Drew Baye’s High Intensity Training

A few people have asked about my current routine. I am posting it only as an example of what I am doing, not as an exact recommendation for others to follow. What works well for me may or may not work well for you depending on differences in genetics and environmental factors.

I train once every five days, alternating between two workouts:

Workout A

1. Barbell Squat
2. Weighted Chin Up
3. Barbell Press
4. Barbell Wrist Curl
5. Barbell Wrist Extension

Workout B

1. Shrug Bar Deadlift
2. Weighted Parallel Bar Dip
3. One-Armed Dumbbell Row
4. One-Legged Standing Calf Raise with Dumbbell

I will occasionally add direct arm work, but not more than once every couple of weeks. Once I am finished refurbishing my Nautilus 4-Way Neck machine I will also be performing neck extension and flexion twice monthly (once every 3rd workout).

I perform one set of 3 to 5 repetitions, with an approximate 3 second positive, a brief pause in the fully contracted position (except on pressing movements), a 10 second negative, and a brief pause at the start position. The time under load per exercise averages 45 to 75 seconds. Each set is continued to the point of positive failure, and the weight is increased slightly whenever I can perform 5 or more complete repetitions in strict form. I do not rush between exercises, but I do not rest for longer than necessary to set up the weights, either.

The principles behind the current routine are discussed in detail in the upcoming book, High Intensity Training: Principles and Applications for Bodybuilding.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

The following is a handout I wrote for new personal training clients several years ago. I have reposted it here at the request of several people and to save myself time answering many of the questions it addresses. The upcoming book contains more current, expanded discussions of each of the considerations covered here as well as many others. I will also be posting an updated, condensed version of the safety section from the book after it is published as a PDF for in-the-gym and phone training clients.

Safety Considerations for Exercise

Exercise, when properly performed, can stimulate the body to produce dramatic improvements in muscular strength and endurance, bone strength, cardiovascular efficiency, flexibility, and body composition. However, when improperly performed, exercise can produce injury. There are several general safety considerations which must be observed to reduce the risk of serious injury during exercise. Read more…

Drew Baye Training

The first draft of the book looks like it will be finished before the end of February, and I will be starting photography and illustration for it shortly. I have been working on this on and off for a few years now, and am glad to be almost finished. More information and short excerpts from the book will be posted after I begin editing later in Feb. The book will only be available through this web site. Those who purchase the book within the first 30 days will receive a discount on a phone consultation or phone training package equal to the cost of the book, and each person who purchases a phone training package will receive a free copy of the book.

I recently picked up a copy of the Paleo Cookbook: Recipes for the 21st Century Hunter-Gatherer and will be reviewing it here later this week. We’ve tried a few of the recipes, and they taste good and are easy to prepare. I especially enjoyed the Bombay Chicken Skewers.

Recently, there’s been more of the typical rep speed and protocol arguments on the high intensity training professionals e-mail list. Sadly, there a lot of SuperSlow instructors who still can’t accept that SuperSlow is not the ultimate exercise protocol and continue to make unfounded claims about it’s superiority.  The following are excerpts from a response I wrote to the list I wanted to share here:

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

Hey Drew,

I have been reading about HIT and it seems great, because I can fit it in to an hour or so in my schedule.
I have questions though.

1) I play a bit of Soccer and Basketball. Not seriously, but I enjoy them and would hate to miss out on them… Would it be a bad idea to play on rest days between workouts?

2) Would the lack of cardio affect my endurance in these sports adversely?

Thanks in advance

If you enjoy playing soccer and basketball you should structure your workouts around them, not the other way around. Exercise should contribute to the enjoyment of other activities in your life, not replace them. If you find that you do not recover as quickly between workouts due to the additional activity, then add extra recovery days between workouts.

High intensity strength training produces greater metabolic and cardiovascular benefits than traditional cardio, more safely and more efficiently, so as long as you’re still doing your strength training workouts you won’t be missing anything. Although the metabolic and cardiovascular benefits of HIT are of a more general nature, if you’re playing soccer and basketball regularly you will get all the specific conditioning you require from those.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

I am in the process of updating the look and organization of the site. There may be some problems accessing certain areas while this is occurring, but the site should be fully functional within a week.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

The following article was originally published on Cyberpump.com in 1998.

Recently I’ve been receiving a lot of e-mail and phone calls from people with questions regarding their workouts. Often, people are surprised at the brevity of the routines I recommend, and ask, “why so few exercises?” To which I respond, why do any more? Why perform any more exercise than the minimal amount necessary to stimulate growth in all the major muscle groups?

It is unnecessary, and even counterproductive to do any more exercise than is minimally required to stimulate growth in all of the major muscular structures. More exercise than this will not stimulate more growth, but it will use up more energy and metabolic resources, which leaves your body with less to recover from and produce the muscular growth stimulated by the workout. While I do not believe that it is possible to exercise too intensely, or that the majority of people train anywhere near as intensely as they are truly capable of, I know for a fact that it is very easy to perform too much exercise and believe that the majority of people would benefit from a reduction in the volume of their training. Read more…

Drew Baye Training

The companion web site for John Little and Doug McGuff, MD’s book Body by Science is now online at www.bodybyscience.net

The site already contains a few posts and articles, and looks like it will be a great resource for those interested in the science behind high intensity training.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

I’m active on a couple social networking web sites, including Facebook, where Monday is often met with disparaging comments about being back at work. No matter how much you love your job there are probably other things you’d like to be doing, and the weekends always seem to go by too quickly. Many look at the weekdays as something to be endured, counting the days until the next weekend.

One particular comment I read this morning reminded me of a story Ken Hutchins told me about an incident involving a Nautilus employee and Arthur Jones, back when Arthur was still running Nautilus. I don’t recall the name of the employee or exactly what was said, but one Friday Arthur overheard an employee say “T.G.I.F.” and gave him a pretty severe chewing out, ending with the point the employee should be thanking God he had a job to go to at the beginning of each week.

While I’m not a religious person (and I don’t believe Arthur was either) I agree with the general sentiment of his point. Even if you can’t stand your job, you should be happy you have one to go to Monday morning (or whenever your work week starts), because there are a lot of people out there right now who don’t and who would gladly take yours if given the opportunity.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

I just received word via John Wood’s Functional Hand Strength mailing list Ken Leistner will be emcee’ing and speaking at the Michigan State Football Strength Clinic, Saturday January 31st at the Clara Bell Smith Academic Center at Michigan State University.

The fee will be $75, which includes lunch. Payment must be sent by mail, as they aren’t set up to accept credit cards.

For information, directions, etc. contact MSU assistant strength coach Mike Vorkapich at 517-432-1822 or by email at vork@ath.msu.edu

Since this information is coming from John Wood, please tell Mike you heard about it from him when calling. If you’re within a reasonable driving distance from Michigan State or will be anywhere in the area around that time I highly recommend attending, as it’s sure to be informative and it sounds like there will be a lot of other great speakers.

UPDATE:

I just received the following information on the clinic from Mike Vorkapich:

The Spartan Strength & Conditioning Staff would like to invite you and your fellow coaches to the 2nd Annual MSU Strength & Conditioning Clinic for Football.  The clinic is designed to give all football coaches,  a solid foundation in the basic fundamentals of strength training, speed mechanics and agility training.

Speakers include:

Dr. Ken Leistner – Master of Ceremonies

Mike Gittleson – Legendary University of Michigan Strength Coach

Dr. Ted Lambrinides – Athletic Strength & Power (ASAP)

Aaron Hillmann – Director of Strength & Conditioning, Bowling Green State University

Randy Gillon – Michigan State University Football Speed Coach

Jim Kielbaso – Total Performance Training Center – Wixom, MI

Carlo Alvarez – Head Strength & Conditioning Coach @ perennial power St. Xavier HS, Cincinnati, OH

+ Ken Mannie and the rest of the Spartan Strength Staff

WHEN: Saturday, January 31, 2009.*Registration & Check-in @ 730-830am

WHERE: Clara Bell Smith Academic Center

COST: $75.00 Pre-registered via mail

ITINERARY: The clinic itinerary will be emailed to preregistered coaches.

Drew Baye Miscellaneous

Home and commercial gyms both have advantages and disadvantages. Which one is right for you will depend primarily on your available space and budget, and what best meets your training needs and lifestyle.

Space

If you don’t have the space in your home or apartment for a gym, this is a moot point. However, the amount of space required to get a good workout is actually very small. A doorway chin up bar takes up no floor space, and a pair of adjustable dumbbells which take up almost no space at all can provide a complete workout. Check out Matt Brzycki and Fred Fornicola’s book Dumbbell Training for Strength and Fitness for examples.

With nothing but an Olympic bar and enough plates, which only requires about a 10 x 4 foot space, you can perform exercises that hit all the major muscle groups:

1. Deadlift (hips, thighs, lower back, upper back, traps)
2. Press (shoulders, triceps, traps)
3. Curl (biceps)
4. Push Ups (chest, shoulders, triceps)
5. Standing Calf Raise (calves)
6. Weighted Crunch (abs)

There are dozens more you could do, but you only need a few. If you have a little more room you can fit a power rack and a flat bench, and add squats and bench press. Many power racks have chinning bars built in them as well, and I recommend this or a free-standing chinning station rather than a doorway chinning bar if you are over 200 pounds or if you’re doing weighted chin ups. Read more…

Drew Baye Training