Researched
and Composed by
Adam “Old School” Knowlden
Abstract
Using the skeleton
framework, the following workouts will be adhered to for maximal results
of the programs design.
Workout A, Part
one:
-
Cambered bar
Preacher Curls supersetted with Standing Cambered
Bar Curls (4 sets; 10-12 reps):
Select a weight that allows you to achieve 10-12
repetitions. Upon failure, drag the bar up the preacher pad and continue
curling. After succession of the last rep, hold the bar statically in
the contracted position for 10-30 seconds.
-
Seated High
Cable Pulley Curls (4 sets; 8-9 reps):
Attach two handles between two low cable pulleys. Station a seat
between the pulleys.
Take
a cable in each hand and execute a double bicep curl.
The
medial biceps will be targeted with this exercise.
As
mentioned in the elbow analysis article, supination brings the medial
head into strong contraction.
To bring this aspect of the
biceps into play, supination will be utilized throughout the set. As you
supinate, squeeze the biceps hard, achieving a peak contraction under
tension. When failure is reached, begin using the partial rep technique.
Keep the in a constant supinated state and execute mini-reps to utter
failure through the last two inches of the range of motion.
-
Standing Concentration Curls
(4 sets; 8-12 reps)
With
a dumbbell in hand, bend over at the waist. Allow the working arm to
free hang with the dumbbell in hand. The non-working hand should be used
to stabilize the body, by holding onto a pole of a military press or
smith machine station.
Curl
the weight in from the hanging state, to the opposite shoulder,
squeezing the bicep hard throughout the motion. Similar to a
concentration curl, this movement requires strict from and flawless
execution. Hold the last rep statically to fatigue.
Workout A,
Part Two:
-
Incline
Alternating Hammer Curls (4 sets; 7-9 reps)
The implementation of this exercise will be the same as with the
standing version. Do this variation on an incline bench, for swollen
outer biceps and forearms.
Workout A,
Part Three:
-
Lying Cable Curls supersetted with Lying Cable
Drag Curls (4 sets; 10-12 reps for the standard curls, failure
with the drag curls)
Perform the lying cable curls to exhaustion. With the bar still in hand,
perform drag curls with the bar. This movement talks place wholly at the
elbows. This superset will exhaust the biceps from the top to bottom.
-
Incline Dumbbell Curls
with a Twist
(4 sets; 6-10 reps)
When your arms are in the incline positioned, the biceps are more
heavily stretched. A torqued twisting motion at the start of this
movement will enhance this natural stretch.
As you arms are dangling,
twist the weight
as far to the right as you can and then as far back to the left as you
can. Immediately after this twist, curl the weight up, supinating the
dumbbell as you curl.
Upon failure,
continue the set by performing alternating reps. After failure of
traditional alternating reps, utilize the
Rest Pause Insanity
technique
to squeeze out three extra alternating reps for both arms.
Workout A,
Part Four:
-
Alternate Dumbbell Curls
(3 sets; 6-10
reps)
Cheating curls are allowed, to fulfill the required repetition range.
Workout B,
Part One:
-
Dumbbell Curls Jump Sets (6 sets)
Both the Ascending and Descending shocking principles will be
incorporated in exercise one (See:
Descending Sets for a Super Shock
and
Use Ascending Sets to Pack on new and thick layers of muscle mass!!!)
when combined I call this shock, Jump Setting.
These six sets will encompass pyramiding up and then back down the
dumbbell rack.
The following blitz is going to attack the entire bicep and forearm
muscle locality in an unorthodox manner.
Begin by picking a really lightweight that you can easily perform 20
reps for. Let’s say for our example that is 25 lb dumbbells.
Perform 25 reps and set the dumbbells down. Now jump 10 lbs, and perform
20 reps with the 35 lb weights. Next, jump 10 more lbs. grab the 45’s
and perform 15 reps. After that bump up 10 lbs grab the 55’s and execute
10 reps. Ok, the easy part is over! The key is to continue jumping in
weight by 10’s. In other words after each mini-set you will increase the
dumbbell weight by 10 lbs.
After you pyramid to the point that you are at a weight that is causing
your to fail at 10 reps (remember there is NO rest between these initial
jumps!), continue increasing the dumbbells by 10, but from this point on
your can induce failure between 2-9 reps.
Continue in this manner until you have reached a point where you can no
longer perform at least two reps, or you max out the dumbbells your gym
has to offer! Oh, one last note you can rest pause after you’ve
pyramided past the 10-rep mark.
This is the half way mark. Now descend all the way back to the 25 lb
weights (or whatever weights you began with). Stick to a rep range of
2-9 again, rest-pausing as much as needed on the way back down.
To summarize:
-
Follow an ascending pyramid rep scheme of 25-20-15-10.
-
Continue ascending in 10 lb. increments failing
between 2-9 reps. Use rest-pause and alternating reps as needed.
-
Once maximum ascension is achieved, begin descending
in weight, failing between 2-9 reps, using rest-pause as needed.
Even though we are performing an extreme volume of reps, there is one
thought you need to stay focused on throughout the entirety of the set….
Elevation!
Get those
arms up and contract the biceps! It’s going to be challenging keeping
your mind focused on that as you progress through this
ascending/descending nightmare, but that is the only thought you have to
keep on your mind. The rest of your energy needs to be focused on the
“do or die” mentality.
It seems
like a lot, but once you get the set going it really flies. This workout
is fast, but to get the most out of it you really need to stay focused
on elevation. Hyperplasia is not easy to induce. It thrives in the realm
of radical. Treat this monster set as such and you’ll split fibers.
-
Double Negatives
Machine Curls
(3
sets)
The biceps are going to be fully inflamed with
blood after the previous six brutal sets. We will now implore the S/NS
(See:
Battering Ram ) principle to continue the blood-engorged state.
Continue administering the pain with the double negative technique (See:
How To Shock Your Body Out Of The Comfort Zone Part One)
at the
machine curling station. The key to making the most of this technique is
emphasizing the negative portion of the range of motion.
In this particular variation of the machine
curl, attach two separate single-handed attachments to a low cable.
This narrow grip will place more emphasis on the
outer biceps. Moreover, this will make executing the double negative
technique much smoother.
Curl the weight up using both hands, and then
on the downward motion allow only one arm to take the brunt of the
negative resistance.
Workout B,
Part Two:
-
Reverse Barbell Curls (4 sets; 8-12 reps)
These will be performed to failure following this week’s back routine.
Mental emphasis should be placed on using the biceps to lift the
barbell, as opposed to the forearms.
Workout B,
Part Three:
-
Concentric
Power-rack Rest-pause Partial Rep 21’s
Barbell Curls (4 sets; 12-15 reps)
Concentric Rest-Pause Power-rack training is an
excellent way to increase an exercises positive range of motion
explosiveness and power.
-
Set the power rack safety bars just out of reach of
the barbell from the bottom of your range of motion.
-
Explode up on the concentric portion of the movement
and proceed with the same speed on the eccentric portion of the
movement as you did with the concentric portion of the range of
motion.
In other words, if it took me one second to perform
the positive portion of the movement, it should only take me one second
to perform the negative portion as well (as opposed to the typical 2
seconds that is generally taken). However, the weight is always under
control. We are emphasizing the concentric, but don’t get sloppy on the
eccentric. That can promote injury.
Of course the advantage with this principle is using heavier weights for
more reps and longer durations!
(See:
Shock Yourself Out Of The Comfort Zone 3 for a thorough description
of this technique)
To explain this exercise, let’s turn to an exert from “Shock Yourself
Part 3”:
Partial Reps- You can use this principle
to attack particular areas of a range of motion of an exercise. For
example if you are having problems with the bottom portion of a standing
shoulder press apply this shock to the partial reps principle. Set the
safety racks at the bottom of the range of motion of your standing
shoulder press. As you begin the exercise, push off the power rack and
perform a partial rep, stopping about half way up through the full range
of motion. Now come back down, rest-pause on the safety rack, and press
up again! This is a superb means of conquering concentric weak points
and increasing explosiveness in a range of motion of any given exercise.
One excellent exercise for partial-rep power rack rest-pause concentric
training is the barbell curl. Let’s say for example, the top of
the range of motion is your problem area in this exercise. I would have
you adjust the power rack safety bars to the mid point of the range of
motion for a standard barbell curl. Now curl the weight off the
power-rack and complete the half-rep, accenting the concentric aspect of
the lift, and then lowering the barbell back down on the safety-rack.
Rest-pause and proceed again, gradually increasing the time of the
rest-pause from one too two seconds until total failure occurs. You can
also use the partial-reps principle here to bust plateaus in strength as
well! Let me explain using the above barbell curl example. In the above
sample, we focused on the upper portion of the range of motion. I would
recommend two sets in the same manner for the top of the range of
motion. Next we would want to focus on the lower portion of the barbell
curl. Simply adjust the power-rack so that it is just out of reach of
the bottom of the range of motion. Now use the principle to rest-pause
out concentric partial reps focusing on the bottom of the range of
motion! By centering on both parts of the barbell curls range of motion,
you will gradually be able to add more weight to your normal barbell
curls, and bust through plateaus like never before! Can it get more
hardcore Old School?
Oh ye of little faith! Now that you have
decimated the upper and lower portions of the barbell curls range of
motion, strip some of the weight off, and perform 7 complete reps! Seven
reps? That seems familiar? It should! I call this (get ready) Concentric
Power-rack rest-pause partial rep 21’s! In other words get 7 concentric
rest-pause reps at the top of the range of motion, 7 at the bottom, then
strip some weight, and do 7 regular barbell curls! Talk about a pump!
You’ll love that one!
-
Static Barbell
Hold (4 sets)
Again we will be using the power rack for this exercise (See:
Shock Yourself Out Of The Comfort Zone 3 and
Use Static Contraction To Make Your Biceps Peak Higher, Shoulders Widen
and Quads Separate! for more details on this method). Adjust the
safety bar to where the barbell is just below the mid-range of the
barbell curl motion. Overload the barbell with approximately 20-40% more
weight than your current 1 RPM on the barbell curl.
Bend slightly at the knees and grab the barbell just as though you were
in the middle of the barbell curl’s range of motion, tucking your elbows
tight into your sides. Now lift yourself up into an erect position with
the barbell held statically in the middle of the plane of motion of the
barbell curl.
Hold the barbell in this position to failure.
Upon failure, squat down with the barbell held statically, and rest it
back on the safety rack (recommend using a back support belt to prevent
injury).
-
Single Handed
Cable Curls With Preacher Bench (4 sets; 12-15 reps)
In the previous two exercises, we have emphasized
both the concentric and static aspects of the curling motion. In this
last exercise the negative phase will come heavily into play. Use the
single-handed pulley attachment and link it to the bottom hook of a
cable station.
Upon fatigue within the recommended repetition
range, continue the set on by using the resting arm to aid in the
concentric portion of the movement. After reaching the maximal
concentric phase of the cable preacher curl, remove the aiding arm and
allow the working arm to resist the negative. Continue in this manner
for 3-5 pure negative reps.
Workout B,
Part Four:
-
Seated Dumbbell Concentration Curls
(3 sets; 12-15 reps)
Work both arms, for three sets each. Keep
concentration focused on the form of this exercise. It is easy to lose
the proper stress this exercise demand. Curl the weight to the shoulder,
not the chest. Also keep the biceps tense and flexed hard throughout the
duration of each set.
Workout C,
Part One:
1.
Dumbbell Preacher
Spider Curls (4 sets;10-12 reps)
Here the vertical side of the preacher curl
station will be utilized. Take a dumbbell in each hand and drape them
over the vertical side of the preacher bench. Keep the triceps flat
against the pad and curl the weight up. As you curl up, move the weight
in such a manner that you are curling the weight out away from you then
pulling it in. However while the motion demands this wide long arcing
motion, the arms should stay planted on the preacher pad.
Once fatigue is achieved with the spider curls,
drag the dumbbells up the pad and flow directly into alternating
dumbbell curls. Continuing in the alternating pattern until total
failure.
2.
Straight Bar Cable Curls (4 sets; 6-9 reps)
Heavy and brutal are
the keys to these next four sets. Aim for failure in the six-rep range.
From this point use rest-pause to blast through an additional 2-3 reps.
3.
Incline Bench Barbell Curls (4
sets; 8-10 reps)
A short bar typically
works best for this exercise. The stress on the lower biceps is truly
staggering. After failure, sit up with the bar, curl the weight up, lie
back down on the incline bench and allow yourself to take the negative
range of motion of the incline bench barbell curl.
Workout C,
Part Two:
1.
Zottman Curls (4 sets)
The Zottman curl will
single handedly dismantle any remaining stubborn bicep muscle fibers
concluding your back workout. Targeting the biceps, bracialis and
bracioradialis in an uncanny way, this movement should be wielded in a
manner worthy of its inventor George Zottman.
The forearm of
George Zottman compared to that of the average man
No arbitrary
rep count will be given, but rather keep going until you simply cannot
complete another rep, then continue alternate style until the pain
becomes unbearable.
Workout C,
Part Three:
1.
Incline Spider Barbell Curls
Supersetted with
Incline Dumbbell Curls (4
sets)
Mimicking the spider
curl motion, the incline face forward barbell curl will rip the lower
biceps out of their insertion origins. Curl through the pain to
exhaustion. Set the bar down after failure, and turn around on the
bench. Grab two dumbbells and keep the set going with incline dumbbell
curls. Keep the set going with alternating repetitions to complete
collapse.
1.
Cable
Concentration Curls(4 sets; 10-15 reps)
The
motion of this exercise will mimic that of the standing concentration
curl, however the low pulley cable station will be utilized. With each
rep, hold the top of the motion statically for a 5 count, and
concentrate on feeling the weight pull on the bicep as the load is
lowered over the negative portion of the range of motion. After collapse
of concentric power, use the resting arm to aid the working arm over the
fatigued portion of the plane of motion.
2.
Barbell Curls supersetted with static
Lying High Pulley Cable Curl
To
explain the logic of this superset, we will turn to
How to Shock Your Body Out of the Comfort Zone Part One:
This
is without a doubt one of my favorite ways for adding peak to any muscle
on your body. By peak I simply mean the point in which a muscle is at
its most contracted position. This technique will also give the kind of
burn that will take you to the threshold of your pain tolerance! When
you use this technique you will stimulate your muscles in a way they
have never felt before! By improving the peak of a muscle you can
create the illusion of more size and make the muscle much more detailed.
This technique involves super setting one
exercise with another. The difference is that for the second exercise
you don’t actually perform any reps, you just hold the second exercise
in a static state. However, just like supersets I suggest performing the
static rep immediately after the exercise, to keep the blood flowing.
Since these are essentially supersets, you can
apply the superset formula principals again. I would suggest breaking
them up like this:
1). Mass exercises supersetted with a static
mass rep
2). Mass exercises supersetted with a static
isolation rep
3). Isolation exercises supersetted with a
static mass rep
4). Isolation exercises supersetted with a
static isolation rep
In
this instance the barbell curl will be used to rigorously sabotage the
entire bicep complex. Heavy weight will be used during this movement.
After completing a set
of barbell curls in the rep range of 4-6 reps, go directly to a cable
station and perform one lying high pulley cable curl.
This single rep will
be held to complete static failure. This should encompass holding the
load statically for thirty count. Moreover, the thirty count mark does
not begin until the pull of the weight begins causes a burning sensation
in the biceps. You may perform this movement on a bench, if extra chain
is not available to cause the cable to reach the floor.
Workout C,
Part Four:
1.
Standing Wall Curls
(3 sets; 6-10
reps)
Often the back
compensates the load of the barbell curl; the standing wall barbell curl
will more effectively target the bicep by reducing the amount of work
the back will bear.
You may find that you
will have to use a significant less amount of weight for this movement
compared to standard barbell curls. A cambered bar may be used in place
of a barbell for this exercise if so desired.
Workout D,
Part One:
1.
Seated “ Cable “ Concentration Curls supersetted with Short
Chin-Ups (4 sets)
Begin with some light seated cable concentration
curls. The key is not to go heavy and to fatigue, but rather to make use
of the
Pre-Exhaustion Principle.
Achieve 12-15 medium intensity reps, and go
immediately to a chin-up station. From there, perform chin-ups to
failure. The difference will be in the range of motion. To better target
the bicep peak, only descend on the negative portion of this exercise
approximately four to five inches. Then, pull your body back up to the
bar with the strength of your biceps alone, squeezing hard at the top of
each rep. After fatigue is achieve, execute three to five cheat reps,
using a block to push yourself back up the top of the range of motion.
Set a bench, or block under the pull-up bar. Position it so that you can
push your body up with your leg. The idea is that after failure, you can
use your leg to push your body up to the bar, and effectively cheat on
the positive portion of the chin-up. However, to make this technique
useful at all, this means extra emphasis on the negative (lowering)
portion of the exercise. Following the cheating portion of this
exercise, drop down and immediately perform
The Yu Yevon Method for 30-60
seconds.
2. Machine Curling
station, utilizing the 60-second protocol (3 sets)
(See:
Count To 60 seconds And Grow Man Grow)
Proceeding exercise one, the biceps stabilizers
will be thoroughly fatigued. However, we need to continue crushing deep
stubborn muscle fibers. I am convinced the way to do this is through the
S/NS principle. Explained in
Battering Ram Pectoral Guideline the concept is simply yet
effective.
Stabilizer muscles are used in balancing free-weight exercises.
They
are essentially responsible for coordination during a free-weight
exercise, particularly during exercises like squats, dead lifts, and
presses.
They help keep the bones and joints in a secure position while the
prime
moving muscles
extend and flex the body area being trained. The
stabilizer muscles help align and maintain joint integrity consistently
through the normal range of motion as well as providing balance to the
athlete during the lift.
After any heavy free-weight movement, the stabilizer muscles are
very fatigued and continuing with another free weight movement can
hinder the amount of weight you would be able to use. It’s our goal to
go as heavy as humanly possible for this series, so for our purposes of
inducing hypertrophy in the pectoral region this approach will hinder
our progress. So…
For this series we will start with a free-weight exercise, and
follow that with a machine or cable exercise. This will allow us to go
heavy and stay heavy throughout the entire workout! If you’ve never
tried this shocking method you’ll be pleasantly surprised how much
heavier you can go through your entire workout with this approach.
Perform three sets with the first set achieving
failure around 60 seconds, the second around fifty, and the third
approximately 40 seconds. The set must continue even if that involves
drop sets, partial reps, and static reps. No matter the cost, be sure to
keep the set going through the allotted time frame.
3. Outer Grip Cambered
Bar Curls (4 sets; 8-12 reps)
For the final exercise load an EZ curl bar with a
medium weight.
Grasp the outer portion of the bar, just outside
where the bar is typically grabbed.
The hand will be placed just to the right side of
where the numeral three is labeled in the above figure. This will place
the wrists in a static supinated position. Coupled with the outer grip,
the stress of the load will tax the inner biceps.
Workout D,
Part Two:
1.
Alternating Cross Body Hammer Curls (4 sets; 6-10 reps)
Begin with the dumbbell resting at your side in a
neutral position. Without twisting your arm, curl the dumbbell up
towards the opposite shoulder. Go to the height of your range of motion,
attempting to touch your shoulder, then lower the dumbbell along the
same path.
Workout D,
Part Three:
1.Alternating
Seated Dumbbell Curls supersetted with
Cheating Alternating Dumbbell Curls (4 sets)
 
The seated dumbbell curl will restrict the back
and legs from being able to compensate the load being curled. Continue
the seated dumbbell curls to collapse, then immediately stand up and
continue the set with standing alternating dumbbell curls, cheating as
needed to keep the set going beyond failure. You will find standing will
allow you to force out more reps, although the pump in your biceps will
be mind numbing.
2.
Incline Face Forward Cable Curls
(4 sets; 12-15 reps)
The bicep insertions
will be strained hard here, allowing for enhanced sarcoma development in
the lower bicep region. However, I typically adhere to less weight and
longer tension times with such like “preacher-type” exercises for safety
reasons.
Moreover, for health
measures, I do not recommend going to full lock out at the bottom of the
range of motion, which places high levels of stress on the bicep and
shoulder tendons. Bicep tendonitis is very commonplace in bodybuilding,
and more likely to develop with prioritization/high volume programs such
as this one. Train hard, but train smart! If you have a spotter, have
them not only hand you the bar on this exercise, but also take the bar
out of your hand after you complete this exercise.
3. “Glove” Curls
The concept behind this exercise is simple, yet
deadly. First select the plate weight you would like to use. Next, grab
the plate in the middle hole where a barbell would be inserted. Put
your four digits in the hole and grasp the plate.
From there curl the weight in typical fashion.
The great thing about this exercise is that the weight is distributed on
your arm very naturally. You have essentially increased the size of your
hand, and the load feels more like a weighted glove.
This type of movement will feel much different
than a standard dumbbell curl, as the weight is distributed more evenly
on your arm. Also the thumb will not be able to curl around the plate as
it can around a bar, adding an additional shocking factor.
Curl to utter failure. I typically use the 60-70
second method, for what seems like an infinite amount of sets,
effectively working to increase mitochondrial density. Other excellent
“glove” exercises include overhead triceps extensions(which could be
supersetted with the “glove” curls) and lateral raises.
No set number or rep number is given. I suggest
continuing this exercise, until your biceps are completely taxed and
every muscle fiber has been exhausted.
Workout D,
Part Four:
Drop Static
Dumbbell Curls (3 sets)
This shock is explained in the “Shock Series”,
Drop-level static negatives incorporate the beauty of negatives and
the intensity of static reps. When using this shock you will be
over-emphasizing the negative, which as you know, educes serious muscle
growth. And simultaneously applying the static rep theory in a unique
way.
To explain the concept behind this let’s use the infamous barbell
curl. No one can dispute the exercises’ ability to add heaps of muscle
to the bicep region.
You would begin your reps just like normal for the concentric, or
positive, portion of the lift. The negative portion is what we are
interested in.
As you go through the range of motion for the negative you will
statically hold the barbell at different levels as you lower the bar.
Remember for static holds you have to squeeze the muscle hard and
really emphasize holding it in its place. I like to think of my muscles
as cornerstones to a bridge! Unmovable!
So, on the negative portion of the lift I would go down ¼ of the
way down, hold the barbell statically and proceed with the negative
again, go another ¼ of the way through the range of motion and hold the
barbell in a static state. Again I would go through another ¼ of the way
through the motion and hold the barbell statically. Finally, I would
hold the barbell just short of lock out and hold the barbell in a static
manner until failure.
I tend to hold each level drop for 2-5 seconds, and then slowly
descend until I get to the next drop level.
You can divide up how many levels you want to statically hold
depending on the intensity you want to give the exercise or if there is
a specific area you want to develop. I would say to go for a minimum of
two levels and a maximum of six.
Utilize this shock in the described manner for
the PM sessions of your workouts.
Adam "Old School" Knowlden
oldschoolabcbbing@gmail.com
President of Biomechanical Engineering/
Editor and Writer, The Journal of Hyperplasia Research
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