I got up early yesterday and hit the gym about 445 am. That is my goal for every Monday as it frees up so much of my time on Tuesdays to study and work.
Flat Hammer Presses 3 sets of 10
Pulldowns 3 x 8-10
1 legged Leg Presses 4 x 20
Seated Leg Curls 3 x 10
Rows 3 x 10-12
Lateral Raises 3 x 10-12
Calf Presses 3 x 10-15
Crunch machine 2 x 10-15
Dumbbell Tricep Extensions 3 x 10
Curl Machine 3 x 10-12
Forearm work 2 sets
Total time 42 minutes. Rest intervals about 60 seconds or so.
New Year Time to get after it.
Below is a post from almost 2 years ago. I wrote this after returning from a contest I had judged.
Psychology Of A Champion
After being in the company of so many great athletes this weekend I wanted to write today about the characteristics of a champion. To me a champion is not someone who necessarily wins a competition or award but rather someone who sets out to achieve a goal and reaches it. That goal could be any endeavor not just athletics.
1) A champion sets a lofty goal. This goal will probably require many months or years of commitment.
2) A champion stays focused on what they need to do to achieve their goal. Many times others will get distracted easily and complain that they don’t have the genetics or other factors to reach their goal.
3) A champion knows when it is necessary to change a strategy to propel them closer to their long term goal. A contender stays complacent in their beliefs and routines not wanting to learn or accept there may be a better way.
4) A champion deeply believes in their abilities even in the midst of a faillure. A champion wil turn a percieved failure into an opportunity.
5) A champion will look for positive support which could come from an inspirational movie, literature, great friends or coaches, etc. Many times a contender will continue to surround themselves with naysayers or negative influences.
6) A champion gives to others expecting nothing in return.
7) A champion is usually not the most gifted but the individual willing to endure a long, hard battle to achieve.
A champion is a good listener and uses an opportunity of conversation to learn.
9) A champion takes responsibility for his or her achievement or lack of achievement.
This list certainly isn’t complete but its a good place to start.
Have a Great Day and Stay Strong,
Michael
Hello Internet Friends,
I hope all is well and everyone is ready to start the New Year. I think my post below has started some folks thinking about training at a higher frequency. Definitely, give my little experiment a try and post your results in the comments section. Right now, my training program consists of three days per week of total body work, generally limited rest intervals, and relatively heavy resitances.
School starts again a week from Monday. I know some of you are in school as well and maybe we can support each other. Graduate school certainly is different that undergrad. I think it is easier maybe not the work or the amount, but generally, we are studying, writing and researching topics we are interested.
What do you all think of my new theme on the site?
MT
Frequency of training has been hotly debated for many years and is similar to the carb intake debate. Everyone seems to have an opinion and many are more than happy to educate you if you let them:) I want you to think about this post and try our little experiment. Follow it exactly and by all means don’t over analyze the method. This little experiment just may help you decide on a training frequency that will lead you to More Muscle and Less Fat.
So here goes:
I want you to pick a muscle group preferably upper body pushing or pulling. These two movement patterns will result in greater reliability due to less chance for cheating during the exercise. I would choose Pullups as our experiment exercise. You could choose pulldowns if you can’t do pullups.
OK, here we go.
I want you to go to the gym on week 1, Monday or Tuesday, which every day is your first workout day of the week and do 9 sets of pullups, taking 2 minutes rest between sets. That 2 minutes should be precisely two minutes. Your pullups should be complete pullups full range of motion and chin over the bar. If you are doing pulldowns, we also want full range of motion and choose a resistance that you can get 10 reps with when fresh. After the 9 sets of pullups or pulldowns you need to record exactly how many pullups or pulldowns you performed during that workout. Again, that is 9 sets with 2 minutes rest between sets. If you are using pulldowns keep the resistance the same throughout the 9 sets. After you have finished recording everything on this first exercise and workout of the week you can proceed to the rest of your workout for the week. However, I do not want you to perform any more upper back work for the rest of the week. That includes any exercise for the upper back region, very important. I highly recommend you going ahead and getting biceps done on this day as well.
Week 2
Now we go back into the gym on the same day as the week prior, Monday or Tuesday and I want you to perform just 3 sets of the same exercise as week 1. If you did pullups that is what you perform and if you did pulldowns you perform that exercise with the same resistance as week 1. This time we just perform 3 sets with exactly 2 minutes rest. Again, record exactly the number of reps completed.
Next, 48 hours later I want you to go back to the gym and perform the same workout you just did 2 days prior. Again, recording exactly the same info.
Finally, for the third time of the week, after another 48 hours I want you to perform this very same exercise again for the same 3 sets recording the number of reps completed.
So during week 2 you are performing 3 sets of your exercise for as many reps as possible on three different occasions separated by 48 hours.
Now I want you to compare the number of reps completed During week 1, which consisted of 9 straight sets of a frequency of just once per week compared to Week 2 of training 9 total sets for the week at a frequency of 3 times per week.
Please comment in the comments section. I think our results will lead us to some answers.
Very important. Regardless of the week you must get as many reps as possible during each set. Our goal is to determine which frequency allows you to get the most work or reps completed. Give each set your best effort. Perform your experiment exercise first in your workout to eliminate fatigue and inaccuracies related.
MT
Day 1
Flat Presses 3x varying
Pulldowns 3 x ”
Shoulder Press 3 x varying
Rows 3 x ”
Chest Presses 3 x varying
Crunches 3 x
Curls 3 x
Pushdowns 3 x
Calf Presses 3 x
Forearms 3 x
Leg Curls 3 x
Day 2 Rest
Day 3
Repeat total body training with varying rep and set protocols. I try to pick different exercises than in day 1
Day 4 rest
Day 5
Total body training again. Usually choosing 10-12 various exercises, reps, and sets.
Sometimes I perform the routine in circuit fashion and sometimes I will perform all the required sets per exercise before moving to the next exercise. Generally, rest intervals are limited to 45-60 seconds.
Ooops, I left out leg press, squats, or lunges from the above workout. I always perform at least 3 sets of one of those exercises.
Hello everyone,
Sorry for my lack of updates. The show went awesome and many fine athletes graced our stage. I will have complete placings and pics up in the coming days. I do apologize for the delay but I must explain. Right now, I am in grad school and have several projects due. The biggest one my research proposal which right now is over 50 pages. I am really enthused over this project as we will be comparing high frequency training to lower frequency training. I know the results will go against what most of you are doing.
I will be getting pics back from Mike our photographer soon. No promises but we will try to get them up when we get them. It just depends on if I get caught up here.
Thanks to everyone for coming to our event as a spectator or competitor. I enjoyed meeting many of you and if you need anything don’t hesistate to use the contact button above. As soon as this semester is over (first week of December) I promise I will have tons of updates here with lots of pics.
Many blessings,
Michael
Just got on facebook and some pics up there WOW Thanks,
The following is the order of events for both morning and night. Hopefully, I didn’t make any errors if I did let me know. The number to the left will probably correspond to your competitor number.
Novice Figure
1.Kristi Swift
Beginner Figure
2.Lisa Gore
1.Kristi Swift
3.Holly Barnes
Master’s Figure
2.Lisa Gore
Open Figure
4.Mollie McGinnis
5.Lisa Nobles
6.Emily Thomas
7.Danielle Small
8.Kimberly Morris
Fit Body
7.Danielle Small
Teen Bodybuilding
9.Zachary Marlow
10.Jeremiah Christich
Collegiate
11.Daniel Johnson
Submaster’s Men 45-54
12.Dennis Lord
13.Al Anderson
14.Keith Gambill
Grand Masters
15.Adrian Shropshire
Open Women’s Bodybuilding
Heavyweight
16.Jeanie Welker
17.Amy Fitzmaurice
Mens Master’s 40 Plus Pro q
12.Dennis Lord
18.Don High
19.Jaime Sanchez
14.Keith Gambill
Novice Men
Light Weight
14.Keith Gambill
Middle Weight
11.Daniel Johnson
Open Men
Bantomweight
9.Zachary Marlow
Light Weight
18.Don High
20.Jason Vaughn
13.Al Anderson
Middle Weight
21.DJ Edwards
22.Sean McCauley
Light Heavy Weight
23.Daniel Andersen
24.Gerald Peil
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Opening Ceremonies
Novice Figure Walk
Open Figure Walk
Masters Figure Walk
Fit Body
Teen
Collegiate
Mixed Pairs
Bikini
Submasters Men
Masters Men
Over 40 Masters
Open Women
Novice Men short/tall
Open Men short/tall
Novice Divisions – Competitors who are either competing in
their first contest or have never won their Novice class.
Submasters (35-44 years old). Masters (45-54 years old).
Grandmasters over 55 years old. Masters over 40 is a for
those men over 40 years old.
Novice Figure
Kristi Swift
Mollie McGinnis
Beginner Figure
Lisa Gore
Mollie McGinnis
Holly Barnes
Open Figure
Lisa Nobles
Emily Thomas
Danielle Small
Kimberly Morris
Master’s Figure
Lisa Gore
Fit Body
Danielle Small
Teen Bodybuilding
Zachary Marlow
Jeremiah Christich
Collegiate
Daniel Johnson
Mixed Pairs
Bikini
Submasters Men 35-44
Submasters Men 45-54
Dennis Lord
Al Anderson
Keith Gambill
Grand Masters
Adrian Shropshire
Mens Masters 40 plus Pro q
Don High
Jaime Sanchez
Open Womens Bodybuilding
Light Weight
Jeanie Welker
Heavy Weight
Amy Fitzmaurice
Novice Men
Light Weight
Middle Weight
Daniel Johnson
Keith Gambill
Mens Open
Bantomweight
Zachary Marlow
Light Weight
Don High
Jason Vaughn
DJ Edwards
Al Anderson
Middleweight
Sean McCauley
Light Heavy Weight
Daniel Andersen
Weigh Classes are tentative, as you will need to weigh to qualify for those divisions.
If I have made a mistake please let me know.
The above is the order of events for both prejudging and finals.
Michael
2009 INBF Polygraph Schedule
Friday, November 6 at Host Hotel
12 pm Lisa Gore
1220
1240 DJ Edwards
100 Kimberly Morris
120 Zachary Marlow
140Lisa Nobles
200 Al Anderson
220 Jeremiah Christich
240 Daniel Andersen
300 Daniel Johnson
320 Mollie McGinnis
340 Amy Fitzmaurice
400 Danielle Small
420
440 Keith Gambill
500 Kristi Swift
520 Sean McCauley
540 Jeanie Walker
600 Holly Barnes
620 Emily Thomas
Good afternoon everyone,
I wanted to post here some updated information about our show. I am also going to be posting this info on our message board at www.buildmusclelosefat.org/forum If you have any questions you can you can shoot me an email at www.michael03champ@yahoo.com
Competitors registration will be Friday afternoon November 6th from 4-6 pm at the Comfort Inn 3370 East Battlefield Springfield MO 65804 ph. 417-520-6200. You must be present during these hours to compete in our show. Registration will be in a conference room within the hotel. Front desk staff will be able to assist you with any questions you might have. Please bring a CD for posing music at this time and be prepared to weigh in.
Directions to and from the venue are at this link. I think you right click and then open link. I will also have this link available on the forum. www.buildmusclelosefat.org/forum MAP
If you need a refrigerator in your room make sure you request one.
Please do not stain the sheets, toilet seats, showers, or carpet. Bring your own sheets to protect the hotel sheets. We want to make sure we take care of the hotel. If you damage the room in any way YOU will be charged for that.
I will be posting a polygraph schedule later in the week. You must be present for your polygraph at the scheduled time.
Competitors meeting on Saturday will be at 8 am Prejuding starts at 9 am sharp.
Location of the Venue is The Plaster Student Union Theatre at Missouri State University. The Student Union is in the middle of the campus. I suggest you access the student union from National Street. Heading South on National turn right onto Monroe Street. You can park along Monroe Street or Florence Avenue. We are able to park in any of those parking lots since it is Saturday. After you have parked you will have to walk south on Florence until it turns to the left. Don’t turn left you will turn right and be heading back west. On your right should be the book store and in front of you in the distance you will eventually see a huge bear statue. That statue sets in front of the Student Union. The student union sets on the south side of the bear. We will have signs up you can’t miss the building.
Finals start at 5pm we will probably have a competitors meeting around 4pm.
This venue is an awesome facility. We are going to do our best to cover all areas back stage, restrooms, etc. However, with a facility of this size there is no way we can cover everything. Please, make sure you cover yourself when sitting on seats inside or outside the theatre or any other area located within the campus. That tanning product is hard to get off certain surfaces. Let’s be respectful of the facility.
If you have any questions please feel free to shoot me an email or post questions here as others might have the same question.
Thanks and Good Luck,
Michael Thomas
I hope this post finds everyone training hard and getting ready for our outstanding event. Needless to say my work is ramping up considerably in anticipation to the big day. I can’t wait to see all the great athletes that will step on stage. I have decided to wave the late fee at least until next week. So it is still not too late to get the entry in. Please mail that in as soon as possible. We have so much work to do that is in response to number and names of you guys and gals.
The show should be awesome. We have some local news reporters that will be our MC’s. College kids will be on campus and we should have a theatre full of them. I have seen some pics of some of you and you all look great. Finish strong and be smart, health is of supreme importance. Well, I gotta go, if you have any questions feel free to contact me through the contact form above which goes directly to my email.
Many blessings,
Michael
A pic of me last time
Just to keep everyone reminded. You must get entry in this week. Don’t wait another day. Below is the info posted on the entry forms. You are expected to know about this and consider this your notice this week. I know many wait till the last minute to send the entry in let me make it clearer. GET IT IN THIS WEEK.
Entry fee is $45.00 Cross over
Fee is $30.00 Polygraph Fee is $40.00
(cash paid directly to Event Polygrapher by
competitors at time of polygraph). Entries
must be postmarked no later than October
24, 2009. All entires post marked after
October 21, 2009 will be required to pay a
late fee of $50.00, NO EXCEPTIONS. Entries
are nonrefundable and NO entries will be
accepted after October 29, 2009. (You will
receive additional information by mail after
we receive your entry).
Make check to Michael Thomas
Balance is such a key word in any endeavor. Too much of anything can and will result in a negative outcome. Dealing with strength training we must find balance to volume, intensity, and frequency, to insure progress. The problem lies that those elements are always changing and different from individual to individual. I do believe increasing training frequency will result in hypertrophy (more muscle, less bodyfat), but not if a subject is in the middle of chronic overtraining. I read a great study this week on overtraining and I do feel overtraining will limit progress and if left untreated will lead to injury or sickness.
Here are some tips that can help you with BALANCE:
Limit training to 3 at most 4 days per week-strength work.
Limit training sessions to less than 1 hour.
Excessive cardio will negatively effect muscular gains. Balance!!
Consume appropriate carbs during and after training to limit catabolic effects of overtraining. Add protein before and after as well.
Add in extra days of rest if needed.
Take a week off every 8-12 weeks for systemic recovery.
Big topic and I will touch upon it more at a later day,
Michael
I hope everyone is enjoying the process of getting lean and prepping for our event. I can’t wait to meet all the great athletes that will be attending our event. Remember to get your entry in on time. By getting your entry in on time makes our life much easier. If you have any questions feel free to email me. I will have detailed competitor info out in the next 10 days or so. Make sure you get your room at our host hotel and ask for our Springfield Classic rate.
Have a Great day,
Michael
Anyone interested in sponsoring shoot me an email. To secure a spot on the shirt I need info asap.
Busy day working on show and school. School is getting crazy busy this time of year plus business. Thats what I like busy.
Gotta Go,
Michael
We have had a few problems getting my phone to post information to the site. Our show is on Saturday,November 7th. Talk to you all soon.
Michael
Our 2009 Natural Springfield classic is coming up fast. The event is November 7 th at Missouri State University. You can see all the details on our Forum or the link above. Be sure to get your entry in on time. You can download the entry through our forum or the above link.
In response to some emails and phone calls I want to CLEAR the rumors up. I understand there is rumor being spread throughout the midwest that our show isn’t going to happen. Folks, thats an out right LIE. Our show has been scheduled on this date since last March. I understand someone out there is saying we have moved that date multiple times and that is not true. The date is set and the show will go on. We will have a great event and we will be awarding procards.
I have a feeling I know where these rumors are coming from. I really wish people would mind there Freakin business. If you have a question about my show Please email me or call me anytime. I don’t want this post to grow into a negative rant as I could easily do that. Publically, I would love to say much more but have chosen to keep my comments to a minumum.
Back to the show here on November 7th. This is going to be an awesome event. We have some of the best sponsors on the planet. The community is supporting our show even in this economy. KSPR, a local television station is sending 2 of their reporters to MC the event. KSPR is going to have some news crews there to cover the event which will be fantastic. I will be appearing on talk radio during the final few weeks.
Once again, if you have any questions or comments please direct them to me. Don’t take anyone else’s word for it especially if they are affiliated with another organization and don’t know the facts. Goodness gracious!!!!!!!
Good luck and Stay Natural,
Michael Thomas
With the addition of Grad school I am moving my workouts to 3 per week. Each week I will perform three total body workouts per week. I will choose 10-12 exercise that covers all the basic movements. Each workout will take no more than 1 hour. I just don’t have time right now to get to the gym 5 days per week. I will be adding in 2 cardio sessions at 20 minutes per session. We will probably perform anywhere from 2-4 sets per exercise depending on how well we are recovering.
The workout posted below is a great way to train. I will probably ramp up sets very similar to that post.
Have a Great Day,
If you are interested in competing in our show make sure you get the entry in!!
Michael Thomas
By reading my last post you will see an example of our new high frequency workout. This workout focuses on training upper body one day followed by lower body. I love training this way and is described in great detail in my Leave No Doubt training Manual V2. I have made some changes to the workout to add in recovery days. The adjusted plan will add in one more day of recovery. So instead of training 6 days per week we will be strength training 5 days per week. The sets and reps will be very similar to what is listed in the post below. However, we will probably start ramping up the sets per exercise for a few weeks followed by a deloading week or two.
Example of a 4 week phase.
Week 1
Monday Upper Body 3 sets per exercise
Tuesday Lower Body 3 sets per exercise
Wednesday off
Thursday Upper Body 3 sets per exercise
Friday Lower Body 3 sets per exercise
Saturday Upper Body 4 sets per exercise
Sunday off
Week 2
Monday Lower Body 4 sets per exercise
Tuesday Upper Body 4 sets per exercise
Wednesday off
Thursday Lower Body 4 sets per exercise
Friday Upper Body 5 sets per exercise
Saturday Lower Body 5 sets per exercise
Sunday off
Week 3
Monday Upper Body 5 sets per exercise
Tuesday Lower Body 5 sets per exercise
Wednesday off
Thursday Upper body deload begins 3 sets per exercise
Friday Lower Body 3 sets per exercise
Saturday Upper Body 3 Sets per exercise
Week 4
3 sets per exercise on the same training days most of this week. Followed by Week 5 ramping up again.
So you see how we ramp up the volume followed by a reduction in volume. Our ramp up may last as long as 3 weeks followed by 1 week of a deload in volume.
If you have any questions see our forum as I will post all my workouts there.
Michael
Time for some change. Lets bump up the frequency and see what happens. After talking with WNBF Overall champ last weekend and my experiences with higher frequency training I made a decision to bump up the frequency. I have had good experience with workouts similar to this. I have no doubt this will produce some awesome gains in muscle mass. Here is my “projected plan.”
Monday
Chest presses 3 sets
Pullups 3 sets
Rows 2 sets
Shoulder Press 3 sets
Posterior Delts 2 sets
Curls 3 sets
Tricep work 3 sets
Shrugs 2 sets
Tuesday
Leg Presses 3 sets
Seated leg Curls 2 sets
Back Extensions 1 set
Ab crunces 2 sets
Calf Raises 3 sets
Forearm work
Wednesday
Chest presses 3 sets
Pulldowns 3 sets
Rows 2 sets
Lateral Raises 3 sets
Curls 3 sets
Tricep work 3 sets
Thursday
Leg Presses 3 sets
Seated Leg Curls 2 sets
Calf Presses 3 sets
Ab Crunches 3 sets
Forearms
Friday
Total Body workout
Chest Presses 3 sets
Pulldowns 3 sets
Lateral Raises 3 sets
Curls 3 sets
Pushdowns 3 sets (tricep work)
Leg Presses 3 sets
Calf Raises 3 sets
We will add 3 days of 10-15 minutes of cardio. Should be interesting. Look folks all kinds of training works. You must not believe in just one set way of training. Higher Frequency training can and will work. Read some books by Tudor Bompa and other scientists. In fact, my graduate work will be centered around comparing each routine and exactly how much muscle each routine develops over a period of time. Comparing a program of high frequency, low volume with low frequency, high volume.
Busy day today. I had to take care of my kids during part of the day, which was great. I hit the gym early this morning and set some more pr’s.
Shoulders
Hammer Strength Shoulder Presss 170 per arm x 4,4,5
Seated Laterals 45lb dumbbells x5,50×5,5
Hammer Strength Shrug Machine 6 plates 3sets of 25
Posterior Delt Raises Chest Supported 70 lb dumbbells x6,6
10 minutes of high intensity cardio
Level 17 manual setting .77 miles (close to a Personal Record)
Tomorrow is going to be busy. I have to work until 11 am and then I will hit the road to drive to Evansville to judge the INBF Mid America Championships. Hosted by my good friend Dr. Joe. Be sure to say Hi!!
I got to the gym this afternoon ready to rock and roll. Back and Biceps is my favorite training day. I made some changes and they were good ones.
Back
Pullups BWx21,18,13 (I decided to start the workout with good ole pullups. This was great and totally worked well. I know my lats will be very sore) Steve buddy I gotta get up with you doing 3 sets of 25 
Hammer Strength High Row 225×4,4,5
Seated Dumbbell Curls 60 lb dumbbells x 5,6
Strive Curl Machine 70 lbs x 15,14,12 (decided to go lighter here which was good considering I have some bicep tendon issues going on)
10 minutes of super high intensity
Level 17 Distance .68 miles which I believe matches my best.
This routine has really been productive. I will take a week off in about 3 weeks.
Today’s workout we decided to use stationary dumbbells as our base movement for quads. I am hoping it won’t irritate my repaired knee. Finding exercises that don’t cause harm to your joints should be of highest priority for you. There is no reason to perform exercises that hurt joints.
Stationary lunges dumbbells 70 x 5 per leg, 85 x5, 90×5 100×4 80×5
Seated leg curls 250 x 5,5,5
Back extensions 1 set 45 lbs added x35
10 minutes of moderate intensity cardio
.58 miles covered at level 17
On leg day I like to have cardio be lower intensity than the other days in which I am going all out trying to beat a previous record. I call cardio at lower intensity cruising.
I gotta give some props to a super client. Steve, can do lunges with 90 lb dumbbells, no straps, for at least 8 reps per leg. Oh, I forgot to mention he weight just 150 super ripped pounds. Steve, dude I out weight you by 50 lbs and you kick my tail all over the gym. Superfreak!!
I got to the gym about mid day. I usually don’t like working out at this time but that’s the way we have to roll for now. Nevertheless, we were ready to rock and roll. I was jacked up on some serious caffeine. Here is what went down.
Chest
Flat Hammer Press Machine 135 per arm x 5, 145×5, 160×3.5
Low Hammer Press 225 per arm x 5,5,5
Close Grip Presses 245×5,5
1 arm dip machine 100×5,5
10 minutes of High Intensity Cardio
.68 miles covered at level 17 This distance was another personal record. Great workout.
