The 1-Rep Muscle Building Journal

I agree about reverse curls and hammer curls being a great way to fill out arms and give the biceps a little break.

I just finished up a Charles Poliquin arm routine, and like 60% of the curls in the program were reverse grip/hammer grip. In some phases it was all reverse grip. Way more work for the brachialis and way less for the bicep than I had been doing.

In the past I had figured out that my biceps couldn’t handle as much work as my triceps. But I didn’t know what to do about it, so I just did fewer sets for biceps. I guess my biceps were always on the edge of being tired and my forearms were understimulated. Like the perfect combination of overtraining and undertraining for shitty arm growth.

Switching the focus to reverse/hammer grip let me get more over all “work” or “sets” in, with less volume directly on the biceps and plenty of stimulation to blow up my forearms.

It’s pretty cool that messing around in the garage lead you to the same conclusion.

I also agree about preacher curls, they always give me trouble.

1 Like

@FlatsFarmer i love that you figured that out!!! And to me, that’s what it’s about!!!

Things might change over time, what we have figured out might now change next year in sets reps exercise selection etc and that’s part of the game of progress.

I agree that what we see here though is a basic understanding of arm building!!!

1 Like

Monday 1-13-25

1-arm barbell press-
up to-
87 x1 left (1# PR)
Misses with the right, I got it with a bit of assistance. The left was too easy though-
88 x1 left (new PR)

92.5 x1 right fully assisted with a negative.

I think the right side misses are due to my right side is more sore from the max farmers dead last week and my arm tendonitis. I’m very happy how easy both lifts were with my left!

I did some 1-arm EZ curl upright rows which was pretty damn painful on my bad arm, so I did more of these with light weight. Most people avoid pain, but I look at it as “well I need more of this to strengthen the area”.

I also did 1-arm curls with the EZ bar, which is a nice variation using the center curve of the bar.

2 Likes

Those are pretty good at hitting that area, but have you tried power cleans? They might not hit the bicep like you’re looking for, but they are great for all your upper back muscles.

@OTHSteve yes I’ve done them for long time however I got really caught up in technique and I think muscling power cleans are better.

Actually I’ve done power cleans with a curl grip and those are pretty good movement as well.

Doing active recovery lifting from the 1-rep max farmers dead lift and it’s going well.

I think I’ve figured this out, at least for someone over age 40 and 45.

1-hard rep as heavy as possible, then work light and work back up. It’s a cycle.

On Sunday, doing light squats was very achy but yesterday I squatted 95# x50 nonstop reps, NONSTOP!!! My calves were on FIRE, the calves were about to fail! Never did that much nonstop before!

I also did 100# plate BORs up to 230 x3 with just minimal arm pain. Looks like I can start moving back up on them.
I’m hitting rep PRs in those BORs every week-
Yesterday- 162.5 x25 reps!!! (PR of 1.25# and 3-reps).

Getting stronger in everything!!! Gotta play the recovery correctly with exercise selection reps sets etc. there is no written program here.

2 Likes

Thursday 1-16-25

Floor press-
120 x20
142 x20
167 x20
203 x10 (PR)
242 x1
253 x1

Called it a day, I was failing to hit 250 weeks ago. Haven’t attempted anything heavier than 215 since. 253 was a good intense rep.

Did more arm variation stuff like wide grip reverse curls and wide grip curls which was pretty painful on the healing arm.

I got 30reps reverse curls regular width with 57# which is progress and that wasn’t very painful. The muscles at the top of the forearm are coming in and aiding in building the biceps, heck the biceps were pumped after those reverse curls.

2 Likes

Saturday

Standing incline ladder wide grip press-
Up to 127 x15 PR for reps
161 x1 PR of 1-rep max from the bottom

I did 3-partial presses.

Squats-
116 x40 NONSTOP!!!

GOLDEN TIP-
Thick bar dumbbell handle- thumbless grip curls, HOLY SHNiKES!!!

Srs one of the best movements I’ve ever found!!!
Take the thumb away and the biceps get murdered. 20-30# for 20-30reps couple sets made my biceps more peaked and thicker than ever.
My right arm is fully rock hard again, and it’s bigger than before the tendon strain.

I also did this thumbless thick handle style with a lying tricep JM press variation thing, pressing at the upper chest. Same deal with triceps, killed them!!!

Thick bar = thick arms!!!

Cables = pencil neck.

2 Likes

Tuesday 1-21-25

Gobblet squat bottoms up with hammer bar-

Up to -
170 x1
195 x 2 misses (got it off the floor, going for 10# PR)

186.25 x1 (1.25# PR)

Maxed it out baby!!! That’s what’s it all about! There were no failures here, I attempted and lifted off the floor 10# more than my last max weeks ago, I lifted it off the floor = success!!! I still got a full lift with over 1# of my max = success!!!

I felt growth instantly!!! Lats and spinal erectors pumped and pushed to the max = growth hormone!

Yes, the load you are lifting relates to great naked! Just don’t binge, use the food for gains only.

There was left over pasta at my house, before I trained I added a can of tuna to the pasta = GAINS for today’s lifting. I get leaner and leaner and harder and harder because i not scared to go to 1-rep max-ville.

3 Likes

Was feeling some tendinitis in my shoulder which I think is related to the Gobbet squat (pressure) and the distal tendon healing.

It’s not a shoulder thing, it’s a forearm thing and the wrist.

The shoulder joint moves pain free, the aching happens when the wrist and forearm rotates or when pressure hits the wrists for instance doing “handcuffs” if my wrists were removed from my arms, these would not be painful.

Anyway-

Reverse grip partial floor press-
Up to-
229 x2
257 xmiss
240 x2 maxed

First time ever trying reverse grip and they immediately relieved the tendinitis at least with the lighter loads. Both shoulders are a tad sore from the 240# but the tendinitis isn’t as buggy.

The reason I did partials is due to not having a rack.
I stacked plates with the bar on top, layer under neath and pressed from the bottom.

2 Likes

Sunday-

100# plate BOR-

up to-

190 x2

220 x2

245 x4 (this is a all time rep PR!)

drop down-

171.25 x23 (PR of 4reps and 1.25#)

arm held up good here!

3 Likes

Wednesday 1-28

Homemade power pole pushups gripping dumbbells-

Up to 110 x1

Drop down-
96 x7

All PRs getting into and out of position with 110# on the back is a workout itself, great lower back and mid-section work!

I’m going to show something no one is thinking about here, there is something to this to utilize in training here, this vid, watch how this guy is going all out here, this was a workout itself that promotes growth. You see, these wrestlers got bigger and stronger wrestling however they get used to it. This guy continued to go all out, sprinting to the ring, shaking the ropes, look at this, he never slows down. This is how I approach light high rep squats going nonstop and I’m getting gains from it. 1-rep maxes / all out intense high reps hard as possible = the ultimate combo-

2 Likes

Thursday 1-30

Weighted wall sits-

250 x40sec PR

300 x10sec

340 x16 sec PR

Barbell curls - 52 x77 superset with 18 reverse curls - Warrior Style.

2 Likes

Saturday 2-1-25

Behind the back dead’s-

Deficit 1-plate DOH monkey grip -
220 x10
240 x10
260 x12

14” height-
Up to-
500 x1 PR!!! Vid

Last time I did them elevated it was about an inch lower with 485.

3 Likes

Tuesday 2-4-25

One arm barbell press-
88# x1ea side (1# PR left, 3# PR right).

3 Likes

Impressive log I haven’t seen a lot of these lifts before

Have you ever competed in all around weightlifting/odd lifting?

@Well_Swung no, I never did one of those.
Only strongman, I did a couple grip contests and I messed around with a few old time strongman type strength feats just some small exhibition type things. My old training partner is a professional strongman performer and did bigger type of “shows” in front of audiences giving speeches while bending steel breaking chains and ripping phone books etc.
He and I once did a Halloween show for the kids and he stood on a 6’ ladder ladder and I was lying on my back and he dropped a 25# pumpkin on my mid-section and the kids were like “ohhhhhhhhhh” when the pumpkin hit my mid-section. I was a teeth lifter back then and did some of that for them too. I would tie KBs together attach them to my mouthpiece , lift and bend a bolt while holding the weight in my jaw.

1 Like

RDL-

Up to-

420 x2 (10# PR).

This might be a 1-rep journal, but I also like 2-reps! I don’t like 3reps.

2 Likes

Monday 2-17-25

Heavy plate BORs (100# plate with loading pin)

Up to 285 x1 (5# PR) !

Drop down-
194 x16 (1# and 5rep PR)!

Took 2.5 months to get a 1-rep PR here from the strained distal tendon, and I still feel some pain in my sets. I wrap that area with several layers when doing these.

1 Like