ENHANCE YOUR MUSCLE GROWTH USING HIGH-FREQUENCY TRAINING
You're probably familiar with the term "high-frequency
training.” What you might not know is that it can mean the difference between
seeing the muscle growth you desire and experiencing little to no changes in
your physique.
That's right! A high-frequency training plan might be the route to
take if you want to stimulate your muscle growth using a different approach
than you currently have.
The conventional thing for bodybuilders to do is to use the
traditional training split. This training plan employs high volume training
splits but at low frequency. This means they train a muscle group once every
week. But within each training session, they perform a high number of reps and
sets.
When you perform high-frequency training, you do the exact
opposite of the traditional training split. Instead of training muscle groups
only once a week, you train them two to four times weekly. But in each session,
you perform fewer sets.
If you've been using the traditional low-frequency training plan
used by bodybuilders, you might be skeptical about trying an HFT. But you
shouldn't. There are so many reasons why I recommend that you try it. The best
part is that you will see the muscle growth you're after because the change in
training format will create a new stimulus resulting in muscle growth.
Why Does Traditional Split Training Recommend Once Per Week Workout?
If you examine the other professional athletes who train, you will
find they do so almost daily, if not daily. But the traditional route taken by
bodybuilders is to train specific muscle groups only once every week. Why is
that?
Unlike in bodybuilding, most other sports training does not
require as much recovery and repair after training. So it is understandable to
make time for it. Yet, you certainly do not need 5 or 6 days to heal after a
workout.
Muscle Growth And High-Frequency Training
Here’s how a high-frequency training brings about muscle growth
and why you should make it a part of your training routine for the year.
When you use a high-frequency training, you are able to stimulate
muscle protein synthesis for localized and whole-body muscles more than once
per week. The stimulation of muscle protein synthesis is a prerequisite to
building bigger muscles. When MPS is triggered, the cells lay down the
necessary muscle fiber for muscle growth.
So, why would anyone want to train the same muscle group more than
once a week?
Generally, when you workout, MPS levels increase to a certain
point. This occurs whether you’re doing a lower volume training (5-10 sets) or
a higher volume training (15-20 sets) as in the traditional training routine. That’s
the first reason.
The second reason you might want to train the same muscle group is
that, when triggered, MPS levels stay elevated for about 12 to 72 hours,
depending on your level of advancement.
This means that a beginner may experience increased MPS levels for
up to 72 hours, while an advanced athlete may only see an increase for between
12 and 24 hours, as one study showed. The reason for this shorter time in the
pro athletes is that their bodies were already used to the stimulus. The same
results were discovered in people who weight trained.
That said, when you only train a muscle group once per week, there
are many days in which MPS levels are down. This presents you with
opportunities for muscle growth. For beginners, you might have about 3-4 days
of opportunity. If you’re an advanced athlete or bodybuilder, you might have up
to 6 days of muscle growth opportunity.
This is what the high-frequency training plan takes advantage of.
It utilizes this timeframe to increase MPS levels in the muscle you are
training to bring about consistent muscle growth. Low-frequency training allows
the MPS levels to drop to resting levels for several days. In that period, no
change occurs.
Besides the consistently increased high-frequency levels, some
other benefits include consistent practice, the right volume for each training
session, and continued muscle growth.
The Right Volume For Each Training Session
Much of the workout that many people do on each muscle group is
redundant and is a waste of time and energy. This is according to research. The
studies found that there's no more stimulus required after about 5 – 10 sets on
each muscle group. MPS levels do not rise further; neither is there any chance
that your muscles will grow much more than if you stop at 10 sets.
This becomes critical in deciphering what your total volume per
session would be. You don't want to waste any time and energy doing reps that
will add nothing to you. You also don’t want to cause muscle fatigue,
disillusioned that you’re achieving more by doing more. So, contrary to popular
belief, more isn’t always better.
At about 5-10 sets, all the stimulus needed by your muscles for
change can be accomplished. Also, when you do fewer sets in each workout, you
can achieve 100% intensity because you’ll be performing at high energy levels
on each set. By doing this, you will be getting the most value out of each
workout.
Continued Muscle Growth
This part is common sense. The more you rain the muscle, the more
it grows. But like you have seen, muscle growth doesn’t occur by doing more
reps. It comes about by keeping the MPS levels high. Your muscles grow within 1
and 2 days following a workout, leaving you with five extra days from what you
have also seen.
If you take the path of a low-frequency training, your muscles
will not grow in those five days. But with a high-frequency training, you can
take advantage of that extra time and train two or three more times. This will
result in muscle growth being stimulated two to three times within the week,
making a high-frequency training the best route to take.
Perfection
Through Consistent Practice
The first studies on high-frequency training were conducted in
Europe among elite and Olympic power-lifters. The power-lifters were divided
into two groups. One group was given a high-frequency training routine. The
other group stuck with the traditional split.
Subjects in the traditional split group trained each essential
lift only once weekly. Those in the high-frequency group trained the same lifts
three times every week. The one thing that was common across each group was
that both groups had the same total volume weekly.
The results at the close of the study were fascinating. Despite
all the participants doing the same quantity of work during the week, the
high-frequency group saw more significant improvements than the low-frequency
group. The high-frequency group experienced more muscle growth and an increase
in strength.
Those who practiced most got far better than those who practiced
once per week. If you’re looking to build bigger muscles in any part of the
body, you should be working those muscles more than once a week.
What Does A High-Frequency Training Routine Look Like?
To understand what a high-frequency training should look like,
here's a sample.
Monday:
Push (Shoulders, Triceps, Chest)
Tuesday: Pull (Biceps, Back)
Wednesday: Legs (Calves, Hamstrings, Quads)
Thursday: Push (Shoulders, Triceps, Chest)
Friday: Pull (Biceps, Back)
Saturday: Legs (Calves, Hamstrings, Quads)
Sunday: Rest
The example above is a training split that makes it possible for
you to train a muscle group two times every week. This alone is already twice
what a traditional split will give to you. Since you will have to split the
workload between two sessions per muscle group, you also get to do an intense
workout using this routine.
The traditional training split might be an excellent way to start,
but if you're looking to build your muscles and you also want to develop them
sooner rather than later, a high-frequency training is what you should opt for.
If you’ve been using the traditional training split and reached a
place where your results seem to have plateaued, you should try the
high-frequency training. The results in muscle growth will amaze you.
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