The M.E.T. - Maximum Efficiency Training System

Blueprints for Success
How To Completely Transform Your Body and Your Life!
Lesson 6

Part 2 : The MET Weight Training System
Training each body part completely "once" each week

Just as you saw in The MET Target Aerobics System, the key to success involves increasing intensity and not exercise volume within the frame work of a three part system. In the case of MET Target Aerobics, the possible time frames are 12,18 or 24 minutes (plus the warm up and cool down) each with advancing degrees of intensity.
As your body adapts to one level, that degree of energy expenditure, or force, will no longer seem to be an effort. In short, with MET your body will be steadily adapting and mastering advancing degrees of physical stress and will be transforming and getting stronger and leaner in the process. As the weeks go by, what seemed to be a challenge at the start will no longer seem difficult. When this happens you’ll know it’s time to level up, so that once again you can challenge your body, and thus take your physique to the next higher level.

With Maximum Efficiency Training, after you’ve moved through all the lower levels and get to the advanced level, the goal is to increase the intensity (MHR) and NOT TO JUST RANDOMLY ADD MORE VOLUME OR TIME ONTO THE SESSIONS. With MET Target Aerobics, the most one would do cardio for with warm up and cool down is 30 minutes three days a week. If improving results had to do with just staying on an exercise bike or tread mill longer and longer, then by that standard, the fittest people in the gym would be on the cardio equipment for hours at a time. With longer and longer workouts these people, in due course, would definitely just get burnt out, have to take a complete lay off from exercise and then start all over again. Gee... that sounds like time well spent!
With MET TARGET AEROBICS the key always is to train smarter and more efficiently to get “better results” – not to just exercise longer. MORE IS NOT BETTER with cardio - and so it is also with the MET Weight Training System...
Also, If you’ve been following these lessons and reading what John Simmons has revealed in the TTN column about MET Diet from the beginning (for a copy go to www.bodyfitness-uk.com and click on the MET Diet and MET Training icon), you know exactly how to eat and what supplements to take to get better results. The MET Diet covers exactly how to eat to build muscle and loose body fat. When following the MET Diet, you quickly start to feel and experience the benefits sound eating has on your body and mind. Not only will you be more mentally alert and lose body fat (and keep it off), but you’ll experience a new level of endurance and energy to take you through the day.

The MET weight training program

In the MET Weight training program, there are four levels (eight possible sets in total per body part), and as mentioned earlier, each body part is worked completely once a week – no more and no less. During each workout we are trying to fully stimulate muscle fibres and in time create an adaptation response. Studies prove that the stimulation required to signal growth happens fast, or not at all. Hence, the maxim, you can work out hard or long, it’s one or the other.
For best results, you want to perform brief but intense workouts and follow a very specific sequence or pattern when exercising in order to fully maximize growth and recovery. All this will be fully covered in future lessons but for now let's just be clear that to balance optimum training intensity with optimum muscle recovery you don't want to be performing marathon workouts. It’s just not productive.

Keep in mind that the body has a limited “natural2 ability to recover from physical activity. If you are continually engaging in marathon workouts, you’ll be overextending your body’s recuperative ability, thus limiting your growth and progress.
This is why it’s important to accurately access which of the MET levels (see in the MET Tracker Sheets available at bodyfitness-uk.com) you should start out at. You should always be on the lookout for the overtraining cues listed in lesson 2 (available at the same web address).
If your body is easily handling one level, then plan to step it up to the next level. On the other hand, if you are noticing some of the overtraining cues, and your body is not recovering fast enough, then simply bring it down a level.
Virtually everyone can find their own individual starting level in the MET Training System. Of course, their will be a little bit of trial and adjustment going on in the first week, and that’s normal. The key is to pick a level based on your training experience and get your feet wet by doing. You can always adjust things later, but two big factors to be aware of initially are your starting fitness condition and your muscle recovery capacity. Always be honest with yourself. Pay attention to what your body is telling you and use this information wisely. The best results will always come from training within the level that’s right for your body.
So how does the MET Weight Training Program lay out. Well, lets first look at the key components of the program, and then I’ll take you through a typical MET workout with all the bells and whistles. Shall we begin...

Maximum Efficiency Weight Training

There are literally hundreds of different weight training methods and programs which have been presented over the years, and to a point, you can achieve some benefit from virtually any of them. If you weight train consistently and with intensity, and are careful to avoid over training, your muscles will grow to some degree. However, if you want to achieve even better results in less time, then you’ll want to pay close attention to the key principles that I’ll be outlining here and in the upcoming lessons. As I said from the very beginning, there is a better and more efficient way to train and get results and it starts with training your muscles in a very specific way.

The Two Side (Agonist/Antagonist) Factor:

Each workout will be set up in such a way that you will be training more intensely and experiencing better recovery between workouts. This is accomplished in several ways. To begin with, the program follows a two-sided (agonist/antagonist) method. This means we are not only training for the strength and size of the muscle, but also maintaining the balance of the joints.
How does this translate into better and more efficient workouts? Let me explain. First off, the whole purpose of the muscle is to move your bones. Each muscle connects to two bones creating what is known as a "bone-lever" system. The muscles are connected to the bones by your tendons, which allow the force of muscle contractions to be transmitted from the muscles to the bones. The bones come together at the joints, where they are cushioned by cartilage and other material that stops bones rubbing on each other.
There is a muscle on each side of the joint to allow the bones to move in more than one direction. One example of this is how your biceps and triceps control most of the forearm motion. When the biceps are contracted, it pulls the forearm towards the shoulders. Conversely, when the triceps are contracted, it pulls the forearm away from the shoulder. If one is contracting, the other one is elongating. This is the "two-sided" agonist-antagonist relationship.
The body part that is performing the majority of the work is called the agonist, while the body part that is opposing it and helping to control and balance the weight is called the antagonist. Accordingly, when training your biceps you will indirectly (and to a lesser degree) be training your triceps. As such, if biceps and triceps are trained the same day as outlined below and not separated with, say, biceps worked on day one and triceps on day three - you can be assured of not only greater benefits on the day of the workouts, but also better recuperation between workouts.
If you’ve trained triceps alone, you’ll notice that invariably you get a pump going in your biceps and visa versa. This is why, you are indirectly bringing biceps into play when training triceps and triceps in when training biceps. The same goes for quads and hams, or chest and shoulders. So, by following just the first principle alone and grouping your muscles more efficiently when training, you will automatically experience better and more complete muscle recuperation between workouts. You’ll also experience greater muscle stimulation and pump on workout days, which translates into better growth in each of these muscle groups.

The MET Program
Day 1 - BACK, TRICEPS, BICEPS
Day 2 - MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 3 - QUADS, HAMSTRINGS, CALVES
Day 4 - MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 5 - CHEST, SHOULDERS, ABS
Day 6 - MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 7 - REST

*Note - The MET Target Aerobic sessions outlined on days 2, 4 and 6 above should be adjusted around your individual fitness goals and may not apply to you. Keep in mind that if your goal is to reduce body fat while improving your overall tone and shape, then you’ll want to adhere to the program outlined above.
If your body fat level is where you want it, but your goal is to improve cardiovascular fitness, then two sessions per week are in order. If you are on the lean side and your goal is to gain weight and increase overall muscle mass, then aerobic sessions should be limited to no more than one a week.
You can change your rest day to fall on any day of the week you wish. The important thing is to always combine the body parts being exercised in the sequence shown above. For those new to weight training and starting with levels one and two (beginner level), because of the short time involved in each weight training workout session, you may want to do your MET Target Aerobics and Weight Training Program together on the same day. In this case the program would look as follows:

Optional MET beginners’ program - with level one and level two only:
Day 1 - BACK, TRICEPS, BICEPS & MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 2 - REST DAY
Day 3 - QUADS, HAMSTRINGS, CALVES & MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 4 - REST DAY
Day 5 - CHEST, SHOULDERS, ABS & MET TARGET AEROBICS
Day 6 - REST DAY
Day 7 - REST DAY

The next important point to know when following the MET Weight Training Program is that you always do your major body part first when training. This allows you to put your greatest attention and energy into those body parts requiring greater effort given their larger number of muscle fibres. Also, with major muscle groups, you will be using more weight, so you want the minor muscle groups strong so they can help stabilize the work load. The major muscle groups we are referring to here are the back, chest and quadriceps. The minor body parts include biceps, triceps, shoulders, hamstrings, calves and abdominal muscles. Examples where this is especially helpful is in the back, biceps and triceps (work out #1). Why? Because your biceps will come into play during back movements such as bent over rows, cable rows, pull-downs and most other back exercises. If you were to train the body parts in the wrong order (i.e. biceps which is a small body part before back), you will find that you are not going to be able to work the back as completely, or as intensely, as you could have if you trained back BEFORE you trained biceps. Train each body part intensely in the sequence laid out above, and you can’t help but to experience the added rewards this technique provides.

Don’t forget the basics

Remember the importance of diet in the overall plan, and be sure to increase your protein intake daily through the use of a good protein powder between meals. Proper protein consumption directly relates to a positive nitrogen balance. A positive nitrogen balance simply means that our body is receiving more protein or you can say more "nitrogen" than what it is excreting.
As John Simmons talks about in the Top Trainers Network column, you have to have a positive nitrogen balance before muscle growth can take place. This is so basic, so your body has what it needs to build new muscle with the extra. This is a very important point for anyone trying to transform their physique. I should add that the role of protein doesn’t just end there. Protein is also essential for our immune system, since antibodies (which is our body’s defence system) are also made of protein. Also, enzymes which are the catalyst of every reaction in the human body are made of proteins. A vast number of hormones which act as the body’s messaging network are also made of protein. Protein even effects blood sugar control. Adding protein to meals and snacks helps keep blood sugar steady throughout the day, which translates into better energy levels, better weight control and cholesterol control. Why do so many people drop the ball so to speak when it comes to protein consumption in our diets? Often, it’s due to a busy lifestyle, and this is where portable protein comes in so handy for bodybuilders. Our muscles need a continuous supply of amino acids to ensure optimal recovery and growth.

Magnify the effect

Don’t underestimate the importance of getting enough "quality" protein into you’re diet daily when on the MET System. How can you be 100% sure you are meeting your needs for protein each day? Easy! Just follow the MET strategy of using second generation absorption-enhanced protein supplements like UDA+ by Venice Beach. With UDA+ even small servings deliver big rewards. Gram for gram, UDA+ which contains Absorbal-P, takes protein and breaks it down far more efficiently into the free form amino acids that you need to build muscle, and it does this at a considerably higher rate so with UDA+ you can actually get by with less protein if you had to.
Due to it’s powerful, patented, absorption-enhancing system, if you took UDA+ Protein with a meal for example that included a pound of steak, you would actually pick up an additional 20% more amino acids due to the absorption-enhancing effect of Absorbal-P in UDA+. This translates into a whopping 40,000mg more free form amino acids at one sitting! That’s about what you’ll find in 72 amino acid capsules plus what’s contained in the UDA+ Protein powder!
Remember, with protein powder, or any supplement for that matter, it’s not what you take that makes the difference, it’s what you actually absorb into your blood! Venice Beach supplements, which contain Absorbal or Absorbal-P, allow athletes to absorb as much as 90% more active ingredients compared to first generation supplements. If you are going to take the time to do something, it’s worth doing it right. Stick with the real Venice Beach Supplements and UDA+ Protein so that you can be sure you’re getting the biggest hit for your supplement dollar and the greatest response from the Maximum Efficiency Training Program.

That’s it for this month. Next month, we’ll cover more keys to the MET Weight Training Program.
Until next month – TRAIN WITH PASSION