Training Template for New Blood

I am writing this on someone's request. This is a basic training plan meant for someone who has never engaged in serious training. It covers a year of training.

Before I lay out the basic template, I want to clear a few concepts.
1. This template is based on training all basic movement patterns. If you have specific problems, please clear this and personalize it with an experienced trainee/ trainer.
2. While there is no such thing as a one size fits all training template, this one will give all fresh trainees who have no debilitating physical problems good scope to progress. It is very hard to mess up.
3. Confidence is key to this program. Every set that you perform, must be done only until technical failure i.e when your technique begins to deteriorate significantly. Do not push beyond this point.
4. Gains in this system are dependent on how well you perform every rep. Your mind must be clear, your focus on both the movement and the muscle and on full contraction and relaxation.
5. Reps= Number of repetitions performed. Sets= Number of time the exercise is attempted. Therefore 3 sets of 5 means you will perform the movement for 5 repetitions 3 times.
6. There are 4 elements to the system. Strength training, which will take care of your muscular strength and size, you neural efficiency and your connective tissue strength. Tissue work (massage, ball and foam rolling), which will remove all adhesions and scar tissue and will rejuvenate the entire muscular and skeletal system. Stretching and mobility work, and cardiovascular work.

Let us now first define the template:

Phase I

In this phase the emphasis is on tissue work and flexibility and mobility work. This will last 4 weeks.

You will perform 3 workouts a week on non-consecutive days. There are 2 workouts given below (A and B). You will alternate between them. Thus, you will perform each workout 3 times in a 2 week period.

Exercise descriptions will be given at the end of the post.

Workout A
Tissue Work:
Thoracic Mobility Drill With Ball- 1 Set
Foam rolling of I.T band- 2 Sets each side
Foam Rolling of Lats and Upper Back- 1 set
Foam Rolling of Pectorals and Deltoids- 1 Set
Foam Rolling of Glutes and Hamstrings- 1 Set
Foam Rolling Of Hip Flexors and Rectus Femoris- 2 sets
Foam Rolling Of Quadriceps- 2 Sets
Foam Rolling Of Calves- 2 Sets
Foam Rolling of Lower Back- 1 Set

Flexibility:
Standing Toe Touch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Half Kneeling Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 reps
Rear Foot Elevated Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Seated Toe Touch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Standing Groin Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Side Bends- 3 sets of 3 Reps per side
Camel Hold- 3 Sets of 1 rep
Twist Hold- 3 Sets of 1 Rep per side
Kneeling Overhead Stretch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Overhead Stretch Against Wall- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Wall Slide- 1 set of 3 reps
Ankle Mobility Drill- 2 sets of 5 reps

The entire Workout up till now should not take more than 10 mins. While it may appear like a lot of movements, you will be able to do them fairly rapidly. Do not waste time.

Strength Training-

High Incline Push Ups- 3 Sets of 20-40 (Depending of when you reach Technical Failure)
Knee Tucks- 3 Sets of 15-40

Remember to Synchronize your breathing. Exhale while contracting your muscles, hold at the top and bottom and inhale while relaxing/lengthening them.

Workout B

The Tissue and Flexibility work is the same as Workout A except instead of a foam roller you will use a lacrosse ball.

Strength Training
High Incline Rows- 3 Sets of 15-40
Jack knife Squats- 3 sets of 15-40
Short Bridges- 3 Sets of 20-40

Phase 2
This phase will focus on strength training. It will last 12 weeks.

You will exercise 4 days a week. The pattern is-
Workout A
Workout B
Rest Day
Workout A
Workout B
Rest Day
Rest Day

For strength Training-
Every Exercise has a rep Range Given (ex. 15-30). When you begin exercising, use the hardest variation of the movement (progressions/variations are given at the end of the post) that you can manage for the given number of sets for the minimum number of repetitions in that rep range. For example 3 sets of 10-20 means that you use the hardest variation that you can use for at least 3 sets of 10 reps.

When you can complete all the sets with the maximum reps, move on to the next and harder variation. Start over with the minimum reps with the new variation.

I advise that all trainees exercise caution when selecting the starting variation and select a variation which the can comfortably handle for the given minimum reps. Completing the minimum reps should not feel more than a 70% effort. This way you will progress faster and smoother over time.

Resist the temptation to add sets in this phase. We want a lot of quality work done and we are still building a base of good movement habits. Pushing too much volume will only jeopardize your efforts. We are not yet going all out.

Do not rest more than 4 mins between sets. A 2 min break should be the minimum. You need to be able to complete every rep and set with perfect technique.

Keep a log book and attempt to beat you numbers every workout. If you did 3 sets of 5 for a certain movement last time, this time do 5,6, 5. If you are feeling really strong try 6, 6, 6. In the initial few months of your training, you will be able to advance forward and beat the log book every workout. Take full advantage of this phase, but never push beyond technical failure. In this phase, relatively higher reps will yield better results.

Put your heart and soul into every repetition. Think of it as a way to explore your body and understand yourself. The greater the concentration and mental effort you put into every rep, the faster your progress will be and the smoother your progress will feel.

Just because you are not going beyond technical failure, does not mean you are not working hard. As you approach technical failure in every set, tighten every muscle in your body and try to perfect every repetition and tighten up your form even more. This will get harder to do as the set progresses, but stay at it. Do not demonstrate blind endurance by just pushing yourself to do more reps to the point of failure. Instead seek to perfect every rep even more as you fatigue. This will be much harder to do than to just churn out reps. But do not let technical failure just set in- fight it and use every inch of your concentration to maintain perfect technique. This is the way to push yourself. When even with your best efforts you cannot maintain good form, stop.

Workout A
Tissue Work
Thoracic Mobility Drill With Ball- 1 Set
Foam rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of I.T band- 1 Set each side with each (Foam roller and ball)
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massageof Lats and Upper Back- 1 set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Pectorals and Deltoids- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Glutes and Hamstrings- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Hip Flexors and Rectus Femoris- 2 sets with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Quadriceps- 2 Sets with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Calves- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Lower Back- 1 Set with each

All tissue work drills should not take more than 10 mins.

Strength Training-
Warm up with 1 to 2 sets of 8- 10 of a variation that is at least 2 steps easier than the one you are working with.
Push Ups- 3 Sets (not including warm up sets) of 8-30
Squats- 3 Sets of 15-40
Leg Raises- 3 Sets of 8-25

Workout B
Flexibility and Mobility Training
Standing Toe Touch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Half Kneeling Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 reps
Rear Foot Elevated Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Seated Toe Touch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Standing Groin Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Side Bends- 3 sets of 3 Reps per side
Camel Hold- 3 Sets of 1 rep
Twist Hold- 3 Sets of 1 Rep per side
Kneeling Overhead Stretch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Overhead Stretch Against Wall- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Wall Slide- 1 set of 3 reps
Stool Bridge Hold- 3 Sets of 1 Reps
Ankle Mobility Drill- 2 sets of 5 reps

Strength Training
Warm up with 1 to 2 sets of 8- 10 of a variation that is at least 2 steps easier than the one you are working with.
Horizontal Rows- 3 Sets of 8-25
Pull Ups- 3 Sets of 4-15
Bridges- 3 Sets of 8-20

By the end of this phase you should be able to perform 10 perfect push ups, 20 perfect standard squats, 15 perfect straight legged lying leg raises, 5 perfect  head bridges, 2 chin ups, and 15 perfect bodyweight rows from waist height.

Phase III
In this phase, the priority is on basic strength training and we also introduce cardiovascular conditioning.

This phase will last 8 weeks.

We will raise the intensity and increase the sets and reduce the reps.

We will continue strength training 4 days a week. We will add 2 cardio workouts a week.

Workout A
Workout B
Cardio Workout
Workout A
Workout B
Cardio Workout
Rest

Workout A
Tissue Work
Thoracic Mobility Drill With Ball- 1 Set
Foam rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of I.T band- 1 Set each side with each (Foam roller and ball)
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massageof Lats and Upper Back- 1 set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Pectorals and Deltoids- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Glutes and Hamstrings- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Hip Flexors and Rectus Femoris- 2 sets with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Quadriceps- 2 Sets with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage Of Calves- 1 Set with each
Foam Rolling and Lacrosse ball massage of Lower Back- 1 Set with each

All tissue work drills should not take more than 10 mins.

Strength Training-
Warm up with 1 to 2 sets of 8- 10 of a variation that is at least 2 steps easier than the one you are working with.
Push Ups- 5 Sets (not including warm up sets) of 5-20
Squats- 5 Sets of 8-30
Leg Raises- 3 Sets of 5-20

Workout B
Flexibility and Mobility Training
Standing Toe Touch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Half Kneeling Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 reps
Rear Foot Elevated Lunge Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Seated Toe Touch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Standing Groin Stretch- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Side Bends- 3 sets of 3 Reps per side
Camel Hold- 3 Sets of 1 rep
Twist Hold- 3 Sets of 1 Rep per side
Kneeling Overhead Stretch- 3 sets of 3 reps
Overhead Stretch Against Wall- 3 Sets of 3 Reps
Wall Slide- 1 set of 3 reps
Stool Bridge Hold- 3 Sets of 1 Reps
Ankle Mobility Drill- 2 sets of 5 reps

Strength Training
Warm up with 1 to 2 sets of 8- 10 of a variation that is at least 2 steps easier than the one you are working with.
Horizontal Rows- 5 Sets of 4-15
Pull Ups- 5 Sets of 3-12
Bridges- 5 Sets of 5-20

Cardio Workout-

Jogging for 40-45 mins. Focus on good running technique. Do not run very fast. You are not trying to get tired you are trying to develop good running habits and build basic conditioning.

By the end of this phase, you should be able to perform a set of 25 standard push ups, 50 standard squats, 10 hanging knee raises, 8 pull ups, 15 head bridges and 20 feet elevated horizontal rows.

By this time you would have completed close to 5 and a half months of training.

Phase IV and V will be covered in the Next Post.

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Exercise Progressions-

Push Ups- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-push-up.html
If kneeling Push ups are too hard begin with incline push ups. Simply find a stable object about waist height and place you hands on it at shoulder width. Follow the standard instructions for push ups given in the link. Be sure that at the starting position your body is close to 45 degrees to the floor.
High incline pushups in Phase one are the same thing, except using an object at least sternum high.

Squats-
The first few steps are given in the post- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2013/01/flexibility-training-preventing-and.html
After full squats refer to- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-squat.html

Bridges-
http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2013/03/the-ultimate-exercise-bridge.html

Horizontal Rows and Pull Ups-
http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-pull-up.html
Horizontal Rows can be made harder by lowering the base and easier by using a higher base. You will not be able to keep lowering the base as after a point, your back will touch the floor. To increase difficulty further, you can elevate the feet.

All the pull up exercises are given in the post. The progression is,
Underhand Grip Medium Pull Up negatives
Top Half Medium Grip Underhand Chin Ups
Pull Up Negatives
Full ROM Medium Grip Chin Ups
From Here the post is clear about the progression.

For advanced variations- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-one-arm-chin-up.html

Leg Raises-
In all variations of lying leg raises, it is important to keep your lower back in contact with/presses into the ground throughout each rep.
Seated Knee Tucks
Lying Knee Raises
Lying Bent Leg raises
Lying Frog Raises
Lying Straight Leg Raises
Hanging Knee Raises
Hanging Bent Leg Raises
Hanging Frog Raises
Hanging Leg Raises

I will add exercise descriptions shortly.

The 3-5 System

Last weekend I held my very first Advanced Knowledge Seminar. Only 3 people came but it was worth it. On the second day of the seminar one of the participants asked me for a simple programming template that can be used by any beginner endlessly for 3-4 years without worrying about periodization or cycling too much. After that of course, everyone needs to form their own training philosophy, but I gave the creation of such a template my best shot.

The objectives of this system is to Maximize strength and Size gains and have decent conditioning. 

I call it the 3-5 system. 

Very Simply, pick 3-5 exercises that work the entire body in combination. These are your main exercises.

Pick 2 small exercises to target weak points and areas of attention. They have to be really small exercises. We will call them secondary exercises.

Perform 3-5 sets of each main exercise. At least one of these sets must be a warm up set. 

Do 3-5 reps per set. 

Take 3-5 mins break between Sets. 

Rest 3-5 days between workouts.

Do 3-5 mins of general warm up.

End every session with 3-5 mins of 3-5 stretches for the whole body. 

Do conditioning sessions 1-3 days every week. (Sorry but this one cannot be fit into the 3-5 range).

Pick one conditioning exercise and perform 3-5 bouts of 3-5 mins each of intense conditioning. 

Change all the variables every 3-5 weeks. 

The secondary exercises must be performed after the main workout for 2 sets of 10-50 reps. 

Its a very simple system. And the slight change in Rep and Set protocols every 3-5 weeks prevents staleness, as well as the change in the number of exercises and the exercises themselves. When you want an easy phase, pick 3 exercises, do 3 sets of 5 reps and rest 5 days. Pick the easy compound exercises from the list below for that phase. When you want to push it hard, pick 5 exercises, all hard, do 5 sets of 3 reps and rest 3 days. 

Keep alternating between an easy combination of the variables and a hard combination. But no matter what you do, as long as you stick to the basic template, you will be working your Max Strength and Hypertrophy.

The conditioning template also makes sure you are doing something, and since you have to change the variables every 3-5 weeks there as well (along with the whole program) you will get decent conditioning variety. 

You may pick the following exercises and NO other. Learn the proper form and execute every exercise to the best of your ability. 

Main Strength Exercises (In no particular Order)-
Lower Body

1. Barbell Back Squat- Heel Elevated Hamstrings Touching Calves, Olympic Style

2. Powerlifting Back Squat

3. Front Squats

4. Overhead Squats

5. Pistol/Bodyweight Squats

6. Bulgarian Split Squats

7. Weighted Step Ups with a high stool

8. Trap Bar Deadlifts

9. Conventional Deadlifts

10. Sumo Deadlifts

11. Clean Grip Deadlifts

12. Snatch Grip Deadlifts
13. Deficit Deadlifts
14. RDLs
15. Good Mornings
16. Skater Squats/ King Squats/ Flying Lunges/ Shrimp Squats
17. Bridges
18. Barbell Hip Thrust
19. Ham Glute Raise
20. Sliding Leg Curls

Upper Body-
1. Chin Up/ Weighted Pull Ups
2. Military Press
3. Dumbell Military Press
4. Arnold Press
5. Handstand Pushups
6. One Arm Barbell Press
7. Tiger Bends
8. Bench Press
9. Push Ups
10. Incline Press
11. Decline Press
12. Parallel bar Dips
13. Straight Bar Dips
14. Front Levers
15. Bodyweight rows
16. Dumbell Row
17. Bent Over Row
18. T- Bar Rows
19. Sternum Chin Ups
20. Cable Rows
21. Chest Supported Rows

Others
1. Bent Press
2. Turkish Get Up
3. Clean and Press
4. Roman Chair Sit Ups
5. Leg Raises
6. Ab Roller with weighted vests
7. L- Sits
8. Planche Holds
9. Muscle Ups- Slow to medium

Secondary Exercises-
1. Hyperextensions
2. Reverse Hyperextenstions
3. Posterior Delt Fly
4. Lateral Raises
5. Straight Bar Curls
6. Standing Calf Raises
7. French Press
8. Leg Curls
9. Hack Squats
10. Sissy Squats
11. Swiss Ball Crunches
12. Incline Sit Ups
13. Reverse Curls
14. Dumbell Curls
15. Zottaman Curls
16. EZ bar curls
17. Skull Crushers
18. Knee Tucks
19. Planks
20. Pinch Gripping
21. Wrist Roller
22. Lying, standing and seated external rotations with a dumbell
23. Cable Pull Throughs
24. Heavy Kettlebell and dumbell Swings
25. Hospital Deadlifts
26. Heel Walking

Conditioning Exercises-
1. Sprints
2. Hill Sprints
3. Stadium Sprints
4. Kettlebell Snatch and clean and jerk
5. Farmer's Walk
6. Sledge Hammer Drills
7. Sandbag Carry
8. Tire Flipping
9. Prowler
10. Sledge Pushing
11. High Repetition Squats, with/ without weights
12. Hurdles
13. Car Pushing
14. Cycle Sprints
15. Wood Cutting
16. Stone Braking
17. Stone Throwing
18. Boxing

You can pick any stretches you want.

There is so much variety in your choices for a reason. Dont be the guy who chooses to do heavy conventional deadlifts phase after phase without respite. You must always stick with the basics, but it is important to pick easy exercises once in a while in order to give your body time to recover.

At the same time, dont be the pansy who chooses Decline presses and cable rows phase after phase.

I have given a few core/torso training options as well in the others section of the Main lifts. This is because in some people their torso strength is holding them back and they need to be hammered seriously for a phase or 2. Just dont become an ab specialist by devoting 7 phases to Roman Chair Sit ups.

You have to be real honest with your secondary exercises. Always pick those exercises that strengthen your weaknesses. Most guys will never get around to doing important things like grip training. If you know you need it, pick Reverse Curls and Pinch gripping instead of EZ bar curls. If you are prone to shoulder problems pick Posterior Delt Flys and External rotations.

I will not be so dogmatic as to say you must pick one pressing and one pulling exercise every single phase, but in the long run, if you under develop one group, you are going to suffer. If you emphasize pulling one phase, do pushing next. Make sure that in the medium and long term, your upper body pushing and pulling power, and your lower body squatting and hinging power are in reasonable balance. If you can only do 3 chin ups but 50 pushups, you are headed for trouble.

Keep it simple, this is a very difficult program to mess up.

Program For the Cubicle Miner

A friend of mine at work asked me for a program appropriate for him. As all the programs I have posted here before were for either intermediate or advanced Athletes, I thought this should be interesting to post.

First of all a little background. The guy is a former national Karate Champion and was strong at the time. At a weight of 140-150 pounds he had a 185 bench press, a solid 225 parallel squat and could do a good 15-18 overhand pull ups. However he has not trained for years and has for the last 4-5 years been working in a completely sedentary job which requires him to sit in a hunched position for 10-11 hours at a stretch 5-6 days a week. He has the typical problems of people of this time- kyphosys, an anterior pelvic tilt, a lot of excess fat. In addition to these problems he also is suffering for a nagging knee pain in his left knee, which after some amount of analysis and experimentation, we have traced to a hamstring quadriceps imbalance. Leg curls and even isometric hamstring contractions provided immediate relief.

In addition to all this he wants to coach students of his martial arts school, and for the purpose wants to be in respectable shape- enough for him to perform all the required kicks and movements pain free and with some power. He would also like to have nice biceps.

First of all we need to make a priority list of all the things that need to be taken care of-
1. Knee pain needs to be eliminated
2. Postural Issues need to be fixed.
3. Basic Ligament, tendon and bone strength.
4. Basic Full body Strength
5. Strength Flexibility- Active Flexibility and mobility
6. Weight Loss
7. Strength Speed (A.k.a power)
8. Speed Strength (a.k.a speed)
9. Cardiovascular fitness and general Endurance

Let us list the good things about this guy- he has a very good training background and uses excellent technique. In addition he competed in and is still very skilled at a high skill sport, which means his motor learning curve for advanced movements is pretty high. Both these things mean we can use high skill movements (like Olympic lifts) without any fear and easy coaching. Secondly he has access to a gym pretty much all day (except during work of course). Also there is a beautiful running park across the street with excellent pull up, dip and other calisthenic facilities.

To address each issue, we are going to have a LOT of posterior chain work for him. Posterior chain work fixes 90% of the most common postural issues and muscle imbalances in most sedentary people. In addition we will do leg curls and external rotations to help these issues. We will also include a lot of active flexibility work for the hip flexors, quads, and the internal rotators and their "assistant" muscles.

To build ligament and bone strength we will use dead-lift lockouts with an extended hold at the top, for 2 reps a week. Supporting feats in general build a lot of bone and connective tissue strength, but require enormous rest periods and lots and lots of recovery. In addition the routine will ensure that there is sufficient time for the connective tissues to repair and heal, and not let the typical problem of muscles getting stronger and bigger too fast happen. In addition full ROM movements will be used for high repetitions to train the tendons and assist in the building of active flexibility. In addition to all this such workouts, done properly and not to fatigue, will enhance the healing rate of the connective tissues.

For basic full body strength we will use the most basic of routines, centered around the most important lifts for a person in his position- Standing Military Barbell and dumbbell presses, Dead-lifts of various kinds, Rows of various kinds- One arm dumbbell rows, barbell rows, bent-over rows. Secondary work will be full ROM squats (body-weight only- will work up the pistol squat progression over time to build knee stability), push ups, pull ups and abdominal work. Tertiary work will be calves and biceps.

We will use a separate conditioning routine for weight loss, centered around the dumbbell snatch which will kill 4 birds with one stone- Supplementary lower back work, weight loss, Speed- Strength and general cardiovascular fitness. Skipping with a rope will also be used to add a hopping/ knee centric variable.
As he has not worked out for years and he is currently grossly overweight and was formerly strong, initially we can expect to build muscle and burn a lot of fat at the same time. For him I would expect this phase to last 9-12 months, after which we can worry about periodizing it.

For strength-speed or power. we are going to use the power clean and the jerk from behind the neck. The power clean is an obvious choice for developing the rate of force development and general explosiveness. The jerk from behind the neck is an excellent exercise that has been lost in the depths of strength training history and has been completely eclipsed by the jumping squat. It can be coached much more easily than the regular jerk, allows you to use much more weight than the ordinary jerk, builds reflexive power and is really really safe and low hassle, unlike the jumping squat. Here you basically do exactly what you would do in a regular jumping back squat, except you jerk the weight overhead when you jump. Because of this, there is no impact or trauma on the spine and there is no fear of injury. Plus it requires almost no setup beyond a rack. Resetting is also easier as you just lower the weight down till it is back in the back squat position and repeat.

We will remain true to the basic principles of beginner (or in this case pseudo beginner) programming.
1. One fitness quality (or related qualities) every session.
2. Do not train any one quality hard more than once a week, maximum training is 2 times a week if a light or medium session is desired.
3. Train a variety of qualities as it is not yet the time for specialization.
4. Keep the trainee on his toes (or at-least let him think that he is) in order to satisfy beginner enthusiasm, but do it in a way such that recovery is not compromised at all and no strength quality is over trained and general over training is also avoided. This also helps lose fat in a healthy fashion as it helps add a lot of activity without stressing the overall system.
5. Timely layoffs are critical (goes for advanced athletes as well).
6. Keep the progression simple and understandable.
7. Do not change the program for the first 9-12 months of training. This is the time to build proficiency in the basics, understand the body and build a base. Advanced periodization and change of routines to avoid staleness are an intermediate and advanced problem. A beginner should not get bored by any one routine in the first 9 months, and base building requires consistency initially. The periodic layoffs are more than sufficient in order to prevent staleness in the beginner.
8. Always stress perfect form and stability over weight.
9. Correct posture is critical. Strength and endurance in the postural muscles must be built from the very beginning as later the gap between the big muscles and these muscles only widens. The postural muscles need an early start.
10. Balanced routines are critical. Once again this is the time to build a base. Specialization can always be done later, but base building can only be done now.

Keeping all the above factors in mind I have designed the following program.

The weights given are completely hypothetical. We will know what weights to use only after the workouts begin. The fact is for heavy exercises (below 5 reps a set) the weight must not be a bitter struggle but heavy enough to make 2 more reps in perfect form impossible. For example if you can do no more than 4 reps with good form in the military press with 100 pounds (40 kgs), then this is the weight you will use for your 2 rep sets.

We will use a simple double progression method of progression. Every workout will be recorded in a notebook. All reps are given in rep ranges for example- 5 sets of 3-5 reps. This means we will begin with performing 3 reps a set. Whenever he feels capable we will add reps to the exercise. It is not necessary to do so in all sets. For instance if workout one is 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 workout 2 could be 3, 4, 4, 3, 3. Even if one rep is added overall, it will be counted as progress. When he is able to complete all 5 sets using 5 reps, he will increase the weight of the exercise by 5 kgs for upper body exercises, 2.5 kgs for the one arm upper body exercises, and 5 Kgs for lower body exercises as well (we will use narrower rep ranges). He will now start over with the new weight, once again perming 5 sets of 3 reps and will work up to 5 sets of 5 reps once again and repeat.

In every workout, he has to improve only in one exercise. If for example a workout contains the military press, one arm dumbbell row and the dead-lift, even if he adds just one rep to one set of one exercise, he has beaten his previous entry for the same workout in the log book. What is important is that at-least this much has to happen every successive workout. He may (and probably will) try to do much more than this, but in general we will try to be conservative in the rate of progress. However this minimum progress is critical.

For the calisthenic/ body-weight exercises, when he reaches the weight increase standard for that exercise, he will progress to the next harder variation of the exercise given in my progressions. I have attached the link for my progressions for each body-weight exercise upon its first mention. Of course the rep ranges for these exercises will be quite broad.

Every 5th week, he will only do the Thursday and Friday sessions. The rest of the time he will try to rest as much as possible and try to not even think about exercise. This is his periodic layoff. 4 weeks of effort one total rest week.

Monday-
Morning/Evening (any One session)- Flexibility Training
http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2013/01/flexibility-training-preventing-and.html
Perform the 6 Flexibility exercises given in the post above. Progress according to the instructions given.

Tuesday-
Morning- Basic Strength and Connective Tissue Strength (Heavy Day)
Warm Up
Shoulder stretching (dislocates) with a bar or stick- 20 reps
Barbell Clean and Military Press (real strict- see post http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2013/02/shoulders.html)- 2 sets of 5 reps with a light weight- say 30kg first set, 35kg second set. 1 min breaks
One arm Bench supported Dumbbell Row to the lower abdomen. 2 sets of 5 reps with a light weight- say 15kg first set and 20 kg second set. 1 min breaks.
Work Sets-
There will be 3 min breaks between sets and we will alternate (not superset) between exercises.
5 sets of 3-4 reps- Barbell Clean and Military Press 40Kgs
5 sets of 3-5 reps- One arm Bench supported Dumbbell Row to the lower abdomen 22.5Kgs
Dead-lift Warm Up-
2 sets of 4 reps of conventional dead-lifts. 2 min breaks First set 65kg, second 75kg.
Dead-lift Work Sets
There will be 3 min breaks between sets and we will alternate (not superset) between variations.
3 sets of 2-4 reps- Conventional Dead-lifts 85 Kgs (overhand grip at-least initially- we will switch to alternate when an overhand grip is no longer possible. This goes for both variations)
3 sets of 2-4 reps- Sumo Dead-lifts 85 Kgs
Connective Tissue Dead-lift
The barbell will be elevated by either placing it on a bench or by placing the ends of the plates on more plates, or ideally a power rack. It has to be elevated enough such that the bar is 2 inches above the knee when standing straight next to it. This way when the barbell is dead-lifted from this position, it only has to be moved 2-3 inchs to lockout.
Lockout hold for 20 - 40 seconds. (when you hit 40 seconds, increase weight). 90 Kgs Conventional Style.
Secondary Strength Exercises-
2 min Break between sets
2 sets of 8-30 body-weight squats- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-squat.html
1 set of 5- 25 Push ups- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-push-up.html
1 set of 3-15 Pull Ups (plus a set of "prep work" if required see post)- http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-pull-up.html
2 sets of 10-25 roman chair sit ups. Weight will be added by holding a dumbbell with both hands. If he is not strong enough for roman chair sit ups, incline sit-ups will be substituted until he is doing 45 degree sit ups.
Tertiary Strength Exercises-
This is to be done after a good 20-30 min break after eating the post workout meal. These are optional and need to be done only if he has the time and excess energy.
1 min 30 second Breaks
3 sets of 8-14 reps Standing barbell bicep Curls- Military Style with no cheating at all. 25 Kgs
3 sets of 10-20 reps Standing Calf Raises off a block.

Evening- Strength Speed/ Power- Heavy
Warm Up- 
Power Cleans- 3 sets of 3 reps with a light weight say 25 Kgs, 30 kg and 30 Kg.
Work Sets
3 Min Breaks
3 sets of 2 reps Power Cleans- Say 35 Kgs
3 sets of 2 reps Behind the Neck Jerks- Say 40 Kgs

Wednesday
Morning- Fixing Postural Issues and Pain Prevention
Warm Up-
Light Bent over Dumbbell Rows-
2 sets of 8 reps - 10 Kg dumbbells.
Work Sets
External Rotations (weight increases will be 2 kgs when progression time comes)-
Lying Side External Rotation with Dumbbell-
3 sets of 8-15 reps. 2 Kgs.
Seated External Rotation to the front of the body with dumbbell-
3 sets of 8-15 reps. 2 Kgs.
Cuban Press (standing external rotation) with barbell-
3 sets of 8-15 reps. 8 Kgs
Leg Curl Warm Up-
2 sets of 8 reps- say 2 slabs on the machine
Work Sets
3 sets of 6-10 reps Leg Curls. Say 4 slabs.

Evening- Fatloss, Cardio, Speed Strength
Warm Up-
One arm Dumbbell Snatch
1 min breaks
2 sets of 8 per arm say a 10 kg dumbbell
Work Sets-
One arm Dumbbell snatch (progress by 2 kgs when the time comes)
1 min breaks
8 sets of 7-12 reps per arm. 14 kgs
8 sets of 50 reps Skipping
Cool Down-
2 mins slow skipping

Thursday
Morning- Tendon Strength, Connective Tissue Recovery, Full ROM training and mobility. 
Warm Up
Hospital Dead-lift (it is a round back dead-lift performed from a deficit with no unlocking of the knees)
It must be performed slowly with a good pause at the end points with absolutely no bounce.
2 sets of 10. Say first set 20kg, second 25kg. 2 min breaks
Work Sets
2 min breaks
2 sets of 10-35. Hospital Dead-lifts 30kg
2 sets of 10-35. Cross bench Dumbbell Pull Overs with absolutely full ROM. 10 Kgs
2 Sets of 10-35. Bottom Half Lying Leg raises off a bench such that the legs are off the bench and the upper body is on the bench. Lower the legs until there is a good stretch in the hip flexors and raise up only until the legs are parallel to the ground. Bend the knees to make the exercise easier in order to get the required reps. Straighten the legs progressively in order to increase the difficulty.
2 sets of 20-40. Dips until the mid chest is level with the parallel bars. perform slowly and with pauses at the end points. Place your legs on the ground or platform directly as if standing to assist if you are not strong enough. It will be easier than traditional bench dips and a lot healthier on the joints. Weight can be added using a belt.
2 sets of 15-40 per side. Side bends with dumbbells. bend over to one side until the dumbbell is level with the knees. 10Kgs each dumbbell
2 sets of 25-50 per side. Heel Elevated heels touching squat. Use the lat pulley to provide tailored assistance. Say 4 slabs on the machine.
2 sets of 30-60. Calf raises off a block.

Evening- Rest

Friday- 
Morning- Basic Strength and Connective Tissue Strength (Light Day)
Warm Up
Shoulder stretching (dislocates) with a bar or stick- 20 reps
Dumbbell Clean and Military Press- 2 sets of 5 reps with a light weight (HALF OF WHAT WAS USED ON TUESDAY- THIS GOES FOR ALL EXERCISES TODAY)- say 15kg (7.5 per dumbbell) first set, 20kg second set. 1 min breaks
Bent Over Barbell Row to the lower abdomen. 2 sets of 5 reps with a light weight- say 20kg first set and 30 kg second set. 1 min breaks.
Work Sets-
There will be 3 min breaks between sets and we will alternate (not superset) between exercises.
5 sets of 3-4 reps- Dumbbell Clean and Military Press 12.5Kgs per bell.
5 sets of 3-5 reps- Bent over Barbell Row to the lower abdomen 35 Kgs
Dead-lift Warm Up-
2 sets of 4 reps of conventional dead-lifts. 2 min breaks First set 45kg, second 55kg.
Dead-lift Work Sets
There will be 3 min breaks between sets and we will perform the variations in a series.
2 sets of 2-4 reps- Conventional Dead-lifts 70 Kgs
2 sets of 2-4 reps- Sumo Dead-lifts 70 Kgs
2 sets of 2-4 reps- Snatch grip Deadlifts 70 Kgs
Connective Tissue Dead-lift
The barbell will be elevated by either placing it on a bench or by placing the ends of the plates on more plates, or ideally a power rack. It has to be elevated enough such that the bar is 2 inches above the knee when standing straight next to it. This way when the barbell is dead-lifted from this position, it only has to be moved 2-3 inches to lockout.
Lockout hold for 20 - 40 seconds. (when you hit 40 seconds, increase weight). 80 Kgs Conventional Style.
Secondary Strength Exercises-
2 min Break between sets
He will Perform Exactly half the Number of Reps he Performed on Tuesday
2 sets of body-weight squats
1 set of Push ups
1 set of Pull Ups (plus a set of "prep work" if required)-
2 sets of Roman chair sit ups/ Incline board sit ups
Tertiary Strength Exercises-
This is to be done after a good 20-30 min break after eating the post workout meal. These are optional and need to be done only if he has the time and excess energy.
He will perform less sets today than Tuesday, but use the same weight and reps.
1 min 30 second Breaks
2 sets of 8-14 reps Standing barbell bicep Curls- Military Style with no cheating at all. 25 Kgs
2 sets of 10-20 reps Standing Calf Raises off a block.

Evening- Fixing Postural Issues and Pain Prevention
Lesser Sets will be performed today
Warm Up-
Light Bent over Dumbbell Rows-
2 sets of 8 reps - 10 Kg dumbbells.
Work Sets
External Rotations (weight increases will be 2 kgs when progression time comes)-
Lying Side External Rotation with Dumbbell-
2 sets of 8-15 reps. 2 Kgs.
Seated External Rotation to the front of the body with dumbbell-
2 sets of 8-15 reps. 2 Kgs.
Cuban Press (standing external rotation) with barbell-
2 sets of 8-15 reps. 8 Kgs
Leg Curl Warm Up-
2 sets of 8 reps- say 2 slabs on the machine
Work Sets
2 sets of 6-10 reps Leg Curls. Say 4 slabs.

Saturday
Morning/Evening (any One session)- Flexibility Training
http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2013/01/flexibility-training-preventing-and.html
Perform the 6 Flexibility exercises given in the post above. Progress according to the instructions given.

Sunday
Morning/Evening (any One Session)- Fatloss, Cardio, Speed Strength
Warm Up
Jog 400m
Work Sets
Sprint 400m
4 mins break
Sprint 300m
3 min break
Sprint 200m
2 min Break
Sprint 100m
1 min Break
Jog 500m

As you can see, I have concentrated a lot of the workload in the center of the week. While he is doing something everyday in order to satisfy his craving for hard work and activity, only 2 days- Tuesday and Wednesday are genuinely hard. All the other days are basically easy days that help in recovery and give him a  chance and a solid reason to be physically active. 

I would have split the two days much further apart, but he travels to his hometown every weekend and he does not have any equipment there. That is why Friday, Saturday and Sunday require little to no equipment. 

Everybody who reads this, please tell me what you think of the program and how do you think it can be improved. 

Routine For Beginners

A couple of my friends were working out with me a few days ago, and I needed to write a program for them, so I wrote them this letter.

Hi Guys!

I have just been doing a lot of thinking about programs for beginners and I though it may be useful if I shared the routine I have developed, along with my reasoning, on paper.

So the routine I have thought of is essentially a full body routine based around Squats, Overhead presses and Pull Ups. Secondary exercises shall be push ups and bent-over rows. We shall also follow the fundamental stretching exercises- bridges, toe touches and twist holds. 

First of all let me address the reasons why I have picked these exercises. 

The squat is the fundamental builder of strength. It exercises the thighs, the lower back, the spine, the calves and the upper back to a degree. Plus being a movement in which the entire body moves (i.e closed chain movement), the carry over of strength gained through squatting happens in almost every activity. 

The main variation we will be using is the front squat. (We used back squats in the last session). Basically after observing your squatting technique you guys have 3 problems- lack of hip flexibility, which prevents you from going deep, an unstable core (mid section) and lack of spinal strength. All these problems will be corrected by front squats, plus it also paves the way for the development of a solid back squat. 

We will also be practicing the Olympic back squat for one set every workout, to hone the technique, plus to get some high reps done. You can't do that with front squats. 

Overhead presses build powerful shoulders and when done properly strength all the scapula stabilizers, the traps, the rib-cage muscles, and the triceps and pecs. It opens up the entire shoulder girdle and strengthens the rotator cuff muscles when done properly. 90% of all shoulder problems among athletes nowadays come from starting hard and heavy with the bench press, having improper posture, weak external rotators and a lack of overhead flexibility. Intelligently used, overhead pressing can avoid most of these problems and reverse many of them. 

The overhead presses we will perform will be done with the feet together, knees, hips and abs locked, chest out and with a shoulder width grip pressing directly overhead in a natural fashion. That means no excessive splaying out of the elbows. Full lockout will be reached and held. No swaying or bending of the spine. Absolute stability. 

We will not clean and press the weight as we were last time. We will un-rack it from the incline rack and press directly. Learning how to clean the weight to the shoulder properly is too technical right now. 

Pull ups are an absolute must to both balance out the pressing work you are doing and to properly develop the upper body. The volume of pull ups we will do will at least be equal to the amount of pressing we are doing. 

Push ups and bent over rows work the upper body from angles that are not hit by overhead presses and pull ups. They will however be used as a high rep set at the end of your upper body work, in order to provide a pump to the muscles there were just properly trained using the basic exercises. 

The stretches are essential in order to eventually improve squatting technique. 

We will use the most basic system of programming, which will use all the components of a good strength and muscle training program. 

Remember, without hard contractions (for a beginner that means heavy weight), strength will not increase and muscles will not grow. At the same time, without several repetitions, micro-trauma to the muscles won't happen and overcompensation won't occur. Thus we need to train HARD (many reps) and train HEAVY. However such training will deplete your system and exhaust you. Therefore, we will limit the number of heavy reps (anything over 80% of the max you can lift) to 20 per exercise per session. We will also limit the total number of reps to 40 per body part (i.e push ups + overhead work, and Pull ups + rows). At the same time, we will exercise only 2 times a week using full body routines. This is because this builds your endocrine system and elicits a very powerful muscle building response. On these 2 days, you will play no other sport. This way you will prevent burnout. Plus every 5th week, one workout off, and the other will be light. 

The workouts will be as follows. Let us say we exercise Wednesdays and Sundays. 

Wed and Sun Workouts-

Warm up with jumping jacks/ Skipping for 5 mins. 

Lets assume max Overhead press is 40 Kgs, max chin ups in a row are 6, max row is 45kgs and Front Squat 40kgs. 

1. 4 reps Overhead press with a weight you could use for 8 reps, say 30 Kgs. 

2. 2 reps of Chin ups. 

Repeat 1 and 2. 

This stage will warm up the body and perfect technique.

3. 2 Reps Overhead press with a weight you could press 4 times, say 35 Kgs. 

4. 1 min Break (Atleast)

5. 3 Chin Ups (Half of Max).

6. 1 min Break (atleast)

Repeat 3, 4, 5, 6, for a total of six times. 

This stage will build strength and muscle. 

The secret is to concentrate on all the muscles and the joints and to cultivate perfect technique. Cherish every rep. 

7. Using a variation of push ups which you can perform in perfect technique for 30 reps, perform as many as you need to in order to get a good, but not excessive pump. (if max is 30, do 25). 

8. Using a  weight you could row 20 times when fresh, say 32 Kgs, Row until your upper back and lats are fully pumped. Row to the chest. 

The purpose of these 2 steps is to simply enhance recovery and teach you how to connect to your muscles. 

9. Front squat a weight you could front squat for 6-7 reps, 3 times, say 30 Kgs. Take a min break and repeat. 

10. Front squat a weight you could squat for 4 reps, for 2 reps, say 35Kgs. Take a 2 min break. 

Repeat 10 for a total of five times. 

11. Load the bar to a really heavy weight, say 50kgs. Unrack in in the back squat style, hold for 5 seconds and re-rack it. Don't squat. This builds tendon and bone strength. 

Repeat 11 for a total of 3 times.

12. Olympic Back Squat a much reduced weight, say 25 Kgs, for 20 reps in one set. 

Take a 5 min break. 

13. Get into the appropriate bridge hold and hold the stretch for 30 seconds. 

14. Same with twist hold.

15. Touch your toes 3 times.

Repeat 12, 13, 14 a total of three times. 

16. Do the cuban press with a light weight (say bar only) for 6-8 reps, twice. This will prevent and cure shoulder and postural problems. 

Go home and relax.

You must eat at least 25gs of protein within 45 mins of the last exercise. Milk, meat and eggs are preferred sources. Ideally the largest meal of you day must be within 3 hours of exercise. Also, be sure not be be excessively hungry before exercise. An empty stomach is good, but don't starve. 

As for the rest of you diet-

1. Lots of fruits and vegetables.

2. Eat at-least 70gs of protein a day. Its actually not that high once you do the math. 

3. Eat when you are hungry, until you are pleasantly satiated. 

4. Try to eat 3 good meals a day, plus a couple of healthy snacks- vegetables/fruits with tea. 

5. Drank a LOT of water. 

6. Limit the junk and processed food you eat. 

7. Go nuts on milk, curd and paneer. 

8. Again, lots of fruits and vegetables. 

Read up on the exercises before Sunday. 

The system I have given is a variant of the classic Doug Hepburn routine. Its also similar to the systems Reg Park, Paul Anderson, Arthur Saxon, Herman Groener, Arthur Saxon and pretty much every known successful strength and physique athlete has used as a basic routine. 

The objective is to increase the weights on all exercises by something, every 2 weeks. 

Last thing, there is no abdominal exercise included, because your abs will be waaay to overworked anyway with Chin Ups, Push Ups, Overhead Presses and Front Squats. Until all these movements become stable and powerful, there is no point doing additional stabilizer/abs work.  

I realize that the system I have given is very different from the ones usually given to beginners today, but trust me it is the only one that works. There is no substitute for hard and heavy training on the Basics. You can always cut and finish your physique later. But without the basics, there is no point. However, the "basics" are hard, and therefore are avoided by most. True intense training has more to do with concentration and the levels of weights you use, than actual volume of work done. And that kind of work requires you to be utterly focused and dedicated. So most people train with high reps, waaay too often, to convince themselves that they are working hard. That is an idiots way of thinking. 

Remember, all Marathon runners are lean and fat (that is, Soft lean). All sprinters are muscular and powerful and look half their age. What does this tell you about the human body?

Also hard muscle also burns fat, because it has a higher metabolic cost i.e it makes the body burn more calories, just by being around. So quality muscle will keep you lean and strong. And quality muscle can only be gotten by hard and Heavy training, with the basics, with plenty of rest and a cool head and concentration. 

I am going to quote a couple of programs to show you what I am driving at-

Reg Park's Three Phase 5x5 Program

Phase One

45-degree back extension 3x10 

Back squat 5x5 

Bench press 5x5 

Deadlift 5x5

Rest 3-5 minutes between the last 3 sets of each exercise.

Train three days per week for three months.

As Park explained it, 5x5 includes two progressively heavier warm-up sets and three sets at the same weight. He suggested increasing weights at approximately the same interval, for example:

Back squat: first set 135x5, second set 185x5, followed by three sets of 225x5.

When you can complete the last 3x5 at a given weight, increase the weight on all five sets 5-10 pounds. Also, he was strongly against training to failure, saying that it encouraged a negative mindset when attempting other heavy, near-maximal lifts.

Who was Reg Park? The greatest bodybuilder of the pre steroid era. He was insanely strong AND big. He weighed a 100kgs and was the second man ever to bench press over 225kgs and squat 250kgs.

Do 3 warm ups sets with an easy weight for 6 reps each.

Do 8 sets of 2 with a weight you could use for a triple. 

Do one set of 10 to pump the muscle. 

Move on to the next exercise. 

Exercise twice a week.

Do Rows, Squats, Deadlifts, Bench and Military presses and weighted chins. 

This routine was by Doug Hepburn. He was the world's strongest man for a decade and is still probably the greatest overhead presser who ever lived. 

Perform 1 set of Bent Presses. 

Perform 1 set of 3 overhead presses.

Perform 1 set of four of Deadlifts. 

Repeat the entire workout one more time.

Take 3 days rest.

This was the system used by Arthur Saxon, the man whose one arm lifting records are unbroken to this day, and it has been a hundred and twenty years. He was once challenged by Eugene Sandow (Once Strongest Man of The World), to lift his infamous 275 pound barbell (over 130 Kgs), with one arm overhead. He claimed only he himself could lift it. Saxon lifted it 17 times with his left hand, and then held it overhead with his right hand, while he proceeded to drink 20 mugs of beer with his left. I am not suggesting you do that, but he was one strong guy. 

Finally a quote from the great Arnold Schwarzenegger to end this long letter-

" I think the reason some bodybuilders

use delicate exercises, which I call chicken exercises, is that

they don't feel confident with the basic movements or with

themselves. The bench press seems so simple, they think they

should do something more complicated. But you can't use as

much weight when you make the exercise difficult, so it takes

away from the meaning of heavy training.

I liked the idea of really pressing a lot of weight.

Besides the ego satisfaction

I got from working with heavy weights, it gave my body

more mass, which I still felt I needed. It was an idea I couldn't

get out of my head. I was doing heavy squats, heavy bench

presses, and this provided some of the foundation work of my

body, which has always made me appear strong. Certain bodybuilders

lack that look. They have good bodies but they don't

appear powerful. The reason is inadequate foundation training.

Good early training shows up in the muscles around the spine.

There is really no exercise for those muscles; their development

is just an indication that you have put in some heavy ground

work, heavy squats and heavy dead lifts, a lot of lifting and row

ing. I had done these exercises from the start. I developed strong

basic muscles which gave me the powerful look people wanted

to see.

Reg Park had been a powerlifter; he had done squats with 600

pounds, bench presses with 500 pounds, and dead lifts of over

700 pounds. I saw no reason why I shouldn't continue in the

same groove. I won the German championships in heavy-weight

powerlifting before I stopped. My body weight was up to 250

and I convinced myself that it was time to chisel down, to start

getting more quality in my body."

The Ultimate Exercise- The bridge

I know squat fanatics will kill me for saying this, but the ultimate exercise for overall health and fitness is not the barbell back squat. There are way too many issues with it health wise. The ultimate builder of power and fitness in my opinion is the bridge. By the way, I have done a lot of squatting and am pretty good at it, so relax before you think I am just saying it cause my squat sucks.

All right, why do I think the bridge is the ultimate exercise-

1. It strengthens the spine in a manner which no other exercise can. This is because of the range of motion involved. During a traditional back squat or a deadlift, the primary function of the spine is to not collapse and round. Yes, the spine does get stronger, but it never goes through any real range of motion, because of which the transfer of strength built by squatting to sports is limited, because in actual movement,  the spine has to move through a large ROM. Also, the spine is designed to be flexible and needs to be strong in every part of that ROM. That is why a movement which takes the spine from reasonable flexon to full extension is indispensable.

However, round back lifting and other methods of training the spine through a ROM are very dangerous due to the presence of an external weight. Also, they do not have full extension.

The floor bridge done properly, takes the spine through the full ROM, with full contraction of the spinal muscles at the top of the movement. It does so in a safe fashion. Even though the weight is limited, due to the extended range of motion, and the full contraction and the traction of the anterior chain, the strength benefits are enormous. Also the bridge is fairly easy to make harder, but we will get into that later.

The second spinal strength benefit of the bridge is that it strengthens the entire spine, not just the lower back, but the dorsal, lumbar and cervical spine. This is critical, as all other spinal exercises tend to zero in on one area. But in the case of the bridge, once you are over the initial phase, your entire spine is equally exercised.

I am not saying that barbell back squats are bad, or you should stop dead-lifting  What I am saying is, from a spinal standpoint, they are not enough.

The bridge also has both the qualities required to develop tendon and ligament strength- full extension and full contraction. Thus, it strengthens the tendons as well as muscles.

2. It strengthens the hip muscles- the glutes and the hamstrings. It is not the ultimate exercise for the hamstrings, but it does fill the gap that is left by squats- full hamstring contraction. If you are squatting and bridging, your hamstrings are covered. In addition, it is a little known fact that the knee flexion function of the hamstrings is also exercised in the bridge, as in the top position the knee flexors (hamstrings) have to contract to prevent the body from straightening out and the bridge collapsing. This is pretty much the ROM in which the hamstring carry out their day to day knee flexion. Therefore, it is quite functional.

The bridge is a great glute strengthener  as it fills the gap left by squats and trains hip hyper extension, which is one of the main functions of the glutes. This builds your running power, as running requires hip hyper extension.

3. It strengthens the postural muscles of the body. The muscles between the shoulder blades, the external rotators, the glutes, all these need to be strong to prevent conditions like lardosis, kyphosis and the hollowed chest look. The bridge strengthens all those muscles, and stretches out their antagonists- the hip flexors, the pecs, the lats. It is the ultimate postural exercise.

4. It builds great active flexibility. This is self evident, but to elaborate, it is the best active flexibility drill for both the hip flexors, the spine and the pecs and lats. And almost everyone today needs added flexibility in those muscles. It builds shoulder mobility as well.

5. It decompresses and realigns the vertebra. Even if the exercise did just all of the above, it would be great, but it does all of it without any spinal compression- the normal effect of weight training. Infact, due to full spinal extension, it decompresses the spine, allowing sinoval fluid to flow between the vertebra, healing the vertebra and preventing problems like hernias, slipped discs and lumbago. Also, as this decompression happens while the spinal muscles are fully contracted, the vertebra are realigned. In effect, bridging restores the vigor and youth of the spine.

6. It facilitates rib-cage expansion. It increases the flexibility of the rib-cage.

Even if I have not convinced you that the bridge is the ultimate exercise, you will at least agree that it is one hell of an exercise and should definitely be a part of your routine. Between squats and bridges, you have the whole package covered.

Alright, now to the exercise.

Start with the basics and build up to the hardest variation. It should take you not less than 3 years. The ultimate bridging movement is the one legged full bridge off the floor on a slippery surface.

Before we get started, let us understand the factors that make bridging easier or harder.
Factor 1- Degree of Contraction and Degree of Extension. Reduce either one of these, and you can make of movement easier. On the flip side, increase any one of them, and you make it harder.

Factor 2- ROM. Independent of the previous factor, more ROM, the greater the difficulty.

Factor 3- Leverage. The higher your back is than your feet (say you are bridging on a slope), the easier it is.

Factor 4- Friction of the surface. Greater the friction, easier the movement, as you will have to contract your spine less forcefully in order to maintain and get into the position.

Factor 5- The old classic, the number of limbs used. Lesser the limbs, harder the movement.

All right, before you practice full bridging from the floor, practice the following basics first.

1. Hip Thrusts-
Lie supine on the ground. Your knees should be tucked in with your heels flat, with your feet shoulder width, toes pointing outwards. Keep your hands on your stomach were they cant assist you. Clench your glutes to raise your hips until your body forms a straight line. Think of moving your hips not arching your spine. Hold this position for a seconds, before going back to the start position. Repeat as desired.

Master for 3 sets of 50 before you consider yourself done with this movement.









2. Dynamic Reverse Plank.
This will have to be done on a slippery surface. Sit in an L shape on the ground. Your palms should be by your hips on the ground, pointing towards your toes. Your feet should be together. No press your hips off the floor with your arms, but keep your feet on the floor. Press backwards by extending your shoulders. Think of contracting your posterior deltoids. This will teach you to contract your shoulder blades.
By contracting your shoulder blades, your feet will slide forward. Keep your legs straight. As you start moving forward, contract your glutes and move your hips up and forward, until your body is straight. Hold this position for a second, before actively pulling yourself back to the start position.

Initially if you find you are unable to do this movement, learn it off a raised object, like a bench or a bed. Your feet will be on the floor, your hips on the object. Perform the same motion.

Master for 2 sets of 40.

The previous two movements build basic strength in the bridging muscles and will prepare you for the harder steps to come. Also, both these movements leave out the full contraction portion of bridges, focusing on the stretched position instead. This, with the lowered leverage, makes these movements easier.

Now that you have built the basic strength required to bridge, and have ingrained the correct patterns, we can start with our first real bridging variation.

1. Stool Bridges-
When at this level, always finish off your workouts with one set of dynamic reverse planks.
Place your shoulders on a bench a little lower than your knee. Your feet should be n the same position as for hip thrusts. Place your palms in line with your shoulders on the bench with your fingers pointing downwards. Your hips should be only slightly lower than your shoulders. Clench your glutes and move your hips upwards until your body forms a nice tight arch at the top. The ROM is not too high, your head should clear the bench. Hold the top position for a second, fully contracting your bridging muscles and your glutes. Lower yourself back to the start position and repeat.
This step teaches full contraction and builds the basic flexibility required for bridging. It also increases shoulder mobility and decompresses and aligns the spine. It is a very important step and must be thoroughly mastered before moving on to the next step. With time, you will raise your hips much higher, as your spinal muscles strengthen.

Master for 2 sets of 20.











Beyond this point, all bridges will be performed with moderate repetitions (8-15) for 3-5 sets.
You may also opt for a 5x5 or 3x8 system.

2. Head Bridges-
Get into hip thrust position, with your palms by your head as in the previous step. Clench your glutes and raise your hips upwards, until you forma nice tight arch. Your limbs must be fully extended and your hips must be the highest point of your body. Arch your cervical spine as well. Hold the top position for a second, and then lower your shoulder, which maintaining this arch, by bending your arms and shoulders, until the crown on your head touches the ground. Hold this for a second, before pressing back up.
This movement is easier than the full bridge because of the reduced ROM, but it build the shoulder mobility and strength required for full brides. Once again, these must be finished of with Dynamic Reverse planks.

Master for 3 sets of 12










3. Full Bridge-
This is the same as the last technique, except you will lower yourself all the way down to the start position and press back up. Spend a lot of time on this movement, at least 6 months before moving to the next movement. It is essential to ingrain the movement and allow it to take its full effect on your muscles and joints. Also, you can drop dynamic reverse planks now.

Master for 3 sets of 12.









4. Extended Bridge-
This is identical to the last variation, except that you will keep the feet higher than the palms, either by bridging off a slope, or using a box or stool. Your feet should be no more than 5 inches higher.
Master for 3 sets of 12.

5. Slippery Bridge-
This is identical to full bridges, except you will perform them on a reasonably slippy surface, like tiled floor. The contract required to bridge on this surface is very high.
Master for 3 sets of 12.

6. One Legged Hip Thrust-
These must be performed along with slippery bridges as a preparation for the next stage. Same as hip thrusts, except one leg is held straight in line with the body.
Master for 2 sets of 20.

7. One Legged Stool Bridge-
Perform a set of slippery bridges to finish this movement. It is the same as the normal stool bridge, except one leg will be off the ground. This requires a huge contraction of the lumbar muscles and glutes.
Master for 3 sets of 5.

8. One Legged head Bridge-
Perform a set of slippery bridges to finish this movement. It is the same as the normal head bridge, except one leg will be off the ground.
Master for 3 sets of 5.

9. The Half One Legged Bridge-
Same as the full bridge, except you will have only one leg on the ground and you will not go all the way down, just halfway down, which is deeper than head bridges. Ask a partner to tell you when to stop, until you get a feeling of how low you need to go.
Perform a set of slippery bridges to finish this movement.
Master for 3 sets of 5.

10. The One Legged Bridge-
Same as full bridges, except you have one foot off the ground.

There you have it, the bridge progression. Work bridges about twice a week and just stay consistent. Unlike a lot of other movements, bridges don't require a great amount of cycling. And have fun, they look really cool.

Consistency is The Key

What is really important in order to make progress is to SHOW UP!

Just go to the gym, to the workout you were supposed to do, and try to beat your expectations. Even if you make only a 1% improvement every time you go, if you do 100 workouts a year (most people will do more than this), you would have doubled your power in 1 year.

Yes periodization is required, but it must be natural and not too dramatic. It is important to stick with a certain approach for as long as you get good gains from it.

That's it.

Reps and Sets- For Strength

I am going to say something that is going to be considered blasphemy.

When you can perform only 1-3 reps with a certain weight (or technique), use only 1-2 sets.
When you can handle more reps, only then add sets.

Hear me out.

My theory is based on the following points-
1. Volume and Intensity
2. The Stimulus for strength
3. Neuro Muscular learning.

When something is very very hard to do, you should not do more of it, you should do less. This is because it is hard already, adding volume only adds stress. You are repeating the same work load, again and again. This creates the muscular stimulus to gain mass. This is because both the triggers for growth- intensity and volume are present. This will burn you out fast because you are doing something that is very hard, a lot. This can only lead to disaster, and periodization can only solve so much if you do this. Once something becomes easier, you can do more of it- i.e add volume. The normal approach of several sets with a max weight will only increase the amount of recovery time between sessions. If you only use 1 or 2 max effort sets a workout, you could do the same workout 3 times a week. This way you will still put in the required volume, without over training and you body will be fully compensated. This allows you to coax gains out of your body.
When the intensity is lower, you need to do more to keep getting gains, When the intensity is high, you need to do less.

What is the stimulus for strength? It is max effort. Weather you do it once or several times is not that relevant. Yes, adding sets of max effort should be a stronger stimulus, but it is not. This is because the actual intensity is the same from set to set. You are just repeating the same stimulus without giving the body time to adapt to it. You will basically just add muscular fatigue, which will stimulate growth, but not strength.

If you need to learn a movement and want to use high volumes, you must do it with low weights anyway. This will allow you to perfect your technique and form and teach your body to succeed in the movement. Then you can create the stimulus for an increase in strength by using a max set. This is a better way of neuro muscular learning, than using only high intensities. Its too hard. At the same time you must lift heavy to create the stimulus to get stronger, and also teach your body to use the patterns it has built- with heavy weights too. You must learn to demonstrate its strength.
All this requires more QUALITY PRACTICE. And the only way to do that is to have frequent sessions, with minimal fatigue. The only way to do that is to cut down on your volume per session.

Ultimately its all down to concentration. If you perform every light rep with the same focus and attention to form as a max rep, you will ingrain perfect motor patters. Than concentrated practice with a max weight will teach you to use the patterns you have built, and the strength you have gained, and stimulate an increase in strength.

A sample routine would be-
A phase with a light weight
3 x 10- 2 times a week
Work up to- 4 x 16- 1-2 times a week.
Increase the weight-
2 x 3- 4 times a week
2 x 4- 4 times a week
3 x 5- 3 times a week
3 x 6- 3 times a week
3 x 7- 2 times a week
3 x 10- 2 times a week
4 x 16- 1-2 times a week.

Flexibility Training- Preventing and curing Pain and Injuries

This post is meant for my father, but can be used by anyone.

It is absolutely amazing how much people know about resistance training and how there, there is an emphasis on the principle of specificity and the basics, but when it comes to flexibility and mobility work, the exact opposite happens. The kind of flexibility you train for is the kind of flexibility you will develop. Therefore if you stretch relaxed, you will increase your flexibility in a relaxed state. If you stretch in ballistic movement, you will get better at that.

So let us get some perspective- flexibility and mobility are of the following types:
1. Passive (relaxed)
This form of stretching has only one real benefit- it teaches you how to relax. Other than that, in extreme cases it teaches your body to override normal stretching patterns and teaches your body to injure itself faster and more completely. The short version is, don't do it, unless you are trying to get rid of a lactic acid pump in your muscles. The relaxation helps in muscle awareness too.

Just imagine this, let us say some pressure (say a car) is stretching out your shoulder. Your body would normally try to overcome the resistance by contracting the chest. If the resistance is too great, the muscle would tear, allowing the joint to be saved. If you did too much passive stretching, the muscle would relax and let the shoulder be ripped out of its socket. Passive stretching only makes the pain worse, and increases the chance of injury.

Passive stretching is useful to determine muscle imbalances. For example, if you can't stretch your hamstrings, but can stretch your glutes, your hamstrings are probably weak compared to your glutes or your hip flexors are tight.

2. Active (Muscles are contracting)
This is basically the range of motion within which your joints can move through, while (the muscles) applying force. This is the most comprehensive form of flexibility, as the range within which muscles can contract, is the range within which they can do everything else too- move in a ballistic fashion, relax, overcome resistance and counter trauma.

Active stretching is the equivalent of strength training for the muscles- it has the highest carry over to all other forms of flexibility. Thus, the maximum time and effort must be spent in active stretching. Also, active stretching under load increases the strength of ligaments, tendons, bones and the strength of all soft tissues, which becomes important as age advances, AND as strength advances.

The major reason most athletes today suffer various soft tissue injuries during training and competition, is because they spend very little time developing 'sinew' strength. Thus, their muscles become stronger and stronger at an exponential rate, while the 'sinews' can't keep up. Eventually, this leads to soft tissue injury, especially when high amounts of force are generated.

It is interesting that turn of the century lifters (1900) sustained almost no injuries and had remarkable longevity.  Many people competed well into their 70's- something that would be unimaginable today. Even those who went through severe trauma, retained most of their strength and would suffer almost no soft tissue damage. For Instance- Arthur Saxon's spine was run over by a 2 ton vehicle, which compelled him to be immobilized completely for 7 months. He recovered from the injury and in 3 years time, became the strongest man in the world. The reason for this is that many of the lifts that were popular at that time, were in fact incredible feats of active flexibility, which developed incredible soft tissue strength. Take a look at the following pictures of Saxon's favorite exercises.

Both these exercises require enormous amounts of strength and flexibility. This is the combination that keeps you injury and pain free. In both lifts he is handling over 300 pounds.

As a side note it is interesting to note that I adopted both these exercises for spinal flexibility before my accident, and had reached 90 kgs (200 pounds) on both lifts. My quick recovery and lack of soft tissue damage prove my point.

3. Ballistic Flexibility-
This is the range through which your body can move at high speeds. This component is important if you play a lot of quick sports. As this is a separate ability altogether, I will deal with it in a separate post. Just remember, work on active flexibility will have considerable transfer to this as well. You will still be better off focusing the majority of your time and effort in increasing your active flexibility.

There are many more types of flexibility, but for programming purposes, this much info is enough.

Now just like strength training, you cannot do too many exercises for flexibility and expect to make progress. Active flexibility, just like basic strength, is worked best when done for low repetitions, high effort, with a focus on just a few basic movements.

So, what are the basic movements? To judge this, let us consider the major joints of the body-
1. Spine - Not exactly a joint, but you know what I mean.
2. Hips
3. Knees
4. Ankles
5. Wrists
6. Elbows
7. Shoulders
8. Rib Cage- Again not exactly a joint, but flexibility here is important.
9. Neck

Each of these joints need to be flexible in various directions. We need to construct a set of active flexibility exercises that can work all these joints, from every direction, thoroughly, with the least number of movements. The most efficient set of exercises I have been able to create (which I used before the accident), are-

No. And Name	Joints Worked	Muscles That Contract
1.       The Gymnasts Bridge/The Back Bend/ The chakrasana	Spine (extension), Hip (extension), Shoulder (extension), Rib Cage (extension), Wrist And Fingers (extension)	All the Spinal Erectors, The Glutes, The hamstrings, The Finger Extensors, The Shoulder Blade Retractors
2.       The Twist Hold	Spine (lateral rotation), Hip (abduction and adduction), Rib Cage, Shoulders (adduction and abduction), Knees (flexion)	Spinal Erectors, All the muscles of the shoulder girdle, Obliques, all the hip muscles
3.       L- Sit	Spine (flexion), Hip (flexion), Knee (extension)	All the core muscles and the abs, the quadriceps, the shoulders and lats
4.       The Squat (Heels Flat)	Spine, Hips (flexion, adduction), Ankles (Doriflexion)	The Quads, The Hamstrings, The Tibia and the shin, the calves, the Glutes, the Hip Flexors, the Abs
5.       Sit And Reach	Rib Cage (flexion), Spine (flexion), Hips (flexion), Shoulder (shoulder blades)	The abs, the serratus, the hip flexors
6.       Isometric Neck Press	The Neck	All the Neck Muscles

The only shortcoming in this set is shoulder extension and elbow flex-ion  both of which are strongly worked by the dip, but then a back exercise would have to be added (like the chin up) and this will go down the dangerous path of becoming a strength training program and not a flexibility program. So we will limit our exercises to these 6.

All exercises must be progressively mastered. All most be performed slowly and deliberately with no bouncing for the dynamic movements, and a good pause at the extreme points.

Real focus must be on contracting the muscles that are supposed to be contracting, and stretching the joints that are supposed to be stretching. This focus is the real key. If you don't do this, you will, after some experience, be able to perform some of the movements by relaxing into them. This is a bad habit and can only be countered by focus and concentration.

Do not be in a hurry to move to harder steps, move to them only after you are really sure you have mastered the previous ones. Remember, the harder steps are not going anywhere. Provided you do not suffer from a permanent disability and are not over 60, the highest variations of each exercise should be achievable for everybody, provided you stay consistent. The good part about flexibility and 'sinews' training is that you can't really burn out on it, the neuro muscular system is hardly taxed.

Be sure to keep a note book in which you record each and every workout you do. The objective must be to improve the numbers, however slightly, every week. This is critical, as otherwise you will use subjective feelings to decide if you are making progress. Improvement in every movement can be measured strictly by numbers, and that should be the way it must be measured.

All right on to the exercises-

1. The Bridge-
General Points-
Breathe Evenly.
Really focus on forming a nice tight arch at the top, by contracting your glutes AND THEN your spine in ALL movements.
Focus on all the joints.
Really ensure that the muscles that are supposed to be contracting are.
Really focus on stretching the muscles in the front of the thigh. This is absolutely critical.
Perform Full Repetitions- Go All the way up, hold for a second, go down as much as you are supposed to.
If your wrist bothers you, you can use push up bars to hold onto. It will make the bridge slightly harder though. Just make sure the fingers (if they were extended) are always pointing towards the toes.

Step 1.
Short Bridges-

Toes pointing slightly outwards.
Keep the entire foot flat at all times.
Feet Shoulder Width
Master For 3 sets of 40.
Start- 10x2
Work Up to-
20x3
Work Up to-
40x3


Step 2-
Stool Bridges

Head Must Clear The Bed/Stool/Bench
Elbows Slightly outwards
Te object you use must be about knee height
Start- 8x1
Work to-
10x2
Work to-
15x3
Work to-
20x3 and move to the next step


Step 3-
Head Bridges

The First Rep Will be from a dead start from the floor.
Maintain the arch through out.
Gently touch your head to the ground.
Elbows will now be parallel.
Start- 8x1
Work to- 10x2
Work to- 12x3
Work to- 15x3
Move to the Next Technique



Step 4-
Full Bridges

Start 5x1
15x3 would be mastery

This can be made harder (if desired) by placing the feet on a slightly elevated object.







2. Twist Hold-
General Points-

Focus on all the joints.
Really ensure that the muscles that are supposed to be contracting are.

Step 1-
Ordinary Twist Hold

Focus on the twist of the torso and the elbow pressing on the knee
Look powerfully to the side, keep your body tight.
Your heel should be on the outside of the opposite knee.
If you find this too hard, you can straighten the leg on the ground. Once you get to 15secs x 5, you can come to this technique.
Start- 5sec each side x 3
Work to- 8sec each side x 4
Work to- 10sec each side x 5
Work to- 12sec each side x 5
Move to the next technique


Step 2-
Hard Twist Hold

Grab the ankle with your hand.

Start- 5sec each side x 3
Work to- 8sec each side x 4
Work to- 10sec each side x 5
Work to- 12sec each side x 5



Step 3-
Half Twist Hold-

The further apart your hands are along the towel, the easier it will be. Every time you hit the progression standard, get the hands closer together by 2 inchs.

Start- 5sec each side x 3
Work to- 8sec each side x 4
Work to- 10sec each side x 5
Work to- 12sec each side x 5


Full Twist Hold-



Start- 5sec each side x 3
Work to- 8sec each side x 4
Work to- 10sec each side x 5
Work to- 12sec each side x 5
This can be made harder, if required, by gripping higher up.



3. L-Sits
L sits are pretty self explanatory, just remember, mastering this exercise will give you grand abdominal strength and hamstring and hip flexibility. Plus its cool and very achievable for anyone within a few months of training.

Step 1
Tuck Sit

You can use the edge of the bed, or a chair with arm rests to do this.
Start- 20s x 1
Work to-30s x 2
Work to- 40s x 3
Work to- 50s x 4
Move to the next technique





Step 2-
Straight Leg Hold

Make sure no part of your body except your hands is in contact with the chair.
Knees should be locked.
Use a chair about knee height.

Start- 20s x 1
Work to-30s x 2
Work to- 40s x 3
Work to- 50s x 4
Move to the next technique.


Step 3-
N- Sit

If your wrists bother you, you can use push up handles.

Start- 20s x 1
Work to-30s x 2
Work to- 40s x 3
Work to- 50s x 4
Move to the next technique.


Step 4-
Staggered Sit

Alternate Sides between sides.

Start- 10s x 2
Work to-20s x 4
Work to- 30s x 4
Work to- 40s x 4
Work to- 50s x 6
Move to the next technique.

Step 5-
L-Sit

Start- 10s x 1
Work to-20s x 2
Work to- 30s x 3
Work to- 40s x 3
Work to- 50s x 4





The Squat-
General Guidelines

Stand Tall with your legs shoulder width apart or a little wider, with your toes pointing slightly outwards. Keep your eyes on an object about the same level as your eyes throughout and don't swing your arms (Does Not apply to the first step).

Do not let your heels off the ground. 

You will have to bend forwards slightly, but don’t bow forwards. 

Descend in a controlled fashion until your hamstrings touch your calves. 

Pause for a second, don’t just bounce back up. 

Press in order to come back to the start position. 

Straighten your legs out fully at the top before repeating. 

Your knees should move in line with your toes, do not let them track inwards. 

Step 1-

Jack Knife Squats

Use a bench or object that is knee height. 

Focus on contracting the tibia and the shin muscles to move the shin forward. Remember, the ankle movement is of paramount importance here. This goes for all variations of squats. In the first rep of every set, rock side-to-side at the bottom of your squat to open up the ankles. 

Grab the object with an overhand grip. 

Try to not depend on the object to prevent yourself from falling backwards, move your shin forward to prevent it. Still you will have to grab on to prevent falling back.

Start with- 15 x 2

Work to- 20 x 3

Work to- 30 x 3

Work to- 40 x 3

Move on to the next technique.

Step 2

Supported Squats

Use an object waist height.

Start- 20 x 1

Work to- 25 x 2

Work to- 30 x 3

Move on to the next technique.

Step 3

Half Squats

Go down till the thighs are parallel to the ground.

Start with- 15 x 2

Work to- 20 x 3

Work to- 30 x 3

Work to- 40 x 3

Move on to the next technique.

Step 4-

Full Squats

Start- 20 x 1

Work to- 25 x 2

Work to- 30 x 3

Refer to the my post on the Squat to learn how to go beyond this.

5. Sit And Reach

Simply sit on the ground with your legs together, straight out in front of you. Reach out forward stretching your spine and your hips. Get to a point you can comfortably hold with abdominal contraction, and hold for a few seconds. Focus on separating your shoulder blades and rounding your spine. Try to go lower every workout. 

6. Neck Press

Place the palm of your hand on your forehead and tilt your neck backwards until you are looking at the sky. Then press you palm against your forehead with your neck trying to get straight. Press for 10 seconds, 3 times. Do the same thing with your palm behind your head and your neck titled forwards, with you looking at the ground. 

How to put these exercises together-

For the middle aged man and the weight lifter, the following stretching program should work excellently- 

3 workouts a week- Say Mon, Wed, Fri.

Each workout-

Begin with Squats

Move on to Twist Holds

Move on to Sit And Reach

Move on to L-Sits

Move on to Bridges

Finish with Neck Presses

All the above must be finished within 40-45mins.

The middle aged man who is trying to maintain some good strength, would be well advised to follow up this flexibility workout with the following 3 exercises with dumbbells-

Standing Military Press-

Let the wrists rotate in a natural fashion. The elbows will want to point forward, and at the top the palms will want to face forward. 

Lockout at the top for a full second.

Keep the bells shoulder width.

Start with a weight you can press for 5 reps (last rep should be a small struggle), for 2 sets.

Work to- 7 x 2 (same weight)

Work to- 8 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 10 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 12 x 3 (same weight)

Now increase the weight of the bells to a weight you can handle for 5 reps x 2, and start over. 

One arm Dumbbell Row-

Pull the bell to the lower part of the stomach. Focus on moving the humerus behind the body, do not use the biceps to row the weight. 

Start with a weight you can row for 5 reps (last rep should be a small struggle), for 2 sets.

Work to- 7 x 2 (same weight)

Work to- 8 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 10 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 12 x 3 (same weight)

Now increase the weight of the bells to a weight you can handle for 5 reps x 2, and start over. 

Standing Bicep Curls-

At the bottom, the palms should be facing each other. As the bells rise, they should rotate. Around the halfway point, the palms should be facing upwards, and should stay like that all the way till the top. 

Do not swing the bells.

Do not let the elbows move behind the body.

Do not let the body rock back and forth. 

Keep the body tight.

Start with a weight you can curl for 5 reps (last rep should be a small struggle), for 2 sets.

Work to- 7 x 2 (same weight)

Work to- 8 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 10 x 3 (same weight)

Work to- 12 x 3 (same weight)

Now increase the weight of the bells to a weight you can handle for 5 reps x 2, and start over. 

If you are going to perform the dumbbell exercises, the total workout must not cross 50mins - 1 hour. You must also eat within 30mins of finishing the workout. 

Good luck!