RenegadeStrong2015-2

RENEGADE

STRONG

ALL N E W FOR 2015!

6-W eeks to a B adass P hysique

B y J ason F erruggia

D

i s c l a i m e r

You must get your physician’s approval before beginning this exercise program. These recommendations are not medical guidelines but are for educational purposes only. You must consult your physician prior to starting this program or if you have any medical condition or injury that contraindicates physical activity. This program is designed for healthy individuals 18 years and older only. The information in this report is not meant to supplement, nor replace, proper exercise training. All forms of exercise pose some inherent risks. The editors and publishers advise readers to take full responsibility for their safety and know their limits. Before practicing the exercises in this book, be sure that your equipment is well-maintained, and do not take risks beyond your level of experience, aptitude, training and fitness. The exercises and dietary programs in this book are not intended as a substitute for any exercise routine or treatment or dietary regimen that may have been prescribed by your physician. Don’t lift heavy weights if you are alone, inexperienced, injured, or fatigued. Always ask for instruction and assistance when lifting. Don’t perform any exercise without proper instruction. See your physician before starting any exercise or nutrition program. If you are taking any medications, you must talk to your physician before starting any exercise program, including Renegade Strong. If you experience any lightheadedness, dizziness, or shortness of breath while exercising, stop the movement and consult a physician. You must have a complete physical examination if you are sedentary, if you have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or diabetes, if you are overweight, or if you are over 30 years old. Please discuss all nutritional changes with your physician or a registered dietician. This publication is intended for informational use only. Jason Ferruggia and renegadestrengthclub.com will not assume any liability or be held responsible for any form of injury, personal loss or illness caused by the utilization of this information.

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

T

he Renegade Strong program will get you big, strong, and jacked. It will help you defy skinny-fat genetics and turn you into a badass mofo. That’s about all the intro we need. There’s no time for talking. You need to get to the gym and start growing. So let’s get right into it...

This program follows an upper/lower split, with each day having a different focus.

On Day 1 the focus is upper body pushing. You will perform a variety of compound pressing exercises for the chest, shoulders and triceps. You will use moderate to heavy weights. You will start with a dumbbell press for moderate to high reps. After this, you will do a heavy, explosive barbell press. You’ll ramp up to a top end weight then stick with it for the prescribed number of sets. Next up will be a shoulder press, followed by a triceps exercise. Upper body pulling will have a secondary emphasis on this day. You will use lighter weights and the goal will be to just engorge the muscle with blood and get a good pump. On Day 2 the focus is compound lower body movements. You will start with a jump to fire up the CNS and activate the fast twitch muscle fibers. After the jumps you’ll pump up the hamstrings and glutes with a moderate to high rep movement. Next will be the big compound squatting movement. You will work up to heavy weights that let you maintain some explosiveness. No slow grinders. Next up will be a single leg squatting movement for mobility and hypertrophy. Finally, you will finish with one movement to stretch the hamstrings. This will always be a dumbbell Romanian deadlift. The focus of Day 3 is upper body pulling. You will begin with a row variation and work up to heavy weights done for moderate to high reps. After the row, you will move on to chin-ups. This is where you will try to set rep PRs. The third movement will be the explosive exercise. After you finish up the pulling, you move on to lighter, pump-focused exercises. These will blast your chest, shoulders and triceps and shouldn’t stress the joints at all. Always do at least one warm up set for every exercise in the program. The exception would be the inverted row on Day 1. The first

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exercise will always require at least 2-3 warm up sets of roughly 50, 70 and 90% of your starting weight. Depending on how strong you are and how much weight you’ll be using, you may need a couple warm-up sets on exercises later in the workout. The further into the workout you get, the less need there will be for warm up sets. Day 4 is a lower body day, focused on more joint friendly exercises, with an emphasis on conditioning. You will do most exercises on this day in circuit fashion. Always go through each exercise in the circuit and perform one or two warm up sets before starting your work sets. You hit every upper body muscle, except for biceps, on Day’s 1 & 3. Biceps get trained on Day’s 2 and 4. This allows you to hit them directly twice per week and indirectly twice per week.

This split has you hitting each body part twice per week—Once with hard and heavy exercises and a second time with less stressful ones.

The “big” exercises will be second on Day 1, third on Day 2 and first on Day 3. Those are the ones you want to push. As always, you have to listen to your body and know that you can’t set PRs at every workout. But you want to keep the concept of progressive overload in the back of your mind and strive to get better over time.

Size and strength without the aches and pains.

There are two different training weeks- A and B. You rotate through these for a total of 6 weeks, doing each training week 4 times. So you’ll start with training week A then do training week B the following week. The next week will start back with training week A and so on. This split has you training the big body parts hard once per week. Compound exercises, heavier weights and more volume make up the first day for the upper and lower body. Then you hit them a second time with less stressful exercises, lighter weights and less volume. The first week of both training Week A and training B begin with lower volume (fewer sets). The volume increases slightly on the second and third run through each training week.

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PRE WORKOUT WARM UPS

A

lways start with 2-3 minutes (longer if necessary/ you’re over 40) of jumping jacks, jump rope, bike riding or incline treadmill walking. This serves to elevate your heart rate and body temperature before jumping into the pre workout warm up.

Before the lower body warm ups spend 2-5 minutes working on ankle mobility. Also, roll a golf ball or lacrosse ball on the bottom of each foot for 60 seconds, then stretch your calves for 30 seconds each.

Upper Body Warm Up 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10)

Shoulder Dislocation with Band or Broomstick- 1 x 20 YTWL- 1 x 5 in each direction Scapular Wall Slide- 1 x 15 Cat/Camel- 1 x 10 Upper Body Clam Shell- 1 x 15 per side Bird/Dog- 1 x 6 per side Band Pull Apart- 1 x 20 Supinated/Curl Grip External Rotation w/ Band- 1 x 15 Pushup Plus- 1 x 15 Slow Crawl- 1 x 60 sec.* *Crawl forwards, backwards, side to side, etc.

Lower Body Warm Up 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10)

Thai Sit- 1 x 15 per side Half Clam- 1 x 15 per side Cat/Camel- 1 x 10 Slow Curl Up- 1 x 5 per side Side Plank- 1 x 30 sec per side Bird/Dog- 1 x 6 per side Glute Bridge- 1 x 20 Slow Lunge- 1 x 10 Dynamic Hip Flexion- 1 x 20 Overhead Squat w/ Band or Broomstick- 1 x 20



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WORK OUT

Workout Week A - Week 1 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 45 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 10 Degree Incline Barbell Press w/ Chains*

2

6

60

3) Dumbbell Military Press

3

8-12

90

4) Parallel Bar Dip

1

10-15

90

5) Pronated Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Neutral Grip Inverted Row

2

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Box Jump

3

3

60

2) Glute Ham Raise or Leg Curl Variation

3

10-15

60

3) Front or Back Squat w/ Chains

2

6

90

4) Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat

2

10-15

45*

5) DB Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

45

6) Hammer Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Modified Dragon Flag

2

6-10

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

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Workout Week A - Week 1 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm DB Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Neutral Grip Ring Chin Up

2

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull**

3

8

60

4) Ring Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) DB Lateral Raise

2

12-15

45

6) Rope Pushdown

4

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Curl

3

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Push

3

60s

30-60

2b) Farmers Walk

3

60s

30-60

2c) Sledgehammer Swing or Medicine Ball Slam

3

60s

30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

3

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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Workout Week B - Week 1 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 10 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 30 Degree Incline Barbell Press*

2

6

60

3) Barbell Military Press

3

8-10

90

4) Close Grip Floor Press or DB Floor Press

1

10-15

90

5) Supinated/Curl Grip Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Pronated Inverted Row

2

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Hurdle Jump

3

3

60

2) Barbell Hip Thrust or Glute Bridge

3

10-15

60

3) Trap Bar Deadlift

2

6

90

4) Walking Goblet Lunge

1

10-15

90

5) Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

60

6) EZ Bar Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Pulldown Abs

2

10-15

45

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Workout Week B - Week 1 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm Landmine Barbell Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Ring Pull Up

2

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull or Log Clean**

3

8

60

4) Feet in Straps Incline Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) 75 Degree Incline DB Lateral Raise

2

12-15

45

6) Angled Bar Pushdown

3

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Rope/Towel Curl

3

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Drag

3

60s

30-60

2b) Slow Motion Farmers Walk

3

60s

30-60

2c) Battling Rope Slam or Medicine Ball Slam

3

60s

30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

3

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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Workout Week A - Week 2 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 45 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 10 Degree Incline Barbell Press w/ Chains*

3

6

60

3) Dumbbell Military Press

3

8-12

90

4) Parallel Bar Dip

1

10-15

90

5) Pronated Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Neutral Grip Inverted Row

3

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Box Jump

3

3

60

2) Glute Ham Raise or Leg Curl Variation

3

10-15

60

3) Front or Back Squat w/ Chains

3

6

90

4) Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat

2

10-15

45*

5) DB Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

45

6) Hammer Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Modified Dragon Flag

3

6-10

60

*Rest between legs

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Workout Week A - Week 2 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm DB Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Neutral Grip Ring Chin Up

3

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull**

3

8

60

4) Ring Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) DB Lateral Raise

3

12-15

45

6) Rope Pushdown

4

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Curl

4

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Push

4

60s

30-60

2b) Farmers Walk

4

60s

30-60

2c) Sledgehammer Swing or Medicine Ball Slam

4

60s

30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

4

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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Workout Week B - Week 2 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 10 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 30 Degree Incline Barbell Press*

3

6

60

3) Barbell Military Press

3

8-12

90

4) Close Grip Floor Press or DB Floor Press

1

10-15

90

5) Supinated/Curl Grip Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Pronated Inverted Row

3

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Hurdle Jump

3

3

60

2) Barbell Hip Thrust or Glute Bridge

3

10-15

60

3) Trap Bar Deadlift

3

6

90

4) Walking Goblet Lunge

2

10-15

90

5) Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

60

6) EZ Bar Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Pulldown Abs

3

10-15

45

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Workout Week B - Week 2 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm Landmine Barbell Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Ring Pull Up

3

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull or Log Clean**

3

8

60

4) Feet in Straps Incline Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) 75 Degree Incline DB Lateral Raise

3

12-15

45

6) Angled Bar Pushdown

4

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Rope/Towel Curl

4

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Drag

4

60s

30-60

2b) Slow Motion Farmers Walk

4

60s

30-60

2c) Battling Rope Slam or Medicine Ball Slam

4

60s 30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

4

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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Workout Week A - Week 3 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 45 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 10 Degree Incline Barbell Press w/ Chains*

3

6

60

3) Dumbbell Military Press

3

8-12

90

4) Parallel Bar Dip

1

10-15

90

5) Pronated Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Neutral Grip Inverted Row

3

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Box Jump

3

3

60

2) Glute Ham Raise or Leg Curl Variation

3

10-15

60

3) Front or Back Squat w/ Chains

3

6

90

4) Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat

2

10-15

45*

5) DB Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

45

6) Hammer Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Modified Dragon Flag

3

6-10

60

*Rest between legs

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Workout Week A - Week 3 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm DB Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Neutral Grip Ring Chin Up

3

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull**

3

8

60

4) Ring Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) DB Lateral Raise

3

12-15

45

6) Rope Pushdown

4

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Curl

4

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Push

4

60s

30-60

2b) Farmers Walk

4

60s

30-60

2c) Sledgehammer Swing or Medicine Ball Slam

4

60s

30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

4

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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Workout Week B - Week 3 Day 1 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 10 Degree Incline DB Press

3

8-12

90

2) 30 Degree Incline Barbell Press*

3

6

60

3) Barbell Military Press

3

8-12

90

4) Close Grip Floor Press or DB Floor Press

1

10-15

90

5) Supinated/Curl Grip Pulldown

3

8-12

60

6) Pronated Inverted Row

3

12-15

60

*Use a Swiss or angled grip bar if you have one

Day 2 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Hurdle Jump

3

3

60

2) Barbell Hip Thrust or Glute Bridge

3

10-15

60

3) Trap Bar Deadlift

3

6

90

4) Walking Goblet Lunge

2

10-15

90

5) Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift

1

15-20

60

6) EZ Bar Curl

3

10-12

45

7) Pulldown Abs

3

10-15

45

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Workout Week B - Week 3 Day 3 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) 1 Arm Landmine Barbell Row

3

10-15

45*

2) Ring Pull Up

3

AMAP

90

3) Snatch Grip High Pull or Log Clean**

3

8

60

4) Feet in Straps Incline Pushup

3

12-15

90

5) 75 Degree Incline DB Lateral Raise

3

12-15

45

6) Angled Bar Pushdown

4

12-15

45

*Rest between arms

**If you can’t do high pulls do snatch grip shrugs for 3 sets of 12

Day 4 EXERCISE

SETS REPS/TIME REST

1) Kettlebell Rope/Towel Curl

4

12-15

60

2a) Forward Sled Drag

4

60s

30-60

2b) Slow Motion Farmers Walk

4

60s

30-60

2c) Battling Rope Slam or Medicine Ball Slam

4

60s 30-60

2d) Kettlebell Swing or Reverse Hyper

4

60s

60-120

*Rest as little as needed to get through each exercise in the circuit, then take 1-2 minutes at the end of the circuit before starting it over.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What if I don’t have chains?

Just do the exercise without chains.

Dips bother my shoulders. What can I do instead?

Barbell floor presses, dumbbell floor presses, close grip pushups, reverse grip bench presses on smith machine, close grip bench presses on smith machine, or EZ bar pullover/extension combo.

I don’t have a pulldown machine. What can I do instead? Band assisted pull ups.

What if I don’t have a band?

Buy one at http://www.strengthtrainingbands.com/

What if I don’t have a glute ham bench or leg curl machine?

You can do natural glute ham raises while kneeling on a padded surface and having someone hold your ankles. You can also do leg curls with your feet in straps or on furniture sliders. The final option is to set up a band around an immovable object and loop the other end around your ankles. Sit on a chair or bench and leg curl your heels under your body, using the band as resistance.

Is it okay to use a leg curl machine?

Yes, just be sure you don’t extend your knees all the way. Stop about 2-3 inches from the bottom position. If the machine causes you any knee pain at all try a different machine or go from a lying to a seated (or vice versa).

Can I do goblet or kettlebell front squats instead of barbell squats? Yes.

Can I use the safety bar for squats? Yes

Can I do box squats instead of free squats?

Yes, but know that the quads will receive far less stimulation from a box squat.

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How high should my foot be on the rear foot elevated split squat? A box or bench of anywhere between 8 and about 15 inches will be fine for most people.

Do I have to do a warm up set(s) for each exercise in the workouts or just the first movement of the day? I’d highly recommend doing at least one warm up/feeler set for every new exercise you start. The stronger you are, the greater number of warm up sets you will need. The exception would be the inverted rows on Day 1.

Overhead pressing bothers my shoulders. What should I do instead?

Because the overhead presses come third in the workout, after you have already done quite a bit of pressing to warm up, you may not find this to the case. However, if they still bother you try pressing on a steep angle of somewhere between 60 and 80 degrees and see if that helps. If that doesn’t alleviate the pain simply sub in lateral raises instead.

Should my arms be straight on lateral raises or slightly bent? Slightly bent.

Should I raise the weights directly out to the side on lateral raises or slightly in front of me? Raise them ever so slightly in front of you.

On the supinated/curl grip pulldown do I use a straight bar?

Ideally, you should use one of those pulldown machines that has double handles, which allows you to move your arms naturally as you pull the weight down. If that’s not an option use an EZ bar attachment. The last choice would be a straight bar. If that’s your only option and it bothers your elbows or wrists just use a neutral grip attachment.

What if I don’t have a box to jump on?

Simply do jump squats. Squat down a quarter of the way then explode and jump up as high as you can reaching both hands overhead. Stick the landing then repeat.

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What if I don’t have a trap bar?

Just do two different squat variations on each of the training weeks. So on Week A you could do a front squat and on Week B you could do a goblet squat or back squat.

What if I don’t have an EZ bar? Do standing dumbbell curls.

On the 75-degree incline lateral raise does my chest face the bench, or my back?

Your chest is on the bench with arms hanging down in front of you. Raise the weights out to the side like you would on a standing lateral raise.

What if I don’t have a cable machine for pushdowns?

Use bands instead. Do pushdowns on Week A and overhead band extensions on Week B.

What if I don’t have a cable for pulldown abs?

You can do these with a band attached to a pull up bar. Or you can do slow motion straight leg sit-ups.

What’s the difference between a farmers walk and a slow motion farmers walk?

The regular farmers walk should be done at power-walk speed. On the slow motion farmers walk you will use lighter weights and take three seconds per step. Lift your leg up high as you step and slowly, softly put it on the ground. Think about walking on eggshells when doing the slow motion farmers walk. So step as quietly and lightly as you can.

What can I sub in for the sled on Day 4 if I don’t have one? High resistance sprints on a stationary bike.

What about incline sprints on a treadmill?

Sprints on a treadmill encourage you to use a very unnatural stride. A better idea is to incline the treadmill then turn it off. Hold on to the handles like you would during a sled push. Then, take long, powerful strides for the prescribed amount of time.

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My gym doesn’t have a sled, treadmill or bike. What can I do to replace sled pushes? Walking lunges for sets of 15 reps per leg.

What if I want to add front lever iso holds to the program?

Do them on Day 3 before the first exercise of the day. Do 4 sets of 10 seconds, resting 45 seconds between.

What if I want to add frog stands/planche progression iso holds to the program?

Do them on Day 1 before the first exercise of the day. Do 4 sets of 10 seconds, resting 45 seconds between.

How slowly should I lower the weight on each exercise?

You don’t necessarily need to count the seconds but you always want to be in full control of the weight. Two seconds is good on most exercises with a shorter range. On exercises that have a longer range of motion like a squat, pull up or overhead press, it might be closer to three seconds. If you have only been training for a year or so I’d recommend sticking closer to a three second negative on most exercises. If you’re over 40 and/or have a lot of joint pain I’d also recommend always using a slower eccentric. Finally, if there is any muscle group that you can’t feel or get a pump on, you should definitely lighten the weight and slow down the negative portion of each rep.

Should I take my sets to failure?

No. There is no reason to take your sets to failure. Research and real world evidence shows that doing so has a negative impact on muscle growth. It also burns out your CNS and leaves you with a feeling of overall systemic fatigue. I’ve noticed that those who train to failure most often are also those who are constantly catching a cold or getting the flu. You should train very hard but always leave at least 1-2 perfect reps in the tank on each set.

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What is the perfect rep execution for maximal muscle growth?

1) Lower the weight slowly and under control, feeling the target muscle every inch of the way down. 2) Get a full stretch. But be sure you are only going to the full range of movement for the muscle, and not the exercise. There is a difference. Going beyond the muscles full range of motion puts too much stress on the tendons and ligaments. Doing this can result in injury. 3) Don’t pause at the bottom but instead rapidly reverse the motion. 4) Initiate the lifting portion with the target muscle. You should never feel it in your joints, hips or spine. If you do the weight is too heavy or your form is off. 5) Drive the weight up forcefully but not so explosively that you take tension off the muscles or let momentum take over. 6) Maintain constant tension throughout both the positive and negative portion of each rep. 7) Fully shorten the muscle at the top of the movement. SQUEEZE! 8) Immediately start lowering the weight, going right into the next rep. CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT.* *The exception to this rule would be barbell presses, squats and deadlifts. You can pause at lockout on these movements when you are training them for lower reps, with a strength emphasis.

Should I stretch at the end of each workout? Yes. Follow the specific protocol below:

Day 1

After exercise 4 do a 60 second stretch for your chest. This usually involves having both arms out to the side, holding onto something and pushing your chest forward. After the last exercise of the day hang from a chin up bar for as long as you can.

Day 2

After exercise 4 do a kneeling quad stretch for 60 seconds per side. After the curls, lay down on an incline bench with light dumbbells and let your arms hang for sixty seconds. Make sure your shoulders are externally rotated and that your palms are facing directly up. After the ab exercise hang from a chin up bar for 60 seconds.

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Day 3

After the last exercise of the day do a 60 second stretch for the pecs, then hang from a chin up bar for 60 seconds. Finish up with a sixty-second stretch for the triceps. The easiest way to do this is to hold a light dumbbell overhead with arm full flexed and the dumbbell behind your head. This is the start position of a one-arm dumbbell French press aka one-arm overhead dumbbell extension.

Day 4

After the last exercise of the day do a 60 second stretch for the glutes, hamstrings and quads, in that order.

What days should I train on?

Ideally you would want to separate Day 1 and Day 2 with a day off in between. So the following options would work: Option A Monday- Upper Body Wednesday- Lower Body Friday- Upper Body Saturday- Lower Body Option B Monday- Upper Body Wednesday- Lower Body Thursday- Upper Body Saturday- Lower Body Option C Sunday- Upper Body Tuesday- Lower Body Thursday- Upper Body Friday- Lower Body

What about high intensity cardio (HIIT)? How much and when?

Day 4 of the program already falls under the spectrum of HIIT. So you’ve got one session covered. In addition to that I’d add one sprint day per week. Ideally that should be done as a second workout on Day 2 either 4-6 hours before or after strength training. If that’s not possible it can be done as a second workout on any other training day that isn’t the day before or the day after the primary lower body workout (Day 2).

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Can I add a third HIIT session each week?

That will be a bit excessive for a lot of people. Two HIIT sessions of 15-30 minutes is usually enough to get the job done. But if you keep it to 10 minutes and make it a finisher immediately after your Day 1, Day 2 or Day 3 workout it won’t kill you. Aim for 20-40 second work intervals followed by a brief rest period. Repeat at high intensity for 10 minutes. Some good choices are the stationary bike, sled drags, swimming, jump rope, boxing, and concept 2 row machines. You can stick with just one of those for the entire 10 minutes or break it up.

I can only train once per day on the 4 main training days. And I can do something once on weekends. What should I do? Just do a low intensity cardio session and/or some yoga or mobility work for 30 minutes.

Is yoga something I can do on a regular basis? How often and when?

Yes. Yoga is great for recovery and enhancing your mobility and flexibility. Choose one of the lower intensity, easier, more relaxing and restorative forms of yoga. You don’t want to be doing advanced bodyweight strength training like handstand holds in yoga class. You want to be recovering from your workouts. If you stick with the easier forms of yoga you can do it 2-3 times per week and shouldn’t have any trouble.

What if I can’t train on weekends? It’s not the end of the world. Just do this instead: Monday-Upper Body Tuesday- Lower Body

Thursday- Upper Body Friday- Lower Body

What if I can only train three days per week?

Skip Day 4 but try to get some kind of conditioning/ HIIT training in on the weekend, if only for 10-15 minutes.

What should I do for recovery on my off days?

We’ve already covered the benefits of low intensity cardio, yoga, and mobility work. In addition to that I highly recommend the following recovery techniques: • Meditation • Massage • Ice baths • Epsom salt baths

• • • •

Float tanks Cyrotherapy ART (Active Release Techniques) MAT (Muscle Activation Techniques)

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What if I don’t have an adjustable bench? How can I perform the different incline presses?

Those of you who don’t have an adjustable bench will need to stack plates under the head of a bench for the 10 degree and 30 degree incline presses. How many you use depends on how thick your plates are. Just estimate it and make sure the angles are different. And don’t stack so many that it becomes unsafe. For the 45 degree incline press, sub it out with Incline Push-Ups with your Feet in a TRX. Your hands will be on parallettes (or the ground, but parallettes are preferred), and your feet will be in TRX straps. Your body should be at around a 45 deg. angle to the ground with your feet above your head. Perform push-ups from that position.

What can I do to replace sled pushes?

Bike sprints. Perform them for the same length of time as you would the sled pushes, and if you can, do them on a bike where you can crank up the resistance. That way, you can replicate the constant tension you get on a sled and get a similar training effect.

Can I do Trap Bar Deadlifts as the main movement both weeks?

You are better off picking a different big movement. So, one week you do Trap Bar Deadlifts and another week you do something else. It could be a belt squat, or even a leg press. If you choose to do a leg press, bump the reps up to 12-15 per set.

What if I don’t have a leg press machine and can only do Trap Bar Deads as my main lower body exercise since squatting beats me up?

If you will only be doing Trap Bar Deadlifts as your only main lower body movement, you need to switch up your technique each week. One week, do them in flat shoes, using the high handles with a deadlift technique. The next week, do them in squat shoes, using the low handles and a vertical torso so it simulates the movement of a squat more than a deadlift.

What kind of nutrition plan should I follow with this training program? The Renegade Diet. Get it at http://www.RenegadeDietBook.com/

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What about supplements?

Most supplements are overrated. I recommend the following: • • • • •

Athletic Greens Omega 3’s Grass Fed Protein Powder or Vegan/ Non-Dairy Protein Powder BCAA (only if you train first thing in the am on an empty stomach) Shroom Tech Sport (pre workout)

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