I’d rather not start a lifting vs. not lifting thread, so just ignore if you’ll say lifting is worthless. It’s not ideal for tri, but will be useful for the next year 2 years or so.
I’ll be 33 this winter. At 25, I was 5’7" and 198#, very strong and very slow. Now 160#, faster (can usually place AG in oly and under in local races). It took years to get there, and I don’t want to lose it. Not going back to the 5-day powerlifting split, just lifting twice a week; also run 20-25 MPW over the winter, ride/trainer 75 or so, swim 2-3 times/wk. I miss some of my old strength, and am likely to need it next year for work; a 5-10# weight gain is acceptable, but not much more.
Is the SBR and only 2 days/wk lifting enough to not bulk up a lot? Any advice regarding sets/# reps per set as it pertains to this?
I don’t think 2x week is enough to bulk up, especially since that’s not your goal. High reps/low weight should do the trick. I did something like that just yesterday at the gym. I dropped the weight down by 1/3 and did 2x the reps for deltoid abduction . the last 6 reps or so were burning pretty good.
I’ve never quite understood why people only do 3 sets. I wouldn’t see a problem working to 5 sets of 15 reps. I also like the “circuit” approach where you have 3 exercises in your circuit and work through it without too much time in between.
What types of movements are you doing at work? perhaps you can try to mimick those movements at the gym to get more specific strength…
Thanks. I might just have to see what happens with a 5 set scheme. Trying to stick with basic multijoint movements for now- squats, deadlifts, etc. I’ll be deploying as a military PA next summer, so whatever comes my way- seems a little more strength vs endurance may come in handy.
FWIW I’m 38 next month and found a nice balance of strength w/o putting on bulk this year from a personal trainer friend. I’m actually nearly as strong as I was 3 years ago, but not as bulky by about 12 lbs.
I go 2x a week and it’s all upper body. 15 reps x 2 sets
Day 1
Lat pulls
Hammer curls
Tricep rope press
Pec deck
Wide grip chin up
Push ups(to failure, not rep count)
Seated row
Day 2
Same workout as above, but substitute shoulders for tri and bi exercises.
Front raises
Lateral raises
Dirty 30’s
there is no particular way of lifting out that is going to put mass on more than another. To get stronger without getting bigger, don’t eat enough to get bigger.
If you want 1 rep max strength, do lower rep workouts.
if you want muscular endurance, do higher rep workouts.
just don’t eat enough to get bigger/heavier and you wont, but you will still get stronger
Can you get “stronger” without increasing the size of the muscles? I sort of understand that there is some additional neuromuscular recruitment that occurs, but beyond that? Isn’t muscle strength related to muscle cross-section? Just asking.
Yes, but don’t underestimate the central nervous system adaptation that occurs. In an untrained person taking up weight training those adaptations alone can account for a strength increase that I’ll estimate to be in the 40% range.
However, after that you can stil increase muscle cross section without increasing weight…If calorie intake equals expenditure the weight will stay the same, but the anabolic drive generated by the weight training can and will borrow calories from fat to grow the muscle…hence no weight gain.
Thanks Ken- much better way of phrasing the question. That’s what I get for posting late. Recruitment of a greater # of fascicles might be a bigger component than hypertrophy when starting out or starting again (hmmm, maybe weights could be good for a shorter distance athlete…)
I can definitely stay at a net of zero by losing 5 # of fat and putting 5 # of muscle on. 3 weeks of self pity and Nutella after missing a qual for a next race by 31 seconds added a bit of spare material.
your brain/nervous system can learn to recruit more fibers at once when developing maximal power
or it can learn to conserve and be more efficient when developing muscular endurance.
and im sure there are hundreds of other adaptations that can and do occur, mitochondria, fiber type, and so on
Can you get “stronger” without increasing the size of the muscles? I sort of understand that there is some additional neuromuscular recruitment that occurs, but beyond that? Isn’t muscle strength related to muscle cross-section? Just asking.
Low weight high reps. Stick to the cutting phase of a more structured program involving bulk and cut cycles. That should help you gain strength/lean muscle.