# How much is it safe to train naturally?



## FitzTheMan (Oct 26, 2011)

I'm 100% natural, and I'm finding that the fact that I can only train one hour a day is annoying, and I feel like it would make sense for me to be able to make better growth... I mean, in my eyes, it would make sense that I could re-train a muscle after it's grown back fresh after training, rather than waiting a whole week out to re-train it. Also, I'd like to mention that people only recommend 1 hour a day for some reason, can anyone tell me this reason? Because I've done a back workout today, and I fancy doing an ab workout later, as long as I'm not using any muscles that have already been used that day, it should be fine right? Or does too much training stunt my muscle growth?

Thanks for any response.


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## alphadog (Nov 16, 2009)

Its different for everyone based on diet, genetic, age, the period they have been training, what type of training they do.


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

its not the bodypart that has to recover,its the system as a whole.If you "feel" like training twice in a day, your not training hard enough.Duration is not a substitute for intensity.An hour imho is still far to long.

Your correct, too much training, can leave you in a state or overtraining.Your bodys priority is to recover from the stress(the workout) only after that has happened, will it allow for any growth that youve stimulated to occur.That is assuming you have trained hard enough, to stimulate growth in the first place.


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## FitzTheMan (Oct 26, 2011)

Hmm. How do I know whether I can train more than once a day or not then  ? I've been training 5 months, I'm aged 18, I have respectabley good genetics, and well, the diet can be altered as I please really .


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## FitzTheMan (Oct 26, 2011)

Right, okay, thanks Essexboy, that pretty much hit the spot for me.


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

FitzTheMan said:


> Right, okay, thanks Essexboy, that pretty much hit the spot for me.


Remember you dont grow in the gym.The workout is just a catalyst.You grow in your sleep or at rest.Hit it as hard (not long) as you can , then leave it alone.


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## Breda (May 2, 2011)

Bdcc knows a little bit about training twice a day. Might be worth pming him im sure he won't mind


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## steviethe spark (Oct 17, 2010)

Mate i never train any less than an hour and i grow fine ,some times i could train for 2 hours no probs.Jack3d prob helps with that though


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## Hendrix (Sep 16, 2009)

I agree with above, think of the training as the trigger, everything else, ie. Sleep, food, rest determines the results of your training.


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## ki3rz (Sep 12, 2011)

3 or 4 day split works great for me! im natural. 45 - 50 minutes a sesion. Any more than that and my body starts to feel fcked

And btw abb work outs aren't that important, as long as you have low bodyfat and do compund exercises then you wont need abb exercies imo


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## retro-mental (Dec 2, 2010)

List your routine and weights down here and people will be able to help you more, Muscle dont grow in the gym !!


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## RickMiller (Aug 21, 2009)

FitzTheMan said:


> I'm 100% natural, and I'm finding that the fact that I can only train one hour a day is annoying, and I feel like it would make sense for me to be able to make better growth... I mean, in my eyes, it would make sense that I could re-train a muscle after it's grown back fresh after training, rather than waiting a whole week out to re-train it. Also, I'd like to mention that people only recommend 1 hour a day for some reason, can anyone tell me this reason? Because I've done a back workout today, and I fancy doing an ab workout later, as long as I'm not using any muscles that have already been used that day, it should be fine right? Or does too much training stunt my muscle growth?
> 
> Thanks for any response.


There are ways of training more frequently (e.g. high frequency training) but it has to be adjusted to gradually over a period of weeks. I personally think if one can adapt to this without suffering from overtraining then it can lead to the best gains. Many of the best athletes in the world use this method (e.g. olympic lifters, gymnasts etc).

Training volume and intensity has to be carefully modified and adjusted based on recovery. If you want to read more about it, Chad Waterbury is a big proponent of the method:

http://www.t-nation.com/ALSAuthor.do?p=Chad%20Waterbury

Times it is likely not suitable (unless significantly well-adapted):

- As a beginner trainee

- During a calorie deficit (cutting)

- If recovering from an injury

- If you do not have the time or ability to train several times a day.

- If not willing to reduce weight lifted in the initial stages of adaptation.


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## zero2hero2013 (Jun 20, 2011)

personally i train 2 days on and have 1 to 2 days of depending how i feel. when i bulk i generally do three on and one off. you may not feel overtrained at first but give yourself a 3-5 days break and i guarantee you will more fatigued then you think. i have just had 3 days off an i am aching more today generally then i did in the past 2 days. i am now not planning on going back to the gym untill saturday and having a decent 5 day rest which would be my first in the past 3 months.i tried previously to have just 3 days off and with in 5-6 weeks i fealt fcked again. hoping to go hard at it again from saturday 2 on 2 off while cutting and hoping to maintain all my strength.

i believe you can train more often when bulking then cutting and it seems to be working well for me. also if you can't hit the gym hard enough in one hour i would really like to know what your doing in the gym. personally 5x5 as heavy as i can manage seems to take every ounce of energy i have left and i sleep like a baby that night.

compounds exercises are great to maximise muscle used and can really stimulate your cns.


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## zero2hero2013 (Jun 20, 2011)

my current 2 on 2 off routine is as follows. and this takes me 1 hour each session maximum.

day 1, chest,back,bi's,tri's

bench press 5x5 currently 85kg

bench press negatives. 5-7 105kg

semi deadlift 105kg 5-7, bar goes down with the bench and i use my back/shoulders/legs to reset it to the top position.

Bent over row, 5x5 70kg

pectoral fly straight arms, 5x5

pull ups/chion ups. 8 pull ups, 15 chinups, 5-6 pull ups, chinups to fail, normally around 7-9. this is for my biceps as well as back.

tricep press. 5 sets of 7 reps at the maximum weight the machine has to offer. working up in reps.

barbell curls, 40kg 5x5

cabled butteflys low position, 4x8 or untill fail on each set

Day 2

legs/ shoulders / abs

Squats

leg extension

leg curl

shoulder press with barbell

shoulder shrugs

weighted legs raises 5kg per leg

weighted captain chairs 5kg per leg

crunch with knee raises

sholder press with dumbells.

i normally alternate between each area i am working out, so il do 1 leg then 1 abs then 1 shoulders and back to legs, same on day 1.

after all this i am fcked and know i have worked hard


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## deemann (Jun 25, 2010)

I find 2 rest days between each training session works good for me ,this gives me a great amount of time for rest and feeding those muscles iv worked...i got great results with this method


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## Fatstuff (Mar 2, 2010)

mate, whatever ur doing natty in 5 months is working, i wouldnt change a thing


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## T_Woody (Jul 16, 2008)

I train in someway or form everyday and think intensity and volume is key to growth, seems to be some unwritten rule that you should train for one hour? I train sometimes 2-3 hours a day and feel much more beneficial


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## Ts23 (Jan 14, 2011)

i wish i was natural mate, i started gear after 1 week in the gym, 4 years training now and 4 years on gear, if or when i stop ill probably shrink back down to been a twig, stay natural for aslong as you can mate, you will benefit alot more doing it this way, i wish i did.


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## Breda (May 2, 2011)

T_Woody said:


> I train in someway or form everyday and think intensity and volume is key to growth, seems to be some unwritten rule that you should train for one hour? *I train sometimes 2-3 hours a day and feel much more beneficial*


In what way?


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## T_Woody (Jul 16, 2008)

Breda said:


> In what way?


 All intended muscles worked, plenty of kcals burned, better all around mood and feeling.


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## FitzTheMan (Oct 26, 2011)

Well, yeah, I suppose you guys are right. What I'm doing does seem to be working, but if my genes are responding so well to training without me looking deep into the body's use of nutrients, I think I may have potential to get a lot lot bigger, and possibly faster. I tend to go in the gym, find a comfortable weight for doing say 15-20 reps, and I smash them out as fast as I can without rest between reps and perfect form, it's a killer, but you get the most amazing pump ever from it! In terms of nutrition however, I'm still slightly confused, because I feel there's more to it than I know of so far.


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## jakej (Nov 30, 2011)

have a read of this , its a lot to take in but might give you information youre looking for

http://www.thinkmuscle.com/articles/jalali/cortisol.htm


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## Bish83 (Nov 18, 2009)

Who says you have to be in and out of the gym within the hour or give 7 days rest for a body part?

Your reading stuff in magazines and maybe onbb'ing forums and taking it as gospel without asking the why's and hows.


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## LunaticSamurai (May 19, 2009)

Dude just train and find out what your body is capable of, your still young and new to this so its not going to harm you.

This game is all about finding what works for YOU.. Yes there are certain fundamental and rules, like compounds for mass and isolations for shaping but you need to find what works best for you, no two people are the same.

Personally low reps and heavy weight does not build mass for me, medium to high weight with high reps is what makes me grow, but it took me years to find that out with playing around with different lifts like 5x5 and all that.

Since doing full upper body with a minimum of 12 reps on every set i have been growing better than ever, and i'm not on anything apart from a darn good diet.

So lift and if you feel like spending another half an hour in the gym , do it! learn what your body wants and give in to it.


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Listen to your body mate. I'd also highly recommend reading this article I posted http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/getting-started/157736-only-workout-info-you-will-ever-need.html


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