M
Mean Machine
Guest
Just curious to see what everyone does as far as weekly training in & out of the gym to get physically prepared for rugby.
At the moment I'm doing a strength workout and after 2 months of this, i'll start going for a strength/power combination with some bigger lifts such as power cleans etc
At the moment I had 2 workouts, A & B, so one week i do workout A twice and workout B once, and then the next week i'll do workout B twice and workout A once.
Workout A:
3x5 Squat
3x5 Chest Press
1x5 Deadlift
2x5-8 Dips
Workout B:
3x5 Squat
3x5 Shoulder Press
3x5 Row
2x5-8 Pull ups
Doing compound lifts such as these is good for rugby because it improves my overall strength, so all my muscle groups benefit rather using machines that isolate one group, or even one muscle, and I effectively develop strength throughout my whole body.
Atm I've got a problem with shins so I try and avoid hard surfaces as much as possible so instead I tend to do HIIT on a rower or a cross trainer for about 15-20minutes as it's intensity rather than duration that has an effect
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Whilst we're on the subject of muscle strength, the best (IMO) sets/reps path to take is to take any weight that you can lift (be reasonable, not like 1lb), and do as many reps as you can. Once you can do more then 8, use more weight. Again, once you can do 8 reps with that weight, move up again. Do this for 4/5 sets (up to you).
Reasons for this:
- Any more than 8 reps leads to the exercise toning rather than strengthening.
- You will be able to see a clear strength gain in being able to do 8 reps of a higher weight, and continuously moving up.
- 4/5 sets will not be too easy as to have no effect, but will not overwork the muscles.
I haven't done this for quite a while, but will start following these principles tomorrow. :cheers: [/b]
good post.. it was very interesting to read everyone's different perspectives. not what i expected.. i do one muscle group per day, in this order: chest, back, arms, shoulders, legs, repeat, usually with 1-2 nights off per week. by doing this order, it gives each muscle the proper amount of time to rest, and the sore secondary muscles from getting in the way of the primary muscle group of the day. i do more of a bodybuilding routine, but i have not seen any way it weakens me. the way i see it, a muscle does one thing: contract, so if all my muscles are powerful doing their own motion, when combined to natural movements (most movements in ruby are natural) i will be stronger. usually 12-16 sets of 10 reps per muscle (not muscle group). although during season some of the sets and the order may be altered for joint tweaks, bruises, injuries, etc. speed is a natural strong point of mine, so i stick to moderate distance running for conditioning, should do more, but i just really hate it.. i also realized that strength is 40% gym, 60% what you eat. and where did this 5x5 (and the similar) workout come from, ive never heard of it, and ive done quite a bit of research about lifting routines?? [/b]