Preface: Dr. Ken's Reflections on "A Program for Gaining Functional Muscle"
Like most of my programs, many looked at this routine in the mid 1980s as they viewed my many PLUSA articles in the late 1970s: "too little work, can't work!" The key to my training philosophy is "go very, very hard, but don't do a lot so you can come back and do it again after recovery". Many just don't like to do very hard work or a limited amount of work. Both factors work against them psychologically. This program however, can be very effective.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Program for Gaining Functional Muscle

I used to enjoy reading the late John McCallum's articles in STRENGTH & HEALTH magazine. Not only were they witty and humorous, but they offered simple training routines that were very effective. Experience has taught me that the majority of trainees won't ever make the progress they envision for themselves because:

1. They will not train as hard as possible.
2. They do not believe that a program can be effective if it appears limited in the number of exercises.
3. They will not train as hard as possible.
4. They lack confidence in their ability to gain muscular strength and size.
5. They will not train as hard as possible.

I used a number of McCallum's routines or modified them by reducing the number of sets. I utilized basic multi-joint movements because my entire garage "gym" consisted of a barbell, two dumbbell bars, a bench, a pair of squat racks, and two pipes which allowed me to do dips and chins. I had a number of 75- and 50-pound plates and truck flywheels, but few smaller plates. Like Mr. McCallum I discovered that I progressed best doing three to six exercises per session, and my selection of plates dictated that I concentrated on squats, deadlifts and other relatively heavy basic movements.

I was fortunate that I had no real local "experts" to turn to, thus I learned to train in a hit-and-miss fashion, doing many things incorrectly but developing a physical base and a training philosophy strongly influenced by exceptionally hard work. Through "dumb luck," chance and common sense, I learned what did and did not work for me. At a time when I was most interested in gaining functional muscular bodyweight to enhance athletic performance, I was able to gain 41 pounds in five months, long before protein supplements, glandular extracts, amino acid powders and anabolic steroids were within the consciousness of the lifting crowd. Here is the program I followed, one that would serve any athlete well if the proper effort were applied to the few heavy, basic movements that comprise the routine:

1. Squat: warmup of 10 reps and then 1 x 8 (once per month, 1 x 50)
2. Stiff-legged deadlift: 1 x 15-20 (once per month, 1 x 30)
3. Overhead press or bench press (alternate each workout): warmup, 2 x 6-8 (once per month try maximum for 1-3 reps)
4. Barbell shrug: 1 x 15-20
5. Barbell curl: 1-2 x 6-10 (once per month, 1 x 50)
6. Dips: 1 x 6-10 (once per month, 1 x 50)

I performed this program two times per week. I had originally planned on three training days weekly, but was always too sore or fatigued to benefit from or even attempt a third training session. I ran a combination of sprints and distance four or five days per week while I utilized this routine, and gained muscular bodyweight the entire time.

I used no vitamin/mineral or protein supplements, drugs or unusual foods. I ate three to four meals per day of standard fare and occasionally drank "milkshakes" consisting of whole milk, low fat milk powder, eggs and Nestle's Quik. I would now recommend that one drink only low fat or skim milk, use only the white of the egg and stay with the Quik for its ability to make anything taste good!

I was successful in gaining muscular bodyweight (147 to 188 pounds at 5-6) on what many pseudo experts would see as a "simple," "nonscientific" training program because it met almost all of the requirements for effective training--brief, extremely intensive training on exercises that stimulate the major muscular structures of the body