in a typical 3-1-3 cycle i am aiming for working in around 15-20 ems sessions.
questions -1. during the down week should i take off the ems or still work it in?
2. after my 3-1-3 with the ems sessions, ill take another"down week" and then start another 3-1-3. should i stay consistent with the ems sessions, tone the number of sessions back, take it completely off of ems?
thanks guys…
If I may add a supplemental question as well: I recently had access to an intense EMS session [10 sec.each x 10 with 50 sec rests between] as per Charlie’s protocol. But are we sure that 48hrs [some say even 24hrs] is sufficient for full recovery? I did a speed workout 48 hours after and was still a liitle bit sore and slightly dead feeling. I’m tall, lean, and clean, and is it possible some might need 72 hours or more? That stim was freakin intense! Thanks in advance.
EMS is one of the quickest strength training modalities to plateau, so you want to use short cycles. Generally for strength, you want 6 - 12 sessions before changing. So, the way I do it (which is what I think Charlie recommends) is to put in 6 sessions on weeks 2 and 3 and then another 6 sessions on weeks 6 and 7.
So you will do 2 weeks of EMS starting on Week 2, then take 2 weeks off, then finish up with another 2 weeks. Do this maybe 3x per year.
Muscular recovery is usually faster than CNS recovery, especially if you are following good nutrition protocols and getting massage, etc. However, recovery is always an individual thing…sounds like you weren’t recovered in this case. One contributing factor may be the fact that it sounds like your EMS session was at a much higher intensity than you were prepared for. Any time you dramatically change your training components, you may expereince soreness and extended recovery periods…that’s why we try to avoid dramatic changes.
Thanks xlr8, I think you hit the nail on the head. In my haste to get intense on EMS as prescribed by Charlie to his athletes, I neglected the fact that there is a conditioning difference between them and me. I should perhaps build up some EMS tolerance/fitness before relying on 48 hour muscular recovery. Cheers!
yeah, this should be a disclaimer to all people new to ems.
you will need to extend your usual recovery period when first working these sessions. it can extend your time needed to recover
Recovery from EMS is muscular only as you bypass the CNS. I think you’ll build up a tolerance to the EMS training very quickly after an initial soreness period, not unlike te first squat session after an extended lay-off.