This sounds really, really brief, but when done properly it is devastating:

Routine A:

Squats: 15-20 reps, rest-pause
Weighted Chin Up: 5 to 8 reps, negative-only
Standing Press: 7-10 reps, rest-pause
Thick-Bar Wrist Curl: 7-10 reps, rest-pause
Thick-Bar Wrist Ext:: 7-10 reps, rest-pause

Routine B:

Shrug Bar Deadlift: 7-10 reps, rest-pause
Weighted Parallel Bar Dip: 5-8 reps, negative-only
Thick-Bar Arm Curl: 7-10 reps, rest-pause
Calf Raise: 7-10 reps, rest-pause
Gripper: 7-10 reps, rest-pause

The price quote was outrageous and totally not something I could afford so I asked a buddy of mine who has been all over the globe for advise and he referred me to a dentist in Tijuana Mexico. Of course I was skeptical but knew I didn’t have any other choice.  I reached out and made contact, sent my dental Xrays to the dentist and a few weeks later I booked a flight to California and just packed my bags and off I went. I heard there was a lot of violence in Tijuana so naturally I was scared but not enough to neglect fixing my teeth. I put $300 under my foot in my sock in case I needed to bribe my way out of a dangerous situation.

After I got off the jet in California I hopped on a bus and took that to a train that took me to the Mexican border.As soon as I got off the bus I put my mask over my mouth and nose because I was scared of the swine flu that was all over the news. Everything outside looked run down worse then skid row in Chicago. It wasn’t pretty that is for sure. I waited until the trains last stop and exited at the Mexican border. I began walking to the border and was very cautious of my surroundings as there were many groups of not so friendly fellas around. I kept my mouth shut and kept walking. I walked through these spinning gates that made a loud sound of clang, clang, clang and I knew that once I walk through that gate I am no longer in the United States. I was a bit nervous from all the stuff I heard on the news about violence and the swine flu.

I crossed the border and walked over a dimly lit bridge that was wrapped in chain link fence and graffiti. After I got past the end of the bridge I saw several Mexican police officers AKA Policia that were wearing ski masks and holding some kind of assault rifles.  I thought to myself I feel safe with their presence and another part of me said what the hell was I thinking when I made the decision to come here. Anyways I approached a Policia officer and asked to you speak English and he shook his head no. I thought to myself this is going to be a real adventure. I walked maybe a mile then called the dentist which sent a girl to pick me up.

I met the dentist briefly then went to a hotel called Hotel La Villa which was walking distance from the dentist office. The dentist was Dr. Javier and he was very friendly and told me everything will be ok hence he could tell I was pretty nervous. I then walked to the hotel, checked in and walked the streets of Tijuana for a few hours out of boredom. The next morning I walked to the dentist office and was immediately seated in the dentist chair. Dr. Javier was a very kind and gentle dentist and really took his time with me unlike the dentists I have experienced in Orlando Florida that seem to only care about how many patients they can see in a day to fill their cash registers with money.

The Mexican dentist experience was different. I felt that this dentist really cared about me and did an outstanding job.  Granted Tijuana was the most poverty stricken place I have ever seen with my own eyes the dentist was a blessing from God and I am very thankful to him. How much did this dentist charge me VS the cost of the dentist in Orlando? About a 1/4 of the price and that included the price of round trip airfare, hotel for a week, breakfast, lunch and dinners, and a hundred bucks for going to clubs at night and buying a few souvenirs.  Was it worth it? YES and I would do it again if I had to. Overall I had a good time and came home with a perfect smile.

Me wearing a mask on the train to the Tijuana border

Tijuana border entrance

Hotel La Villa

Federal Policia

Friend I made in Tijuana

Good Sam Dental

If you’re constantly reading bodybuilding or fitness magazines, books and web sites searching for the routine – the perfect combination of exercises, sets, and reps – or the training method – the perfect style of performance – I’m going to save you some time and frustration…

There is no such thing.

While some exercises are better than others for specific muscle groups or specific individuals, there are several that are effective for each muscle group, and while there are a lot of different high intensity training methods  like the traditional Nautilus guidelines of lifting in 2 seconds and lowering in 4, SuperSlow, rest-pause, negative-only, static contractions, etc., all of them are effective if done hard and progressively as long as you don’t overdo the volume and get adequate rest between workouts.

However, constantly changing routines is not the answer either.

If you are not making progress changing your routine or specific exercises is usually not the answer. Either you are not stimulating the body to produce a response (not training intensely enough), or you are interfering with or preventing the body from producing a response, by doing more exercise more often than the body is capable of recovering from and adapting to within some time period or by not getting adequate nutrition or rest.

Before switching up exercises or changing training methods ask yourself,

1. Am I really working as hard as possible on each exercise?
2. Am I keeping my workouts relatively brief?
3. Am I allowing my body adequate time to recover between workouts?
4. Am I eating well?
5. Am I getting enough sleep?

If the answer to any of the above is “No” then changing the exercises you’re performing is not going to help your progress.

Often, changing exercises, routines, or training methods appears to break plateaus because during the first six to eight weeks of a new routine weight progression tends to be more rapid due to neural adaptations or learning the skill of the new exercises or method of performance (or relearning the skill of exercises not performed for a long time). Changing exercises at this time is a mistake, however, because it is after this period of neural and skill improvement that real progress begins. When skill and neural adaptations can be ruled out as a major factor in progress you will know every time you improve by repetitions or weight on an exercise it is due to changes in the muscles and not just how efficiently you’re using them.

Some recommend variation because they believe a muscle will become resistant to further adaptations to a particular exercise after a period of time. Unless you are at or near the limits of your potential strength for the muscles worked if you are unable to progress on an exercise you are either not training it hard enough to stimulate improvement or doing something to prevent your body from recovering and producing the improvements stimulated. Contrary to uninformed opinion the body does not become resistant to further adaptations to the exercise movement itself – as long as potential for improvement remains, the stimulus is provided, and the requirements are met for recovery and adaptation the body will improve – what it adapts to is the level of demand of the training. The more advanced your training becomes and the nearer you get to the limits of your potential the harder you have to train to stimulate further improvements.

The more skilled you are at performing an exercise and the better the neural adaptations the harder it is possible for you to work the muscles involved. If you want to maximize the intensity of your workouts you must maximize these neural and skill adaptations, not prevent them by constantly varying your routines.

Another reason some people recommend varying exercises regularly is to avoid harm to the joints from overuse, however this is not a problem if proper exercises are selected and performed correctly to begin with and if the overall volume and frequency of work is not excessive.

This does not mean you should never vary your training, but changes should be made for specific reasons rather than variety for its own sake. Assuming the volume and frequency of training are reasonable, you can get nearly as big and strong as your genetics will allow training hard and progressively on a very basic routine of just a few exercises with very little variation. This should form the foundation of your training.

I realize some people like to vary their routines for psychological reasons: they get bored with their workouts, or find the appearance of faster progress that comes with a change of exercises motivating. There is nothing wrong with this as long as the long-term emphasis is on progression on a few basic exercises and the routines are not varied too often. While entirely switching routines every month or two is a mistake, there are some ways to incorporate variety into a routine while also maintaining enough consistency to ensure you are making real progress rather than just increasing numbers on paper.

The two approaches I suggest are:

1. Perform one or two routines with a few consistent, basic exercises, and a few exercises that alternate.
2. Alternate between a consistent “benchmark” routine and one or more varying routines.

For example, certain exercises make up the core of all my routines; squats, deadlifts, standing presses, chin ups, parallel-bar dips and gripping. I have a few other exercises I like and perform consistently, but however the workouts change they always include those few. You might perform completely different exercises, but the specific exercises are not as important as long as they effectively work all the major muscle groups.

Some advanced trainees may find despite a significant degree of overall improvement in strength and size certain muscle groups are not as strong or well developed as others. This may be due to genetic factors – not everybody has the genes to develop perfectly proportional or symmetrical strength and size throughout the body – however any perceived imbalance or asymmetry may be improved by changing the routine to focus more on lagging muscle groups.

Other situations where variation may be needed is to accommodate changes in other activities or to work around an injury.

With a few exceptions, beginners should stick with the same basic exercises for at least their first six months of training, focusing on learning and practicing proper form and becoming accustomed to pushing themselves through the muscular burning and discomfort associated with training at a high level of intensity. Even advanced trainees should not vary their training too often and stay focused primarily on consistently progressing on a few basic exercises.

Whatever variety you incorporate, keep in mind any changes made should should be purposeful and contribute to overall, long-term improvement. Select exercises and structure your routines in accordance with your training goals and how your body responds to exercise rather than simply switching things around randomly or just following whatever appears in the most recent Muscle & Fiction magazine or in the forum at BodybuildingBroScience.com, or whatever is popular in your gym at the time.

There is neither a single “ultimate” routine nor a need to constantly vary routines for best results. The best routine is is any that effectively works all the major muscle groups and is performed hard, consistently and progressively.