partial reps - UK-Muscle Body Building Community

**Jimmy** · 14-01-2005, 12:49 AM

Ok, a controversial subject here for all those traditionalists!

This is written not to be taken as the be all and end all. Rather, its to describe as best I can another approach that can be used in our training and how it may work for us.

When I look around my gym I can see all types of genetics and muscle types. We cant do a lot about these things as we are made the way we are and thats it.

But what about trying to change the quality of that muscle as well as to grow faster??

Sounds good doesn't it?

Ok, as I have written in other threads I believe in all avenues of training but there are some ways that I feel are better than the conventional styles used.

This post isn't about a particular workout or excursize, rather the way in which we use the weight we are lifting.

I am a big advocator of high reps because I feel that they create a better pump, and a better over all mature look to our muscle.

I dont like to see loads of mass with no detail. I am not talking about the drugs used or the body fat covering the muscle, I'm talking about the shape, lines and separation we need as bodybuilders.

I think that heavy low rep compound excersizes do have their place but are used all year round which creates that bulky massive look.

Again we will never turn a Marcus Rhuil into a Dexter Jackson (a far better physique to present IMO) because they are genetically different. But what if Marcus had the quality, mature look of Dorian Yates??!!!

You see I think that with a combination of heavy compound movements and high rep "tweaking" if you like, we can make a perfect look to out muscles no matter what our pre destined genetic shape is!

Lets take the bench press for example....

I like to see the heavy movements used in full range of motion as near to the neck as possible but without locking out at the top or over stretching at the bottom of the movement.

So once a thorough warm up has been executed a few of the above sets should be done for 6-10 reps or so.

Now I like to move on to the hard bit....

I dont really like to count reps too much but I like to see them ranging in the 15-30 rep zone.

This is where the partial reps come in to play.

I have watched countless videos of guys working with Charles Glass using high rep partial reps....they look awesome, you must see it to believe it.

I was watching a shoot where Dexter was performing his dumbbell presses in a 2 - 3 rep partial, 1 full rep, then repeat style. He went on like this for maybe 25 reps before fatigue.

The important part to remember was that he kept the muscle under constant pressure all the time for nearly 30-40 seconds before failure!

I try to feel the muscle, making sure it is isolated, working with no assistance from other muscle groups. We dont want to be using other muscles, otherwise we aren't targeting the muscle we are trying to train!

If you go all the way to the top of a leg press and lock out you aren't keeping the quad under constant tension! In effect you are resting that muscle momentarily!

Similarly if you go too far down, you start to work the glute and hamstring area of the legs.

I like to keep a mid range to most excersizes used/ When I preacher curl I use maybe three quarters of the range of motion, knocking off a little at the bottom and the top.

Again, concentrate on squeezing the muscle, making sure you can feel it working. Instead of benching with your arms, concentrate on pushing the pecks together and the bar will move with you. Squeeze the peck's together at the top and you will find that your elbows are still bent but the chest is going into overdrive!!

Training like this will give all the quality and separation you need to look beyond awesome.

As discussed before, powerlifters are strong, but not massive in comparison to the weights they lift. Do the judges at bb'ing shows award first place to the mass monster that benches more than everyone else??? No, the winner is the guy with a mature, perfectly separated physique, no matter what he squats or deadlifts!

Try it for yourselves and I know you wont be disappointed

winger · 14-01-2005, 01:59 AM

What if I go heavy and then go light and focus on just the muscle?
I train like this, but I like to do one strength, and one isolation excercise. Best of both worlds, in my opinion.

Get big, then work with the muscles. Without a foundation what are you working with?

**Jimmy** · 16-01-2005, 10:41 PM

seems good to me ringsy

winger · 16-01-2005, 11:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimmy

seems good to me ringsy

Shouldn't you be changing some diapers?;)

DB · 16-01-2005, 11:31 PM

nappies!!!! god damn yanks

only jokin winger...geterdone ;)

i think partial reps can be good but can also be done very wrong i think u need mass and then when u got size it needs to be scalpted..... i see too many noobs doin partials without any success just imo

crazycacti · 17-01-2005, 12:09 AM

Personally think partials aren't that good, not sure what u can really get out of them over full reps, if u can't handle the weight stick it down and do full reps IMO

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirty barry

i think u need mass and then when u got size it needs to be scalpted

I don't reckon u can scalpt a muscle, only make it bigger/smaller/one head bigger than another - i reckon ur born with the shape of ur muscles.

I'm not a fan of isolation exercises for this reason but u have to include some in ur workout, heavy full compound movements for me, cycling rep range from 6-8, 8-10, 10-12 and sometimes 12-15... i never do really isolated exercises such as DB preacher curls... who knows though once i get some base strength/mass.... each to their own

winger · 17-01-2005, 01:31 AM

From memory. You use a weight about 50% heavier than your max weight of one rep.
Lets just say you bench 200 lbs. You load the bar with 300 lbs and obviously you would need a spot with this. Your spotter helps you off with the bar and you hold the bar 1" from lock out position for 10-20 seconds. Now if you hold the bar for less than 10 seconds it is too heavy. If you hold if for more than 20 seconds then the next workout you will need to add about 20% (about) to your next workout. The key is to stay between the 10-20 second range.
Ok here is the tricky part. If you are not getting stronger then you need more time off.
Also the stronger you get the heavier the weight you can bare the more you need time off.
This is one set and one set only. I would start off with once a week and go from there.
The guys on the video was saying that there is only about 6 excercises. Bench, military, shrug, pulldown and I imagine some kind of squat and cant remember the rest.
I hope this part dosn't put you guys off but at there level they are workout out about every 6 weeks. Now I know this goes against every thing we (bb's) agree with. Dont shoot the messinger, I am only passing on this for the injured guys that dont want to loose strength and size do to not being able to train a injured area of the body. I hope this helps.

DB · 17-01-2005, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazycacti

I don't reckon u can scalpt a muscle, only make it bigger/smaller/one head bigger than another - i reckon ur born with the shape of ur muscles.

i agree..... didnt make myself clear in the first one..... i also dont think u can change the shape of the muscle but i think u can add detail and striations like jimmy said by doinn different exercises

14-01-2005, 12:49 AM	#1 (permalink)
Jimmy Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Forest gym crawley Posts: 4,302	partial reps Ok, a controversial subject here for all those traditionalists! This is written not to be taken as the be all and end all. Rather, its to describe as best I can another approach that can be used in our training and how it may work for us. When I look around my gym I can see all types of genetics and muscle types. We cant do a lot about these things as we are made the way we are and thats it. But what about trying to change the quality of that muscle as well as to grow faster?? Sounds good doesn't it? Ok, as I have written in other threads I believe in all avenues of training but there are some ways that I feel are better than the conventional styles used. This post isn't about a particular workout or excursize, rather the way in which we use the weight we are lifting. I am a big advocator of high reps because I feel that they create a better pump, and a better over all mature look to our muscle. I dont like to see loads of mass with no detail. I am not talking about the drugs used or the body fat covering the muscle, I'm talking about the shape, lines and separation we need as bodybuilders. I think that heavy low rep compound excersizes do have their place but are used all year round which creates that bulky massive look. Again we will never turn a Marcus Rhuil into a Dexter Jackson (a far better physique to present IMO) because they are genetically different. But what if Marcus had the quality, mature look of Dorian Yates??!!! You see I think that with a combination of heavy compound movements and high rep "tweaking" if you like, we can make a perfect look to out muscles no matter what our pre destined genetic shape is! Lets take the bench press for example.... I like to see the heavy movements used in full range of motion as near to the neck as possible but without locking out at the top or over stretching at the bottom of the movement. So once a thorough warm up has been executed a few of the above sets should be done for 6-10 reps or so. Now I like to move on to the hard bit.... I dont really like to count reps too much but I like to see them ranging in the 15-30 rep zone. This is where the partial reps come in to play. I have watched countless videos of guys working with Charles Glass using high rep partial reps....they look awesome, you must see it to believe it. I was watching a shoot where Dexter was performing his dumbbell presses in a 2 - 3 rep partial, 1 full rep, then repeat style. He went on like this for maybe 25 reps before fatigue. The important part to remember was that he kept the muscle under constant pressure all the time for nearly 30-40 seconds before failure! I try to feel the muscle, making sure it is isolated, working with no assistance from other muscle groups. We dont want to be using other muscles, otherwise we aren't targeting the muscle we are trying to train! If you go all the way to the top of a leg press and lock out you aren't keeping the quad under constant tension! In effect you are resting that muscle momentarily! Similarly if you go too far down, you start to work the glute and hamstring area of the legs. I like to keep a mid range to most excersizes used/ When I preacher curl I use maybe three quarters of the range of motion, knocking off a little at the bottom and the top. Again, concentrate on squeezing the muscle, making sure you can feel it working. Instead of benching with your arms, concentrate on pushing the pecks together and the bar will move with you. Squeeze the peck's together at the top and you will find that your elbows are still bent but the chest is going into overdrive!! Training like this will give all the quality and separation you need to look beyond awesome. As discussed before, powerlifters are strong, but not massive in comparison to the weights they lift. Do the judges at bb'ing shows award first place to the mass monster that benches more than everyone else??? No, the winner is the guy with a mature, perfectly separated physique, no matter what he squats or deadlifts! Try it for yourselves and I know you wont be disappointed __________________ *To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.* 'Genetics is the science of heredity and variation in living organisms. Inheritance in organisms occurs by means of discrete traits, called genes.'

14-01-2005, 01:59 AM	#2 (permalink)
winger UK-Muscle Male Animal Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Southern California, USA Posts: 10,216 Blog Entries: 1	What if I go heavy and then go light and focus on just the muscle? I train like this, but I like to do one strength, and one isolation excercise. Best of both worlds, in my opinion. Get big, then work with the muscles. Without a foundation what are you working with? __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

16-01-2005, 10:41 PM	#3 (permalink)
Jimmy Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Forest gym crawley Posts: 4,302	seems good to me ringsy __________________ *To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.* 'Genetics is the science of heredity and variation in living organisms. Inheritance in organisms occurs by means of discrete traits, called genes.'

16-01-2005, 11:31 PM	#5 (permalink)
DB Moderator Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: SW London Posts: 11,131	nappies!!!! god damn yanks only jokin winger...geterdone ;) i think partial reps can be good but can also be done very wrong i think u need mass and then when u got size it needs to be scalpted..... i see too many noobs doin partials without any success just imo __________________ DB To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. often imitated never duplicated To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. DB sleeps with a night light. Not because DB is afraid of the dark, but the dark is afraid of DB. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

17-01-2005, 01:31 AM	#7 (permalink)
winger UK-Muscle Male Animal Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Southern California, USA Posts: 10,216 Blog Entries: 1	Static training, this was for an injured warrior. From memory. You use a weight about 50% heavier than your max weight of one rep. Lets just say you bench 200 lbs. You load the bar with 300 lbs and obviously you would need a spot with this. Your spotter helps you off with the bar and you hold the bar 1" from lock out position for 10-20 seconds. Now if you hold the bar for less than 10 seconds it is too heavy. If you hold if for more than 20 seconds then the next workout you will need to add about 20% (about) to your next workout. The key is to stay between the 10-20 second range. Ok here is the tricky part. If you are not getting stronger then you need more time off. Also the stronger you get the heavier the weight you can bare the more you need time off. This is one set and one set only. I would start off with once a week and go from there. The guys on the video was saying that there is only about 6 excercises. Bench, military, shrug, pulldown and I imagine some kind of squat and cant remember the rest. I hope this part dosn't put you guys off but at there level they are workout out about every 6 weeks. Now I know this goes against every thing we (bb's) agree with. Dont shoot the messinger, I am only passing on this for the injured guys that dont want to loose strength and size do to not being able to train a injured area of the body. I hope this helps. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.