In early August 2010, my wife and I took the kids to the cottage for a week. Just before the trip, I put my How to Get Lean in One Week plan into action, intentionally overtraining for six straight days to induce a supercompensation effect. The idea was simple: push my body hard, then let it recover for seven days of complete rest.
We returned home on a Saturday. Sunday, we met up with G and his family. Monday, I planned to start a new routine. And that’s when the plan came together!
I had been doing a lot of relative strength training—low reps, slow eccentrics, long recovery times. It was time for a shift.
I had seen promising results from higher-frequency training before my holiday, and G’s approach inspired me. He trained more often, with lighter weights and higher reps, and he was growing. That got me thinking:
- If I went lighter, I could train more frequently.
- If I reduced the load, I could compensate with greater acceleration, maximizing force output (Force = Mass × Acceleration).
- I’d use a fast yet controlled concentric and eccentric tempo to target fast-twitch fibers.
The Plan
Each workout would include two pairs of exercises (four exercises total) with an antagonistic pairing structure. The key was exercise selection—focusing on compound movements while still incorporating some single-joint exercises.
Workout Split
Chest/Back #1 → Legs/Abs #1 → Arms #1
Chest/Back #2 → Legs/Abs #2 → Arms #2
Chest/Back #3 → Legs/Abs #3 → Arms #3
Chest/Back #4 → Legs/Abs #4 → Arms #4
This 3-day split would repeat four times, creating 12 unique workouts with enough variety and recovery to sustain growth.
I planned to train three times every four or five days. A rest day would always follow arm training to separate the two upper-body sessions. If I felt like I needed more recovery, I’d take an extra rest day.
The 12-Day Program
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Day 1 A1) 45-Degree Incline Dumbbell Press A2) Wide-Grip Pull-Up B1) Flat J-Press B2) Seated Cable Row Day 2 A1) Back Squat A2) Lying Leg Curl B1) Semi-Stiff-Leg Barbell Deadlift B2) Sicilian Crunch Day 3 A1) Parallel-Bar Dip A2) Mid-Incline Hammer Curl B1) Standing Military Press B2) Seated Zottman Curl Day 4 A1) Bent-Over EZ-Bar Row A2) 30-Degree Incline Dumbbell Press B1) Sternum Cable Pulldown B2) Flat Rope Flye Day 5 A1) Hex-Bar Deadlift A2) Decline Sit-Up B1) Wide-Stance Good Morning B2) Hanging Leg Raise Day 6 A1) Low-Pulley Reverse Curl A2) Close-Grip Bench Press B1) Close-Grip Chin-Up B2) Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension |
Day 7 A1) 50-Degree Incline Barbell Press A2) One-Arm Dumbbell Row B1) Standing Cable Crossover B2) Wide-Grip Cable Pulldown Day 8 A1) Front Squat A2) Glute-Ham Raise B1) Low Cable Knee-In B2) Standing Calf Raise Day 9 A1) Decline Close-Grip Bench Press A2) Mid-Incline Dumbbell Curl B1) Standing Rope Pressdown B2) Standing Cable Curl Day 10 A1) Close-Neutral-Grip Chin-Up A2) Seated Dumbbell Press B1) Seated Cable Row B2) Flat Dumbbell Press Day 11 A1) Bent-Knee Deadlift A2) High-Pulley Crunch B1) Standing Good Morning B2) Side Flexion Day 12 A1) Seated Preacher Dumbbell Curl A2) Lying EZ-Bar Triceps Extension B1) Standing EZ-Bar Reverse Curl B2) Kneeling Rope French Press |
A Exercises: 6-10 sets, 10-20 reps, 1-0-X-0 tempo, 60-90 second rest intervals
B Exercises: 3-5 sets, 10-20 reps, 1-0-X-0 tempo, 30-60 second rest intervals
I planned to follow an ascending-descending pyramid scheme (outlined in Mass Explosion):
- Start light with high reps, increase the load while decreasing reps, peak, then reverse the process back down.
And I wasn’t holding back—every set would go to failure. Whatever my body could give that day, I’d take!
Continued in Part 3.
