Joe DeFranco’s Westside for Skinny
Bastards 3
MONDAY – Max-Effort
Upper Body
TUESDAY – Dynamic-Effort Lower Body
WEDNESDAY –
Off
THURSDAY – Repetition Upper Body
FRIDAY – Max-Effort Lower Body
SATURDAY – Off
SUNDAY – Off
You can also split up the training like this…
MONDAY – Max-Effort Lower Body
TUESDAY – Off
WEDNESDAY – Max-Effort Upper Body
THURSDAY – Off
FRIDAY – Dynamic-Effort Lower Body
SATURDAY – Off
SUNDAY – Repetition Upper Body
MONDAY
– Max-Effort Upper Body
A.
Max-Effort Exercise – work up to a max set of 3-5 reps in one of the following
exercises:
o Thick
bar or regular barbell bench press
o Barbell
floor press
o Incline
barbell bench press (regular grip or close grip)
o Close-grip
bench press (index finger on smooth part of bar)
o Weighted
chin-ups
o Board
presses or foam presses
o Chain
bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
o Band
bench press (*recommended for not-so-skinny bastards)
B.
Supplemental Exercise – perform 2 sets of max reps in
one of the following exercises. (Choose a weight you can perform for 15-20 reps
on the 1st set. Use the same weight for both sets and rest 3-4 minutes between
sets).
o Flat DB
bench press (palms in or out)
o Incline
DB bench press (palms in or out)
o DB
floor press (palms in)
o Barbell
push-ups (wearing weighted vest)
o Blast
strap push-ups (wearing weighted vest)
o Chin-ups
(don’t perform these if you chose to do weighted chin-ups for your first
exercise)
C.
Horizontal pulling / Rear delt superset – Superset one exercise from “Group 1” with one exercise
from “Group 2.” Perform 3-4 supersets of 8-12 reps of each exercise.
o Group 1
§ DB rows
§ Barbell
rows
§ Seated
cable rows (various bars)
§ T-bar
rows
§ Chest
supported rows
o Group 2
§ Rear
delt flyes
§ Scarecrows
§ Face
pulls
§ Seated
DB “power cleans”
§ Band
pull-aparts
D.
Traps – Perform 3 – 4 sets of 8-15 reps of one of the following
exercises:
o DB
shrugs
o Barbell
shrugs
o Safety
squat bar shrugs
o Behind
the back barbell shrugs
E.
Elbow flexor exercise – Perform 3-4 sets of 8-15 reps
of one of the following exercises:
o Barbell
curls (regular or thick bar)
o DB
curls (standing)
o Seated
Incline DB curls
o Hammer
curls
o Zottmann
curls
o Iso-hold
DB curls
TUESDAY
– Dynamic-Effort Lower Body
A.
Jump training – choose one of the following exercises and perform 5-8 sets of
1-3 jumps:
o Vertical
jumps
o Broad
jumps
o Hurdle
hops (jump over hurdle and land on ground)
B.
Unilateral exercise (w/ added ROM) – choose one of the following
exercises and perform 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps:
o Barbell
reverse lunge, front foot elevated
o Barbell
reverse lunge w/ knee lift (front foot elevated)
o Step-ups
(box height slightly above knee)
C.
Hip extension exercise – choose one of the following
exercises and perform 3 sets of 8-12 reps:
o 45-degree
hyperextensions
o Reverse
hyperextensions
o Pull-throughs
o Swiss
ball back bridge + leg curl
o Glute-ham
raises
o Romanian
deadlift
o Forward
sled dragging, upright posture (3 sets of 30 yards)
D.
Weighted Abdominals – choose one of the following exercises and perform 4 sets of
10-15 reps:
o DB side
bends
o Offset
barbell side bends
o Barbell
Russian twists
o Low
cable or band pull-ins
o Hanging
leg raises
o Weighted
Swiss ball crunches
o Spread-eagle
sit-ups (holding DB over chest)
o Standing
sit-ups (using a band or a high pulley)
THURSDAY
– Repetition Upper Body
A.
Repetition Exercise – choose one of the following exercises and perform 3 sets of max
reps OR 4
sets of 12-15 reps:
o Flat DB
bench press (palms in or out)
o Incline
DB bench press (palms in or out)
o DB
bench press on Swiss ball (palms in or out)
o DB
floor press (palms in)
o Push-up
variations
o Chin-up
variations
B.
Vertical pulling / Rear delt superset – Superset one exercise from “Group 1” with one exercise
from “Group 2.” Perform 3-4 supersets of 8-12 reps of each exercise.
o Group 1
§ Lat
pulldowns (various bars)
§ Chin-ups
(don’t perform these if you chose to do chin-ups for your first exercise)
§ Straight
arm pulldowns
o Group 2
§ Rear
delt flyes
§ Scarecrows
§ Face
pulls
§ Seated
DB “power cleans”
§ Band
pull-aparts
C.
Medial delts – choose one of the following exercises and perform 4 sets of 8-12
reps:
o DB
lateral raises
o L-lateral
raises
o Cable
lateral raises
o DB
military press
o DB side
press
D.
Traps / Arms superset – Superset one exercise from
“Group 1” with one exercise from “Group 2.” Perform 3 supersets.
o Group 1 (Perform 8-10 reps)
§ DB
shrugs
§ Barbell
shrugs
§ Safety
squat bar shrugs
§ Behind
the back barbell shrugs
o Group 2
§ Barbell
curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ DB
curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ Seated
Incline DB curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ Hammer
curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ Zottmann
curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ Iso-hold
DB curls (8-10 reps each set)
§ DB
triceps extensions (10-15 reps each set)
§ Triceps
pushdowns (15-25 reps each set)
E.
Grip / Forearms – choose one of the following exercises:
o Wrist
roller (2-3 sets of 2-3 reps)
o Thick
bar or heavy DB holds (2-3 sets of max time)
o Plate
pinch gripping (2-3 sets of 2-3 reps)
o Captains
of Crush gripper (3 sets of max reps each hand)
o Rice
digs (3 timed sets)
FRIDAY
– Max-Effort Lower Body
A.
MAX-EFFORT LIFT – work up to a max set of 3-5 reps in one of the following
exercises:
o Free
squats (regular bar, safety squat bar, cambered bar, buffalo
bar)
o Straight
bar deadlifts (traditional style, sumo style)
o Rack
pulls (partial deadlifts)
o Tire
flip – (remember, your max-effort lifts don’t necessarily have
to be limited to just barbell exercises!)
*Bands
and/or chains can be incorporated into all of the above exercises for the
not-so-skinny bastards reading this article.
B.
UNILATERAL MOVEMENT – choose one of the following exercises and perform 3 sets
of 6-12 reps:
o Bulgarian
split squat variation (holding DB’s or with a barbell)
o Reverse
lunge variation
o Step-up
variation
o Walking
lunges
o Backward
sled drags (3 sets of 30 yards)
o Forward
sled drags, 45-degree angle (3 sets of 30 yards)
C.
HAMSTRING / POSTERIOR CHAIN MOVEMENT – choose one of the following exercises and perform 3 sets
of 8-12 reps:
o 45-degree
hyperextensions
o Reverse
hyperextensions
o Pull-throughs
o Swiss
ball back bridge + leg curl
o Glute-ham
raises
o Romanian
deadlifts
o Forward
sled dragging (upright posture)
