STD's ARE GOOD: Metabolic STRESS, Mechanical TENSION, and Muscle DAMAGE

Sexually transmitted diseases are a terrible thing. However, STD's in the sports science world are amazing! The mechanisms to optimize muscular hypertrophy are Metabolic STRESS, Mechanical TENSION, and Muscle DAMAGE. Doc Bret Contreras illustrates the STD principle in the following infographic:

Doc Brad Schoenfeld (Doctor Hypertrophy) in his textbook HYPERTROPHY breaks down the STD principle in great scientific detail (CAUTION- this text is not to be taken lightly. Give yourself a few months to read, re-read, and absorb.) Since his textbook, science has clarified the mechanisms of hypertrophy by creating a hierarchy with Tension being the most important (80-90%) followed by Stress & Damage (remaining 10-20% of hypertrophy.) Dr. Hypertrophy's complete 16-page review on his website here, Below are some page examples from his textbook:

Professor Andy Galpin from CSU-Fullerton has a great podcast with Iraki Nutrition- YouTube clip can be viewed here:

ENOUGH WITH THE STD's& HOW CAN I IMPLEMENT THIS IN THE GYM?

If you're a beginner, start off by lifting weights 3-5 days a week, making sure to train each muscle 2x per week. The rep range should be fairly light (10-20 reps) to strengthen connective tissue (ligaments & tendons) and prevent future injuries. After a month of training, a chest workout would look like this:

1. Bench Press 4 x 6 (~80% of your 1rm, which means the weight is heavy enough to ONLY perform 6-8 reps.) Rest 3-minutes (LAST SET Super Overload 110% of 1rm) = TENSION & DAMAGE

2. Incline Dumbbell Press 3 x 10 reps. Rest 2-minutes = TENSION

3. Chest Flies into Push-Ups 3 x 15 reps / AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible for Push-Ups). Rest 30-60 seconds & HOLD end of chest fly = STRESS & DAMAGE

4. Bar Dips 2 x 20 reps = STRESS

5. The entire workout would consist of establishing maximal TENSION at the beginning of the workout (heaviest sets go first after a proper warm-up.) Metabolic Stress occurs the moment when you feel the burn. The entire workout will cause a lot of muscle damage, as well as emphasizing the eccentric (negative) portion of certain exercises (flies & super overload bench press.)

   A Glute workout would look like this:

   1. Squats 4 x 6 (~80% of your 1rm, which means the weight is heavy enough to ONLY perform 6-8 reps.) Rest 3-minutes = TENSION

   2. Hip Thrusts 3 x 12. Rest 2-minutes = TENSION

   3. Bulgarian Split Squats into clams 3 x 12 (per leg) / 25 reps. Rest 90-seconds = TENSION & STRESS

   4. RDL's into High Step-Ups 2 x 20 (10/per leg for RDL's). Rest as needed (less than 1-minute) – STRESS & DAMAGE

   5. The entire workout would consist of establishing maximal TENSION at the beginning of the workout (heaviest sets go first after a proper warm-up.) Metabolic Stress occurs the moment when you feel the burn. The entire workout will cause a lot of muscle damage, as well as emphasizing the eccentric (negative) portion of certain exercises (RDL's & Bulgarian's.)

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