No, it’s not turkey and roast beef on whole wheat. It’s just a funny name for a method of training that can super-charge your mass gaining. It’s something we came up with years ago but haven’t mentioned in a long time…
For those not familiar with TORQ, it stands for tension-overload repetition quantity. It’s an off-shoot of Mr. America Doug Brignole’s high-rep downward-progression method (Super TORQ). Here’s our standard 3-set TORQ drill…
- Pick a weight with which you can crank out 25 to 30 reps–and get 30. Go to failure.
- Rest 45 seconds, then go to failure again, getting 15 to 20 reps.
- Rest 45 seconds and go all out one last time, hitting failure between 10 and 15 reps.
Ideally, your reps will go 30, 20, 15. By hitting those rep numbers, your tension times will be in the high-end hypertrophic zone—60 to 90 seconds.
Most bodybuilders never get that, so they miss out on some incredible growth. Researchers confirm that the time under tension (TUT) for OPTIMAL muscle growth is 40 to 90 seconds. TORQ gets you there. (Most bodybuilders’ sets last around 20 seconds, the STRENGTH TUT; no wonder growth is so slow for most.)
So what is a TORQ “sandwich”? It’s based on the three Positions-of-Flexion exercises for each muscle—midrange, stretch, and contracted. You use TORQ on the first exercise, midrange, and the last, contracted. For the middle stretch move you use standard heavy sets, resting one to 1 1/2 minutes between.
Studies show that there is a definite upsurge to muscle size from stretch overload—such as the animal study that produced a 300 percent mass increase after only 30 days of stretch-only “workouts.” Heavier stretch moves are a good hypertrophic catalyst to TORQ…
Let’s take the POF Tension-Overload 4X Mass Workout triceps routine from The 4X Mass Workout 2.0 e-book and give it a TORQ sandwich…
Midrange: Decline close-grip bench presses, 3 x 30, 20, 15
Stretch: Overhead extensions, 2-3 x 9-6
Contracted: Pushdowns, 3 x 30, 20, 15
You can do that for each muscle group in that 3-way split workout—or any POF program for that matter. Do it at every workout or alternate it with standard POF or other methods (TORQ is covered in the 4X 2.0 e-book. Brignole’s Super TORQ is in the Power-Density Mass Workout 2.0)…
Also, you may be able to add weight on each set of the first exercise, since you’re fresh, resting longer than standard 4X, and it’s a multi-joint move.
Try a TORQ sandwich to hit a new mega-mass groove.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
Recommended:
Tight Hips Can Slow Muscle Growth, Damage Your Back, and Even Make You Look Fat
Whether it’s from hanging kneeups, heavy squats, or sitting for long periods every day, you’ve successfully followed the formula for creating tight iliopsoas muscles…
That basically means damaged hips that trigger back pain and poor circulation (reduced lower-body pumps). Plus, tight hip flexors can even make you look fatter than you are…
One of the most significant things about the psoas (pronounced so-az), or hip flexor muscle, is that it connects the legs to the spine (see the illustration).
When the psoas is tight from sitting for long periods, your hips become fixed in a forward-thrust position, causing your pelvis and leg(s) to rotate…
That forward pelvic tilt can cause your hip socket to become compressed, leading to shifting of joints, tendons, and muscles with an often painful pull on your lower back.
That lower-back pressure will also decrease blood flow and circulation as well as delay nerve response to the hips. Poor circulation is never a good thing—you will be weaker in many exercises and poor blood flow below the waist can even negatively affects your sex life.
And as mentioned, the forward pelvic tilt also pushes out your stomach, giving you a protruding belly. Luckily, loosening your hips and hip flexors is simple with something called the “Sequential Flow Method.” Leading Kinesiologist and Injury Specialist Rick Kaselj, M.S., explains it and shows the flow design HERE.
You’ll also see how it can add 35 pounds to your deadlift almost instantly—unlock your hip flexors and unleash new strength.
By the way, Rick has given over 352 live presentations to more than 8,152 health professionals in the US and Canada. His “Unlock Your Hip Flexors” program is highly recommended. For more info, go HERE.