Question thread for our AMA with Eric Helms of 3DMJ!

[paparazi257]

We are happy to welcome Eric Helms of 3DMJ, @jj6211, to do an AMA with us starting Saturday 13Jan2024. Start posting questions and upvote the ones they would like to see answered. Eric will start replying around 3pm EST on the 13th.

Thank you to Boostcamp for offering to sponsor this AMA. Boostcamp is a free training app for science-based lifting programs from Eric Helms, Alberto Nunez, Geoff Schofield, Natural Hypertrophy, and more. You can also create your own multi-week routines with progressions on the app. If you have any questions please go to r/Boostcamp.

Download Boostcamp on iOS and Androd: https://boostcamp.me/bodybuilding

 

[dawn16]

@paparazi257 Hey Eric! Big fan for a long time, love your content.

What would you say are some of the training philosophies or methods you've changed your mind on the most over the course of your career? Could be regarding volume, intensity, splits, nutrition, ROM or technique, etc.

 

[jj6211]

@dawn16 Great question!

I’d say most recently, as the relationship with proximity to failure and hypertrophy becoming clearer, I’ve changed my mind on trying to prioritise volume at the expense of proximity to failure. In other words, I’d previously advise more generally training further from failure to allow higher frequency and volume. Now, this is still absolutely a viable way to program, potentially effective, and potentially ideal for some people, but no longer my default. Given 1) the relationship between volume and hypertrophy is largely demonstrated in studies where the participants are training close to failure 2) the clearer importance of being reasonably close to failure and 3) that higher frequencies of training are primarily beneficial as vehicles to increase volume, my more “standard” recommendation in absence of prior training data is to start with moderate volume and frequency and reasonably high effort (closer to failure), and then individualise from there based on results.

 

[terasee]

@paparazi257 Hi Eric, what is the biggest fitness "broscience" that you believe in that hasn't been proven by studies?

 

[jj6211]

@terasee Haha, great question. I’d say that in lean enough populations, or at least some people, that refeeds and diet breaks do something more meaningful that reducing hunger, enhancing satiety and making dieting feel easier. While that’s all the data currently show, we don’t have data on prepping bodybuilders going from lean to shredded so I’m holding out hope given how positive my anecdotal experiences have been as a coach (and athlete).

 

[jazzper]

@paparazi257 Hey Eric, for someone who are training for the main goal of hypertrophy, would double progression and dynamic double progression be a fine method to use on every lift?

Is there really ever a need at any level for more complex progression methods then this for hypertrophy?

 

[jj6211]

@jazzper I think those are absolutely totally fine methods to use almost exclusively, especially if paired with RIR/RPE as you’ll see quite quickly if you’re outpacing the model when your RPE falls below the target. One caveat, you do need to have some method for assessing when total set volume needs to change/assess plateaus/over or under recovery. You can’t just set it and forget and assume all progression stalls/plateaus/slow downs are to be expected due to an advancing training age. So with RPE and some diagnostic rubrics, all good

 

[josieyy]

@jj6211 This is where your adding/subtracting volume flow chart from the book is helpful haha.

How often would you recommend stepping back and assessing progress? Is it shorter like a month, or more like several months?

 

[jj6211]

@josieyy Depends on experience level and the conditions. If you’re on a long diet, you’re just holding the line, if you’re anything less than advanced there should be some apparent progression without having to look at your log books to know it.

 

[amysz1217]

@paparazi257 How has your powerlifting career shaped your bodybuilding career and vice versa? Do you view powerlifting as a side quest to bodybuilding, which is your main quest?

Thanks for doing this AMA btw!

 

[jj6211]

@amysz1217 For the longest time, they were one and the same. My goal was to be the best strength and physique athlete I could be. There was only one quest. However, strength sport and physique sport have different experiential flavours. Physique sport is an existential journey, as it takes you to very challenging places if you want to get into elite levels of conditioning and changes you on deeper levels. It’s more mentally and emotionally challenging. On the other hand, strength sport feels more like a pure sport, its performance is objectively judged and it lends itself to a clearer input/output reward. So I enjoy them for different reasons.

I benefited in many ways from being exposed to the philosophies and practices that came from different silos within the lifting community. For example, over a decade ago the average bodybuilder would tell you a good leg session was dictated by how wrecked you felt after; however, because of my powerlifting influence I knew it was better dictated by whether or not I was able to make objective, performance increases in reps/load/effort etc. Likewise, my exposure to the high frequency of training while Olympic weightlifting made me more willing to experiment with higher frequencies than was common in either bodybuilding or powerlifting circles a decade ago.

Fast forward to today, however, I’m finally at a point where to even maintain my physique at its current level of development or my strength at 95% of peak levels, I have to dedicate an amount of time and effort to maintenance that takes away from what I need to do to progress in the other. So, given I think I’m more talented as a physique athlete than strength athlete, and I do have competitive aspirations and enjoy not only seeing how far I can push myself relative to my potential, but also relative to the field of competition, and the deeper meaning I get out bodybuilding (although it is far more demanding), bodybuilding is my near to mid term exclusive focus.

 

[amysz1217]

@jj6211

it takes you to very challenging places

Ah yes. We’ve all been there — I call it the trenches. The part in prep when you’re super lean, shredded to 99.9% of people, and cruising along when, one morning, you wake up at 3 am with a sharp pang in your stomach and an audible growl. After drifting off back to half sleep, half just lying down with your eyes closed, you get up, only to realize you’re weak and brain fogged still. Getting out of bed and brushing your teeth is as tiring as a leg day. I still think back to those trenches when things get hard - both lifting and non lifting related - and they feel so easy in comparison.

Slightly unrelated question: do you think semaglutide will play a part in preps in the future? I feel like it can really help in preventing post show rebound and binges, as well as trudging through those last 2-4 weeks of a prep.

 

[jj6211]

@amysz1217 Well said.

For me, it won’t, know, as technically banned substance lists include “any prescription drug for bodybuilding purposes”. Also, it is being used by some already, and I’ve heard good things during prep, but then even worse rebounds post contest once they go off.

 

[intotheforge]

@jj6211 gold comment!

 

[nicolek]

@paparazi257 Hi Eric! Thanks for doing this.

I’m as lean as I’m willing to get for my upcoming show as a natural bodybuilder (6%).

I have another show one month after that. How do you recommend ‘holding’ these extreme levels of leanness between shows? It’s negatively affecting my work and personal life, so was wondering what your thoughts were around ‘reversing’ out of this between shows, hopefully still looking lean while accepting I might be a higher bodyfat percentage?

 

[lcapitan]

@nicolek Check out the 3DMJ recovery diet which goes into more detail and is free to view through the vault on their website. Have a celebratory meal post show but then get back on the diet a couple days later

 

[jj6211]

@lcapitan This!

 

[holoman]

@paparazi257 Thanks for doing this and for all the content over the years! What are your thoughts on auto regulating volume and intensity on a per session basis to manage fatigue instead of a formal deload every X weeks?

 

[ashleylovesjesus]

@holoman Would like to piggyback on this to also ask about deload/recovery sessions for individual body parts as encouraged by menno henselmans.

 

[jj6211]

@ashleylovesjesus I think the only issue is that it’s hard to know how to autoregulate volume. I don’t have confidence in any system I’ve seen that it produces ideal volume on a given session based on biofeedback or any auto regulated method I can think of. Ultimately determining ideal volume will include some degree of retrospective analysis and trial and error. That said, auto regulated deloads are absolutely an option, I like to do those based post-block assessments of soreness, sleep, motivation, stress, sleep, performance and pain. I think body part or movement specific deloading is a good tool to have when you have localised, unanticipated fatigue, but you also need to have a tool for when systemic fatigue is out of hand as well.