I’m sure you’ve heard this a hundred times before…
“We’re all different, so we all need a different workout program to succeed. Just because your routine worked for you, doesn’t mean it’ll work for me.”
Is it true though?
It sounds like a reasonable statement.
Do the facts back it up?
It may surprise you to hear that my answer is NO.
I can hear some of you say,
“But Mark, it’s true that we’re all different, isn’t it?”
No, not really.
We’re all human. We all belong to the same species. That being true, what we are dealing with here is human physiology. If a certain stimulus can be demonstrated to produce a certain adaptation in human skeletal muscle, it will produce it in EVERYONE to some degree (all other factors being equal).
Some of the areas in which we DO differ include:
- Genetic Muscle-Building Potential (muscle fiber density, muscle belly length etc.)
- Body Somatotype
- Rate of Recovery
- Rate of Growth
- Speed of Metabolism
And this is where the confusion arises. This is because:
- We all respond to intense stress at varying speeds
- Some people seem to grow at less-than-maximal intensity
Both of the above are genetically determined and have NO bearing on the fact that it is the intensity of muscular contractions that produces growth i.e. a certain stimulus produces a certain result in us all because physiologically speaking, we are all the same. (Even the genetically-gifted who flip the growth switch at say 85% max intensity, would still have grown even faster with higher intensity)
So you see, there really should be no confusion on the issue when we turn to our own physiology for the answers.
Let’s take an every-day example…
If any one of us cuts our finger i.e. tears the tissue down, the body will begin the response of starting to build the tissue back up.
STIMULUS – Cut/Tearing of skin
RESPONSE – Body dedicates resources to repair
ADAPTATION – Cut heals (possibly a scar develops depending on the severity of the cut)
One person may heal that cut quicker. Another might develop a scar whereas another doesn’t. These are factors that you can’t control. However, it doesn’t negate the fact that the same stimulus produced the same type of adaptation in everyone!
What’s the relevance?
When we make micro-tears in our muscle tissue, the same response takes place in all of us (so long as you’re human).
When we look at the desired outcome of our training, which is muscular hypertrophy, we need to ascertain what the proper stimulus to provide such an adaptation is. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, INTENSITY.
Does it not make perfect sense that any activity below a certain threshold of intensity will NOT produce the desired adaptation, and above that threshold WILL result in hypertrophy?
If you cut yourself severely enough, you’ll heal up and even form some extra scar-tissue on top. This is a defense mechanism by the body to protect that area from further assaults.
Building muscle is also a defense mechanism. If you workout with a certain severity or intensity, you will not only recover, but OVERCOMPENSATE, or enlarge upon your existing size.
So, do we all need a different workout program if our goal is the same? Nope. We all need a high-intensity training method because the biochemical changes that produce muscle growth in me, produce muscle growth in YOU.
To reiterate the point: If the stimulus required (intensity) is the same, and the response (biochemical changes) is the same, the adaptation will be the same (though please take into account the genetic potentials I have already talked about).
Give the body the required stimulus, allow it enough time to fully recover, then reap the desired adaptation.
This is good news for all and should offer hope to EVERYONE who is frustrated with their current results. My THT program is a high-intensity plan (to positive failure on every set), and my new protocol (in development) is a Higher Intensity plan. If your workouts suck, crank up the intensity!
Hit it HARD & GROW!
Your Buddy,
Mark
image credit: d_vdm
Love your logical approach to this stuff man. You explain things well and always get me super-motivated to workout! Keep it coming!
Great article, makes perfect sense. This also explains the whole.. ” my friend is doing this workout and is growing loads! but I am doing the same and I am not growing at all!”. Even if two people work out at the same intensity there can be MANY determining factors as to why they do not progress in a similar fashion!.
Cheers again Mark!
Great post, thanks for your words of wisdom.
Hi, i haven’t tried ur workout it’s y first time, i want to be interested to do ,what is the name of ur workout book?
@Jamie @Malcolm @Jason Thanks guys. Glad it helped.
@Jacklin. Current book is free and available by putting your and email in the box at the top right of this page.
Hello Mark,
I see so many guys lifting heavy weights doing progressive overload,but still not growing,i think the testosterone hormone play an important role over here,testos build muscles,if the testosterone level is low how can we build muscles mark?
where do i find ur workout ?
hey sunil testosterone is an important factor but most of the time its more of an excuse. its like mark said u gotta pass that threshold do that extra rep. its about time everyone stops whining about genetics and simply lift. mark has developed a great plan and last year i worked wonderfully well for me. i used to be 6ft and only 140 lbs. i gained about 15 lbs. so don’t bother with all that stuff that gets in your way. there is no testosterone level no good genetics. there is u and the weights( and also a good diet which is my weak spot. oh i love my junk food) sorry for being wordy. and thanks mark and i was wondering is there a replacement for cable preacher curls because i tried it at my cousins house and it actually gave me a good pump but i don’t have that at my house.
Great post, well explained.
I am a master trainer and I think were I see the difference is in the areas you mentioned, how quickly people loose body fat, how quickly someone will build muscle.
But the one common thread is if you want to build muscle you have to hit it hard, rest and eat correctly.
Great article.
A question that has been on my mind for a long time is this:
does a faster matabolism provide faster recovery and therefore faster growth?
Also, I only feel I am getting gains when I go through the DOMS period. Does that mean I am overtraining?
Thanks for the motivation.
Brendan
Makes sense to me but I did read somewhere that different body types could benefit from different rest times between sets.
I’m the tall thin type… can’t remember what body type that is… so I have good rests between sets.
Any thoughts Mark?
guys! ive tried googling it to give you the correct name and where he was from and some of you know who im talking about, it’s a great story and explains what mark is saying with the progressive overload. true story too. this greek guy had a baby calf that he would pick up off the floor and put it on his shoulders, ”once a week” he would do this and walk up a hill to the market with the calf on his shoulders and at the end of the day he would put the calf back on his shoulders and walk back home. weeks went by months and years and he did this every sunday, as time went on the calf grew into a fully developed cow. the magic of it all is that the greek grew too.he had the muscle mass and strength to lift a fully gown cow over his head and carry it up the hill. progressive overload…!!! hope that helps. thanks mark. keep sending the info.
good work mark. thanks again.
guys! ive tried googling it to give you the correct name of this greek guy long time ago which was a true story and explains the progressve overload that mark is mentioning here. the greek guy would pick up a baby calf and put it on his shoulders and walk up hill to the market where he worked every sunday. ”once a week”. he did this for months and years until that same calf grew into a fully grown cow. so as the calf grew so would the greek dude who could actually lift a full grown cow on his shoulders. …progressive overload. as the weight got heavier each week his muscles had to adapt and with a solid week of recovery inbetween he was able to grow big and strong. i think that story is amazing and hope that helps put progressive overload into perspective. thanx mark!! keep sending that info.
thats not a true story. its an anecdotal story. an analogy.awesome stuff mark! man, i’m glad i found your site.