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Make Every Set Count
The Shed
By James Hollingshead
Q: When you were younger, what training style did you use to build your foundation?
A: I probably trained way too much when I was younger. I trained for hours every day because I loved being in the gym. I used all rep ranges, everything I could think of. I did 10-rep sets, 50-rep sets, even 100-rep sets, as well as supersets, drop sets and giant sets. I probably overtrained myself into such a hole that I couldn’t get out of it. To be fair, I didn’t even put much muscle on in my younger years because I was simply doing too much. It was only when I spoke with Jordan Peters and he told me I needed to measure how much I was doing and limit the volume that I started to get a little bit more muscle. I did well competing as a Junior, but you didn’t need much size in the Juniors to do well back then. No one was really massive. Once I moved on to being an Open competitor and was starting to compete as a Super Heavyweight, I had to be a lot more cautious with my output. I had to be more specific and more precise, making each set count rather than worry about doing higher volume. I should say that my younger years of training were aggressive. I did train hard, but it was too light, I did too many reps, and I was in the gym for too long. I think if you’re a young person getting into training now, the best thing you can do is adopt the attitude that it’s not how much you do, but how well you do it. I would much rather see someone do a workout that’s only a few great working sets than someone do a ton of sets that are all shit.
Training Intensely During Prep
Q: How do you maintain intensity in contest prep while in a caloric deficit?
A: There are a few variables to consider here. One is the timing of your training days and rest days. You have to take a rest day before you get too deep in the hole. Rest days should be placed at a sensible point before you reach your breaking point. If your breaking point is four days in a row of weight training, then you should rest after the third day.
Another factor to think about is manipulating your food to suit your recovery. If you are following a carb-cycling diet and you are training a larger body part like back or legs, you should take in more carbs on those days to account for the extra output. Rest day nutrition is also important. You need to make sure your protein intake is high and of good quality.
I’d say you should try to stay somewhat active on rest days too. I don’t mean lifting weights of course, but move around and keep the blood circulating to aid in recovery. You also want to do things to stimulate you mentally, because peace of mind also helps in recovery. I always found my recovery was the worst when I sat around moping, bored, and not knowing what to do with myself.
So control your nutrition, time your rest days smartly, and monitor your training to assess when it might need to be pulled up or scaled back. That’s also why I stress keeping data on your training, logging it to some extent. You don’t need to record every set and rep (unless you want to), but you should be keeping a diary of how you feel day by day, your energy levels and strength and such, so you can know when you need to make adjustments.
Don’t Break the Gym Equipment
Q: Have you ever broken any gym equipment, training as heavy as you do?
A: Surprisingly, the only damage I have ever done was bending a couple of bars. There were times when I was squatting and got to the point where my arms got so fatigued from holding on to the bar behind me that I dropped it on to the safety pins laying across the rack. One time the bar bent just like a banana. That was bad. I think I could certainly have broken a lot more equipment going so heavy, except that I lift with such caution and precision that it’s never erratic enough to cause damage to the bars, dumbbells or machines. I’ve seen people break equipment using much less weight than I do, because they drop the weight so it bounces or rebounds out of the bottom. If you can place a 200-pound dumbbell on the floor, it won’t break, but drop it from shoulder height and chances are it’s a goner.
Drinking EEAs While Training
Q: Is it beneficial to drink EEAs, or essential amino acids, while training? Or do we have enough of them in our system assuming we eat a high-protein diet?
A: I don’t think there is enough research to answer that definitively, but I would rather drink them and not need them than need them and not drink them. Also, many EEA formulas like Redcon1’s Breach contain minerals and electrolytes to assist in proper hydrations when you’re training hard and sweating profusely. So even if you may not necessarily need those EEAs at that time, some extra couldn’t hurt, and it’s always good to have those other ingredients in there to replenish what your body is losing during intense exercise.
Instagram @hollingshead89
YouTube: IFBB Pro James Hollingshead
Redcon1 Pre-contest ‘Shed’ Stack
Upon Waking:
1 scoop Grunt
1 scoop BTS BCAA
1 serving BTS Glutamine
3 caps Double Tap
4 caps Yohimbine HCL
With Breakfast:
1 serving Med+Kit
1 serving Foxtrot
1 serving GI Juice
1 serving BTS Fish Oils
Pre-workout:
1 serving Total War
1 serving Big Noise
1 serving BTS Creatine Monohydrate
1 serving MOAB
Intra-workout:
2 servings Grunt
Post-workout:
1 serving Isotope
1 serving Cluster Bomb
1 serving MOAB
Last Meal of Day:
Includes 2 servings of Isotope
Pre-bed:
1 serving Med+Kit
1 serving Fade Out
1 serving BTS Glutamine
For more information, visit redcon1.com
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