Ideally, 4 days a week works pretty good for me. I still average 16-18 sets a body part, and let me tell you I need every one of those 3 days to fully recover!
This one is for anybody that incorporates machines into there training. BEST? WORST?
There isn't really a cookie-cutter answer to this. At the end of the day, it comes down to if the movement you choose aligns with your goals.
The "blind leading the blind" answer that always gets regurgitated is to always choose the hardest movement for the greatest training effect (ie pullups over lat pulldown, squats over leg press, standing OHP over seated DB,) but there's more going on behind the scenes than that.
Impact on recovery must also be considered. Consider as an example, thumbs angled down "pour the pitcher" side lateral raises vs thumbs up side lateral raises. Let's say for the sake of argument; the "pitcher" variation has 50% more muscle fibre activation, but our hypothetical lifter can accumulate 200% more volume using the "thumbs up" variation.
Our hypothetical lifter must also consider his individual differences. Does 1, 2, or 3 all out sets produce a greater training effect overall, or is volume the money maker? Can he increase frequency with one variation over another?
I train as often as I can while still being able to recover. Typically that’s 4-5 days a week, but depending on how demanding the training is this number may go up or down. As for machines, they have their place and can be great tools. However a leg press will never replace a squat etc...
I want to extend a special thanks to all of you who take the time to respond to my dumb ass posts! You guys/gals really do keep this old fool motivated!
Ideally, 4 days a week works pretty good for me. I still average 16-18 sets a body part, and let me tell you I need every one of those 3 days to fully recover!
Same here! I train 4 days per week. Best recovery! Never have a bad workout!
5 days a week is best for me. I need the days off to recover and get a mental break. But if I’m training for a show I would use my bays off for abs, cardio, calf’s etc