The Magic Formula: Here It Isn’t

The reason is that we’re all looking for that magic formula, the perfect training program that will make us into the next Jay Cutler or Dexter Jackson. The truth is, such a program doesn’t exist. there isn’t a one-size fits all routine. The fact of the matter is, they all work, or at least have their purpose.

In the two decades that I’ve been bodybuilding, I’ve tried dozens or training programs: high volume, high reps; low volume, low reps; high volume, low reps; low volume, high reps; one body part per week, each bodypart twice per week; 4 workout days per week; 5 workout days per week; 6 workout days per week; fast tempo; slow tempo; all heavy compund movements; mostly machines; supersets; giant sets; a lot of rest between sets; little rest between sets; ad nauseum.

Guess what, they all worked.

My wife has been training for about five years or so and to this day she still asks me about training programs, how to do an exercise, if her form is right, how does her butt look in this dress, etc. And for five years I’ve basically been telling her the same thing, “Yes, your butt looks unbelievable in that dress.” Oh, yes, and I’ve also been telling her that the program she does doesn’t matter nearly as much as whether she is challenging her muscles enough to respond and grow. In other words, as long as she is progressing then that’s what matters. Add 5lbs to the bar, do one more rep, do the same weight and reps but decrease the rest time.  Those are all ways to increase intensity, and thus, stimulate growth …assuming that proper diet and enough rest are also involved. Diet and rest are probably more important than the training itself.

It’s Just A Twist On DoggCrapp

Ok, now that that’s out of the way, I’ve gotten several questions about my training program. As you’ve already read, my program has changed over the years. I have, however, always returned to what I feel has worked best for me, and that is high intensity, low volume, and low-to-moderate reps.

Below is my current routine. It’s actually a modified version of DC Training (DoggCrapp Training) founded by Dante Trudel. You can read more about DC Training here or here.

The reason I was drawn to his style is because it made sense to me: train each bodypart more frequently using more intensity with as few total sets as possible. Pretty simple really. That is about as basic a description as I could possibly provide, but I encourage you to read more about it yourself to get the full explanation.

 While I don’t follow his program the way he recommends it, I do implement many of his principles that I feel fit best for me. I’ll post what I do below and explain my logic behind it.

What I Do And Why I Do It That Way

• First, I do a 2 on/1 off routine splitting my body up into 3 workouts. This is a fairly recent change for me. For years I did a 4-day bodypart split and it worked great, but since I’m doing fewer sets then I’m able to recover quicker allowing me to work each bodypart more frequently, which provides more opportunities for growth. It makes sense, right? If you train each bodypart once a week then you get 52 workouts in for that bodypart per year. However, if you train each bodypart once every 5 days then you get 73 opportunities to grow that muscle. More doesn’t mean better unless you’re allowing your body to recover, which is why I’m doing fewer sets (but with more intensity).
• I train only two days in a row before taking a day off  because as a natural bodybuilder I feel that after two days my body needs a rest break. You might be different, but that’s me.
• After I’ve completed the three workouts that cover every muscle group, I consider that one cycle. One cycle takes 4 or 5 days depending on where my off days fall on my 2 on/1 off routine. And I do three cycles - each cycle having it’s own set of exercises - before repeating cycle one. Actually, all my muscle groups except triceps have varying exercises. I’ve got bad tendonitis in both elbows so I have to stick with cables for now. Quads also; if you read my blog then you know I’ve had knee surgery so right now I’m taking it slow and easy on the leg movements.
• My third cycle is more or less an active recovery cycle. I still keep the same 2 on/1 off split but I drop the rest/pauses. I don’t go in the gym with an agenda other than picking whatever exercises I want for 3-4 sets and 15-25 reps per set.
• I do two exercises for each bodypart, except for shoulders, back, and legs for which I will do three.
• I do only two sets per exercise, but I do two rest/pauses within each set. So, I’ll do as many reps as I can (target is 6-10), rest for a count of 25 (which works out to about 15 seconds), do as many reps as I can do again (usually 3-4), count to 25, and do as many reps as I can one last time (usually 6-10 again. See why below), then I will hold the weight for as long as I can. That’s the first set. Then I do one more set like that and that is it for the first exercise.
• Like I said above I do two rest/pauses within each set. All my reps before the second rest/pause are done in a very slow and controlled manner, no cheating whatsoever. After my second rest/pause, I loosen up my form so that I can bang out as many reps as I have left in me.
• I write everything down. Every exercise, every set, every rep, every weight. I’m a bit anal so I’d probably do this anyway, but the reason I do it is to be sure that each time I enter the gym I am doing more than I did last time – more weight, more reps, whatever. Progression is key.

If you got lost reading that then basically it all looks like this:

CYCLE ONE
Day 1: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps

• Chest: BB Incline Press – 2 sets, DB Flat Bench - 1 set
• Shoulders: Machine Lateral Raises – 2 sets, Reverse Fly on Pec Deck Machine – 2 sets, Seated DB Press – 2 sets
• Triceps: Cable Pushdown – 2 sets, Seated Cable Extensions – 2 sets (these are a modified version of what would otherwise be a Lying DB French Press)

Day 2: Back, Biceps, Abs

• Back: Medium Grip BB Rows – 2 sets, Pulldown to the Front – 2 sets, Reverse Grip Cable Row – 1 set
• Biceps: EZ Bar Curls – 2 sets, 1 Arm Preacher DB Curls – 2 sets
• Abs: a few sets of whatever I feel like doing

Day 3: Off

Day 4: Calves, Hamstrings, Quads (in that order)

• Seated Calf Raises – 2 sets, 1 Leg Calf Press (on leg press machine) – 2 sets
• Stiff Legged Deadlifts – 2 sets, Lying Leg Curls – 2 sets
• Quads: Leg Press – 2 sets, Hacks – 2 sets, Step Ups – 2 sets

/CYCLE ONE

 CYCLE TWO

Day 5: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps

• Chest: Incline DB Flyes – 2 sets, Dips – 1 set
• Shoulders: Seated Military BB Press – 2 sets, Bent Over Lateral Raises – 2 sets, DB Side Lateral Raises – 2 sets
• Triceps: Cable Pushdown – 2 sets, Seated Cable Extensions – 2 sets (these are a modified version of what would otherwise be a Lying DB French Press)

Day 6: Off

Day 7: Back, Biceps, Abs

• Back: Rack Pulls – 2 sets, Behind the Neck Pulldowns – 2 sets, Reverse Grip Cable Row – 1 set
• Biceps: Alternate DB Curls – 2 sets, Incline DB Curls – 2 sets
• Abs: a few sets of whatever I feel like doing

Day 8: Calves Hamstrings, Quads (in that order)

• Calves: 1 Leg Calf Press (on leg press machine) – 2 sets, Seated Calf Raises – 2 sets
• Hamstrings: Lying Leg Curls – 2 sets, Seated Leg Curls – 2 sets
• Quads: Leg Press – 2 sets, Hacks – 2 sets, Step Ups – 2 sets

Day 9: Off

/CYCLE TWO

CYCLE THREE

Day 10: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps

• On this third cycle I don’t do any rest/pause. I choose 3-4 exercises of whatever I want and do 2-3 sets. I keep my reps in the 15-25 range.

Day 11: Back, Biceps, Abs

• On this third cycle I don’t do any rest/pause. I choose 3-4 exercises of whatever I want and do 2-3 sets. I keep my reps in the 15-25 range.

Day 12: Off

Day 13: Calves, Hamstrings, Quads

• On this third cycle I don’t do any rest/pause. I choose 3-4 exercises of whatever I want and do 2-3 sets. I keep my reps in the 15-25 range.

/CYCLE THREE

Day 14: Repeat starting at Cycle One

Conclusion

So did you get all that? That’s my current routine. Who knows, I may change it, but I tend to stick with what works until it stops working.

If you have specific questions leave me a comment and I will answer it. If you try my routine please let me know how it works for you.

Two days on, one day off

Being in my mid-thirties now I just don’t recover as quickly as I did in my 20′s. Thirty-six isn’t old by any means, but it’s not 22 either. Recently I’ve changed my workout split to a 2 on 1 off using the same bodypart split mentioned above.

I switched to doing 2 on/1 off for several reasons:

• I was feeling tired all the time
• I was not motivated to train
• My joints were aching
• I needed a change

This split has worked out excellent because after two days of intense training I’m ready for a break. And after that one day break, I’m ready to get back in the gym. My motivation level now is sky high for each and every workout! I’m excited to go in the gym and really push myself, and since I’m there only two days in a row, I’m able to give each training session everything I’ve got.

There is something else I have found to be working well for me… that is, doing only two sets of each exercise instead of the customary 3-4 sets. It just makes sense, doesn’t it?

Two sets instead of three, or four

We’ve always been told that it is best to do 3-4 sets of each exercise, right? But why? Maybe it’s just me but I think that logic is flawed for a couple of reasons:

• Anything after two sets gets boring
• The same amount of intensity is not given to each set because mentally you “save” yourself

Boredom

Let’s address the first one first. Boredom. I may suffer from ADD I’m not sure, but I seem to get bored after the first two sets. I want to go do something different – a different exercise for that bodypart. An exercise with a different machine, a different bar, a different grip, a different rep scheme, a different angle, all to hit a different part of the muscle.

And since I keep my total number of sets for a bodypart  low, then doing only two sets of an exercise allows me to do more exercises as well. That’s a plus in my book.

Intensity

As far as the second point regarding the intensity, I think this has a lot of truth to it – at least for me. If I’m planning to do four sets of let’s say, leg presses, then one or more set of those four sets is going to suffer. It is simply difficult to maintain 100% intensity for an exercise in which you do 3 or 4 sets. Now 2 sets is no problem, I can bust my ass on set one, and then bust my ass again on a second set, but after that I lose some momentum. Whether it’s mental or physical doesn’t matter, the fact remains that my workout has suffered. Not good.   

The two sets thing came about because I noticed that I just instinctively wanted to stop after the second set. Maybe it was boredom or maybe I knew that I wasn’t going to give my all to the last one or two sets. In either case I’m liking this change. It makes sense and I’ll stick with it for a while to see how I progress. So far so good, I feel stronger and more focused in the gym these days.

Is it right for you?

Is a two day on, one off routine doing two sets of each exercise right for you? I don’t know. It might be worth a shot. Have you done something similar? If so, how has it worked out for you? There are an infinite number of ways to train, what’s yours?