Training for bulk

[Legion Kreinak]

Could someone just give me insight the benefits of training for bulk, THEN toning muscle, rather than just doing endurance training and slowly developing and toning muscle?

 

[Doktor Bollix]

There's no such thing as "toning" muscle outside of women's fitness magazines. It's a meaningless term palmed off on women convinced they will turn into the incredible hulk if they lift weights. That's why so many women waste their time doing high rep curls with pink dumbells and think they are working out.

Endurance training doesn't develop muscle, ever see professional marathon runners?

Think you need to rephrase the question there amigo.

 

[Legion Kreinak]

Hm, first of all I don't think you understand then. Either that or I completed misunderstood the many things I read about endurance training. Rather than doing, oh say, 5-8 reps, 3 sets with 90% RM, you would do 12-15 reps, 3 sets with 70-80% RM. The 2nd option, from what I've read/heard, being "Endurance" training. From what I gather, anything above 70% RM with about 3 sets, done periodically, will result in muscle growth. Whatever kind of endurance training you're thinking of, I'm not sure. Point is, I hear that your muscles explode rapidly when using much heavier weights with lower reps. However, I'm not 100% assured of this. Obviously you're gaining strength from that, but supposedly you won't have much endurance, and if placed in a canoeing scenario, the person with more muscular endurance would generally last longer, wouldn't you agree? So, uh... by doing my form of "endurance" training will I still increase in size, but just at a slower rate? Like I've said before, I don't want to be huge, and fill in my shirts. I just want to have that concealed sort of strength, so people don't exactly look at you and go "damn, he's huge, would never wanna mess with him". You get the idea, I hope.

 

[gettinlarger]

I believe you're asking whether it is better or not to try and gain LBM without eating a lot. No. Can't be done. Well, it could, but it would take like 490 years. Don't be worried about gaining a little fat bro, you can always cut it off when you're ready.

 

[nikkita]

Something I've noticed about certain guys is that they think that if they bulk they would get as big as Nasser El Sonbaty... the truth is that it takes lots of time... sometimes even years to get a size were people say "he's huge".
I think that you are more an athlete than a bodybuilder. So in those terms, obviously endurance is important to you... in this case muscular development would be different in some parts and you may have to focus on other lagging parts at the gym.
Training for bulking is not just the workout and the amount of repetitions, a good diet will be the key.

 

[Haz]

You build endurance, from your endurance training (running, cycling, swimming etc).

Weights are for building strength and increasing muscle mass.

 

[Legion Kreinak]

Uhm, there are endurance programs that incorporate weight training, ya' know... More reps, less weight, more volume, less intensity.

 

[erickthegreat11]

Kobe: can be kept in play the entire game
Shaq: can sweat kobe's body weight in one quarter
Kobe: can jump over shaq
Shaq: can slam dunk with Kobe on him
Kobe: can out run Shaq and most other players
Shaq: can't out run most other players
Kobe: could go head to head in a marathon
Shaq: could go head to head in a powerlifting meet
All depends on what your goals are.

 

[Legion Kreinak]

Hmm, well if telling you my goals will make this easier, then alright. My goals are simply to be lean and sculpted, with alot of flexibility to do martial arts, something I'm very fond of. Obviously if I get, for example (not that it'd happen in awhile) but Arnold Schw... I don't know how to spell his last name, but yeah you know who, if I get to his size (24 in bicep or something) and that bulky, I would of course be powerful, but that would counteract my ability to preform aerial kicks. Thusly I need to find a perfectly balanced routine for martial arts goals. Anyone have something to point me towards for a martial arts-esque physique or routine?

 

[gymtime]

LK - what the boys are trying to tell you is that barring training for a specific sport, which is a different deal, weight training ( or bodybuilding as opposed to powerlifting) is about gaining muscle strength and size, period. There is no such thing as "endurance weight training". In other words, 11-16 rep sets are many times less effective than solid, challenging 6-10 rep sets.

When people talk about bulking or cutting, 95% of what they change involves their diet and amount of cardio. The workouts stay pretty much the same.

As for training for martial arts specifically, that's out of my area. But my guess is that this concept applies regardless. If you are lifting heavy and dieting and running (or whatever type of cardio you choose) in accordance with your goals, you will see the results in whatever sport you're doing.