workout 4 days per week – Learn the ancient ways that raised the Powerpuffs into power! The elder scrolls elude to a mix of the barbell, body weight, and specialized machine training. Powerpuffs are strong and have endless endurance to fight the evil underbelly of the world. Optional HIIT cardio on rest days will also be available. Build your puff powers!
Barbell Progression Scheme
Ideally 1 rep max % for Barbells. You may also use RPE.
To calculate a rough estimate of your 1RM go HERE
Any Barbell lift try to add 2.5-5 pounds /1.1-2.2 kilograms when you feel able.
Zx5 – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – 100lb/45kg x .80 (1RM%) = 80lb/36kg
Z = set volume varies per movement on this program
You often can push harder than you think, consider your own phycology.
Your phycology can change per session correlating to factors such as stress, sleep, food, etc.
Although internal will can govern load on the bar also be smart with your approach.
Pay close attention to sleep, stress, nutrition, technique / form, execute on each rep, rest periods, etc.
If you are a previously experienced lifter or you simply started too light with working weight, make a large jump to RPE 7 then continue on recommended progression scheme. RPE – how hard was that 1-10?
Accessory Movements
Use RIR for all movements other than barbells.
Stay between RIR 5-2 reps shy of failure, dependent on your ability to have proper nutrition, workload, life stress, and sleep habits.
If poor recovery habits due to personal resolve or life pulling your attention, reduce RIR to 5 and continue to push barbell movements hard.
If proper recovery habits are in place, push RIR harder to 3-2, occasionally rarely RIR 1-2, depending on how well you can adhere to ideal recovery principles.
Master this ability.
HIIT Days – the more HIIT you do, your potential performance on barbells will dwindle. If you want curves, I recommend taking the optional HIIT days as full rest days to pour all recovery into Type 2 muscle fiber development. Type 2 muscle fiber will give shape to your skeletal frame. Think marathon runner ( type 1 muscle fiber specialist ) vs football player ( type 2 muscle fiber specialist ). HIIT (High-intensity interval training ) is not inherently wrong; it’s a contradictory stimulus after a certain threshold that varies from person to person. We are after a well-shaped, curvy body. Controlling diet intake is often a more innovative solution that I recommend to get the same result that HIIT produced… overall, less caloric surplus at the end of the day. If you are hungry, eat relatively healthy food, get roughly 0.8 grams of protein per pound of body weight, eat plenty of carbs as you will need them to perform well on this program, and have some fat, as triglycerides ( fat ) are satiating.
Perform HIIT like this: Do HIIT on days/weeks you overeat. On days you are in a bad mood, do HIIT. HIIT will have a similar effect to that of “Runners High.” Still, it is better than running because if performed correctly, the risk of injury is lower, the joint capsule impact is lower, in turn, faster recovery, and it’s a better stimulus for a curvy body shape. If you don’t want curves, stop this program immediately, calorie track like a bikini competitor, start running, and do yoga.
A Reminder for Terminology
Please refer to THIS page and read more about RPE and RIR.
Weekly Split – Weeks 1-4
A Day 1 – Lower Anterior
B Day 2 – Upper Posterior
C Day 3 – HIIT or Rest Day
D Day 4 – Upper Anterior
E Day 5 – Leg Posterior
F Day 6 – HIIT or Rest Day
G Day 7 – Rest Day or Stretching
A Day 1 – Lower Anterior
Warm Up
Air Bike 1×3-5 minutes
Main Compound
Warm-Up Sets
Barbell Low Bar Squat
1×8 – Bar – rest 45 seconds
1×5 – Next weight jump – rest 1 minute 30 seconds
1×3 – Next Weight jump – rest 1 minute 45 seconds
Zx1 – until working weight – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 2-4 minutes per set as 1RM scales
Example of Calculation – 100lb/45kg x .80 (1RM%) = 80lb/36kg )
Rest 3-5 minutes once at working weight
Z = as many single rep sets you need to take until you get to working weight.
Working Sets
Barbell Low Bar Squat
3×5 – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 3-4 minutes
Accessories
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press Pronation – 3×8-12 – start with a weight that you can do 8 times, do not increase weight until you can do 12 reps with that weight. Repeat. Keep elbows, semi tucked, see video.
Superset
Hamstring Curl Machine 3×8 – don’t push this too hard as you still have deadlifts latter in the week
RPE – 5-6 – just get a small amount of stimulus in
Rest – 2-3 minutes
Sled Pull ( using cable machine ) 3×2-3 – Rest 1-2 minutes – depending on load
Attach a hand grip attachment to a cable machine, set the axis point 1-3 feet inches from the ground, select a relatively heavyweight, and proceed to walk backward as far as you can, stopping before the pin weight stack hits the tip of the machine, and walk back. Walk down and back 2-3 times over. Imagine you are walking in slow motion. Whatever your foot wants to do, do the opposite. Some clients have flat feet, so I tell them to create an arch by digging their toes into the ground and walking backward, putting as much weight onto the outside ridge of their feet; another client may tend to distribute weight on the outside of their feet walking like a duck, I would tell them to rotate their foot inward while putting as much weight as they can on the inside of their feet. Make sure you firmly plant your heel each step and control the descent of the foot coming into contact with the ground, as this will work your tibials simultaneously.
B Day 2 – Upper Posterior
Main Compound
Warm Up
Lat Pulldown 2×12 – RPE 4-6 – rest 60-90 seconds
Lat Pulldown 1×5 – RPE 7 – rest 90-120 seconds
Lat Pulldown 1×3 – RPE 8 – rest 3 minutes
Working Sets
Pull Up or Weighted Pull Up or Lat Pulldown – depending on your strength level.
The second you can do un-assisted pull ups start doing them.
I’d rather you do 7×2 unassisted pull ups than 3×5 machine Lat Pull-down
If you gym has an assisted pull up machine use that over a Lat Pull-down.
3×5 – RPE 7-9 – rest 4-5 minutes
Try to add 2.5-5 pounds /1.1-2.2 kilograms when you feel able.
If using an assisted pull up machine reduce counterweight by the above.
*** Really push this movement, you may use wherever grip you prefer – I recommend alternating grip styles every 2-6 weeks as over time tendonitis can occur.
By rotating grip styles you will utilize different parts of your arm as well leading to over all development.
If you can not complete 3×5 pull ups stick to underhand grip or neutral grip ( holding a hammer ) until you can complete 3×5 of pull ups.
Alternate grips every 6 weeks unless you have elbow pain. Then consider switching grips. If pain persists contact your coach.
Accessories
You options are, leave the gym and rest
or
Do light low impact cardio – DO NOT go over 25 minutes of total time spent doing cardio.
You can do any assortment and combination of the below.
Incline Treadmill Walking 15-25 minutes
Air Rower 15-25 minutes
Air Bike 15-25 minutes
C Day 3 – HIIT or Rest Day
Option 0
Rest and focus on Type-2 muscle fiber development
( see Accessory Movements header, I even as a strength athlete, I myself like the runner high effect as well )
Option 1
Air Bike, Bike outside, Air Rower, Incline Treadmill Walking, Dog Walking, Hike, or Swim
2-minute medium pace you can maintain then a 15-second sprint ( NO RUNNING, light jog if you must )
10 rounds – this should take 22 minutes 30 seconds, after completion of 10 rounds then do
10 minutes of steady-state cardio at a pace you can maintain
Option 2
2-4 Rounds
TRX Squat x15
Superset
TRX Row x15
Superset
Air Bike x2 minutes
Superset
Plank Two Arm x1-2 minutes
Rest – 0, after completion of rounds then rest 3-5 minutes
2-4 Rounds
TRX Plyometric Jump Squat x3
Superset
TRX Skull Crusher x15
Superset
Air Rower x2 minutes
Superset
Lying Leg Lifts or Hanging Leg Lift x10
Rest – 0, after completion of rounds then rest 3-5 minutes
D Day 4 – Upper Anterior
Warm Up
Air Bike 1×3-5 minutes or go straight into bench press
Main Compound
Warm-Up Sets
Flat Barbell Bench Press Pronation
1×8 – Bar – rest 45 seconds
1×5 – Next weight jump – rest 1 minute 30 seconds
1×3 – Next Weight jump – rest 1 minute 45 seconds
Zx1 – until working weight – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 2-4 minutes per set as 1RM scales
Example of Calculation – 100lb/45kg x .80 (1RM%) = 80lb/36kg )
Rest 3-5 minutes once at working weight
Z = as many single rep sets you need to take until you get to working weight.
Working Sets
Flat Barbell Bench Press Pronation
3×5 – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 3-4 minutes
Accessories
Bodyweight Dips 3×8-12 – start with a weight that you can do 8 times, do not increase weight until you can do 12 reps with that weight. Repeat.
If no machine available, progress bodyweight dips off a bench or if strong enough use only bodyweight and then add more weight.
Superset
Rear Delt Fly 3×12
Rest – 2-3 minutes
Seated Incline Bench Dumbbell Curls Neutral into Supination 3×12
Superset
Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raise Pronation 3×15
Rest – 2-3 minutes
E Day 5 – Leg Posterior
Warm Up
Air Bike 1×3-5 minutes
Main Compound
Warm-Up Sets
Barbell Deadlift Conventional Stance
1×8 – Bar – rest 45 seconds
1×5 – Next weight jump – rest 1 minute 30 seconds
1×3 – Next Weight jump – rest 1 minute 45 seconds
Zx1 – until working weight – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 2-4 minutes per set as 1RM scales
Example of Calculation – 100lb/45kg x .80 (1RM%) = 80lb/36kg )
Rest 3-5 minutes once at working weight
Z = as many single rep sets you need to take until you get to working weight.
Working Sets
Barbell Deadlift Conventional Stance
3×5 – 77.5%-82.5% 1RM% – rest 3-4 minutes
Accessories
Barbell Rows – PLEASE, each rep have the weight touch the ground, reset your brace, and then preform the next rep. For a more updated tutorial than my own please go to Youtube, search, Revisiting the Barbell Row with Mark Rippetoe, follow the godfather of strength training systems.
3×5-8 – start with a weight that you can do 5 times, do not increase weight until you can do 8 reps with that weight. Repeat.
Superset
Leg Extension 3×10
Rest – 2-3 minutes
F Day 6 – HIIT or Rest Day
Option 0
Rest and focus on Type-2 muscle fiber development
( see Accessory Movements header, I even as a strength athlete, I myself like the runner high effect as well )
Option 1
Air Bike, Bike outside, Air Rower, Incline Treadmill Walking, Dog Walking, Hike, or Swim
2-minute medium pace you can maintain then a 15-second sprint ( NO RUNNING, light jog if you must )
10 rounds – this should take 22 minutes 30 seconds, after completion of 10 rounds then do
10 minutes of steady-state cardio at a pace you can maintain
Option 2
2-4 Rounds
TRX Squat x15
Superset
TRX Row x15
Superset
Air Bike x2 minutes
Superset
Plank Two Arm x1-2 minutes
Rest – 0, after completion of rounds then rest 3-5 minutes
2-4 Rounds
TRX Plyometric Jump Squat x3
Superset
TRX Skull Crusher x15
Superset
Air Rower x2 minutes
Superset
Lying Leg Lifts or Hanging Leg Lift x10
Rest – 0, after completion of rounds then rest 3-5 minutes
G Day 7 – Rest Day or Stretching
Rest Day or Stretching