DC Training – An Overview
I only ask that noone repost this writeup elsewhere and keep this exclusively here at bb.net. Thanks in advance.
Here's an writeup that me and Protobuilder did for another website a while back about DC Training. It's one of the most hardcore programs I've ever done. Just in case anyone gets a wild hair up their ass and wants to try it, I hesitate to recommend it unless you've got a very solid foundation of experience! Back when I tried it about a year ago, I did some things right, and some wrong. Hindsight being 20/20, I'd give this another go for sure since I've increased my knowledge 100% since then..:fest30: By 0311 and Protobuilder :hbang: Doggcrapp training is an intense, high frequency, low volume training system built around one key principle—you must get stronger! Doggcrapp, the online name of the mastermind behind DC training, believes that size comes from strength. If you’re getting stronger, you’re getting bigger! On the DC method, you typically train three days a week (M, W, F) using one hardcore working set per bodypart. You hit half your body in one workout, half the next, and then repeat. This has you hammering each bodypart twice in 8 days, which allows for more growth cycles than a typical high volume workout. It is absolutely critical that you know your body before using DC training and, thus, it is intended for trainees with at least four years of heavy iron training. Here are the basic principles of DC Training: Get Strong = Get Big! Every bodybuilding system seeks to build the biggest bodybuilders possible. But they all use different methods. DC training forces you to get stronger and stronger on your lifts. As long as your weights are going up, you will get bigger and bigger because your muscles are forced to adapt to ever increasing loads. When was the last time you added 10 pounds to your lifts? DC argues that if you aren’t getting stronger, you’re wasting your time. High Frequency, High Intensity, Low Volume On the DC system, most people work out three times a week. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday is most common. Here’s the basic two-way split: Monday – Chest, Shoulders, Triceps, Back width, & Back thickness Wednesday – Biceps, Forearms, Calves, Quads, & Hamstrings Friday – Repeat Monday’s workout Monday – Repeat Wednesday’s workout Those trainees who sling a lot of iron and who need a lot of warm-up sets can do a three-way split: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday. This split is only for people with excellent recovery abilities though. Here’s the three-way split: Monday – Chest, Shoulders, Triceps Tuesday – Back, Biceps, Forearms Thursday – Calves, Quads, Hamstrings Friday – Chest, Shoulders, Triceps Monday – Repeat Tuesday Tuesday – Repeat Thursday, and so on. Here’s how you do it: Pick three exercises for each bodypart in order from your favorite to least favorite out of the three. You should use only compound movements. You’ll do one of those exercises each workout. So, on Monday for example, you’d do one working set of Incline Smith Machine Press. Then you’d move on to shoulders and do the same thing, then triceps, etc. When your next chest workout rolls around on Friday, you’ll do your second chest exercise. Again, you’ll do only one working set before moving on to shoulders, where you’ll do your second shoulder exercise, etc. It’s really pretty simple: • pick three exercises for each bodypart • do one exercise per workout for each scheduled bodypart • perform only one working set for each bodypart Frequency and Intensity are the keys to growing with only one exercise and one working set. • Frequency—you’re hitting each bodypart three times in 14 days so you’re going through more growth cycles than a typical bodybuilding split. • Intensity—your working set employs controlled negatives, rest-pause (you’ll rest-pause twice during your working set, which is like doing 3 “mini sets”), and a 6-8s. negative at the end of each rest-pause mini-set. Here’s how a sample workout would look using rest/pausing: Perform as many warm up sets as needed. These don’t count! An experienced, strong lifter may need 6 warm up sets for squats whereas a new, weaker lifter may only need two before they’re at their working weight. After warm up, do one all-out, hardcore working set: pick up the bar and go to absolute failure. You should fail on the negative, and your rep range can be anywhere from 15 RP up to 20-30 RP (rest/pause) depending on the exercise (e.g., bench vs. hamstring curls) and the bodypart (e.g., calves vs. biceps). At failure, end on the negative and re-rack on the bottom, then take 12-15 deep breaths (should take about 20 seconds). Then go to failure again (should get 2-4 more reps), rack the weight on the negative, and take 12-15 more breaths. Then knock out 1-2 more reps and, if you’re an advanced lifter, perform a 20 second static hold just short of lockout. The working set is followed by 60 seconds of extreme stretching. Then you move on to your next bodypart. EACH AND EVERY REP IS PERFORMED WITH AN EXPLOSIVE, POSITIVE AND CONTROLLED NEGATIVE. On your last rep of each rest-pause set, you execute a painful 8 second negative. This is why DC advocates using machines such as hammer strength and smith. It’s a lot easier to re-rack the weights on the bottom safely and to incorporate a 20-30 second static at the end of a working set (final rest-pause). Logbook Because strength is critical, you must get stronger each and every workout. You absolutely must track your progress with a logbook. Each workout, you look back at your logbook and try to either increase your reps or increase the weight you used last time. If you cannot, DC has an interesting motivational tool—you lose the exercise! Because you picked your three favorite exercises, you won’t want to lose them so you’ll push yourself to beat your last workout! This period is known as a blast (see below). You’re only job in life is to kill the logbook. This method ensures that you keep getting stronger and stronger on each exercise. Once your strength stalls out, you change to a new exercise and try to get as strong as possible on that exercise. Extreme stretching Extreme stretching (AKA fascia stretching) is an integral part of the DC method. After each working set, you must do a 60 second extreme stretch. This is the hardest part of the training! One minute is a long time. The quickie explanation [by Dan Moore] is extreme stretching causes microtrauma from forcing sarcomeres to produce tension at extreme length, where damage is most susceptible. By holding it for 30-60 seconds, you initiate the stretch reflex, which increases the tension in that area, thus boosting tension and therefore acute damage. There’s some speculation about stretching activating gene expression with satellite cells. The greatest benefit from extreme stretching is that it will enhance your recovery time so you can be able to keep up with the increased frequency. Here’s how to execute some extreme stretching: Chest: Grab a set of dumbbells and drop down into the deepest fly you can do. Make sure to pull as much air into your lungs as possible. The first ten seconds you’ll be squirming into the deepest position you can, then the next 50 seconds you’ll be struggling to hold on. You can keep the dumbbells by your side, arms bent. Usually you want to pick a weight that’s half of what your 6-8 rep max is. Shoulders: Use the smith machine barbell and put it shoulder height. Reach behind you and grab the barbell palms up. Then walk out until you’re on your heels, then roll your shoulders down. Hold for 60 seconds. Triceps: Grab a dumbbell and sit down on a bench with a barbell to your back. Put the dumbbell behind your head like a triceps extension. Use your head to push the dumbbell down. You obviously use one at a time. Back Width: Dead hang from a pull-up bar. Use weight if you need to. You might use wrist wraps to ensure you don’t fall down and die. Back Thickness: There’s no way set in stone. Typically, grab a doorknob or machine and round your back while you stretch. Biceps: Use an Olympic bar in a squat rack or smith machine and set it neck high. Standing in front of it, grab the bar behind you with an overhand grip (palms down). Slink down with one foot forward and one foot back and try to hold for 60 seconds. Hamstrings: Put one leg up on a barbell or any machine, toe pointed out, try to push your knee down and hold for 60 seconds. Quads: Facing a barbell in a squat rack about hip height -- grip it and simultaneously sink down and throw your knees under the barbell and do a sissy squat underneath it while going up on your toes. This one’s hard to explain. Blasting & Cruising One unusual thing about DC training is it doesn’t have bulking and cutting phases. DC makes a persuasive argument that it’s better to constantly gain a little lean muscle rather than fatten up and then lose muscle while trying to also lose the extra fat. DC training involves blasting and cruising phases instead. During the blast phase, you lift as intensely as possible for as long as you can. Five to eight weeks seems like the norm depending on your intensity and recovery ability. You’re beating the logbook each and every workout. Once you stop beating the logbook, it’s time for a cruise! So you must know your body and know when you’re about to lose strength and overtrain. Just before you overtrain, you shift to a “cruise” phase. A cruise is nothing more than taking it easy for a few weeks. This cruise block is your time to fully recover your body before your next blast. Slightly back off the weights and try other exercises you’ve wanted to do. You still perform just one working set, but you don’t use rest-pause and you stop a rep or two short of failure. Your sets should be 12-20 reps. Every trainee has to cruise at some point to avoid overtraining and injuries. During the cruise phase, you relax mentally and physically. If you miss a meal, it’s okay. You’re not out to beat your logbook. You’re rebuilding your mental and physical energy to get ready for another a hardcore blast. People who “refuse to cruise” will overtrain quickly and stall out, possibly permanently. You’ve got to cruise. Diet Doggcrapp doesn’t believe in a carefully tracked, super-strict, calorie-counting diet. Also, diets are highly individual so the variables will change for each trainee. There are some basic principles though. You’re basically on a constant clean bulk. High protein is a must! You do count protein grams and must get at least 2g. per pound of bodyweight. Eat protein first at each meal. Keep your carbs moderate and stop eating heavy carbs after 5-6 pm. After 5-6pm, it’s only lean meat and veggies. You eat moderate amounts of fats. Doggcrapp is a big proponent of extra virgin olive oil and recommends that you use it to get in extra calories. In one tablespoon of olive oil, you get 120 calories in the form of mono-unsaturated “good” fats. To stay lean, you do cardio 0-3 times a week, doing about 45 minutes at a moderate fat-burning pace. It’s most recommended to walk for 45 minutes upon awakening to kick your metabolism into gear. Also, DC recommends that you eat fewer calories on light activity days. Overall, Doggcrapp is an exciting, strength-focused system. By constantly forcing your muscles to lift heavier weights, your body should adapt by getting stronger and bigger! This program is only for advanced trainees, having at least 4 years of training. One of the many reasons is because DC trainees must learn their body to avoid overtraining. If you give Doggcrapp a try, be sure to post about it in our forums. It’s a fairly complicated system for anyone’s first time through, but some members here at Clutch know it well. “Doggcrapp” is the online name of Dante, the developer of the Doggcrapp system. For more information on Doggcrapp training, visit his website at www.intensemuscle.com. Information for this article was compiled from public sources, some written by Doggcrapp, freely available on various Internet forums and articles. |
0311's Personal Experience & Routine
The following is what I picked for my exercises when I did this program. I also added what the suggested target reps should be. Some exercises are different from all the others such as deadlifts, calves, hammer curls, and squats that only use straight sets. Make note of that. A1- • Smythe Incline Barbell: 15 RP • Shoulder Dumbbell: 15-20 RP • Skullcrushers: 15-30 RP • Pulldowns: 15-20 RP • Barbell Rows: 2 x 10-12 B1- • Barbell Curls: 15-20 RP • Hammer Curls: 12-18 reps • Seated Calves: 1 x 12, 10 sec. stretch between reps • Leg Curls: 20-25 RP • Squats: 1 x 4-8, 1 x 20 (called the widow-maker set!) A2- • Incline Dumbbell: 15-20 RP • Smyth Military: 15 RP • Reverse-Grip Bench: 11-15 RP • Rack Chins: 15-20 RP • Machine Rows: 2 x 12 B2- • Preacher Curls: 15-20 RP • Reverse Grip Curls: 12-18 reps • Donkey Calf: 12 reps, 10 sec. stretch between reps • Hack Squats: 1 x 4-8, 1 x 20 • Stiffleg Deads: sets x 6, adding 10 pds. until can’t do anymore. A3- • Hammer Strength Incline: 15-20 RP • Hammer Strength Shoulder Press: 15-18 RP • Weighted Dips: 15-20 RP • Weighted Pullups: 15-20 RP • Rack Deadlifts: 1 x 6-8, 1 x 3-4 B3- • Incline Dumbbell Curls: 15-20 RP • Barbell Wrist Curls: 12-18 reps • Seated Calves: 12 reps, 10 sec. stretch between reps • Front Quad Press: 6-8 reps, 20 reps • Standing Leg Curls: 20-30 RP For most of the 15 RP’s, your target should be 8 reps, followed by 2-4, followed by 1-3 all rest/paused. Some exercises such as calves are completely different altogether. For calves, it’s a 4 second negative, followed by a 10-12 second stretch. This counts as only one rep. My calves blew up using this method. Overall, I definitely gained a lot of strength/mass using this program. My legs seemed to really respond the best due in part to the widow-maker (20 rep) squats. My calves by far grew the best. I was surprised to see how sore I was from only doing one working set. I personally liked the program, but I had to stop due to a hundred different "life" things. Diverticulitis being one of the top things supersetted with lots of Vicodin. If you don’t have a spotter for some exercises, it makes it very hard (psychologically) because of the heavy weight. I also must say that this program is very individualized. Some people, like myself, respond better to higher reps for biceps and triceps while others won’t need as much. I also got decent mass gains even though I stopped prematurely. If I ever find a gym buddy half as motivated as me, I’ll be picking this program up again for sure. BTW, one more thing to note. When this system says getting stronger = getting bigger, it is dealing with high reps/rest/pausing. I know some people will try to call bullshit on this, but DC isn't doing 1-5 reps either. Doing rest/pausing, trying like hell to increase the weight on the bar will get you bigger because rest/pausing can hit the muscle fibers deeply with only a single rest/pause set. It's important to note that this program is a very good program for a trainee without a training spotter, mostly because of it's heavy use of machines. If you fail midway through a rep like during hammer incline press, it's easy to drop the weight and carry on. Some of the mistakes people commonly make are mostly in regards to always increasing the weight on the bar versus trying to also increase the amount of reps done with a certain weight. For example, I'll use low incline smythe machine. Say my goal is 11-15 RP. On my first workout I do 315 lbs for 12 RP's. Now, two upper body workouts go by in my rotation and low incline smythe is up again. Most people have a tendency to want to add more weight on the bar instead of carrying over the 315 and striving for 15 RP's, which would be an increase in performance from only doing it for 12 RP's. At least this way, you can continue progress a lot longer instead of burning yourself out with too much weight. :clit: I’m sure there’s a few of my exercises that you don’t know what they are: -Rack Chins: http://members.shaw.ca/irondog/rackpullup.jpg I picked this one because I’m trying to do a four second negative on each one. I think this works my lats way better than pullups. To do these, I grabbed a bench and put it under a smythe machine bar. If I needed extra weight, I used an ez curl bar and put it in my lap. I'm sure everyone can figure it out from there. -Rack Deadlifts: Go to the squat rack and put the bars about knee level. Rest the barbell on top of the bars. Keep an overhand grip. From there it’s a regular deadlift, but you aren’t going all the way to the floor, eliminating using your legs. This is a great exercise for back thickness because you can go very heavy. |
One more thing to note. Everything stated above is extremely general, and in no way will fit everyone's needs. I co-wrote and posted this writeup only to give everyone here some insight into another fantastic routine. I understand that the maker Dante took down his stickies in his forum at intense muscle for a hundred reasons, mainly because his paying clients didn't like the fact that he was nice enough to post all the info for free. Bodybuilding.com was another one, but I'm not even gonna touch that one! Everything above was drawn from my memory and experiences in the past with the program and most definately wasn't a cut and paste, in respect to his wishes. Protobuilder and I originally wrote this for clutch in their articles section, but I also wanted everyone here to benefit as well since I'm a mod. It'll be funny to see just how many cut and pastes this writeup will end up travelling. :gay:
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Here's a scientific writeup courtesy of hypertrophy-specific.com found here.
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Why DC Works: By Iron Addict
1. It’s obviously very low volume. Say what you will about HIT, it works wonders for MANY, MANY trainees. Most lifters simply do too many sets, of too many lifts way too often. They overtrain horribly, and don’t grow. DC’s system has you doing 4-6 WORK sets a session, usually no more than 3 days a week. That is a great formula for success for the previously perpetually overtrained. 2. His system is scalable and he is not dogmatic in making the workload fit the individual trainee. While the base setup calls for all work sets to done in rest-pause fashion Dogg knows this often proves too much for those that do not recover well and often has is charges doing some sets rest-pause, some strait sets to failure. Or if need be, only straight sets to failure. The workout frequency is scaled to fit recovery ability also, and this is at least or more so as important as the variable intensity levels. 3. For those that can take it, the rest-pause sets provide the fastest path to hit the muscle fibers deeply with the least amount of sets (one). 4. Dogg’s routines are based primarily on the big compound lifts and the leg-work is often done for relatively high reps. Can you say recipe for success? 5. The system has a built in intensity cycling schedule. These are the so-called “cruise weeks”. I believe they were originally built in the system primarily to scale back the androgen use for a short time (four weeks heavy, two weeks low dose with clomid to help HPTA recovery) and were then also used to scale back the intensity, and take a slight break from the grueling chore of the extreme eating required to build extreme mass. What is beautiful about this system is that it works wonders for both the gear user, and ESPECIALLY well for those training clean. Most people’s bodies just don’t stand up well to a constant high intensity pounding and this system provides just the active rest break that so many need, but so few get on other systems. 6. The loading changes every week. Dogg’s system of picking 3 different lifts for each bodypart and rotating them each week stops the neural adaptation burnout that occurs when doing the same lifts week-in, week-out. On the down side people that don’t recruit well sometimes don’t progress on individual lifts as fast as they would when the neural adaptations are allowed to progress on a weekly basis. But this is offset by the fact that most people get better size gains when the load is varied, and it takes quite a while for most people to hit a wall with this type of loading. 7. DC KNOWS the importance of extreme protein for extreme gains and if you are not getting his recommendation for protein everyday, you simply are not doing DC training—period! 8. The extreme stretching is a big factor in the routines success. I USED to believe it was only necessary for extremely advanced lifters. I was wrong. After putting 90% of my trainees on extreme stretching I have seen the light and you should too. Without the fascia stretched you are making things more difficult in your attempts to accrue mass than you need to—STRETCH!!! 9. It is scalable for both the clean trainee and those doing gear. There are still some misconceptions out there by some that have concluded since the original “Cycles on Pennies” thread spoke quite a bit about androgen use that the system was and is for those doing gear only. Nothing could be further from the truth and in fact the volume routines should be termed the androgen routines. DC’s training works great either way. 10. Dogg is brilliant and continues to refine and improve his system. He is extremely giving of is time and is one of the true great contributors to this game. Is this the “best” training system yet devised? No, there is no system that works best for everybody all the time, but it is one of the best systems yet devised. It doesn’t cover all the functions (rep range specific) of the muscle cell as some systems like WSB, or other active periodized systems. And some people just don’t do well on extremely low volume work. But overall, DC’s training will go down in history as one of the top systems for adding mass to the trainee’s frame. |
Very timely post for me. Not because I'm gonna do DC training next but because I've extended the 5x5 on my pendulum and have been incorporating some RP sets (accesorising). I forgot to do the 8 second negatives at the end though, dammit!
Question of those. If you hit a target rep range, say 20 reps in maybe 4 working groups, is it time to up the weight, or should one try to do it quicker? In maybe 3 working groups instead? Or is this a dumb question? |
OK, maybe that was a dumb question. On re-reading, it sounds like I should be going for 3 sets on an RP exercise...
I don't want to impact recovery TOO much. Want to keep those numbers increasing on the 5X5... |
a single "rest-pause" set consists of lifting (reps) to failure, 20-30seconds of breathing, lifting (reps) to failure again, another 20-30 seoconds breathing, and lifting (reps) to failure again. thats ONE rest-pause set. depending on the number of total reps you were able to get in that single RP set will let you know how much weight you need to add the next time you lift that station.
the DC program is TOUGH, both inside and outside the gym. IMO the eating that went along with it was a full time job. I was pounding 450g protien a day and making great gains in strength/body comp. i noticed that my endurance suffered due to only training low reps, but i didn't do cardio during that time... eventually gave it up b/c i got sick of eating so much every day. great program though |
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It would be different for different people, but that could have someone go to failure, pause, go to failure again around five times. DC seems to differ. I was trying to get to the bottom of it. I am not planning on doing DC, but 0311 has incorporated the DC RP sets into other training, and I was trying to draw on his experience with them. The way you described them, it would seem that one RP set should consists of three trys to failure. Now, if you rest up to 30, imo, you are getting out of the realm of what a rest pause is anyway. I sometimes only rest 30 seconds between regular sets. The way you described them is one; I have seen them described other ways. Its really semantics in any case. A RP pause "set" is really just several sets to failure with very short rest periods. |
To further illuminate,
Here is one pretty standard description, with the author calling them dimisnishing sets: Quote:
But between 0311's old DC journal and Dave's DFST thread, I think I know what I want to do with the DC RP's, but only when I have two days off in a row. |
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