My 10 Week Program for Bulking Up

[Lhemmix]

Background

I am a Filipino living in the Philippines. 5'6", with light built.

I've been lifting weights on and off for 3 years now, mostly off. On my previous bulking cycle I manage to gain 20lbs going from 105 lbs. to 125 lbs. in a span of 2 months. ( Yes, I was a skinny bastard, still is. ) At a height of 5'6". Over the course of 3 years, I managed to reach a bodyweight of 140 lbs. although, I have to admit that some of the increases were fat.

Right now due to school and relationship problems, I stopped working out and I dropped my weight to 123 lbs. at 5'6". I will post my pictures and body measurements in the near future. My camera is out of batteries.

Goal

The goal here obviously is to gain muscle mass. I am starting this program this first week of November and will end by the last week of December. Hopefully by January I would recover my previous highest bodyweight and be able to gain some more. The target number is 20+ lbs. of muscle within 10 weeks. Because of muscle memory I can get this muscle back in a lesser amount of time.

The Routine
This is phase 1 of my 2-phase routine. I will post the second phase once I have finished the first phase. This is a variation of IRONMAN's 10-week size surge Phase 1 Routine.

Day 1
Squats 2 x 10 - 12
Leg Extensions 1 x 12 - 15
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 1 x 10 - 12
Leg Curls 1 x 10 - 12
Decline Bench Press 2 x 8 - 10
Cable Crossover 1 x 10 - 12
Incline Dumbbell Press 2 x 8 - 10
Pulldowns 2 x 8 - 10
Bent-over Rows 2 x 8 - 10
Seated Dumbbell Press 2 x 8 - 10
Dumbbell Upright Rows 2 x 8 - 10

Day 2: off
Day 3
Deadlifts 2 x 6 - 8
One-leg Calf Raise 2 x 12 - 18
Lying Triceps Extension 2 x 12 - 15
Seated Dumbbell Curl 2 x 8 - 10
Wrist Curls 1 x 12 - 18
Reverse Wrist Curls 1 x 12 - 18
Hammer Curls 1 x 8 - 10
Leg Raises 2 x 8 - 10
Sit-ups 2 x 12 - 15

Day4: off
Day5
Squats 2 x 10 - 12
Leg Extensions 1 x 12 - 15
Leg Curls 2 x 10 - 12
Seated Calf Raises 2 x 12 - 18
Decline Bench Press 2 x 8 - 10
Cable Crossover 1 x 10 - 12
Incline Dumbbell Press 2 x 8 - 10
Pulldowns 2 x 8 - 10
Bent-over Rows 2 x 8 - 10
Seated Dumbbell Press 2 x 8 - 10
Dumbbell Upright Rows 2 x 8 - 10

Day 6 & 7: off
repeat cycle

I train to failure. If I reach the higher rep range I increase the weight for the next set or session. If I can't reach the lower rep limit, I lighten the load.

The alterations I did is that I use slightly higher rep ranges. Also I perform higher reps for lower body exercises compared to upper body exercises.

I do higher reps for isolation exercises.
I do higher reps for my triceps since my elbows would hurt if I use a heavy weights.

Diet

I don't count calories and never will. I will eat 5 - 6 times a day, and estimating my protein intake to be at least 1g / lb of bodyweight per day. I try to eat clean, and I stay away from foods that have a lot of simple sugars.

It has been hard to eat the right foods, since I live with my parents. I eat only whats on the table.

Another thing is I'm still a student, I had problems before in trying to find time to eat without interfering in my class schedules.

Supplementation
I can't afford supplements. I take a multi-vitamin & mineral tablet. I also take in an energy drink before I train. I don't take steroids.

Some obstacles
I am a graduating engineering student, I am working on my project as a requirement for graduation. This would take most of my time. I do not know if I will have the time and the energy to work out. My career comes first. Weight training second.

I am also an active student leader, I am head of the entire Electronics Engineering students in my school. This responsibility is the one making me lose some weight.

I have already begun this routine. I will be posting updates whenever I can. Wish me luck.

 

[silverwex]

This would take most of my time. I do not know if I will have the time and the energy to work out. My career comes first. Weight training second.

Whats the use if this is gonna be your attitude?

Weight training comes to only 3 hours per week! 3 HOURS! Thats not hard to fit in.

Diet is the main part - if you have diet nailed you're 75% of the way there.

Up your protein intake to at least 1.5g per lb of BW to continue to gain size.

Good luck.

 

[Warboss Alex]

2g protein per lb. Sorry, but at 123 lbs you need all the aminos you can get, especially since you're not using a whey supplement.

You won't be getting 20lbs in 10 weeks if you eat like a bird, muscle memory or no muscle memory.

Your routine looks very wrong to me. Too many exercises, too many isolations, mixing legs and back the same day..

 

[DoubleJuan]

good luck man! but i gotta agree with alex, your routine looks terrible just by looking at it's exercise volume.

 

[Lhemmix]

Ok. I'll get my protein intake to 2g / lb bodyweight.

how come?
am i doing too many sets?

 

[Warboss Alex]

Way too many exercises.

Do a 200kg stiffleg deadlift for 10 reps and then tell me, what use is a 75kg bent row afterwards? (plus you'll be so dead from the deads, hah, that you won't be able to maintain form or intensity..)

1-2 sets per exercise, 1-2 exercises per bodypart is all you need.

 

[semag]

Originally posted by Warboss Alex
Do a 200kg stiffleg deadlift for 10 reps

So right man... almost there too

High rep deads are killer!

 

[Warboss Alex]

When I'm feeling suicidal I'm going to do a deadlift widowmaker. But if I do that and it works I'll stop the quad widowmakers.

Problem is, I'd say it's easier to keep form on a 20 rep squat than a 20 rep deadlift..

Congratulations mate! I'll want a video of that lift though, if you please.

 

[semag]

hahah... no no, when i meant almost there, i was joking, and didn't mean on stiffleg

I kinda have to restructure my routine a little, I did a straight set of deads on monday for 11 at 315, and then tried stiff legs on wednesday... that didn't work too well, but i got 15 at 225, next time i'll set it up so i'm fresh on both days

 

[Warboss Alex]

315 for 11 is still no small feat my friend.

Once you've got to the 200kg boundary you will be flying (and imagine how thick your back'll be).

And yeah, in my first DC split I had sldls and then floor deads in consecutive workouts.. needless to say I had to pass on the floor deads in that next workout and do t-bar rows instead, lol. (and even those were a trial - I'd actually prefer to drop SLDLs but my gym only has one type of leg curl so I'm stuck for hamstring exercises really)

 

[A-Unit]

Re:

I'll give props to DC on his workout, it is refreshing. Most stuff out there is very VERY re-hashed. I'd just done some work on new programs and begun something new and DC's outlook confirmed everything I'd been doing. His ideas provided some missing pieces to the puzzle that I lacked.

But for those that haven't, I'd just going out and checking DoggCrapp out. Not sure on the nutrition stuff yet, but the workout program/ideas are top notch.

Volume IS out. Unless you're some genetic freak, upon which you wouldn't be on these boards, you'd be a pro football player, or have already figured out your superior genes.

AE of "skinnyguy" has a similar program. He doesn't tout negatives, doesn't talk the benefits of slow eccentrics (most diss eccentrics and slow-er reps), but he does do a last exist set on his workout. To me, it's over work.

Think of yourself as a kid, and all you want to do is get stronger each lifting period per a certain amount of reps. That's all lifting is. Any set not pushing your threshold is just warm-ups.

Powerlifters will note that LOW sets are just that powerlifting low sets, like under 4 reps. However his coined term Powerbodybuilding (which I actually heard from PL coaching), takes on higher reps, negatives, heavy, heavy weight, as well as 1 exercise, and more workouts per time period.

Volume training might give you the impression of fulfilling your ego since you spend vast amounts of time in the gym, and since you'll be lifting for quite sometime, but progress cannot and will not be made.

The energy resources of the body during a lifting period are FIXED. You can only push intensity so far before a muscle tears and before muscle glycogen and liver glycogen is gone. That happens much quicker in vol workouts, yet you never get to the point where any stress is applied, so no progress is made. Doing more than 1 exercise per workout (except back and legs) is detrimental to progress. Even if DC doesn't say it, numerous other newer guru's do.

Not disputing guys with ok and decent bodies given what society has out there, but it's not hard. Guys were getting big before these days, and were doing it on compound movements only. It got more intricate as guys began competing, but we're not competing. Not many of us anyways.

Change that workout around. Widdle it down to a few, key exercises you enjoy and can do well on. Lift balls out and look to make progress each week. Eat more than you burn, MUCH MUCH MORE, and you'll grow and berefreshed. Up until now, I hated gaining anything but muscle, but it's hard to focus on 2 goals, fat loss and muscle gain. The goals is muscle gain with FAT MAINTENANCE. Focus on that get big and cut. Cutting is easy, a few months. Gaining takes time, years normally to be of considerable size.




A-Unit

 

[Warboss Alex]

Re: Re:

Originally posted by A-Unit
I'll give props to DC on his workout, it is refreshing. Most stuff out there is very VERY re-hashed. I'd just done some work on new programs and begun something new and DC's outlook confirmed everything I'd been doing. His ideas provided some missing pieces to the puzzle that I lacked.

But for those that haven't, I'd just going out and checking DoggCrapp out. Not sure on the nutrition stuff yet, but the workout program/ideas are top notch.

Volume IS out. Unless you're some genetic freak, upon which you wouldn't be on these boards, you'd be a pro football player, or have already figured out your superior genes.

AE of "skinnyguy" has a similar program. He doesn't tout negatives, doesn't talk the benefits of slow eccentrics (most diss eccentrics and slow-er reps), but he does do a last exist set on his workout. To me, it's over work.

Think of yourself as a kid, and all you want to do is get stronger each lifting period per a certain amount of reps. That's all lifting is. Any set not pushing your threshold is just warm-ups.

Powerlifters will note that LOW sets are just that powerlifting low sets, like under 4 reps. However his coined term Powerbodybuilding (which I actually heard from PL coaching), takes on higher reps, negatives, heavy, heavy weight, as well as 1 exercise, and more workouts per time period.

Volume training might give you the impression of fulfilling your ego since you spend vast amounts of time in the gym, and since you'll be lifting for quite sometime, but progress cannot and will not be made.

The energy resources of the body during a lifting period are FIXED. You can only push intensity so far before a muscle tears and before muscle glycogen and liver glycogen is gone. That happens much quicker in vol workouts, yet you never get to the point where any stress is applied, so no progress is made. Doing more than 1 exercise per workout (except back and legs) is detrimental to progress. Even if DC doesn't say it, numerous other newer guru's do.

Not disputing guys with ok and decent bodies given what society has out there, but it's not hard. Guys were getting big before these days, and were doing it on compound movements only. It got more intricate as guys began competing, but we're not competing. Not many of us anyways.

Change that workout around. Widdle it down to a few, key exercises you enjoy and can do well on. Lift balls out and look to make progress each week. Eat more than you burn, MUCH MUCH MORE, and you'll grow and berefreshed. Up until now, I hated gaining anything but muscle, but it's hard to focus on 2 goals, fat loss and muscle gain. The goals is muscle gain with FAT MAINTENANCE. Focus on that get big and cut. Cutting is easy, a few months. Gaining takes time, years normally to be of considerable size.


A-Unit

You hit the nail on the head there with why volume sucks mate. You can do a 3x5x30kg deadlift set or a 1x3x150kg deadlift set .. which one is gonna make the muscle actually break down?

I like what you say mate, but rest assured, if you don't follow the DC diet guidelines the DC workout program can only take you so far. Yes, I gained strength and size from lower protein intake but not compared to how much I gained when I really boatloaded the food. In any case it's individual, after all Paul Dillett only ate twice a day for a period ..

And you can gain muscle and lose fat (not just maintain it), but it takes careful diet manipulation, trial and error, and patience. The best thing is to get yourself to a bodyfat you're happy with and stay there and just pack on muscle; over time you'll get leaner with minimal effort (it's easier for big guys to diet).

 

[Warboss Alex]

Semag: today deadlifts made me nearly throw up.

I've had this from squats before but never deadlifts.

Woo!

 

[semag]

WA: Awesome my friend! I remember the 2 times I've had deads make me feel like throwing up. The first was on an empty stomach (duh!) and the second was when I did a deadlift challenge on IA's board. 250lbs for maximum reps in 5 minutes, I think it's been discussed before. That was intense stuff.

As far as volume, I'm probably beating a dead horse here, but I'll be happy to chime in and be another one to say volume sucks.

I did volume for a few years, and gains were really slow.... . I saw an immediate jump in weight, dramatic, when I decided to just kinda "try something new" and give this whole low volume thing a try. I mena.. how could you possibly get stronger from only 2 sets of 5 on chest, for a whole week!!!!



...boy was I in the dark on that one