Intensity, every rep counts!

This is going to be a short blog post, but this is a crucial thing to remember, and to start practicing. Firstly, from looking at how a lot of people train: reading while on the stepper, talking with a mate while doing some bicep curls, almost falling a sleep on the bench press between sets, or just sitting in the leg-press pushing out some easy reps, then  it's not really hard to figure out why people tend to really over complicate their training programs, by putting in far too many exercises, in hope of getting better results.

The problem is, they don't put enough effort and intensity in the lifts that actually matter. I have to say, specially girls have a problem here. It should be mentioned that girls have the ability to recover faster after a set than us guys, and they are usually "good to go" again quickly, but being apparently unaffected after 5 reps of heavy deadlifts, then something is wrong. The issue here is that you have to perform every repetition in each set like it's your last, it should be done with 100% effort, and every rep should be given the same amount of effort. I know that after finishing 6 sets of 4 heavy reps in bench-press, my heart rate is high, I am really tired, and the last thing I want to do is jumping on to some pec-decks, cable cross overs, or other chest exercises. Why? Cause I put everything I had in to that bench-press. Here is some tips to practice intensity in your lifts:

- Tense your fists as hard as possible around the bar, tense your whole body, before and under every rep.
- Instead of doing 5 reps, do 1 rep 5 times. Actually take a short break between every rep, prepare yourself, then lift as hard as possible. Too many people just "go through" their reps, put everything you have in every rep!
- The concentric part of a lift should be as explosive as possible, go slowly down, push HARD up.
- Take a deep breath between every rep, and hold it until your done.
- Rest enough between sets so you can perform 100% every set.
- Get someone, or something to psyche you up =)

You should always have 1, maybe 2 main lifts in your program, which you give special attention. They should be done first, and this is where you really push yourself hard, get it all out. Then do some assisting exercises at the end, and that should be enough! Some of the strongest and fittest men in the world use training templates like 5x5 powerbuilding, the texas method, Westside barbell, etc.. and a program could look like this:
Day one:                  Day two:                                       Day three
Squats                  Squats (easier)                                           Squats
Bench-press      Barbell shoulder press                           Bench-press
Deadlifts                 Chin-ups                                                Olympic lift

Looks like nothing eh? Well, if you really put everything you got in to these lifts, I promise you, you will walk out of the gym feeling pretty busted, and looking forward to a day of rest. People tend to think they have to go to the gym every day. If you are smart, try doing just a simple program of squats, benches, overhead presses, deadlifts, and cleans, going up in weight a little bit every time you train, three days per week, until you get bigger,stronger & faster — or until this simple program quit working.

Some good words from world known strength coach Mark Rippetoe:

"When you start lifting heavy weights, each workout should represent a stress that takes longer to recover from."

"It's necessary to subject the body to increasing amounts of stress at a level that challenges recovery ability so that the adaptations continue". 

So the point of this post is: Start doing some heavier exercises, lift heavier weights with maximum intensity, cut out useless exercises, get good rest, repeat.

It is not lifting weights that makes you big and strong, you get big and strong from recovering from lifting weights. Don't forget this, do a hard workout, and rest!

One set of five is a lot!

Morten