by Dr. Michael Hartman, from his site (with permission) Dr. Hartman Blog.
Any positive change in performance is connected to our ability to adapt to the training program, given that the program is based on a progressive overload in training load over time. In long term training plans the improvement in performance will continue as long as the athlete continues to adapt. Once adaptation occurs it is essential to increase the training load usually through an increase in volume of training or intensity of training but rarely through a change in training frequency. Meaning, volume of training will always be determined by the desired intensity of training. As intensity increases, by definition, there has to be a decrease in training volume. So, those variables will change but only proportional to one another.
Many athletes who are not professional and train recreationally do not have the ability to increase the frequency of training (usually determined as number of training session per week) as this requires adding more days to an already busy week. Be it school, work, or family obligations, adding more training sessions is not always a high priority.
How can an athlete increase training frequency given a limited number of training days per week? Eliminate and Concentrate. Eliminate exercise that you ‘think you should be doing, and Concentrate on the ones you ‘know you should be using in your training.
Prioritize the exercises used in training, in terms of importance to competition, current strength/weakness, degree of transfer, and technical ability…and then only perform those exercises listed in the Top 3. Simple as that…
Whatever criteria you use to make your list should be based on your current needs in training. Be it strength, technique, overall performance, recovery, etc., but select only the Top 3 exercises and perform no other exercise for at least 4-weeks. At the end of 4-weeks, re-prioritize your training goals, and reevaluate your list. If your list has changed, so then should your training.
By performing the same 3 exercises at each training session you will increase the frequency at which you perform those exercises but not alter your days of training per week. Whereas before, an athlete who trained up to 12 different exercises in a given week may have only performed each exercise once per week for a total of 4 times in a solid month of training, depending on the number days of training it is possible to eclipse that in only 1-week. The volume and intensity of each exercise may have to be adjusted at each training session (addressed in a future post), but the exercise should be limited to only the Top 3 for that given training cycle.
Obviously this is not a long term solution for a number of reasons, but a short term increase in frequency may be enough to continue to produce adaptations. If more days per week are not an option, more exposure to the best exercises should be enough to continue progress.
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I thought this was a fantastic article and would be really helpful to a lot of you. If you have superfluous assistance exercises, this method of stripping them and focusing on the primary lifts for four to six weeks will probably yield impressive results. Discuss in the comments.
–Justin
14 thoughts on “Increased Training Frequency”
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I know volume is the amount of worked performed, but does that mean that 200lb squat 20 times is the same volume as a 400lb squat 10 times?
The tonnage is the same, as you already know (weight x reps), yet the training effect is completely different. Volume is relative, and that’s why volume without discussing intensity isn’t clear enough. Feel free to further the discussion.
–Justin
@ilcrawford
Work is force times distance, a 200lb squat requires half the force of a 400lb squat, but since you do it for twice the number of reps the distance is twice as much. So the same amount of work is done, but regardless of that, they tax the body in different amount, because one 400lb squat is physically harder than two 200lb squats. If that clears things up.
About 6months ago I focused all my training on snatch, clean and jerk and front squat for about 6weeks.
My snatch went from 200-220, my clean and jerk went from 245-270lbs.
After this period, I went back and DL’s 445 (10lbs PR), pressed 190 (up from 165) all at 180lbs BW.
No doubt, my olifts were well below there potential, and just focusing on olifting and FS (done to enforce clean form and for flexibility) allowed me to practice doing the lifts heavy.
I would recommend anyone trying to improve olifts, just olift heavy, nothing else for 6 weeks and see what happens.
You don’t have to defend doing front squats. If you’re oly lifting, they are a must. Thanks for the thoughts; they reinforce this article by Hartman.
–Justin
@Pat M
Could you give us more insight on your training as described above (i.e. sets, reps, %’s, etc)? I’m interested in the details. Thanks in advance.
Also, did you strictly adhere to only snatches, c&j, and front squats or were other variants conducted?
Would this be a similar concept to “boring but big” for 5/3/1 assistance stuff?
I’ve misplaced my copy of 5/3/1 so I can’t remember what that focuses on. The same concept could apply, yet the training frequency might be higher if you are doing the lifts more than once a week like in the 5/3/1.
–Justin
Figure its time to quit lurking and start contributing…
PRs this week,
Squat 350 3 x 5
Deadlift 405 1 x 5 (will be done this afternoon, matches old PR)
Feels like LP is coming to an end, almost time for some TM
@Shinbox97
First, I believe I was olifting way below what I was capable of. I could FS 295lbs for a triple. I once read a Dan John quote “if you can FS it for 3, you can Clean and Jerk it for 1”. In Tommy Kono’s first book he stated that the snatch should be 80% of C&J. So, based on the above, I believe I am capable of a 295lbs C&J and a 235lbs snatch.
So, I just Snatched and Clean and Jerk. I only did 1 exercise a day, but I did it all out, when I missed a load 3x, I stopped. If I missed it 2x, then hit the third, I added weight. Every 3rd workout, I did light snatches and Clean and Jerks (like just the bar) and FS, 275lbs, 2-3 sets of 3 reps at 275lbs. 275lbs is/was my C&J goal. The FS were done, full ROM, elbows/torso erect, A2A.
If I had more time to train and was younger (I am 37, 4 kids), I would have done more then I lift a day. But, I could do the above and fully recover within 2 days.
Good luck.
Thanks for sharing, Pat. Seemed to have worked well. Have you done any meets? Master’s?
–Justin
@Justin
I did the above cycle to “peak” for the IL State Championships. I hit 220 (97/123) and went 6/6 @85kg Master’s.
Sounds good. Well done.
–Justin
@Pat M
I assume you we’re training three days a week conducting one lift per day, correct? For example: Mon-Snatch, Wed-C&J, Fri-light Sn,light C&J,Front Squat
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@shinebox97
I tried to train every other day. I train in my basement, so I can do this. If I felt really good and “hungry” and had time, I would train back to back days. If something came up, I would skip a day.
Again, this “worked” for me for 2 reasons, first, I believe and still do that I am capable of more then I could actually do. Next, olifting is not powerlifting. I had to practice lifting heavy. I had to learn how to pull heavy weights (not that 120kg clean is heavy for everyone) off the floor and stay focused on completely the lift. I learned how to move myself around the bar, not the bar around me (which is very easy to do with “lighter (<85% 1RM)" weights.
Good luck and ask me any other questions.
stankrom:
“Boring but big” as written doesn’t increase frequency, it increases volume. It will sort of have the same effect on technique and efficiency as extra frequency will, but to a much lesser extent. The concept is similar-ish, but not identical.
Specificity is important, so if you want to improve your squat let’s simplify things and give you three options:
1. 5/3/1 with leg presses and good mornings as assistance
2. 5/3/1 boring but big
3. Squat 3 times a week.
Option 1 represents all low volume low frequency options. You essentially do one set of squats a week. The other exercises build muscle and indirectly help your squat, but they do not improve your efficiency/tech
Option 2 represents low frequency high volume options. You have 6 sets of squats a week, but 5 of them are 10 rep sets at a low % of 1RM. Still not very useful for improving 1RM! Yes, you get sligtly better technique with this than option one but the main reason to recommend it is implied by its title – the squats are often better for building muscle than leg press and GMs
Option 3 is a higher frequency routine. It could be 5/3/1 with extra workouts, it could be a 5 sets across type routine or it could be a Bulgarian method. Either way, you do 6-10 sets of squats per week at above 85% intensity. This will improve your squatting-specific neural pathways and make you a better squatter. As for whether it will build muscle as well as the other two, it seems to depend on the diet and the person.
Hope this helps.
So to clarify, “option 3” is what Dr. Hartman is talking about, while “option 2” is a bit of a compromise.