Hey sin, thanks a lot for posting your routine. Again like everyone else said I’d still be very interested in seeing the whole week with the back work, and especially your lighter days to see how much lighter you really do go.
My main question here is that…do you periodize your weights from week to week I know you said you pyramid and whatnot but by the look of what your doing I’m confused as to how you set-up your reps.
You do your warmup sets with 20 reps, then you go from 1x6 to 1x3, to 2x2, then a higher rep down set of 11 reps.
Does this change weekly…like you’ll go 8,6,4…or 5,3, 2x2…I’m just wondering how you set that up weekly because this is what always confused me of how to weekly set up my rep schemes.
For close grip you do 8, 12, 20 for reps - How come you go so high in reps? I thought it was for sure going to say something like 4x8-12 for your assistance
Just wondering how you set these reps up…As I can see you don’t really follow a specific guideline at all you just lift heavy for your main, and higher reps for your assistance.
I don’t really have a question I guess, other than how are you choosing reps/pyramiding…I’m puzzled, please show us more! lol
I Just did back yesterday and cant remember what I exactly did rep wise I have to bring a journal in to the gym or I will forget. So next back workout I will post. As far as periodization I train heavy as long as I feel strong,energized and seeing positive results. If I feel weak one day I switch to a higher rep lower weight/intensity day. I never pre set periodization blocks into training cause I feel its just much easier to listen to my body. Another thing I forget to mention every couple weeks based on how I feel I switch to a bodybuilding one body part per day split instead of my standard 1 heavy and 1 speed/light workout per week per muscle.
I know things like 20 reps on close grip sound like they don’t belong in my workout but I will try to explain why they are so important in my opinion. I have switched between tons of different workout styles over the years I have tried them all. I use to be big on getting a pump in the gym. When I thought about possibly competing in power lifting I read everything on power lifting training. I tried super low reps heavy weights compound only. What I found was I never achieved a good pump anytime through the whole workout. I didn’t feel my body got good results training like that. I like to do heavy weights compound movements but I also have to try and achieve skin ripping pump its the best of both worlds u still put heavy stress on your bones muscles and joints but you also get the benefit of blood stretching your muscle belly.
Bill Starr, I believe is a fan of high rep back off sets in strength workouts for their volume adding, therapeutic benefits. I’ve just started 5/3/1 and Wendler prescribes lots of assistance work wquite bodybuilding like in reps of 10-15 for 5 sets.
Do you find the higher reps assist recovery? Also, how long did it take you to reach your present body weight?
sincity - I trained the way you prescribed I went super heavy low reps compound movements for a really long time. Although I got good results…I had a bench of 390 at 206lbs, I reached a point where I wasn’t improving lifts at all…The only lift that I constantly was improving was my squat…and you know what…I would do low reps combined with higher reps or more volume total…I’d do som eheavy sets…finish off with 5x5 straight weight with 415. I got a huge pump in my legs and got my strength work in as well. My squat constantly went up…I never did this with the bench…I was always going so heavy, even when I felt like shit.
You’ve opened my eyes up for sure that I obviosuly couldn’t see…what was workign for my squat I didn’t do with my bench…what works for you is what could possible work for me…As you…I never got a pump in my upper body workouts EVER. Please don’t stop posting…your wisdom on this is top grade.
Like buddayboy said…minds are definately desperate for more lol. I’m checkin this shit everyday to see if you posted.
[quote]buddaboy wrote:
Can you tell us about your squat and deadlift training please, and if ya don’t mind a bit about your training history?
The enquiring minds here are desperate to know…[/quote]
Unfortunately I had a pretty bad dirt bike accident several years ago where my right ankle and left knee took some pretty bad damage. I train Squat and Dead lift at about 75% intensity so there are much better people on the board to give advice on those two lifts. Whats crazy is squats where my best lift before I got hurt bench second and always been average at deadlifts.
Training history at about 14 started lifting weights for sports and to look like the bodybuilders in the magazines. I have trained off and on since then. A year hear and there went by without touching a weight but for the most part tried to stay lifting. The past 4 years I have been really dedicated to getting as strong as possible and trying to get a raw bench press record. So in a nutshell my base came from the standard split Day one chest,shoulder,tri Day two Back,biceps Day three legs Day four off then repeat. I did that for at least 4 years then went to a one body part per day split. No I use more of a modifed powerlifting/bodybuilding split and try to mix it up.
I was out of town last heavy back day I will post this weeks back log
I usually start with weighted pull ups I have noticed if you do pull ups first when you do row movements you only lose a couple reps but if you do a heavy rows first unless your a mutant your gonna lose alot more than a couple reps on pull ups
If there are dumbbells heavy enough I love single dumbbell arm rows but unfortunately the gym I was at only go 125
Back
Ridiculous!!!
I must say I have a fetish for weighted pull-ups, and you rarely see huge monsters do these things even unweighted! 95lbs for 8 reps… hell, this is monstrous pure upper body pulling power.
Sincity, most powerlifters are not fond of pull-ups besides maybe a few max rep unwerighted sets to finish off a workout. Have you found that focusing on max strength in pull-ups helps in the bench press a lot?
List of powerlifters that pull-up big weights at huge bodyweights:
Do you find that horizontal type rowing movements are superior perhaps compared to vertical back movements? both for shoulder health and bench press gains?
I don’t count the one drop set of machine rows as a exercise. Its basically 3 heavy row/pull compound movements and one isolation exercise.
I like both movements, normally I would say whatever similar exercise u can use more weight in is usually the superior exercise for that muscle group but in this case I think they are equally important. With heavy pull ups if you are concerned about shoulder problems start with a bend in your elbow instead of dead hang and don’t go all the way down you will get as good as back workout and safe on shoulders. Saying that I only do 1 pull up exercise on back day and always do at least two row type movements.
Here is something I have noticed if someone is usually good at weighted pull ups they can row some big numbers, but i have seen guys who can row a ton and can barely do five pull ups. Its tough to use momentum or body english for pull ups but on rows I have noticed people use a bit to much momentum.
lol