Featured exercise routine 

Eliminate your back and neck pain for life

Exercising my lower abs will get rid of my potbelly

Psycho Methods to Training

Beginning routine for Mass (bodybuilding)

Chest training, altered pyramiding system

Killer strength program

Working to failure

Workout of the Week

Chest, Triceps, and Forearms

Definitions of weightlifting

Biceps workout

Doug Hepburn Deadlift Routine

Grip Routine

The Ultimate Routine

Discover how to completely transform your body by building muscle and burning fat fast.

The Whole Body Workout

Bob Eucker's Squat Routine

Shoulder Blasting Tri-Set

My Favorite Routine

Ed Coan Split

Exercising my lower abs will get rid of my potbelly

Truth: Spot-reducing doesn't work. "There's no way to isolate the bottom half of your abdominal muscle. If your body stores fat in your lower belly, no amount of crunches will get rid of that pouch,"

Try spending less time doing crunches and more time on the treadmill, stair climber or bike. Contrary to popular belief, abdominal tone doesn't come from doing a million crunches. In fact, you may already have abs of steel -- they could just be covered by a layer of insulation,.

Instead of doing 10 or 15 minutes of crunches, try three to five minutes of exercises targeting different abdominal muscles as well as your lower back. Spend the extra five to seven minutes burning fat with a cardio activity such as running.
 

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PSYCHO METHODS TO TRAINING 

Just lifting more is not enough to be psycho. You need to go for the BIG HURT. This can be achieved by upping the intensity of each exercise. There are two recommended ways for reaching psycho-intensity levels: Pre-exhaustion and Breaking-Down: 

Pre-exhaustion : 
Good for use on complex exercises like bench press and military press. Let's look at the bench press. Warm up. Get dumbbells that you would normally use for flat-bench dumbbell flys for me, that's about 40. Load the bench press with slightly more than warm up weight, for me about 150lbs. Do a set of dumbbell flys until you fail, and fail hard (At least 12 reps). IMMEDIATELY drop the weights and start bench pressing the weight. NOTE: This will hurt and suck, this is good. This is a great for developing the chest, especially when the shoulders and arms are already tired from the weeks previous workouts. Pre-exhaustion uses an isolation exercise (flys) to fatigue the chest to failure, then use the relatively fresh shoulders and arms to force even more stress on the chest during the bench press. Fun fun fun. 

Break-Downs : 
Break downs are a great way to increase the intensity and can be used on almost any exercise. They are generally best to use in conjunction with your normal work out. Take again the faithful example of the bench press. Warm up. After a few sets of your normal routine load about 90% of your max onto the bench, or about what you can do for 2 unassisted reps. Bench press the weight for 4 reps, getting help as you need it from your sadistic spotter (NOTE TO SPOTTER: Remember that the lifter should be just about purple by the time the weight gets back on the rack.) IMMEDIATELY after putting the weight on the rack, strip off about 60% of it and keep benching, getting at least 8 reps. You need to strip off a good chunk of weight to make this principle work. If you are benching 150 lbs. fail hard, and then pull off 20 lbs, the weight isn't going to feel any lighter, and you won't be able to get the reps that you need. In the last stage of a breakdown, you should be able to bench at least 6 reps unassisted to make it work. Psycho trainers are very important in the last stage of the break down lift. The weight is light, but the lifter is tired. Motivate him using the psycho principles to focus his effort on lifting and get his mind off of the awesome hurt he's feeling (If doing it right). Two break down sets per exercise are usually enough. 

"Still not enough ?" 
No problem. Combining principles of pre-exhaustion with the Break-Downs is enough for even the most seasoned lifter. An example ? Still no problem. Let's go back to the bench press. Take those 40's that you were doing flys with and also grab a pair of 25's. Load the bench with weight that you could normally do 12 reps with (For me about 205). Do flys with the 40's until you fail HARD. Drop the 40's, grab the 25's and get at least 8 good reps. Drop them, grab the barbell with 205 on it (MAKE SURE THE SPOTTER IS READY). Force out at least 4 reps, (Enough you say ?? not hardly). Strip off half of the weight and lift 100 lbs until you fail completely. This usually happens at about the 5 rep mark. One or two sets like this is usually plenty per body part. Inspire your partners to new levels with your training intensity. Lead by psycho-example. 

"How Often ?" 
Three psycho days per week of weights is enough. More will get you less. I've learned this the hard way. Lifting seven days a week like a psycho is too much stress for your body to handle. You will work yourself into a bad cycle of over-training where you actually see negative results. Harder, not longer, is the goal of these workouts. Doing a bazillion sets of an exercise may make you better at that exercise, but not improve the body part as much as doing fewer and harder sets. Psycho training should be used in conjunction with sensible planning. Train psycho for a week, and use your normal training routine for a week, or alternated psycho and normal workouts. As always, let your body be the guide. Rest is key. The body can't heal the massive amounts of stress you've placed upon it in a single day (Sometimes it will take 2 or 3 days to fully recover). Below is a sample workout and ways to divide your body up to maximize the psycho principles. These are general workouts and can be modified to suit your tastes. Remember, superior effort brings superior results. Get PSYCHO and have fun. 

Workout plan 1:
Monday: Chest & Back: 

Wednesday: Shoulders & legs. 

Friday: Arms 

Workout plan 2: 
Monday: Chest & Back: 

Wednesday: Shoulders & legs. 

Friday: Arms 

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Beginning routine for MASS (bodybuilding)

Monday & Thursday

Bench Press 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Shoulder Press (I like the clean & press here) 3 sets 8-12 reps
(do sets of 6 reps if you do the clean & press(or jerk))
Chins 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Bar curls 2 sets of 8-10 reps

Rest a few minutes

SQUATS 1 set of 20 killer reps
supersetted w/
Dumbbell Pullovers 1 set with about 20 pounds, more of a stretching movement than lifting
Leg Curls 2 sets 8 reps
Standing Calf raises 2 sets 8-12 reps
Seated Calf Raises 2 sets 8-15 reps
Abs

The key here is to squat like your life depends on it.
Start with a weight that you can do for 10 reps without a lot of problem. Then, at the top of each rep take at least 3 big breaths and force out another rep. Do this until you hit 20. Then add some weight. I have 1.25 plates I got from the Ironman home gym warehouse for like $3 for 4. So if you add one of these on each side, each workout, you end up going up five pounds a week. If you ride this out for 10 weeks, that raises your 20-rep squat 50 pounds. AGAIN, you must hit the 20 reps. Only one set, do or die. As Mr. Starr (not Ken) has said, you will see the "white buffalo".

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Chest Training. Altered pyramiding system 

This routine is one the best routines I've ever tested for chest. It is used by Olympic class weightlifters and here in Greece is very popular (actually Greece is the 1998 World Weightlifting Champion overall). There are some details missing from this system but I wasn't allowed by the man who told me these routines to publish them. I'm sorry. Don't worry though, it may be the best routine you've tested so far, even in this form. 

Note that 1*10@60% means. 1 set of 10 repetitions at 60% of your 1 rep maximum. 

Month 1 

On the first month we are trying to establish a good foundation. This means one thing and only. Repetitions. So the program goes like this. 

Bench Press 1*10@60%  2*12@65% 2*8@70% 2*6@75% 2*4@80% 2*2@85% 2*1@90% 2*10@65% 

Incline Bench Press 2 sets 10 reps 

Train two times per week. I train chest usually Monday and Friday so there is time to recuperate. 

When you can perform the movement of bench press with the exact amount specified, add 10 pounds (5 kgr). This means that if my 100% is 100 kgr and I can bench the exact amount specified, that is 1*10@60 kgr ... 2*1@90 kgr and 2*10@65 kgr, then I must add weight. The process continues in the same way. 

Note that the above is for bench press only. Not inclines. On incline bench you do 2 sets of 10 reps and that's it. 

Month 2 

On the second month we train chest again 2 times per week but now we go like this 

Day 1 

Bench Press 1*10@60% 2*12@65% 2*8@70% 2*6@75% 2*4@80% 
2*2@85% 2*1@90% 2*10@65% 

Incline Bench Press 2 sets 10 reps 

Day 2 

Bench Press Go for 1 maximum press (warm up very good) 

Incline Bench Press 2 sets 6 reps 

Decline Bench Press 2 sets 6 reps 

Dips 2 sets max. reps 

Note that on day 1 you do exact what you did last month. On day 2 you go for maximum lift. 

There is no month 3 in this program. When done with it stop. Train on another system for 6 months and then you can repeat it. I do this program one time every year. The months I train on this is usually December and January. 

Useful tips on this program. 

Don't rest for a long period between sets. When not hitting for the maximum one rep lift, try to rest less than 2 min between sets. 
Don't change the timing. Follow the exact program. 

After two months on this program, stop. Do something else. If you continue though, you'll see no changes in your strength. The purpose of all these is to shock the muscles and stimulate growth, not to become your daily chest program. 

If you are getting very but very tired cut some sets, preferably the inclines. 

Be prepared for a really hard time !!. 

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Psycho Training

DISCLAIMER... You could get HURT/INJURED and or HUGE when applying the training methods described below. THESE TRAINING METHODS DESCRIBED BELOW ARE INTENDED FOR INTERMEDIATE TO ADVANCED LIFTERS...

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So you want to get BIG and get big FAST ?? If you're like most guys, you've been working out a few times a week and are seeing some decent results, but this isn't enough. That workout rut has taken hold, and results are coming more slowly. What you need is a kick in the complacency. Summer is here, and looking like a slug just won't do. I'm going to introduce a workout philosophy here that has worked wonders with a number of rut stuck couch-potato turned muscle-men. I call it the psycho trainer method of inspiration. 

Psycho trainer method of inspiration ?
Yes, there are two parts to the psycho trainer method of getting HUGE quickly: 1. A sadistic partner. 2. Some sadistic exercise methods. 

Make no mistake about it, this workout is going to hurt, and it will hurt a lot ( You'll learn later that this is a good thing. ) There are a few general benchmarks to the workouts that will let you know if you're doing them correctly. 

Signs of a good set:

It really sucks and hurts (This is a general guideline, below we'll outline what constitutes proper hurt and suck). 

You can't move that well the next day after doing an exercise. 

You can't move that well two days after doing an exercise. 

During an exercise you hear weird animal noises, then realize your making them. 

Your face changes more than 4 shades of red, purple, or black during a set. 

You see stars, get tunnel vision, and then come-to with a bar resting comfortably on your neck. 


"Sounds great, but how do I do it ?"

I'm glad you asked. The first thing you'll need is a good workout partner or two ( Two is better than one, as it reduces the possibility of one person wimping out and dragging the intensity of the workout down to a sane level.) Whether the partner is stronger or weaker than you is irrelevant, attitude is everything (The more sadistic, the better.) The next step is to become a psycho partner yourself. This will allow you to push your partner hard, thus making him/her push back harder. Revenge is a great motivator for these types of workouts. 


"I'm ready, what can I do to become a psycho partner ?" 
To truly become psycho, we need study one of the most psycho motivating people of our current day and age and emulate him. Rent the video Full Metal Jacket, and pay close attention to the drill sergeant. This sergeant is probably the best role model for the psycho trainer. He elevated recruits to physical levels that they didn't think they could reach, all through fear, intimidation, force of will, and humiliation. This is a good thing. 


Beware the slacker, in all his shapes and forms . 

The arch nemesis of the psycho partner is the slacker. You need to find when and where your partner is slacking, and this may not be obvious. If your partner does 185 lbs on bench for 10 reps without a spot, this is a sign that he needs more weight (Sometimes he'll even grunt a bit to make you think that he's working, don't be fooled). This is the "It's heavy, I'm going to stay at this weight next set" variety of slacker. Don't let your partner get away with this. If you can do 10 reps of something without a serious spot, it's time to increase the weight. INSIST that the partner up the weight and go for a few less reps, (In this case, say 205 lbs for 6 reps). Many people have unconsciously put self-imposed limits on what they can lift. Don't buy into these limits, force your partner to smash these barriers. 

The next variety of slacker is the "I'm just going for reps this set " kind. Ok, using light weight and going for reps can be a good thing, but now let's really go for some reps, not just 10 or oooohhh 12 reps, let's get psycho . 20 reps should be the minimum for this person, 30 or higher is better. If they can do 12 reps without a spotter, they can do 20 with a psycho spotter. Again refer to the above signs of a good workout to judge whether your partner is putting out an earnest effort. 


The Everyday Lifting Rut, and the lying principle: 

Lying to your partner is one of the best ways to snap them out of the usual rut. Universal machines are the best for this type of inspiration. If you're doing an exercise, say cable rows, and your partner sits down and tells you to put the pin in at 150 (He usually does 10 reps, but insists that it's heavy), have some fun. Put the pin in 170, and use some of the motivational methods listed below to force him to squeeze out at least 8, then berate him for not getting 10. If your partner tries to avoid this by setting his own pin, don't worry, this can be overcome in a few ways. The best is to point out a nice looking female, and as the would-be-slacker looks, drop the pin down a few plates....Cha Ching. If you simply can't fool, shame, or trick your partner into doing more weight, INSIST that he get at least 12 reps, then do a Break-Down (Explained below under sadistic exercise methods). 


Motivation during the set is important . 

Total effort should be given to each and every set after a warm-up. There is no excuse for just doing a few reps and putting the weight down. Below are some of the better phrases that are good to scream at your partner during lifts. Anger, fear, and humiliation are the cornerstones of the motivation. 

Was effort expensive today, you couldn't get much ? 

Lift you worthless piece of S--t. 

I don't mean to say anything, but my girlfriend lifts more. 

You lift like old people F--k, slow and ugly. 

Of course it's heavy, that's why they call it weight. 

That's not bad....for a girl. 

I've seen your pool cleaner lift more... hey wasn't he at your house today with your wife while you were at work ? 

Worthless must have been on sale, it appears you stocked up... 

That's OK, just take it easy this set, By the way, how was that McDonalds you had for lunch today ? 

Feel Free to improvise on the above list. Screaming at your partner with a fevered intensity is important. Sell the concept that he's worthless unless producing total effort every set (laughter works well here also). Again, see Full Metal Jacket for details. The louder you scream, the better. Public humiliation can be extremely motivational. Try to anger your partner (Make sure that he's already lifting, lest you become the focus of the anger rather than the weights.) 

If your partner can talk during a set, or right after it, they were not lifting with psycho levels of effort and concentration. Up the weight, force more reps, and use motivational phrases to increase the mental and physical focus of the workout. 


PAY ATTENTION. DEMAND MORE : 

If you see that your partners dying, and only has 1 rep left, scream to get at least 3 more and spot him (Spot slowly, and don't give too much help. the lifter should be purple by the time the third rep hits the top.) Know your partner, and know his limits, push him beyond those limits, and insist that he do the same. Again, use the above effectiveness gauge to judge if they proper effort is being put forth. Demand total effort, be uncompromising. 


Push Yourself....The boastful claim methods. 

If you are stronger than your partner, never fear, you too can apply the psycho methods to achieve great results. Exercise where reps are important are a great candidate for the boastful claim method. If you know that your partner can do about 6 pull-ups, offer to do as many as he does TIMES TWO. This will motivate him to do more, just to hurt you, and motivate you do more, to save face. These are both good things. If you have two partners, both weaker, it's ok, modify the boast to "As many as all of you plus 1". Never let the weaker partners get the best of you in these contests. Make it a matter of pride and a challenge to your manhood. Stupid testosterone games are great for this type of training. If you are the weaker partner, jeer at the stronger if he fails to double you in reps or live up to a boast. Continue to rub his nose in it for at least the remainder of the workout. 

If you are the roughly the same strength as your partner, let it rip . Pull'em out and see who's is bigger on every set. Make it a competition. Be PSYCHO. Bet beer, money, and bragging rights on exercises. Laugh at the loser of the competition, don't be the loser. If you are the loser, beat him on the next exercise. Crushing total effort should be the goal of every set. Only this level of intensity will bring the quick and extreme results that you desire. 


PSYCHO METHODS TO TRAINING 

Just lifting more is not enough to be psycho. You need to go for the BIG HURT . This can be achieved by upping the intensity of each exercise. There are two recommended ways for reaching psycho-intensity levels: Pre-exhaustion and Breaking-Down: 


Pre-exhaustion : 

Good for use on complex exercises like bench press and military press. Let's look at the bench press. Warm up. Get dumbbells that you would normally use for flat-bench dumbbell flys for me, that's about 40. Load the bench press with slightly more than warm up weight, for me about 150lbs. Do a set of dumbbell flys until you fail, and fail hard (At least 12 reps). IMMEDIATELY drop the weights and start bench pressing the weight. NOTE: This will hurt and suck, this is good. This is a great for developing the chest, especially when the shoulders and arms are already tired from the weeks previous workouts. Pre-exhaustion uses an isolation exercise (flys) to fatigue the chest to failure, then use the relatively fresh shoulders and arms to force even more stress on the chest during the bench press. Fun fun fun. 


Break-Downs : 

Break downs are a great way to increase the intensity and can be used on almost any exercise. They are generally best to use in conjunction with your normal work out. Take again the faithful example of the bench press. Warm up. After a few sets of your normal routine load about 90% of your max onto the bench, or about what you can do for 2 unassisted reps. Bench press the weight for 4 reps, getting help as you need it from your sadistic spotter (NOTE TO SPOTTER: Remember that the lifter should be just about purple by the time the weight gets back on the rack.) IMMEDIATELY after putting the weight on the rack, strip off about 60% of it and keep benching, getting at least 8 reps. You need to strip off a good chunk of weight to make this principle work. If you are benching 150 lbs. fail hard, and then pull off 20 lbs, the weight isn't going to feel any lighter, and you won't be able to get the reps that you need. In the last stage of a breakdown, you should be able to bench at least 6 reps unassisted to make it work. Psycho trainers are very important in the last stage of the break down lift. The weight is light, but the lifter is tired. Motivate him using the psycho principles to focus his effort on lifting and get his mind off of the awesome hurt he's feeling (If doing it right). Two break down sets per exercise are usually enough. 


"Still not enough ?" 

No problem. Combining principles of pre-exhaustion with the Break-Downs is enough for even the most seasoned lifter. An example ? Still no problem. Let's go back to the bench press. Take those 40's that you were doing flys with and also grab a pair of 25's. Load the bench with weight that you could normally do 12 reps with (For me about 205). Do flys with the 40's until you fail HARD. Drop the 40's, grab the 25's and get at least 8 good reps. Drop them, grab the barbell with 205 on it (MAKE SURE THE SPOTTER IS READY). Force out at least 4 reps, (Enough you say ?? not hardly). Strip off half of the weight and lift 100 lbs until you fail completely. This usually happens at about the 5 rep mark. One or two sets like this is usually plenty per body part. Inspire your partners to new levels with your training intensity. Lead by psycho-example. 


"How Often ?" 

Three psycho days per week of weights is enough. More will get you less. I've learned this the hard way. Lifting seven days a week like a psycho is too much stress for your body to handle. You will work yourself into a bad cycle of over-training where you actually see negative results. Harder, not longer, is the goal of these workouts. Doing a bazillion sets of an exercise may make you better at that exercise, but not improve the body part as much as doing fewer and harder sets. Psycho training should be used in conjunction with sensible planning. Train psycho for a week, and use your normal training routine for a week, or alternated psycho and normal workouts. As always, let your body be the guide. Rest is key. The body can't heal the massive amounts of stress you've placed upon it in a single day (Sometimes it will take 2 or 3 days to fully recover). Below is a sample workout and ways to divide your body up to maximize the psycho principles. These are general workouts and can be modified to suit your tastes. Remember, superior effort brings superior results. Get PSYCHO and have fun. 

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Workout plan 1:

Monday: Chest & Back: 

Bench Press: 3 sets 4-8 reps, 60-80% of max. 2 of the previous sets should combined pre-exhaustion and Break Down. (As specified above). 

Incline Bench Press: 3 sets incline bench press, 4-12 reps, 50-100% of max. 

Lat Pull downs. 3 sets of 4-12 reps, 50-80% of max. 2 sets break downs. 

Cable Rows: 3 sets of 4-12 reps, 50-80% of max. 2 sets of break downs, from 90% to 60% of max. 1 set double break downs (Fail, drop 60%, fail drop 60%). 


Wednesday: Shoulders & legs. 

Hack Squats: 3 sets of 15-6 reps, 50-80% of max. 1 set of 30+ with warm-up weight. 

Leg Curls: 3 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 

Leg extensions: 3 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 

Military Press: 5 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 3 sets pre-exhaustion using lateral dumbbell raises first. 

Shoulder Shrugs : 2 sets 50-90% of max. 2 sets double-break-downs. 

Calf Raises : 3 sets 20-10 reps, 50-90% of max break downs on all sets. 


Friday: Arms 

Preacher Bench curls : 3 sets 15-8 reps 80-50% of max. 

Straight bar curls: 3 sets all break downs. 

Concentration curls: 2 sets of double-break-downs. 

Lying French presses: (Skullcrushers) 1 set normal 8-15 reps. 50-70% of max. 2 sets of break downs. 

Triceps pushdowns: 2 sets normal 15-6 reps 50-80% of max. 

Triceps kickbacks: 3 sets 10-12 reps WITH GOOD FORM. 

Workout plan 2: 

Monday: Chest & Back: 

Bench Press: 3 sets with pre-exhaustion and Break Down. (As specified above). 

Incline Bench Press: 3 sets incline bench press and Break Down 4-12 reps, 50-100% of max. 

Lat Pull downs: 2 sets of 4-12 reps and a break down., 50-80% of max 

Dead Lifts: 2 sets 15-10 slow reps (2-4 seconds up and 2-4 seconds down) 


Wednesday: Shoulders & legs. 

Squats: 3 sets of 15-30 reps, 50-80% of max. 

Leg Curls: 2 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 

Leg extensions: 2 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 

Military Press: 3 sets of 12-8 reps, 50-80% of max. 2 sets pre-exhaustion using lateral dumbbell raises first. 

Shoulder Shrugs : 2 sets 50-90% of max. 2 sets double-break-downs. 

Calf Raises : 3 sets 20-10 reps, 50-90% of max. Toes in + out on at least two of the sets. 


Friday: Arms 

1 60 second chin up (30 sec up 30 sec down) followed by straight bar curls (8-12 reps) do this cycle twice 

Concentration curls: 2 sets of double-break-downs. 

1 60 second dip (30 sec up 30 sec down) followed by Lying French presses (Skullcrushers) do this cycle twice 

Triceps pushdowns: 2 sets normal 15-6 reps 50-80% of max. 

Triceps kickbacks: 1 set 10-12 reps WITH GOOD FORM. 

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Killer strength program

Ok, before I start, this is a powerlifting program, not a bodybuilding program. Of all the programs I've tried, this has boosted my strength the most. I did this in preparation for when I use to compete in powerlifting contests. It is a fourteen week cycle. Yeah, yeah, I know, "just shut up and tell me the program". Allright, here it is: First, you need to figure out what you ultimately want for your one rep maximum (ORM) for bench press, squat and deadlift. Write all three lifts down on a sheet of paper. Now for the workout:

Squat workout:

1. Squats: Week 1: 60% of ORM for 3 sets of 8 reps
Week 2: 65% of ORM for 3 sets of 6 reps
Week 3: 70% of ORM for 3 sets of 5 reps
Week 4: 75% of ORM for 3 sets of 4 reps
Week 5: 80% of ORM for 3 sets of 3 reps
Week 6: 85% of ORM for 2 sets of 2 reps
Week 7: 90% of ORM for 1 set of 1 rep

2. Barbell shrugs 4 sets 10 reps 
3. Leg Press 4 sets 10, 8, 6, 6 reps 
4. Wide stance smith squat 3 sets 6 reps 
5. Leg extension 3 sets 10 reps 
6. Leg curl 3 sets 10 reps

Deadlift Workout: 

1. Squat (light) 12 reps, 10 reps, 8 reps (pyramid up with weight) 

2. Deadlift Week 1: 60% of ORM for 3 sets of 8 reps
Week 2: 65% of ORM for 3 sets of 6 reps
Week 3: 70% of ORM for 3 sets of 5 reps
Week 4: 75% of ORM for 3 sets of 4 reps
Week 5: 80% of ORM for 3 sets of 3 reps
Week 6: 85% of ORM for 2 sets of 2 reps
Week 7: 90% of ORM for 1 set of 1 rep

2. Barbell shrugs 4 sets 10 reps 
3. Bent over rows 4 sets 10, 8, 6, 6 reps 
4. Seated rows 3 sets 8 reps 
5. Pulldowns in front 3 sets 8 reps 
6. One arm dumbbell rows 3 sets 8 reps

Bench workout #1 (Heavy chest)

1. Bench Press
Week 1: 60% of ORM for 3 sets of 8 reps
Week 2: 65% of ORM for 3 sets of 6 reps
Week 3: 70% of ORM for 3 sets of 5 reps
Week 4: 75% of ORM for 3 sets of 4 reps
Week 5: 80% of ORM for 3 sets of 3 reps
Week 6: 85% of ORM for 2 sets of 2 reps
Week 7: 90% of ORM for 1 set of 1 rep

2. Close-grip bench press 4 sets 10 reps 
3. Incline Bench Press 4 sets 6 reps 
4. Dips 3 sets 10 reps 
5. Dumbbell shoulder press 4 sets 8 reps 
6. Triceps Pushdown 4 sets 8 reps

Bench Workout #2 (Light chest)

1. Bench Press 3 sets 10 reps 
2. Incline Bench Press 3 sets 10 reps 
3. Barbell shoulder press 3 sets 8 reps (Behind neck)
3 sets 8 reps (In front of neck) 
4. Side lateral raises 3 sets 8 reps 
5. Nose breakers 4 sets 8 reps 
6. Pushdowns 4 sets 8 reps

Now, you've just completed the first half of the fourteen week cycle. You're ready for the second half. The only difference is the percentages on your three major lifts, all other exercises, sets, and reps all remain the same. 

Here is the second half percentages.

Week 1: 70% of ORM for 3 sets of 8 reps 
Week 2: 75% of ORM for 3 sets of 6 reps 
Week 3: 80% of ORM for 3 sets of 5 reps 
Week 4: 85% of ORM for 3 sets of 4 reps 
Week 5: 90% of ORM for 3 sets of 3 reps 
Week 6: 95% of ORM for 2 sets of 2 reps 
Week 7: 100% of ORM for 1 set of 1 rep

So, here is how you should break down the days in which you train. Sunday is squat day. Tuesday is Bench #1 (heavy) day. Thursday is Deadlift day. Friday is Bench #2 (light) day. The cycle starts over on

Sunday.

Before starting the whole 14 week training cycle, you will need to take about three or four weeks in which you condition your muscles. To do this, train on the days in which I have specified, and only do four exercises from each workout. The major lifts must be included in the four selected exercises. What you select is up to you, however, I recommend doing exercises that work as many muscles as possible. For example, on a bench day, you would not want to just do all chest work, choose exercises that will work the chest, shoulders, and triceps. 

Once you have started the 14 week cycle, you need to pyramid up in weight with every exercise except your major lifts once you reach the specified percentage. The first couple of weeks will feel like you can do more weight on your major lifts. This is natural, but do not increase the percentage for a given week even if you can go heavier.

As far as rest goes, rest about 5-8 minutes for your major lifts. Any other assistance work, you can rest however long you want. These are really long workouts, but remember, the workouts are powerlifting specific. 

Powerlifting implies the avoidance cardio, and eating whatever you want.

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Owners of Will's latest ebook 'Body Building Revealed' http://www.musclebuildingnutrition.com  have access to a private discussion board where both Will and Charles Poliquin are available to answer your questions. Check out this example and you'll see what a great resource the member's section offers to owners of MBN

'Working to Failure'

Recent Question to Charles on the MBN member's board.....

'Working to failure'. Do you recommend it for long-term use? The reason I ask is that I like (love!) going to failure on each and every set, except warm ups of course. I find it an easy indicator of strength gains/losses from workout to workout, recording everything including time between sets. Is there 'room' for it in your 'Intensification/Accumulation' phases?

Also, I've been lifting for about 3 months now, making consistent strength gains on this 'failure' system, up until 3 weeks ago.

Now, each workout, I am weaker than the one before. I've changed little in my diet during this period except my protein powder, now being 'Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey' which has significantly fewer carbs but more protein than its predecessor; have also upped my EFA's (essential fatty acids).

So, if anything at all, that I can really see here, is a lower intake of carbs.

Could this be my problem, or have I been overtraining i.e. to failure for too long, or both? It's slowly driving me crazy trying to figure it out..please help!!!

And here's Charles answer...

Let's define «absolute muscle failure » The first step in defining this term is to review the fact that there are three types of muscle contraction: concentric, isometric and eccentric.

When a muscle shortens, it is called a concentric contraction, like when you raise the barbell in curls by shortening the elbow flexors.

When you lower the same barbell, your muscle lengthens - perform an eccentric contraction.

Finally, a muscle can also contract without changing the joint angle or also known as an - isometric or static contraction, like in the case of a gymnast holding an iron cross.

Isometric contractions are normally 10-15% stronger than concentric contraction, while eccentric contractions are as much as 75% stronger than concentric contraction, with the average between 25 to 40% greater than the concentric contraction.

In other words, if you can curl 100 lbs, you can hold 110-115 lbs at pretty much any angle in the range of motion, and can lower safely 125 to 140 lbs.

There are three types of muscular failure, one associated with each type of contraction One is known to fail concentrically when one cannot raise the weight, to fail statically when one is not able hold the weight at any given point in the range of motion, and to fail eccentrically when to not able to lower the weight under control at a given tempo.

When one reaches failure on all three types of muscular contraction, he is known to have reached «absolute muscle failure».

Rarely you will find athletes who train to this level of failure - simply because it's masochism has fallen out of grace.

Since there are three types of contraction, there are three degrees of failure.

You can train to just concentric and/or static and/or eccentric failure. Typically, the higher the degree of failure (closer you approach total eccentric failure), the less you can control the weight, and hence common sense will tell you that exercise performance is not being safe anymore.

Your muscles simply cannot generate enough strength to control the weight, thus you are predisposing yourself to injury.

To answer your question, is it absolutely necessary to achieve muscle growth? Certainly not, just look at the hypertrophy of powerlifters and Olympic lifters, they rarely if ever train to failure and yet achieve significant hypertrophy in the trained muscles.

The only people that I have seen make significant gains on «absolute failure» had the following in common:

1. They were amphetamines user like Ritalin who disguised their animalistic training drive by claiming it is was instead influenced by the readings of German philosophers and/or listening to Wagnerian music prior to training, Please don't piss on my leg and tell me its raining.

2. They were severe exogeneous androgen users i.e. 2,000 mg to 3000 mg of various testoterones a week, and 100-300 mg of orals a day (i.e. Dianabol and Anadrol)

3. The obsession with making progress in training loads leads to improper technique. They all ended up tearing one or more of the following: biceps, pec, lat and quadriceps. One Mr. Olympia finalist, tore a biceps training in this fashion while loosely curling an 85 lbs on a Scott bench, while a more reasonable weight in good form would have been 65 lbs.

4. They all suffered from adrenal exhaustion and paranoia, probably because of the abuse of 1.

Training to absolute muscle failure is a concept that has been around for about the last 25 years or so. Mike Mentzer and Nautilus machine inventor Arthur Jones were the initial proponents of this training methodology.

It gained rapid popularity because it went strongly against the grain of the training methodology popular in the bodybuilding meccas of Northern Europe and Southern California.

In the early seventies, we were told to do 20 sets a bodypart, two workouts a week per bodypart, and only take Sundays off .

So obviously doing only 1-2 sets per bodypart 2-3 per week in full body workouts was considered either heresy or something valid to look at.

Since then, many training systems have been used. In my opinion, training to absolute failure should be used vary sparingly, maybe once every 8 weeks should suffice, and only after a very progressive warm-ups.

Systematic variations in both intensity and volume, not training to absolute failure are the keys to muscle growth.

In certain training methods like German Volume Training, one does not need to reach concentric failure on every set. Unless specifically mentioned you can assume that every set prescribed is a work set. Therefore you should reach concentric muscle failure.

However I also believe that many trainees fail to achieve their training goals by exhausting their neuro-endocrine.

You know the type of trainee that does a 6 seconds isometric contraction after failing to complete the concentric range.

A principle is always for long-term use. Hence the name principle.

Yes you are overtraining.

Do you want access to answers like this? Then be sure to check out the MBN member's section. See full details on the website here: http://musclebuildingnutrition.com 

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Workout of the Week

Do not worry about singles.  Missing a single in practice could mess with your mind (it always did mine). Go for twos and threes, and don't worry if it's two or three. Singles are for competition, and in competition you always open with a weight you can triple. So this routine is based on triples. It also is the type of workout easily performed in your typical home gym. While it is not a "pure" hard gainer type routine, so what. It worked for me for a cycle, and somebody may be looking for something like this out there. 

I am going to set up the schedule like a bencher with a 250lb bench wanting to go higher. The same schedule works on squats and deadlifts, only the weight increases are in the 15-20 lbs range each workout, It helped my deadlift, but didn't do much for my squat. However, it worked well with my bench press. Enough talking, Here's the routine..... 

Workout Schedule: 

Monday- Squat, auxiliary leg 

Tuesday- Bench, Auxiliary chest, shoulders 

Wednesday-off 

Thursday- light "junk" (curls, calves, light bench) 

Friday-Deadlift, hams 

The cycle: (remember this is for the 250 lb. bencher, adjust your weights up or down to your level): 

week 1= 3 sets of 180 x 6 

week 2=3 sets of 190 x 6 

week 3=3 sets of 200 x 6 

week 4=3 sets of 210 x 3 

week 5= 3 sets of 220 x 3 

week 6= 3 sets of 230 x 3 

week 7= 3 sets of 190 x 6 

week 8= 3 sets of 200 x 6 

week 9= 3 sets of 210 x 6 

week 10= 3 sets of 220 x 3 

week 11 = 3 sets of 230 x 3 

week 12 =3 sets of 240 x 3 

This would (after 12 weeks) give about a 8-15 lb. increase in the bench press, with a new one-rep max in the vicinity of 260+. Doesn't sound like much, but it is a real number that can be achieved with hard work, unlike a lot of baloney about 60 lbs. in 6 weeks. And it probably won't bulk you up much, but should do wonders for over all strength. This strength will carry over into increased gains once you get back into your "bodybuilding" routine. It also must be remembered that this is not a bench specialization routine. It is meant to be a part of an entire powerlifting routine. This routine could feasibly add 50 - 70 lbs. to a total. 

I would do no more than 1 auxiliary exercise for no more than 2 sets per workout. I would probably eliminate the Thursday workout, but some people got to do biceps. So if that was the case I would limit it to 1-2 sets of bi's, calves, and light (pumping) bench. Remember, what ever you do to your biceps Thursday will be felt (in a bad way) Friday in your Deadlifts. Looking at it closer, if I were to use it again, I would space each workout at least 2 days apart, instead of one. I would also postpone a workout if I felt tired from the last one. This, of course, would lengthen the cycle quite a bit. However, I think you would increase gains considerably, and be less likely to burn out in the middle of the cycle. It is possible, doing it that way, to maybe add about 5 - 7 lbs on the final results. 

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Chest Triceps and Forearms

Chest 

In order to understand better the way I train chest, as all other bodyparts as well, I think it is best to read the overview first. Anyway in Chest training I use periodization techniques as in almost all of my other bodyparts. 

I concentrate on the basic, multy joint exercises, in order to built muscle. Sometimes I like to add a single joint exercise at the end of my training in order to fatigue the muscle more. The exercises I use in order to hit chest are. 

Well, you may have noticed by now that I don't use flies. Yes, this is true, although I don't use them because of my shoulder injury 3 years ago, that by the way had nothing to do with bodybuilding, it was an accident. I believe that flys are a great exercise and it is most unfortunate that I am not able to perform them. 

So I use mainly bench presses and I always finish my training session with dips. Usually, I take to the point of temporary muscle failure 6- 8 sets total for chest, but that depends. If I feel strong I'll push it a little more. If I feel weak I'll cut back a little. I strongly believe in cycling the loads, so I vary my reps from 12 down to 1 rep maximum. 

Personally I don't do dumbbell presses for chest, simply because I can't lift the weight from the floor, after all due the increased range of motion, with dumbbells someone can use more weight than by using a barbell. 

Another exercise I don't do is pec dec work. I think this is a useless exercise, I prefer doing cable crossovers, although I haven't done any for a year or so, due to the fact that the gym where I train doesn't have any !. Anyway, I have changed the gym where I train and the new one has, so I'll add them in the near future. 

Also, I don't do pullovers. Personally I believe that pull over is a back exercise and not a chest one. I don't do them for back either, simply because I think there are a lot of better exercises that can be done for this bodypart. 

Another exercise I avoid for chest is Smith machine bench presses, because I don't like the feeling I get from doing so. Also I can't feel the working muscles very well, I don't know why, even when I try to concentrate as hard as I can. 

On chest, I don't do partials as well, at least, not a whole set of them. Sometimes, when I can't do any more full reps, the spotter I use, helps me get 2 forced reps and then I bang out 2- 3 partial reps, but that's it, and I do it rarely. I strongly disagree in performing a whole set of partial reps because of the increased chance for a serious ligament injury, and because I simply don't find a good reason to do so. 

Also on chest I love using pyramid sets, where I go down to 1 rep maximum. Some other times I'm not very concerned about the weight I use, I just train in order to get a great pump. 

Triceps 

I think that triceps, along with shoulders, is the easiest bodypart to overtrain. Whenever someone hits chest or shoulders, he trains triceps as well. So I like not to train the triceps that much, 3- 4 sets to failure is enough, in my opinion. My choice of exercises is 

Usually I do two exercises for this body part and 3- 4 sets to failure, total. I use a basic movement at start like close grip bench presses or French presses, followed by cable pushdowns I use almost any variation of triceps cable pushdowns, in order to change a little from time to time. 

Also I like to perform in between 12- 8 reps for triceps. I strongly believe that triceps respond better to higher reps training. I very rarely use pyramid sets or 4- 6 reps for triceps. 

Also I like to hit triceps with volume training, I've found them to respond perfect to this kind of training. 

Forearms 

In contrary to many weight- strength trainees I think forearms training is a must. As an old- timer used to say to me, they key to develop really huge and powerful arms is to first develop your forearms. After all whenever someone does barbell biceps curls, forearms come to play. Personally, to be honest, I developed my forearms mainly because I wanted to deadlift more, without straps. It is very cool to deadlift without using straps :). Except that, my forearms, since the time I started to work them out, seem ready to explode !. in anyway, I think it is very cool to have big and powerful forearms. 

On forearms I almost always use volume training. I prefer doing German volume training on this (GVT). usually I do 1 exercise for this bodypart, forearm curls in the GVT way (10 sets of 10 reps each). 

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Definitions of Weightlifting:

There are several categories of people who exercise with weights. These categories are often referred to as: weight lifting, weightlifting, Weightlifting, weight training, bodybuilding, Powerlifting, lifting, Olympic lifting, Olympic-style weightlifting, strength training and resistance training. Let's clarify the differences.

Weightlifting: 

Weightlifting, weight lifting and weightlifting all have a "generic" meaning which refers to the activity of lifting weights. To those who are well versed in the use of weights, the word weightlifting has a particular meaning. It refers to the Olympic sport of Weightlifting, which tests strength a power through two methods of lifting a barbell overhead - the Snatch and the Clean and Jerk. Weightlifting is the only Olympic sport involving weights, which is why it is sometimes referred to as Olympic lifting or as Olympic-style lifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting. 

Weight Training:

Weight training refers to any activity which involves the use of weights. The term weight training is commonly used in referring to people who lift weights but not for the purpose of competing in bodybuilding, Powerlifting or weightlifting (although many people lift weights as a means for improving their performance in another sport). Many people who lift weights refer to themselves as "lifters" for short.

Resistance Training: 

Resistance training is an even broader term than weight training because resistance can be supplied by weights, machines, rubber strands and any number of other devices that resist the movement of the exerciser. It is nearly impossible to engage in any vigorous resistance training without getting stronger as a result. However, strength training is a means of training with resistance that is focused on improving strength, as compared with muscle size (although people who train for strength are often seeking increased muscle size as well).

Bodybuilding: 

Bodybuilding is a sport or activity in which the primary objective is to develop the size of the skeletal muscles. Bodybuilders focus on other areas as well, such as developing all of the muscles proportionally (symmetrically), minimizing body fat and increasing their strength. Because bodybuilders focus on muscular development, that is the main thing they achieve. Strength, for example, tends to take a back seat to size (though many bodybuilders are very strong).

Powerlifting: 

Powerlifting is a great sport that was conceived as a pure test of strength. And it tests strength about as well as Olympic-style Weightlifting. The sport that consists of three events: squat, bench press and deadlift. Powerlifters are very strong because they focus on developing that capacity exclusively. Overall, the strength of Powerlifters very close to that of Olympic-style weightlifters. However, Powerlifting is not an Olympic sport and it has multiple "federations" which govern it, so there can be multiple "world champions" each year (Olympic-style Weightlifting has only one international governing body and one world champion per weight class worldwide). Powerlifting is also not practiced as widely as weightlifting. For all these reasons, the level of competition tends not to be as high in Powerlifting as it is in weightlifting, which is why competitive Weightlifters, as a group, have earned the right to call themselves the strongest athletes alive. More importantly, no other athletes approach the strength of weightlifters and Powerlifters, as the men and women who compete in these sports are totally focused becoming the strongest athletes in the world. Moreover, they compete on measurable events which are standardized worldwide, so that performances can be reasonably compared. You won't see these athletes flexing their muscles or lifting tree trunks on "pay-per-view", but they are quietly driving the levels of human performance to all time highs.

10-7-01

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Heavy Biceps Workouts:

Heavy Biceps #1

Standing Barbell Curls: 1x15, 1x10, 2x8, 1x6.
Seated Dumbbell Curls: 1x10, 2x8, 1x6.
Dumbbell Preacher Curls: 1x10, 2x8, 1x6.

Heavy #2

Seated Dumbbel Curls: 1x15, 1x10, 2x8, 2x6.
Dumbbell Preacher Curls: 1x10, 2x8, 2x6.
Reverse Curls: 1x15, 2x10, 1x8.

Heavy #3

Standing Barbell Curls: 1x15, 2x10, 2x8, 1x6, 1x4, 1x2.
Seated Dumbbell Curls: 1x10, 3x8.
Reverse Curls: 2x10, 2x8.

Light Biceps Workouts:

Light #1

Standing Barbell Curls: 1x15, 2x10, 2x8.
E-Z Bar Preacher Curls: 1x15, 2x10, 1x8.
Reverse Curls: 1x15, 3x10.

Light #2

Seated Dumbbell Curls: 1x15, 3x10, 1x8.
Dumbbell Preacher Curls: 1x15, 2x10, 2x8.
Reverse Curls: 1x15, 3x10.

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Doug Hepburn Deadlift Routine 

I found this old Doug Hepburn deadlift routine laying around. In case you didn't know, Doug Hepburn was considered one of the strongest men in the world at one time. He was mostly pre-steroid era, and had a bench press in the 500's, as well as a big squat, and a big deadlift. He was also a genetic wonder. Definitely not a "hardgainer" or even "normal gainer". He was one of those who worked VERY hard to get VERY strong. This routine is definitely not for a beginner or a hardgainer, although someone out there who fits one or both of those criteria is bound to try it. It also is only the deadlift part of the routine. Obviously, other body parts would need to be worked into this routine, unless you just liked working deadlift only for some reason. I am not going to venture in to the possible variations on this routine. I will also not offer suggestions on it, or suggest "weights" to be used or "percentages of 1 rep max". Not to be "smarty-pants" about it, but if you don't really know what you are doing, this routine is not right for you. 

It is worked on a 3 workout cycle. When the "cycle" is complete, you would start on workout 1 again, and add weight to the lifts. It is "suggested" that you add 10 lbs. a "cycle". 5 lbs. might be just as appropriate (my first and last suggestion). When you look at the routines, you will see two "series" that are printed in bold type. These are your primary work sets. That doesn't mean you coast on the other stuff. It just means you put the most possible intensity into those sets. The last sets and reps in each of these two "series" should be at near maximum and maximum effort. There is no "warm-up" in this routine. You will be warming up on the first 4 sets of 8. You might want to do a little stretching and empty bar work, prior. But there is too much work to do, to be warming up a lot. This routine is also probably best done with a "Trap Bar". Obviously Hepburn didn't use one, but go ahead and wimp out and use one if you can. You will be BEAT at the last few sets of this one, and a Trap Bar may save you from "poor form" injuries. Oh.....no straps allowed. 

Here goes.... 


Routine 1: 

4 x 8 
1 x 3 
7 x 2 
1 x 6 
1 x 5 
3 x 4 
1 x 3 
1 x 10 

Routine 2: 

4 x 8 
2 x 3 
6 x 2 
1 x 6 
1 x 5 
3 x 4 
1 x 3 
1 x 10 



Routine 3: 

4 x 8 
3 x 3 
5 x 2 
1 x 6 
1 x 5 
3 x 4 
1 x 3 
1 x 10 

By Just Laying Around

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"GRIP ROUTINE"

Sunday or Monday- grip specialization day. - pinch gripping- 3 set of holds for 30 seconds - gripper- 3 sets of 20,10,5 reps - plate curls - 3 sets of 10,6,4 

Tuesday or Wednesday- heavier grip day. - 1 deadlift lockout in rack then hold till failure - 3 sets of 30,20,10 seconds - plier holding - 3 set of holds for 30 seconds - farmers walk - 3 times as far as possible 

Friday or Saturday- normal hard gainer workout - trap bar deadlifts - overhead presses or bench presses - chins - shrugs - normal or reverse barbell curls - breathing squats + light pullovers to stretch cage 

*NOTES* -The grip exercises are all just examples, there are lots to chose from. To get ideas for these get John Brookfield's book "Mastery of Hand Strength from Ironmind or Ironman. -each grip day has an exercise for each of the 3 types of grip strength, crushing, supporting and pinching. 

plate curls explained: According to grip expert John Brookfield this is the absolute best exercise for the wrists. What you do is pinch grip one plate and just curl it up*remember to keep your wrists tight, don't let them sag back* If you can curl a 25lb plate in this fashion you have pretty strong wrists. 

Plier holding explained: This is a great exercise for your crushing strength. What you do is get a regular pair of pliers. Get a normal bucket with a handle across the top and grip it with the pliers and hold it as long as possible. You of course put the weight or sand or bricks into the bucket for weight. 

As far as the regular lifting day goes. For all exercises try to use a thick bar if available, this will only add to your grip and forearms, besides, what's better than massive forearms? Nothing. For chins I use a the back of my power rack for a thick bar. I have found that alternating a pressing movement every week works great for strength increases. You can do both of course. For shrugs, deads and squats try using a higher rep range, high reps on squats and deads are such killers, it is also safer. As far as set/rep schemes go. There are many great choices that will keep you gaining pretty steady. Right now I am doing just one set to failure. But you can also do 5x5, progressively heavier singles, 2x8, lots of choices. If I was to do 5x5 or singles I would cut some of the exercises out though. 

JOSH ETTERS 

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The Ultimate Routine

This routine is one that some have used, and I feel that this routine provides for very good gains. If you are at a period when you are short on sleep or have a lot to deal with, you might be better off with the a dinosaur routine. On the other hand, if you are not afraid to give this routine a try, you won't be disappointed.

This is a routine that one put together based on Westside Barbell protocol, the workouts of Ed Coan, and  'dinosaur' training background and tendencies. Do the Westside speed work, and rotate exercises often, but  also cycle up on the 'big 3' lifts like Ed Coan does before max effort exercises. This routine worked well for me, and I hope you have success with it, too.

MONDAY
Squats 4 weeks @ 10 reps, 4-6 weeks @ 5-6 reps, 4 weeks @ 3 reps

Pause Squats 1 set 8 reps , 2 sets 5 reps

Zercher Squats 1 set 8 reps, 2 sets 3 reps

Step-ups 2 sets 6 reps

Calf Raises 4 sets standing, 3 sets seated

WEDNESDAY
Bench Press 4 weeks @ 10 reps, 4-6 weeks @ 5-6 reps, 4 weeks @ 3 reps

Incline Bench Press (paused) 1 set 8-10 reps, 2 sets 6 reps

Close-Grip Bench Press (paused) 2 sets 5-8 reps

Flying movement 2 sets 8-12 reps

Rotator Cuff Work

DB Extensions 2 sets 6-8 reps


FRIDAY
Deadlift 1 set 8 reps, 2 sets 3-6 reps

Romanian Deadlift 2 sets 6-12 reps

Reverse Hypers w/ Leg Curls 2 sets 6-12 reps each

Chins or Rows 2 sets 5-8 reps

Shrugs 3 sets 6-10 reps

Speed Squats 8-10 sets 3 reps @ 50-60% raw squat 1RM

SATURDAY
Speed Benches 8 sets 3 reps @ 60% raw bench press 1RM

Press Behind Neck 1 set 8 reps, 2 sets 4-6 reps

One-Arm DB Press 2 sets 4-6 reps

Lateral Raises (side & rear raises) 2 supersets 8 reps each exercise

Weighted Dips 3 sets 5-10 reps

Pushdowns 2 sets 6-12 reps


DO BICEPS, AB, AND GRIP WORK AS NEEDED.


Rotate at least a couple of exercises per workout every month. Try doing 1/4 squats instead of the pause squats, and front squats instead of Zercher squats. Just making little changes like this, going from one exercise to another one that is similar, will help to keep the strength gains coming. Also, don't forget one of the main points of the Westside Barbell philosophy: working your weak points. There is no point in working your strengths, you will only reinforce your sticking points. Work your weaknesses so that your poundage's on the big 3 will continually rise.


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The Whole Body Workout

This is a routine that has been around for ages, and this type of routine has been written about for years by Bill Starr. If you have a chance to get his book, do so. It is one of the strength training books that is actually worth the money you pay for it.

The basic idea behind the program is to work the entire body 3 times a week. This might sound like a lot, but you only do one main movement for the legs, the back, and the pressing muscles on each day. Thus, you are really only doing 3 work sets 3 times a week for the large muscle groups. Starr always used the Heavy-Light-Medium workouts, but many people like to just change up the rep ranges and still work for a challenging weight. Here is how the program looks when I use it:

Monday: Squats 5 sets of 5 High Pulls 5 sets of 5 Bench Press 5 sets of 5 Clean and Press 5 sets of 5 

Wednesday: Squats 5 sets of 3 Snatches 5 sets of 3 Press Behind Neck 5 sets of 3 One-Arm Dumbbell Press 5 sets of 6 

Friday: Deadlifts 6, 4, 2 reps Front Squats 5 sets of 10 Incline Dumbbell Press 5 sets of 10 Close-Grip Bench Press 5 sets of 10

I also have two different assistance 'workouts' that I tag onto the end of these workouts. I rotate these assistance exercises every other workout so that one week I will do the first assistance workout on Monday and Friday and the second assistance workout on Wednesday. The next week I will do the first assistance workout on Wednesday and the second one on Monday and Friday. 

Group 1: Chins or Rows 2 sets of 8 Hammer Curls 2 sets of 8 Grip Work

Group 2: Reverse Hypers supersetted with Leg Curls or Glute-Ham Raises 2 sets of 8, each Standing Calf Raises 3 sets of 6-12 Seated Calf Raises 2 sets of 8-15

I throw in ab workout whenever I feel like it. I usually do it at least once or twice a week, and sometimes do it at the end of the Monday workout and then on a short Thursday evening workout with some grip work

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Bob Eucker's Squat Routine

This is the actual squat routine used by Bob Eucker whilst training for the 1995 USPF Junior Nationals. Competing in the 100kg class, Bob squatted 337.5kg to set a USPF Junior Record. In addition, he made an IPF Junior World Record Total of 880kg. 

Key Weight in Pounds x Reps x Sets. Bob's comments have also been included. 

Assistance 3 to 4 sets of leg curls, leg extensions, and some calf work. 
Meet 694, 722, 744. Missed 694 on depth. Successful with 722, and 744. Felt good for 755. 

Thanks to Bob for providing this information from his log book.

12/24/01

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Shoulder blasting tri-set

Here's a good little shoulder blasting tri-set for you. This will cause a complete melt-down in your delts so be prepared. Ok, we will start with seated shoulder press which can either be done on a machine or with free weights ( bar or dumbbells). Do 1 set of 15 reps to start with with a moderate weight as the shoulders do NOT need huge weights or you WILL get a serious injury. Then after completing the shoulder press move straight over to upright rows with either a barbell or low pulley attachment. Do 1 set of 15 reps. Then with no rest grab a pair of moderate dumbbells and do 15 reps of side laterals. Repeat this a second time with no rest starting with the shoulder press. Your delts should be screaming for mercy now. Don’t give in we still have one more round to go. Complete the 3 sets and that's your shoulders taken care of for another workout. Its hard and fast but it works real well for adding rock hard quality to arrowroot biscuit shoulders. Give it a whirl you hate me for it:)

12/03/01

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My Favorite Routine

Chest and Shoulders   

Biceps and Triceps

off

Back and Trap 

Hamstrings and Calves

off

Thighs

Chest and Shoulders

off

Biceps and Triceps

Hamstrings and Calves  

(You should see the pattern here)

I won the 1995 Mr. Idaho bodybuilding title on this routine.  I was also on this training routine for about 4 years prior to that.  Notable athletes who have use the same are Chris Cormier, Dorian Yates, and Lee Labrada. For your own personal workout and diet routine to meet your bodybuilding goals, see my services page. 

10/7/01

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Ed Coan Split #1: With Bench Press Cycle

Monday: Bench Press Day

Tuesday: Deadlift Day

Thursday: Light Bench and Triceps Day