Overall training volume can't be all that matters...

[N.L....M.....]

I competed for years in PL. The drug use puts a lot of BB cycles to shame........especially the harsher chemicals.

Interesting. I go to a pl gym but I’ve never had the convo with anybody. I know it’s a generalization but what would an example of a comp cycle look like? I’ve heard a lot of orals but nothing in depth

 

[Dens228]

Interesting. I go to a pl gym but I’ve never had the convo with anybody. I know it’s a generalization but what would an example of a comp cycle look like? I’ve heard a lot of orals but nothing in depth

I have no idea what the going cycles are. I haven't competed in about 20 years now. Back in the day it was pretty open. With so much down time at meets, especially larger ones there was a lot of talking. Over my years of competing the topic shifted from training, to drug usage, to beating drug tests. There was a lot of tren and Halo being used. I'd watch guys pop Halo at meets. Halo made me feel like shit so I didn't use it. I knew more than a few that took a ton of tren and as little test as possible, also some deca until cutting weight. Then a lot of the ones I knew went high tren, TRT test the last few weeks with Halo pre workout since they were dragging ass. The masters of the craft were absolute experts at cutting weight. It was not unusual for guys to to early weigh ins the day before and weigh 15 pounds above the weight class at the meet. I was close to that at 198 and 220 but not at 242. I walked around all year in the 230's. The trick was getting stronger while not going up a weight class. I was a test/deca, sometimes d-bol guy but I wasn't worried about weight class. I started as a 198 and ended as a 242. Tren was hard to get, especially where I live, the rest wasn't. Syringes were next to impossible to get. I think I used the same syringe for an entire 8 week cycle once. LOL

 

[xpoc]

Here is some fodder for discussion. I have noticed that even when the "low(er) volume" high intensity guys attack a weak body part, it seems they tend to add volume? I am a big DC fan, but even he prescribes more volume to weak bodyparts. This is a post he put on his IG page:

"This is what I really like to see advanced guys do

Sunday: chest 3-4 exercises (and you work one key exercise on shoulders or triceps on this day if those bodyparts are weak)

Monday: Biceps 2 exercises, Forearms 1 exercise, abs 1 exercise, rear delts 1 exercise, calves 1 exercise (and you work one exercise for back only if you have a serious weakness there)

Tuesday: hams 2 exercises quads 2-3 exercises

Wenesday: off
Thursday: shoulders 3 exercises triceps 3 exercises (and you work one exercise for chest if your chest is a weak bodypart)

Friday: Back width 2 exercises and Back thickness 2 exercises, calves 1 exercise, abs 1 exercise (and you work one exercise for biceps if thats a weak bodypart)

Saturday off."


Notice weak bodyparts are prescribed additional exercises (volume). It seems like common sense...when you have a weakness you do more to fix that weakness. This dates all the way back to Arnold who supposedly trained calves daily to bring them up. Yet, at the same time, many really successful guys tend to downplay overall volume.

 

[DOGGCRAPP]

Here is some fodder for discussion. I have noticed that even when the "low(er) volume" high intensity guys attack a weak body part, it seems they tend to add volume? I am a big DC fan, but even he prescribes more volume to weak bodyparts. This is a post he put on his IG page:

"This is what I really like to see advanced guys do

Sunday: chest 3-4 exercises (and you work one key exercise on shoulders or triceps on this day if those bodyparts are weak)

Monday: Biceps 2 exercises, Forearms 1 exercise, abs 1 exercise, rear delts 1 exercise, calves 1 exercise (and you work one exercise for back only if you have a serious weakness there)

Tuesday: hams 2 exercises quads 2-3 exercises

Wenesday: off
Thursday: shoulders 3 exercises triceps 3 exercises (and you work one exercise for chest if your chest is a weak bodypart)

Friday: Back width 2 exercises and Back thickness 2 exercises, calves 1 exercise, abs 1 exercise (and you work one exercise for biceps if thats a weak bodypart)

Saturday off."


Notice weak bodyparts are prescribed additional exercises (volume). It seems like common sense...when you have a weakness you do more to fix that weakness. This dates all the way back to Arnold who supposedly trained calves daily to bring them up. Yet, at the same time, many really successful guys tend to downplay overall volume.

I would say (in my case) its not volume that is increased but "Frequency"....I want weak bodyparts hit 2x a week so someone has a chance to remodel 104 times a year instead of 52. I am a huge believer in getting into different mechanical positions especially when a bodypart wont respond. So in the above scenario in the second workout of the week for a weak bodypart a key exercise is used to get it to respond. I would much rather see someone use 5-6 different mechanical positions (exercises) for a bodypart in a weeks time for one all work set each (after progressive warmups) than use only 3 exercises for multiple work sets (after progressive warmups). Ive found out thru training people, trial and error and observation that throwing the whole kitchen sink at a bodypart exercise wise is 1000X more beneficial than just "increasing sets" on exercises that have proven not to work in the past.