potential of the bodybuilder to sustain short-to-moderate power ratios (a.k.a. "functional" use) is most likely superior to endurance athletes.
Personally, I think the gold standard for a "trained" natural lifter is back, chest and legs plus a day off - that hits each muscle group 1.75X per week. Wash, rinse, repeat...
I've been studying this a lot just getting back in myself, and the weekly volume seems pretty consistent for all levels from what I've read. What seems to change is the more advanced you get, the more volume you need to do in a workout to stress the muscles to promote growth. So maybe a spankin' newbie does 4 sets of 8 3X a week, while an advanced trainee does 12x8 once a week.
The vast majority of people overtrain, ESPECIALLY the people who do hard cardio PLUS weights 5x a week or more. If you're training properly for muscle growth, then you're already getting a solid 30 minutes of intense anaerobic exercise in a session. That's why bodybuilders are relatively fit - they won't win any ironman competitions, but that's mainly because they're lugging around en extra 60+ lbs of muscle. It's not endurance training, but the potential of the bodybuilder to sustain short-to-moderate power ratios (a.k.a. "functional" use) is most likely superior to endurance athletes.
Personally, I think the gold standard for a "trained" natural lifter is back, chest and legs plus a day off - that hits each muscle group 1.75X per week. Wash, rinse, repeat...
