Look Like You Lift

It’s the New Year! That means it’s time to close the book on 2014 and make 2015 even better.

My training this month has one goal…BALANCE.

NO! I don’t mean doing a bunch of one-legged exercises or making extra use of the Bosu. I’m talking about muscular balance. Balance in physique. Inching closer to aesthetic perfection.

There are certain “standards” as to how to structure a program. But this is the month where I’m going to break one of the major rules a little bit. That rule is…

Body-part Sequence within the workout.

The standard sequence is to always work the largest muscle group first within the workout. If you know exercise physiology and basic kinesiology, this definitely is the logical sequence and makes the most sense. And 90% of the time, this is how I’ve trained in my 20+ year career. But remember, this month is about balancing things off. So…since the exercises that performed higher up in the workout receive the greatest benefit, I’m going to give priority to some muscle groups by moving them first in the workout.

One of the things I am a big advocate is…LESS IS MORE. I’m a true believer in high intensity training. I give as much respect to recovery as I do the stimulus. After all, you will only experience the training effect if proper rest and recovery are provided. We are all here for gains in strength and size…yes? Well, if your training exceeds your recovery, you won’t maximize your strength and size potential.

One last note before I lay out my January 2015 High Intensity Routine with a Focus on Maximum Balance…

Just about all training methods have merit. And no matter how good a training methodology is, staying monolithic in your attack will have its downside. So as much as I’m an advocate of high intensity style, I do recognize the merit in other forms of training. As the months proceed, you will find that I take advantage of the positives of all styles of training, and prevent the downside of training in one style.

Now, are you ready to take a look into my January routine? Here it is:

I often like to pre-exhaust my quads with a high intensity set of leg extensions.

Mondays: Quads and Calves
A1) Leg Extensions 2 x 6-10
A2) Leg Press 2 x 4-8

B) Step Ups 2 x 10 per leg

C) Squats 2 x 4-8

D1) Seated Calf 2 x 6-10
D2) Standing Calf 2 x 6-10
D3) Donkey Calf 2 x 6-10
*Note: I, personally, have very developed calves. If I needed more work on them, I would prioritize them by placing them first in the workout this month, before quads.

Wednesday: Triceps, Shoulders, and Chest
A1) Rope Pushdowns 2 x 6-10
A2) Overhead Rope Extensions 2 x 6-10

B1) Side Lateral Raise 2 x 6-10
B2) Shoulder Press 2 x 4-8

C1) Flat Bench Flyes 2 x 6-10
C2) Incline Press 2 x 4-8

D1) Pec-Deck/Flye Machine 2 x 6-10
D2) DB or Machine Bench Press 2 x 4-8

Fridays: Posterior Chain and Hips
A1) Adduction 2 x 10
A2) Abduction 2 x 10

B1) Leg Curls 2 x 6-10
B2) Low Back Extensions 2 x 6-10

C) Romanian or Trap-Bar Deadlift 2 x 4-8

D1) Shrugs 2 x 6-10
D2) High Pulls 2 x 4-8

Saturday: Biceps and Back
A1) Spider Curls 2 x 6-10
A2) Standing DB or BB Curls 2 x 4-8

B1) Rear Delt Machine or Bentover Lateral 2 x 6-10
B2) Bentover Rows 2 x 4-8

C1) Wide-grip Pulldown 2 x 4-8
C2) Underhand Pulldown 2 x 4-8

D1) Stiffarm Pulldown 2 x 6-10
D2) Underhand Pulldown 2 x 4-8

A couple of things worth noting…
• A1 and A2 references a superset. So do the “1” exercise first, no rest, do the “2” exercise, then rest and repeat.
• The above sets do NOT include warm-ups. I take as many warm-ups as I need. Usually, for the first superset of the day, I’ll do 3-4 rounds starting light and amping up the weight. For the remainder of the day, it varies. Some exercises may get one or two acclimation sets before I tackle the worksets while some exercises I’ll go right into it. Than for an exercise like Squats, even though it’s later in the workout, due to the poundage used I’ll do 3-4 warm-ups before my worksets.
• For this month, I’ll try and hit cardio and abs twice a week. Usually Thursdays and Sundays. Cardio is simply 20 minutes of some piece of equipment on an interval setting. For abs I’ll simply pick a few (3-4) different exercises, start my stop watch, and every-minute-on-the-minute I’ll do a set of 10-15 controlled reps. I’ll cycle through these movements for a total of 10 minutes.

That about covers my workout for January. Next week’s blog post I’ll go over some of the different things I’m incorporating into and experimenting with in regards to my nutrition plan this month.

Until then…Here’s to Looking Like You Lift!