Sample “Finisher” For Your Quads
November 14, 2012 by danny · Leave a Comment
There is more than one way to a skin a cat, when trying to improve a body part. And I’ve found the quads have the most room for “mixing it up.” For example, a couple years ago I went to a bodybuilding show back in California. Branch Warren was the guest poser, and when he got asked the question, “what is your secret to such massive legs?” he looked out to the audience and said with authority, “HEAVY SQUATS.”
I’ve also heard stories of some of the legendary bodybuilders crediting high rep work to bring up their quads (i.e. sets of 25-50 reps). I’ve found that a combination of high and low reps are optimal for maximal quad development.
And as I’ve gotten older, I now tend to shift my focus towards high(er) rep work for the quadzillas. Now, that doesn’t mean ALL I DO is pump out sets of 20-25 reps. But theses days I DO tend to do more sets consisting of 10 + rep sets, compared to sets under 10 reps.
The Two Main Reasons For This?
#1) My quads are as big, or bigger now than they’ve ever been, so high(er) rep sets are working better.
#2) Higher reps sets are generally safer than sets closer to your 1 RM (Rep Max). For example, if you perform a set of 15 reps squats, it is safer than performing a much heavier set of 3 reps.
And more to point #2, I’m no longer a competing athlete, and performance (as far jumping higher and running faster) has taken a back seat to aesthetics and general health as my main focus.
An important note: If you are looking to build your quads in this fashion (higher rep sets and/or finishers like you’re about to see below), it won’t work very well if you haven’t FIRST spent years building up a decent level of strength. So, if you’re an 18 year old newbie and looking to better develop your quads, simply work on getting stronger in lifts such as back squats, front squats, bulgarian split squats, etc. Building a base of strength gives you way more options as your “training career” evolves. So, don’t skip steps.
Below is how I finished my leg workout the other day…
3 words… Quads. On. Fire!
So, in the end, I get to keep my joints healthy (because I’m not always going heavy), keep and even build leg size, and get some great conditioning work in.
So, IF you have already put in your time building a good level of strength, be sure to include some high rep sets and/or finishers for those quads!
My Experience With Twice-A-Day Training
April 11, 2011 by danny · Leave a Comment
I can summarize my experience in two words… It. Sucked!
Alright, thanks for stopping by, be sure to check in next time as I go over…
Ok, ok, I’ll elaborate. There was more to it than just a bunch of suckiness.
First of all, the main reason that I went to two-a-days was because I figured this may be my last chance to do some time-consuming, crazy training plan for the next 18 years. Any day now my wife is going to be popping out twins. Whenever I tell people that I can’t wait, they tell me how excited they are for me and that being a parent is such a great experience that can’t be described in words. Next I tell them that I am sooo ready for this. Then they laugh at me. Hey, thanks a lot my people! Verrrry encouraging! 
Ha, I know what they mean – no matter how ready we think we are, we’re never truly ready… especially with 2 babies at once. Ok, back to the training.
How To Best Set-Up Twice-A-Day Training
Strength Coach Charles Poliquin has made the following recommendations:
-Increase your training volume gradually. He suggests starting with two 20 minute workouts. Longer training sessions would be counterproductive, as you will not be able to put as much energy into your workouts and could overtax your recovery ability.
-You need to take plenty of time between workouts to achieve an optimal training effect – he suggests about 4-6 hours between sessions. According to Charles, this time spread is critical. If you use a shorter one, you will be too fatigued; and in a longer one you will negate the nervous system activation effect of the morning workout (this is known as a super compensation effect).
-This next piece of advice is what I have read from Strength Coach Christian Thibaudeau (although I *think* Poliquin believes in the same set-up): make the morning session your high intensity session (high weights closer to your 1 rep-max) and the afternoon session higher reps and/or use high intensity techniques (i.e. drop sets, post-fatigue method, etc).
The Program
Day 1: Chest and Back - A.M. Heavy (basically I never went over 8 reps and the majority of my sets were 6 reps and under)
P.M. Higher Reps and High Intensity techniques. The majority of my sets were 10 reps and up and I used the “post-fatigue method” one time for each body part. Chest example: Band Push-ups X 10 reps immediately followed up with standing cable flyes X 12 reps. Back Example: Neutral grip (palms facing one another) pull-ups X AMRAP (as many reps as possible) immediately followed up with stiff-arm pushdowns X 12 reps.
Day 2: Legs – A.M. Heavy. All I did here was two exercises – back squats for 4 sets of 5-7 reps and glute-ham raises for 4 sets of 5-7 reps.
P.M. Higher reps but I didn’t use any high intensity techniques on leg day. This day was hard enough as is!!!
Day 3: Off
Day 4: Shoulders and Arms – A.M. Heavy
P.M. Higher reps and high intensity techniques. An example here is the superset I did where I went from doing rope pushdowns immediately into v-bar pushdowns. You can use more weight with the v-bar so I did that second, but used approximately the same weight as the weight I used with the rope. This concept is similar to a “mechanical drop set.”
Day 5: Off
Day 6: Repeat program starting with day 1 again (although, I gave myself the option of taking this day off as well and repeating day 1 on day 7, depending on how I was feeling).
My Thoughts
It definitely was not easy. Like Coach Poliquin noted, “Twice-A-Day training is not raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens.” However, I did like the fact that the workouts were shorter. I’d say that each sessions took me about 20-25 minutes to complete, not counting warm-up (foam rolling, mobility work, etc) and cool down. My schedule is conducive to two brief sessions in one day separated by 4-6 hours as I usually have a couple breaks in my day between training clients. For most people with “regular” jobs however, this would be pretty tough to pull off.
The hardest thing for me was leg day. You know when you rack the bar on your last set of squats, right? What, you don’t know that feeling Mr. Hugearmsandchestbutlegsasskinnyasachicken? Well then, time for you to man-up and work your like every now and then. What was I saying? Oh yeah, that great feeling when you rack the bar and you know you don’t have to do another squat, deadlift, or lunge again for at least a few more day! That’s the best!!! Well, imagine racking the bar and thinking; “Damn, I have to come back and do this again in about 4 hours?!? ” Those were some loooong days!
Overall, I’m glad it is over but I am glad I tried it. Next, I’m onto a bunch of “random” workouts, which is rare for me. But I don’t want to get into too much planning, as the twins are about to take over my life! Wish me luck! 
My Current Training Block…
February 9, 2011 by danny · Leave a Comment
It has been awhile since I posted my training routine. I’ve had a few people in person and on facebook recently ask me what my training looks like right now. So I thought it was a good time to share. Those that are familiar with my methods, know that I believe that there are many ways to skin a cat in regards to the best training split to use. Throughout the course of the year, I’ll use a number of different splits… upper/lower split, body part split, full body training, “hybrid” split (i.e. Monday – Full Body, Wednesday – Upper, Thursday – Lower, Saturday – hit a body part or two that I’m trying to bring up). Each split has its potential pros and cons. I don’t seem to respond best to any particular split (as I mentioned in this blogpost with Bret Contreras), so I’ll rotate them in where I see fit (what kind of time I have available due to work/family/coaching obligations; what split fires me up the most to train; what split I haven’t done in awhile, etc). If you have found one that gives you the best results, I suggest you use that split for the majority of the training year.
For the first time in months, I’m using a full body routine. The great thing about full body training, is that it allows you to hit a muscle/movement pattern often throughout the week. As I mentioned above, you could also pick apart a few things about full body training, as you could with any split. But let’s not go there today. The increased frequency in which I am stimulating each muscle group with this program will (hopefully) lead to a sexier me!
Day 1
A1) Hip Thrust 3 X 10-12
A2) Incline Chest Press – DB 3 X 8
B1) Front Squats 3 X 6-8
B2) Mixed Grip Pull-ups 3 X AMRAP (set 1 = a tempo of 211, the rest of the sets = a tempo of 201)
C1) Low Rope Hammer Curls 3 X 15
C2) Band Close-Grip Push-ups 2 X AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible)
D) Seated Lateral Raise 1 Set – do 15-20 reps, take a 10 second and do AMRAP, take another 10 second break and do AMRAP
Day 2
A1) Standing Shoulder Press 3 X 10
A2) 1L (one leg) RDL 3 X 8L (per leg)
B1) TRX Row with ER (external rotation) 4 X 6 (tempo = 2011)
B2) Bulgarian Split Squat, Back Squat 2 X 7L, 1 X 15 (that is, 2 sets of bulgarians and 1 set of back squats)
C1) Hammer Curls 3 X 12
C2) Overhead Tricep Extension 3 X 12
D) Slight Incline Chest Press 1 Set - do 20-25, rest 10 seconds, perform AMRAP, rest 10 seconds and perform AMRAP
Day 3
A1) Barbell Elevated Deadlifts 2 X 3, 1 X 10
A2) Fillers
B1) Seated Cable Chest Press, Seated Cable Chest Fly 2,1 X 10,15 (2 sets of 10 presses followed by 1 set of 15 flyes)
B2) FF, RR Walking Lunges (Forward-Forward, Reverse-Reverse Walking Lunges) 3 X 5/Movement
C1) NG (neutral grip) Seated Cable Rows, Chins 2,1 X 8, AMRAP (2 sets of 8 rows and 1 set of AMRAP chins)
C2) Tricep Pushdowns 1,2 X 20,12 (1 set of 20 and 2 sets of 12)
D1) Ab Wheel Rollouts, Split-Stance Cable Lift 1,1 X 10 (1 set of each for 10 reps)
D2) Reverse Grip EZ Bar Curls 2,1 X 8,12 (sets of 8, 1 set of 12)
Program Notes
-The sets and reps you see are in accordance with week 1. I keep the volume a little lower in week 1 to try to reduce soreness. In the weeks to come I use a bit of cybernetic approach (going by feel) where I up the amount of sets if I am “feeling it.”
-I’ve been toying with hip thrusts for awhile, but haven’t really gone heavy yet because I just purchased my Hampton Thick Bar Pad. This thing makes the lift much more comfortable, as the bar does NOT hurt while digging into your pelvis. As I’m getting a better feel for this exercise, I’ll be going heavier and working in the lower rep ranges soon.
-My main goal is hypertrophy right now.
-I also train my wussy calves, but I usually do them on “off” days. Since my job is in a gym, I usually find a 10-15 minute gap between clients somewhere in the day to hit them 2-3 times per week.
Alright, there’s your sneak peak of my current training block. I definitely put thought into making sure I am balancing things out to keep myself healthy and strong. But even more important then what the “paper” tells you about a program, is the effort that goes into each session. And I always give it my all!
