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Sample Routine: DAY 1 Chest Decline low cable crossover (touch hands at waistline) 8 X 8 Bench press to neck 8 X 8 Incline Dumbbell Press (palms facing each other) 8 X 8 Wide Grip V-Bar Dips 8 X 8 Biceps Drag Curl 8 X 8 Preacher curl (top of bench at low pec line) 8 X 8 Incline Dumbbell Curl 8 X 8 Forearms Zottman Curl 8 X 8 Barbell Wrist Curl 8 X 8 DAY 2 Shoulders Dumbbell Side Lateral raise seated 8 X 8 Wide Grip upright row 8 X 8 Front to back barbell shoulder press 8 X 8 Dumbbell bent over rear deltoid lateral 8 X 8 Triceps Kneeling rope extension 8 X 8 Lying Tricep Extension 8 X 8 2 Dumbbell Tricep Kickback 8 X 8 DAY 3 Back Sternum Chin up 8 X 8 High bench two dumbbell rowing 8 X 8 Low cable row with 18 high pulley 8 X 8 Medium Grip Lat Pulldown to Chest 8 X 8 Abs Double Crunch (pull in knees and elbows together at same time) 8 X 8 Weighted Crunch 8 X 8 Lying Bent Knee Leg Raises 8 X 8 DAY 4 Quads
Front Squat 8 X 8 Hack machine squat 8 X 8 Sissy Squat 8 X 8 Leg Extension 8 X 8 Hamstrings Supine Leg Curl 8 X 8 Seated leg Curl machine 8 X 8 Calves Standing Calf raise 8 X 20 Seated Calf raise 8 X 20 How it Works 8 sets of 8 is a high volume, fast tempo, size building workout. It is not designed for strength development its purely for bodybuilding or cosmetic improvements. 8 sets of 8 will also help you get leaner. The short rest intervals stress the cardiovascular system to the point where calories are burned, the metabolism is stimulated, hormones are stirred up and fat is melted away. Heres how it works: You will select three or four exercises per muscle group and perform 8 sets of 8 on each exercise. Yes thats 24 to 32 sets per body part! You will work two or three muscle groups per session and rest only 15 to 30 seconds between sets. Each workout will be completed in approximately 45 minutes and never more than 60 minutes. How much weight? Using 15-20 second rest intervals will limit the amount of weight you can use, but thats ok. Initially, there will be a large drop in your normal training poundages. Most people will need to reduce their normal 8 rep max by about 40% to successfully complete 8 sets with such brief rest intervals. For example, if you normally perform dumbbell flyes with 55 pounds for 8 reps with a 60 90 second rest interval, youre going to have to reduce your weight to about 35 pounds to successfully complete 8 sets of 8 with 15-30 second rest intervals.
Biceps
15 15 15 15 15
50 lbs. 50 lbs. 50 lbs. EZ Curl Bar Curls 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs.
Triceps
8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
Rope Extensions
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
Shoulders
15 15 15
8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
Cardio Time(min)
Treadmill Running
Day 2
Strength Training Exercises Exercise Weight
3.33 miles
30
Exercise Reps
Rest (sec.)
Chest
120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 120 lbs. 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
Parallel-Bar Dips
8 8 8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
15 15 15
40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. 40 lbs. Cable Crossovers 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs. 30 lbs.
Back
8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
8 8 8 8 8 8 8
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
15 15
100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs.
Cardio Training Exercises (definitions)
8 8 8 8 8 8
Cardio Distance(miles)
15 15 15 15 15 15
Cardio Time(min)
Treadmill Running 8x8 Chest Db bench press Decline db flyes Dips Shoulder Upright rows Bent over lat raise Back Two-arm db rows Pullovers Lat pulldowns Crunches Arms Tricep pressdowns Overhead extensions Bb curl Incline db curls The Routine
Front Lateral Raise - 3 sets of 8 reps Chest Dips - 3 sets of 8 reps Front Lat Pulldowns - 3 sets of 8 reps Tricep Rope Pulldown - 3 sets of 8 reps Barbell Curls - 3 sets of 8 reps Hack Squat - 3 sets of 8 reps Seated Calf Raise - 3 sets of 8 reps Frog Sit-ups - 3 sets of 8 reps
3.33 miles
30
Be Sure To ...
Do this routine for a month then, starting on the second month this should be increased to 5 sets of 5 reps, the third month 6 sets of 6 reps and the fourth month on 8 sets of 8 reps.
should pick a weight that allows you to make it 8 reps at least for the first four sets, then you simply try to get as close to 8 as you can. As for weight selection, 60-70% of your normal training weight is a good start. Assuming you are brave enough to undertake the whole body workout, here is a sample. Hack Squat Incline Bench Press Pull Ups Military Press Lying Cable Pull Overs Zottman curls. Kneeling Triceps Extensions w/Rope Donkey Calf Raise. If your gym doesn't have one of those machines, use the leg press. Vince actually preferred 8x20 reps for the calves, but that is not for the faint of heart.... 9. Leg Raises Your other option would be a more classical bodybuilding split. Hereby I would recommend 3 exercisesper large muscle group and 2 for smaller ones. The volume is high, rest is short so be prepared for a lot of soreness. Make sure to adjust your food intake and sleep pattern accordingly. I would also skip cardio. If you have the luxury of time, you can break the sessions in half and train twice a day. This works very well when getting ready for a contest or photo shoot. Day 1 Back/Triceps 8x8 Pull ups 8x8 Seated rows 8x8 Pull overs 8x8 Narrow grip dips 8x8 Kneeling overhead extensions Day 2 Legs 8x8 Hack squats 8x8 Leg press wide stance of single legged 8x8 Stiff legged dead lifts Day 3 Calves Shoulders 8x8 Military press standing 8x8 Leaning side raises 8x20 Donkey raises Day 4 Chest/Biceps 8x8 Floor flyes with cables 8x8 V-Dips 8x8 Incline dumbbells bench 8x8 Zottman curls 8x8 Drag curl 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Smith Machine Flat Bench Press 8 x 8 Biceps: Drag Curls 8 x 8 Preacher Curls (done in a reverse position with stomach on the sloped side) 8 x 8 Incline supinated curls 8 x 8 Forearms: Hammer Curls 8 x 8 Wrist Curls 8 x 8 Shoulders: DB Seated Military Press 8 x 8 Lateral Raises 8 x 8 Cuban Press 8 x 8 Bent Over Rear Lateral Fly 8 x 8 Triceps: Close Grip Press 8 x 8 Rolling Tricep Press 8 x 8 Triceps Pushdowns 8 x 8 Back: Bent Over Prone Row to Sternum 8 x 8 Chest Supported Row 8 x 8 Lat Pulldown wide Grip 8 x 8 Standing Face Pulls 8 x 8 Abs: Weighted SB Crunch 8 x 8 Hanging Leg Raises 8 x 8 Decline Bench Leg Lowering 8 x 8 Legs: Front Squats 8 x 8
Leg Press (feet narrow) 8 x 8 Leg Extension 8 x 8 BB Stiff Leg Deadlift (youll want straps for this) 8 x 8 Seated Leg curl 8 x 8 Standing Calf Raise 8 x 20 Seated Calf Raises 8 x 20 (this workout for legs takes an age and is particularly unpleasant, I tend to do 3-5 sets of 20 for calves) Remember, rest for 30 seconds (youll need to pick weights lighter than your normal 8RM obviously, probably nearer your 15 or 20RM to start with) between sets and gradually shorten rest periods. You shouldnt be failing to hit your 8 reps until the last one or two sets, if you are then you have gone too heavy. I take minimal rests between exercises as well, just long enough to take a drink. If you are using dumbbells do not take your hands off them or rack them. If using a barbell keep hands on between sets.
I am currently on a routine for building mass and strength. This consists of doing 6 sets of 6 on two key bodyparts. My routine consists of the following: Monday: Chest - 3 exercises, 6x6 Tuesday: off Wednesday: Shoulders, Back - 3 exercises each, 3x8 Thursday: Legs - 4 exercises, 3x8 Friday: Bicep, Tricep - 3 exercises each, 6x6 Sat, Sun: off Squat Bench Press Barbell Row Deadlift Chin-up Dips Military Press Power Clean Pick five and rest twice a week.
Back
Chest Flat/Incline bench Cable chest press DB bench press Blast strap push-ups
Legs
Arms
Pull-ups
Back squats
Triceps pressdown
Lat pulldowns
Seated rows
T-bar rows
DB upright row
Calf raises
Chin-ups
French press
* performed bilaterally, not one at a time
Alternatively, here are some exercises to avoid: Deadlifts, bent-over rows, good mornings. These are great exercises, but not in an 8x8 workout. Mixing low rest with high training volume sounds like chaos for the erector spinae and QL, and a week of hobbling around the office like Quasimodo. Front squats. As Charles Poliquin pointed out, the rhomboids tend to fatigue after about six reps in exercises like front squats in which they act as a stabilizer. Save the fronts for a higher intensity, lower volume phase. Unilateral exercises. The one-limb-at-a-time thing allows for too much rest between arms and legs when you're constantly working one side at a time. And in this program, rest is the devil.
Here's an example: Doing 8x8 back squats and leg presses in the same workout and then adding two more 8x8 exercises would probably be hell inside four walls. It would make more sense to stick with the squat (since you'll receive the most benefits from this) and then add leg extensions for another 8x8. To wrap it up, add two more movements like Romanian deadlifts and weighted hip thrusts for a more reasonable rep scheme like 4x12. The take home point is to make it through weeks of this kind of training, you need to think before you start throwing exercises together. The more compound the movements you choose,
the less total exercises you should use in the 8x8 style. So if you're a competing bodybuilder who isolates right down to the muscle, let alone muscle group, then stacking three or four different hamstrings or triceps 8x8's into the same day could theoretically work. Vince Gironda recommended his bodybuilders train the same muscle every fourth day with around 15 sets per muscle group. This added up to the collective weekly volume necessary to promote growth. Since we're not all pro or even amateur bodybuilders and may not have the time to do this, I suggest training each group once a week and increasing the volume per workout by adding more sets of work.
I trained back and only did 3 exercises: 10x10-assisted pull-ups; 10x10 v bar pull downs; 10x10 t bar rows I chose a weight of +/- 60% of my normal 10-rep weight.
Decline Flyes Dips Dumbbell Upright Rows Bent over Lateral raise Day 2 Leg Press Leg extensions Leg curls Calf raises 8x8-20 Day 3 Two-dumbbell rows Dumbbell or Machine Pullovers Lat pulldowns Weighted Crunches 8x8-15 Day 4 Tricep Pressdowns OH Extensions Barbell Curls Incline Dumbbell Curls NO TRAINING MORE THAN 4-5 WEEKS