When you are young or new to weight lifting of any sort, your body responds to the simplest of stimuli and resistance. If it be for strength or size, the body just responds quickly. This is referred to as the “novice effect”. In time however, you learn very quickly that the body slowly begins to adapt to the load or “effort” you impose on it, making progress that much more difficult to achieve.
Now many may look at this as a hindrance, but the more seasoned and intelligent lifters see this is as they key variable that separates the true from the posers. As you age, training becomes more difficult and more of a challenge. This is where just being “young” goes out the window. Many stop and think about the wisdom they wish they would have had when they were younger and training, but wisdom is gained through the screw ups and the overlooking of things. So, in actuality the mindless beatings you put your body through when you were younger in their own special way have played a role in your “coming to wisdom” moment, like right now.
The Texas Method is a training method that slows the intermediate to advanced lifters to continue to make those strengths and even size gains, even after all the years of hard work. The Texas Method is more “methodical” and smarter (not necessarily harder) in it’s approach.
There is nothing like showing the young folks how to do it even at an older age.
The Texas Method pretty much strategizes the reps and sets throughout the 3-day training period in a week. Monday (or day 1) is geared more towards volume, Wednesday (day 2) is a active rest, recovery, or mechanical day, and Friday (day 3) is a day based around intensity.
A sample routine for the Texas Method is as follows:
*Monday: Volume Day
A. Squat 5 x 5 @ 90% of 5RM
B. Bench Press or Overhead Press 5 x 5 @ 90% 5RM
C. Deadlift 1 x 5 @ 90% 5RM
Volume 5: Sets of 5 reps across (the same weight repeated for the work sets) has proven to be the optimum combination of volume and intensity.
*Wednesday: Recovery Day
A. Squat 2 x 5 @ 80% of Monday's work weight
B. Overhead Press (if you bench pressed Monday) 3 x 5 or
Bench Press (if OHP on Monday) 3 x 5 @ 90% previous 5 x 5 weight
C. Chin-up 3 x Bodyweight
D. Back Extension or Glute-Ham Raise 5 x 10
Friday: Intensity Day
A. Squat: warm-up, then work up to one single, new 5RM
B. Bench Press, (if you bench pressed Monday) or
Overhead Press (if OHP on Monday): work up to one single, new 5RM
C. Power Clean or Power Snatch: 5 x 3 / 6 x 2
