Russian Strength-Skill: The Workouts

Here's what you need to know...

1. Manual labor can build strong, lean bodies. Why? Fairly heavy, non-maximal hard work.
2. Lighter, submaximal weights can emulate "workman strength" and make you much
stronger, bigger, and leaner.
3. Strength is not only a physical capacity, but also a skill since your body needs to know
how to apply the proper force during a movement. To reach your strength potential, you
must maximize what the Russians called "strength-skill."
4. Use low reps (1-3) to become efficient at maximizing recruitment during a short effort
80-90% will be enough.
5. Train your focus lifts frequently. Motor learning is best done through frequency, not
volume or intensity.
6. Use partial lifts or holds to get your body used to handling very heavy weights.
What the Kids Do For Fun
I first deadlifted 500 pounds on Christmas Eve of my 17th year. It happened in my bedroom of
my parent's house.
My family and relatives were downstairs celebrating the holidays, but I preferred iron to the
company of people. With nothing but the murmur of voices coming from downstairs to psyche
me up, I pulled 500. I was super proud of myself, so I left the loaded bar on the floor as a
testament to my accomplishment.
Moments later, one of my uncles came up to my room to fetch me to open presents. He saw
the barbell on the floor and asked how heavy it was. I proudly told him but he didn't even
raise an eyebrow.
"Can I try it?" he said.
Mind you this was a 50-year-old man that I didn't exactly figure to be a world-class athlete.
"Sure," I said, "but don't you want to warm-up first?"
"Nah, I'll just try it like that," he answered.
And without any warm-up, knowledge of technique, or effort (or so it seemed), he picked up
the barbell. He held it up and said, "So that's what you kids do to have fun?" He put it down
gently and went back downstairs.
The Rewards of Physical Labor
I later found out that this particular uncle used to work in a quarry and later at a paper mill,
carrying big rolls of paper all day long. He was only 5'2" but a solid 200 pounds.
Ever since that moment I've been fascinated with the strength of physical laborers. Sure they
lift big weights, but rarely (almost never) maximal weights because they need to work nonstop for a long time.
I remember the first time I actually looked lean and muscular. It was when I was 19 and
working a summer job at RONA (the Quebec equivalent of Home Depot). I barely trained that
summer, but I did work 40+ hours/week carrying cement tiles.
Prior to that I trained every day, but didn't really look like I worked out. After carrying tiles I
was lean and hard.
We all know examples of strong and/or muscular people who got like that through manual
labor doing fairly heavy, but non-maximal labor at a high volume. As such, I believe that
lighter, submaximal weights can make you much stronger, bigger, and leaner. And for years I
tried to find a way to duplicate this "manual labor strength."
Then I started to read Russian material about "strength-skill." I always thought that strength
was strictly a physical capacity, but now I was reading that being strong was also a skill. I was
intrigued.
What is Strength-Skill?
People tend to see strength only as a physical capacity. Specifically, strength is seen as the
capacity of a muscle or group of muscles to produce a high level of force to overcome a
resistance.
And so it stands to reason that in strength training, strength is normally measured by how
much weight you can lift. Typically, the stronger your muscles are, the more weight you can
lift.
This is mostly true, but not entirely. Someone can have strong muscles, yet not be able to
display that strength optimally on some exercises, even if the individual muscles involved in
the lift are strong.
For example, I've seen plenty of people do more than me on isolated pectoral exercises (pec
deck, dumbbell flies, cable crossovers), triceps exercises (dumbbell extensions, cable

pressdowns), and front deltoid movements (front raises), yet lift 50-75 pounds less than me
on the bench press.
You see the same thing on the squat. There are plenty of people who are strong on the leg
extension, leg curl, leg press, and hack squat but can't squat as much as other lifters who are
"weaker" on the isolated movements.
An even better example is how some powerlifters might be super strong on the squat and
deadlift, yet are unable to clean or snatch what an average size female weightlifter can lift.
How's that possible? The answer is skill. Being able to use the strength you have on a specific
exercise requires skill, not only the skill to perform the proper technique, but also the skill to
apply force during the execution of that movement.
I know plenty of people who are both strong and who can lift with proper technique when the
weight is light, but who lose their efficiency when the weights get heavy.
This is what strength-skill is: The ability to make the best use of the strength you have when
performing a specific exercise.
Elements Required to Have High-Level Strength-Skill
Maximal fast-twitch fiber recruitment in a single effort
People who build their strength and size using relatively higher rep ranges might not be
efficient at recruiting a maximal number of muscle fibers when they try to do a single heavy
rep.
As a result, they might get much stronger on their higher rep sets without seeing their
maximal effort for 1 or 2 reps increase very much.
If most of your training experience has been centered on sets of 6-12 reps, you will not
develop the strength-skill to excel at doing single maximal efforts.
Technical mastery
If you aren't able to execute a lift with optimal technique, you'll never be able to demonstrate
your full muscle-strength potential.
If your desire is to be super strong on the big basic lifts, it's very important to spend a lot of
time optimizing your lifting technique. Do not accept incorrect reps and always seek to make
your lifting form better.
Intramuscular and intermuscular coordination
Two people can execute a lift with seemingly similar technique, have similar strength levels,
and display very different results. What you see from the outside isn't the whole story.
How efficient you are at a movement is a matter of how well your body coordinates the motor
units in a muscle involved in the lift, making them work together so that the muscle can
produce at its highest level (intramuscular coordination).
It's also dependant on how well the muscles involved in the lift work together. Synergists need
to unite their efforts to overcome the resistance and antagonists must relax at the right time
to facilitate the action of the prime movers (intermuscular coordination).
Neurological inhibition
A normal human being will be able to use 30-40% of his strength potential. A trained
individual might reach 70% and elite weightlifters, powerlifters, and strongmen might reach
90-95%.
Why is it so low for most people? The answer lies in the protective mechanisms we possess
that prevent our muscles from tearing themselves. When the body senses that you're
producing too much force for your own good, it'll put the brakes on.
It's like putting a speed limit on your car. This mechanism is super conservative, though. The
more heavy lifting you do, asking your muscles to produce a high level of force in a specific
pattern, the more permissive your protective mechanisms become. Having a higher protection
threshold will thus allow you to demonstrate a higher level of strength.
So, if someone wants to reach his strength potential, he must not only make his muscles
stronger, he must maximize his strength-skill.
Training On The Nerve
If you train "on the nerve" too often, you risk burning out. I believe in training hard and heavy,
but only to the point where you can still do it without any stress. Once in a while, though, you
turn up the intensity a bit to see where you are.
Old-time strongmen saw training as "practice." Their goal was more to make big weights feel
easier and easier, not to make hard weights feel heavier and heavier. If lifting 400 pounds was
almost life draining two months ago but it's easy today, aren't you much stronger?
I recently trained a young CrossFit athlete. At a bodyweight of 180 pounds, his best clean was
285. In training we never went above 275 and most of the work was between 240-255

pounds, only going up in weight if it didn't represent a mental stress and if we both knew that
it would be done easily.
When we decided to see how his strength-skill was progressing, he cleaned an easy 315 a
30-pound personal record, with room to spare!
The exact same thing happened with a female I was training. She went from a 130-pound
snatch to a 150-pound easy max, and from a 160-pound clean & jerk to a 190-pound easy
clean & jerk. She never trained on the nerve, instead making hard weights feel gradually
easier then learning to apply that strength on maximal efforts.
Yes, you'll need to work to maximal weights once in a while if you want to learn how to display
strength, but working on strength-skill is the fastest and safest way to get strong manuallabor strong.
Strength-Skill Training
To improve the factors involved in maximizing strength-skill, you must follow the following
principles, all of which comprise the Russian Strength-Skill Workout:
1. Use low reps (1-3) to become efficient at maximizing recruitment during a short effort.
No need to use maximal weights; 80-90% will be enough to maximize motor-unit
recruitment.
2. Focus on a small number of exercises and learn to do them extremely well. Become a
technical master of a few key exercises instead of trying to do a little bit of everything.
3. Train your focus lifts frequently. Motor learning (technique, inter and intramuscular
coordination) is best done through frequency, not volume or intensity. The key lifts
should be done at least three times a week for maximum motor learning.
4. Use partial lifts or holds done in the strongest part of the lift to get your body used to
handling very heavy weights. Overtime this will "convince" your body to allow you to
use a greater percentage of your strength potential.
Training Template
I will assume 5 days a week of training. The first thing to do is to pick the basic lifts you want
to practice/train. They should cover the whole body, but you should pick the fewest number of
exercises possible to do the job.
Ideally you want:
1 squat variation (front, back, Zercher, overhead, low-bar)
1 hip hinge variation (deadlift, sumo deadlift, snatch deadlift, snatch high pull, snatch,
clean)
1 overhead press (military press, push press, power jerk, behind the neck press)
1 bench press (bench press, decline bench press, incline bench press, floor press)
You could add a vertical pulling or a rowing movement (chin-up, pull-up, barbell row), but I
prefer to count these as additional work done for hypertrophy at the end of the sessions.
With 4 total exercises you can easily create 2 groups of exercises:
Group 1:Squat & hip hinge
Group 2:Overhead & bench press
Each of these groups is trained twice per week. For example:
Monday:Group 1
Tuesday:Group 2
Wednesday:OFF
Thursday:Group 1
Friday:Group 2
Saturday:Manual labor workout (explained below)
Sunday:OFF
The basic setup for each of the lifts you'll use is as follows:
Workout 1:5 x 1 (85%), 1 X 3 (75%)
Workout 2:6 x 1 (85%), 1 x 3 (75%)
Workout 3:7 x 1 (85%), 1 x 3 (75%)
Workout 4:8 x 1 (85%), 1 x 3 (75%)
Workout 5:9 x 1 (85%), 1 x 3 (75%)
Workout 6:10 x 1 (85%)
You'd then increase the weight by 5 to 15 pounds, depending on the exercise and start from
workout 1 again.
The weights should not be based on your personal record on a lift. They should be based on a
weight that you can hit on a weekly basis without any specific preparation the maximum
weight that you can do in perfect form.

That should all be fairly simple. Then there's the matter of the 5th training day, the manual
labor workout.
The Manual Labor (Day 5) Workout
This workout emphasizes strength-skill even more. The parameters are as follows:
3 basic exercises (3 of your strength-skill lifts) covering the whole body
65-70% of your maximum
Do only sets of 1 rep
20-30 singles per exercise
Do them as a continuous circuit (rotate through the exercises, resting as needed but
trying to keep the pace up)
Do them once a week as the last workout of the week
Start off at 20 singles per exercise for the first session. Go up to 25 singles for the
second week and up to 30 singles for the third week. The weight remains the same for
these three weeks. After 3 weeks you add 5-15 pounds to the bar and start over at 20.
What can I expect?
Faster progression in strength-skill.
Improvement in work capacity.
Getting leaner.
Adding muscle mass due to the high volume of work.
High technical mastery of the lifts and becoming super comfortable doing them.
How long should a workout last?
Generally, shooting for the following duration ranges ensures proper execution of the
sessions:
3 exercises for 20 sets of 1:35-40 minutes
3 exercises for 25 sets of 1:45-50 minutes
3 exercises for 30 sets of 1:55-60 minutes
Don't worry if you fall a bit under or over this recommendation, but if you fall too far from it
you aren't doing it right.
I also understand that it might require more time for some lifters because they're in a crowded
gym where they might need to walk to the next station.
What can I do if I train in a crowded gym?
If you don't have the luxury of having your own garage gym, or have access to a lifter-friendly
CrossFit gym, you might have to make a few sacrifices to be able to do these workouts.
The best solution is to use dumbbells for some lifts. For example, if you want to do bench
press, back squats, and chin-ups, you could substitute dumbbell bench presses for the bench
press, or even better, dumbbell floor presses as they don't require a bench.
Just set up near a power rack, and since there's a chin-up bar on the power rack, you only
need one station.
How do I structure a workout?
The basic structure is simple. Make sure every workout includes the following:
One press (overhead or bench, not both)
One hip hinge
One squat variation
Here are some sample exercise choices:
Military Press
Power Clean
Back Squat
Or
Bench Press
Power Snatch
Back Squat
Or
Push Press
Deadlift
Front Squat
Or
Military Press
Sumo Deadlift
Zercher Squat

Can I change exercises from week to week?

Yes, but ideally you would stick with the same ones for a fairly long period of time. You'll
continue to gain muscle and lose fat if you change exercises often, but you won't reap the
most of what these workouts can give you.
Stick with the same exercises for at least 6 weeks. And it's perfectly acceptable (probably
even better) to keep the same 3 movements for 3 months or even longer.
Won't I get weak if I don't do near-maximal weights or go to failure?
No! You're using progressively heavier weights. And most importantly, those heavier weights
will actually begin to feel more and more easy. In no time you'll be hitting weights in the 9095% range as if they were warm-ups!
However, it's true that you could lose the feeling of maximal weights, which is why I like to
include supra-maximal partials or holds to supplement the strength-skill work.
At the end of each of the first four workouts (every workout except the Day 5 manual labor
workout), perform heavy partials for one of the lifts trained that day.
For example, if your group 1 exercises are the front squat and deadlift, do heavy partial front
squats (going down until the knees are about 100 degrees) at the end of the workout. Use a
weight that's 100-105% of your maximum and do one set of as many partial reps as you can.
When that group comes up a second time during the week (Tuesday in our template) you'd do
the same but with partial deadlifts (deadlifts from pins just below the knees). The goal of
these partials is to keep the feeling of heavy weights while you're using strength-skill work to
increase your strength.
The partials will also desensitize (over time) the Golgi tendon organs, which will allow you to
use a greater proportion of your strength potential.
Here's what you need to know...
1. Newbies and advanced lifters respond differently to heavy training. Beginners do better
with 4-6 reps. Experienced lifters do better with 1-3.
2. To really master a lift, you need to train it 2-3 times per week.
3. If you train "on the nerve" too often, you risk putting a halt to your strength gains.
4. To get the most out of the maximal effort method, use it as a 3-week peaking phase.
5. Get used to handling heavy weights by using supra-maximal loads. Use partial reps
using 105-110% of your max, or holds with 110-115%.
1 More reps for beginners, fewer reps for advanced.
As a rule of thumb, the more advanced/stronger you are, the fewer reps you can do at a
specific percentage of your maximum. This is because more advanced individuals can recruit
more muscle fibers during a rep, so each rep takes more out of them.
Beginners have a much lower level of motor-unit recruitment and have a harder time
involving a large percentage of their fast-twitch fibers. Thus they can do more reps at a
certain percentage and it also means that they need to do more total reps to get stronger
than advanced lifters need to do.
A beginner/intermediate lifter who focuses on strength will gain more overall strength from
doing multiple sets of 4 to 6 repetitions than going into the 1-3 range.
Conversely, an advanced strength lifter will get mostly muscle growth not so much limit
strength gains from doing sets of 4 to 6. To really boost his maximal strength he'll need to do
more work in the 2-3 rep range and sometimes heavy singles.
2 For technical mastery, you need to train a lift 2 or 3 times per week.
Being strong on the big basic lifts isn't just a matter of muscular strength. You also need
technical mastery of a lift.
This goes beyond just "knowing how to do a lift." Even if two people can seem to have the
exact same technique, it's likely that they have different levels of mastery.
It's one thing to have what looks like perfect technique from the outside; it's another to have
the exact motor-recruitment pattern that will lead to a mind-blowing performance.
We're talking about maximal motor-unit recruitment, synchronization of these motor-units,
and relaxation of the antagonist muscles all things that aren't visible from the outside but
make the difference between an average and a great performance.
The only way to improve these factors is to perform a lift often. That's why elite Olympic lifters
snatch and clean & jerk every day. Now, the big basic strength lifts (deadlift, squat, bench,
military press, chin-ups) don't require the same level of coordination as the full Olympic lifts,
so they don't need to be trained every day to progress optimally.

Regardless, training them 2-3 times a week is the best way to improve mastery of the lift. It
doesn't have to be all-out sessions every time. Anything over 80% of your maximum, even if
done with sub-maximal reps, will be beneficial for inter and intramuscular coordination.
3 Don't train "on the nerve" too often.
Max Perryman has an interesting concept called the "everyday maximum." This refers to the
heaviest weight you know you'll always be able to do on any given day, regardless of fatigue,
lack of motivation, etc., without the need to psych up for the lift.
This is the zone where most of your work should be done. Too many people wanting to get
stronger train too often "on the nerve." By that I mean doing weights that get them nervous
and for which they have to make a special mental effort to get ready for.
Every time you attempt such weights you impose a large stress on the nervous system and
it'll have a much greater impact on you than you know. I've known a lot of competitors who
would burn out prior to a competition by going to their max too often.
If you train on the nerve too often, you risk burning out. I believe in training hard and heavy,
but only to the max you can do without any stress. And once in a while you turn up the
intensity a bit to see where you are.
I trained a young CrossFit athlete who, at a bit under 180 pounds, had a 1RM clean of 285. In
training we never went above 275 and most of the work was with around 240-255, only going
up in weight if it didn't represent a mental stress and if we both knew that it would be done
easily.
Well, when we decided to see where his clean was, he did an easy 315 a 30-pound personal
record, with room to spare!
4 Training with max weight is the fastest way to increase strength, but it's not the best.
While I believe in not training on the nerve, I also recognize that the fastest way to increase
strength is the maximal effort method lifting weights in the 95-100%+ range.
Notice that I say the "fastest." I do not think it's the "best."
In my experience, you'll get rapid gains from the maximum effort method for 2 to 3 weeks
(some can stretch it up to 4 weeks), after which your strength gains stop and even regress.
The best use of the maximal effort method is as a 3-week peaking phase while you do most of
your strength work without training on the nerve sticking to 85-90% weights most of the
time, with occasional efforts at around 95%.
For 3 weeks do workouts that consist of plenty of work in the maximal zone (I normally use
something like 8 sets of 1 between 90 and 100%), then 3 sets of 2 between 80 and 85%
focusing on speed and technique, followed by two last sets of 1 between 90 and 100%+.
After the 3-week period we go back to not training on the nerve.
5 Use supra-maximal loads to get used to handling heavy weights.
Two important reasons why we fail a heavy lift are psychological inhibition and
neuroprotective inhibition.
The first phenomenon could simply be defined as being intimidated by the feel of the weight.
I've seen many people unrack weights passively, staying somewhat soft, and then missing a
lift they could make just because it felt too heavy and they subconsciously gave up.
The second phenomenon refers to the action of the Golgi tendon organs (GTO). Their role is to
prevent excessive force production that could potentially tear the muscle.
When the GTOs feel that the muscles are producing too much force, they put the brakes on,
limiting how much force you can produce. They tend to be overprotective, though, not
allowing you to use a very high percentage of your maximum potential.
Both elements can interfere with your lifting of heavy weights. And both elements can be
worked on by handling supra-maximal loads loads heavier than your maximum in the full lift.
You can do this by using partial reps (a squat or bench going down halfway) using 105-110%
of your maximum, or holds unrack the weight, go down very slightly, and hold the weight for
some time with 110-115%. Even negatives or eccentrics will work, too.
These methods will get you used to handling heavy weights. If you're used to moving weight
above your max, even for a short distance, your training weights will feel much lighter and
won't psych you out. You'll also improve the stabilization function of your muscles, which will
make your key positions in the lift more solid.
By frequently handling very heavy weights you'll also desensitize the GTOs. Over time this
means that the GTOs kick in less easily, letting you use more of your potential strength.
You don't need a lot of volume on supra-maximal movements. Two to three sets will do. Two
good approaches are doing supra-maximal holds before doing your actual lift (this will make

the lifts feel lighter) or doing 2-3 sets of partials at the end of the main lift, after your work
sets have been completed.
Build Muscle With Heavy Singles
Here's what you need to know...
1. Single-rep sets typically are used to display strength, but they can be used to build
size and strength if you combine load, volume, and density.
2. The heavy work increases the recruitment of the growth-prone fast-twitch fibers. The
volume initiates the cell signaling responsible for growth, and the density work will
provide maximum fiber stimulation.
3. To make this work, you need to divide the training of your main lift into two segments:
the heavy segment and the volume/density segment.
I dislike doing more than five reps per set. It's just how I'm wired. I can go really hard, but my
muscles just seem to tank as the reps get high. And if I try to save energy by not going all out
on the early reps, I wind up taking myself out of the zone mentally. Basically, I'm doomed to
perform low reps forever!
That's okay, though, because smart lifters understand that sets of less than five reps build
strength. After all, that's what powerlifters, Olympic lifters, and strongman competitors do. But
is it possible to use very low reps to optimally build muscle mass? Specifically, is it possible to
build a lot of muscle mass doing only sets of 1 rep?
In the past I would've said yes. My explanation would be that if you do a very high number of
heavy singles (15-20 singles with 92%+), you'd reach the volume required to stimulate
growth.
The problem is that while this will build muscle mass, it can also wreak havoc on both the
nervous system and the joints. So today, my answer to the question would still be yes, but I'd
use a much different approach.
The Mass Trifecta
To maximize muscle growth you need three things:
1. Load
2. Volume
3. Density
Any one of these three will build muscle all by itself, but for optimalresults you need to
combine some heavy lifting, sufficient volume, and a high density of work.
The heavy work increases the recruitment of the growth-prone fast-twitch fibers. The volume
provides the mechanical stimulus necessary to initiate the cell signaling responsible for the
growth process. Finally, the density of work will provide maximum fiber fatigue/stimulation
while also leading to an optimally anabolic hormonal milieu.
It brings up this question: Can you employ all three factors using only singles? Not at the
same time, but in the same workout?
With single-rep training, it's easy to achieve the "heavy" factor. After all, singles are closely
associated with Max Effort loading. With volume, however, the answer is sketchier. If the
volume is done at the same time as the heavy loading (e.g., doing 20 singles with 92% or
more), you'll run into problems fairly quickly, so that's not the answer.
The key to getting the most out of volume work with singles is to use density work. Going
for a high "density" of heavy (but not maximal) singles on a big lift will let you get the
required volume in, while still attaining the muscle fiber fatigue required to maximize growth
all without the neural and joint health drawbacks.
To make this work, you need to divide the training of your main lift into two segments:
the heavy segment and the volume/density segment.
The Heavy Segment
For the heavy segment, first ramp up to a training 1RM (the maximum amount of weight
you can lift on that day with solid form). You want to reach your maximum in about 8-10
sets. Start at 60% and gradually work your way up in 1-rep sets. (You may perform more than
1 rep for the first two sets to help get warmed-up.)
After you hit your training 1RM, perform 3 more singles one with 95%, one with 92%, and
one with 90% of the day's training 1RM.
So the heavy segment might look like this:
1 x 10 with barbell only
1 x 5 135 pounds
1 x 3 185 pounds

1 x 1 205 pounds
1 x 1 225 pounds
1 x 1 245 pounds
1 x 1 265 pounds
1 x 1 285 pounds
1 x 1 305 pounds
1 x 1 325 pounds
1 x 1 307.5 pounds (95%)
1 x 1 300 pounds (92%)
1 x 1 292.5 pounds (90%)
The Volume/Density Segment
After finishing your heavy segment, you'd perform thevolume/density segment, choosing a
load between 75 and 85%. (Any lighter and won't get the desired motor recruitment.) There
are two ways to approach the volume/density segment:
1. Do as many singles as possible in a specific amount of time.
Or the reverse:
2. Do a prescribed number of singles (e.g., 30) in as little time as possible.
Clearly the amount you rest between reps is a significant factor in either version, so while you
must re-rack the barbell and reset with every single rep, you should try to rest as little as
possible.
Here are some options on how to do the volume/density portion of the workout, in order of
difficulty:
1. Perform 30 singles with 80% as fast as you can.
2. Perform as many singles as possible with 80% in 8 minutes.
3. Perform 25 singles with 85% as fast as you can.
4. Perform as many singles as possible with 85% in 7 minutes.
5. Perform 10 singles with 85% as fast as you can. THEN perform 20 singles with 80% in
as little time as possible.
6. Perform 15 singles with 85% as fast as you can. THEN perform 15 singles with 80% in
as little time as possible.
7. Perform 20 singles with 85% as fast as you can. THEN perform 10 singles with 80% in
as little time as possible.
8. Perform as many singles with 85% as you can in 2 minutes. THEN perform as many
singles with 80% as you can in 6 minutes.
9. Perform as many singles with 85% as you can in 4 minutes. THEN perform as many
singles with 80% as you can in 4 minutes.
10.Perform as many singles with 85% as you can in 6 minutes. THEN perform as many
singles with 80% as you can in 2 minutes.
Of course there are countless other possibilities but these ten are the right mix of volume,
load, and density. More volume will not lead to greater results.
This density segment elicits a sense of urgency that will increase your focus. And since you
reset on every repetition, you'll have the opportunity to dial in your technique so each rep can
be as close to perfection as possible. This will better load the muscles, thereby making the
workout safer and more productive.
Just to make sure you've got it, you're first going to do the heavy segment and ramp up to
doing a series of heavy singles, as described above. Then you're going to move on to
thevolume/density portion of the workout by doing, for example, as many singles as
possible with 85% of your 1RM in 7 minutes.
Now you're using all three growth factors at the same time using only singles. Sweet.
Isometrics for Mass!
How to get bigger by not moving a muscle
Can you get stronger by not moving a muscle? According to the scientific literature, yes, you
sure can! Isometric or "static" training has been shown to stimulate strength gains in
numerous studies. In the real world, I've been using it with success for years in my own
training and with my athletes.
But can isometric training increase muscle mass as well as strength? There's very little info
out there on this topic. In fact, the literature seems to be telling us that isometrics can lead to
strength gains without influencing muscle mass. So, understandably, this form of training

never made it into the bodybuilding world. That's too bad because it can be an effective tool
for muscle gains!
Isometric Action Training: A New Dimension
An isometric muscle action refers to exerting muscle strength/muscle tension without
producing an actual movement or a change in muscle length. Examples of isometric action
training include:
1. Holding a weight at a certain position in the range of motion. Example: Holding a
hammer curl statically at about mid-range for a certain amount of time.
2. Pushing or pulling against an immovable external resistance. Example: The iso-pull
shown below.

Historically, it's believed that we can produce more strength in a maximum isometric action
than in a concentric contraction. While some studies do find a slight difference, Soviet
literature concludes "...there is not a statistically significant difference between the maximum
strength, as measured in a static regime, and the maximum weight that can be lifted in the
same movement." (1)
While probably not as effective as yielding or overcoming training, isometric training can still
be of significant benefit to most athletes.
Isometric Action: Muscle Activation Potentiator
One of the most important benefits of isometric action training is that it's the contraction
regimen that leads to the greatest activation level. "Activation" refers to the recruitment of
the muscle's motor-units.
A recent study comparing the level of muscle activation during isometric, concentric, and
eccentric muscle actions found that a person can recruit over 5% more motor-units/muscle
fibers during a maximal isometric muscle action than during either a maximal eccentric
(lowering) or maximal concentric (lifting) action; that's 95.2% for isometric compared to
88.3% for the eccentric and 89.7% for the concentric. (2)
These findings are in accordance with the body of literature that finds that a person can
recruit almost all motor-units during a maximal isometric action. (3) What this tells us is that
isometric training can improve our capacity to recruit motor units during a maximal
contraction. In the long run, this improved neural drive could greatly increase one's strength
production potential!
In the past, isometric exercises have been described as a technique that should only be used
by advanced lifters. I beg to differ. One of the biggest shortcomings of lower-class lifters is the
incapacity to produce maximum intramuscular tension during a concentric contraction.
Isometric exercise can thus be used to learn how to produce this high level of tension, as it
requires less motor skills than the corresponding dynamic action. For this reason, I see
isometric exercises as very beneficial for all classes of athletes.
A Stimulus for Strength Gains
Isometric action training (or IAT) can lead to significant strength gains, no question about that.
In a recent experiment, strength gains of 14 to 40% were found over a ten-week period using
isometric training.
However, it's important to understand that the strength gains from an isometric regimen
occur chiefly at thejoint angles being worked, although there's a positive transfer of 20 to
50% of the strength gained in a 20-degree range (working angle +/- 20 degrees). (5)
Some people might see this limitation as a negative aspect of isometric action training;
however, some authors prefer to see this as a benefit because it allows you to exert a greater
level of strength at a certain point in the motion, allowing the athlete to stimulate more
strength gains at a point where he needs it the most (his sticking point).
So, the three benefits of isometric training can be summed up like this:

1. Maximum intramuscular tension is attained for only a brief period in dynamic exercises
(mostly due to the fact that the resistance has velocity and acceleration components),
while in isometric exercises you can sustain that maximal tension for a longer period of
time.
For example, instead of maintaining maximum intramuscular tension for 0.25 to 0.5 seconds
in the concentric portion of a dynamic movement, you can sustain it for around three to six
seconds during an isometric exercise. Strength is greatly influenced by the total time under
maximal tension. If you can add 10 to 20 seconds of maximal intramuscular tension per
session, then you increase your potential for strength gains.
2. Isometric exercises can help you improve strength at a precise point in the range
of motion (ROM) of an exercise. This can prove to be very valuable to get past
plateaus due to a chronic sticking point.
3. Isometric exercise isn't "energy expensive," meaning that you don't expend
much energy by doing isometric training. So, you can get the benefits of IAT
without interfering with the rest of your planned workout.
A Stimulus for Muscle Growth
While initial reports on isometric action training hypothesized that this type of training
wouldn't lead to significant muscle gains due to the absence of work, recent findings indeed
conclude that an isometric training regimen can lead to gains in muscle size!
A study by Kanchisa et al. (2002) found an average muscle cross-sectional area (size)
improvement of 12.4% for maximal isometric contraction training and of 5.3% for isometric
training at 60% of maximum contraction after a training period of ten weeks. The authors
attributed the gain in muscle size to metabolic demands and endocrine activities rather than
mechanical stress and neuromuscular control.
It's important to note that isometric action training still has limited applications for an athlete
or bodybuilder. Yes, it can help increase strength and size, but without a concurrent dynamic
(yielding and overcoming) program, the gains will be slow. In fact, some coaches note that
gains from isometric exercises stop after six to eight weeks of use. (6) So while isometric
training can be very helpful to work on a weak point or improve an athlete's capacity to
activate motor-units, it should only be used for short periods of time when progress has
slowed down or when a rapid strength improvement is needed.
Isometric training can also be useful during periods of lowered training volumes. When you
have to decrease your training load either due to fatigue symptoms or time constraints,
isometric work can help prevent muscle and strength losses.
The "New" Isometric Training
Many studies don't report a lot of muscle growth from isometric training. This is only because
the old German model (Hettingter and Mller) of six-second actions was used in the initial
experiments. This duration of effort, albeit adequate for strength gains, isn't sufficient to
cause hypertrophic changes in the muscles. In other words, it won't make you big.
This form of training is calledmaximal intensity isometric trainingand it's similar in effect to
the maximal effort method (1-5 reps with 90-100% of your max), which leads to strength
gains with little, if any, muscle size gains. However, using sets lasting 20 to 60 seconds will
represent an important hypertrophy stimulus, similar in nature to the repetitive effort method
(8-12 reps with 70-80% of your maximum).
Another important point is that most studies performed on isometric training were short term,
often using an insufficient period to stimulate a significant increase in muscle mass but
sufficient to cause neural adaptations leading to strength gains.
Lastly, the fact that isometric training is often associated with programs such as the "Charles
Atlas Dynamic Tension" certainly didn't help improve the image of isometrics among hardcore
lifters!
Types of Isometric Training
Before I tell you how to use isometrics to gain muscle, it's important that you understand the
various types of isometric training. First we have two isometric regimens:overcoming
isometrics andyielding isometrics. Understand that this doesn't mean you're combining a
concentric (or eccentric) action along with the isometric action. The actual external outcome
of the exercise is the same: there's no movement at all. However, theintent during the
exercise changes:
Overcoming Isometric: You're pushing or pulling against an immovable
resistance (e.g. pushing against the pins in a rack). Thus there's no

external movement but yourintent is to move the resistance (even though

that's impossible).
Yielding Isometric: You're holding a weight and your objective is to prevent
it from going down. Once again there's no external movement; however,
your intent is no longer to move the load but toprevent its movement.
It's important to understand that both techniques won't have the same effect; for one thing,
the neural patterns used in both cases will be different. Overcoming-isometrics may have a
bigger impact on concentric strength and yielding-isometrics on eccentric strength and
muscle mass.
The following figure shows what the various applications of isometric training are. The three
types of applications are max duration isometrics (equivalent of the repetitive effort method),
max intensity isometrics (equivalent of the maximum effort method), and ballistic isometrics
(equivalent of the dynamic effort method). I'll briefly summarize all three of those
applications, but for bodybuilding purposes, only the max duration method is useful.

Max Duration Isometric (Repetitive Effort)

With max duration isometric exercises you're pushing, pulling, or holding a submaximal load
for as long as possible, going to muscle failure. For maximum effect you want to use sets
ranging from 20 to 60 seconds in length. The effect of this type of training on muscle mass
can be important as there's a very significant growth stimulus placed on all of the muscle
fibers.
With this method you can use both overcoming-isometrics and yielding-isometrics. However, I
find yielding isometrics (holding a weight) to be much superior when it comes to max duration
isometric training. In this case, a load of 50 to 80% for a duration of 20 to 60 seconds is best.
Max Intensity Isometric (Maximum Effort)
The max intensity isometric method is related to the concentric maximum effort method.
You'll try to maintain a maximum isometric action for 3-6 seconds. You can once again use
either overcoming-isometrics or yielding-isometric, but in this case overcoming isometrics
(pushing or pulling against pins or an immovable resistance) are best suited for that purpose
and much safer.
This type of isometric training doesn't have a significant impact on muscle mass, however, it
can increase muscle density and myogenic tone (also called "tonus" or the firmness/hardness
of your muscles). Its main effect is on maximum strength development. This occurs
specifically at the joint angle being trained, so you'll want to use multiple positions. There's
also some evidence that maximum isometric training can improve the capacity to recruit and
synchronize motor-units (intramuscular coordination) even in dynamic movements.
Even though overcoming-isometrics are best for this method, you can still use yieldingisometrics. In this case you'd use a load of 100 to 110% of your maximum.
Ballistic Isometric (Dynamic Effort Method)
Be careful not to mix up iso-ballistic (or stato-ballistic) training with the ballistic isometric
method. Iso-ballistic is a mixed regime method in which an explosive action is preceded by an
isometric pause.

The ballistic isometric method refers to pushing against an immovable resistance for a very
brief period of time (one or two seconds) while trying to reach peak force output as fast as
possible (basically trying to go from zero force to max force in a couple of seconds). You can't
use the yielding-isometric method here as it doesn't suit the nature of the exercise the
nature being to produce maximum isometric tension isas little time as possible.
This type of exercise is especially good to develop starting-strength and is very useful for any
athlete involved in a sport where explosive starts from a static position are involved. But for
bodybuilding purposes, it's basically a waste of time.
Isometric Training for Bodybuilders
We've established that the only application of isometric training that bodybuilders should use
is the maximum duration method, with a preference towards yielding-isometrics. That having
been said, I personally use three variants of this type of training:
Stand-alone max duration yielding isometrics.
Max duration yielding isometrics as post-fatigue.
Max duration yielding isometrics as pre-fatigue.
Let's break those down:
1. Stand-alone max duration yielding isometrics
This is your basic isometric training method. You select one exercise per muscle group and
then threepositions per exercise. Select a load you'll be able to hold for 20-60 seconds (I
personally find 45 seconds to be the optimal duration). A load of 70-80% of your maximum
will generally be a good starting point.
Perform anywhere from one to five "sets" per position, three being best in most cases:
Hold statically at mid-range.
Hold statically at full contraction.
Hold statically a few inches after the starting position.
Perform all the "sets" for a given position before moving on to the next one. Keep the rest
intervals short; 60 seconds is a good target. This type of training is especially effective when
training with a partner: you can try to outlast one another and even make a betting game out
of it! Just don't make a drinking game out of it or things could get messy.
2. Max duration yielding isometrics as post-fatigue
With this variant you're using yielding isometrics at the end of a regular set. After you're
finished with your prescribed number of reps, hold the mid-range position of the exercise for
20-60 seconds. The 60-second mark is a bit idealistic though; most will have a hard time
reaching the 20-second mark!
The great thing about this method is that it'll thoroughly exhaust all your muscle fibers,
providing a phenomenal growth stimulus. However, it's a very taxing method and you should
never perform it for more than one exercise per muscle (if you use post-fatigue on all sets) or
for more than one set per exercise (if you wish to use it with all of your exercises).
3. Max duration yielding isometrics as pre-fatigue
I'm not a big fan of using pre-fatigue methods as they'll hamper strength gains. However, prefatigue can be a good tool to stimulate muscle gains. Only use it on isolation exercises or for
minor muscle groups so that you can still train heavy on compound movements. This method
is especially effective for biceps, triceps, traps and deltoids.
What you're going to do is basically a superset: combine the stand-alone max duration
yielding isometrics with regular training. So you succeed every "set" of max duration yielding
isometrics with a concentric/eccentric exercise for the same muscle group.
For example:
Isometric preacher curl for max time
Use a load that's challenging (i.e. a load you'd struggle to do for more than three perfect
reps.) Hold the weight at a determined position for as long as you can or for at least 45-60
seconds. Use three different positions: elbows at 90 degrees, elbows fully flexed, and two
inches from the bottom position. Perform two sets for each position.
Standing barbell curl
After each set of isometric preacher curls for max time, perform one set of 10 barbell curls.
Don't worry about tempo; just complete the reps with as much weight as you can.
You're basically going to do six sets of 10 barbell curls.
Here's what it'll look like:
Isometric preacher - Elbows 90 degrees for max time - no rest
Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest

Isometric preacher - Elbows 90 degrees for max time - no rest

Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest
Isometric preacher - Elbows fully flexed for max time - no rest
Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest
Isometric preacher - Elbows fully flexed for max time - no rest
Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest
Isometric preacher - Elbows almost fully extended - no rest
Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest
Isometric preacher - Elbows almost fully extended - no rest
Barbell curl x 10 reps - 45-60 seconds rest
This variation will produce rapid gains in muscle size and is especially useful in correcting
specific weaknesses in your physique.
Conclusion
These three methods will allow you to reach a new level of muscularity in a short period of
time. However, understand this doesn't take the place of regular training. It should be seen as
a supplementary training method only, but with proper application it'll make your training
more effective than ever!
CULTIVATE
THE SKILL OF
STRENGTH!
Training for strength has connotations of vein-popping max-effort attempts, but it
doesn't have to be that way for you to see serious benefits. Make some time this
year for skill-strength training!
What if I told you that many, if not most physique enthusiasts are missing a major component
in their training, one that would accelerate their physique goals and gains? If they gave it a
try, they'd look harder, get leaner, push more weight with better form, and be more capable
and confident in the weight room.

EUGENE SANDOW'S STRENGTH SKILLS INTRODUCED HUGE CROWDS TO THE WORLD OF

FITNESS.
What is it? In four words: old school strength training. And no, I'm not talking about barbell
bent presses or other long-lost liftsalthough, for the record, they're great. I'm talking about
doing the same lifts you do now, only in a different way.
Old-time strongmen like Eugene Sandow, widely considered the father of bodybuilding,
trained purely for strength, and their physiques were a combination of diet and their training. I
can hear some of you ask, "Strengthyou mean, super-heavy, bloody-nose-inducing lifting
like a powerlifter?" Not necessarily.
Many of the old-time greats had to perform feats of strength onstage on a regular basis to
make a living, so body-destroying max efforts which required days of recovery weren't an
option.
Instead, they trained strength much as someone would learn to play the piano or tennis, or
throw the javelin; they treated it as a skill to be practiced. The more they practiced, the more
they perfected their strength and the strongerand leaner, and more muscularthey
became.
STRENGTH IS A SKILL
This style of training, repopularized in the West about 15 years ago by Pavel Tsatsouline,
proceeds from the idea that your best strength gains will be made when you train fresh,
frequently, and without fatigue. It is, in essence, the exact opposite of the push-beyond-thelimit way most people approach their time in the weight room.
In skill training, there is no pump, only a little heavy breathing, and not much sweat. Rest
periods are longup to 5 minutesand sets are short, noticeably lacking any sort of
"intensity technique" such as rest-pause, dropsets, or supersets. Reps are kept purposefully
low, like 1-5. And the number of sets per exercise is around 3-5.
"YOUR BEST STRENGTH GAINS WILL BE MADE WHEN YOU TRAIN FRESH, FREQUENTLY, AND
WITHOUT FATIGUE."
Workout programs are also different: Instead of "blasting" and "trashing" a muscle, or your
entire body, you lovingly cultivate it, like you would a plant, training it frequently. Usually,

you'll train somewhere around 3-5 times per week, more often than not repeating exercises
on those days.
If this sounds strange, think of it like tennis again. If you were learning the game you wouldn't
practice your serves and volleys until your arm fell off, and then have your training partner
shout, "Two more! It's all you bro!" Why not? Because, tennis is a skill. Weightlifting is a skill.
And skills are best learned, acquired, and refined while fresh and without fatigue. If you want
to be able to practice it again in just a day or two, you'll need to have something left in the
tank.
WHY SKILL-STRENGTH TRAINING WORKS FOR PHYSIQUE GOALS
Spending time each year focusing on building your strength works great for three main
reasons:
1
SKILL-STRENGTH TRAINING BUILDS A HARDER MUSCLE
Muscles can look soft and puffy, or they can look hard and tightand I'm not talking about the
hard and tight that comes from doing carb, sodium, and water manipulation during photo
shoot prep. I'm talking about hard all the time. The best way to build this type of muscle is
training low reps, heavy weights.
This is because you're training your type 2b muscle fibers, which increases the size of your
muscles myofibrilsthe actual muscle fibers, not just the sarcoplasmthe gelatin-like goo
that surrounds your muscles.
The growth resulting from the traditional bodybuilding rep ranges of 8-15 reps, on the other
hand, largely takes place in the sarcoplasm.
JUST BECAUSE YOU DO FEWER REPS AND REST MORE DOES NOT MEAN YOUR WORKLOAD IS
EASIER. YOUR HEART RATE WILL RISE AS YOUR EFFORT REQUIRES.
2
SKILL-STRENGTH TRAINING BURNS
MORE CALORIES DURING TRAINING
I once did an experiment as a young lifter. I worked up to a 5RM max on the squat and wore a
heart rate monitor. My HR was 177 bpm, which was approximately 90 percent of my max
heart rate at the time. Lifting heavy requires hard work. And yes, you will end up breathing
heavy and sweatingeven if it's not on purpose.
Your type 2b muscle fibers are the ones most responsible for lifting heavy weights. They're
also the largest and strongest muscle fibers in your body, and as such, they require the most
energy to work. Work them more frequently, and you'll burn more energy.
3
SKILL-STRENGTH TRAINING HELPS
GET YOU LEANER
Here's something else cool about your type 2b fibers: A study done at Boston University in
2008 concluded that training heavy can reduce fat levels and improve overall metabolic
parameters without any change in diet. It also makes you healthier overall, enabling the liver
to metabolize fat, which simultaneously improves your ability to eat carbs and not have them
turn into fat. That means you'll need potentially less cardio to lean out.
"Yeah, but just look at powerlifters!" you say. My response: Just look at most Chinese Olympic
weightlifters. They do virtually nothing but lift heavy all the time. And ultimatelylet's face it
if you're really worried about weight gain or weight loss during this style of training, that's
between you and the plate, my friend.
I know much of what I'm saying goes against what gets written about bodybuilding and body
composition training these days, but strength-skill training can make a big difference in your
physique. It lays the foundation for future gains, both in muscle and in ability.
If you stall in your progress, or if you tend to demand more from yourself than you are
currently able to deliver, you owe it to yourself to give it a try.
HOW TO PROGRAM SKILL-STRENGTH TRAINING
What would a "strength-skill" workout look like? It'd be built around classic compound
movements like the bench press, squat, deadlift, and military press. You would move weights
that are heavy but not overwhelming, and never go anywhere near failure.
BUILD YOUR STRENGTH SKILL WORKOUT AROUND COMPOUND LIFTS. THINK OF
WEIGHTLIFTING AS A SKILL, NOT JUST A PHYSICAL MEANS TO AN AESTHETIC END.

You alternate workouts like these for weeks, rarely getting close to your max, and letting the
overall stimulus do its work. You also truly rest on your days off except for some easy walking,
which is always good for you, no matter your goal.
To get the most out of your skill-strength training, I recommend you program your entire next
year out in advance. Use the classic 12-week training template advocated by great
powerlifting strength coaches like Marty Gallagher. Set up four 12-week cycles per year, with
four weeks of active rest a year, one after each 12-week cycle.
Weeks 1-13: Train 12 weeks, rest 1 week
Weeks 14-26: Train 12 weeks, rest 1 week
Weeks 27-39: Train 12 weeks, rest 1 week
Weeks 40-52: Train 12 weeks, rest 1 week
Next, decide how many cycles of strength-skill work you want to do. I recommend using sixweek blocks or cycles. You could pair one six-week strength-skill cycle with a traditional sixweek cycle of traditional bodybuilding/physique work and do this four times per year. Or you
could do two six-week strength-skill cycles each year: one during the first six months of the
year, and one the second six months of the year.
Finally, pick the exercises you need to work on the mostthe ones that will have the biggest
impact on your physiqueand take advantage of this opportunity to learn to do them well.
Examples include squats, bench presses, military presses, deadlifts, chin-ups, rows, and
parallel dips. I recommend picking one or two per body part and sticking with them for the
entire six weeks without changing them. Only change your sets and reps.
Along the way, aside from the strength and muscle you build, you'll become a better bencher,
squatter, and puller. No matter what your goals are down the road, that will help you achieve
them.
REFERENCES
1. Izuyima Y et al. Fast/Glycolytic muscle fiber growth reduces fat mass and improves
metabolic parameters in obese mice. Cell Metab. 2008 Feb;7(2):159-72.
Re: Questions for Pavel re: Isometric Strength Training
Com. Steve:
1. If I am doing both weights and isos, should I cut back on the volume or frequency with the
weights, and if so, how much? -YOU DON'T NEED TO CUT BACK MUCH IF AT ALL; ISOS DO NOT
TAKE MUCH OUT OF YOU.
2. What kind of frequency and schedule should I use? How many times per week? DAILY ISOS
ARE IDEAL. Does it matter if I do both weights and isos in the same workout? SEPARATE IS
BETTER. If I do them together, which are better to do first? IT DEPENDS. IF YOU ARE LIFTING
APR, SAVE THE ISOS FOR LATER, OTHERWISE YOU CAN DO THEM FIRST.
3. Should I do the same lifts with both weights and isos (for example DL and MP for both)?
-YES.
4. I have read where you stated that isos increase strength +/- 15 degrees around a given
joint angle. How many different heights would you recommend to cover the full range of a DL
or MP? THE CLOSER YOU ARE TO THE STRETCHED POSITION, THE GREATER THE CARRYOVER
TO THE FULL ROM. WORK AT LEAST THE START. IF YOU HAVE THE TIME, ADD THE STICKING
POINT AND, FINALLY, THE LOCKOUT. AS AN OPTION, YOU MAY JUST DO LIVE LOCKOUTS ON THE
TOP, NOT ISOS.
5. I have also read where you stated that gains from isos plateau after about 6 weeks.
CORRECT, 6-8 WEEKS. How long should I cycle off isos before starting a new cycle? 6-8 WEEKS
Can I just rotate drills (say to SQ and floor press)? YES. YOU CAN ALSO VARY THE POSITION.
6. This probably should have been first, but do you think it is worthwhile to experiment with
isos, or shouldn't I bother?