yoga book / physiology of movement / principles of strength training according to Jo Weider

Jo Weider, who has been involved in strength training and bodybuilding all his life and has worked with many athletes in this field and was jointly responsible for the success of Arnold Schwarzenegger, among others, has created a collection of „training principles“ which, in his experience, summarise the most important principles for stimuli for hypertrophy and strength gains:

1. principle of progressive overload: there are various ways to progressively overload the muscle: heavier weight, more sets, longer training sessions, shorter rests
2. Principle of set systems: don’t perform an exercise with just one set, but with several in order to fully utilise the potential muscular fatigue inherent in the exercise
3. Principle of isolation training: also train muscles in isolation
4. Principle of muscle confusion: keep varying your training programme so that the muscles don’t get used to it as much as possible
5. priority principle: train the weakest or most important body part first so that all resources are still available for it
6. pyramid principle: start an exercise with approx. 60% of the 1RM with 15 repetitions and then increase the weight as the number of repetitions decreases
7. Split principle: divide the full-body workout into different units after an initial phase (6 weeks)
8. Circulation principle: the muscle must be well supplied with blood for hypertrophy and strength gains
9. Principle of supersets: in the strict sense, antagonistic groups are trained in direct alternation. In a broader sense, supersets are combinations of different exercises that are trained in alternation. These are often, but not necessarily, non-functionally related muscles. In compound sets (see below), it is the same muscle group.
10. Principle of compound sets: Supersets for the same muscle group for maximum exhaustion
11. Whole set principle: Training with different numbers of repetitions promotes muscle development better than training with a uniform number of repetitions
12. Principle of training cycles: divide the training year into phases, such as building up with heavy weights and fewer repetitions followed by high repetition numbers with lower weights and only short rest breaks
13. Principle of ISO tension: in addition to and independent of training, tense the various muscle groups isometrically three times a week
14. Principle of falsifications: perform all repetitions correctly where this is possible. Additional repeats for more complete exhaustion can be achieved with falsification or support.
15. Principle of triple sets: a type of triple compound set. The different, ideally complementary exercises are performed immediately one after the other and form a set.
16. Principle of mammoth sets: a kind of compound set of 4 to 6 exercises. The different, ideally complementary exercises are performed immediately one after the other and form a set.
17. Principle of pre-fatigue: a kind of superset consisting of an isolated exercise for one muscle group, immediately followed by a combination exercise, e.g. leg extensions before squats
18. Principle of interrupted sets: for heavy sets, take enough weight to only do 2-3 repetitions, pause for 30-45 seconds, then do another two or three repetitions, pause for 45-60 seconds and again do as many repetitions as possible
19. Principle of maximum contractions: utilise additional movement dimensions of the muscles to force maximum contraction force where it is biomechanically easier
20. Principle of continuous tension: avoid momentum and the resulting relief. Instead, keep the muscles under constant high tension
21. Principle of negative training: use maximum load for the eccentric phase of the repetition. For the concentric phase, use momentum or get help from a supporter. Cave: this is very demanding for all structures and should only be done in phases!
22. Principle of intensive repetitions: in difficult sentences, a supporter helps with the least possible support to manage a few more repetitions.
23. Principle of double split training: train two split programmes in one day with a few different muscles and sufficient recovery time in between
24. Principle of triple split training: train three split programmes in one day with different muscles and sufficient recovery time in between
25. Burnout principle: perform a few possible partial repetitions after the end of the set for more complete exhaustion
26. Principle of quality training: shorten the rest periods between sets and increase the number of repetitions if necessary
27. Principle of decreasing weights: two supporters always remove weights towards the end of a set if no repetition can otherwise be achieved
28. Instinctive principle: follow your „instinct“ and know for yourself what brings the most success
29. Principle of partial repetitions: perform a certain number of repetitions (e.g. 7) with adjusted weight first with reduced working range in shorter sarcomere length, then with reduced working range in longer sarcomere length and then complete repeats.