DeFranco's WS4SB Exercise Suggestions

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    Rack lockouts / Suspended chain lockouts

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)

o    Reverse 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    “Criss-cross” chain push-ups

o    “Triceps death”

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    Box jumps

o    Vertical jumps

o    Broad jumps

o    Hurdle hops (jump over hurdle and land on ground)

o    Box squat into box jump

o    Depth jumps (onto box)

o    Weighted Reactive box jumps

B.   Unilateral exercise (w/ added ROM) – choose one of the following exercises and perform 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps:

o    Bulgarian split squats, front leg elevated (holding DB’s or with a barbell)

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

o    Barbell bench press (55-60% of 1RM)

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    Box squats (regular bar, safety squat bar, cambered bar, buffalo bar)

o    Free squats (regular bar, safety squat bar, cambered bar, buffalo bar)

o    Straight bar deadlifts (traditional style, sumo style)

o    Trap Bar deadlifts

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)

D.   Ground-based, high-rep abdominal circuit – Example: sprinter sit-ups, V-ups, toe touches, hip thrusts. Perform 10-20 reps of each exercise and go through the circuit 2-3 times. Rest 1-2 minutes between circuits.