Help Critique my FT program??

[Damianosteve]

Hey guys,
Im a noobie to FT and really to keeping logbooks/continual progressive overload overall honestly. I saw lots of great results when I first started lifting at an early age in mid-high school, then got "comfortable" with where I was at and the college lifestyle took over. Basically maintained and did some dirty bulking, I can now see how that didn't really do much for me lol.

Anyways-
I tried programing the Basic Version at Tier 1 last week, however I did not feel much at all.. I didn't really get much of a pump until the extreme stretches.
I am coming from a traditional bro split of hitting all the muscles once a week. Normally I would be completing 12-15 sets. Until recently, Ive never done more than once a week frequency, never used deloads, never overloaded in any areas really other than weight (Which was coming painfully slow over time and now I can understand why)
I tried it for two days and then threw my hands in the air sort to speak.. I am thinking I must be doing something wrong or maybe I need to bump up to Tier 2? I would really like to make this work.
Im looking to compete in classic physique eventually but I have some health things Im recovering from, taking it day by day. I have been working on a basic home gym which makes things a lot easier to hit more often. Shoulders and legs are a weak point for me, would it be overload to add in an extra day or two a day with fortitude?

Here is what I did for Days 1 and 2 before I threw in the towel-


Fortitude day 1 2/17

-> loading sets
Front squat machine by boxing room
2x warmup 7reps 45pps
1x11 working set 45x2pps

Nautilus RDL
1.5 pps
1x12

-> pump sets
Back: chest supported row standing wide grip
1pp 1x25

Nautilus incline lever press
1pp 1x25

Seated DB shoulder press
50lbs 1x15

Ab bench 1x25 15lbs

Bis
Bb Standing close grip curl on incline (king bench stand)
5pps (light gotta go up)
1x25

Tris
V grip pushdowns
80lbs 1x25

Loaded strech chest 60sec 25pps nautilus incline


Day 2
Powerlift brand lat pull down wide
Warmup 2x7 120lbs

2x12 140lbs

Nautilus incline press
1x12 1.5pps

Seated lateral delt
1x12 25lb

Quad leg extension
1x25 , 4plates from the middle end of stack ~80lbs

Prone ham curl
80lbs
1x25 (tough)

Standing calf raise
220lbs (sparta)
1x25

Loaded stretch
Grimey pullovers (Reagan grimes) on prone hammy machine
60sec 30lbs



Here is what I programmed moving forward (google doc viewable link)
Moved Permanently

If you guys also have any extreme stretching exercises that you could recommend, that would be very helpful as this is all new to me. Right now it just doesn't feel very intense, I haven't tried the muscle rounds yet either though.
Let me know, thanks in advance

[Scott Stevenson]

DS,

I'd like to see a vid of you training, TBH... (Pick your most brutal set... )

Why did you decide to switch to FT and how do you think it "works" to produce muscle growth?...

-S

[Damianosteve]

Dr Stevenson,
Sounds good Ill take a video monday.
I switched to FT to try something different really, feel like I was stuck in the same mindset of continuously doing what helped me to get the beginner gains and never really switching it up other than exercises and trying to increase the weights.
I believe FT works through allowing for greater hard sets due to the low amount of total sets and keeping MPS up in the muscles throughout the week due to the 24hr post workout increase. Higher frequency training has also been shown to be more beneficial.
Guess the post did go through after all, not sure why I keep getting those error messages after posting.

[Scott Stevenson]

Dr Stevenson,
Sounds good Ill take a video monday.
I switched to FT to try something different really, feel like I was stuck in the same mindset of continuously doing what helped me to get the beginner gains and never really switching it up other than exercises and trying to increase the weights.
I believe FT works through allowing for greater hard sets due to the low amount of total sets and keeping MPS up in the muscles throughout the week due to the 24hr post workout increase. Higher frequency training has also been shown to be more beneficial.
Guess the post did go through after all, not sure why I keep getting those error messages after posting.

So as far as getting a pump, failing to do so (I think), and then kind of jumping ship (this is what I getting happened based on your post), it sounds like you're basing your decision to continue or not on "getting a pump" in the gym.

I've not seen anyone really go for it with FT and not feeling each Set Type (excepting perhaps the Loading sets that are intentionally not taken to failure) being very taxing (relative to that person's perception). The point here is that the training is only as hard as you make it...

It sounds like one thing you're not taking into account is the importance of progressive overload. You'll see the results of this until months down the road and notice them on a workout by workout basis until you've come around to the beat the log book on Loading sets and MR's...

(You had a duplicate post that I erased. That error is a Tapatalk thing that I have to fix periodically it seems, but your posts go through, even though it seems they're not.)

-S

[Damianosteve]

Dr Stevenson,

Ah ok, Yes that makes sense because I haven't even gotten to the muscle rounds of the program yet. It just feels a bit odd doing only 1-2 sets per muscle group per day. Maybe I should incorporate a warm up set before each exercise for that specific muscle group? For example If I start with back Ill do 2 warmup sets of 7 at 50-60% then just go through the rest of the program without warming up the chest etc...

I get what you're saying, its less of running yourself down into the ground with just increasing frequency and allowing for progressive overload over the weeks. Its a new thing for me, kind of like a new haircut your not familiar with it at first and it takes some time getting used to.

I went to try and create my own program from scratched based on all the new knowledge Ive been getting from yourself, Dr Eric Helms, Dr Brad Schoenfeld, Greg Knuckols etc and halfway through I realized that it was pretty similar to your programming lol.
In order to hit the 2-3x a week frequency per muscle group it seems as though it has to be done with less sets than Im used to.

Would there be any harm in adding in an extra day? Normally I train 5-6 days a week. Shoulders is definitely something I would like to bring up, they've come a long way but I see them improving my taper overall, would it hurt to throw in another day of 4-6 sets with that? Having the home gym now Im tempted to put in the extra work when I have the time.

As far as the posting errors go, ok I understand now we spoke about it on IG. Ill just learn to ignore the error message
Thanks In advance Doc, don't mean to be a pain in the ass but Id like to make FT work for me, Im sure with time I will see the results im looking for.
Be well

[Scott Stevenson]

Dr Stevenson,

Ah ok, Yes that makes sense because I haven't even gotten to the muscle rounds of the program yet. It just feels a bit odd doing only 1-2 sets per muscle group per day. Maybe I should incorporate a warm up set before each exercise for that specific muscle group? For example If I start with back Ill do 2 warmup sets of 7 at 50-60% then just go through the rest of the program without warming up the chest etc...

Warm-ups are not working sets, which are what create the growth stimulus. If they are truly doing more warm-up sets, then it will do nothing for you.

If you want to add training volume with working sets, you would use a higher volume Tier.

(I'm getting the sense it would help you to read through the book another time. )

I get what you're saying, its less of running yourself down into the ground with just increasing frequency and allowing for progressive overload over the weeks. Its a new thing for me, kind of like a new haircut your not familiar with it at first and it takes some time getting used to.

I went to try and create my own program from scratched based on all the new knowledge Ive been getting from yourself, Dr Eric Helms, Dr Brad Schoenfeld, Greg Knuckols etc and halfway through I realized that it was pretty similar to your programming lol.
In order to hit the 2-3x a week frequency per muscle group it seems as though it has to be done with less sets than Im used to.

I have the sense if you perform the 3 set types (and stretches) as described in FT, you'll also be training harder than you have in the past.

Would there be any harm in adding in an extra day? Normally I train 5-6 days a week. Shoulders is definitely something I would like to bring up, they've come a long way but I see them improving my taper overall, would it hurt to throw in another day of 4-6 sets with that? Having the home gym now Im tempted to put in the extra work when I have the time.

Well, you are entirely free to do as you please, of course. Add or subtract as many days as you like, etc. - totally up to you.

IMO, it would be a mistake to do so, as I have the sense you've not carried out FT as I set it up.

I've never had / known of a single person who was training as hard as they can who made use of the highest volume Tier (III) and felt the need to add another day. I'm going to sound like the old guy (well, I am) here, but I've seen hundreds of people come from volume based programs (similar background to yours), and want to add days, add sets, etc. to the program (be it FT, or DC in years past - DC = Doggcrapp training, which is mentioned in the book) and the real issue in these cases is learning how to develop "intensity" / all-out, balls to the way, gut wrenching, train or die effort levels in the gym and harnessing what I consider the essential quality of weight training - potency of effort - to produce muscle growth, versus trying to create a volume based stimulus.

There is of course a spectrum here - some folks might training really hard, but not all out and use moderate volume. Others might training pretty hard with high volume and others might train as hard as possible such that there is a clear limit as to his / her tolerance for training volume. The last scenario is the philosophy that underpins FT, essentially.

I have indeed set the program up to spare the nervous system to allow asa much muscular overload as possible relative to the CNS taxation, but at it's core, FT is a progressive overload / potency of stimulus-oriented program, not one focused on trying to to use training volume as the primary driver of muscle growth. There is no doubt that training volume is an important variable, but I contextualize it as a training variable that is more so determined by the extent of effort and inroads to recovery one can create, vs. as a primary variable to be manipulated as the primary "driver" of muscle growth. Doing so will work, but performing very high volume training for many, many trainees will eventually fail to evoke greater size gains unless the person trains harder (during each set), as well (i.e, with fewer reps in reserve) such that progressive overload is manifest in performance (wt x reps in the hypertrophy/ ~6-30 rep range).

-S

As far as the posting errors go, ok I understand now we spoke about it on IG. Ill just learn to ignore the error message
Thanks In advance Doc, don't mean to be a pain in the ass but Id like to make FT work for me, Im sure with time I will see the results im looking for.
Be well

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