Occasionally I like to put into the program "As Many Reps As Possible" or "AMRAP" instead of a prescribed number of reps to obtain. Two things happen:
- You have to go BALLS OUT! Because the next guy knows what you did and no matter what, he or she wants to kick your ass to claim the title, "Best of..."
- It helps develop "Mental Toughness". No matter who it is, when you are down and getting gritty, two thoughts jump into your head. 1. Go ahead and quit. You've done enough. This hurts and sucks ass at the same time, and 2. Fuck you, you pussy! Man up and crush the limits that you placed upon yourself.
But most of all, sometimes this programming is flat-out FUN.
Getting to use a heavier weight and still chuck down a ton of reps is just FUN!
How much pain can you endure? Living for the singe is sexy too. You get JACKED as heck AND you feel accomplished.
Why only TWO sets? Because if you have to go through hell...do it quickly and be done with it. I've played around with the number of sets. Three sets, I feel are too many to stay mentally IN the game. ONE set is masochistic and takes too much discipline for someone who hasn't experienced that kind of intensity. Two sit just perfectly. If you totally fuck up the first set, you get a second chance. If you annihilate the first one, adding a bit more weight to bring the reps down is far better than just wearing it out.
I like the term "AMRAP" as well. Training to a point of "failure" seems too depressing. Besides, if you train to failure too many times you train to FAIL and NO ONE likes to FAIL!
Today's Training:
Cycle: Commute
Concept II Row: 10 mins
C/S Row: 2xAMRAP
Lat Pulldown: 2xAMRAP
Blast Strap Row: 100 continuous reps. (NOT TWO SETS or THREE of whatever you got tired with)
DB Supine Tricep Ext: 2xAMRAP
BB Curl: 2xAMRAP
V-bar Tricep Pushdowns: 2xAMRAP
Concentration Curl: 2xAMRAP
Cycle: Commute
Run: Sprints; 10x100 yds