Mountain Dog Training Philosophy
Description
Some of the best advise on weightlifting program contruction, I have found, was from John Meadows(RIP). Here I am going to summurise what my understanding is of his methodology to help me in future program construction.
I consider myself an intermediate at weight lifting and normally run a 4 day bro split so the following is with that in mind.
None of this is my own, I have provided links at the bottom of the page for where I found all the information, please go check it out.
Periodization and Volume
John seems to break it up into 4 phases with volumes per body part as follows:
| Phase | Length(Weeks) | Chest/Shoulder(sets) | Back(sets) | Legs(sets) | Bicep/Tricep(sets) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase1 | 1-3 | 10-12/6-8 | 11-14 | 11-14 | 6-8/8-10 |
| Phase2 | 4-9 | 13-16/9-12 | 16-20 | 16-20 | 9-12/12-16 |
| Phase3 | 10-12 | 8-10/4-6 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 4-6/4-6 |
| Deload | 13-15 | light | light | light | light |
light => focus on trying new exercises you can include in your next program, also only train at about 50% weights
Amount of Exercises
John also gives some idea around how many exercises to aim for:
| Phase | Chest/Shoulder | Back | Legs | Bicep/Tricep |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase1 | 2-3/2-3 | 4-5 | 3-4 | 2-3/2-3 |
| Phase2 | 3-4/2-3 | 5-7 | 4-5 | 3-4/3-4 |
| Phase3 | 2-3/2 | 4-5 | 3-4 | 2/2 |
Intensity Techniques
Intensity will increase going through the phases.
Phase1 -> No high intensity techniques
Phase2 -> 1 or 2 sets of high intensity
Phase3 -> Mostly high intensity through the whole workout
REST / PAUSE
Hold weight in activated position to increase time under tenstion for 1 - 3 sec.
Great for:
- Chest
CONSTANT TENSION
3/4 lockout keeping time under tention.
Great for:
- Chest
- Legs
PARTIALS
Half reps.
Great for:
- Shoulders
- Legs
DROP SETS
Dropping weight after set and doing a few more sets.
Great for:
- Chest
- Shoulders
- Legs
3-SECOND DESCENTS
Lower weight over 3 sec
Great for:
- Chest
- Shoulders
- Arms
- Legs
10-sec breaks
Only rest for 10 sec between sets
Great for:
- Chest
- Shoulders
- Arms
Exercise Sequence
Chest
- Do dumbell or machine work first
- Incline second or third
- Bench press third, or even fourth in your routine
- Do high reps on smith machine
Shoulders
- Train rear delts with very high reps(mostly)
- Use presses sparingly
Back
- Row first
- Stretch excersises follow rows
- Traps/Rhomboids can be done anywhere
- Spinal erectors last
Legs
- Do high intensity leg curls before doing leg presses or squats
- Perform hams and quads together in the same workout
- Do leg presses or squats before you do hack squats
- Do at least two movements for quads before you do lunges
Arms
Bicep
- Train brachialis first
- Train lower bicep next(fully extended type)
- Train basic exercises like barbell/dumbell curls last
Tricep
- Train pushdown or flexing first
- Dipping type second
- Extension or stretching
Links
Please go and visit the links provided here for where I got all the above information.