Q. Hi Ivan,
I came across this training “method” called X-rep training. Are you aware of anything related to it, what the training entails, and whether it is in itself a hyped up form of any particularly circulating means of training such as negative training or static contraction? Your input is definitely very helpful in this.
A. X-rep training was originally invented by Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson, although in itself it is a way to do partial reps.
As you know well partial reps have been around for a while. The idea behind the X-rep is to go to failure in a particular set and then perform very short movements in the X-spot – what Holman and Lawson call the max-force point.
That is the spot where the greatest number of muscle fibers are recruited in the lifting phase, for any particular exercise. Holman and Lawson say that training in this spot after nervous failure might cause fiber splitting, also known as hyperplasia.
According to the authors a set should last about 30 seconds or 10 reps. At the end of this set you do static hold or short movements near the turnaround point in most exercises.
For example on bench press this will be the mid point between your chest and the half range of motion. For pull-ups (chin-ups as some of you know them) it is right before you stretch your arms completely.
In an interview Holman and Lawson note that classic partial reps (a partial rep is a limited motion after the point of complete exhaustion) tax the nervous system a lot more compared to x-reps, with less muscle mass stimulation.
What is my opinion on that: I personally have used partial reps throughout my career. I know they work. However, I haven’t experimented with the X-rep technique myself.
There is logic behind the X-rep theory which makes me believe that this technique, if used
as described for each exercise, might help in the gains (but don’t expect anything like say
10 lbs for four weeks…not realistic).
However, my fear is that even in a well-trained athlete X-reps can lead to nervous system
over-taxation and consequent overtraining in some form IF the athlete doesn’t conform to the practice of 6 weeks intense training, followed by at least 1 week of complete rest (or what Bryan Haycock calls “strategic deconditioning”).
In conclusion, if you have at least one year of serious training behind your back, you might give the X-reps a try. But again don’t expect “uncontrolled muscle gains”. This is not happening in the real world unless you use steroids (and lots of them).
If you want to read more, do a search on “X-rep training” and see what results will come up. Also if you want to buy Holman and Lawson’s book on X-rep training, go to their web site x-rep.com.