Last week we discussed the merits associated with cycling one's routines and the fact that there is more than one way to cycle your routines. This week I will present how my routine currently looks like and how you can turn any routine that you are currently following into a cycled one.

For the last three weeks, I decided to change my split from my usual Chest/Back, Shoulders /Arms /Forearms, and Legs implementation to Chest/Arms, Back/Shoulders/Forearms, and Legs for variety purposes. Mondays and Thursdays was Back/Shoulders day, Tuesdays and Fridays, Legs, and Wednesdays and Saturdays Chest and Arms. Below is the way that my Loading Cycle was implemented:

Week 1
Monday (12-15 reps)/Thursday (10-12 reps)
Triset:
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front 4 sets
Bent Over Laterals 4 sets
Reverse Wrist Curls 4 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Chin-ups (palms facing you) 4 sets
Shoulder Press (Substitute with Upright Rows on Thursday workout) 4 sets
Wrist Curls 4 sets

Tuesday (12-15 reps)/Friday (10-12 reps)
Triset:
Barbell Lunges 4 sets
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets
Calf Raises 4 sets

Triset:
Leg Extensions 4 sets
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets
Calf Raises 4 sets

Wednesday (12-15 reps)/Saturday (10-12 reps)
Triset:
Incline Bench Press 4 sets
Barbell Curls 4 sets
Chest Dips 4 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Bench Press 4 sets
Hammer Curls 4 sets
Triceps Pushdowns 4 sets



Week 2
Monday (8-10 reps)/Thursday (12-15 reps)
Triset:
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front 5 sets
Bent Over Laterals 5 sets
Reverse Wrist Curls 5 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Chin-ups (palms facing you) 5 sets
Shoulder Press (Substitute with Upright Rows on Thursday workout) 5 sets
Wrist Curls 5 sets

Tuesday (8-10 reps)/Friday (12-15 reps)
Triset:
Barbell Lunges 5 sets
Lying Leg Curls 5 sets
Calf Raises 5 sets

Triset:
Leg Extensions 5 sets
Lying Leg Curls 5 sets
Calf Raises 5 sets

Wednesday (8-10 reps)/Saturday (12-15 reps)
Triset:
Incline Bench Press 5 sets
Barbell Curls 5 sets
Chest Dips 5 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Bench Press 5 sets
Hammer Curls 5 sets
Triceps Pushdowns 5 sets




Week 3
Monday (10-12 reps)/Thursday (8-10 reps)
Triset:
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front 6 sets
Bent Over Laterals 6 sets
Reverse Wrist Curls 6 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Chin-ups (palms facing you) 6 sets
Shoulder Press (Substitute with Upright Rows on Thursday workout) 6 sets
Wrist Curls 6 sets

Tuesday (10-12 reps)/Friday (8-10 reps)
Triset:
Barbell Lunges 6 sets
Lying Leg Curls 6 sets
Calf Raises 6 sets

Triset:
Leg Extensions 6 sets
Lying Leg Curls 6 sets
Calf Raises 6 sets

Wednesday (10-12 reps)/Saturday (8-10 reps)
Triset:
Incline Bench Press 6 sets
Barbell Curls 6 sets
Chest Dips 6 sets

Triset:
Close Grip Bench Press 6 sets
Hammer Curls 6 sets
Triceps Pushdowns 6 sets


Weeks 4-6
Monday/Thursday
Modified Triset:
Wide Grip Pull-up to Front 4 sets
Incline Bench Press 4 sets
Reverse Wrist Curls 4 sets

Modified Triset:
Close Grip Chin-ups (palms facing you) 4 sets
Bench Press 4 sets
Wrist Curls 4 sets

Tuesday/Friday
Modified Triset:
Barbell Lunges 4 sets
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets
Calf Raises 4 sets

Modified Triset:
Leg Extensions 4 sets
Lying Leg Curls 4 sets
Calf Raises 4 sets

Wednesday/Saturday
Modified Triset:
Shoulder Press (Substitute with Upright Rows on Thursday workout) 4 sets
Barbell Curls 4 sets
Chest Dips 4 sets

Modified Triset:
Bent Over Lateral Raises 4 sets
Close Grip Bench Press 4 sets
Hammer Curls 4 sets



Notes:
a)Rest 1 minute in between trisets.

b)Rest 1 minute in between exercises that compose a modified triset. For example:
Shoulder Press 1 set of 10-12 reps (rest 1 minute)
Barbell Curls 1 set (rest 1 minute)
Chest Dips 1 set (rest 1 minute)
Go back to Shoulder Press and repeat the sequence three more times for a total of 4 sets.

c)For weeks 4 to 6 follow the repetition scheme below:
Week 4: Mon, Tue, Wed: 10-12 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 8-10
Week 5: Mon, Tue, Wed: 5-7 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 10-12
Week 6: Mon, Tue, Wed: 8-10 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 5-7

d)After Week 6, go to Active Recovery and then start over. You may wish to substitute some exercises in favor of others for variety purposes.

e)Repetitions schemes do not apply to forearm exercises, abs or calves. For such exercises just do as many repetitions as possible.


Some Thoughts On My Workout
Right now I am about to embark in Week 4. One thing that I will go back to is doing the Chest and Back , Shoulders and Arms, and Legs combination. Reason# 1 is because you cannot use modified trisets with any other combination as you would not get the enhanced nervous system recovery that you get when you pair agonists and antagonist muscles. Reason #2 is because this is my favorite split (so next Loading Phase I will use this split as well). There is nothing like feeling a combined pump on both your chest and back.

As far as workout length, these workouts can be performed in between 45 to 60 minutes at the most. Your high repetition days will obviously take you closer to 60 minutes while your low repetition days will keep you closer to 45 minutes. In addition to the weight training workouts, I am also doing 20 minutes of cardio first thing in the morning 3 times a week (on these days, I do my weight training in the afternoon. Otherwise, I do it in the morning). Right before the cardio I do my Ab Workout which consists of three exercises:

Triset:
Hanging Leg Raises
Leg Raises Crunch
Knee-Ins

Week 1: 3 sets of each for as many repetitions as possible.
Week 2: 4 sets of each for as many repetitions as possible.
Week 3: 5 sets of each for as many repetitions as possible.
Weeks 4-6: 3 sets of each for as many repetitions as possible in modified triset fashion.

This ab/cardio workout takes between 30-40 minutes to complete. Abs are only done on the days that cardio is performed and always before the cardio workout.


Why Short Workouts?
If you have read my writings you know that I recommend workouts no longer than 75 minutes as research indicates that after that time anabolic hormones decline. I have also found that by keeping that rule of thumb my advice works on everyone. However, that does not mean that I condemn High Volume workouts. As a matter of fact I enjoy doing higher volume workouts (Dave Draper style). Basically, once you are an advanced bodybuilder you know what your tolerance to volume is. By having that piece of information you can play around and push the envelope so to speak. Some people have more tolerance to volume than others, so it's really a matter of finding out how much you can tolerate before you start breaking down muscle tissue. Usually I find that I can do very high volume workouts for about 5-6 weeks before I start burning out. At that time, I just cut back on volume, go into a Growth Phase and then the overtraining symptoms disappear. This time, due to lack of time, I decided to stick with a more conservative (by the rules) Loading Phase.


How Can You Apply the Cycling Principle to Your Favorite Routine?
Easy. I'll use Dave's favorite routine as an example. In his book ("Brother Iron Sister Steel") Dave describes his favorite routine as the following:

MONDAY
CHEST & SHOULDERS & BACK
Seated Front Press (3-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 6)
tri-setted with
Wide Grip Pulldowns (3-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 8)
and
Standing Bentover Lateral Raises (3-5x6-8)
Dumbbell Press (4-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 6)
tri-setted with
Dumbbell Pullovers (4-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 6)
and
Seated Lat Row (4-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 6)

TUESDAY
LEGS
Leg Extensions (3-5x10-12)
tri-setted with
Leg Curls (3-5x8-12)
and
Calf Raises (3-5x15-20)
Squats (5-7x15, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 6)
Deadlifts (5x10, 8, 6, 6, 6)

WEDNESDAY
ARMS
Rubber tubing rotator cuff work,
5x adductor, 5x abductor
Wrist Curls (3-5x20, 15, 15, 15, 15)
tri-setted with
Thumbs Up curl (3-5x10, 8, 8, 8, 6)
and
Pulley Pushdowns (3-5x12-15)
Bent Bar Curls (3-5x6-8)
supersetted with
Dips (3-5x12-15)
Dumbbell Alternate Curls (3-5x6-8)
supersetted with
Overhead or Lying Triceps Extensions (3-5x12, 10, 8, 8, 8)

THURSDAY
OFF

FRIDAY
UPPER BODY
Front Press (4x12, 10, 8, 6)
supersetted with
Pulldowns (4x12, 10, 8, 6)
Dumbbell Inclines (4x12, 10, 8, 6)
supersetted with
Pullovers (4x12, 10, 8, 6)
Dumbbell Rows (4x8)
Dumbbell Alternate Curls (4x12, 10, 8, 6)
tri-setted with
Dips (4xMax)
and
Pulley Pushdowns (4x12)

SATURDAY
LEGS
Same as earlier leg day
Light Deadlifts (5x8)
supersetted with
Rope Tucks (5x25)

Since Dave is an extremely experienced bodybuilder he can cycle his workouts based on the cues that his body sends him. After decades of lifting you know when you are approaching overtraining, when its time to ramp up the volume and when its time to back out. Therefore, DaveÂ’s form of cycling is instinctive. Less experienced lifters can apply the cycling principle in the following manner:

Loading Phase:
a)For weeks 1 to 3 follow the repetition scheme below:
Week 1: Mon, Tue, Wed: 12-15 repetitions
Fri, Sat: 10-12
Week 2: Mon, Tue, Wed: 8-10 repetitions
Fri, Sat: 12-15 repetitions
Week 3: Mon, Tue, Wed: 10-12 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 8-10

b)For weeks 1 to 3 follow the set scheme below:
Week 1: Mon, Tue, Wed: 3 sets
Fri, Sat: 3 sets
Week 2: Mon, Tue, Wed: 4 sets
Fri, Sat: 4 sets
Week 3: Mon, Tue, Wed: 5 sets
Fri: 4 sets (5 sets if you can tolerate it)
Sat: 5 sets
c)Cardio and abs can be performed first thing in the morning on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Growth Phase:
a)For weeks 4 to 6 follow the repetition scheme below:
Week 4: Mon, Tue, Wed: 10-12 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 8-10
Week 5: Mon, Tue, Wed: 5-7 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 10-12
Week 6: Mon, Tue, Wed: 8-10 repetitions
Thur, Fri, Sat: 5-7

b)After Week 6, go to Active Recovery and then start over.

c)For weeks 4 to 6 do 3 sets per exercise and use modified supersets or trisets.

d)Repetitions schemes do not apply to forearm or rotator cuff exercises, abs or calves. For such exercises just do as many repetitions as possible.

e)Cardio and abs can be performed first thing in the morning on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.


Final Thoughts
So there you have it. I hope that after this article you start implementing the cycling principle in your workouts as this technique will allow gains to come on a consistent basis.

Next week I'll discuss the do's and don'ts of aerobic training.

Until Then,
Take Care and Train Hard!