DC and Slow Reps

[Roper]

Hi,

in the last years I trained with good succes a HIT programme with slow reps.
This means 4 sec. down, 1sec. stop, 4 sec. back .....
(it was not Super Slow, which has often 10 seconds for up or down !
many people mix up slow reps with Super Slow).
I used Rest pause reps too, which increased my strength extremely.

If you have seen Mentzer´s last video with Markus Reinhard, you know
how the speed looks like.

This kind of speed is MUCH better to my joints than faster ones and I
feel the muscle better working.


I wonder if I could do DC with a slower concentric movement too ?
The negative speed would the same, only the positive would be longer.


Dante wrote about "Slow Mo" in the old "Cycle on Pennies"
thread:

"Slow mo reps again--can you use them in an efficient way that will be long term progression? I dont think my way is the only way at all. I just personally like to use rest pausing and progressively heavier weights for myself and the people i train. Whatever method you or BBBD or anyone for that matter --on this board use that allows you to be better next year than you are this year--will work in my opinion. I tend to train at gyms for 2-4 years and then change gyms and in that time i do alot of observing. And I see the same guys at the exact same size year after year benching (and lifting) the same weights over and over without fighting for those 2.5 to 10lb plates every week. "

So Dante says slow reps are ok, if you are beating your logbook and
getting stronger every workout. But I guess he means here
the many different HIT systems which use slower reps, not DC with slow reps.

But what about DC with slow reps + Rest Pause?

If I am beating the logbook and eat my protein and do my cardio, I think that should be fine too , shouldn´t it ?

ok, the weights will be (especially in the beginning) a little bit lower, but
important is the constant increase of the weight, not the weight
of the first workout .


How many reps would you recommend for DC with slow reps ?

I used to do lesser reps for each set ( around 4-6), because then
the set lasts nearly as long as a set with faster reps.
That way I could use nearly the same weight as with faster reps, sometimes
it was exactly the same, the other times I decreased it only a little bit.
( people often think, that you have to decrease the weight extremely for
slow reps, like from a regular bench press with 150 kg to a slow rep bench press with 80 kg; but with a smaller rep range that will be not the case)


Thanks !

[goliath23]

I wouldnt see a problem. Would I recomend it no but because I think it would be harder to progress in weights over time. BUt go ahead.

I wouldnt see the point in lowering the reps though. SUre your time under tension would be the same if not more but again beating the logbook would be that much harder. I would definitly keep the rep ranges the same.

I am interested to see if anybody else has gone this route or tried it tto see their experience.

My advice is simply going on logic here so you could always try and see how the lower reps work out

[Massive G]

I don't like long TUT reps it can lead to people counting seconds instead of concentrating on moving the weight to work the muscle.
In DC training we control the negative and explode back up on the positive.
My speed is probably 2 seconds down a brief pause to stop ny momentum explode up andother brief pause to stop momentum again and repeat with the controlled descent.
I'd stick with the recommended rep ranges.
Extremely slow reps will get you in trouble with poundages you can handle also as if I had to do widowmaker with TUT I'd be widowmaking the air and free deep knee bends instead of heavy squats for high reps.

[Massive G]

Also re-reading it -it doesn't seem like he is recommending it, just telling guys to do their thing and try it out-like he always has.
so like he asid in his post you quoted do your own thing as long as your progressing with strength on the weights, it doesn't matter how slow you move the weight progression in strength and reps are key-that and progressing at the dinner table and adequate recoup.

[kamal]

Just a word of caution with going 404 tempo. I spent four years or so where I started off with Germain volume training where I picked up doing 302 tempo, then carried that over into circuit training. Simply put, it toned me great - but as for progression, this was alot slower. Then when I did the musclenow routine for 6 months this year, this called for explosive, and going as fast as you can while keeping form. My muscles started to grow within 2-3 weeks, I gained very well - but found I was spending far more time at the gym than I could afford in my life, so I switched to DC. I think on paper - it looks reasonable, go slower - controlled, lower reps should = faster with higher reps, but I think the effect on the nervouse system isn't the same. The explosive positives (I tend to keep my negatives slow - 2secs) seem to produce better strength and size gains for me than the slow positives.

[Roper]

@ MassiveG

I understand, that you don´t like people counting seconds instead of
concentrating on pushing the weight.
I don´t count, because I do this for years, it is not exactly 4/1/4 or so, just a controlled movement.

Thanks for the tip to stick to the recommended rep ranges, I will
try it.


2 seconds down would be way too fast for my shoulder joints. I tried
it ( and explosive positives), but my old shoulder injury starts then to hurt
again, the same happens to my bad knee joints ...

I was just curious, if doing such reps can still be called a DC training .
(when people are asking here and changing some of Dante´s "rules", like frequeny, split or different nutrition ( like eating only 100g of protein like
Darden recommends), the answers always are: you don´t do DC anymore !)

[Massive G]

again you are over thinking things.
Controlling the rep speed is fine if you ar doing super slow reps in this program then to make gains you must progress in reps and weight in an exercise to get full effect of the system-I wouldn't consider deviating rep speed that big of a deal as if someone changes the split and exercise set reps schemes themselves.

[Shawn "Future" Bellon]

I would think that super slow reps really would be in regards to rehab situations. But if you can honestly do a normal rep cadence by all means do it. I do like doing a 5 count negative on hack squats but still keep a controlled rep speed without compromising the intensity of the workload.