Upper Body Strength Routine

Bigger Stronger Leaner Beginners
1

I have always wanted to get my upperbody much stronger, but with the crap football workout that the coaches are giving us, I seriously doubt that that will happen without me doing my own work. The leg workouts are fine in my opinion, but the amount of workouts is not enough to get really strong.

Here is their chest workout:
BB or DB bench
Incline BB bench
Repeat twice per week

Triceps:
Pushdowns first day
Skull Crushers second day
(so 2 exercises per week)

Shoulders:
Military Press (not every time although it is football)
A variation of a front or lateral raise

Biceps:
Curls (6 sets per week)

Lats:
Rows
Hammer Back series (hammer isolation)

Basically, per week, one muscle group will not get more than 12 sets. Per week and this is football. WTF???

I will be doing my own workout for my upperbody at home or at the rec center near house. I just need some advice before I start doing anything. What is the limits on how many exercises and sets I have for each body part? I wanna get 3 in for chest (I have always felt it was too weak)and shoulders, maybe 3 for back (tell me what you would do), 2 for triceps, and 2 for biceps. I was gonna do dips and pull-ups at the end of the workout for fatigue.

Tell me what you think. I am really getting tired of the crap they make us do for football, and basically, with the little exercises for chest, they want us to bench in the 300’s. Again, WTF?!!!

2

Do westside for skinny bastards. and read Rep/set bible and youll be money.

3

See, I would do the Westside for skinny bastards, but I am not allowed to do anything that isnt the football workout between mon-thur because I have to do the football workout. I need to get a good one day (maybe two if needed) day program to increase by upper body mass and size.

4

Set/Rep Bible by Waterbury is a must. Read that and/or Training For Newbies by Thibaudeau.

Since you aren’t happy with your frequency or volume you’ll have to live with changing intensity. Do that by following the guidelines in the articles above.

If I were you I’d throw in a good solid back workout on that extra day. Concentrate on compound movements: a form of deadlift, pullups, and/or rowing.

If you want a full upper body workout on that day, include one of each of the following. I’d go with the strength and hypertrophy set/rep range.

  • Horizontal Push (I prefer incline DB press)
  • Horizontal Pull (I prefer bent over DB rows)
  • Vertical Push (I prefer military press)
  • Vertical Pull (I prefer weighted pullups)

You could also throw in some direct deltoids, traps, biceps, or triceps work, but most of the arm stimulation (bi’s and tri’s) will come from the horizontal push/pull.

Also, I’m just curious, what are you doing for legs?

PS: If anyone reading finds a problem with my advice and/or a better suggestion, let me know, then we’ll all learn something.

5

Our football workout for legs:

Back Squat
Front Squat
Power Cleans
RDL’s
and various exercises that incorporates legs and driving power for football.

And, I understand on your point to get the compound movements, and I totally agree. But, I always include compound movements in my workouts, and they always get the most attention, but I do not get enough attention on each upperbody part, even through compound movements.
I once had a workout, and all the muscles I trained felt sore the day after. The football workout on the other hand just drains my strength and I barely feel any pump or soreness, no matter how hard I work except for my legs.

I will just post the general (just body parts) upper body workout that the coaches put together:

Back
Shoulders
Back
Shoulders
Biceps
Triceps

Notice there is not chest. That is right, they prefer to put chest with leg day. Also, the only trap workout I get is just RDLs into power shrugs. That is it. And they want us to have a huge neck, and big shoulders.

For all the people reading this and wondering why I am not just doing my own workout if I hate the football one so bad. First of all, I have a weight training class, and they force me to do a football workout. Second, the only way they consider you for starting in your position is if you blindly follow what they tell you to do even though it may hurt you instead of helping you.

I love to lift, but I love to play football, so I am dealing with the stupidity that they are forcing us to do right now. That is why I want to have my own upper body workout apart from the football workout.

I also find it funny how all the coaches are just washed up players that were “stars” (I use that word generously) in college, and they coach football. While, my friends dad is a current semi-pro football player with former NFL stars on his team, and everything that he sees the coaches in my high school doing, the semi-pro completely disagrees with.

So, if you have any more advice besides what has been provided, I would really appreciate it. I want all the advice I can get.

6

Make sure you have a day off between your workout day and the workout day the coach has for you because you may not be recovered from. Otherwise the suggestion that sapientis gave you is the way to go.

What is the workout shedule that the coach has you on? How do you seeing your extra workout fitting in?

Put together your ideas for this extra workout with exercises, reps and sets and we’ll have a look at it and let you know if it makes sense.

BTW, 12 sets/muscle group/week is actually enough if you use enough intensity. You don’t need huge volume to build muscle.

Stu

7

Well, I understand that 12 sets per muscle group may be good, but the coaches are expecting us to use huge weight and have our maxes go up a huge amount of weight. For now all I have is that I am gonna workout on Saturdays (since I have the football workout after school Mondays-Thursdays). This way, I will get an extra day off and be able to train my upper body. I will post my workout later.

8

Well… are you in high school? College?

According to what I’ve seen come out of college to NFL I’d think that the football coaches kind of know what they’re doing, hence why they’re giving you the schedule they are. And also… I’d suppose you’re training for performance as a football player and not looks?

But what ever I guess that’s just me who would prefer to be as good as I could to football, see where it could take me and then afterwards in case it fails turn to something else.

Perhaps if you’re so tired of what they are making you do, you should rething your situation and perhaps just quit football and go for bodubuilding full time. Football should be something you do for fun, because you love to play the game and get better at it.

Edit: I saw in your profile that you’re just 14. You have many many many years ahead of you. Stick to the football and do as your coach says to improve your game. If you don’t like it, quit the football imo.

9

At 14, don’t be so quick to assume you know better than the coach. Many have said it: a crappy program worked hard will work.

Now, my opinion: your program has enough chest work. It seems to be lacking in upper back, trap, and neck work, as most HS programs do (IMO).

If you insist on doing an extra workout, do chins, neck, and shrugs. Do this on Friday or preferably Saturday. If you are hell bent on extra chest work, throw in some push ups here too.

10

for upper body i do: clean and jerk 4x4
BB row 8x4
pullups/chins - 10reps
Bench 5x3
1 arm dead

if i get bored at home i rep out on push ups

11

Well, I see what you all are saying. And I also know that the strength coach does know more, but the program that they have us doing has been reviewed by other football players, that are semi-pro and currently playing, and all of them say that this program is not going to lead to the improvements that the coaches expect us to see.

I also want to do extra chest work because I feel that is lacking. And as I am trying to be a linebacker, I still feel that I need to get my upperbody much stronger than it is right now.

Also, I found it unusual that the coacehs insist on using the same program for every position, e.x. the lineman do the same set-rep scheme and exercises as the wide receivers although both positions require different types of strength.

Then they have a strength, speed, and endurance test. All the criterea are the same for every position. Again, they expect everyone to get a really high number although some people are strong but slow and others are weak but fast.

12

If you are doing workouts on Tuesday and Thursday you can safely add an upper body day on Saturday with no ill effects.

Post your ideas for the day. I’d like to see:
1 horizontal push
1 horizontal pull
1 vertical push
1 vertical pull
1 isolation bicep
1 isolation tricep

Try to use exercises you don’t use during your regular workouts and use rep ranges that you don’t usually use.

Do you have any issues that need to be addresses like obvious imbalances or weaknesses? This is the time to take care of those.

This will do what you want.

Stu

13

Ok, this is what I have been thinking to use.

Chest:
Flat Barbell Bench Press
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press

Back:
Bent Over BB Row
Pulldowns

Shoulders:
Seated Military Press
Front/Lateral Raises (I will switch off)

Triceps:
Laying Dumbbell Tricep Extension
Dips

Biceps:
Preacher Curls (We never do those at school, so I thought I might use these. Tell me if I should change it)

Traps:
Barbell Shrugs
Upright Rows (to fatigue)

Extra:
Pull-ups for 10, then one more set to fatigure. I will switch off between pronated and supinated grip

Tell me what you think. I still have to decide on the set and reps. But for now, I am think of 8-6-6 rep scheme.

14

Too many exercises.

Try this:
Flat Barbell Bench Press
Bent Over BB Row
Standing Military Press
Pulldowns
Laying Dumbbell Tricep Extension
Preacher Curls
Barbell Shrugs

Maybe change it around next time.

try 12-8-6 for reps.

Stu

15

Alright. But, should I still do pull-ups just to fatigue my back and arms?

16

Pullups or pulldowns as you are able.

Is your goal to create fatigue or to stimulate your muscle sufficiently to create an adaptation? If you want to get bigger and stronger, you do not need to fatigue your muscles. 3 sets done with intensity will be enough.

17

Alright. Thanks for the help. I will implement this routine.