This weight should be fairly easy. Slowly lowering the bar to your chest, pause briefly at the bottom, and explode with full force/velocity on the way back up. Add 5 lbs to the weight from last week.
Same swole song, different verse. Hit this bodybuilding workout hard on the second week of the ‘micro-cycle’, amp the weights up by 5-10 lbs each. Maintain your form, feel that deluge of blood in your muscleveins (one word, it’s a real word).
Motivation
Make some time to watch “Pumping Iron”– an hour and a half documentary chronicling bodybuilding in the glory days of the 1970’s.Arnold is the star of the show, providing entertainment, inspiration, and hilarity.
This weight should be fairly easy. Slowly lowering the bar to your chest, pause briefly at the bottom, and explode with full force/velocity on the way back up.
Another four weeks, another NEW VOLUME WORKOUT! Use this week to take the weights back down a notch; focus on form and do not go to failure. I’m programming such that every four weeks starts a new “micro-cycle” with these bodybuilding volume workouts.
Motivation
Dom shows how to properly carry oneself within the sacred realm of the locker room:
5 sets of 5, choose a fairly heavy weight, but do not go to failure
If you don’t have a weighted belt, just hold a dumbbell between your feet.
If floor press is a new movement to you, work on form and don’t go up too high in weight. Take the barbell down until your elbows initiate contact with the ground. Due to the reduced range of motion, floor press is a much easier exercise on your shoulder joint than flat bench. If you ever find yourself w/ shoulder pain or more limited range of motion, try switching up to this.
Conditioning workout should get you that quintessential pump to get your Friday GOIN’. Push yourself and get your heart rate going. More importantly, choose weights and take enough rest between circuits such that you aren’t failing mid-set on any of these exercises.
Motivation
Calves too small? Take a nice prescription sized dose of some Dom Mazetti
EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute) Flat Bench– 8 sets of 3 @ 50-60% 1RM
This weight should feel fairly light. Focus on slowly lowering the bar to your chest and subsequently exploding with full force/velocity on the way back up.
Volume (Rest periods should be 60-90 seconds b/t supersets)
Today’s volume workout marks the start of another 4-week cycle on a slightly different set of movements. However, the main principles and movement juxtapositions are the same. VERY IMPORTANT– choose lower, easier weights this week and we’ll continue to work up to heavier weights over the next three weeks.
This is the last week we’ll use this workout for volume day; we’ll be switching it up the movements next week to change it up, keep the muscles guessing.
Motivation
Arnold cruises around the town, comments on everything he sees to hilarious effect.
Choose weights on the strength portion where YOU KNOW you can hit every rep, every set. Modify conditioning weights as appropriate to your strength level.
This weight should be extremely easy. Focus on slowly lowering the bar to your chest and subsequently exploding with full force/velocity on the way back up.
Rest between supersets should be 60-90 seconds, no more. This is optimal for max hypertrophy. Also, choose weights that are moderately difficult, but do NOT go to absolute failure. Focus on getting quality reps here and stimulating that muscle growth.
I’ve changed up the SwoleFIT template slightly to incorporate two days of volume work to complement the two days of conditioning work. These kinds of workouts will make your body blossom into the beautiful muscle garden it was meant to be.
If you don’t have a jump rope, sub a 150 m run. If you can’t run, do 30 jumping jacks. If jumping jacks aren’t your thing, high five yourself 20 times consecutively while skipping around the gym.