Thoughts on my routine?

[zackdarnell]

This is the workout routine I am currently doing. My main goal is to increase my 1rm on the squats, bench, and deads. I'd appreciate everyone's thoughs on it and comments or suggestions.

Sunday (Squats and bench assistance lifts):
Squats
Dips (weighted)
Shoulder press
Close grip bench
Crunches (3 sets of 25)

Tuesday (deadlift and squat assistance)
Deads
Box squats
Leg curls
Calve raises (3 sets of 15)

Thursday (Bench and deadlift assistance):
Bench
SLDL's
Wide Grip Pulldowns
Bent-over Barbell rows
Curls

It is done on an 8-week cycle. the first 2-weeks, all exercises (except calves and abs) are done 3 sets of 10 reps. Weeks 3-5, the main lifts are done 3 sets of 6, with 3 sets of 8 done on the assistance lifts. Weeks 6-8, the main lifts are done 3 sets of 3, with the assistance lifts being done 3 sets of 6. Box squats are the exception to this. They are done 8 sets of 2 to work on speed out of the bottom.

I found this routine on another forum and modified it slightly to suit my needs. I've done 4 weeks on it, and my strength seems to be increasing.

Let me know what you think. Thanks in advance!

 

[zackdarnell]

anyone?

 

[zackdarnell]

bump. I'm sure someone wants to say something. Even an "I hate it, it wont work" would be better than no answer at all.

 

[skaman607]

It almost looks like WSB

 

[Profile]

BTTT

 

[zackdarnell]

Thanks for the bump.

Just thought I woud add that Ive been using this routine for 5 weeks, and I've got 3 weeks left on it. I'll post up my before and after numbers in the lifts, so everyone can see how it worked for me.

 

[Profile]

No problem Zack. Yes, please post the numbers, it would be interesting to see the final results and how it worked out for ya.

 

[Lord_Suston]

it seems to me that your legs and lower back are gettin most of the stimulus in your regiment, you might want to add one more tri excercise since this is the weakest link in benching and I don't see any direct trap work, I know deads help but some direct stimulation will increase the top portion of you deadlifts

 

[icelandic]

I like it but you are hitting your shoulder girdle hard. I don't think you should need closegrip benching after a couple of good sets of weighted dips. Also the incline may be a better movement to aid in bench strength. Box squats suck. You might have trouble hitting deads just 48 hours after a good squat workout. Make sure to eat like hell on this kind of routine too. Good luck.

 

[zackdarnell]

Thanks for your reply, icelandic.

I like it but you are hitting your shoulder girdle hard. I don't think you should need closegrip benching after a couple of good sets of weighted dips. Also the incline may be a better movement to aid in bench strength.

Why do you say this? I'm trying to strengthen my tricpes as much as possible for benching. Also, I have been switching the exercises around a little, and doing some different stuff.

Box squats suck.

Want to elaborate?

You might have trouble hitting deads just 48 hours after a good squat workout. Make sure to eat like hell on this kind of routine too. Good luck.

Yes, it is tough, but I've actaully been doing very good on the deads. And I am eating like hell.

Karma for the response.

 

[icelandic]

Please bear in mind these are just opinions from nearly 8 years of hitting the iron...

If you are hitting dips hard (extra weight & low reps) for several sets your triceps should have the hell beaten out of them. Alot of people swear this movement is great for chest, but I feel it hits primarily anterior delts and tris. If I did 3 sets fo dips with 60 or 65 pounds around my waist for 5 reps, there would be NO WAY i'd could even think about doing close grip bench.

Also your milage my vary here too. I know many people who would have a tough time pulling 48 hours after a good squat session. I can do it though, and If you keep making progress with poundage progression then by all means keep doing it. If your progression stalls try fliping them around so that yor doing one on friday and the other on monday.

Good thing you're eating like a hog, becuase you have to with serious low rep training. Good way to boost calories even more, a big glass of 2% milk at EVERY meal.

Anyways good luck and I do like your routine. This is the way people should train for mass and strength, too many people forget the relation betweeen the two....

 

[icelandic]

about box squats...

I forgot to add this...
I think box squats suck because for most people they are limply a way boosting ones ego. They encourage people to do more weight than they should and the act of lifting one's feet off the ground with 4 or 5 hundred pounds on your back is probably not a great feeling from your spine's perspective. If you can squat big weights without a needing a box under you, your legs will be MUCH more developed. Use a full range of motion, down until top of thigh is parallel with the floor, pause for a moment, then rise WITHOUT MOMENTUM. Trust me, it sucks very much with a lot of weight on your back and the bar starts quivering.

 

[jeremys]

thats the point of squatting with boxes though, to stop momentum and release the hip flexors to strengthen the bottom portion of the squat, most people's sticking point

 

[icelandic]

I feel they are a crutch and result in a strength imbalance over the long run. If you need a box to squat correctly your using too much weight.

 

[jeremys]

tell that to the 800+ squatters at westside. boxes are almost all they use for squatting

 

[icelandic]

OK fine, but when you can squat 600 without a box then worry about boxes, OK. Anyone who cannot squat at least 400+ for 5 or 6 reps should not worry about doing 'assistance' exercises, focus on the basics until you get insanly strong. I'm not trying to start an argument here, but I see way too many dipshits who can't even squat 315 try to be heroes with box squat nonsense, I just feel they are useless unless you are alreay extremely strong, that will exclude a lot of people who do them already. How does that sound?

 

[icelandic]

Also look at some of the strongest lifters who ever lived,.. guys like Doug Hepburn and Paul Anderson. These guys squatted 700 to 800 pounds for doubles and triples. Anderson squatted 1000+ before hatfield ever even seen a gym. These guys were some of the most genetically gifted weightlifters to ever walk the face of this planet, and their routines were extremely simple compared to some of the shit you see nowadays.

 

[jeremys]

i totally agree with you. i've seen many people attempt squatting on boxes but they dont do it right and dont really do much for them. but when a person understands how it works and what good form is, then they reap the benefits of doing it.

 

[icelandic]

I'm glad we reached an understanding. How about this? Box squats are an advanced technique, wait until you are an advanced lifter in terms of strength berore using them. Sound alright to you?

 

[zackdarnell]

Wow, looks like I missed a good little conversation.

Also your milage my vary here too. I know many people who would have a tough time pulling 48 hours after a good squat session. I can do it though, and If you keep making progress with poundage progression then by all means keep doing it. If your progression stalls try fliping them around so that yor doing one on friday and the other on monday.

Surprisingly enough, my deadlifts have been increasing. It seems to work better for me to pull after squatting than to squat after pulling. Not really sure why. Also, it should be noted that I am not always sticking with the days of the week that i listed. Sometimes, if i feel like i need a 2 day break instead of just one day, I will take it. If I feel like I only need one day when I have 2 scheduled, I just move things up a day. I go by how I feel.

Anyways good luck and I do like your routine. This is the way people should train for mass and strength, too many people forget the relation betweeen the two....

I'm glad you like it. I got it from a friend on another forum. I will post my results in about 2 weeks.

I think box squats suck because for most people they are limply a way boosting ones ego. They encourage people to do more weight than they should and the act of lifting one's feet off the ground with 4 or 5 hundred pounds on your back is probably not a great feeling from your spine's perspective. If you can squat big weights without a needing a box under you, your legs will be MUCH more developed. Use a full range of motion, down until top of thigh is parallel with the floor, pause for a moment, then rise WITHOUT MOMENTUM. Trust me, it sucks very much with a lot of weight on your back and the bar starts quivering.

Don't forget, I do regular squats, too. And I go very deep on those. The box squats are below parallel, too. Also, on the box squats I am using approx. 50-60% of my 1rm. That wont be a problem on my back. I dont lift my feet off the ground either. I go down to the box, relax my hip flexors, then go back up. Also, I am doing these to work on my speed out of the bottom portion of the squat.

 

[jeremys]

sounds good to me

 

[zackdarnell]

If anyone would like to see the routines I have done before this, I would be glad to post my last one too. It was a functional strength routine I used for rugby. It worked very well. I used it for 8 months before this one, and the gains never stopped coming.

Before that, all I ever did was the normal BB split.

 

[zackdarnell]

I have finished the routine, and will be posting my new 1rm's in the squat, bench, and deadlift as I try them this week. Throughout the 8 weeks on the routine, I did make some minor changes, but everything was basically the same. I substituted in some glute-ham raises and pull-throughs, and thats about it.

Before starting this routine:
Sept. 19, 2002
Squat 415 lbs
Bench 270 lbs
Deadlift 405 lbs

 

[zackdarnell]

Nov. 23, 2002
Deadlift- 450 lbs

Increase of 45 lbs in 8 weeks.

I was very pleased with this. I didnt think I would get anywhere near a 45 lb increase. I now think I could have gotten 455, but I wasn't ambitious enough, so I went with 450. I then attempted 475 and missed.

I will be squatting and benching later this week and will post those numbers then.