Undulating Periodization Program: Body Part Split

[Adonis]

Undulating Periodization Program – 12 Weeks
By Adonis

Accumulation Block: Phase I
Total Hypertrophy: 45 seconds rest

Week 1: 12 total sets per body part; 10-12 reps per set
Week 2: 15 total sets per body part; 10-12 reps per set
Week 3: 7 total sets per body part; 6-8 reps per set

Intensification Block: Phase II
Absolute Strength: 90 seconds rest

Week 1: 9 total sets per body part; 4-6 reps per set
Week 2: 12 total sets per body part; 4-6 reps per set
Week 3: 6 total sets per body part; 1-3 reps per set

Accumulation Block: Phase III
Functional Hypertrophy: 75 seconds rest

Week 1: 13 total sets per body part; 6-8 reps per set
Week 2: 16 total sets per body part; 6-8 reps per set
Week 3: 8 total sets per body part; 3-4 reps per set

Intensification Block: Phase IV
Relative Strength: 120 seconds rest

Week 1: 10 total sets per body part; 1-4 reps per set
Week 2: 13 total sets per body part; 1-4 reps per set
Week 3: 6 total sets per body part; 1-2 reps per set

Body Part Split
Day 1: Chest and Biceps
Day 2: Quads and Abs
Day 3: Off
Day 4: Back and Triceps
Day 5: Hamstrings and Abs
Day 6: Off
Day 7: Off
Day 8: Repeat

You choose your exercises, and simply follow the protocol. Advanced lifting techniques like drop sets, rest-pause training, overcoming isometrics, supersetting, antagonist pairing, etc can also be used.

[Killa_Z]

good template for those looking for 'what to do next' the periodisation has the phases done for you

[JoeBAR]

Thanx for this Adonis, I gonna work myself a program around this, and my current Old_Phart2 suggested periodisation for bench will fit more or less into it too. The time frame also suits my current time table

10p question ... Shoulder exercises? I see in various pieces of reading I've done lately that 1 day for shoulders ain't maybe too good an idea... Would say a front delt exercise on chest day and a rear delt exercise on back day fit in this neatly? Same for traps? and a mid delt on day 2 or 4, alternated with a few rotator cuffs .... ?

[Adonis]

I had included a trap and shoulder day into my original plan, however if you are doing deads for your hammies then traps will receive a good amount of stimulation.

Deltoids are another muscle group that doesn't require much work if you are training back and chest properly.

If you feel you need to, you could incorporate:

Dumbbell side laterals
Barbell shrug
Posterior delt dumbbell flys

There is a lot of extra stuff I personally do that I didn't include in the plan.

I perform a dynamic stretching warm up; rotator cuff work; hip mobility drills; soft tissue work, and static stretching in my plan as well.

The workout will take about 45 minutes; but with my included extras I get closer to 70 minutes.

I also perform cardiovascular exercise 1-3 times per week, but it is not planned. The only days I wouldn't do cardio are on the leg days due to residual fatigue.

[JoeBAR]

Deads have become a must have. It's my heaviest lift, so it helps me feel good, especially since I have yet to see anyone do a proper deadlift in my gym yet. Was gonna ask about calves as well, but from your answer I can work out that I'll train them as best fit time-wise, hopefully twice a week. Now, time for pen, paper and exrx to work out a full plan!

For cardio, I usually do 10 min cardio on x-trn or rower to warm up (every weight day) and 10 min cycling (hills, level 15) after legs to relieve the soreness (sounds weird, but it works for me. No bike, no walking down the stairs to the lockers!) I used to run long-ish distance on weekends, but I've been slacking. I still plan on completing a marathon this year tho (I'm getting off-topic now, so I just go click the post button and jump on ExRx)

[JoeBAR]

Since my current workout split started the same, I decided to count yesterday's as day 1 (almost the same, about 12 sets ...) and jumped into day 2 this afternoon.

Having a good idea of my capabilities with squats, I started the session with a reasonable weight aiming to last for 4 exercises @ 3 sets for 12 sets in total : 3x squats, 3x leg press (Hammer Strength machine, seated, balancing motion), 3x leg extension, 3x horizontal leg press (kinda hack squat position, feet high compared to body)...

I don't usually dally in the gym, but I'm used to 70~90s rest between sets on leg days... And here's the explanation for the title of this post: 45s was a SERiOUS shock to my system As in... Well, I did my squats as planned, but after that, it kinda went downhill... the weight I had to drop to to maintain the 3x10 reps on the leg press (note: I never used this one, I normally press in a 45 deg) and the leg extension (I USED to be proud to put the pin close to the bottom) ... Well, the experience was humbling to say the least.

I kinda rushed into this routine coz mine sucked a bit, and I seriously thought that ... well, if I split arms in 2 days, spliting legs in 2 days defo make sense! I'm not saying I gonna give this up. Rather the opposite, but I'll need to re-assess my weight prediction for the next few weeks, esp these 3 weeks @ 45s rest.

I'd also like to point out that if anyone who isn't quite as sure about his own capabilities as Adonis is with his (like me): jump on board, don't be afraid... Juist be prepared to humble yourself with smaller weight on week one

[Adonis]

Originally Posted by JoeBAR

Since my current workout split started the same, I decided to count yesterday's as day 1 (almost the same, about 12 sets ...) and jumped into day 2 this afternoon.

Having a good idea of my capabilities with squats, I started the session with a reasonable weight aiming to last for 4 exercises @ 3 sets for 12 sets in total : 3x squats, 3x leg press (Hammer Strength machine, seated, balancing motion), 3x leg extension, 3x horizontal leg press (kinda hack squat position, feet high compared to body)...

I don't usually dally in the gym, but I'm used to 70~90s rest between sets on leg days... And here's the explanation for the title of this post: 45s was a SERiOUS shock to my system As in... Well, I did my squats as planned, but after that, it kinda went downhill... the weight I had to drop to to maintain the 3x10 reps on the leg press (note: I never used this one, I normally press in a 45 deg) and the leg extension (I USED to be proud to put the pin close to the bottom) ... Well, the experience was humbling to say the least.

I kinda rushed into this routine coz mine sucked a bit, and I seriously thought that ... well, if I split arms in 2 days, spliting legs in 2 days def make sense! I'm not saying I gonna give this up. Rather the opposite, but I'll need to re-assess my weight prediction for the next few weeks, esp these 3 weeks @ 45s rest.

I'd also like to point out that if anyone who isn't quite as sure about his own capabilities as Adonis is with his (like me): jump on board, don't be afraid...Juist be prepared to humble yourself with smaller weight on week one

Hey Joebar!

Glad you started the program. I would like to have a few people try it, and monitor their results. I am also doing this routine (I'm in phase 2, week 1) and have gained a solid 3-5 lbs over the 3 weeks.

The 45 second rest periods was a bitch for me as well. I'm used to doing full body workouts with 45-70 seconds rest between antagonist super sets. So in actuality I was resting 90-140 seconds per set.

Needless to say, I was also quite shocked at the weight I could lift for 10-12 reps at only 45 seconds rest, but the results have been very impressive.

The big thing I noticed was my work capacity ah increased even more. While doing sets with a 4-6 rep range (phase 2) I am finding the rest periods to be quite long, but the loads I can use a large.

Keep going at it. Don't be afraid to PM me for any other help, or just post your question here!

Adonis

[painless2]

If strength is the protocol, i would highly suggest you add time to the rest periods, as 90 secs. isn't nearly enough. If you are truly doing 1-3 RM, then the idea of trying to do it again 90 secs. later is not wise, if lifting the heaviest weight possible is the goal. You will see powerlifters wait 4-5 minutes between the absolute maxes, because at ~4:30 you will see 95% fiber recovery, whereas at 90 sec. you might see 80%.

[JoeBAR]

Originally Posted by painless2

If strength is the protocol, i would highly suggest you add time to the rest periods, as 90 secs. isn't nearly enough. If you are truly doing 1-3 RM, then the idea of trying to do it again 90 secs. later is not wise, if lifting the heaviest weight possible is the goal. You will see powerlifters wait 4-5 minutes between the absolute maxes, because at ~4:30 you will see 95% fiber recovery, whereas at 90 sec. you might see 80%.

From my 1 day experience I would suggest that the aim is 3 rep, but sometimes, you might have to settle for 1 ... I had to settle for 9 twice today, instead of 10, coz there was no way I was going to do the last rep. My fault, I was too greedy. In truth, in the leg press, I had to drop the weight on the last set, coz I added too much and couldn't even move the b*****d ...

Which leads to my next question(s) to Adonis... for 12, is 4 x 3 ok, or 3 x 4 better (exercise x rep respectively)... and for 15... 3 x 4 + 3 ... Or 3 x 5? Or is it entirely up to me? I can't see myself do 4 exercises for hams (DL, Lying Curls / Seated Curls ... Any diff between the 2? and ExRx suggest Good Morning for Hams, which I always did on back day... Come to show!!!). Not that I can see myself do 4 sets of 10 DL either. I’ll do my best... After the squats, I nearly puked all over the leg press, and again on the ABS machine (a strange contraption... seated, pads on chest, bend down to contract abs... cabled system, made by fitness life I think).

ABS twice a week... ok. 10 reps... ? I did this ABS machine (it's weighted. so it's ok), a crunch machine (also weighted) and side bend lateral (I use cables instead of dumbbells now) ... for 3 x 4 i.e. 12 reps (diff from legs, 4 x 3 for 12). Shall I do same on day 5, or could I alternate for what I call my cardio abs workout ... 20~30 double crunches (left, then right, then centre for 60-90 reps total) at least twice, and then 2 x 60 sit ups (again, 20 pulling sideways left, then right, then 20 sitting up straight).

I also did 4 sets of 10 standing calf raise. Will do seated ones on Friday.

Finally ... Hell, am I still typing!?! I've never sweated so much in the gym. I sweated more buckets in 50 min than when I jog 16 miles, honest!!!

Ah, last one, or I’ll have to post 20 messages… Pyramid the weight? I thought at first that it shouldn’t be necessary (if I go up in weight, I drop the number of reps too much to maintain 12-10) but I needed to adjust a bit (12 squats at 100kg didn’t kinda push me hard enough, so I did 12x100, 11x110 and 10x120, but that was my first exercise, well fresh and all. And the 100kg start was rather conservative… But probably explain why I wanted to puke all over the leg press).

Man, this routine got me buzzing!

[JoeBAR]

bump ... Adonis !!!! Answers pleeeeeaase

[Adonis]

JoeBAR
From my 1 day experience I would suggest that the aim is 3 rep, but sometimes, you might have to settle for 1 ... I had to settle for 9 twice today, instead of 10, coz there was no way I was going to do the last rep. My fault, I was too greedy. In truth, in the leg press, I had to drop the weight on the last set, coz I added too much and couldn't even move the b*****d ...

Week 1: 12 total sets per body part; 10-12 reps per set - so you will choose any number of exercises but only do 12 total sets for each muscle group. Perform 10-12 reps per set. Wait till your doing the 9 sets of 4-6 resp per bodypart!

Which leads to my next question(s) to Adonis... for 12, is 4 x 3 ok, or 3 x 4 better (exercise x rep respectively)... and for 15... 3 x 4 + 3 ... Or 3 x 5? Or is it entirely up to me? I can't see myself do 4 exercises for hams (DL, Lying Curls / Seated Curls ... Any diff between the 2? and ExRx suggest Good Morning for Hams, which I always did on back day... Come to show!!!). Not that I can see myself do 4 sets of 10 DL either. I’ll do my best... After the squats, I nearly puked all over the leg press, and again on the ABS machine (a strange contraption... seated, pads on chest, bend down to contract abs... cabled system, made by fitness life I think).

The format you follwo doesn't matter. When I was doing phase 1 I would do 3 sets of each exercise and just add a new exercise the following week (b/c of the additional 3 sets). But during phase 2 I have changed it up a bit more. Today I did 3 exercises for 3 sets each for back, and 4 sets of dips, 3 sets of barbell skullk crushers and 2 sets of straight bar pressdowns.

ABS twice a week... ok. 10 reps... ? I did this ABS machine (it's weighted. so it's ok), a crunch machine (also weighted) and side bend lateral (I use cables instead of dumbbells now) ... for 3 x 4 i.e. 12 reps (diff from legs, 4 x 3 for 12). Shall I do same on day 5, or could I alternate for what I call my cardio abs workout ... 20~30 double crunches (left, then right, then centre for 60-90 reps total) at least twice, and then 2 x 60 sit ups (again, 20 pulling sideways left, then right, then 20 sitting up straight).

I also did 4 sets of 10 standing calf raise. Will do seated ones on Friday.

Your calves will get a diar amoutn fo work with the squats and deadlifts you'll be doing. Good idea to keep the volume low.

Finally ... Hell, am I still typing!?! I've never sweated so much in the gym. I sweated more buckets in 50 min than when I jog 16 miles, honest!!!

Don't forget to bring a towel!

Ah, last one, or I’ll have to post 20 messages… Pyramid the weight? I thought at first that it shouldn’t be necessary (if I go up in weight, I drop the number of reps too much to maintain 12-10) but I needed to adjust a bit (12 squats at 100kg didn’t kinda push me hard enough, so I did 12x100, 11x110 and 10x120, but that was my first exercise, well fresh and all. And the 100kg start was rather conservative… But probably explain why I wanted to puke all over the leg press).

I generally keep the weight the same, but if I can do 12 reps for the exercise and it feels easy I up the wiehgt. It's important to keep a training log so you know what load to use on any exercise.

Man, this routine got me buzzing!

Me too! I weighed in at 200 lbs today; thats a 5lbs increase with 0.02% bodfy fat increase.

[JonM]

Hey, just wanted to mention that I'm doing a slightly modified version of this workout and getting a lot out of it. I'm in phase 1, week 3. The only difference really is that I'm kind of combining it with Killa Z's Get Big program, so I've been doing...

Day 1: Chest and Biceps
Day 2: Legs and Abs
Day 3: Rest
Day 4: Back and Triceps
Day 5: Rest
Day 6: Shoulders and Abs
Day 7: Rest
Day 8: Repeat

Leg day actually floats around a bit, because my work schedule is irregular, and if I need to change things up, legs seems like the best thing to do back to back with another group. As for doing legs on one day instead of two, I really dig the symmetry of the program with legs split up like that, but my legs are a lot more developed than my upper body. Possibly because I do a fair bit of walking and running, and possibly because I live on the fourth floor of my building. Also, I messed up my knee in a skiing accident several years ago, and I've been hesitant to get into squats and deads for that reason. I probably will though. I've been doing leg presses without any problems, and I've definitely been benefiting from the other compound exercises I picked up on this site, like the bent-over row. But I think I'm gonna hold off a bit longer and then start out really light.

Anyway, when it comes to the undulating periodization, I'm following the program to the letter. Like JoeBAR said, the 45 second rests in this first phase have totally kicked my ass, but I leave the gym feeling nice and fatigued, and it could be my imagination, but I think I'm a little bigger already. I do have a question though: I think I may have screwed up today with the 7 set, 6-8 rep protocol. Basically, I upped the weight some, but not too much, thinking that the increased weight with those short rest periods was really gonna kill me. But I guess I may not have upped it enough, because it felt like a pretty light workout. I did 4x bench, 3x incline bench, 4x incline curls, 3x dumbbell preacher curls. I got the incline bench and the incline curls just right, really struggling on the final reps. But on the other two I felt like I could have done more. Oh well, probably should have judged it a little better. I'll be more ambitious with the other body parts. I take it you're supposed to feel wiped out after every workout... It's not like this week is supposed to feel any easier, right?

Thanks a ton for the great program, Adonis, and thanks to everyone for the great site in general.

[Adonis]

Glad everyone is liking the program.

JonM: In regards to your question, teh 3rd week of each phase is a deloading week. All though the loads are higher and thus intensity is increased, the lower volume should leave you feeling "less gassed" at the end of the workouts.

However it is not a week off, just a week of less volume.

[JonM]

Thanks, Adonis, that makes sense. This is the first time I've tried a periodization program, so I guess I'm just new to the changes in tempo or whatever from week to week. I need to read up on the theory behind periodization actually.

Anyway, again, I'm really digging the program. Looking forward to starting phase 2 next week. Those 90 second rests are gonna seem like all the time in the world...

[Cashews]

Hum... adjusting weights and exercises every week is going to be... ahem... fun.

Could someone double the number of weeks on this thing? "Week 1", "2" and "3" would actually be done on two weeks, thus making every phase 6 week long and the whole program 24 week long. Would this be a good thing? Are there things in the program itself which should be modified because of it?

Thanks.

[Adonis]

This program culd be used for any number of cycles. It takes fatigue and overload into acocunt, and adjusts accordingly.

[JonM]

Haven't had time to post recently, but just wanted to say that I'm still doing and getting a lot out of this program, and I know JoeBAR is as well. I'm about to start phase 4, week 1. Haven't gained any weight, which has gotta be due to diet, though I feel like I'm eating a ton. But my strength has gone up, and I think I'm more toned. I really grew to like the undulating aspect of the program, once I got the hang of it.

Hope you like it, Cashews!

[cujo66]

I started last week, and because of the warnings I've read here, I tried not to over do it with the weights used. I probibly could have done more since I didn't have a problem with the 45 seconds rest. I tend to blow through my work out so I can get everything done I want to do.
Started week 2, phase 1 last night, the 90 secs. is something I'm not use to, even with cutting it down to about 60 secs rest troward the end it took me 1 hr 15 mins, than another 15 of cardio. I'm becoming a bit of a fat slob lately so I gotta do the cardio.
I think I've gotta good handle on how this works. I increased my weights from last week, but kept it where I could get the full 10 reps. Felt good afterwards, tired the good way, like you really did some good work. And I'm a little sore today. Quads and abs tonight. I was a little worried last week when I did them, quads, since I'm still a little on the mend from knee surgery, but didn't have any problems.
When you look through the routine it looks a little confusing but once you really look at it, it's preaty simple to follow I'll know in about a month.

[JoeBAR]

Originally Posted by cujo66

I started last week, and because of the warnings I've read here, I tried not to over do it with the weights used. I probibly could have done more since I didn't have a problem with the 45 seconds rest. I tend to blow through my work out so I can get everything done I want to do.
Started week 2, phase 1 last night, the 90 secs. is something I'm not use to, even with cutting it down to about 60 secs rest troward the end it took me 1 hr 15 mins, than another 15 of cardio. I'm becoming a bit of a fat slob lately so I gotta do the cardio.
I think I've gotta good handle on how this works. I increased my weights from last week, but kept it where I could get the full 10 reps. Felt good afterwards, tired the good way, like you really did some good work. And I'm a little sore today. Quads and abs tonight. I was a little worried last week when I did them, quads, since I'm still a little on the mend from knee surgery, but didn't have any problems.
When you look through the routine it looks a little confusing but once you really look at it, it's preaty simple to follow I'll know in about a month.

Mmmmh, Week 2 Phase 1 is still 45 sec... 90 Sec is on week 1 Phase 2, i.e Week 4

[Adonis]

Goodluck.

So far the response has been very positive!