Question thread for our AMA with Eric Helms of 3DMJ!
- Thread starter paparazi257
- Start date
-
- Tags
- ama natural bodybuilding
@intotheforge I’ve been there and I just wanna say I’m proud of you for sticking through with lifting and fitness while going through it. You can’t have mental health without physical health, and vice versa. Keep it up!
intotheforge
New member
@amysz1217 Thank you! One day at a time! :*)
frustratedhusband
New member
@paparazi257 Hey Eric! Love your books and the podcast.
What are some of the injuries you've had? Why did you get them and what did you do to keep them away?
What are some of the injuries you've had? Why did you get them and what did you do to keep them away?
@frustratedhusband I wish there was a clear explanation for each injury I’ve had and a clear explanation for how to prevent injuries, but the human body and its response to stress in a dynamic environment is too complex for that.
The times it was clear, it came down to not a great balance between stress and recovery. For example, I tore my hamstring in 2009 on a set of sumo deadlifts. But I was doing 5 HIIT sessions a week including some on-ground sprinting while training legs, heavy, and near failure with moderate volume twice per week…oh and I was 4 months into contest prep. Finally, I had built up to this very high level of HIIT training quite quickly rather than gradually.
Don’t do that.
However, I mentioned in another question a neck injury I had that resulted in a slipped disc that I almost got surgery for. That occurred during a deload on a light set of OHP in the offseason
Broadly, my advice is to slowly acclimate to higher stresses. Want to increase volume? Ok, but don’t do so more than 20% and sit on that for a while. Want to train closer to failure? Ok, but don’t do so by more than 1 RIR, and not while also increasing volume. Don’t do either when sleep or nutrition isn’t in place to support the added demand. Use consistent form, implement autoregulation for load selection and deloads, and when using new exercises or higher volumes or intensity than you’re accustomed to, use intro weeks to bridge into it.
The times it was clear, it came down to not a great balance between stress and recovery. For example, I tore my hamstring in 2009 on a set of sumo deadlifts. But I was doing 5 HIIT sessions a week including some on-ground sprinting while training legs, heavy, and near failure with moderate volume twice per week…oh and I was 4 months into contest prep. Finally, I had built up to this very high level of HIIT training quite quickly rather than gradually.
Don’t do that.
However, I mentioned in another question a neck injury I had that resulted in a slipped disc that I almost got surgery for. That occurred during a deload on a light set of OHP in the offseason
Broadly, my advice is to slowly acclimate to higher stresses. Want to increase volume? Ok, but don’t do so more than 20% and sit on that for a while. Want to train closer to failure? Ok, but don’t do so by more than 1 RIR, and not while also increasing volume. Don’t do either when sleep or nutrition isn’t in place to support the added demand. Use consistent form, implement autoregulation for load selection and deloads, and when using new exercises or higher volumes or intensity than you’re accustomed to, use intro weeks to bridge into it.@paparazi257 Another question, Eric. Do you believe there is a time of day that a person is at the strongest? I know there are a lot of individual factors, but as a general rule.
@paparazi257 For a non-super heavy weight, what is the optimal bodyfat range for a powerlifter?
@hrr16 Not that it’s useful information because I don’t represent the norm nor the full range of individual possibilities, but I am stronger in terms of my coefficient score when I’m lean but not super lean, and can do a water cut from like 85 to 83 vs 96 to 93. Bryce Lewis, however, as an example, when we went up to 105 from 93 became a world champion, when he was previously 5th at nationals, and he’s 5’6, so bodyfat got pretty high when he did that
@paparazi257 Hi Eric,
I have a quick about volume progression over time. It’s been awhile since I watched them, but this is coming from the revive stronger videos you did with Dr. Mike. I could be off base, but I recall you advocating for a model of only progressing volume when necessary as opposed to the RP model of increasing volume/intensity week to week.
My question is around what indicators you would recommend using as the benchmark for when volume progressions are necessary in your model. For example, let’s say someone is doing 3x barbell bench and 2x pec deck in workout A and 3x incline DB bench and 2x barbell bench in workout B. What signs should they be looking for that they may need to progress volume?
I have a quick about volume progression over time. It’s been awhile since I watched them, but this is coming from the revive stronger videos you did with Dr. Mike. I could be off base, but I recall you advocating for a model of only progressing volume when necessary as opposed to the RP model of increasing volume/intensity week to week.
My question is around what indicators you would recommend using as the benchmark for when volume progressions are necessary in your model. For example, let’s say someone is doing 3x barbell bench and 2x pec deck in workout A and 3x incline DB bench and 2x barbell bench in workout B. What signs should they be looking for that they may need to progress volume?
@peggys He has a flow chart in his book that talks about this. The answer would be to increase volume if you ARE NOT PROGRESSING, feel recovered enough to do so, and all of these are occurring: sleep 8+ hours, caloric surplus, protein .7g/lb or more, 2x muscle/lift frequency, not over/under estimating effort, and performing with good technique.
@paparazi257 Howdy Eric!
What are your thoughts on short biased movements being just as effective as lengthened biased movements with the condition that you go to failure and then do a few partials on the short biased movement? This is compared to lengthened biased movements just going to 0RIR, no partials.
What are your thoughts on short biased movements being just as effective as lengthened biased movements with the condition that you go to failure and then do a few partials on the short biased movement? This is compared to lengthened biased movements just going to 0RIR, no partials.
@leena2016 Howdy!!
Not sure, hasn’t been tested, and lots of variables simultaneously at play, but I don’t really see the benefit of short biased movements generally unless you are trying to minimise muscle damage for whatever programming reason on that day/exercise slot and that’s worth the trade off of a poorer stimulus
Not sure, hasn’t been tested, and lots of variables simultaneously at play, but I don’t really see the benefit of short biased movements generally unless you are trying to minimise muscle damage for whatever programming reason on that day/exercise slot and that’s worth the trade off of a poorer stimulus
gracegreen
New member
@paparazi257 Hey Eric, big fan. I was just re-reading The Muscle and Strength Pyramid and considering moving to double progression for some of my movements.
Question: When one stalls on a movement using double progression. Should they take a global deload week, or rather deload each movement individually?
Question: When one stalls on a movement using double progression. Should they take a global deload week, or rather deload each movement individually?