Myogenic weight lifting, Shangri-la Diet.

Dave Smith and Stewart Bruce-Low wrote a paper on myogenic weight lifting and the theories of Arthur Jones, a charming renegade.

Jones (18) provided an interesting practical example of the efficacy of slow weight training for those involved in ‘explosive’ sports. In 1973, an Olympic weightlifting team was formed at DeLand High School, Florida. The team trained with only slow (mostly eccentric-only) weight training. Starting in 1973, and with no previous experience in weightlifting, the team established what is probably a world sporting record: the team was undefeated and untied for seven years, winning over 100 consecutive weightlifting competitions. Clearly, the experience of these weightlifters is very much at odds with the view of Cissek (91) and others that slow weight training is not effective in enhancing in enhancing muscle performance at fast speeds.

The essence of the myeogenic method is that you life once a week -- every seven days -- and that when you lift you take a one count on the positive, a four second (one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three, one thousand four) on the negative and you never release the pressure, on every repetition. You do a single set on each exercise, 8-12 repetitions.

I'm fifty. I started lifting about three and a half years ago because I had gotten terribly out of shape. I pretty much started with between forty and sixty pounds of weight on most machines. I'm now moving close the maximum on each machine (or more -- on the back machine I'm tossing sixty pounds of weights on top of the complete weight stack), except for my arms and shoulders which I did not work out for a couple of years due to a shoulder injury.

I promised to put my routine on-line for some friends, but it is pretty simple, takes about an hour, once a week. I was pseudo myogenic when I started (I tried to do three times a week and ended up, due to schedule and other issues, only able to make it once or twice a week -- and I was doing a four count rather than four seconds on the negative). Once I read the paper and applied it to my work-outs I started making real and significant progress.

I'm hoping to get my arms and shoulders (the lifts and the dips) up to max in another six months (I used to do three sets of eight+ pull-ups and fifteen one-armed push-ups with each arm, now I need assistance to do pull-ups or dips). I'm pretty much happy with my strength otherwise, just want to keep what I have.

BTW, if you want a book or two on the subject, here are some leading ones (I've not read them though):

• Mike Mentzer's High Intensity Training Program
• High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way
• The Nautilus Bodybuilding Book

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Diet Links:

• Shangri-la Diet -- Best Practices

• Problems with the Shangri-la Diet?

• Shangri-la Diet Update

• Interview with Seth Roberts (author of the Shangri-la Diet)

• 62 pounds lost on the Shangri-la Diet

• Diet Index

• More Diet Links

• Ok, one more diet post

• What I eat on the Shangri-la Diet

• Quick links

• Additional Links on The Shangri-La Diet By Seth Roberts Ph.D.

• The diet is still working. I lost 44 pounds.

• What were they thinking?

• We are not recommending this diet. On the face if ... (way back in November of 2005)

Gee, it has really been quite the trip since November of 2005, hasn't it? A good one though.