First of all, thank you for posting this workout. However, I think the exercises should have been more organized. I think it would serve us better if the chest exercises are at the beginning, then the triceps, then the abs. If one works out the triceps first, there won't be much energy left for the chest, which is a larger group of muscles.
Thanks for your question (or statement) Lap. Let me address your concern thoroughly because I think you might be a little confused & I would like to help you. Further I would like to post this comment and my answer on my community tab in case there are others watching who might also be confused. Around 22 or 23 years ago when I was a rookie trainer with very little technical knowledge, I used to explain training in the same format as your suggestion of compound exercises before isolations and primaries before secondaries etc. However with time and experience I learnt that not everything should get painted with the same brush. The theory of matching up complimenting compounds & isolations in that order is training for power (and some extent an old and debunked theory of training for size). This would be true if the purpose of your training was to work towards a maximum lift then yes you'd be correct in saying you would work your fresh majors first and then use what you have left in reserve for your minor muscles. The problem with your statement however is that you're commenting on a reformer video which is used primarily for functional performance and muscular endurance. This is no different to taking your F1 car to a horse race and then commenting that the horses should have slick tyres on their hoofs. It's somewhat irrelevant & unnecessary. In this program we are essentially circuiting between Pecs, Triceps and Abs exercises so that when Creatine Phosphate depletes from 1 muscle we move on to the next and keep cycling through to encourage a "refill" response which allows your muscles to perform for longer. If you're telling me that after doing a set of Triceps you don't have enough energy left to go back and do a chest set then that's more reason for you to focus on muscular endurance and functionality because you're definitely lacking. At the end of the day you don't want to be a useless bodybuilder who can press 200kg for a single rep but can't do a handful of chin-ups. If your goal is more strength (and to some extent bodybuilding) then you pretty much need to get off your reformer and start doing my weights programs. You'll find that they (again where relevant) will follow the primary -> secondary -> tertiary training theory as per your suggestion. I hope my answer helps you with your training. Oh... also I suspect you're also a believer of training 5 rep sets for size and 12 rep sets for definition (another entry level assumption), so if that's the case then please let me know so I can shoot a hole through that theory for you as well.
Thank you for taking the time to explaining it in great details. So, if I want to train chest, tricep, and abs using the trainer reformer, should I follow the sequence in this video? Also, as for rest, what would you recommend to be an appropriate amount of time?
Lap the way my programs work, you just press play and train along! Don't look to change the sequence or add your own breaks because they're all pre-determined. Take a look at this 3 mins video attached. It's explaining a different workout series but the concept is exactly the same (as far as treating my workout programs go). th-cam.com/video/BJz1IgnSi54/w-d-xo.html The other thing to consider is that there is usually a formula or method to my madness. It's not just exercises thrown together in random order but usually designed to achieve a purpose. This will be different from workout to workout depending on the equipment used and the program objective :)
Thank you so much for uploading this set of videos!
You're welcome. I always intended to it after you asked for it :)
First of all, thank you for posting this workout. However, I think the exercises should have been more organized. I think it would serve us better if the chest exercises are at the beginning, then the triceps, then the abs.
If one works out the triceps first, there won't be much energy left for the chest, which is a larger group of muscles.
Thanks for your question (or statement) Lap. Let me address your concern thoroughly because I think you might be a little confused & I would like to help you. Further I would like to post this comment and my answer on my community tab in case there are others watching who might also be confused. Around 22 or 23 years ago when I was a rookie trainer with very little technical knowledge, I used to explain training in the same format as your suggestion of compound exercises before isolations and primaries before secondaries etc. However with time and experience I learnt that not everything should get painted with the same brush. The theory of matching up complimenting compounds & isolations in that order is training for power (and some extent an old and debunked theory of training for size). This would be true if the purpose of your training was to work towards a maximum lift then yes you'd be correct in saying you would work your fresh majors first and then use what you have left in reserve for your minor muscles. The problem with your statement however is that you're commenting on a reformer video which is used primarily for functional performance and muscular endurance. This is no different to taking your F1 car to a horse race and then commenting that the horses should have slick tyres on their hoofs. It's somewhat irrelevant & unnecessary. In this program we are essentially circuiting between Pecs, Triceps and Abs exercises so that when Creatine Phosphate depletes from 1 muscle we move on to the next and keep cycling through to encourage a "refill" response which allows your muscles to perform for longer. If you're telling me that after doing a set of Triceps you don't have enough energy left to go back and do a chest set then that's more reason for you to focus on muscular endurance and functionality because you're definitely lacking. At the end of the day you don't want to be a useless bodybuilder who can press 200kg for a single rep but can't do a handful of chin-ups. If your goal is more strength (and to some extent bodybuilding) then you pretty much need to get off your reformer and start doing my weights programs. You'll find that they (again where relevant) will follow the primary -> secondary -> tertiary training theory as per your suggestion. I hope my answer helps you with your training. Oh... also I suspect you're also a believer of training 5 rep sets for size and 12 rep sets for definition (another entry level assumption), so if that's the case then please let me know so I can shoot a hole through that theory for you as well.
Thank you for taking the time to explaining it in great details. So, if I want to train chest, tricep, and abs using the trainer reformer, should I follow the sequence in this video? Also, as for rest, what would you recommend to be an appropriate amount of time?
Lap the way my programs work, you just press play and train along! Don't look to change the sequence or add your own breaks because they're all pre-determined. Take a look at this 3 mins video attached. It's explaining a different workout series but the concept is exactly the same (as far as treating my workout programs go).
th-cam.com/video/BJz1IgnSi54/w-d-xo.html
The other thing to consider is that there is usually a formula or method to my madness. It's not just exercises thrown together in random order but usually designed to achieve a purpose. This will be different from workout to workout depending on the equipment used and the program objective :)