Week 10 Day 4 - Bringing Sexy Back!

04/06/15 Day 66 – Back & Biceps

Pushing though this 12 week muscle building programme with some pace now, only one more day until week 10 is done and dusted! Following on with this weeks previous two sessions it all about big numbers, big weights and some big results to follow! But enough of that, lets look at the session:

Neutral Grip Pull Ups – 3 Sets, 1 x 25,15,5

Superset

Chin Up – 2 Sets, 1 x 20, 10

Reverse Grip Lat Pull Down – 3 Sets, 1 x 5,10,15

Close Grip Lat Pull Down – 3 Sets, 1 x 20,25,30

Reverse Grip Bent Over Barbell Row – 5 Sets, 1 x 25,20,15,10,5

Bent Over Barbell Row – 5 Sets, 1 x 5,10,15,20,25

Single Arm Dumbbell Arc Row – 5 Sets, 1 x 25,20,15,10,5 per arm

Single Arm Dumbbell Row – 5 Sets, 1 x 5,10,15,20,25 per arm

Preach Curl – 5 Sets, 1 x 25,20,15,10,5

Single Arm Preacher Curl – 5 Sets, 1 x 5,10,15,20,25 per arm

Cardio – Interval Training 15mins Total

After a short warm up and stretching session I was ready to get started with my session. With the first two exercises I went back and forth between the two differing grips, with the Neutral Grip Pull Ups I was trying to target the insertion of the lat across the armpit, with the standard Chin Up I was working the belly of the muscle more.  When starting the session with such a large compound movement I didn't want to attach any weight, as I don't feel as though I would have been strong enough the achieve full range of motion and thus be less effective during the movement. I found the body weight work a bit of a struggle at times so starting off my session like this allows me to focus all my attention and strength on getting good reps out.

From there I moved out to the Reverse Grip Lat Pull Down machine, as this was a better suited exercise to perform increasing weighted sets.  Starting with the lower reps my main focus was to go heavy and stay strong, thinking only about drawing the elbows down to the sides and not flexing the elbows too much, as this is what allows me to engage the lats more effectively.

Then to start targeting the upper traps I moved onto the Close Grip Lat Pull Down,  I used the v bar attachment for this exercise as i find it a lot easier to draw the scapular together and thus get a greater contraction out of the muscles. As the this was a drop set it became increasingly difficult as the sets went on, with the muscles already pre fatigued it made the final sets almost impossible! With every rep the lats were burning and I felt the biceps begin to start activating, this told me that I needed to drop the weight and focus more on the technique. With the last set done I was glad to be rid of the machine, until that is I went on to the next exercise.

The Reverse Grip Bent Over Barbell Row was up next, working in a pyramid fashion the results started off high and the weight nice and low, I was trying to make sure that I was hitting failure on each set regardless of the rep ranges. With a stable base and strong lower back I slowly worked my way through the sets, drawing the elbows up to my sides in order to actively engage the lasts. Then working back down the pyramid I changed the grip around to allow work through a different portion of the lats. Big compound movements like these tend to drain energy quite quickly, which why I am inclined to use pre workout formulas in order to sustain energy and concentration throughout these long,  intense sessions.

The Single Arm Dumbbell Arc Row was a new one for me, as a combination of the standards Dumbbell row and a reverse Dumbbell fly this movement was targeting the smaller rhomboid muscles as well as the posterior Delts. Trying to keep my firm strict I made sure to pause at the bottom of every movement, this denied me the possibility of swinging the weight up, but instead forces the muscles to work harder. So after hitting the smaller muscles around the shoulder and scapular what better way to really finish myself off then by some heavy ass Single Arm Dumbbell Row. The emphasis with this exercise was all about intensity, keeping as little rest break between sets as possible. The only rest I have myself was getting a new weight each set, then running back to strap up and get the reps done. This pushed masses of blood though my back and allowed me to flush the muscles with lots of growth hormone.

With the back fully cooked it was time to move on to working the synergistic muscles and every guys favourite, the biceps! Starting with the preacher curl I performed a few weightless sets on the ez bar before loading up for my working sets. With the lighter sets I wants to try and push lots of blood into the biceps, as I was only performing two different exercises I wanted to get the most out of them as possible. I found the heavier sets really took its toll on the  biceps, thoroughly burning even during the rest breaks, I put the pain to one side and made sure I finished strong!

Working the biceps individually on the last exercise (Single Arm Preacher Curl ) really bought to light how much stronger my right arm was in comparison to my left. I made sure I chose a weight that tested the weaker arm, but let the stronger arm go through the motions. By working the weaker arm more or allows that side to develop better, as it not constantly having to try and keep up with the stronger and more dominant arm, which will aid my symmetry when i step on stage next year.

With my body beaten and my energy levels through the floor it was time to get a protein shake down me. I like to use The Protein Works for my shakes,  which are a simple whey powder to aid my recovery and growth.

For nutritional advice and bespoke programmes come and have a chat with me at: mgonlinept@gmail.com and change your future, today.

Happy Lifting,

Matt