60+ Days of Doing only 1 Set per Exercise — the Results Are Shockingly Good
And my workouts take half the time
Muay Thai + Jump rope + Running + Lifting weights + Occasional rock climbing.
Even with 9+ hours of sleep and regular foam rolling, my body felt like a sore mess.
Stripping my workout program to its bare essentials helped — until intense running came into the picture.
That’s when I stumbled upon Occam’s protocol — a minimalist training style with only one set per exercise.
Hamza endorsing it sealed the deal for me — I hopped on it right away.
Been over 2 months since then and holy molly.
My strength is through the roof. My muscle mass isn’t wasting. My recovery’s top-notch.
Let’s dive into why this protocol works so well — and how you can maximize your gains with it.
The Only 2 Factors Necessary for Muscle and Strength Growth
Intensity and Volume.
Intensity is how hard you’re going on each set and volume is how many sets you’re doing in total.
Your total training “load” = Intensity X Volume.
And the best way to continuously gain muscle and strength? It’s progressive overload.
To increase “load”, we can increase either intensity or volume — or both.
Regular workout programs have a decent amount of volume and use a medium intensity.
But since we want to get the most bang for our minimal volume, we’ll max out the intensity.
When you’re going “ALL OUT” on every set, 1 set per exercise is enough to maintain or even make new gains
The Counterintuitive Logic of “One-Set” Training
With a 5X5 training program, every set feels like an ordeal — and you subconsciously don’t push hard enough.
A lazy first set. A better second set. A determined 3rd set. Then, a dip for the 4th and 5th sets.
As fatigue accumulates and your willpower runs out, the effectiveness of your sets diminishes.
But when there’s only one working set?
You’ll eke the living f*ck out of it.
What would have been 85 lbs for 6 will turn into a beet-faced grind of 85 lbs for 8 or even 10 reps!
This hyper-focus on one set will allow you to unlock an insane level of workout intensity.
This Style Has a “Hidden” Volume Component as Well
With only one hyper-intense set per exercise, we’ll have to warm up pyramidically.
Now, each of these warmup sets adds up to your total training volume.
By ensuring perfect form and 40 to 50% effort per warmup set, we can accumulate a decent amount of volume before the main set.
A word of caution. Chasing volume, don’t want to fatigue our muscles too much.
If you lose out on the actual intensity → You defeat the entire purpose.
Say the main set would be 120 kg squats for 4 reps. Here’s what the warmup sets could look like:
- Empty barbell X 10 reps.
- 60 Kgs X 6 reps.
- 80 Kgs X 4 reps.
- 90 Kgs X 2 reps.
- 100 Kgs X 1 rep.
- 110 Kgs X 1 rep.
- 120 Kgs X 1 rep.
Start with low weights and high reps — then pyramid your way up to heavy weights and low reps.
Final Thoughts
If you have ample time and don’t do any other physically intensive activities, don’t limit yourself to only one set per exercise.
Stick to the proven workout routines which have 3 to 5 sets per exercise.
Occam’s protocol of only one set per exercise is a minimalist training program — best used for quick maintenance when you’re busy or training for some other sport.
It’s also incredible for when you’re in a crazy hurry — get in and out of the gym in 30 minutes.
Hate or can’t afford the gym? Here’s a bodyweight version of Occam’s protocol workout program.
God bless your gains!
