Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 8

Posted: January 9, 2014 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 8: Week 8 finishes off the program with a devastating amount of volume.

Training Goals:

  • Weight is moderate, volume is very high.
  • Pull-up strength is tested, let’s see if you’ve improved.

Week 8: Strength Building

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body with some shoulder pre-hab work.

  • Shoulder Internal and External Rotation
  • Sets/Reps: 3 x 15 with a moderately light weight, your shoulders should still be burning when you’re done
  • Alternate right shoulder then left, internal then external for each set

Pull-ups: Week 8 let’s test your pull-up strength – how many pull-ups can you do without assistance

  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • If you cannot get any pull-ups on your own, you can use assistance – use the same amount of assistance you used week 1:
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 3 reps
    • Perform 3 sets to failure

If you want to continue or accelerate your pull-up progress, consider doing your pull-ups more frequently each week, at the beginning of a workout.

Barbell Rows – 30 second incremental sets:

  • Get a good drink of water before you start these sets, you won’t be unstrapping from the bar until you’re done!
  • If you need, warm up to your 10 Rep Max (10RM) weight; you don’t want to be aggressive with the weight selection for today’s workout, we want to maximize the reps you can complete
  • Weight: Use your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps: Reps are incremental every set, and are timed; it’s easiest if you have someone timing the reps for you
    • You will perform your sets every 30 seconds:
      • Start your sets every 30 seconds – 0:00, 0:30, 1:00, 1:30
      • Notice that you do not get 30 seconds of rest for each set; 30 seconds includes your set and your reps
      • It works best to have your timer call out when you have 5 seconds to start so you can unrack the weight and be ready to go
      • When you rerack the weight, don’t unstrap your hands, you won’t have time to strap back up
    • Your reps are incremental
      • Set 1 you perform 1 rep; set 2 you perform 2 reps, continue to increment with each set
      • Keep going until you cannot complete all of your reps in the 30 seconds
  • Rest: The longer your set takes, the less rest you have
    • If your set takes 5 seconds to complete (likely your first 5 sets or so), you will have 25 seconds of rest, if your set takes 20 seconds to complete, you will have 10 seconds of rest.
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps, you will need them. If you do these right, your grip will be smoked even using straps.

Dumbbell Rows, Unsupported, Drop Set:

  • Weight: You will use 2 dumbbells:
    • First Dumbbell: Use your 10RM
    • Second Dumbbell: Use a dumbbell about 20% less than the first (if your 10RM is 150lbs your second dumbbell should be about 120lbs; if your 10RM is 30lbs, your second dumbbell is 25lbs…and you likely haven’t been doing BWOW for very long).
  • Sets/Reps:
    • 3 sets
    • Complete as many reps as you can with the first dumbbell, drop it and immediately continue with the second dumbbell
    • Repeat with your other arm for 1 set
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes), no rest between one arm and the other within a set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise, again, you will need it.

Standing Hammer Curl/Lat Pull-down Superset: Pre-exhaust your biceps, then perform your lat pull-downs to force your upper back to perform the majority of the work

  • Weight:
    • Hammer Curls: Use your 10RM
    • Lat Pull-downs: Use your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps:
    • 3 sets of 10 reps with both hammer curls an lat pull-downs
    • Start with the hammer curls
    • Complete lat pull-downs after your curls
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short, 1-2 minutes
    • No rest between lat pull-downs and hammer curls
    • Short rest between hammer curls and cable rows, 1-2 minutes
    • Keep your technique strict. Limit your use of upper body momentum for both the curls and lat pull-downs.

Cable Rows:

  • Weight: Use your 20RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets x 20 reps
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short between sets, 1-2 minutes

Standing Barbell Curls: You may add standing barbell curls if your biceps aren’t smoked by now

  • Weight:
    • Set 1: Use your 10RM
    • Set 2: Bump the weight up slightly from set 1
    • Set 3: Bump the weight up again from set 2
  • Sets/Reps: Complete 3 sets to failure; try to complete at least 10 reps on all sets
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short, 1-2 minutes

Assessment:

Ok, I’ll be honest. The intent of this workout is to completely smoke your upper body. Your back and biceps should be totally exhausted when you’re done, and your conditioning should be taxed as well. Enjoy!

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 8 v1 – Web

BWOW Plans for this cycle:

 

 


Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 7

Posted: December 30, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 7: Week 7 focuses on lifting more weight and building strength.

Training Goals:

  • Weight is kept high, volume is moderately high.
  • Pull-up strength is addressed by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises, and performing pull-ups with added weight.

Week 7: Strength Building

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body with some shoulder pre-hab work.

  • Face Pulls
  • Sets/Reps: 3 x 15 with a moderately light weight

Pull-ups: We’re working on increasing pull-up strength, so we start your back workout with pull-ups, all sets will be with added weight if possible.

  • Add weight to your sets, such as:
    • Weight belt to hang weight plates
    • Hold a dumbbell between your ankles
    • Use a weight vest
    • If you cannot get at least 3 reps without added weight, don’t add weight
  • If you cannot get at least 3 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 3 reps
    • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure
    • On your last 2 sets, perform a drop set: complete as many reps as possible with added weight, then drop the weight and continue to failure again

Barbell Rows:

  • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
  • Weight: Try to increase the weight slightly from last week
    • Set 1: Use your 10 Rep Max (10RM)
    • Set 2-4: Use your 5RM
    • Set 5: Drop Set – 1RM, 3RM, 5RM, 10RM
      • Set up your weight without collars for quick weight changes; use two training partners to change the weights for you.
      • Start with your 1RM, and row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and have your partners change the weight to your 3RM, and continue rowing without rest. Don’t take your hands off the bar or unwrap them if you are using wrist straps. Row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and change to your 5RM and row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and change to your 10RM and row to failure.
      • Weights don’t have to be strict selections; select weights you can easily change quickly.
  • Sets/Reps:
    • Set 1: 10 reps
    • Sets 2-3: 5 reps
    • Set 4: As many reps as possible; use some cheat technique to get additional reps
    • Set 5: Until you (nearly) regret googling BWOW, and your back and biceps are burning.
  • Rest: Take enough rest for your muscles to be fully recovered, except during your drop set (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps if necessary

Dumbbell Rows, Supported:

  • Weight: Use your 10RM, try and bump the weight up slightly over your previous 10RM

Note: If your gym does not have heavy enough dumbbells for the massive back strength, a common problem for BWOWers, particularly if you lift in a commercial box, you can wrap a chain around your wrist to add additional weight to your dumbbell rows.

  • Sets/Reps:
    • Set 1: 10 reps
    • Set 2-3: Row to failure, try and beat 10 reps
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes), no rest between one arm and the other within a set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Lat Pull-downs:

  • Weight: Set up 1 plate above your 10RM on the lat pull-down machine
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets to failure, try and get at least 10 reps without cheating with upper body momentum
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short, 1-2 minutes
  • Keep your technique strict. Concentrate on initiating the pull-down with your lats, minimize your use of upper body momentum.

Standing Hammer Curl/Cable Row Superset: Pre-exhaust your biceps, and perform high rep cable rows to engage more of your back muscles in the rows (rhomboids and lower/mid traps):

  • Weight:
    • Hammer Curls: Use your 10RM
    • Cable Rows: Use your 20RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 supersets
    • Hammer Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
    • Cable Rows: 3 sets of 20 reps
    • Start with hammer curls
    • Complete cable rows after your hammer curls
  • Rest:
    • No rest between cable rows and hammer curls
    • Short rest between hammer curls and cable rows, 1-2 minutes
    • Complete your curls with proper form, and minimal use of upper body momentum to curl the weight. Concentrate on initiating your row with your lats and squeezing your shoulder blades tightly at the end.

Standing Barbell Curls:

  • Weight:
    • Set 1: Use your 10RM
    • Set 2: Bump the weight up slightly from set 1
    • Set 3: Bump the weight up again from set 2
  • Sets/Reps: Complete 3 sets to failure; try to complete at least 10 reps on all sets
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short, 1-2 minutes

Assessment:

  • Overall volume this week remains close to that used the preceding weeks. Weight should increase somewhat, and work both your back and biceps very well.

Workout Plan:  2013 Winter – BWOW Week 7 v1 – Web

BWOW plans for this cycle:

 

 

Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 6

Posted: December 23, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 6: Week 6 increases the weight to be lifted, and maintains a relatively high volume of heavy sets.

Training Goals:

  • Weight is increased and volume remains moderately high. This should be a challenging week.
  • Pull-up strength is addressed by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises, and performing pull-ups with added weight.

Week 6: Strength Building/Hypertrophy

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body with some shoulder pre-hab work

Pull-ups: We’re working on increasing pull-up strength, so we start your back workout with pull-ups, and use added weight where possible.

  • Add weight to your first two sets, such as:
    • Weight belt to hang weight plates
    • Hold a dumbbell between your ankles
    • Use a weight vest
    • If you cannot get at least 3 reps with added weight, don’t add weight
  • For remaining sets, if you cannot get at least 5 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 5 reps
  • If you can get 10 reps or more on your own, add weight to your subsequent sets as well
  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure

Barbell Rows:

  • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
  • Weight:
    • Set 1: Use your 10 Rep Max (10RM)
    • Set 2-3: Use your 5RM
    • Set 4: Use your 3RM
    • Set 5: Drop Set – 1RM, 3RM, 5RM, 10RM
      • Set up your weight without collars for quick weight changes; use two training partners to change the weights for you.
      • Start with your 1RM, and row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and have your partners change the weight to your 3RM, and continue rowing without rest. Don’t take your hands off the bar or unwrap them if you are using wrist straps. Row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and change to your 5RM and row to failure.
      • Rack the bar and change to your 10RM and row to failure.
      • Weights don’t have to be strict selections; select weights you can easily change quickly.
  • Sets/Reps:
    • Set 1: 10 reps
    • Sets 2-3: 5 reps
    • Set 4: 3 reps
    • Set 5: Until you feel like puking, and your back and biceps are burning.
  • Rest: Take enough rest for your muscles to be fully recovered, except during your drop set (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps if necessary

Dumbbell Rows, Unsupported:

  • Weight:
    • Set 1: Use your 15RM
    • Set 2: Use your 10RM
    • Set 3: Use your 5RM
    • Try and push the weight slightly above your previous RMs
    • Note: If your gym does not have heavy enough dumbbells for the massive back strength you’ve built in the last 5 weeks, you can wrap a chain around your wrist to add additional weight to your dumbbell rows
  • Sets/Reps:
    • Set 1: 15 reps
    • Set 2: 10 reps
    • Set 3: 6 reps
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes), no rest between one arm and the other within a set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Lat Pull-downs:

  • Weight: Use your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets x 10 reps
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively short, 1-2 minutes
  • Keep your technique strict. Concentrate on initiating the pull-down with your lats, minimize your use of upper body momentum to cheat.

Standing Barbell Curl/Cable Row Superset: Pre-exhaust your biceps, and perform high rep cable rows to engage more of your back muscles in the rows (rhomboids and lower/mid traps):

  • Weight:
    • Barbell Curls: Use your 10RM
    • Cable Rows: Use your 20RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 supersets
    • Barbell Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
    • Cable Rows: 3 sets of 20 reps
    • Start with barbell curls
    • Complete cable rows after your barbell curls
  • Rest:
    • No rest between cable rows and barbell curls
    • Short rest between barbell curls and cable rows, 1-2 minutes
  • Complete your curls with proper form, and minimal use of upper body momentum to curl the weight. Concentrate on initiating your row with your lats and squeezing your shoulder blades tightly at the end.

Assessment:

  • The weight this week should be challenging, and the volume should leave your back and biceps completely spent. Try and push the weight up above your previous maxes, without sacrificing technique.

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 6 v1 – Web

 


Overcoming Weaknesses in Your Deadlift

Posted: December 20, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 03 - Deadlift Tips | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

The problem: After early success and rapid gains on your deadlift, you’ve hit a plateau and progress has stalled. Your regular personal records (PRs) have slowed or stopped.

The solution: Identify and overcome the weak link in your deadlift power – being able to lock out 500lbs doesn’t do you a bit of good if you can’t break it from the floor. As I have previously done with the Bench Press here I tear your deadlift down into the potential problem areas and recommend approaches to overcome them. It is possible that these strategies may overlap.

Training Maturity: To effectively eliminate weakness in your deadlift, you should be at a relatively mature level as a lifter. Before you start working on your deadlift weaknesses:

  1. Perfect your deadlift technique. You will have the greatest gains, and slightest chance of hurting yourself if you first focus on deadlifting properly. The deadlift is one of the most effective exercises on the books, but performed incorrectly it can have the greatest potential for injury.
  2. Build a solid foundation of strength. Before correcting weaknesses, develop the sufficient level of pulling strength. Work on your fundamental deadlift strength until you are at least an intermediate level on the deadlift with proper technique. You can find a good Strength Standards for Deadlift at http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/DeadliftStandards.html.


Deadlift Demonstration

The two common deadlift weak points:

Now that your technique is fundamentally sound, and you have a solid strength base, let’s look at where your weak points may lie and how to improve them.

  1. Weak off the floor
  2. Difficulty locking out

Weak off the Floor:

Breaking the bar slowly off the floor does not necessarily indicate significant weakness. However, more explosive power off the floor inevitably leads to bigger pulls.

Key Technique Points: To improve your power off the floor, perfect your setup technique.

    • Don’t waste time setting up. Once your hands are on the bar you should be dropping your hips to the starting position then pulling without hesitation. I see far too many people pause at the bottom thinking about the lift before pulling (far too many = almost all). Nothing good can happen here:
      • By thinking about the pull you are talking yourself out of it.
      • You cannot fully fill your lungs with air with you core compressed at the bottom of the lift.
    • Fill your lungs fully with air before dropping into the starting position. Big air in your lungs will provide intra-abdominal pressure protecting your spine, and giving you great stability.


Demonstration of Big Air

  • Tighten your upper back. Squeeze your shoulder blades tightly and drive them downward. Think about tucking them down into your back pockets.
  • There is no stretch reflex in your first deadlift repetition. Work on creating a stretch reflex by dropping your hips quickly into the starting position, and immediately pulling explosively back up.
  • Don’t squat to the bar (characterized by your knees coming forward as you drop your hips down), this leaves you loose at the bottom. Grab the bar and rock back bringing your hips down and your chest up. This allows you to stay tight and keep upward tension on the bar as you set up for the pull.
  • Drive your hips forward hard to engage you quads in the initial pull off the floor.

Strength Improvements and Training: Improving your strength in certain areas can help you build more power off the floor.

  • Quad strength: If you’ve properly built a solid foundation of strength this is likely not your primary issue but it bears mentioning. If your quads are weak initiating the pull off the floor may be more difficult.
  • Stretch reflex: Train every rep without the advantage of the stretch reflex; start every rep in training from a dead stop. I use a technique I call the 3 count setup.
  • Deficit deadlifts: Training your deadlifts from a low platform, or standing on 1 or 2 plates, can help you build low end power.
  • Pause deadlifts with a low pause: Pause deadlifts with a low end pause can help build low end power in your deadlift.
  • Pause squats and box squats: Building low end strength in your squats with pause and box squats can carry over to power off the floor in your deadlift.

Explosive Training: Improving the explosiveness in your lower body will help you to condition your body and central nervous system to engage all of your muscle fibers at once giving you a powerful initial pull. Concentrate on an explosive pull off the floor without ‘snatching’ or jerking the weight by pulling all the slack out between you and the bar and maintaining upward tension on the bar until you begin the pull.

  • Speed Deadlift: Include speed, or dynamic, work in your training program with some type of deadlift variety. The weight should be light enough so that you can drive the bar up explosively while maintaining perfect deadlift form. Condition yourself to start your pull off the floor with 100% of your muscle mass regardless of the actual weight you are pulling. For example if you are deadlifting 50% of your 1 rep max (1RM) the bar should move twice as fast as when you pull your 1RM.
  • Vertical Jumping: Vertical jumping varieties can help you generate the instantaneous explosive power you need to initiate a heavy pull. Jumping higher requires more power, so your goal over time is to increase the height of your vertical jumps. Some effective jumping exercises include:
    • Box Jumps
    • Depth Jumps
    • Box Squat Jumps
  • Accommodated Resistance: Using bands and chains in your deadlift training can help you build more power off the floor. Since the weight is lighter at the floor, you should concentrate on starting the pull off the floor with as much speed as possible, using this momentum to complete the lift as the weight increases.

Locking out at the top:

Let’s start with the proper definition of a deadlift lockout: standing fully upright, chest up and shoulders back, hips and knees fully extended (locked out). A strong lockout requires a strong posterior chain (glutes, hamstrings, and lower back), and powerful grip.

Key Technique Points: Lockout technique in the deadlift requires you to be able to keep your chest up and drive your hips forward once the bar passes your knees.

  • Squeeze your shoulder blades together tightly and keep your head and chest up.
  • Engage your glutes at the end of the pull to lock your hips and knees out to finish the pull powerfully.
  • Grip: Once your grip begins to slip, your body will tendency to stop pulling even if you had the strength to complete the lift. Here are a couple of techniques to improve your grip on the bar.
      • Alternating over/under grip: Over-Under Grip: Grip the bar with one hand pronated (overhand) and one hand supinated (underhand). Which hand you use is your preference, but generally speaking it’s more effective gripping with your dominant hand pronated. Using the over-under grip prevents the bar from rolling out of your grip.
      • Hook grip: Grip the bar with both hands pronated. Instead of wrapping your thumbs around the bar, lie them along the bar and wrap your fingers around your thumbs. This is a very effective grip, locking the bar in and preventing it from rolling or slipping out of your grip, but it can be exceptionally painful.


    Hook Grip Demonstration

    • Chalk: Be generous with the chalk, its usefulness cannot be underestimated. Every surface of your hand that touches the bar should be coated with chalk (and preferably only the surfaces of your hand, not the bench, the floor, the mirror…). Once you’ve chalked your hand nothing touches your hands except the bar! If your gym does not allow chalk, try liquid chalk.
    • Gloves: The bar slides relatively easily across the surface of your pretty gloves. It does not slide easily across the surface of a well chalked hand (without taking chalk, skin and calluses along with it).
    • Wrist straps: No

Strength Improvements and Training: The muscles in your posterior chain are the primary movers to lock out your deadlift. With proper training you’ll find your deadlift actually accelerating once the bar crosses your knees.

  • Posterior Chain: The posterior chain is greatly overlooked aspect of your training plan – yes, yourtraining plan. Your glutes and hamstrings should get just as much attention as your pecs and your quads (they don’t, do they?). My rule of thumb for glute and ham training volume is 8-12 sets per week depending, of course, on where I’m at in my training cycle. The most effective posterior chain lifts I’ve found are:


You don’t need a GHR bench to incorporate this effective exercise

  • Hip thrusters
  • Pull-throughs
  • Grip Strength: Have you ever shaken a great deadlifter’s hand? Chances are they crushed your mortal hand. If you want a strong deadlift, you need a strong grip.
    • Deadlifts: Use double overhand grip as you warm up until you cannot hold the bar any longer. Then use alternating grip without chalk until you absolutely need the chalk.
    • Farmer walks: In addition to some great conditioning, farmers walks can do wonders for building your grip.
    • Wrist straps: No

There are other implements aimed at helping you build your grip strength, but my preference is grabbing a bar and holding on to it as you work through your training.

  • Upper Back Strength: Although your upper back is not actively involved in the pull, statically it needs to be strong enough to support the weight. As with your posterior chain, your back should get as much attention as your pecs in your weekly training plan. I also like to balance my training volume in the frontal or vertical plane (ie pull-ups) with volume in the sagittal or horizontal plane (ie barbell rows).
    • Pull-ups: If you can complete more than 5-7 pull-ups, do them weighted.
    • Lat Pull-downs: One of the few machines regularly in my training plan.
    • Barbell rows
    • Dumbbell rows

For more on back training, check out my Back Workout of the Week.

  • Lockout specific strength: You may want to include lifts in your program that directly train your lockout strength:
  • Accommodated Resistance: Using bands and chains in your deadlift training can help you overload your deadlift lockout. Since the weight is lighter at the floor, you can lift weights that are heavier at lockout than you would normally be capable of.
  • Rest: You will find that deadlifts work your entire body. You, therefore, use your entire body when deadlifting. If you are not allowing yourself sufficient recovery, and not promoting proper recovery (ie rest, diet, supplementation), your deadlift strength will suffer. If you find yourself struggling with a rep weight, back off, recover, and come back stronger.

Take action: Assess where you have the greatest potential for improvement. Rework your training program with a strategy to eliminate weak links in your pulls, and get your deadlift progress back on track.


Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 5

Posted: December 16, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 5: Week 5 modifies the intensity, increasing volume again.

Training Goals:

  • Volume is ramped back up for one week and weight is decreased.
  • Improve pull-up strength by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises.

Week 5: Hypertrophy/Muscle Building

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body and a little pre-hab shoulder work

  • Shoulder internal rotation and external rotation
  • 3 x 15 with a moderately light weight – just enough to get the shoulders burning for the last reps
  • Alternate right and left, internal and external for each set

Pull-ups: We’re working on increasing pull-up strength, so we start your back workout with pull-ups.

  • Add weight to your first set, such as:
    • Weight belt to hang weight plates
    • Hold a dumbbell between your ankles
    • Weight vest
  • If you cannot get at least 5 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 5 reps
  • If you can get at least 10 reps on your own, add weight to your subsequent sets
  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure

Barbell Rows, Dead Stop:

  • What is a dead stop set barbell row?
    • Dead stop barbell row technique
    • We’re using dead stop barbell rows this week to eliminate the use of any momentum and isolate your upper back. The reps should be tougher, and your back should work harder.
  • Weight:
    • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
    • Use your 10 Rep Max (10RM)
    • You will use the same weight for all sets unless:
      • If you can’t get at least 8 reps without any cheating decrease the weight
      • If you get more than 12 reps without cheating on any reps increase the weight
  • Sets/Reps: 5 sets x 10 reps
  • Rest: Keep rest relatively brief to keep the intensity up (2-3 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps if necessary

Dumbbell Rows, Supported: As with the barbell rows, dumbbell rows will be supported to minimize any use of momentum to make the sets and reps easier.

  • Weight: Use your 10RM weight, you should use the same weight for all sets
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets to failure
    • If you get less than 8 reps, reduce the weight
    • If you get more than 12 reps, increase the weight
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes), no rest between one arm and the other within a set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Hammer Curl/Lat Pull-down Superset: Use this superset to pre-exhaust (and hopefully completely exhaust by the end of the workout) your biceps so that your lats have to do more of the work.

  • Weight:
    • Hammer Curls: Use your 10RM
    • Lat Pulldowns: Use your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 supersets
    • Hammer Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
    • Lat Pulldowns: 3 sets of 10 reps
    • Start with hammer curls
    • Complete lat pull-downs after your hammer curls
  • Rest:
    • No rest between lat pulldowns and hammer curls
    • Short rest between hammer curls and lat pulldowns, 1-2 minutes
  • Complete your curls with proper form, and minimal use of upper body momentum to curl the weight. Concentrate on initiating the pulldown with your lats.

Hammer Curl/Cable Row Superset: Continue the bicep pre-exhaust, and perform high rep cable rows to engage more of your back muscles in the rows (rhomboids and lower/mid traps):

  • Weight:
    • Hammer Curls: Use your 10RM
    • Cable Rows: Use your 20RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 supersets
    • Hammer Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
    • Cable Rows: 3 sets of 20 reps
    • Start with hammer curls
    • Complete cable rows after your hammer curls
  • Rest:
    • No rest between cable rows and hammer curls
    • Short rest between hammer curls and lat pulldowns, 1-2 minutes
  • Complete your curls with proper form, and minimal use of upper body momentum to curl the weight. Concentrate on initiating your row with your lats and squeezing your shoulder blades tightly at the end.

Assessment

  • Emphasis this week is on thoroughly exhausting your back and biceps. The volume is higher this week and by the end of your workout you should be completely spent.

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 5 v1 – Web

BWOW workouts this cycle:

 


Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 4

Posted: December 9, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 4: Week 4 focuses on building back strength.

Training Goals:

  • Volume is reduced, and weight is increased.
  • Improve pull-up strength by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises.

Week 4: Strength Building

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body to prep for your back session

  • Face Pulls
  • 3 sets x 15 reps with a moderately light weight

Pull-ups: We’re working on increasing pull-up strength, so we start your back workout with pull-ups.

  • If you cannot get at least 5 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 5 reps
  • If you can get at least 10 reps on your own, add weight to your sets, such as
    • Weight belt to hang weight plates
    • Hold a dumbbell between your ankles
    • Weight vest
  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure

Barbell Rows, Cluster Sets:

  • What is a cluster set? You will perform a set of 5 reps and rack the bar. Don’t unwrap your wrists or take your hands off the bar. Rest 8 seconds and continue the set, rowing to failure. Do not use excessive upper body momentum for today’s sets.
  • Weight:
    • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
    • Use your 5 Rep Max (5RM)
    • You will use the same weight for all sets unless:
      • If you can’t get 5 reps with good form in the initial part of the set, decrease the weight
      • If you get more than 5 reps in the second part of the set after the 8 second rest, increase the weight
  • Sets/Reps: 5 sets x 5 reps plus reps to failure after the 8 second rest period
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps if necessary

Dumbbell Rows, Unsupported: Dumbbell rows will be unsupported. You should be able to row slightly more weight than doing them supported on a bench.

  • Weight: Use your 10RM weight, you should use the same weight for all sets
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets to failure
    • If you get less than 8 reps, reduce the weight
    • If you get more than 12 reps, increase the weight
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes), no rest between one arm and the other within a set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Chest Supported Rows: Use whatever chest supported rowing machine your gym has. Goal is to eliminate any cheating, and emphasize just the muscles in your back for these sets. Concentrate on squeezing your shoulder blades together at the end of each repetition, pausing momentarily before lowering the weight again.

  • Weight: Set the weight to your 15RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3 sets x 15 reps
    • If you get less than 12 reps, or cannot keep your chest on the bench, reduce the weight
    • If you get more than 20 reps, increase the weight
  • Rest: Keep it short, 1-2 minutes

Standing Hammer Curls:

  • Weight: Set the weight to your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps: 4 sets x 10 reps
    • Minimize upper body momentum to cheat
  • Rest:
    • Keep your rest short, 1-2 minutes maximum

Assessment:

  • Emphasis this week is on moving more weight and building strength. Volume isn’t as high, if you need to increase the intensity, shorten your rest periods.

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 4 v1 – Web

BWOW workouts this cycle:

 

 


Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 3

Posted: December 2, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 3: We’re going to start increasing the weight this week.

Training Goals:

  • Moderate volume and increasing weight for both back and biceps to begin ramping up strength training.
  • Improve pull-up strength by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises.

Volume this week will decline, along with a corresponding increase in the weight you lift.

Week 3: Strength Building

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body to prep for your back session

  • Shoulder internal rotation
  • Shoulder external rotation
  • 3 x 15 of each
  • In addition to warming up, light internal and external rotation is a good pre-hab exercise to help you maintain good shoulder health

Pull-ups: We’re working on increasing pull-up strength, so we start your back workout with pull-ups.

  • If you cannot get at least 5 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 5 reps
  • If you can get at least 5 reps on your own, add weight to your first set, such as
    • Weight belt to hang weight plates
    • Hold a dumbbell between your ankles
    • Weight vest
  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure

Barbell Rows:

  • Weight:
    • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
    • Use your 10Rep Max (10RM) for barbell rows for your first 2 sets
    • Increase weight to your 5RM for sets 3-5
  • Sets/Reps:
    • 2×10 at 10RM weight
    • 3×5 at 5RM weight
    • Increase weight if necessary; you should be within 1-3 reps from failure on each set
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps as necessary

Dumbbell Rows, Supported: Dumbbell rows will be supported on the bench this week, and work up through increasing weight before finishing off with a drop set.

  • Weight: Your goal is to start with the weight you used last week, if you can’t get 15 reps with this weight, you might want to drop the starting weight slightly. You will use a heavier dumbbell for each set.
    • Set 1: 15RM
    • Set 2: 10RM
    • Drop Set: 5RM/15RM
  • Sets/Reps:
    • Set 1: 1×15
    • Set 2: 1×10
    • Drop Set: Row to failure, switch to the weight you used for set 1 and without resting row to failure again. Do the drop set first with one arm, then the other.
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Cable Rows: Increase the weight significantly on the cable rows this week; repetitions decrease and they are not supersets.

  • Weight: Set the weight to your 10RM
  • Sets/Reps: 3×10
  • Rest: Keep it short, 1-2 minutes

Standing Barbell Curl/Lat Pull-down Superset:

  • Weight:
    • Barbell Curls: Approximately your 10RM
    • Lat Pull-downs: Approximately your 20RM
  • Sets/Reps:
    • Barbell Curls: 3×10
    • Lat Pull-downs: 3×20
    • Start with curls, complete all reps with proper form
    • Complete a set of lat pull-downs after each set of curls
  • Rest:
    • Take 1-2 minutes rest between curls and lat pull-downs
    • Perform curls immediately after lat pull-downs (no rest)

Assessment:

  • Volume declines, but remains moderately high, while weights lifted should increase noticeably. You might not feel as smoked this week, but should have still completed a significant amount of work.

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 3 v1 – Web

BWOW workouts this cycle:

 


Overcoming Weaknesses in Your Bench Press

Posted: December 1, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 02 - Bench Press Tips | Tags: , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

To build the strongest bench press possible, identify and overcome your weaknesses. Here I break your bench press down into the possible weak points, and give you approaches to correct them. You’ll notice that some of these corrective actions overlap.

Training Maturity: Before you start worrying about weaknesses in your lift you should be at a relatively mature level in your lifting. Before you start working on your weaknesses:

  1. Perfect your bench press technique: The training approaches I share here will have limited effectiveness if you have poor bench pressing technique. While improving your technique your bench press max may decline in the short term, but in the long run you will be much stronger, and have much lower chance of injury.
  2. Build a solid foundation of strength. Before working on your weaknesses, develop your overall bench press strength. I recommend working on your fundamental bench press strength until you reach at least an intermediate level of strength on the bench press. (Strength Standards for Bench Press: http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/BenchStandards.html)

There are three potential points of weakness:

Now that your technique is fundamentally sound, and you have a solid strength base, let’s look at where your weak points may lie, and how to improve them.

  1. Weak off the chest
  2. Locking out at the top
  3. Failing at the ‘sticking point’

Weak off the chest: If you fail at the chest with heavy weights and are unable to press off the chest, this indicates a weakness in your pectorals and a lack of explosiveness. You can address these weaknesses with a number of improvements in your technique, your strength levels in certain areas, and building greater explosiveness.

Key Technique Points: To improve your power off the chest, focus on techniques to improve stability at the chest.

  • Full body tightness: Keep your body tight from your feet through your traps. Do this by maintaining a strong leg drive throughout the press, and using that leg drive to establish an arch in your back.
  • Keep your chest up:  Take a deep breath into your lungs before bringing the bar to your chest. Hold your breath until you press through your sticking point. This helps you keep your chest up throughout the press. Feel your pecs stretching across your rib cage as the bar comes down, ready to snap explosively and drive the bar back up.

Strength Improvements and Training: Improving your strength in certain areas using these techniques can help you improve the power of your bench press off the chest.

  • Chest/Pectoral strength: The pectorals are your primary mover to drive the barbell off your chest. Obviously, a strong bench press requires strong pecs. Strategies to improve your pectoral strength include:
    • Bench pressing at a strength building intensity range, sets of 3-5 reps.
    • Wide grip bench pressing, flat or decline. Note: wide grip pressing can put increased tension on your shoulders, if you have shoulder injuries or limited shoulder mobility take care using wide grip bench presses.
    • Pre-exhaust your triceps. Perform triceps isolation exercises prior to benching, and super set triceps work with your bench presses. With your triceps pre-exhausted, your pecs will be forced to do more of the lifting.
    • Supplemental bench pressing, any variation, in the 10-15 rep range for hypertrophy.
  • Upper Back/Lat Strength: The back is your primary stabilizer for the bench press when the bar is near the chest. A strong upper back will give you a powerful platform to press from. For an optimal bench press, your back strength should be in relative balance with your bench press strength. Your back training volume should be balanced with your chest training. Emphasize free weight, compound rowing exercises.
  • Shoulder/Anterior Delt Strength: Strong healthy shoulders are important supporting muscles for the bench press. Include overhead pressing and incline benching in your training program to strengthen your anterior delts. Note: Your shoulders are a relatively vulnerable joint. Take care to use perfect form and manageable weight when performing overhead pressing and incline pressing exercises.

Explosive Training: Improving the explosiveness of your bench training will condition your body and central nervous system to engage more of your muscle fibers at once to give you a more powerful drive off the chest. Concentrate on driving the bar off your chest with all of your power instantly.

Note: This does not mean you should bounce the bar off your chest. The bar should touch your chest lightly, and come to a stop before pressing it back up. If you have a tendency to bounce the bar off your chest, practice pausing at the chest before pressing.

  • Speed Bench Press: Include some speed benching in your weekly training program. Speed benches should be at a sub-maximal weight, light enough so that you can drive the bar off your chest explosively with perfect bench press technique. Condition yourself to drive each repetition up off your chest with more speed than the previous rep. My preferred sets and reps for speed benching is 9×3 at 50-70% of your 1 rep max (1RM).
  • Accommodating Resistance: Using bands and chains allow you to press a larger weight to lockout while the weight is lighter at the chest. Set the weight to your target at the top end (example if your target weight is 315, you might use 230lbs bar weight and 85lbs of chain). At your chest where the weight is lighter, drive the bar up as hard as you can.

Locking out at the top: Failing to lock your bench press out at the top may indicate a relative weakness in your triceps.

Key Technique Points: Lockout technique emphasizes locking out your elbows versus raising the bar.

  • Squeeze your shoulder blades together tightly. This prevents you from lifting your shoulders off the bench during the lift, greatly improving your bench stability and reducing the range of motion of the lift. Note: this is a good thing, this technique eliminates unnecessary range of motion. Think about trying to squeeze a quarter between your shoulder blades, and hold that position throughout the entire range of each repetition.
  • Concentrate on locking the elbows, not pushing the bar upward. The bench press is complete when your elbows are locked. Instead of thinking about raising the bar, think of simply locking your elbows.
  • Squeeze the bar, and try and pull it apart. This can help you activate your triceps, and turn your pecs and triceps into a rubber band ready to snap tight, propelling the bar upward.

Strength Improvements and Training: Your triceps are the primary movers to lock out the bench press. Improving your triceps strength will improve your lockout strength.

  • Triceps Strength: A strong lockout on your bench press requires strong triceps. Effective triceps training is based on a foundation of compound triceps exercises.
  • Lockout Training: Build your lockout strength by including heavy lockout training in your program.
  • Accommodating Resistance: Using bands and chains allow you to overload your bench press at the top end. Since the weight is lighter at the bottom of the bench, you can drive it up harder. This allows you to increase the top end weight above what you could normally press.

Failing at the sticking point: The sticking point is the point in your bench press where your pecs decline in force production and the emphasis transitions to your triceps. This should be at about the midpoint of your bench press. The key to getting past this transition point is getting the bar moving off your chest with enough speed so that the bar’s momentum carries it right past the sticking point and on to where your triceps have enough power to complete the lock out.

Key Technique Points: To drive the bar off your chest with enough power to get past your sticking point, you need to keep your entire body tight and keep your chest up. These points have been previously addressed.

  • Maintain full body tightness by establishing strong leg drive and holding a tight back arch.
  • Keep your chest up by taking a deep breath into your lungs and holding it until you are past the transition point.

Strength Improvements and Training:

  • Accommodating Resistance: Using bands and chains, the resistance increases as you press the bar up. You have to drive it off your chest with enough speed, and keep driving the bar through your sticking point as the weight increases.
  • Lockout Training: Using a lockout technique, set the starting position (rack lockout position, number of boards) to the approximate point at which your bench is at its weakest. Start your press from this point at a dead stop.

Explosive Strength: Practice initiating the press off your chest with all of your power so that the bar speed and momentum carries it through your sticking point.

  • Speed Bench Press: Using sub-maximal weight, practice driving the bar off your chest as explosively as possible. Concentrate on bar acceleration throughout each repetition until lockout, and try to drive each repetition up faster than the previous one.

Perfect your technique, build your strength foundation and then address the weak points in your bench. Use these approaches to maximize your bench press strength.


Back Workout of the Week – Winter 2013 Week 2

Posted: November 24, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 30 - Back Workout of the Week! | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Week 2: you’re back after the punishment from week 1? That is a good sign!

Training Goals:

  • Maintain high volume training for both back and biceps to build a solid foundation for future training, and other lifts.
  • Improve pull-up strength by performing pull-ups prior to rowing exercises.

We keep up the massive volume for week 2, but have made some small changes to let you bump some of the weight up slightly. Some portions of this weeks training are the same as last week – this is on purpose.

Week 2: Volume Training

Warm-ups: Warm up your upper body to prep for your back session

  • Light shoulder dumbbell raises (front, lateral, rear) – 3×15
  • If you need more warm-ups, do a few light sets of lat pull downs

Pull-ups: One of our goals this training cycle is to increase your pull-up strength. If you can already complete 10 pull-unassisted, you might want to change the program order and do your pull-ups after barbell rows.

  • If you cannot get at least 5 pull-ups on your own, use assistance
    • Assisted pull-up station
    • Resistance bands, set up for reverse resistance
    • Use the minimum assistance required to get at least 5 reps
  • If you can get at least 5 reps on your own, add weight to your first set
  • Use double overhand, wide grip
  • Perform 4 sets to failure

Barbell Rows:

  • Weight: Select your 10RM for barbell rows
    • Increase the weight slightly from last week (5-10%)
    • Should still be a weight you can get 10 reps without using rowing cheat technique
  • You should be somewhat warm after pull-ups, but if you need a couple of warm-up sets to get to your working weight, take them
  • Perform 3 sets of 10 reps at this weight
  • On your 4th set, complete rows to failure, using some cheat technique to get as many reps as possible
  • On your 5th and final set perform a drop set: perform rows to failure, rack the weight and have training partners peel off weight and continue to failure again without resting.
    • Complete 2 drops, for example, if your starting weight is:
      • 315: drops will be 225, then 135
      • 225: drops will be 185, then 135
      • 135: drops will be 115, then 95
    • Keep your hands on the bar while your partners remove the weight
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes) except during the drop set
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise, you will not be able to hold the bar without them to effectively work your back

Dumbbell Rows, Unsupported:

  • Weight: Select your 10RM weight dumbbell
    • If you did not get sets of 10 last week, keep the weight the same, and try to get more reps (10)
    • If you did get sets of 10 reps last week, bump the weight up this week
  • Perform 3 sets to failure
  • Rest: Rest until you are recovered between sets (3-5 minutes)
  • Equipment: Use wrist straps for this exercise

Hammer Curl/Lat Pull-down Superset: You completed this superset last week. We are going to pre-exhaust your biceps so that your lats have to do more of the work

  • Weight: Select a weight you can get the sets and reps in the appropriate ranges. You should be able to move the weight up slightly from last week
  • Start with hammer curls, complete all reps with proper form
  • Complete lat pull-downs after your hammer curls
  • Rest:
    • Take 1-2 minutes rest between hammer curls and lat pull-downs
    • Perform hammer curls immediately after lat pull-downs (no rest)
  • Complete a total of 3 supersets

Hammer Curl/Cable Row Superset: You completed this superset last week also. We continue with the bicep pre-exhaust, and perform high rep cable rows to engage more of your back muscles in the rows (rhomboids and lower/mid traps)

  • Weight:
    • Continue the superset with the same weight for hammer curls
    • Select a weight you can get 20 reps with on the cable rows
  • Squeeze each rep on the cable row tightly at the top, pinching your shoulder blades together
  • Rest: same as for the previous superset
    • Take 1-2 minutes rest between hammer curls and cable rows
    • Perform hammer curls immediately after cable rows (no rest)
  • Complete a total of 3 supersets

Assessment:

  • Intensity was slightly lower than last week, but volume remains high. Because of the lower intensity, you should be able to perform each exercise with slightly greater weight than week 1. Back and biceps should be completely fatigued when done.

Workout Plan: 2013 Winter – BWOW Week 2 v1

BWOW workouts this cycle:

 


A Perfect Setup Leads to a Bigger Squat

Posted: November 24, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: 01 - Squat Tips | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

A perfect squat setup can be the difference between a successful lift and a failed lift. As a powerlifter, I train to make this portion of the squat as efficient as possible. These powerlifting techniques can help any strength trainer not just powerlifters, take advantage of them.

Don’t rush it. There is no excuse for your setup to not be perfect on every set you do from your first warm-up to your last working set. You have more control over the setup than you do over the actual lift. You have time to think about what you are doing every step of the way. Take advantage of this fact, and make it perfect every time.

  • Hand placement: Hand placement is of course somewhat dependent upon your flexibility, but the closer you bring your hands in, the tighter you will be able to keep your upper back, providing more support to the bar.
  • Bar placement: Bar placement can be affected by a number of factors (muscles targeted, individual body proportions, upper body flexibility). Generally speaking, however, placing it across the back of the delts versus on top of the traps allows you to generate the greater power.
  • Foot placement: Place your feet under the bar in a standard conventional deadlift stance (approximately hip width apart, toes pointed forward); this will give you the most stability as you lift the bar out of the rack.
  • Breathing: Take a deep breath and tighten your core before unracking the bar (Squat Breathing Technique). This creates a very solid, stable core and allows you to support the weight of the bar. Continue to hold your breath until you have walked the bar out.
  • Rotate your hips under the bar: Keeping your back flat, shift your hips forward by rotating at the bar and your shoulders – do not flex your lumbar spine to push your hips forward.

Rotate at the shoulders to shift your hips forward

    • Unrack the bar: Lift the bar straight up using your legs, primarily your quads; if you have not properly rotated your hips under the bar, this looks like a good morning, making the bar feel much heavier.
  • Walk the bar out:
    • After unracking, pause briefly allowing the bar to settle briefly before stepping back.
    • Watch your feet as you walk out so that you can place them exactly where you want them.
    • Your first step should be straight back. This will allow you to clear the rack so that you don’t bump it on the way out. It should be a short step, your toe should not move much farther back than the heel of your other foot.
    • Move your other foot back into your squatting position.
    • Shift your first foot straight out into your squatting position.
    • Practice this walkout to minimize shifting and shuffling once you’ve walked out.
    • Let the bar settle briefly again, begin breathing again and your are ready to squat.


Practice these steps from your very first warm-ups, and make them automatic. Done right, the correct setup can make the weight feel much lighter, giving you greater confidence in your lift!


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