Iron Dreams Q & A will be published each Tuesday in the Daily Iowegian. To submit a question or topic to Jamie and Shawna, send your emails to: askJamieandShawna @hotmail.com
Question: What is the most important aspect of keeping gains constant? Is it goal setting, passion, consistency, good nutrition, increased intensity, supplementation, or journal keeping?
Answer: All of the above! All of these are are incredibly important in making gains and making gains consistently.
One thing stands out right at this moment, changing things up every few weeks when your body gets used to what you’re doing.
I talked about change last week and I guess that topic is still stuck in my head.
Physiologists tell us that the body gets used to any specific exercise after five workouts. We at Iron Dreams usually change everyone’s routine somewhere around 9-12 sessions. Since a muscle only reacts to stimulus that has either been increased or changed, it makes sense to aim for both an increase in intensity (increasing weight and reps) and a regular routine modification.
The saying “a change is as good as a rest” is true for the most part. Both are needed to make progress consistently. The three-step process is in order: 1) Train and stimulate change, 2) Feed your body nutrients every few hours, 3) Rest and recover before starting step one over again.
I thought you said that the basics always work? Yes they do always work. I’m not talking about changing the basic formula for exercising, I’m just talking about the exercises that you do for each body part. Every 9-12 sessions we change peoples’ routines to avoid hitting a plateau and also from becoming bored and quitting.
Should you think this is all theoretical stuff, let me assure you that this type of frequent changing around of exercises is not new. It has been around and been proven successful by thousands of competitive weight trainers as well as professional athletes.
Back when I was in school, Bo Jackson came out with a cross training shoe and had commercials stating “Bo knows” and was shown playing all kinds of sports. Bo Jackson was doing several types of training to become better at football and baseball instead of just playing football or baseball. This is known as cross training, doing something other than your actual sport to become better at your particular sport.
Some bodybuilders like to keep one basic exercise constant in their routine. Many feel like they just can’t give up on the bench press or squat. Well, do the bench press and squat movement on all of your routines but change your angles on these movements. Do flat bench press, incline bench press, decline bench press, wide or close grip on the bar or even reverse grip like I compete with on the bench press. All are bench presses but the angles in which your muscle groups work are different. Same is true for squats if you feel like you need to squat every workout. Do close stance, shoulder-width stance, bar high or low on back, front squats with bar on your upper chest, etc. The key is to change the angles – different angles mean different changes.
Arnold Schwarzenegger would always give the advice, “You have to surprise your muscles.”
I have been training 100 percent for over 16 years competitively so my body learns quickly what its doing. I have to change my routines almost every routine or at least every other routine. Ronnie Coleman, eight time Mr. Olympia Bodybuilding champ, has an “A” workout and a “B” workout that he rotates every time he trains each muscle group. He’s the best weight trainer in the world and he changes his routine every workout, but still keeping basic lifts for each body part and doing more weight or reps than the previous time.
When you hit a plateau don’t accept failure, change your approach a little.
All questions are welcome. Send to Iron Dreams 2, 1118 S. 17th, Centerville, IA 52544 or email askjamieandshawna@hotmail.com.
Sports
‘You have to surprise your muscles’
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Centerville’s Alex Moorman leads after day 1
Centerville freshman Alex Moorman turned in a score of 73 strokes at Ames Golf and Country Club Friday afternoon. He will resume action Saturday morning from lead.
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No. 6 Redettes start season 1-2
Ranked sixth in Class 3A to start the season, the Centerville Redettes started their softball season with a win over Southeast Warren on Monday. However, on Tuesday, the Redettes would drop two to a strong Mt. Pleasant squad, currently unranked in Class 4A.
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Moravia blanks Seymour
The Moravia Lady Mohawks shutout the Seymour Warriorettes as both teams opened their 2012 softball campaigns Tuesday night.
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Melcher-Dallas beats M-U 14-2 in opener
The Moulton-Udell Lady Eagles held a 1-0 lead against Melcher-Dallas Saints through three innings.
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Eagles split first two games of the season
The Moulton-Udell Eagles started the season 1-1, after a loss to Wayne and a win against Melcher-Dallas.
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(Photos) NASCAR Nationwide Series at Iowa Speedway
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Centerville distance med team breaks school record en route to title
Centerville’s 1,600 meter distance medley team took the state title in the event at the Iowa High School Co-Ed State Track Meet at Drake Stadium on Friday. They did so by breaking the school record in the event.
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SLIDESHOW: QB from Texas commits to Iowa
Nic Shimonek of Corsicana, Texas, committed this week to play football at the University of Iowa. The Mildred High School junior also excels at basketball and baseball.
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Fifteen area athletes qualify for state track meet
There will be several area athletes competing at the 2012 Iowa High School State Track Meet at Drake Stadium in Des Moines this weekend. A total of 15 individual athletes between Moravia, Seymour and Centerville will compete in 13 events.
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Boys golf claims district win; advance to sectionals
The Centerville BIg Reds are district champions. They claimed the title by am 11 stroke margin over Pella at Willow Creek Golf Course yesterday afternoon.
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Chelsey Banks signs with Indian Hills
Chelsey Banks signed with Indian Hills Community College to play softball for the Warriors beginning next season. Chelsey is a senior at Centerville High School and will be competing in her last season as a Centerville Redette from behind the plate. Pictured in front from left to right is mother Stephanie Banks, Chelsey and father Chuck Banks. Pictured in the back row from left to right is CHS athletic director Jim Knott, Redettes softball coach Mike Miller and Indian Hills head softball coach Jim Overturf.
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Wyatt Flattery competes at rodeo
Wyatt Flattery of Moravia competed in the steer wrestling event at the High School and Junior High Rodeo sponsored by the Iowa High School Rodeo Association in Sidney, Ia. on Sunday, April 29.
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Redettes second to Osceola in SCC golf meet
The Centerville Redettes were unable to overcome a hot start by Clarke on Tuesday, as Centerville finished second to Clarke by two strokes at the South Central Conference meet.
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US to host wrestling meet in Times Square
The U.S. freestyle Olympic wrestling team will compete against an international squad next month in New York's Times Square.
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IOC to likely retest Athens samples
Eight years later, the IOC will likely retest doping samples from the Athens Olympics to catch any drug cheats who may have avoided detection.
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