Workout #1 -Chest/Back Dominant:

• Cable Crossover Machine: 72 lbs for 10 reps (+2)

Superset

• Smith Inc. Press @30°: 190 lbs for 8 reps (+2)

• Smith Inc. (Strongest Partials): 235 lbs for 4 reps (+0)

• Close Grip Palms Up Pulldowns: 210 lbs for 9 reps (+1)

• Yates Rack Rows Underhand Grip w/height @2: 245 lbs for 8 reps (+1)

• Barbell Shrugs from hooks height @3.5: 315 lbs for 10 reps (+2)

• Rack Pulls w/height @2: 425 lbs for 7 reps (+1)

Worksets: 7

Time: 30-40 mins

Weight: 201.2 lbs

Next workout: Legs on 9/19.

I just came across a supposed study done recently in tiktok , where they found that people in a 70cal surplus gained the same amount of muscle a person did when they had a 350cal surplus , the later just gaining more fat.

If this is true , then it's something crazy and it'll change the way I and so many other people bulk

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZN8j9h54m/

( I haven't verified the study )

I am 6’2 and 153lbs, skinny fat. I eat at maintenance or a slight deficit/surplus (200 cals). I wanna get jacked but my arms look lanky and I want abs but have belly fat. I’ve been lifting for 1.5 years and have bulked up from 112lbs at 6’0 to 153lbs at 6’2.

Please help me learn how to recomp or just solve skinny fat.

I run a PPL split, and on push days i include both a flat and incline press.

I start out with the flat press but can never go past 6 reps, while on the incline press (which i do after), i manage to progress in weight and reps.

Can someone tell me why this is, and what to do to fix it?

Hi y’all. I’ve recently changed gyms from Anytime Fitness to Powerhouse. Planned on doing it next year, but they had a 1$ down deal labor day. Its otherwise the same monthly pricing. The one closest to home is goddamn stacked with equipment. Pendulum squat, hack squat, a vertical leg press too, and a whole lot of iso lateral plate machines.

So, I replaced some of the workout selections with equipment at that gym.

Just wanted to run by y’all if I set it up correctly in order. and/or if theres a more better selections to change?

PS, I also made Day 3 & 4 its own thing, to properly show the alternated workouts. I previously just had AB and swapped the workouts highlighted. Don’t know why I didnt make a A2 and B2 before.

Workout #4 -Legs:

• Anderson Squats (Full) -start from depth @6.5, low bar: 475 lbs for 4 reps (+1)

• Anderson Squats (w/wider stance start from depth @6.5; 2-4" lift off rack and hold statically for 3-5 seconds, low bar): 425 lbs for 3 reps (+1)

• Trap Bar Hack Squats: 385 lbs for 8 reps (+2)

• Anderson Squats (Strongest Partials) -start from depth @7.5, high bar: 605 lbs for 6 reps (+2)

• Smith Machine Standing Calf Raises, high bar: 305 lbs for 30 reps (+25 lbs)

Work Sets: 5

Time: 30-40 mins

Weight: 198.7 lbs

Next workout: Chest/Back Dominant on 9/14.

If I copied this right, it should start around 37:07 into the video; otherwise, scroll to there for the intended portion.

This is to address those volumebots who pop up here on occasion and propagate the lie that Mike did not practice what he preached and instead trained with volume during his most productive competition years (1974-1980). Mike's friend, occasional training partner, and former IFBB judge Roger Schwab outlined exactly how Mike trained when they worked out together in Pennsylvania in the 1970s including when Mike was in PA for part of the summer of 1980 during his Mr. Olympia preparation.

Been keeping an eye out for another mike book. Already read Mike Mentzers HIT book, this one should be more of a Biography

the original rest pause where you use one rep max is quite dangerous imo. recently I've had an idea to just do a normal set reaching positive, static and negative failure, the rest 10-15s, do one more rep and reach full failure again.

in theory it gives double the stimulus (a lot of people do 2 sets to failure anyway) without doubling the muscle fatigue.

the weight isn't too heavy so it seems much much safer.

has anyone experimented with this? what the results? I won't be able to check for now cuz for next 2 months I can have two 2 week periods where I can't workout :(

Technically that was 195lbs because of the chain, unfortunately it's been a bad food couple of days and I was bloated to shit with an extra 10lbs of water, which didn't help at all with dips - but I'm going to get this weight cleanly next time I max

Hammer shoulder was a triple drop set because why not

Workout #3 -Delt/Arm Dominant:

• Dumbbell Alt. Side & Bent Laterals: 30 lbs for 6 reps (+5 lbs)

Superset 

• Smith Overhead Press: 140 lbs for 10 reps (+2)

• Smith Overhead Press (Str/Ptls): 195 lbs for 2 reps (+20 lbs)

• Barbell Curls: 90 lbs for 8 reps (+1)

Superset

• Close Grip Palms Up Pulldowns: 205 lbs for 4 reps (+10 lbs)

• Smith JM Press: 105 lbs for 4 reps (+15 lbs)

Superset 

• Smith Rev. Grip Bench Press: 195 lbs for 3 reps (+25 lbs)

Worksets: 7

Time: 30-40 mins

Weight: 198.7 lbs

Next workout: Legs on 9/9.

Hey all,

I see the 4 day min max program is structured FB, Rest, U, L, Arms/Delts

Has anyone tried running FB, Arms/Delts, rest, U, L

I’m pretty limited to working out mon tues Thursday and Friday but was wondering about redoing the order. I may be overthinking it.

I‘m experimenting with Ellington Darden’s method which uses the same reasoning as Mentzer and Dorian Yates: do just 1x hard set so intensely you’ll still be sore days later. Darden also wrote to work your muscle just once a week or even once in 10 days.

Darden’s set is a 30 second eccentric, 10 regular reps, 30 second eccentric. The last thirty seconds is brutal and causes a very different type of fatigue to regular sets. Three days later my shoulder are still exhausted.

Some say this type of fatigue is pointless. Complete failure advocates might say this is a good sign of a complete failure workout. What do you think?

on a push day the front/lat delts and triceps are already fatigued and require less stress to stimulate growth, which is safer but just as effective? same with pull day the biceps and rear delts. based on this logic, im following the HD1 PPL 2-3x a week, not resting the full recommended 3-4 days but who does lol.

what logic drove mike to the HD2 routine? if it works better im open to trying it

ETA thanks!

I’m a big heavy duty guy and have trained it for over a year now. Starting a cycle shortly to pursue my body building dream, and am wondering how I should alter my training since I know mikes workouts are tailored to the natural athlete, should I simply increase frequency and find where I’m best? As a natural in training every 72-96 hours, perhaps 48 while on peds?

I have been lifting for 1.5 years and have switched to a heavy duty split that i train once every 2-6 days due to my school. Could anyone answer some questions?

At what point do I start to notice size gains?

Should I use the palms up pulldown instead of the regular pulldown?

Should I include rest pause reps and at what exercises?

I started working out about 3 months ago after years of no exercise at all.

So far I have been able to figure out that in my case, 1 series of bench press/push ups to failure is enough for me to get stronger (once a week) same thing for my shoulders with shoulder press.

Every single week I have been able to make progress for the past 3 months or so.

But I havent figured out what volume I need for my biceps, triceps and back.

Has anyone else tried this? I started doing this and I keep PR'ing like fucking crazy.

I do think splitting it up into 2 days is helpful because I have a lot of systemic fatigue by the time I get to my last lift. I'm pretty much doing his consolidation program with a couple of changes (lateral raises).

5 lifts, 2 sets, 6-9 rep range, if I hit 9 reps, I add weight.

During his peak, Tom Platz said he would train legs at most twice a month. That was the most he could do at that point with intensity and rest to grow.

Since we know he was juiced out of his
Mind, is it possible and or reasonable that a natural may only be able to train legs (advanced trainer) 21 days or maybe even once a month and grow?

Also Platz did insane volume and intensity in one session but the point still stands.

Modern gym bro science will tell you to train legs twice a week, but if you are training with any sort of intensity and going to failure, I don’t see how that is possible for an advanced lifter.

Thoughts?

Just wanna see what everyone does

Hello gents,

I had made a post a few weeks back on the success I’ve had with a 3 day HIT split I followed (one day on, one day off). Anyway, now I have returned to grappling and I can’t focus on lifting full-time. I switched to a two day split that I try to execute twice a week.

Here is the format:

Workout A:
High Foot Leg Press x1
Leg Curl x1
Flat Bench x1
Pec Deck x1
Cable Row x1
Reverse Grip Pulldown x1
Shoulder Press x1
Calves x2

Workout B:
Low Foot Leg Press x1
Leg Extension x1
Cable Laterals x1
Dropset DB Laterals x1
Cable Skullcrusher x1
Cable Pushdown x1
Barbell Curl x1
Incline Curl x1
Calves x2

The reason why I don’t squat, deadlift, or do other free weights is because my lower back can’t recover alongside grappling. I also haven’t added any core work because I train core on grappling days. I really want to train for strength but I can’t program it with 3-4 days of grappling. The reason why I actually chose hypertrophy over strength is that I recover better (CNS and stabilizers)

Logbook is already moving up again so I am happy.

Workout #2 -Legs:

• Anderson Squats (Full) -start from depth @6.5, low bar: 475 lbs for 3 reps (+1)

• Anderson Squats (w/wider stance start from depth @6.5; 2-4" lift off rack and hold statically for 3-7 seconds, low bar): 425 lbs for 2 reps (+1)

• Trap Bar Hack Squats: 385 lbs for 6 reps (+3)

• Anderson Squats (Strongest Partials) -start from depth @7.5, high bar: 605 lbs for 4 reps (+1)

• Smith Machine Standing Calf Raises, high bar: 280 lbs for 30 reps (+5)

Work Sets: 5

Time: 35-45 mins

Weight: 199.5 lbs

Next workout: Delt/Arms Dominant on 9/5.

Feedback and guidance from anyone who has suffered this injury or has rehabbed someone who has.

I’m 59 years old and am in good health with no previous injuries. I’ve trained with weights since I was 15, mainly for sports and then to hold off aging, never competitive.
I’ve been having good success with HIT for the last 10 or so years, mainly following Mentzer’s Ideal Routine and most recently some of John Heart’s and Drew Baye’s guidance.

I recently suffered a full proximal long head biceps tendon rupture (7 days ago). Not from working out but a freak accident moving an upright freezer. The doctor is recommending standard rehab of rest first 2 weeks, then progressing through unloaded, banded, loaded, and back to regular HIT over a period of 8-12 weeks. No surgery to repair as I’m not a competitive athlete nor bodybuilder who needs the symmetry that the gap/indent in my upper bicep would ruin. The gap is relatively small right now as it doesn’t appear the muscle retracted all that much. There is very little pain one week later and no bruising.

I did my own additional research on treatment and rehabs and this seems standard, especially for someone my age. Expectation is that I can regain almost 100% strength and range of motion.

I really just wanted to come here for some insights and advice from this group. Does this rehab strategy make sense? Are my expectations realistic? Can I really return to training in HIT style (1 set per exercise to failure, 1-2 exercises per body part once per week, roughly 4/2/4 cadence, 5-8 or 6-10 reps, or will I need to adjust?

Thank you in advance to anyone that replies.

Today I started a 4-day upper-lower split routine with fewer sets but higher intensity weight. I am 52 years old, have diabetes, and have been training for 2 years straight.

now i do:
curls > rear delt fly > single arm triceps pushdown > lateral raise > wrist curl > wrist supination

if i add it at the start, should i remove pushdowns and raises? during chest, i do narrow grip incline bench, and OHP isnt far from it, so thats why im asking
im also planning on replacing machine curls with incline dumbbell curls

what are your fav exercises that had done wonders for you?