Switching up workouts mid cycle

Bigbear

Bigbear

The Kodiak
Trusted Member
Im about half way through a 20 week test cycle and have been doing bodybuilding hypertrophy but with work changes I have less time in the gym each day now. I had 1.5 hours before and now down to about an hour and im boxing an extra day a week so 2 days a week now. When my work scheduel changed I dropped one boxing class and adding longer gym sessions now that its back to normal its going to less time in gym and less days per week to go. Now I have 3 days a week i can go but my hypertrophy phase was based on longer sessions and 5 days a week. I have a strength and power phase that I do and would fit perfectly but what im wondering is will it be a waste of a cycle to just switch up entirely? Would 10 werks of each phase be useful or should I play with my hypertrophy scheduel and routine and try to finish off the 10 weeks?
 
I guess it would all come down to your overall current goal, but if your schedule changed and you have to adjust, and it works out, why not go for the change up.
Having a strength/power phase never hurt anyone. And plenty of top lifters have trained 3 days a week. Whatever you end up doing, enjoy it and maximize it.
 
Switching it up is great because your muscles get used to specific routines and you start to get diminishing returns after doing the same routine week after week over time. Personally, I make changes to my routines every week, so that I’m working the same muscle groups, but in different ways. It could be as simple as alternating Arnold Presses and barbell presses every week or two (and applying that to every exercise,) or alternating low set/high weight one week with high set/medium weight the next.

By making these little adjustments to a routine, you ensure that your muscles are forced to respond to changes, which keeps them growing more than they would if you did the same few exercises every time you trained that muscle group.

With that in mind, I think switching up your routine is beneficial, and you may find your strength and size increase noticeably after a few weeks. Ideally, you should try to switch up your routine as often as possible, in little ways (like the example I gave earlier,) and in bigger ways when possible.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top