I have been powerlifting for a little over a year now. However I have basically went balls out for the enire time and have a few injuries that I have been fighting through. Shoulder impingment and Ulnar Nerve Impingment in right arm.
Also, lower back pain l4l5 ad l5S1 were ruptured in Army Service and had to have alot of rehab. Now I suffer from alot of Siatic Nerve pain in both legs. So for the next few months 4-6 maybe more… I want to drop the heavy lifting and focus on lighter loads and higher volume and maybe actually have a physique.
I have never done any kind of volume or isolation work. I have never trained my shoulders other than OHP, Presses, and Facepulls. Just for example. So I am going to lay out a simple program that I am putting together. Please critique it, my stats, and I will post a few photos just so you guys have a better idea.
Current Stats:
Age- 22
Hieght- 5’6"
Weight- 219
BF%- Guessing 15-18%
Squat- 585 for 2
Bench- 325
Deadlift- 550 for 4
Monday- Back, Biceps
Lat Pulldown: 5 sets of 10-20
DB Row:5 sets of 10-15
T-Bar Row:5 sets of 10-15
Shrugs:4 sets of 20
DB Curl: 5 sets of 10-15
Hammer Cur: 3 sets of 10-15
Tuesday- Legs
SSB Squat: 4-5 sets of 10-20
Front Squat:4 sets of 10-15
Leg Curls: 5 sets of 10-15
Stiff Legs Deads: 4 sets of 8-12
Lunges: 1-2 sets of max distance
Thursday- Chest, Shoulders
Decline Bench: 4 sets of 8-12
Incline DB Press: 4 sets of 10-15
Side Laterals: 5 sets of 10-15
Face Pulls:4 sets of 10-20
Rear Laterals: 3 sets of 10-15
Saturday- Essentially Leg Day again minus Lunges and Add Calves.
Also just to be fair I am not Natural currently running 600 Test and 600 EQ I only mention it because I know It makes a difference.
[quote]RampantBadger wrote:
Triceps? Maybe do one back move a bit heavier say 5x5, otherwise looks fine.[/quote]
Holy Crap man I can’t believe I forgot triceps. I’ll add in Some kind of DB Extension and Overhead Extendions superset with my Back and Biceps. Really can’t believe I missed that. As for 5x5 were you talking on Triceps or all movements? I am a bit nervous to go to that heavy right now as I’m really looking as this being a recovery program for the joints. But, I’m all for opinions. Thanks as always.
[quote]RampantBadger wrote:
Triceps? Maybe do one back move a bit heavier say 5x5, otherwise looks fine.[/quote]
Holy Crap man I can’t believe I forgot triceps. I’ll add in Some kind of DB Extension and Overhead Extendions superset with my Back and Biceps. Really can’t believe I missed that. As for 5x5 were you talking on Triceps or all movements? I am a bit nervous to go to that heavy right now as I’m really looking as this being a recovery program for the joints. But, I’m all for opinions. Thanks as always.[/quote]
Meant on Back day -maybe machine rows or the like, can also help with shoulder health
I keep all my lifts 4-5 set at 15-30 reps a set. Can really focus on contracting the muscle and getting a good pump. The lighter weight and higher reps always seem to help out the old man joints that bother me.
[quote]Bauber wrote:
I keep all my lifts 4-5 set at 15-30 reps a set. Can really focus on contracting the muscle and getting a good pump. The lighter weight and higher reps always seem to help out the old man joints that bother me.[/quote]
Awesome makes me feel alot better. Have had alot of people tell me 15-20 reps is way to high to see alot of gains. Figured this was not the case. Thanks for the critique
[quote]Reed wrote:
I have been powerlifting for a little over a year now. However I have basically went balls out for the enire time and have a few injuries that I have been fighting through. Shoulder impingment and Ulnar Nerve Impingment in right arm.
Also, lower back pain l4l5 ad l5S1 were ruptured in Army Service and had to have alot of rehab. Now I suffer from alot of Siatic Nerve pain in both legs.
…
Age- 22[/quote]
I don’t know why, but I could’ve sworn you were way older. Dude, you’re much too young to be this beat up and broken down, no offense.
Moral of the story is basically, for sure take a temporary break from pounding heavy weights if your body requires it, but don’t use bodybuilding as an excuse to slack on rehab stuff.
Foam rolling, mobility drills like DeFranco’s Agile 8, and muscle activation work should be a solid part of the start of every training session (possibly off days too). It’s all the boring shit that seems like a waste of time, until four months down the road when you realize “Oh crap, I actually feel better.”
Program-wise, consider ditching the big 3 or 4 for the time being. If you’ve been pushing them hard all this time, your body will tolerate a vacation from squats, deads, and barbell pressing. Muscles can and have been built without those exercises, so don’t sweat it.
Hahaha I think its because I am balding and ugly so every one thinks Im close to 30. Trust me Chris I know. Most of my injuries are all from nonlifting activities. Mostly from military service but powerlifting and strongman didn’t help hahaha. Also I’m not using body building as a excuse to not rehab and stretch all that. If I made it seem that way I am sorry I promise that’s not the goal. The goal with body building is to really give my joints alot of rest, while greatly improving conditioning and actually putting on some solid muscle mass. I barely have 17" arms that must change lol.
As for the Big three the only staying really is the Squat. Although I won’t be using low bar because of the shoulder. Deadlifts will stay but only RDL and Stiff Leg work. All Pressing will be DB only and 90% at a low Incline.
Like today was…
Incline DB Press: 70 x 4 x 15,12,12,10, drop to 50’s for 28.
Dips: body for 3 x 15
Low Cable Crossover: 40 x 4 x 12
Rear DB Lateral: 20s x 5 x 20
DB Side Lateral: 20 x 12, 25 x 12, 30 x 12, 35 x 10 -Drop set 20s x 18.
Face Pulls: 50 for 3 sets of 20.
So very different from what I am used to with a emphasis on rear Delt and Lagging muscle imbalances. Stretching for 15 mins after and foam rolling I do every night before bed and as soon as I wake up just to get moving. Believe it or not I have read almost all those articles now I just need to implement them.
[quote]Reed wrote:
Hahaha I think its because I am balding and ugly so every one thinks Im close to 30. Trust me Chris I know.[/quote]
I was gonna say it’s from the solid experienced advice you give and the strength levels you’ve reached, but yeah, your reasons do make more sense.
No prob, just making sure and kinda re-emphasizing that the rehab stuff can be done concurrently with the bodybuilding stuff.
Cool beans. Good call.
Also don’t forget that you don’t always have to put the biggest exercises first. Techniques like pre-exhaust or doing unilateral stuff first can help to target muscles, improve muscle recruitment, and reduce the load needed for stimulus.
Perfect. Making it a routine/habit like this is one of the best ways to just get it done and out of the way. Sounds like you’re pretty much on a roll with most of the stuff sorted out. Can’t wait to see where you end up in a few months.
[quote]Reed wrote:
Hahaha I think its because I am balding and ugly so every one thinks Im close to 30. Trust me Chris I know.[/quote]
I was gonna say it’s from the solid experienced advice you give and the strength levels you’ve reached, but yeah, your reasons do make more sense.
No prob, just making sure and kinda re-emphasizing that the rehab stuff can be done concurrently with the bodybuilding stuff.
Cool beans. Good call.
Also don’t forget that you don’t always have to put the biggest exercises first. Techniques like pre-exhaust or doing unilateral stuff first can help to target muscles, improve muscle recruitment, and reduce the load needed for stimulus.
Perfect. Making it a routine/habit like this is one of the best ways to just get it done and out of the way. Sounds like you’re pretty much on a roll with most of the stuff sorted out. Can’t wait to see where you end up in a few months.[/quote]
Yeah I like your reasons better and honestly means alot coming from a guy I more or less look up to you. Awesome advice and great coach in general. Thank you.
Hopefully ill finally look like I lift in a few months’
It looks like Chris beat me to it, but I was also going to recommend this installment of Dave tate’s Iron Evolution. He discusses his injuries and a brief period spent doing pure bodybuilding-style training after which he felt much better, less injured, etc. Take a look. This might fit the bill for you.
Yeah, I actually figured you were in the 26-28 range, based on strength levels and and experience.
In my very humble opinion, the things that will make the biggest visual difference based on where you are: upper chest, lateral delts, long head of the triceps, and to a lesser extent, lats. How to do that? eh.
But yeah, good luck. Nice that you updated this thread too.
Lorez agree fully. My delts Rear even more than Side Deltss, Over all Arm Size, Lat Width, and Calves. All things that I just never really focused on hugely in powerlifting. But, I’m def getting it done and hopefully I can make some nice changes and better improve all over.
