TRAINING ARTICLES

Specialized Hypertrophy Programs for Lagging Body Parts

Similar to Layne Norton’s infamous power/hypertrophy routine, FUSION BODYBUILDING® put a slight twist onto the amount of reps/sets as well as variations of exercises to maximize the individual’s gains while in the gym. As noted above, all the exercises are going to be based on the individual. Some people respond better to different exercises, so use what has worked best for you in the past, whether that’s subbing squats with Smith squats or hack squats to get the best shape/gains on your legs.

What’s nice about this outline is that for an advanced lifter who will be in the gym five times a week (not for a novice or intermediate due to the amount of strain on the central nervous system and the time needed to be in the gym) is that it gives leeway to exercise selection as noted above. FUSION knows that those who train hard and have experience under their belt know their bodies best and how they respond in the gym to different types of training. This is why the outline is made the way it is. The people choose the exercise that works, and they get it done and reap the results given time and effort with consistency and dedication.

On the “rest” days, if the individual does decide to hit the gym. We would suggest doing low-intensity cardio such as walking on a treadmill with a heart rate of 110–130 beats per minute (BPM) to get the blood flowing and allow for as much recovery as possible for the amount of time spent in the gym. Doing high intensity interval cardio (HIIT) may cut back on recovery and really strain the legs while considering two leg days in one week.

The focus on the hypertrophy days is executing the full range of motion and squeezing the muscle. Getting tension on the muscle is important for growth and feeling the muscle being worked. On the power days, it’s important to lift heavy with good form, but if there is some cheating involved, so be it. The point is to overload the muscle early in the week and come back later in the week and really focus on squeezing out the reps and getting the best of both worlds.

Split

On days 1 and 2, you will be following a “power” style training with multiple sets of 5 reps. We want you to choose an exercise for your power exercise from this list, and that is the exercise you will be focusing on for 6 weeks. On your power days, you will not train to failure on any auxiliary exercise; you will stop 1–2 reps shy of failure.

  • Chest: Incline or Flat Dumbbell or Barbell Presses
  • Back: Barbell Bent-Over Rows, T-Bar Rows, Rack Chins, or Weighted Pull-Ups
  • Shoulders: Dumbbell or Barbell Military Presses
  • Quads: Squats, Front Squats, Hack Squats, or Deep Deadlifts
  • Hams: Stiff-Legged Deadlifts, Glute/Ham Raises, or Good Mornings

On your hypertrophy days, use failure sparingly – maybe 1 set for each muscle group at most, then stop 1–2 reps shy on the others. You will do 3 sets of 10 of your power exercise on hypertrophy days to start that particular muscle group, but only use 65 percent of your normal 10-rep max weight. Focus on form and speed, and then drive the positive up quickly with authority.

Day 1: Upper Body Power

  • Back Power Exercise
  • Auxiliary Back exercise: Incline-Braced Dumbbell Rows, Single-Arm Dumbbell Rows, Machine Rows or Lat Pull-Downs
    3 sets of 8–10 reps
  • Chest Power Exercise
  • Auxiliary Chest Exercise: Dumbbell Flyes or Machine Flyes
    3 sets 8–10 reps
  • Shoulder Power Exercise
  • Bicep Auxiliary Exercise: EZ-Bar Curls or Dumbbell Curls
    2 sets of 6–8 reps
  • Triceps Auxiliary Exercise: Skullcrushers or Cable Press-Downs
    2 sets of 6–8 reps

Day 2: Lower Body Power

  • Quad Power Exercise
  • Leg Extensions
    2 sets of 8–10
  • Ham Power Exercise
  • Leg Curls or Single-Leg Curls
    2 sets of 8–10 reps
  • Standing Calf Raises or Donkey Calf Raises
    3 sets of 6–8 reps
  • Seated Calf Raises
    2 sets of 6–8 reps

Day 4: Chest/Back Hypertrophy

Chest

  • Chest Power Exercise
    3 sets: 10 reps
  • Chest Auxiliary Exercise: Dumbbell Incline or Flat Press, Hammer Strength Press (Incline/Flat/Decline)
    3 sets: 8–12 reps
  • Chest Auxiliary Exercise: Dumbbell Incline or Flat Flyes, Cable Flyes, Cable Crossovers
    3 sets: 12-15 reps

Back

  • Back Power Exercise
    3 sets: 10 reps
  • Back Auxiliary Exercise: Barbell Bent-Over Rows, T-Bar Rows, Close-Grip Cable Rows, or Dumbbell Rows
    3 sets: 8–12 reps
  • Back Auxiliary Exercise: Rack Chins, Weighted Pull-Ups, Lat Pull-Downs, or Close-Grip Cable Pull-Downs
    3 sets: 8–12 reps

One 60-second set of weighted hangs (add as much weight as you can and just hang for 60 seconds, spreading your back as wide as possible).

Day 5: Shoulders/Arms Hypertrophy

Shoulders

  • Shoulder Power Exercise
    2 sets: 10 reps
  • Shoulder Auxiliary Exercise: Dumbbell or Cable Lateral Raises, Dumbbell or Cable Rear Raises
    3 sets: 8–12 reps

Arms

  • Bicep Auxiliary Exercise: EZ Standing Curls or Dumbbell Standing Curls
    3 sets: 6–10 reps
  • Bicep Auxiliary Exercise: Cable Curls, Preacher Curls, or Dumbbell Concentration Curls
    2 sets: 10-15reps
  • Triceps Auxiliary Exercise: Skullcrushers or Overhead Cable Rope Extensions
    3 sets: 6–10 reps
  • Triceps Auxiliary Exercise: Cable Press-Downs or Reverse Grip Cable Press-Downs
    2 sets: 10-15 reps

You can superset bicep exercises with triceps exercises to cut down on time.

Day 6: Legs Hypertrophy

Quads

  • Quad Power Exercise
    3 sets: 10 reps
  • Ham Power Exercise
    3 sets: 10 reps
  • Quad Auxiliary Exercise: Leg Extensions
    2 sets: 8–10 reps
  • Ham Auxiliary Exercise: Leg Curls
    2 sets: 8–10 reps

Calves

  • Standing Calf Raises or Donkey Calf Raises
    3 sets: 8–12 reps
  • Seated Calf Raises
    2 sets: 6-15 reps

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