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This is the Deload/Reset week between the second and third mesocycle of the Spring Hypertrophy cycle.
The next 5-week mesocycle will be the final block of the cycle.
Please read the Lengthened ROM Blog, as the philosophy for this current training cycle will reflect all of the principles discussed in this post.
In this cycle design, we have progressed effort each week over the last five weeks. After the prior week, which was subjectively the “hardest” training week, this reset should be quite well timed to facilitate recovery and allow the adaptations to occur before beginning the next mesocycle.
DURING THIS WEEK OF TRAINING…
We can expect the highly fatiguing lengthened compound movements to be around 4-5 reps from failure, while the lower fatiguing “short” movements will be around 2-3 reps from failure.
Since total volume of work performed has the highest correlation to fatigue, we will DELOAD by reducing volume (total number of HARD sets) across the program, in general.
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Monday
Lower Body
Part A and B Repeat week to week
A. Barbell RDL (1 and 1/2 Reps)
2-3 Warm-up sets, then;
2 work sets x 5-8 Reps (~4-5 then 3-4 RIR)
Rest 2-3 min between work sets
Alternative Movement you can swap (stay consistent week to week):
–DB RDL (1 and 1/2 Reps)
–Trap Bar RDL (1 and 1/2 Reps)
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B. Front Foot Elevated Split Squat (Quad Dominant)
1-2 Warm-up sets per leg, then;
1 set x 6-10 Reps (heavier; ~4-5 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min between legs
1 set x 10-15 Reps (lighter; ~3-4 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min between legs
Alternative Movement you can swap (stay consistent week to week):
– Flat Foot Split Squats (quad dominant)
–DB Split Squat (quad dominant)
*flat ground
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C. Seated Leg Curl OR Lying Leg Curl
3 sets x 10-20 Reps (~4-3-2 RIR across the 3 sets)
Rest 1-2 min between sets
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D. Heels Elevated DB Squats (suitcase hold)
DB’s are held like a Deadlift, but the torso remains vertical with minimal contribution from the hips (ensure the quads drive the entire movement up and down)
1 x 12-15 (super light “feel it out”)
2 x 12-15 (~4-5 RIR each)
Rest ~2 min between sets
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E. Superset Movements x 2 sets each:
Medball Throw Sit-ups x 5-10 Reps
Plank Shoulder Touches x 20-30 Reps (10-15/side)
Rest 2-3 min
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Tuesday
Upper Body
Part A and B Repeat week to week
A. Flat DB Bench Press
2-3 Warm-up sets, then:
1 set x 6-10 Reps (heavier; ~3-4 RIR)
Rest 2 min
1 set x 10-15 Reps (lighter; ~2-3 RIR)
+ Superset the FINAL SET:
Flat DB Flies (Bottom 60% ROM) x 8-12 Reps (~3-4 RIR)
Alternate movements you can swap for Flat DB Bench Press (stay consistent week to week):
–Cable Chest Press
–Machine Chest Press
–Flat Barbell Bench Press
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B. Alternate Movements:
1-2 warm-up sets each, then:
3 work sets (see reps and RIR below for each)
*Bring DB’s over to the Pulldown machine with you
Wide Grip Pulldowns x 6-10 Reps (~2-3 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min
DB Lateral Raise x 10-15 Reps (~1-2 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min
Alternative Movement you can swap for Pulldowns (stay consistent week to week):
(weighted) Pull-ups
Weighted Rack Pull-ups
Unweighted Rack Pull-ups
Leg in front Rack Pull-ups (no elevation)
Foot-Assisted Pull-ups
Machine Assisted Pull-ups
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C. Bentover DB Row
Reps 15-12-10 (increasing/weight effort each round)
Target ~6-4-2 RIR across the 3 sets
Rest 1-2 min between sets
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D. Alternate Movements:
1 warm-up set each, then:
3 work sets per exercise
Target ~1-2 RIR for each “low fatigue” movement
Leaning Cable Lateral Raise x 12-15 Reps (per arm)
Rest 1-2 min
Cable Face Pulls x 15-20 Reps
Rest 1-2 min
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E. Alternate Movements:
1 warm-up set each, then:
2 work sets each
Target ~3 RIR for each movement
Alternating DB Curls x 8-10 per arm (16-20 total, with moderate weight)
Rest 1-2 min
Lying DB Tricep Extensions x 10-15 Reps
Rest 1-2 min
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Thursday:
Lower Body
Part A and B Repeat week to week
A. Leg Press – quad dominant
Quad dominant = put the feet low on platform.
Also should have a PAUSE at the deepest stretch position at the bottom of each rep.
2-3 Warm-up sets, then;
1 set x 6-10 Reps (heavier; ~4-5 RIR)
Rest 2 min
1 set x 10-15 Reps (lighter; ~3-4 RIR)
Alternate movements you can swap for Leg Press (stay consistent week to week):
–Heels Elevated Back Squat
–Hack Squats
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B. Superset Movements:
1-2 warm-up sets each, then:
2 work supersets (see reps and RIR below)
*Bring DB’s over to the Hip Extension with you
Weighted Hip Extensions (45-degree) x 8-12 Reps (~2-3 RIR)
Walking DB Lunges (Glute focus) x 8-12 steps (4-6 per leg) (~4-5 RIR)
Rest 2-3 min
Alternative Movement you can swap for Hip Ext (stay consistent week to week):
–Horizontal/GHD
–Home Hack (with barbell and box)
–Home Hack (Hips over barbell)
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C. 12 Minutes of Consistent Movement
Effort should be moderate, with no “pain face” at any point
10-20 Hanging Oblique Knee Raise (5-10/side)
10-15 Heels Elevated Goblet Squat
10-15 Flat Sit-ups (add light DB as needed)
10-15 Double Kettlebell Sumo RDL
10-15 Double Kettlebell Russian KBS
10-20 Reverse Crunches
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D. Bike, Row or Jog @ Low/Moderate Effort x 10-15 Minutes
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Friday
Upper Body
Part A and B Repeat week to week
A. Chest Supported Machine Row
2-3 Warm-up sets, then:
1 work set x 6-9 Reps (heavier; ~3 RIR)
Rest 2 min
1 work set x 9-12 Reps (moderate; ~2-3 RIR)
Rest 2 min
1 work set x 12-15 Reps (lighter; ~2 RIR)
Alternative Movement you can swap for Chest Machine Row (stay consistent week to week):
– Chest Supported DB Row
–Chest Supported T-Bar Row
–Head Supported DB Row
–Chest Supported Cable Row
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B. Superset Movements:
1-2 warm-up sets each, then:
2 work supersets each (see reps and RIR for each below)
Cable Machine Option (preferable if available):
*Note that you could also do these “single” arm by emulating the movement patterns. It may be easier to consistently get one cable versus trying to fight for the dual cable machine in a crowded gym….
Dual Cable Lateral Raise x 8-12 Reps (~3 RIR)
Dual Cable Front Raise x 6-10 Reps (~2 RIR)
Rest 2-3 min
Free Weight Option:
The Incline DB Lateral focuses more on the lengthened range-of-motion by placing the arms behind the body. The Front Raise will therefore be much lighter, given the fatigue carried into the second exercise.
Incline DB Lateral Raise (Behind back) x 10-15 Reps (~2-3 RIR)
DB Front Raise x 8-12 Reps (~1-2 RIR)
Rest 2-3 min
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C. Alternate Movements:
1 warm-up round prior as needed, then:
2-3 work rounds, auto-regulated based on stimulus achieved
Machine Chest Press (of choice) x 10-12 Reps (~3 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min
Seated Cable Rows x 10-12 Reps (~2 RIR)
Rest 1-2 min
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D. Alternate Movements:
1 warm-up round prior as needed, then:
2-3 work rounds, auto-regulated based on stimulus achieved
Cable Crossovers x 10-15 Reps (~1-2 RIR)
Rest 1 min
Bentover Reverse Flies x 15-25 Reps (~1-2 RIR)
Rest 1 min
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E. DB Powell Raise
2 sets of 8 Reps (per arm)
(goal to use approx 10% of bench press max; but proper technique is more important than load)
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F. Squat Sit DB Curls
1 warm-up set, then:
2 work sets x 12-15 Reps (~1-2 RIR each)
Rest 1-2 min between sets
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Saturday – OPTIONAL Conditioning
45-60 Minutes of ZONE 2 Cardio
This can be performed with whatever modality you can do with EFFICIENCY.
For most people, this would likely be optimized with a bike, elliptical, or steep incline walking.
Zone 2 can be completed by rowing OR running (or other modality) however most people are inefficient rowers and runners, and therefore will often find it difficult to stay within the target heart rate zone for ZONE 2.
My views on finding this zone have changed a bit.
In the past, I’ve veered towards relatively crude formulas based on HEART RATE.
Now I tend to simply use RATE OF PERCEIVED EXERTION (RPE) as the BEST way to assess ZONE 2.
Take a 12-15 word sentence that you have memorized with a normal speaking cadence (not rushed).
When you believe you are in ZONE 2, speak this sentence. If you can complete it in one breath without having to stop to get air, and without feeling like that sentence caused you to go into a breathing deficit (i.e. you aren’t gasping for air at the end of the sentence), then you are likely in ZONE 2.
Another RPE based assessment of effort is the duration component.
We are performing ZONE 2 workouts for 45-60 min, but we want to select a pace / effort level in which we *COULD* continue at the SAME PACE for 2-3 hours.
This means that when complete your ZONE 2 workout, you are glad it’s over, strictly due to monotony/repetition, and not due to accumulated fatigue.
In fact, you should feel like the session never actually gets harder. The first 10 minutes should feel the most taxing, as you move from doing nothing into Zone 2.
Once you’ve established yourself into Zone 2, each 10-minute period should be exactly as difficult as the prior 10-minute period.
At no point should you think that the workout has increased in difficulty. It just a steady and consistent effort could be repeatable for multiple hours (if needed).
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OTHER FORMULAS:
Well-trained aerobic athlete:
180 minus age = approx. Zone 2 (~75% of Max Heart Rate)
Lifter or non-trained aerobic athlete:
170 minus age = approx. Zone 2 (~65-72% of Max Heart Rate)
*Max Heart Rate can be determined generally with 220 minus age
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