Supersetting upper body workout

[ScooterChick]

As you may know, I go to a PT (personal trainer) semi-regularly. Usually we do straight-up gym style lifting. (I've posted an earlier version of what we do a few months back. You can search for my handle and the "great results without bulking" thread.)

Anyway, *very* occasionally we'll do some more endurance-type stuff. I really hate endurance workouts. Everytime I do them, I get completely wiped out, & I don't feel psychological satisfaction I get with lifting more heavy with fewer reps. I'm also not sure what including more endurance workouts would do for me (well, it does make me sore!). I don't feel like I need to mix things up just for the sake of mixing it up. (any thoughts from others?)

But today we did a more endurance type upper body day, and it was pretty cool, and even though I was pretty wiped by the end, it wasn't as annoying as other endurance workouts.

I thought someone might be interested in checking this out and perhaps doing it on their own. For a superset, you do the first part and the second part back-to-back, rest, then repeat.

CHEST:
3 supersets: 15 pushups, 15 dumbbell bench press.

BACK:
3 supersets: 15 t-bar rows, 15 bent over delt flyes. [t-bar row is a machine at my gym--you can make your own t-bar row by loading all your plates onto one end of your barbell, like Cathe does in PS, I think it is.]

SHOULDER:
3 supersets: 15 dumbbell overhead press, 15 side lateral raises.

BIS/TRIS:
3 supersets: 15 barbell curls, 15 tricep dips.

If you're anything like me, you'll have to drop your weights a bit. But I did all three sets with big girl pushups!

[Isalay]

Thanks Scooterchick.

Lately I've been doing my own weight routines because aside from Cathe's Pure Strength workouts (which I love), I've been feeling pain in my left groin muscle from doing my other strength tapes (Firms, Tamilee, Kathy S., etc) . I usually follow a condensed version of the same exercises from Pure Strength on my own for a total body workout, so this will be a nice change of pace.

Can you superset lower body work too?

Btw I dislike endurance work too, wipes me out!

[ScooterChick]

I suppose you could superset lower body stuff...Like squats and then lunges. Leg day is hard with the PT, b/c personally, I think you could be done in 30 min--just do squats, SLDLs, maybe lunges, and then calves. But we do leg extensions and hamstring curls, plus squats and lunges, etc., and then I'm completely pooped by the end!

Do you think your injury could be from plie squats?

[Reg]

Sounds like my workout except that I'm usually already pre-fatigued from my 40 min run after which I go straight to my weight workout using super sets. It really helps tone and harden the muscles rather than just bulk up.

[ScooterChick]

Have you really had the experience that endurance workouts are more likely to harden the muscles rather than bulk?

I don't really have a bulking problem. I tend to think that bulking is often about perception, and I don't really have a lot of body fat to lose (some, of course, but nothing dramatic). So I always thought that I had resolved the strength vs. endurance debate.

I can't imagine running 45 minutes before lifting. I would just go straight to the smoothie bar at my gym!

[Theotoks]

Originally posted by Reg
It really helps tone and harden the muscles rather than just bulk up.

The endurance workout develops slow-twitch muscle fibers while the lower-rep, heavy weight workouts work the fast-twitch fibers. These are more powerful muscles but fatigue more easily.

People are born with a given amount of each type of fiber and cannot change their ratio (that we know so far).

However, if one works one type of fiber over another, that type (slow- or fast-twitch) will become more developed. Since fast-twitch muscles have less volume and grow less than slow-twitch, one can "harden & tone" vs. "bulk" by using endurance training.

Strength and burst training enlarge the muscle fibers.
Endurance training causes more blood vessel formation than does speed or strength training, which produces an increased capacity for aerobic metabolism within the muscle cell.

Using both strength and endurance training develops both types of fibers, resulting in a more fit person overall.


ALWAYS have a Plan B.

[Isalay]

I'm not even sure it's my groin, the pain is around that area though . It might be plie squats, but I kind of think it's when I do front lunges. If they're done at a slower pace it's okay, but when the repetition is fast....oiy, that's when I feel it!

As for supersetting lower body work, now that I think about it, I think I'll stick with regular sets! :rolleyes:

Thanks!

[ScooterChick]

I know about the fast vs slow. Also, I suspect (not sure) that endurance workouts are harder for people with fewer fast-twitch fibers, and S&H type workouts are harder for people with fewer slow twitch muscles. But it's still unclear to me what "tone" means, or even what "harden" means (are larger, slow-twitch developed muscles "soft"?).

More importantly, I'm still not sure what endurance workouts do for you other than all around fitness. For example, if an elite lifter-type did endurance training once a week (either in addition to, or occasionally replacing heavy lifting days), what would happen to her? Would she be able to lift more or less in her heavy days? Would she be smaller? Would she look different?

[Theotoks]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ScooterChick
[B] But it's still unclear to me what "tone" means, or even what "harden" means (are larger, slow-twitch developed muscles "soft"?). [B]

The difference between "hard" and "soft" is between trained and untrained muscles. Endurance training develops muscles so the trainee is harder than if she did not train at all, certainly not harder than someone who trains FT or FT/ST muscle fibers.

As for visible results of endurance vs. strength training, there can be a selective hypertrophy of fibers based on the type of training.

For example, she may have a 50/50 mix of FT/ST fibers in a muscle, but since FT fibers normally have a larger cross-sectional area than ST fibers, 65% of that muscle's area may be FT and 35% may be ST. Following a strength training program for improvement in muscular strength, the number of FT and ST fibers will remain the same (still 50/50), BUT the cross-sectional area will change. This happens because the ST fibers will atrophy (get smaller) while the FT fibers will hypertrophy (get larger).

Depending on the specific intensity used in training, the muscle may change to a 75% FT area and a 25% ST area. The change in area will lead to GREATER strength but DECREASED endurance capabilities. In addition, since the mass of FT fibers are greater than that of ST fibers, she will gain mass, as measured by the circumference of the muscle. Some people perceive this as becoming "bulky."

If she trains for muscular endurance, the FT fibers will atrophy while the ST fibers hypertrophy, causing a greater area of ST fibers. The area of the muscle, may change to 50% FT and 50% ST following training. The endurance capabilities of the muscle will INCREASE while its strength will DECREASE. The muscle area will be smaller because ST fibers are lower in mass than FT fibers. The decrease in mass may be observed by a smaller circumference of the muscle (some perceive this as being "toned" vs. "bulky").

This effect is why some women like the Lower Body Solution wherein one uses lighter weights, more reps for the lower body, 5-6 times per week. The desired result is toned, hard lower body muscles, with less mass.

ALWAYS have a Plan B.

[ScooterChick]

Okay, I buy that! But do you think that your makeup of FT/ST determines which (strength or endurance) comes easier to you?

My question re "harden" was in response to Reg's comment about doing endurance in order to "harden" muscles which I didn't understand.