The following details my chest, shoulder and triceps workout from earlier in the week. I’m still taking a break from John Meadows program for the next couple weeks and approaching my workouts with lower intensity and volume. The idea is to give my body and CNS a break before I go hard for the Olympia in September. Here is what Christina and I did at Kirkland Gold’s Gym for this workout…
Superset: Bench Press Partials & Machine Fly-Press
Bench Press Partials x 8 reps with 225lbs
Immediately followed by…
Machine Fly-Press x 8 reps with 45lbs/side
*This superset is a technique I picked up from Christian Thibaudeau. The key is to perform slow, controlled partials out of the bottom of the bench press and then immediately follow it up with a machine or cable fly. I used a cable chest press and performed flyes. Do this superset for 4 rounds.
Here is a video:
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60it9-NCXNU]
Incline Dumbbell Press
Set 1 x 10 reps with 80lbs
Set 2 x 10 reps with 80lbs
Set 3 x 10 reps with 80lbs
Set 4 x 10 reps with 80lbs
*I selected a moderate weight and did sets of 10 reps ensuring that I didn’t hit failure even on the 4th set. I also paused briefly at the bottom to ensure a good stretch on each rep.
Dips
Set 1 x failure with bodyweight
Set 2 x failure with bodyweight
Set 3 x failure with bodyweight
*Perform 3 sets to failure here. Aim for the 10-14 rep range, adding weight or using the assistance machine to get your reps to fall within that general area by the time you hit failure.
Prone Rear Delts
Set 1 x 30 reps with 30lbs
Set 2 x 30 reps with 30lbs
Set 3 x 30 reps with 30lbs
Set 4 x 30 reps with 30lbs
*The key here is to lay face down on an incline utility bench. Perform full range reps on each set until you lose form and then simply lock our elbows and perform swing reps until you get to 30 total reps. Hinge at the shoulder joint and make this burn!
Cage Press
Set 1 x 7 reps with 115lbs
Set 2 x 7 reps with 115lbs
Set 3 x 7 reps with 115lbs
Set 4 x 7 reps with 115lbs
*The key here is to set the pins in a cage to about shoulder level. When extending the bar overhead you slide it along the cage upright and sort of duck your head under at the top to contract your delts and traps. The main idea here is to train explosively so don’t use a weight which prevents you from moving it quickly on the concentric portion of the movement.
Side Laterals
Set 1 x 16 reps with 25lbs
Set 2 x 14 reps with 27.5lbs
Set 3 x 12 reps with 30lbs
Set 4 x 10 reps with 35lbs
*Pyramid up in weight and down in reps on these. Keep the rest breaks to 45 seconds or less between sets.
Superset: Close Grip Bench & Overhead Triceps Extensions
Close Grip Bench x 8 reps with 155lbs
Immediately followed by…
Overhead Triceps Extensions x 8 reps with 120lbs
*On the close grip bench I paused for a 1 second count in the stretched (bottom) position and stopped just short of locking out to maintain tension on the triceps at the top. I used a V-bar on the overhead triceps extensions and once again paused for a 1 second count in the stretched position before extending to just short of lock-out.
That concluded this chest, shoulder and triceps workout.
Train hard!
Mark