No matter if you are a beginner or advanced, at some point you will come to the point where your muscle build-up slows down and you are desperately looking for new ways to continue gaining muscle mass. At this point we would like to introduce you to five training programs for newcomers and experienced athletes to help you reach your goal.
Program 1 - Starting Strength
At the Starting Strength The program, written by American fitness legend Mark Rippetoe, is a training concept focused primarily on beginners focused on the three kings of strength training. In the context of implementation, only exercises that are carried out with free weights are used. In contrast to many other beginner programs, which are often dominated by the use of machines, so the athlete is the beginning of his training career, the importance of training with free weights closer. In addition, the principle of progressive overload is practiced early in this context, which is essential for continuous muscle building. Due to the low exercise selection, however, there is a risk that the workout can become drab after just a few weeks.
Program 2 - 5/3/1
Behind the 5/3/1Program is none other than Jim Wendler. Basically, the program is based on your One-Rep-Max, which is the training weight that allows you to move cleanly once during a specific exercise. It is no wonder that in this context, especially heavy basic exercises such as squats, deadlifts, bench presses and military presses are used, each of which is dedicated to a training day. While the basic exercises are carried out according to the 5/3/1 principle, the further exercises of the respective training session can be processed accordingly in the normal repetition range, so that the training volume is maintained. The training cycle is divided into three weeks, which is reflected in practice as follows: While the heavy basic exercises in the first week three sets are scheduled with five repetitions, the number of repetitions per set in the following week reduced three. In return, however, the training weight increases, with the total load should remain the same if possible. Finally, in the third week, the eponymous 5/3/1 principle comes to fruition, so that in the first set five, in the second sentence three and finally in the last sentence a repetition is completed. How often you train per week is up to you, but it depends primarily on your ability to regenerate.
Program 3 - PRRS
The abbreviation is composed of the terms power, rep range and shock, which basically already anticipates what it's all about. In detail, it is a workout program for advanced athletes, which consists of three different part-workouts, which are completed every week. While the power workout consists mainly of heavy basic exercises, the Rep-Range-Workout is a classic volume-oriented training in hypertrophy. In the case of shock workouts, you finally have a free hand in which you shock your body to force muscle. Accordingly, you should not be afraid to integrate various intensity techniques such as supersets, negative repeats or rest-rest phrases in your training. The big advantage of the PRRS system is not only the fact that you will not be bored with the training due to the great variety, but also that you do not have to fear any plateaus due to the different stress stimulations in terms of muscle building. The latter is true, of course, only if you go completely serious training.
Program 4 - MAX-OT
This program focuses on the force factor, while at the same time featuring a relatively manageable volume, as evidenced by the fact that only nine sets of four to six repetitions are performed per muscle group. Each training session takes a maximum of 45 minutes, which entails the advantage of the lowest possible release of the catabolic stress hormone cortisol. Since the system relies exclusively on complex basic exercises, the training intensity is comparatively high. Nevertheless, in order to provide the organism with sufficiently long periods of recovery from time to time, after twelve weeks of training, there is a break of one week during which you can regenerate both the muscles and the nervous system. Note, however, that you should work together with a spotter in the course of the implementation in order to optimize muscle growth through the greatest possible intensity and ultimately to prevent injuries.
Program 5 - Smolov
At the Smolov program This is not a holistic workout, but rather a strategy that allows you to specifically attack large muscle groups, such as the chest, your legs or back, and rekindle muscle growth. Accordingly, you can integrate this system into your normal training schedule. For example, suppose you are training four times a week, you will have four to five sets of squats per training session, each time being 80 percent of your One-Rep-Max. The experience with numerous athletes shows that it is not uncommon for them to improve within one month in the range of maximum force by up to 25 kilograms. Of course, you can also practice the Smolov system with exercises such as deadlifts or bench presses.
