Is This Training Dangerous?

Logbooks, those are more for preference. You don’t need one unless you want to know #'s. I choose not to keep one based on weight and reps performed but more on the routine that I did, so I can keep track of muscle trained for periodization purposes.

Goals, since a powerlifter is conceraned with #'s and totals and such… for them maybe this is very useful. I don’t know, I have no clue how those guys work. I am here for the build. I could care less if I could bench press 500 or 100. I happen to have pretty good strength but its only a side effect from trying to gain muscle size.

Now a bodybuilder, I don’t think you need logbooks, in fact I think the only one that is useful is a measuring tape and a mirror to track your progress. I don’t even go by weight because there are too many variables like water, fat, glycogen and so forth. I’d prefer to never know what my numbers are and only pay attention to feel and looks.

I’ve went to the gym somedays and had great workouts and the #'s were horrible but the gains were great. If I set a new record for my max bench, is that going to make me any bigger or look better? No. So I don’t bother with it. I prefer to use other peoples comments as my log book. When someone tells me that my arms or chest is looking better or worse, I go by that.

One of the biggest motivators I had to build big arms was because of the insults I had gotten on how small they used to be. they don’t insult me anymore. They ask me for my routine.

To each his own. For me… I’d rather “putt for dough” than “drive for show” if you know what I mean. That’s why I don’t keep logbooks and PR’s, I could care less. I’m not competing for #'s. I’m on a journey to build the most perfect body I can build for myself. That requires alot of pain, alot of intensity and alot of concentration. It never ever once required a logbook or a PR.

Thats what he told me. He said he isn’t trying to break any records so why would he need to log all his reps, sets and exercises. The only plan he goes in with is saying today I workout chest and triceps or back and biceps and he gets to it. Just lifts until he feels he has gotten a good workout.

[quote]determined88 wrote:
Thats what he told me. He said he isn’t trying to break any records so why would he need to log all his reps, sets and exercises. The only plan he goes in with is saying today I workout chest and triceps or back and biceps and he gets to it. Just lifts until he feels he has gotten a good workout.[/quote]

I usually have some sort of mental plan going into a workout of what I want to do and I usually wind up changing at least something based on how things go that day.

–Tiribulus->

Thats how I train. On mondays I workout chest, triceps, and shoulders don’t really count sets or reps just make sure I get an good workout.

I think the only danger in this intuitive training is if the trainer neglects certain movements. Let’s say they love to push but hate to pull. They might then neglect pulling and develop unbalanced.

As long as they say “This day is for pulling, this one for pushing, etc” and don’t put in an extra day for one or the other, that would keep the imbalance from occuring.

Or, what I do, is to superset everything. Push, pull, then back to a push and then again to a pull. I also try to match vertical with vertical and horizontal with horizontal, probably 75% of the time. Same thing on leg days, supersetting hip dominant with quad dominant.

It assures a balanced program, even if the program isn’t strict in exercise selection, sets or reps. And then, training to exhaustion keeps both sides of the body well enough stressed, always testing the limits and not slacking one way or the other.

[quote]Kailash wrote:
I think the only danger in this intuitive training is if the trainer neglects certain movements. Let’s say they love to push but hate to pull. They might then neglect pulling and develop unbalanced…
[/quote]

I don’t think this is what is being said at least that’s not what I’m saying. I know what bodyparts I’m going to work and have an idea beforehand of what movements/sets/reps I’ll do. I just usually wind up switching some part of the latter around as the workout progresses.

–Tiribulus->

[quote]Kailash wrote:
I think the only danger in this intuitive training is if the trainer neglects certain movements. Let’s say they love to push but hate to pull. They might then neglect pulling and develop unbalanced. [/quote]

Skipping entire body parts makes no sense at all. The only people likely to even do that are beginners and those guys you see who claim they’ve been training for 15 years even though you can’t see any signs of it on their body. That is not what we are referring to.

[quote]
As long as they say “This day is for pulling, this one for pushing, etc” and don’t put in an extra day for one or the other, that would keep the imbalance from occuring.[/quote]

What if they say, “this day is for biceps and triceps and that day is for legs”? I don’t do whole body training sessions. I wouldn’t recommend that to too many people past beginner stage.

[quote]

Or, what I do, is to superset everything. Push, pull, then back to a push and then again to a pull. I also try to match vertical with vertical and horizontal with horizontal, probably 75% of the time. Same thing on leg days, supersetting hip dominant with quad dominant.

It assures a balanced program, even if the program isn’t strict in exercise selection, sets or reps. And then, training to exhaustion keeps both sides of the body well enough stressed, always testing the limits and not slacking one way or the other.[/quote]

If someone is skipping body parts or doing something ridiculous like only training biceps and chest 4 days a week, they are not who we are speaking of. I think you are underestimating some people who claim they train by feel. If it isn’t working for them, surely that would be evident immediately by looking at them.

In fact, I have seen more evidence of imbalanced development from people who train FULL BODY like you described than those who train body part splits. I pointed this out before with regards to the poster who had no direct/concentration/isolation work for his lateral delts. As such, his front delts now overpower his shoulders.

[quote]Professor X wrote:
In fact, I have seen more evidence of imbalanced development from people who train FULL BODY like you described than those who train body part splits. I pointed this out before with regards to the poster who had no direct/concentration/isolation work for his lateral delts. As such, his front delts now overpower his shoulders. [/quote]

This is precisely why I use the Barbell Bench Press as a strength exercise and dumbbell presses for putting on size. I for one will imbalance if I used fullbodys or only barbell compounds.

I have to split up my training and I also need isolation and even compound dumbbell movements instead of compound barbell movements. Even in my squats my power side does most of the work. I have to focus on the weaker side to push more to correct the imbalance.

[quote]Professor X wrote:
Kailash wrote:
I think the only danger in this intuitive training is if the trainer neglects certain movements. Let’s say they love to push but hate to pull. They might then neglect pulling and develop unbalanced.

Skipping entire body parts makes no sense at all. The only people likely to even do that are beginners and those guys you see who claim they’ve been training for 15 years even though you can’t see any signs of it on their body. That is not what we are referring to.[/quote]

Skipping body parts wasn’t what I was referring to either. I never said “total neglect”, but that a person playing too off the cuff might not realize their workout included 3 pushing movements and 2 pulling.

The problem might become chronic, particularly if they don’t enjoy one or the other. And its a downward spiral, if they avoid certain exercises because they suck at it.

The person might not even know that they are avoiding these movements, if it’s like the afformentioned “3 and 2” situation. “Oh, sure I pull, every workout.” Yeah, but not as much as you push. That could be a real problem for some trainers.

All I’m saying is that to keep this from happening to me, I always follow one movement by a close antagonist, 75% of the time by its exact opposite movement (e.g. military press with pull-ups). And I usually superset, so that my workout doesn’t require as long of rest periods.

This is my advice for someone wanting to train more intuitively, so that they don’t fuck themselves in the long run. “Work antagonists back to back, and you’ll never be out of whack.”

Exact opposite movements? Right on…

[quote]Kailash wrote:
…The problem might become chronic, particularly if they don’t enjoy one or the other. And its a downward spiral, if they avoid certain exercises because they suck at it.

The person might not even know that they are avoiding these movements, if it’s like the afformentioned “3 and 2” situation. “Oh, sure I pull, every workout.” Yeah, but not as much as you push. That could be a real problem for some trainers…
[/quote]

I’m with the professor here. People that this could happen to shouldn’t be training intuitively. It doesn’t make them necessarily stupid or less motivated, but they’re not either objective or experienced enough to let their body tell them what it needs or both. I’m not addressing how you train personally, but just the general idea of intuition as a training tool. There’s nothing wrong with working a set schedule, but it can be less productive if you’re able to adjust “on the fly” as circumstances dictate.

–Tiribulus->