Brock Leggins
Quick Jumps:
Introduction
Warmup
Cool Down
General Template
Alternative Setup
Adding Olympic Lifts
Adding Dynamic Effort (DE) Lifts
Days Off
Deloads
FAQ
Introduction
I know there’s supposed to be some extensive introduction about the
genesis for this particular program and setup, but I’m not going to do that.
The fact is, it came from an amalgamation of things, and as with everything
in training, I have no doubt someone has already done it (or something
similar) in the past. And probably better.
Be that as it may, it’s my attempt at what I think is a very productive setup,
particularly for the trainee who is not specifically concerned with driving up
their big 3 (squat/bench/deadlift), but still wants to get bigger and stronger.
I will say right off the bat that this is not for beginners. I would prefer that
beginners use far less variation in their training, as they need the practice
involved in learning the fundamentals of the basic movement patterns. My
very broad, general recommendation for trainees entering barbell training
with little to no background is to follow Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength
program. It’s truly fantastic, if not a bit boring. There are additions and
changes one can make, but the basic premise is very sound.
After you’ve stalled on that type of program, I generally recommend moving
to something like Jim Wendler’s 5/3/1 program. He’s got a shitload of
templates available, or you could probably even figure out one that he hasn’t
specifically come up with yet. Either way, it’s another fantastic program and
should keep progress going for a while, if done correctly.
By that point, you should have a pretty solid training background and good
technique. With that, you can begin adding in more variation to the
program, as you’ve learned the basics and it can be reasonably assumed
that you can perform variations on those basics with relative ease. Enter
something like this.
I will also state – this program is NOT intended for competitive powerlifters.
There’s simply not enough specificity. I have no doubt you could rig
something up using this framework that may fit that goal, but that would
kind of defeat the purpose.
With all that said, I will give a very brief background on what spawned this
particular setup. It was in some sense inspired by Louie Simmons’ Westside
Barbell outline, with the concepts of exercise rotation and concurrent
training. As I noted above, I love Wendler’s 5/3/1, but much of my training
over the last 10 years or so has centered around the squat, bench, deadlift,
and power versions of the Olympic lifts. This type of training has certainly
served me well, but at this point I want some variation.
However, I wanted to develop a full-body variant, and attempt to subvert
some of the downsides of the template, such as weekly max-outs, which are
simply unsustainable for drug-free lifters. As well, I don’t see a ton of value
in dynamic effort (DE) work for lifters, though I have covered ways I think
you could include it in this template.
I also wanted to include some heavy upper body pulling work. Obviously
deadlifting utilizes the upper back, but I wanted to do some amount of direct
heavy pulling for the upper body.
And do all of this in a repeatable manner which can be reasonably recovered
from.
Finally, I also wanted to keep the sessions to a respectable time frame.
Especially as a non-competitive trainee, who wants to spend all day in the
gym? In that vein, I’m generally done in about an hour and 15 minutes at
most, including warmup and cool-down. Obviously if you perform a longer
warmup or cool-down, or take longer between sets, it may take you longer
to finish. If you choose to utilize more moderate weights on your lower body
work (in the 70-80% range), chances are you won’t need super long rests
and will be able to hammer things out in a respectable time. It’s really up to
you.
I think I’ve managed to accomplish all of those goals.
I initially wrote it for athletes, however, I did not factor in and prescribe
other training, such as sprinting, change of direction, jumping, med ball
throws, etc. In hindsight, I should and would do that, and as such, it would
greatly change the program in and of itself. That said, I think that the
general theme can absolutely stay the same, merely massaging and
changing some of the particulars to fit the situation.
I have actually included some examples of ways to add in sprint work,
medicine ball work, dynamic effort (DE) barbell work, and/or Olympic lifts if
you choose to use them. I should also note, however, that the volume of
these additions should be kept fairly low – if you are an athlete who needs to
perform a higher volume of work in other areas, you need to program your
strength work accordingly. Don’t simply pick any lifting program and throw it
in.
In this outline, you will frequently see me say things like, “give it a try.” I
know that with most programs, the author is expected to outline specifically
every possible detail of the program itself. Unfortunately, I’m not going to do
that. It’s going to be on you to figure out specifically what needs to be done
and how to apply it to your situation. I can’t possibly know what all you
need.
And yes, I will give some concrete examples, because who wants to read a
book or program that basically just says, “do what you want”?
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Warmup
A thorough warmup serves many purposes. It should include both general
work to elevate heart rate and core body temperature, as well as specific
work to prepare you for the work that is to follow.
You don’t have to believe me. Listen to people much smarter than I tell you
why it’s important:
“A proper dynamic warm-up acts as a mobilizing stimulus for the
systems involved in oxygen transport, allowing a high level of
aerobic activity to be reached more quickly, reducing initial
oxygen deficit, and allowing the aerobic system to provide
energy for a longer period of time, as well as increasing muscle
temperature and improving blood flow to the muscles, allowing
for more oxygen delivery and faster removal of metabolic
byproducts.” –Stewart & Sleivert
A warm muscle results in warm motor neurons. “This heating
lowers the electrical resistance in the neural pathways within
muscle, thus improving the muscle’s contraction speed” –Charlie
Francis; This results in greater speed, power, and strength
output.
“Dynamic flexibility is a must for joint health especially in aging
athletes. Movement about a joint creates changes in pressure in
the joint capsule that drives nutrients from the synovial fluid
(the fluid a joint is encased in) toward the cartilage of the joint.
Since cartilage lacks its own blood supply, the chrondrocytes
(the cells that produce cartilage), must depend on diffusion of
oxygen and nutrients directly from synovial fluid for survival.
Appropriately, joint mobility correlates highly with joint health.”
–Buddy Morris
As well, if the heart rate is kept up during the length of the warmup, it can
provide aerobic benefits, depending on your level of aerobic fitness.
Increased stroke volume (amount of blood pumped per beat), and increased
mitochondria and aerobic enzymes at the muscular level equates to a larger
aerobic “engine,” which will help in multiple ways, not the least of which is
expedited recovery.
Research has repeatedly shown that excessive static stretching decreases
performance, and does nothing to decrease injury risk. Therefore, I don’t do
any static stretching beforehand, but if you need to to get into specific
positions for your training or to feel better, go ahead and do it. I would also
note that research has shown that following static stretching with dynamic
work negates the negative effects of static stretching, so I would
recommend that any stretching takes place after the heart rate elevation
and before the rest of the warmup.
I’m not going to tell you how to warm up. Do what works for you. I can say,
unequivocally, that the more extensive and sweat-inducing my warmup is,
the better I tend to feel overall. Not just in the session, but in general. This
also includes when I’m doing more body weight exercise/calisthenic work,
particularly in the warmup. Tumbling, pushups, pullups, lunges, ab work,
etc. Doing so really tends to keep me feeling good. You may not find the
same, so find what works for you.
I won’t go much beyond that. I think you get the point. The warmup is
important. Don’t skip it, do it, no matter how much you loathe it.
For the sake of completeness, here is what I have been using for a warmup:
- Bike 5 minutes (raise core temperature) or things like tumbling, power
speed drills (A/B/C skips, etc.)
- Shoulder and hip flexor mobility – mobility isn’t much of an issue for
me, so I can keep these brief – just enough to get some movement in
those areas and get some blood flow there is really all I need. If you
need more, do more
- Circuit consisting of pushup variations, lunges, pullup variations, and
ab variations. Usually 3-5 times through, 10 reps on most except for
pullups. I change the variations I use each time through the circuit. I
rest only as needed, but try to keep it minimal.
- If you have specific “prehab”/activation/patterning work that needs to
be done, do it here. For instance, I have a minor low back issue that I
have some low-level stabilization exercises I use for, and include these
in the warmup. However, I generally would reserve stuff like rotator
cuff work for after the main part of the workout. I don’t like the idea of
fatiguing stabilizers prior to loading them heavily, but that’s just me.
- This is then followed by warmup sets of the first exercise, gradually
increasing in weight. You should basically only rest long enough to
change the weights and not much more.
Using this warmup, I’m usually performing my first heavy set within 15
minutes. While that may seem like a long time, that’s a decent amount of
work getting done before getting to the heavy stuff.
I occasionally use light barbell or kettlebell complexes instead of the body
weight circuits. For instance, this is Dan John’s advanced warmup from
“Intervention”:
5-25 Goblet squats
75 kettlebell swings (sets of 10-25)
1-5 Turkish getups or ½ getups
This is another great option. Get creative and I’m sure you could come up
with many more.
I’ve already gone far more in-depth than I intended. I really can’t add
anything else. Get it done.
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Cool Down
I recommend some sort of cool down at the conclusion of your training
sessions, as it helps return the body to a vegetative state and helps expedite
the recovery process.
Again, take it from people smarter than me (from Supertraining):
“concluding phase” – the athlete’s body is generally de-stressed to
return to its initial condition so as to enhance recovery, growth, and
retention of motor skills.
It can be an extensive, thought-out cool down, or like mine, it can be
relatively simple. I usually just do 5-10 easy minutes on a cyclical device or,
if it’s nice outside, I just walk around outside for a few minutes. I follow that
with some foam rolling and light stretching and call it a day.
However, as I mentioned above, if you want/need to do specific prehab work
for the shoulders or something similar, I would do that before, or as part of,
the cool down (or as part of it).
Much like the warmup, this portion is one of the most overlooked, mostly
because people will justify it by saying they don’t have time. My
recommendation is to make time. I’m not going to sit here and say “it’s as
important as the rest of the workout” – you have to stimulate adaptation to
have anything to cool down from in the first place – but it is still important.
Again, you will feel better between workouts and realize better recovery,
which will only mean better subsequent training sessions.
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General Template
This is the weekly setup. Every 3 weeks, simply rotate in new exercises for
each spot (save for the ab work, which I pretty much keep static). I don’t
generally plan beyond the current 3 weeks. Once they start winding down, I
think about what exercises I would like to do next. That’s really about the
extent of the thought that goes into it.
Day 1
Squat variation
A. Upper pull – rep effort
B. Upper push – modified rep effort
Ab wheel or other moderately heavy ab work
Day 2
A. Max effort upper body pull variation
B. Quad-dominant single-leg variation
A. Max effort press variation
B. Posterior chain single-leg variation
Ab wheel or other moderately heavy ab work
Day 3
Deadlift variation
A. Upper push – rep effort
B. Upper pull – modified rep effort
Ab wheel or other moderately heavy ab work
You will then simply rotate in new exercises every 3 weeks. I will go into
more detail further down.
A few quick definitions:
Rep effort (RE) – lifting a submaximal load to (or close to) failure.
Generally speaking, I aim for 20+ reps on my rep effort work, though
I will explain some options below.
Modified rep effort (modified RE) – lifting a submaximal load near failure,
but leaving some reps in the tank. This could technically also fall under
the submaximal effort method, but the modified rep effort generally
uses more reps than the submaximal effort.
Max effort (ME) – the most weight you can use for a specific number of
repetitions (generally 5 or less). In this specific case, you could also
simply call this “very heavy effort,” as I don’t necessarily expect you to
push to the absolute limit on this work.
I should also be clear that what you call specific efforts or methods is not of
great importance. You could just as easily call it “repping out,” “volume
work,” and “heavy work.” That’s fine. Whatever works for you.
Heavy pulling for the upper body can be tough to do with traditional barbell
exercises. Therefore, I simply use pullup variations as the max effort pulling
work. If you want to figure up some heavy horizontal pulling, have at it, but
try to choose some sort of chest-supported variation so that the low back
doesn’t become the limiting factor. You could probably also use Pendlay rows
if you want to use a barbell exercise.
A few other notes:
- This should follow High-Low organization, so you should have 1 lower
intensity or off day between each of these days
- Exercises labelled “A” and “B” are to be supersetted
- I utilize a partial range of motion squat variant with a full or extra ROM
deadlift variant, and vice versa. So if I have a front squat, I may use
the trap bar deadlift (high handles), rack pull, etc. as the deadlift
variation. If I’m using a parallel or higher box squat (because an assto-grass Olympic squat is my default squat), I’ll use low-handle trap
bar deadlifts, deadlifts from the floor or a deficit, etc.
- Generally speaking, I use horizontal pulling on Days 1 & 3 and
chinup/pullup variations on Day 2.
- Since you have 3 pressing days, I recommend utilizing 1 overhead, 1
incline, and 1 flat press. I would also recommend rotating which days
those take place on each block
- I know some people find it helpful on the elbows to do their pressing
with a fat bar. If you have access to one or fat grips, and you want to
do it, go for it.
- Don’t worry about pushing the weight being used for the modified RE
work. It’s just there for volume, so just get the work in. Don’t be a
pansy, but don’t worry about setting records, either.
- The RE pressing exercise (and RE pulling when possible) are generally
closed-kinetic chain movements. In closed-kinetic chain movements,
the extremities are fixed and the body moves around them. Examples
include squats, deadlifts, pushups, pullups, inverted rows, etc. In
open-kinetic chain movements, the body is fixed and the extremities
move around the body. Examples are pretty much any weight machine
you can think of, bench presses, etc. There’s not necessarily any
inherent advantage to one over the other, though closed-kinetic chain
movements allow the shoulder blades to move freely, which can help
keep the shoulders healthier over time. You can make them more
difficult by wearing a weight vest or chains.
- The modified RE work is usually a dumbbell movement
- The heavy ab work is pretty much optional, though I would recommend
you do it. I usually do something like 3x10. I generally use the ab
wheel, hanging leg raises, or landmines. You may have others. If
you’re familiar with Stuart McGill’s work, you know that loaded spinal
flexion (such as weighted situps) may not be a great idea. But if you
don’t see a problem, go ahead and do them. That said, you can do
lower-intensity ab work on the days between or at the end if you wish
- If pressing 3 times per week is an issue for you (I’ve heard of guys
having elbow problems pressing that frequently), you may utilize a
“bodybuilding” type movement for your modified RE press. So if it’s a
horizontal or incline press on that day, use flyes instead of a press. If
it’s an overhead press, use lateral raises or something similar.
- Heavy abs generally encompass things like ab wheel, barbell rollouts,
hanging leg raises, landmines, etc. I don’t get too creative with this.
It’s similar to the volume work – just get it in.
Exercise selection – this is not a complete list. You could also add chains
or bands to any variation
Squat
Olympic squat
Front squat
Box squat (various heights)
Safety squat bar squat
Buffalo bar squat
Low bar squat
High bar squat
Change depth, foot positioning, etc.
RE pull
Pullups (palms facing away)
Chinups (palms facing toward you)
Neutral-grip chin-ups (palms facing each other)
Blast strap/TRX pullups
Blast strap/TRX inverted Rows
Blast strap/TRX inverted Rows, feet on bench
Barbell inverted rows
Barbell inverted rows, feet on bench
Kroc rows
RE press
Pushups
Barbell pushups
Feet-elevated pushups – various heights
Handstand pushups – can add plates or blocks to extend ROM
Dips
ME pull
Pullup variations
Pendlay rows
Chest-supported barbell row
ME press
Any barbell pressing movement – change grip width, incline, etc.
Deadlift
Deadlift
Deadlift from deficit (no more than 2-3” max)
Trap bar deadlift
Low handle trap bar deadlift
Rack deadlift (various deadlift)
Elevated deadlift (on mats, blocks, etc.)
Snatch-grip deadlift
Stiff-leg deadlift
Stiff-leg deadlift from deficit
Stiff-leg deadlift from elevated surface
Sumo deadlift
Semi-sumo deadlift
Sumo rack deadlift (various heights)
Semi-sumo rack deadlift (various heights)
You may be asking: Where is the trap work? The gun show work? Direct
shoulder/forearm/whatever else work? You can include it where you want. If
you still have some “go” after the main stuff, throw it in at the end,
otherwise it can be done on the days in between. If you want to add some
posterior chain work or whatever, throw that after your upper pushing and
pulling. Or, if you don’t see the value in single-leg work, sub out that on Day
2 and put in the lower body assistance you want to do. Just make sure to
allow at least 1 full day between the heavy days. The other stuff can be done
on those days in between.
Putting it together
So, let’s say you’ve decided, for the first 3 weeks, your exercises will be:
Squat – Parallel box squat
RE upper pull – blast strap inverted rows
Modified RE upper press – DB military press
ME upper pull – weighted chin-ups
Quad dominant single-leg – walking lunges
ME press – incline bench
Posterior chain dominant single-leg – single-leg RDL
Deadlift – low-handle trap bar deadlift
RE press – barbell pushups
Modified RE upper pull – Yates rows
There are a few options for what to do with each slot, at least that I have
come up with. I’m sure others could come up with more.
Main lower work (squat or deadlift variation) – Week 1 – 3x5, 3x3; Week 2 –
6x3, Week 3 – 8x3
Feel free to push this work as hard or moderate as you want, but DO NOT
turn this into max effort work. The weight does NOT have to be the same
every set. Move it up, move it down, do whatever. These sets and reps do
not include warmup sets.
If you want to use percentages, stay in the 70-85% range of your
estimated max. If you want to work up to a training max, you can do so
pretty much any week, preferably after the main sets. This should mean
focus, but not getting psyched up. If you want to go nuts and do a
psyched max, do so AFTER the 8x3 on week 3.
RE work – I’ve come up with a few different ways to do this.
- The first way I have done it is to use a few warm-up sets of 10 reps,
with a third all-out set, with the goal of beating your reps each week.
- An alternative would be to do your all-out set first, then utilize rep dropoffs (probably 20% per set) for each successive set. So if you get 25
on the first set, the second set would be 20 (25 minus 20%), and the
3rd set would be 16 (20 minus 20%). Superset with the modified RE
work, and rest as needed between sets. Again, try to beat your first
set each week.
- Another option is to use the 350 method (which may be the best way to
go IMO). To perform the 350 method, you will do 3 sets of as many
reps as possible, with 2 minutes rest between each set. If you get 50+
total reps, add weight the next week. If you do it that way, do not
superset it with the modified RE work. Just use your 2 minutes to try
to recover for the next set.
Modified RE work – 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps. I usually superset this with the
RE or, if I’m doing the 350 method for RE, I superset this with the ab
work.
On Day 2, I have again come up with a few options.
- Upper pull – 3x5 or 3x3 heavy; press – work up to a 5RM (week 1),
3RM (week 2), and 1RM (week 3). All are training maxes, not psycheups (with the possible exception of week 3).
- Perform a heavier “rep effort” type day. Basically, rather than working
up to a 5RM or what have you, pick a weight that you want to rep with
and shoot for 6-8 reps.
- Utilize the 5-3-1 program, using a heavier max. For that, you can either
work up to a training max during the ‘deload’ week and use that as
your max. Or, you can simply guesstimate. Wendler recommends
using 90% of your max to base the percentages off of, but since you
are only doing the variations for 3 weeks, and the weights are meant
to be higher on that day anyway, go ahead and use a higher number.
If you are not familiar with the 5/3/1 setup, just google it, Jim has
written numerous articles about it.
- The single-leg work is generally 3x6-12 per leg for each exercise
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Alternative setup
Another option, should you want to keep it even more High/Low and give
yourself more recovery between high days, and consolidate all the true highintensity work to like days, is to switch the ME press on Wednesday with the
volume pressing on Monday, and switch the ME pull on Wednesday with the
volume pulling on Friday. In such an instance, you would then have:
Day 1:
Squat variation
A. ME press
B. RE pull
Abs
Day 2:
A. Modified RE pull (volume)
B. Quad-dominant single-leg
A. Modified RE push (volume)
B. Posterior chain-dominant single-leg
Abs
Day 3:
Deadlift variation
A. ME pull
B. RE push
Abs
Or, if you’re worried about the deadlift taking too much out of the back for
good ME work, you can switch your ME days so it goes:
Day 1:
Squat variation
A. ME pull
B. RE press
Abs
Day 2:
A. Modified RE pull (volume)
B. Quad-dominant single-leg
A. Modified RE press (volume)
B. Posterior chain-dominant single-leg
Abs
Day 3:
Deadlift variation
A. ME press
B. RE pull
Abs
You can also switch it so that you do your ME work before your lower body
work (on any of the variations), since the deadlift and squat take so much
out of you. Really your call and dependent on what your focus and goals are.
As a basic overview, think of it this way: moderate to high volume of
moderately heavy squats & deadlifts, followed by a balls-out rep effort for
pushing or pulling and some volume work for whichever isn’t your balls-out
rep effort. However you choose to set that up specifically is up to you.
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Adding Olympic Lifts
After racking my brain to come up with ways to incorporate Olympic lifts into
the plan without overdoing it, here’s what I’ve come up with. Only do one OL
on the days you do them. So don’t do both snatch and clean & jerk on the
same day. Do them M/F, so if you do both, do one on one day and one on
the other. Obviously you could also do just the clean and use the jerk or
variations as your ME exercise on Wednesday. Also, if you are just a
recreational trainee and not competing anyway, go ahead and rotate the
Olympic lift as well. You could also use a pull variation rather than a deadlift
variation on Friday.
What you will do then, is take ½ the volume of your lower body lift and
apply it to your OL. So on week one, there are 24 total reps for squats. So
do 12 reps of OL and 12 reps of squat. You can divvy up the OL reps
however you choose. For the squat (and deadlift), do something like 5-4-3
on week 1. The next 2 weeks, just cut the number of sets in half. You will
most likely want to trend closer to 75-80% on your squat and deadlift work
in this scenario, as opposed to pushing it too hard.
I should also note that you can move around the RE, modified RE, and ME
work as I did above.
Examples:
Day 1
Olympic lift variation
Squat variation
RE pull
Mod RE push
Abs
Week 1
6x2
5/4/3
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Week 1
6x2
5/4/3
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
Olympic lift variation
Deadlift variation
RE push
Mod RE pull
Abs
Option 2:
Day 1
Olympic lift variation
Squat variation
RE pull
Mod RE push
Abs
Week 1
6x2
5/4/3
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Week 1
6x2
5/4/3
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
Olympic pull variation
Deadlift variation
RE push
Mod RE pull
Abs
Option 3:
Day 1
Week 1
Olympic lift variation
6x2
Squat variation
5/4/3
RE pull
Mod RE push
Abs
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
Olympic lift variation
Olympic pull variation
RE push
Mod RE pull
Abs
Week 1
6x2
5/4/3
Week 2
3x3
3x3
Week 3
6x2
4x3
Keep in mind the sets & reps are not set in stone, particularly on the
Olympic lifts. Focus more on the volume of work. If you choose an Olympic
pull variation on Day 3, again, don’t get hung up on the specific sets & reps
– focus on the volume.
The following variations are only some suggestions – obviously there are
always more.
Snatch variations:
Snatch
Snatch from deficit (various)
Snatch from blocks (various)
Snatch from below knee
Snatch from above knee
Hang snatch
Power snatch
Power snatch from deficit (various)
Power snatch from blocks (various)
Power snatch from below knee
Power snatch from above knee
Hang power snatch
Clean variations:
Clean
Clean from deficit (various)
Clean from blocks (various)
Clean from below knee
Clean from above knee
Hang clean
Power clean
Power clean from deficit (various)
Power clean from blocks (various)
Power clean from below knee
Power clean from above knee
Hang power clean
Jerk variations:
Split jerk
Power jerk
Split jerk behind the neck
Power jerk behind the neck
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Adding Dynamic Effort (DE) Lifts
The Westside Barbell method incorporates dynamic effort lifts to improve
power output, utilizing submaximal weights lifted for maximal speed. If you
wanted to perform DE lifts (squat/deadlift), you could use them where I
have positioned the Olympic lifts, or perhaps before the upper body work on
the middle day. If you want to do things like med ball throws or sprints, they
could be placed on that 2nd day as well.
If you are going to utilize DE lifts, I would recommend using the variant that
you would use in competition (i.e. your normal squat and deadlift). Also, I
have used the percentage guidelines Louie recommends for raw lifters (i.e.
+10% from what he recommends for geared lifters). You will also notice that
for squats I have cut the volume he recommends in half and split it over 2
days in the first variant. Below I show how you could put it all on one day
and just use his prescribed volume.
If you want to figure in some chains/bands, be my guest. You can also play
around with the percentages and go lower (I wouldn’t recommend going
higher). Rest between sets of DE should be 45-60 seconds.
Examples of DE
Day 1
DE squat
Squat variation
RE pull
Mod RE push
Abs
Week 1
6x2 @60%
5/4/3
Week 2
5x2 @65%
3x3
Week 3
5x2 @70%
4x3
Week 2
8-10x1 @65%
3x3
Week 3
8-10x1 @70%
4x3
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
Week 1
DE deadlift
10x1 @60%
Deadlift variation 5/4/3
RE push
Mod RE pull
Abs
Or, you can swap the speed work so you do deadlifts
squats on deadlift day.
Day 1
Week 1
Week 2
DE deadlift
10x1 @60%
8-10x1 @65%
Squat variation 5/4/3
3x3
RE pull
Mod RE push
Abs
on squat day and
Week 3
8-10x1 @70%
4x3
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
Week 1
DE squat
6x2 @60%
Deadlift variation 5/4/3
RE push
Mod RE pull
Abs
Week 2
5x2 @65%
3x3
Week 3
5x2 @70%
4x3
DE one day per week
In this instance, I would recommend simply alternating squat and deadlift
each week. Although you could also use Louie’s recommendation and do the
deadlift after the squat, for 6-10 singles.
Day 1
Same as usual
Day 2
Week 1
DE Squat
12x2 @60%
DE Dead
6-10x1 @60%
A. Heavy Pull
B. Single-leg quad dominant
A. Heavy press
B. Single-leg posterior chain dominant
Day 3
Same as usual
Week 2
12x2 @65%
6-10x1 @65%
Week 3
10x2 @70%
6-10x1 @70%
If you want to add DE lifts for the upper body, replace the modified RE work
with the DE. In this case, the sets and reps are slightly different from the
lower body. It will instead be 8x3, utilizing the same percentages as for the
lower body. I would recommend doing this before your RE lift. Rigging up
something for DE pulling could be difficult, unless using something like
Pendlay rows. So you could use the DE method for pressing only, or figure
out how to make it work for pulling.
Examples:
Day 1
DE squat
Squat variation
DE pressing
RE pull
Abs
Week 1
6x2 @60%
5/4/3
8x3 @60%
Week 2
5x2 @65%
3x3
8x3 @65%
Week 3
5x2 @70%
4x3
8x3 @70%
Week 1
10x1 @60%
5/4/3
8x3 @60%
Week 2
8-10x1 @65%
3x3
8x3 @65%
Week 3
8-10x1 @70%
4x3
8x3 @70%
Day 2
Same as usual
Day 3
DE deadlift
Deadlift variation
DE upper pull
RE press
Abs
Again, the sets and reps are not written in stone, nor are the weights. If you
want to use the method, find a way that fits you. As well, you do not have to
do both DE upper and lower body, nor do you have to do them on the same
day. You could do the DE upper work as shown above, but do the DE lower
body on Day 2, as shown above. The possibilities are endless.
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Days off (or in between days)
Doesn’t matter what you refer to them as – what should you do on the days
that aren’t as heavy? Simple – do something that isn’t heavy. This can be
any number of things. Sometimes I just go for a brisk 45-60 minute walk.
Sometimes it’s 30-60 minutes of low-intensity cardio on a bike or something
similar (boring as shit, but alas). Sometimes I’ll set up a circuit of calf,
bicep, rear delt, tricep, and neck work and just do some “pump” work for
those areas, shooting for something like 10x10 or 5x20 with minimal rest.
Might even throw abs and/or forearms in, too. Doesn’t really matter, to be
honest.
Maybe you don’t feel like doing anything. That’s fine, too. As long as those
days aren’t hard enough to negatively impact the harder days, you’ll be fine.
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Deloads
As with everything else already listed, you have multiple options for deloads.
Paul Carter does not utilize planned deloads in his training. Basically, he just
goes until he doesn’t feel like training anymore, is hating going to the gym,
has a string of bad workouts – there may be a myriad of reasons you are in
need of a deload. In any event, he proposes what he calls a “no-deload
deload,” in which you don’t even go to the gym. There is no decrease in
intensity or volume, you simply don’t train. Go for walks, relax, get the
hunger to train back, and then get back after it. I don’t think this is a bad
strategy, though it can be easy for some people to get out of a rhythm and
completely skipping the gym for a period like that may cause them to fall off
the plan. For those people, obviously this probably isn’t the best approach.
Additionally, not training at all for even a week can cause some pretty good
soreness upon returning, which may be a deterrent (or at the very least
sucks a lot), so skipping training may not be the best idea for that reason,
either. But again, it’s up to you.
Otherwise, if you determine that you need a deload, here are a few other
options.
No matter which one you choose, I would suggest placing the deload at the
beginning of a 3 week cycle. This is because you will use the deload to
introduce/practice the new lifts you will be using in that following 3 week
cycle.
Intensity deload
In this deload, I would recommend keeping the volume of work roughly the
same as that prescribed, but keep the weight in the 60-70% range for your
lower body and heavy upper body stuff. Drop the weight on the volume and
RE work as well. Don’t push to failure on any of it.
Volume deload
In this instance, intensity will remain high, but with a lowered volume. One
possibility for this would be to work up to a training max or a 3 rep training
max on your lower body lifts and the ME work on Day 2. That would be the
only work you would perform for those exercises. RE and volume work would
follow the same recommendations as the intensity deload, except there
would also be a decrease in the total volume of work as well.
Intensity and volume deload
3x3 at approximately 70% of your estimated max in your main movements.
Something like 3x8 on RE and modified RE.
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Frequently Asked Questions:
Just kidding, no one has asked me questions about this. However, I can
envision now some coming my way. “Can I do…” and the answer is yes. Give
it a try, see what happens, and let me know the results.
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