Training Splits - Training One Bodypart Once every Seven Days Split

We at fitFLEX tend to agree and think that training each bodypart only once every seven days split, works like a charm.. if you do the right amount of work for your individual recovery ability. For example, if you only do four sets for your quads, you may recover after only two or three days, which means these muscles could begin to atrophy before your next quad session. On the other hand, if you do 20 high-intensity sets for your quads, they may need more than seven days to recover.

Remember, research suggests that on average a muscle starts to atrophy 96 hours, or four days, after hard training. Once again, that's on average. Recovery ability is specific to the individual and the volume and degree of intensity of the work you perform. Many experts use 96 hours as a hard-and-fast rule no matter what the volume or intensity but that's a mistake. Do you honestly think a muscle recovers in 96 hours if you do 40 sets as opposed to four? I don't think so.

What all of this means is that once you figure out how much high-intensity work you must do in order for each bodypart to require seven full days to recover. If you decide to try this split, or similar one-session-per bodypart-per-week training, you'll have to experiment a bit to determine the number of high-intensity sets you need for each bodypart. If you notice a bodypart becoming soft before you hit it again, you probably need to add a few sets. Another good indicator is if your strength stagnates or begins to regress, although strength and size aren't always related.

One good way to implement a schedule like this is to start with a standard six-set POF routine for each bodypart and add a set or two at every workout. By the end of your high-intensity cycle-five weeks later-you'll be doing about 10 sets per bodypart and have a good idea of your ideal set totals for each. Keep a record in your training log as to how you felt after each workout and what you felt like at the end of each week of training.

One thing you should not forget when you're on a routine like this - or any routine, for that matter-is the overlap factor, the indirect work that occurs from bodypart to body-part. For example, when you work back, you also work biceps, so your biceps routine should reflect this fact with a lower set total. The same goes for chest and triceps. If you use the set-progression system suggested above, you may want to keep your biceps and triceps set totals the same-say, around six-throughout your five-week high-intensity cycle to avoid overtraining your upper arms.