Burn before slowdown on reps?

R

Randy

New Member
It's said that a primary goal of 15s is to create a burn in the muscle(s) targeted by the particular exercise. It's also said that when rep speed slows considerably, it's time to stop the set. I find that on most exercises, the slowdown comes well before the burn, leg extensions is the notable exception. If I continue after the slowdown I will get the burn but...

Any thoughts on this?

Also, I may be tweaking my routine for efficiency's sake, do you think the medial and posterior delts are hit sufficiently with basic compound exercises making isolation exercises for them unnecessary?

Thanks,
Randy
 
#1. Have you tried doing slow concentrics & quick eccentrics on the lifts in the 15s? Something like a 3-0-1 rep speed will give you a burn. Credit to Edziu on this; I tried it and it works.

#2. If you do shoulder press (particularly partials), Arnolds or other vertical presses you will work the medial delts. Rear delts will get work on rows and pulldowns. You may have to "wait and see" if you feel they are getting enough work to preclude isolations for these. I'm personally finding that I'm needing more than just compounds to get sufficient work on some muscles, so I plan to add some isolations (or additional compund exercises) on some things next cycle.

Just my 2 cents.
 
Hmmm, 3s concentric, no pause and 1s eccentric? I'm sure I read a previous post by Bryan saying quick concentrics and controlled eccentrics was the preferred cadence. Oh well...just another inconsistency. I'll give it a try tomorrow and see what happens...I'll post the outcome.

Are you sure the medial delts get hit enough on the overhead presses? I thought the anteriors were the primary focus on these.

Thanks for the tips.

Randy
 
Not inconsistent -- quicker concentrics and slow, controlled eccentrics are exactly what you want when you go heavy.

But when you're going light and looking for a burn, you need the reverse.

BTW: thanks for the citation, but the credit is hardly mine. I learned it here!
 
If I go 3 secs on the concentrics, there's no way I get 15 reps. Are you saying, then, that when establishing the 15 rep max, one should use the 3-0-1 cadence? If this is the case, this should be clearly stated in the principles I would think.

Thanks,
Randy
 
I don't think so. But if you're not getting a burn on your 15s weights normally, try the slow +/fast - cadence and you will.

As for the partial OHP and hitting the medial delts, that's what I've been told & have found it to be true. It's suggested to only go down as far as forehead height & do not lock out at the top of the lift.
 
Do your first five or ten reps of the set more quickly, to hit your goal of 15 (for overall metabolic load), but as you get closer to the end, slow down the concentrics, and you'll build a good burn.

How early to slow down is a function of which exercise, what muscles, how heavy, etc. You'll need to learn it over time.
 
Good idea on starting with quick reps then slowing down at the end, edziu...wish I could have seen your post prior to my workout today.

Overall, I found the very slow concentric pace to simply bring on fatigue much quicker...still not much of a burn on most exercises but it helped for a couple. It helped absolutely zero on my bent-over rows and db curls. It worked great for the lat pulldowns but I doubt I'll be able to use it for chinups which I alternate with the lat pulldowns across sessions. I'd really like to see someone do 15 (or 5 after 10 quick ones), 3- sec concentric chinups...that'd be awesome.

So, given this fatigue/burn conflict (atleast for me), which would you say takes priority...getting 15 full reps before slowing down or getting the burn (fatigue would slow me way down and I'd be at the brink of failure when/if the burn happens)? If I do 15s next cycle I'll start way lower to accomodate this crawling pace but I think I'm too far into the 15s now to change weights. I really wish I'd understood this going in. It throws a wrench into the whole 15s progression and puts me in a negative attitude.

Thanks,
Randy
 
Don't let it get you down.

You're still getting the bulk of the effect, and your experience will make the next cycle better.
 
You might want to take a second look at your weights; are you starting your mini-cycle too close to your 15RM weight?
 
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