“I’ve been using one program for six months. Should I change it?”
Flex
You not only could, you really should change your training programs every so often. I used this system constantly throughout my competitive career.
If you always train the same way, using the same weights, sets and repetitions, your body adapts to the stress. The human body is an interesting machine: it adapts to all kinds of things, training included. Without a new stimulus, the body won’t keep growing bigger and stronger.
It is therefore an outright necessity to give your body a new training load, something that surprises the muscles, in order to improve your results. The idea is to put new pressure on the muscles.
Let me explain my shoulder training. Over those years I used three different plans in turn. Each plan had its own goal.
The first phase was mass building, to gain size and strength. It consisted of basic exercises where you could use heavy weights, and the rest between sets was longer (1 min).
The second phase was training to bring out the different details of the shoulder. It had more sets and shorter rest periods (approx. 35 sec), which meant using slightly lighter weights.
I alternated between these two programs as needed. When I wanted to build more shoulder muscle, I used the first plan more. When I wanted to bring out more separation, I used the second.
The third phase was a brutal pre-contest training block, which I used only 8-10 weeks before a competition. It was simply too intense to use all year round. My body would otherwise have shattered into a thousand pieces under that strain. The third phase meant reducing the weights while adding sets and repetitions, with rest just long enough to catch my breath. It’s hard, but worth every drop of sweat.
PHASE 1
Barbell press, front or behind the neck 5* x 6-8
Lateral raises 4 x 10-12
Behind-the-back shrugs 3 x 8-10
PHASE 2
Behind-the-neck press 5* x 6-8
Dumbbell press 4 x 6-8
Lateral raises 4 x 10-12
Bent-over flyes 4 x 10-12
Shrugs 3 x 12-15
PHASE 3
Front press 3-4 x 10-12
Behind-the-neck press 3-4 x 10-12
Lateral raises 3 x 12-15
One-arm cable flyes 3 x 12-15
Bent-over flyes 3x 12-15
Behind-the-back shrugs 4 x 8-10
* warm-up set
Author: Lee Haney
Come and train! ArtGym
