just want to look good but i still want to be athletic and i want to look athletic. i’ll post my stage 2 routine in about a hour or so.
I’m lifting Sunday-Thursday with off days of Fri and Sat.
Sunday - Pull and Push
Flat Bench 3x10 (3-1-2)
Barbell Bent-Over Rows 3x12
Pullups (Singles-Eccentric Only) w/ 20 pounds - Rest 10s between reps and go to failure
Monday - Squat Day
Very Fast Full Bodyweight Squats 2x30
Squat 3-5x3
Lunge 4x8 (2-1-2)
Split Squat 3x10 (0-3-0-3)
Tuesday - Arm and Pull
Chins 5 x max - 3-5 reps
Thick Bar Bicep Curl 4x8, 5th set is a big drop set
Tempo
Wednesday - Squat
Squat 8x4 (5-1-1) 3 min rest
Thursday - Push
Close Grip Bench 5, 8, 10 reps
CG Incline 5, 8, 10 reps
Standing Shoulder Press 5, 8, 10 reps
Dips 4x20
Fri - Off
Sat
Tempo
Pilates
*core can be done on any day of the week
Missed first two meals…not good, couldn’t have clemson cocktail and couldn’t make my lunch because i woke up too late.
8:00am
hpf liquid vitamin
apple
9:45am
spinach omelete w/ homefries
12:45pm
Chicken Veggie Wrap - Chicken, zucchini, eggplant, roasted red onions, tomato, roasted peppers, field greens, feta in a spinach wrap
Yogurt
3:45pm
1 can tuna w/ peppers
4 dr. sears fish oil caps
6:30pm - dinner at grandma’s
salad
roast beef, asparaghous, garlic mashed potatoes, corn
8-9pm - Training
Warmup
Chinups 12, 10, 6, 5, 5 - 2min rest between sets
Thick Bar Curls - 1x8 35, 2x8 75, 2x5 75
Drop Set 85 4 reps, 75 3 reps, 65 2 reps, 55 3 reps, 45 4 reps, 35 8 reps
Tempo - Jump Rope (I hate this)
8 x 120 skips 30s rest
9pm - 1st postworkout
40g whey/80g dextrose
10:30pm - 2nd postwork
whey & yogourt - not really liking mixing these together since they are not mixing too well…not sure if this what clemson had in mind, might switch up or make a whey shake and eat the yogurt?
11pm - bedtime
If you make your own yogurt and use protein customizer protein I guarantee the yogurt and whey will taste awesome!
BIG BIG Problems here. Honestly… this kind of routine will set you up for an injury and isn’t very in depth method wise. Your program is indicative of what bodybuilders do. Stand in front of a mirror and look at the muscles you see. Now look at the exercises you have chosen. I see not a single posterior chain exercise and the majority of pulling you do is in the vertical plane. Your pulling to pushing ratio is seriously skewed. I’d either hop on CT’s Pendelum Bodybulding http://www.t-mag.com/nation_articles/296pend.jsp or design a program using antagonist supersets or atleast complementing antagonist movements. Chad Waterbury’s ABBH (http://www.t-mag.com/nation_articles/244anti2.html) and Big Boy Basics (http://www.t-mag.com/nation_articles/244anti2.html)are a good place to start if you want to design your own program w/ the antagonist stuff in mind. The programs recommended by Waterbury are very basic but very effective… and you won’t hurt yourself. I’d invest in CT’s books as well. In fact, if you buy all the e-books sold on this site you won’t be dissapointed; but there is tons of good training info for free.
he does have some bent over rows, so thats not too bad. maybe some external rotator work to offset it?
But i’d like to see some deadlifting or its variation. are the squats full?
"Very Fast Full Bodyweight Squats 2x30 "
'sup with these? how do they effect your squating?
this routine is just one piece of the puzzle. i’m sure clemson will chime in with his reasoning.
i’m having trouble getting the yogurt and whey to mix…maybe i need more yogurt!
narked,
i have ct’s books, i have poliquin’s books, i have cfts…
I don’t think it looks that bad. It is supposed to be bodybuilding. Some stuff seems repetitive.
-On Thursday, I’d rather have CG incline only and add in some rows.
-Do front squats one day instead of back squats.
-Lunges and split squats still seem repetitive.
-I’d add in trap and external rotator work on Tuesday.
Don’t know why there’s no deadlifts since Clemson seems to like them, but maybe this is a short structural cycle. Would like to see the reasoning behind some of this? How long is this cycle?
He is bench pressing 3 times as often as he is rowing and doing dips on top of that. Adding in some deadlifts is definetely a good idea. If you are going to be successful you must develop your body in a balanced manner. When you’re the average trainee going nowhere it’s fine to have such an imbalanced routine. But when you’re going to add weight and strength quickly you need to make sure you don’t get a bad imbalance.
Interesting feedback…since I am an average joe and not charging 1000 for consultations like ESPN3’s guy then people are able to comment on the one microcycle! I guess not doing AREG sprints doesn’t give me any CRED!
“Adding in some deadlifts is definetely a good idea”-Narked
Sure in fact it’s a great idea…an idea we did earlier! We are placing posterior chain work on mute in order to do the following:
(1) recover from the phase 1 posterior chain work
(2) start adding more emphasis on upper front development (read pecs for the ladies at the clubs)
Deadlifts are great and hence why we did them earlier…
“this kind of routine will set you up for an injury and isn’t very in depth method wise”
Q:What injuries do you predict doing this for 3-4 weeks?
Q: Very in depth method wise? (the best methods are not methods because their are not methods but coaching styles based on bias. If I have a method that people can see, this will be marketable. I have no methods but decisions based on my options. In this case a bar, plates, and power rack.) What method should he use?
“Don’t know why there’s no deadlifts since Clemson seems to like them, but maybe this is a short structural cycle. Would like to see the reasoning behind some of this? How long is this cycle?”
A: bingo. Short structual cycle…emphasis on upper front and will then mute upper front and work what? Guess and I will make you a free lablounge member (this friday is a module on Range of Motion work, ie flexibilty so guess soon.)
"Very Fast Full Bodyweight Squats 2x30 "
'sup with these? how do they effect your squating?
A: not much if you are squating with some decent weight…some like pyramiding up but doing bodyweight work as a warm-up will get a nice pulse and the shift to the training weight is only the first set. We will use a WESTSIDE progression later since he does like their methods. If he likes something why fight using something else that might be only the same results?
"Lunges and split squats still seem repetitive? "
yes, that’s why we are doing them…also some nano addaptions might be involved athough from the research general work is 80%+ of the transfer.
“I see not a single posterior chain exercise and the majority of pulling you do is in the vertical plane. Your pulling to pushing ratio is seriously skewed.”
Pull to push ratio? Vertical? CT’s article was great and that’s why we interview him on regenerationlab.com…
He is doing three major exercises for pulling a week and two out of three are vertical and doing this for a few weeks is not going to create a horizontal imbalance in a long term program using a vertical integration approach. Since he may want to overload that direction and then do more horizontal work the next “structual phase”. Since he has not training season he can have a macrocyle set of two years and not have to “peak”
Why balance out weekly? If everything is balanced perfectly you might not get movement!
I hold no grudges…fire away this discussion is good…don’t forget espn3s program!
[QUOTE=Clemson]
Q:What injuries do you predict doing this for 3-4 weeks?
None for 3-4 weeks. But I have no idea of what his current strengths or weaknesses are or what he plans on doing in the past or the future. You can’t just emphasize the front of the body 12 months in the year. I was afraid he was doing just that and setting himself up for a major imbalance in the shoulder joint.
Q: Very in depth method wise? (the best methods are not methods because their are not methods but coaching styles based on bias. If I have a method that people can see, this will be marketable. I have no methods but decisions based on my options. In this case a bar, plates, and power rack.) What method should he use?
For hypertrophy I really like incorporating low-level eccentric emphasis methods and would shy away from the supra-max pullup eccentric you’re currently doing. I like yielding iso’s as well, whether in the eccentric phase of an exercise or as an exercise in themself.
A: bingo. Short structual cycle…emphasis on upper front and will then mute upper front and work what? Guess and I will make you a free lablounge member (this friday is a module on Range of Motion work, ie flexibilty so guess soon.)
I would guess you’d have some emphasis on the back of the body!
"Lunges and split squats still seem repetitive? "
yes, that’s why we are doing them…also some nano addaptions might be involved athough from the research general work is 80%+ of the transfer.
“I see not a single posterior chain exercise and the majority of pulling you do is in the vertical plane. Your pulling to pushing ratio is seriously skewed.”
Pull to push ratio? Vertical? CT’s article was great and that’s why we interview him on regenerationlab.com…
He is doing three major exercises for pulling a week and two out of three are vertical and doing this for a few weeks is not going to create a horizontal imbalance in a long term program using a vertical integration approach. Since he may want to overload that direction and then do more horizontal work the next “structual phase”. Since he has not training season he can have a macrocyle set of two years and not have to “peak”
Well Clemson… I didn’t know if you were designing his training as well so I assumed the worst. As long as it is balanced out in the end there will be no problems. I’m using a more moderate approach right now (well… I will be if I can get my car back from the shop) where I will moderately regulate the volume of all the weight training components. Such as rowing for 6 sets and benching for 4. I favor antagonist training for people who don’t have such a keen interest in weight training as it is damn near impossible to screw up :). Since I am now fully recovered; look for this new focus along with prehab bordering on paranoia in my training log.
[QUOTE]
Eccentric work requires a long training history or we will have AA spillage…maybe in stage 8 or 10
I criticized ESPN3’s program some as well, but he didn’t give nearly as much details as ccardill did. I figured this was only a short cycle so I wasn’t going to off the deep end criticizing everything. Have to see the big picture…which we still haven’t seen. I’d be interested in seeing your progressions on emphasis of body parts, training techniques, etc.
My guess is next cycle you’ll work more on the upper back…rhomboids, middle traps, scapular retraction, rear delts, external rotators, etc.
here was stage 1:
)Lower Ex, Flex
Back Squat 5 x 5 with (3-1-2 down,hold,2)
single leg lunge with 3 x 10 reps with (4-0-4) no rest on the top part of the
lift just constant up and down movement.
3 minutes rest,
use a weight that you can do five reps but not 7 but maybe 6
Off day tempo
2)Push, extend
Flat Bench 6 x 2 reps (weight that you can do 3-4 reps) rest 2 minutes between
sets
Narrow grip bench
2 x 10 reps ( 3-1-3)
Tricep extensions 3 x 8 reps
rotator cuff work at the end.
off day tempo
3)Pull, Flex
Pull-ups
3 x max -2
rest 3- minutes between sets (90 second rest protocols are bodybuilding, but
large muscle exercises and heavy tension are also triggers or GH and T)
Bent over rows 3 x 8 reps
single arm rows 2 x 8
off day tempo
4)Lower Ex, Extend
Dead lifts 3 x 4 reps
Glute Ham 2 x 10
Rotator cuff work
off day tempo
8:30am
hpf liquid vitamin
clemson cocktail
4 dr. sears fish oil caps
11:30am
chicken salad sandwich w/ bacon, lettuce, tomato
potato salad
banana
3:30pm
1 can tuna w/ peppers
6:30pm
pork chop w/ vegetables
rice w/ beans
8-9pm Squat Workout
My numbers are awful and I’m almost embarrassed to post them…before I left for South Beach I did 285x4 in the deadlift but for some reason my squat is so much worse
Warmup - some jump roping and band good mornings
Barbell Squat 8x4 (5-1-1) - I stayed as true to the tempo as possible
Warmup 1x8 45, 1x4 95 1x4 135
3x4 155, 5x4 165 - pathetic! not used to slow eccentric phase but still bad.
Glute Ham Raise
2x6 - First rep is an eccentric rep, 5 secs down with 25 lbs then drop weight and do 5 reps with no weight.
*I never know if I’m doing these right
9pm 1st post workout
35g protein/70g dextrose
11pm 2nd post workout
yogurt and whey…figured out how to mix these and make it work, not too bad now
With squat numbers like that I doubt you can do a single glute-ham raise properly, much less one with extra weight. Your back should be neutral or rounded, not arched. Are you using a GHR bench? If you do it properly it will feel like your hamstrings are about to be ripped off during the second phase.
http://asp.elitefts.com/qa/default.asp?qid=4100&tid=51
Here’s a decent description. I couldn’t find a video for you.
Yeah, that is the case if he’s doing them manually. I actually have very similar numbers although I’m 30 lbs. lighter, but I could do proper GHR’s with a weighted medicine ball on the real bench. Not sure if I can do a manual one because I can’t get enough padding to not have my knees get bothered.
You’ll know if you’re doing them right, it does feel pretty intense the first few times. Hamstrings might cramp up a little too.
the 25lbs. was just for the first eccentric rep and then i dropped the weight.
i have a glute ham bench and it feels like my hams are going to rip off and i’ve read that description at least 10x.
You guys who keep saying bodyweight squats aren’t hard obviously have never done them seriously. They work well as a warm up, but they can also be done in an interval or tabata style to really improve strength-endurance and lactic acid tolerance.
This is what Thomas Kurz, over at Stadion.com has to say about doing bodyweight squats:
[i]Squats without additional resistance
If you are new to weight training you should start with the easiest and, in the long term, the safest form of squats. I believe that would be the Hindu squats. If you are an experienced lifter but your knees are creaky, you may want to stop your heavy squats for a while and do Hindu squats to strengthen your knees.
Hindu squat. Start standing up, back straight, head up, chest up, feet hip-width apart. Feet point forward or slightly out—whatever feels good on the knees. Reach forward with your arms and then pull back as in a rowing motion until your fists are even with your chest. As you pull your arms back, inhale. Start to exhale and squat down letting your arms fall behind your hips. As you squat your heels raise off the floor so you are squatting on the balls of your feet. Squat as low as you can but do not bounce at the bottom. Rise up, simultaneously reaching forward with your arms as you inhale. The breathing pattern is opposite that of standard squats (without those rowing arm movements) and squats with weights. Throughout the whole squat keep your back straight. Repeat the cycle.
Hindu squats should be done fairly fast and in large numbers. One hundred Hindu squats should take less than 3 minutes. At the beginning though, you should do as many as you can do comfortably and go as slow as it takes[/i]
And this as well, in regard to doing hindus after heavier squatting
[i]The reasons why it is better to do Hindu squats at a lively pace:
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You can do more that way because you can better use the elasticity of your joints and muscles (Bober 1995). Moving without stopping so you can take advantage of the rebound can double your mechanical efficiency thanks to storage and return of energy by the elastic structures of your body so you can do more repetitions. The more you can do the better because it takes many repetitions to strengthen the knees. Ligaments are strengthened with “chronic activity . . . of an endurance nature” (Tipton et al. 1975) and so are the slow-twitch muscle fibers that do most of the muscular stabilization of the joints (see the previous article of this column). The surface layers of joint cartilage receive nutrition from synovial fluid (joint fluid), and intermittent compressing and decompressing of joint surfaces is necessary for providing nutrients and removing waste products from the cartilage cells (Feiring and Derscheid 1989; Hertling and Kessler 1996). Furthermore, the synovial fluid becomes less viscous and thus more slippery with increased speed of movements in the joint (Hertling and Kessler 1996).
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You will develop neuromuscular coordination and endurance (both muscular and cardiovascular) useful for sports and martial arts. The pace of an exercise determines the result. Slow pace “increases” the resistance by eliminating the momentum of the body or of the weight and thus develops hypertrophy. Fast pace “reduces” the resistance because you are taking advantage of momentum. A fast pace also improves mobilization and synchronization of motor units (Pawluk 1985) and so develops the type of functional strength needed in martial arts and combat sports.
I suspect that your soreness is caused by doing squats too slow, forcing your muscles to work harder than if you moved fast. Because you are in terribly poor shape, the slow squats make you tense your thighs enough to damage your fast-twitch muscle fibers—hence your muscle soreness. The cracking sounds may be caused by poor muscular control of the knee joints due to fatigue of the fast-twitch muscle fibers and poor development of the slow-twitch fibers, or perhaps moving slow is not good for your knees’ cartilage. If Hindu squats are done right they relieve and prevent knee problems. After squatting with heavy weights, on the same day and a day after I used to have somewhat achy and creaky knees. Now I do a couple of hundred Hindu squats after lifting weights and my knees make no noises and feel fresh.[/i]