QUESTION:
Hey man,
Was just wondering what kind of split you’ve been following to get to where you are?
Frazie
ANSWER:
My routine is very unorthodox by most people’s standards:
Week 1 – I train Arms on Tues, then Hamstrings & Calves on Saturday.
Week 2 – I train Shoulders on Tuesday, then on Saturday I train Quadriceps & Calves.
Week 3 – I train Chest on Tuesday, then I train Back on Saturday.
Week 4 – I begin the rotation all over again with Arms on Tuesday (But will begin the next cycle with training Quadriceps on Saturday.
I also perform 45 minutes of aerobic training 4 days per week, on alternate days to maintain a lean physique.
Basically, for me to keep my training progressive over the last 20 years, I’ve had to gradually reduce the volume and frequency of my training.
I mostly did this by making adjustments to my split.
My Reasons For This
The first and most obvious reason is that I’m older. Therefore, my recovery has slowed down a bit due to this.
The second reason is that I sleep less now than I once did. This one is mainly because my amount of responsibilities have increased as the years have passed by.
So…less sleep = slower recovery.
The last reason is that as I’ve worked my way up to using heavier weights, they inflict more stress on my body’s recovery subsystems. So, my workouts require that I take more recovery time to compensate for the higher stress.
The amount of recovery time I use is the result of over 2 decades worth of slow and gradual adjustments I’ve made as my body changed. In fact, it was about 5 years ago when I ended up spacing out my weight training days to just 2 lifting days per week.
Since recovery is a genetically mediated trait, I don’t suggest someone just up and follow my 2 days a week split. Since their circumstances are different than mine might actually be able to handle a higher volume and frequency of training than me.
Ok, there you have it. Hopefully, this sets you on the right path to better and faster gains!
Prove ‘Em Wrong,
Chad Shaw
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