So I had an operation on my ankle and I wont be able to bear any weight on it for 8 weeks, really can’t get back to legs for another 12 at least. I wanted some recommendations for a program in the meantime. I really want to focus on getting my bench up and my pull-up stronger. I can’t work legs so I might as well focus on and blast my upper body. I go to school and am not working as I can’t stand… I have lots of time to recovery and my diet is solid. Because of this I feel I can get away with quite a bit of frequency and volume. I will take full advantage of recovery techniques and pre and post WO nutrition.
Currently -
175lbs
195x1 max bench
10-12 strict dead hang pulls
I wanted to base the workouts around the following exercises -
pulls
chins
BB bench variations
DB bench
Dips
seated OH pressing
tricep pull downs
db curls
I can’t do any standing rowing.
My questions are -
If I want to workout upper body 4 or 5 days/week what are some options for volume and intensity ?
Full upper body each day or push/pull split ?
Basically, what would you do if you wanted to hyper-focus on bench and pull-ups for 12 weeks? If you had to increase those two lifts as much as you could in that time period?
Also- I’m working off some nice muscle memory and should be able to make quick gains. A year ago I was a fair bit heavier and a fair bit stronger. I have been pretty much out of the gym for the last while for various reasons so I have lost a lot of weight.
Try smolov jr, for bench. I did this for oh press, after my knee surgery this past fall. I also did pull ups during or after the sets each day, as well as some extra arm work (light) a few times a week as well. Couple this with an agressive rehab routine, and you will not be disappointed.
Thanks for the recommendation. I found the program and just now drew myself up a little spreadsheet. Pretty much exactly what I was looking for. Looks exciting.
[quote]tmay11 wrote:
Thanks for the recommendation. I found the program and just now drew myself up a little spreadsheet. Pretty much exactly what I was looking for. Looks exciting. [/quote]
I know this is an old post but do you still have that spread sheet? I am recovering from a broken ankle and have about 5 weeks till I can start putting weight on it.
I’ll continue talking to myself in this thread since it’s only been a minute since my first post. Haven’t posted on here in a year or so, so the photo surprised me as it is from 3 years ago and I myself have lost some weight.
I need a program to get back to where I once was. Oh and a lot of calories
You should be able to find it by google searching “smolov jr spreadsheet”. If you aren’t already benching at least 2x a week then it might be a good idea to first run the two-week introductory microcycle from the full Smolov program to ease into the high frequency and volume.