Archive for the ‘Bodybuilding Corner’ Category

 Another installment of Bodybuilding Corner, brought to you by John Perry,

Take it away JP…

 

In the following article I will outline an advanced bodybuilding arm workout. Arms have always been a stubborn body part for me. I have found through much trial and error the best thing that works for me is to beat the hell out of them. Suprised? People often over complicate things. I often hear experienced bodybuilders say “I’m going back to basics”. I always think to myself why would you get away from the basics in the first place? The same exercises that worked in Arnold’s day work today. If it isn’t broke don’t fix it. K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple Stupid.

So the workout will be broken down like this. You will Superset back and forth between Biceps and Triceps. Go to failure on your weaker of the two first. If you have weaker Biceps do Biceps then Triceps back and forth in that order. Only go to failure on your final set of each exercise then perform whatever HIT technique prescribed. Rep range will be 6-10, on your warm up sets go with the higher end of the range, your set to failure should be 6-8 before performing the HIT technique. Train like this for 5 weeks then the sixth week just reach positive failure and stop there. Week 7 do all exercises but reduce the weight to 80% never going to failure. Week 6 and 7 are essential in the recovery process to ensure that your CNS doesn’t get over-trained and to give your muscles and tendons adequate recovery.

The Workout:

1. Preacher Curl Machine (Forced Reps, fail at 6-8 then 3 spotted reps)
2. Straight Bar Triceps Pushdowns (Forced Reps, fail at 6-8 then 3 spotted reps)
3. Standing Straight Bar Cable Curls (Rest Pause, fail at 6-8 take 15 breaths perform 3 more reps, and repeat this again for another 2-3 reps)
4. Close Grip Bench Press (Rest Pause, fail at 6-8 take 15 breaths perform 3 more reps, and repeat this again for another 2-3 reps)
5. Standing Alternating Hammer Curls (Triple Drop Set, fail for the first time at 6-8 then reduce the weight and perform another 4-6 reps for two drops)
6. Lying EZ Bar Skull Crushers (Triple Drop Set, fail for the first time at 6-8 then reduce the weight and perform another 4-6 reps for two drops)
7. Barbell Wrist Curls on the end of the bench (3 Sets of 10-12 reps to failure) 

Hey there!  In this instalment of JP’s Bodybuilding Corner, John and I are going to review and congratulate the competitors from Newfoundland and Labrador that have competed at the national level and have won their weight/height class. We’ll start off with the first competitor to win a weight class and then go in chronological order. If any past winners are left off this list, a sincere apology, we’re going by memory so we aren’t claiming this is an official list and we would love to know the details of other winners. Congrats to all!

 

Kristian Alexander, 2001 Canadian Bodybuilding Championships, 1^st place Heavyweight Class

John (“JP”): Kristian had competed multiple times prior to winning this competition. Kristian was a pretty huge guy with good condition and symmetry overall. He had a very impressive, powerful looking physique in 2001. He currently preps other competitors for competition.

Andy: I’ve known Kristian since we were both in high school.  He has a huge amount of knowledge and passion for this sport. Congrats to him for being the first Newfoundlander to win a National title. Kristian knocked on the door to a pro card that day! IMO a strong case could be made that on that day in 2001, next to Pro Frank McGrath, Kristian had the best men’s physique thatNewfoundlandever brought to a Bodybuilding stage to date. Check out his conditioning; he wasn’t just lean, he had a hardness to his physique that is impressive and extremely rare. A serious knee/leg injury prevented him from taking it to the next level in the years to follow. Nevertheless, he earned the title, Canadian National Champ, something that only 6 people have accomplished to date.

           

Frank McGrath, 2003 Canadian Bodybuilding Championships, 1^st place Super Heavyweight Class and Overall winner

 

Frank’s Competition History:

• 2000 NLABBA Provincials 1^st place Heavyweight Class and Overall winner

• 2001 CBBF Nationals Super Heavyweight Class, 6^th place

• 2003 CBBF Nationals 1^st place Super Heavyweight Class and Overall winner (Awarded IFBB Pro Card)

• 2004 Toronto Pro Invitational, 12^th place

• 2009 IFBB Tampa Bay Pro, 9^th place

• 2011 Toronto Pro Invitational, 4^th place

• 2011 IFBB Tampa Bay Pro, 3^rd place (Qualified for Mr. Olympia)

• 2011 Mr.Olympia

JP: Since the minute Frank first stepped on stage it was easy to see he was destined for greatness.  Frank isNewfoundland’s only IFBB Pro bodybuilder and he has suffered much adversity since becoming a pro. A few years ago Frank suffered a serious triceps tear, from which he recovered and went on to compete in 2009. Then, some time after that first injury he was in a very serious car accident which could have ended his career as a bodybuilder; however he has since recovered and competed three more times, most recently in the 2011 Mr.Olympia.

Andy: I was there to see Frank compete in 2000 when he won the Provincial Overall title in his early 20’s. (21, I believe, probably a record for NL) I had the privilege to design his posing routine for his first Pro show and was there to see him compete in the 2004 Toronto Pro Show. Frank dominated the 2003 Canadian Nationals to capture his Pro Card; the first and only Newfoundlander to do so.  It’s awesome to see Frank overcome the obstacles that he has seen in recent years and come back and kick ass! Like JP said, Frank’s car accident was very serious, but he proved the doctors wrong by returning stronger then ever! There is a great article on him in the most recent issue of Flex magazine. Frank is just now coming into his prime as a bodybuilder and competitor. He is a great spokesperson for the sport, and I know that the sky is the limit for what he can accomplish. 

 

Scott Gillam, 2003 Canadian Bodybuilding Championships, 1^st Bantamweight Class

 

JP: Scott won a provincial show here in 1999. Scott fills out his frame very well, and that coupled with spot-on conditioning made him unbeatable in his weight class at the Nationals in 2003.

Andy: I saw Scott compete a number of times including his Provincial win. I agree with JP, Scott is a very complete bodybuilder with no weak points. Excellent structure and balance on his frame.

 

Zaid Adamo, 2010 CBBF Nationals, 1^st place Men’s Lightweight Class and 1^st place Classic Short

 

JP: I distinctly remember watching the 2009 NLABBA provincials Overall pose-down and seeing Zaid hit a back double bicep pose. Zaid’s back was popping like crazy with deep grooves separating each muscle and veins and graininess all over the place. He has a good amount of well-developed muscle. Zaid is originally from Iraqwhere he competed two times before coming to Newfoundlandand winning the NLABBA provincials in 2009. He has thick mature muscle, good shape and brings shredded conditioning. It’s no surprise he placed 1^st in his class at Nationals.

Andy: I agree with JP, it was no surprise at all that Zaid became a National Champ. He is a serious competitor that brings his “A” game to the stage. He has head-to-toe, ultra-striated conditioning with deep separation in the muscles. Zaid is the definition of the bodybuilding term “peeled”

 

Angela Dove, 2011 Canadian Natural Physique Championships, 1^st place Bikini Medium

 

JP: Since Angela began competing in 2009 she has competed four times (twice provincially and twice nationally). Provincially, she has won the Overall title every time she has competed. Nationally, she won her Class in 2011 at her first National show. That means she has won her Class 3 out of the 4 time she has competed. This is an outstanding track record for such a short period of time.

Andy: That is very impressive JP, wow. Angela is a very driven person, not only an outstanding competitor but also a mom and business owner. She has a very balanced physique and was the first female from our Province to capture a National title!

 

Shawn Gambin, 2011 Canadian Bodybuilding Championships, 1^st Place Bantamweight Class

 

JP: I had the opportunity to witness firsthand Shawn’s progress week after week as he prepared with Andy for his last two competitions. Shawn’s physique changed steadily, week after week, every week. He just kept getting leaner and leaner. I would see him one week and think well he probably can’t get any leaner than this, this isn’t even human and the next week he would show up at the studio with tendons popping out between his abs and serratus. Out of all the competitors I have seen in real life, before the 2011 Nationals Shawn had the most shredded upper body. Not to say his legs weren’t in shape, but his upper body didn’t even make sense. Shawn has a tiny waist, big arms, round shoulders, a detailed, shredded back and just an awesome genetic shape. He mopped the floor in his Class at Nationals, 2^nd place wasn’t even close. Not to mention Shawn is one of the most humble, mild-mannered people I know. Good luck with round two at Nationals Shawn, I pity the guys who have to stand next to you!

Andy: Working with Shawn is awesome, he just puts his nose to the grindstone and gets it done!  Shawn’s crazy conditioning combined with his tiny waist and muscle fullness make him a Freak! When using the term “Freak” to describe a competitor it means they have that shock value. There are lots great physiques that can carry plenty of size, and also be in wicked shape, but they still might lack that wow factor. When Shawn walks out on stage he has that wow factor. This isn’t just my opinion, the straight first place votes he received in his Class at Nationals from the judges is proof that they agree.

 

Shawn’s also a very intelligent and hard-working competitor. He has a plan mapped out, knowing what he wants to bring to the stage the next time.  When he hits the stage in 2013, it’s going to be Freak show x 10!

 

I’m tagging the Champs here in this post. Congrats. Also, I’d like to mention the great work being done by NLABBA, let’s see some more people from our Province join this exclusive club and become National Champs in 2012! 

John Perry here with the latest guest post in this weeks installment of “Bodybuilding Corner”. Maybe you’ll agree with some of my opinions to follow, maybe not….Use the facebook comments feature to discuss!

In this post I am going to list who, in my opinion, are the top five bodybuilding physiques in the pre-modern era (before Dorian Yates) and the top five bodybuilding physiques post- modern era. Each physique I mention refers to a specific version of that particular bodybuilder. That is, their certain physique in a certain year. Also, each person can only be used once.

There are many people who think that the physiques of the seventies and eighties were the best of all time and that the look of pro bodybuilders today is “too much”. Meaning the modern era guys are too big, therefore, making their physiques not desirable to most. I, personally, disagree; in a bodybuilding competition there are certain criteria that the athletes are judged on. The judging criterion has not changed. There are seven compulsory poses and four quarter-turns. I don’t know if they did the quarter-turns in the sixties or seventies, but it makes no difference because it still comes down to size, proportion, symmetry and condition. If you took the top guys from 1975 and put them on stage against the top guys of today they would not be able to compete with the bigger guys just because of the size difference. Evolution occurs in all sports. As time goes by new information and technology comes about and the athletes in the top level of any sport get better and better. Most people would say they would rather look like Arnold than Ronnie Coleman. That may be true, but I am just saying Arnold wouldn’t beat Ronnie Coleman on stage.

I came up with the following list after many hours of research checking out all of upper level pros from 1965 to now. This is just my opinion and all opinions on a subject such as this are subjective by nature.

Top 5 Bodybuilding Physiques – Pre-Modern Era:

5. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mr. Olympia 1974

Arnold is the cliché of a lot people’s favourite bodybuilder. If bodybuilding was judged on upper body and personality then, yes, I would agree. But truthfully, Arnold always had weak legs. They weren’t terrible, but far from where they needed to be to match his upper body. Legs are half of your body. To say that a bodybuilder with half of their body somewhat underdeveloped is the greatest of all time is ridiculous. The thing is, however, most of the top guys back then had weak legs. Legs were not as prioritized by bodybuilders during that time as they should have been. So Arnold was able to get in really good condition with a great upper body and look better than everyone else. I am a fan of Arnold; bodybuilding would be even less known about by the general public without him, but to say that he is the greatest of all time is not right in my opinion. Arnold, 1974 version, did look rather foolish though, but with who he stood next to I do agree with him winning his 6 Olympia titles, for sure. The comeback win in 1980 is a debatable one.

4. Mike Mentzer, Mr. Olympia 1980

 Mike Mentzer is known by many bodybuilding enthusiasts these days for creating his Heavy Duty, or   High Intensity training system. He created this system of training with the goal of training a drug-     free athlete to reach their maximum muscular-growth potential in the shortest amount of time. Mike was as much of a bodybuilding philosopher as he was anything else. His training system entails very low volume, training infrequently but each workout is completed with the goal of creating a new personal best, thereby placing a greater stress on the muscle than before and stimulating growth. He insisted that most bodybuilders are grossly overtraining and are not progressing optimally because of this. Mike also insisted that the typical high protein bodybuilder diet was not the best diet for building muscle. He suggested following a more balanced diet regime with somewhat convincing reasoning to back up his claims. If you read my first couple of posts you know that I believe that for a drug-free person a lot of volume will lead to overtraining and intensity is the key ingredient for long-term growth. However, I do not think as low of volume as he suggests is optimal. You would basically be doing about 3, twenty-minute workouts per week. But a lot of his philosophy does make logical sense in my opinion. In the 1980 Olympia Mike tied for fourth. Mike claimed to the day he died that the Olympia that year was rigged. He did never say that he should have won but always said that Arnold should not have won. He looked great in 1980 and I pick him as number four because he was almost perfectly symmetrical from top to bottom. Something that few bodybuilders have been able to produce is a 100% complete physique from top to bottom.

3. Frank Zane, 1979 Mr. Olympia

Frank Zane had one of the most aesthetically pleasing physiques all time no doubt. The three years that he won the Olympia he showed up with a level of conditioning greater than all of the other competitors. His proportion and symmetry were very good. He wasn’t the biggest guy, but bodybuilding is not just about being the biggest. Of course size matters, but so does symmetry, balance and conditioning. His conditioning was crazy for the era.

2. Lee Haney, 1987 Mr. Olympia

Lee Haney retired at the age of 32 after winning the Olympia eight times. His first win was at age 24. He is the second youngest person to the win the Olympia – the youngest was Arnold at age 23. No one of that era came close to his back lat spread and back double bicep until Dorian Yates came along in 1991, Haney’s final year.

1. Sergio Oliva, 1969 Mr. Olympia

If I could have the genetics of any of the bodybuilders from back in the day, I would pick Sergio. He was the only bodybuilder to have a smaller waist than Frank Zane and he coupled that with ballooned, blown-out-looking everything else, even huge legs…which no one had back then! They called him “The Myth” for a reason. Crazy!

Top 5 Bodybuilding Physiques – Post-Modern Era:

5. Nasser el Sonbaty, 1999 Arnold Classic

The year Nasser won the Arnold Classic he claimed to be around 290lbs. Bodybuilding is the only sport in which competitors over-exaggerate their weight and under-exaggerate their height to make it seem as though they have more mass for their height. I suspect 290lbs was a bit of an exaggeration but who knows? Anyway, Nasser was huge and shredded in 1999 year, blowing the competition out of the water.

4. Phil Heath, 2011 Mr. Olympia

Phil has been criticized in the past for having narrow clavicles, making him less than super-wide. I don’t think this is the case, it is more a matter of Jay Cutler, who Heath has been standing next to the past few years, having genetically super-wide shoulders. Cutler is the widest bodybuilder I have seen in real life, which is partly the reason he was able to win the Olympia four times. Jay Cutler and Kai Greene are the only two top level pros who have that crazy wide structure these days. Anyway back to Phil…he is called “The Gift” for a reason. The guy has the roundest muscle bellies since Flex Wheeler. When he is just standing there it looks like there is just muscle hanging off of him. Probably the most cartoonish-looking guy out there today.

3. Kevin Levrone, 1999 British Grand Prix

Look up his posing routine via YouTube and you will see why I picked this guy for as #3. Kevin’s legs were never were never quite as good after he turned pro. Maybe he had an injury and had to train around it. But for the 1999 British Grand Prix he certainly brought them back up. He was full, hard and dry. He also had an awesome posing routine.

2. Flex Wheeler, 1999 Mr. Olympia

Probably the most aesthetically-pleasing physique of the nineties. Tiny waist; tiny joints; round, full, muscle bellies and nailed conditioning. You can watch his posing routine on YouTube for this one too.

1. Ronnie Coleman, 2003 Mr. Olympia

“The Big Nasty”. This guy, at this competition, was the biggest, freakiest thing to walk on a bodybuilding stage to date. He had the biggest legs of all time, and biggest back of all time too, at this showing. This was 12 years ago and no one has come close to looking like this since. I doubt that anyone will for a while.

There you go that’s my top five from each era. Do you agree or disagree with me? What are your picks?

Joe Weider’s 47^th Mr. Olympia is coming up this weekend so I found it fitting to make this week’s blog post a preview of bodybuilding’s biggest competition. I am one of the few people who actually follows professional bodybuilding somewhat closely, so I am aware of who the top ten or fifteen bodybuilders in the world are and how they usually stack up against each other.

First off I want to say a big Congratulation to Newfoundland’s only pro bodybuilder, Frank Mcgrath, who will be competing in this years Olympia. Frank qualified for the Olympia by placing 3^rd at the Tampa Bay Pro on June 25^th of this year.

All athletes have had to overcome adversity along their journey and Frank is no exception. Frank suffered a severe right triceps tear in 2008 which left his right triceps visibly different from his left. He came back from this injury and competed in the 2009 Tampa Bay Pro bringing his most shredded condition up to that point and placing 9^th. If this were not enough to have to overcome, in early 2010 Frank was badly injured in a car accident. Frank was driving in his car and got T-boned. His arm went through the windshield leaving a large gash on his arm. His spleen had also been ruptured and it had to be removed. The accident left Frank in the ICU for a period of time.

The 2011 Mr. Olympia has 30 competitors qualified. This means that Frank is among the top 30 bodybuilders on the planet. To recover from such an accident and make it to the Olympia stage the very next year is an incredible feat and shows Frank’s strong character. Congrats to Frank, I cannot wait for him to represent Newfoundland on the big stage!

I was able to attend last years Olympia and I have to say it was quite the humbling experience. Not so much seeing the competitors; yes they are all freaks, but to see some of the fans walking around 300(+)lbs, under 6’ tall, in decent offseason shape. It makes you really begin to realize that there are some freaking huge guys out there. After an experience such as that you really change your perception of what “big” (as in muscular) really is. The people you considered big before, really aren’t that big after seeing such huge humans out there.

So here is my Top 5 prediction for this year’s Olympia:

 

#5 : Dexter Jackson

Dexter Jackson started competing  in the NPC as a shredded  lightweight. The lightweight  division in NPC competitions is  from 143.25-154.25 lbs. He now  competes at a shredded 230 lbs. He  is a seasoned competitor. He has  won multiple shows, even beating  Jay Cutler in 2008 for the title of  Mr. Olympia. In 2008, Jay Cutler’s  condition was off and Dexter was on  point and shredded as always. The reason I have placed Dexter  5^th and not higher is because in  this past year he hasn’t shown his  trademark conditioning. He is not  the biggest bodybuilder out there,  but when some of the bigger guys  come in a bit softer he beats them  on conditioning and symmetry.

 

# 4: Dennis Wolf

In real life Dennis Wolf is a freaking huge guy. He has a big wide frame and is always criticized for not filling out his frame enough. He placed 5^th in 2007 and 2010 and 4^th in 2008 at the Olympia. I have him placing 4^th this year and not 5^th because Branch Warren, who I would have predicted to take 4^th place, is out with an injury and will not be competing this year. So as a result I have moved everyone up a placing.

 

 

#3: Kai Greene

Kai Greene

Kai Greene is one of the only people on the planet who carries enough width and thickness to give Jay Cutler a run for his money if he shows up in shape. His back is the best of the top pros. It is super wide with lats that insert at the glute. His legs pretty much match Branch Warrens who is known for having the best wheels in the sport when they stand side-by-side. Kai’s placing at the last two Mr. Olympia’s has been disappointing as he has shown up far from his best. I think he will fix whatever mistakes he has been making in the past and show up on point this year.

 

 

#2: Phil Heath

One of the craziest things I have ever experienced is when Phil Heath walked out on stage at the 2010 Mr. Olympia night show. The thousands of people in attendance exploded in applause when this unhuman-looking beast walked out from behind the Olympia sign. Phil looked like a man with football equipment on, except it was muscle. Phil placed a very close 2^nd behind Jay Cutler in 2010. Many people thought that he should have placed ahead of Jay Cutler and won the show. In my opinion I agree with last year’s results. When Phil was on stage by himself he looks like Mr. Olympia, and he probably did have the best “physique” on stage that day. But when you see Phil and Jay side-by-side you can see that Jay has a bigger, wider frame, especially across the shoulders and this is what, I believe, gives Jay the advantage against all the other competitors. Jay is just too damn wide.

 

#1: Jay Cutler

If Jay Cutler comes in at his best I think he is too big and wide for any of the other competitors to beat him. He may not have the prettiest physique, but his overall size and thickness gives him the edge on everyone. If he is slightly off and either Phil or Kai are on fire he can definitely be beaten. But these predictions are only based on what I think may happen if everyone comes in on point, which rarely ever happens. Jay placed last at his first Olympiaand worked his way up through the ranks relentlessly placing 2^nd behind Ronnie Coleman for years before finally beating Ronnie for the title in 2006. If he wins again this year it will be his 5^th Mr. Olympia title.

For more info and to keep up-to-date with the 2011 Olympia check out http://www.mrolympia.com/2011/index.html

JP

As promised, here is the next installment of JP’s “Bodybuilding Corner”

To answer the above question in one word I would have to say BOTH. In this post I will go over leg training for maximum muscle growth and how periodization may be the key in getting the big quads and thick hamstrings you want.

If you have ever been to a regional bodybuilding competition you would have noticed that the most commonly underdeveloped body parts are usually: 1) thighs (i.e. quads and hamstrings) and 2) calfs. I believe there are a few different reasons for this.

First, training legs to failure, and past failure, is hard work. It is very painful and uncomfortable and those feeling can last days. My legs are usually sore for 3-6 days each week, averaging probably 5 days by the time all discomfort is gone and everything is good to go again.

Second, people don’t get the same “attention” from the general public for having well-developed legs as they would from having big arms or a broad chest.  A person’s legs are usually covered, unlike a person’s arms or chest (“downtown muscles”). Therefore, anyone who trains and has no concern for placing well in a bodybuilding competition or having a complete physique could use this as their reasoning for their lack of effort when it comes to leg training. I hear it all the time. I remember once when a guy, who I had seen working out at the gym I train at for over a year, asked me if he HAD to train legs. It seems logical to me that if your goal is to look a certain way or become stronger, you should put most of your effort into training the large muscle groups such as legs and back. These two muscle groups make up the majority of your body’s muscle – about half of your body’s skeletal muscle is in your legs alone. So yes, you do have to train legs….

The third reason is genetics. Every person has their own unique genetic strengths and weaknesses. Two people can give equal effort to grow and strengthen a specific body part but see unequal results because some people just respond and grow better than others. I have heard people say “I have bad genetics.” Yes, genetics do play a role in how strong you are and how you look but this phrase is too often used as an excuse for lazy people who don’t want to put in the hard work, sacrifice and consistency it takes to achieve their goals. There has to be HUGE amounts of work put in before you even begin to see what kind of genetics you really do have. You will never hear a true iron warrior complain about his or her “bad” genetics. That’s the whole thing about playing the hand you are dealt to best of YOUR abilities. There are obstacles that you will encounter along your journey and in life in general. Lots of them. But often times the difference between someone who will achieve their goals and someone who will not is perspective; one person will see something as the reason why they can’t achieve something and another other person will see that same thing as just another obstacle that they have to overcome. Simple as that. If a person is driven enough and willing to do whatever it takes, then in the time it takes for you to complain about your genetics they have either eaten their next meal or performed three extra forced reps. So don’t waste your time complaining about “genetics”.

Now I will outline a full 3-phase, 15-week Leg Training Program. You will train legs once a week as is normal in most bodybuilding splits, but you can incorporate some of these leg training techniques in your other workouts if you like. The exercises will stay the same throughout the whole Program, only the sets, reps and weight will change as you progress through each phase. There are basically two concepts to keep in mind: progressive overload and changing routines before the body can become accustomed therefore slowing down or stopping results.

 

Phase One (Weeks 1-5):

In this initial Phase you will be performing between 15-20 repetitions per exercise, per set. Work up to failure on your final set. For the first week of this Phase pick a weight which causes you to reach muscular failure at 15 reps. For the second, third and fourth week use the same weight as week one but each week increase your reps by one on each exercise. So at the end of the fourth week you hopefully will be doing 19 reps with a weight you could only do 15 reps with before starting this Program.

The fifth week will be a back-off week. When training this intensely, depending on nutrition, age and a number of other factors, overtraining the CNS is a possibility. In this week you will train hard enough to maintain the gains you made in the first four weeks but not hard enough to really put a lot of stress on your nervous system. There will be three back-off weeks throughout the 15-week Program (i.e. weeks 5, 10 and 15.) These are needed to ensure you are recovering from your intense workouts and not constantly putting tremendous stress on your joints, tendons, ligaments, muscles and CNS.    

 

Phase Two (Weeks 6-10):

In this Phase you will be going to failure on the final set of each exercise with a rep range of 6-8. Then you will use High Intensity Techniques (“HIT”) to push past failure on each exercise. All of the HIT techniques I mention below were explained in last week’s Bodybuilding Corner blog post: “Intensity, Intensity, Intensity”.

On exercise #2 you will do 2-3 forced reps. Remember to have a good spotter and use the safety rack pins so if you have to bail the weight you or your spotter will be safe. If you do not have a spotter perform your final set of exercise #2 as a Rest/Pause set.

On the final set of exercise #3 perform 3 forced reps. Perform exercise #3 with a weight where you reach failure in 6-8 reps then put your hands on your knees to spot yourself and perform 3-4 extra reps.

On the final set of exercises #4 and #6 perform a Triple Drop Set.

On the final set of exercise #5 you are going to do a Rest/Pause set.

Remember that Progressive Overload is the key. Log your sets and reps and make sure your goal is to slightly beat your numbers from your last workout, either by doing an extra rep or increasing the weight slightly.

 

Phase Three (Weeks 11-15):

In the final Phase we will incorporate a slightly higher volume routine. Keeping Progressive Overload in mind but going to failure on the final two sets of each exercise. In this Phase you will do straight sets with a weight that causes you to reach muscular failure at 10-12 reps. The goal is to try and get the same amount of reps on your second set going to failure as you did the first set. This is difficult to do after reaching failure on the previous set. If you can not perform the same amount of reps on both of the sets aim to get only one less rep on your final set.

Now the exercises:

Exercise #1 (Leg Extensions): These are done only as a warm up. Do 3 sets of 20 reps with 1 minute rest between sets. This will get the knees warm before you begin any heavy compound movements. The sets should be only a medium difficulty and do not go close to failure on them. 

Exercise #2 (Barbell Squats): Big surprise eh? Perform a total of 4 sets. Start off with a light weight and pyramid up each set. Do not go to failure on the first 3 sets. On your last set you will go to failure or beyond failure depending on the Phase. This is the “Money Set” you could say.

Exercise #3 (Leg Presses): Execute this exercise in the same manor as the Squats. I prefer to place my feet wider on the platform so it is possible to get a deep range of motion. A common mistake I see when people are doing this exercise is to load up the machine with too much weight and do quarter range of motion. This is going to be less beneficial for your Quads, Hamstrings and Glutes than doing a deeper range of motion. I think if you are going to do a compound movement, keep it a compound movement. Do it right and move some weight. When you do an Isolation exercise then you can target a specific muscle group or a specific area of a muscle group. 

Exercise #4 (Leg Extensions): This time perform your leg extensions as an actual working exercise. Go to failure on the later set, or sets.

That concludes the exercises for your Quads. After you finish these four exercises take a few minutes to rest and begin the following exercises to work your Hamstrings.

Exercise #5 (Hamstring Curls): Do 3 progressively heavier sets and then do your final set to failure with whatever rep/weight scheme prescribed for the Phase.                

Exercise #6 (Barbell Stiff Legged Deadlifts):  These are straightforward. Perform your reps/sets as set out in the Phase

I generally do not think it is a good idea to train your Calf muscles in the same training session as Quads/Hams/Glutes because by the time you are finished working your upper legs you should not have enough energy left to put the needed effort into your Calf workout.

There you have it. Give this Program a try and I guarantee, if your nutrition is in check, you will have a pair of slightly bigger and stronger legs after 15 weeks!

 JP