X Mass Workouts PDF

X-REP.
com Presents
X-traordinary
MUSCLE-BUILDING
TS
O U
R K
O
W Complete Print-and-Go
10 Size and Strength Programs
Including T/NT, 3D Power Pyramid,
Volume/Intensity Fusion and X-Rep Reload
by Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
INTRODUCTION
I
f you’ve been training to pack on muscle mass for a while, you’ve
realized a disheartening, but challenging, fact: The “perfect” mass-
building routine only works for so long—then you have to move on to
something new. If you don’t vary your attack, your gains stall.
That’s the the muscle-building game and the nature of the human body.
It’s called adaptation, and you can’t fight it—you have to embrace and
use it to get bigger and stronger. That requires switching things up when
gains slow down, which is precisely what this e-book is about—giving
you rock-solid options in the gym to shake up your muscle growth and
keep your size on a steep upward trajectory. In fact, there are 10 complete
programs—enough to get you through more than a year of training—with
plenty of big gaining.
If you’ve read any of our other e-books, such as The Ultimate Mass
Workout, Beyond X-Rep Muscle Building or 3D Muscle Building, you’ve
seen that each contains a number of complete programs, all with specific
variations. This e-book expands on those efficient muscle-building road-
maps to help you achieve extraordinary bursts of new growth...
You’ll find Volume/Intensity Fusion, 3D Power Pyramid, T/NT (Trau-
matic/Nontraumatic), Heavy/Light, 20-Rep Squat, Time-Bomb Train-
ing and X-Rep Reload, which is our original X-Rep routine from our first
e-book (UMW), but with a number of twists and turns, like Power/Rep
Range/Shock and X-hybrid techniques thrown in for good measure (and
bigger measurements!). It’s the program we’re using as we write this, and
our gains have been spectacular so far (a big thank-you to Eric Broser, the
creator of P/RR/S, and Dante, the man behind D.C. training).
Each workout is explained and then presented in full-page template
form, so you can print it, grab the hardcopy and head to the gym immedi-
ately to use it as your new blueprint for a blast of new mass. (Grab a pencil
too, as you’ll want to write down your poundages in the space provided;
we’re big believers in trying to better our performance as often as pos-
sible—remember, you gotta challenge your muscles to make them grow!)
Whether you can only train two or three days a week or can manage
four or five, there’s a plan here for you—and if you give your chosen X-
traordinary Workout your all, you’ll pack your frame with new mass fast.
Then, after about six weeks, you can pick another from this muscle-build-
ing arsenal and repeat the process so
you grow faster than ever before! See
you at the gym.
—Steve Holman and
Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
Note: We strongly recommend that you
subscribe to our free weekly e-zine at
www.IronManMagazine.com, as we
will be discussing the programs in this
e-book and answering questions.
X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 1
X-traordinary Muscle-Building Workouts was written to help you get closer
to your physical potential with sensible bodybuilding strategies. Weight train-
ing is a demanding activity, however, so it is highly recommended that you
consult your physician and have a physical examination prior to beginning
a weight-training program. Proceed with the suggested advice, exercises and
routines at your own risk.
Photography by Michael Neveux
Cover model: Jonathan Lawson
Copyright © 2007 by Homebody Productions

All rights reserved.
The material in this document may not be reproduced in whole or in part

in any manner or form without prior written consent from the publisher.
Homebody Productions
P.O. Box 2800
Ventura, CA 93002
www.3DMuscleBuilding.com
3D Muscle Building e-book
www.X-Rep.com
The Ultimate Mass Workout e-book
www.BeyondX-Rep.com
Beyond X-Rep Muscle Building e-book
www.X-tremeLean.com
X-treme Lean e-book
www.X-traordinaryAbs.com
X-traordinary Abs e-book
All e-books are available at

www.X-Rep.com/xshop.htm
2 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

CONTENTS
WORKOUT 1
—3D Power Pyramid
4-day program................................................5
WORKOUT 2
—Anabolic Acceleration: 20-Rep Squat
2- and 3-day programs.................................13
WORKOUT 3
—Time-Bomb Training
3-day program..............................................21
WORKOUT 4
—Volume/Intensity Fusion
4- or 5-day program.....................................29
WORKOUT 5
—T/NT (Traumatic/Nontraumatic)
3-day and 4-day programs...........................41
WORKOUT 6
—Heavy/Light
3-day and 4-day programs...........................55
WORKOUT 7
—X-Rep Reload
4-day and home-gym programs..................69
APPENDIX 1
—Stretch Overload Research................................97

X-traordinary
Muscle-Building
WORKOUTS

1
WORKOUT 1
3D Power Pyramid
Program

Before we get into the 3D Power Pyramid Program, here’s a
letter we received that shows you it’s, well, power...
I’m 31 years old and started lifting weights shortly after I
graduated from high school. At that time my weight was
140 at 5’10”, and in 10 years of training I didn’t put on much
muscle weight due to improper eating and training. Then I
was introduced to Steve Holman’s 3D Positions of Flexion,
and even though I still wasn’t eating properly, I gained 20
pounds in about two years. After furthering my knowledge
of 3D POF, I decided to do the Power Pyramid Program
because I was looking for both mass and strength—and
that’s exactly what I got. I went from 195 to 215 in two
short months [almost 20 pounds of muscle in eight
weeks]! My bench press went from 340 to 405, squats from
460 to 515 and deadlifts from 375 to 435. I’ve never felt bet-
ter, and my strength and power are unbelievable. Thank you
very much for 3D POF. Without it I might have given up.
K.T., Fostoria, OH

To get big, you have to move heavy iron, and to move heavy
iron you have to be strong; so it obviously pays big dividends,
literally, to train for strength and power every so often (just
as the bodybuilder did who sent us that motivational letter!).
Unfortunately, some bodybuilders think that training for
strength and power means you’re forced to neglect propor-
tion and symmetry. Not true. You can train for both simulta-
neously with the 3D Power Pyramid Program.
This routine is based on the pyramid technique, a pound-
age-progression method that powerlifters have been using
for decades to wring as much strength-building potential out
of an exercise as possible (massive muscle size is a welcome
side effect!). You simply add poundage at each successive set
and let the repetition number fall accordingly. For example, a
powerlifter’s bench press workout might look like this:
Set 1: 135 x 12; Set 2: 185 x 10; Set 3: 225 x 8; Set 4: 315 x 6;
Set 5: 350 x 4; Set 6: 380 x 2; Set 7: 380 x 1-2
As a bodybuilder you want to work the three positions

of flexion for complete development—also using flyes for
stretch-position work and crossovers for the contracted posi-
tion, for example—while still building plenty of strength. If
you use the powerlifter’s seven-set pyramid on your midrange
movements, like bench presses, and then train the other two
positions as well, you could drain too much of your recovery
ability (not to mention having to camp out at the gym). Re-
member that most powerlifters don’t care about full, propor-
tionate development, so they don’t have to focus on exercises
other than the three powerlifts and the assistance movements
that help improve those lifts. For bodybuilders, though, it’s
much better to do a minipyramid on the big midrange ex-
ercises, like the bench press, and follow with a stretch- and
contracted-position movement for one to two sets in order to
fully develop the muscle while still avoiding overtraining.
For example, your POF Power Routine for lower chest starts
with bench presses for the following set-rep scheme (the
poundages are merely hypothetical):

Set 1: 135 x 12 (warmup); Set 2: 155 x 9 (warmup);
Set 3: 210 x 8; Set 4: 235 x 6; Set 5: 250 x 3-4
As we said, that type of pyramid is actually more strength

oriented—with a size side effect—due to the lower reps (the
reverse pyramid in the Heavy/Light program is more size ori-
ented with a strength side effect, as you’ll see when you get
to Chapter 6). So that alone would be a good strength builder
with some size as well. To add more growth side effects you
follow that pyramid exercise with one to two all-out sets of
decline cable flyes to hit the important stretch and contract-
ed positions of your lower chest. You work every bodypart in
a similar manner to build plenty of overall strength without
neglecting proportion.
Here are a few tips for making your POF power strategy as
productive as possible:
•Do one to two warmup sets with about 50 percent and 70
percent of your work weight on each exercise you pyramid
(sets 1 and 2 above). Remember that a warm muscle con-
tracts more efficiently than a cold muscle—a warm muscle
progresses through the size principle of fiber recruitment
much more effectively, activating the low-threshold motor
units first, the mediums second and the highs, which bring
in the important fast-twitch growth fibers, last. Without a
proper warmup, the nervous system usually balks too early,
reducing high-threshold activation. (Note that the warmup
sets are not included in the program outlined on the next
few pages; however, those exercises with an asterisk * next
to them are the ones on which we suggest you do one or
two warmup sets.)
•Whenever you can get 10 reps on the first work set of your
power pyramid, up the weight on all three sets at your next
workout so that you go back to only getting eight on your
first set.
•Go to at least positive failure on all of your sets other than
warmups. If you start losing your enthusiasm, try a mod-
erate-intensity week; in other words, do four workouts
without training to exhaustion. Then on the following week
go back to training with all-out intensity. (That’s the Phase
Training concept explained in most of our e-books.)
•The bodypart programs are brief, so you should use in-
tensity techniques like end-of-set X-Rep partials or other
X-hybrid techniques on a set or two of each exercise, but
don’t abuse them. If you start feeling overtrained, cut back
on your use of these techniques immediately. Intensity
techniques will probably work best on the stretch- and
contracted-position exercises and/or the last set of your
pyramid. [For a detailed description of X Reps and X-hybrid
techniques, see our Beyond X-Rep Muscle Building e-book
(www.BeyondX-Rep.com). There are also brief descrip-
tions later in this e-book—see page 86.]
•Take in extra calories, but don’t get fat. Even at your heavi-
est bodyweight you should still be able to see your abdomi-
nals (in good lighting).
The 3D Power Pyramid Program is a simple, elegant pro-

gram that provides outstanding strength and size results. But
you have to push it hard at every workout!

X-Rep.com’s 3D Power Pyramid Program ©
Six Weeks (Train Four Days a Week)
WORKOUT 1
Monday and Thursday
Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Chest, Triceps
Exercise, sets x reps Poundage

Midrange: Squats*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4
Stretch: Sissy squats, 1 x 8-12
Contracted: Leg extensions, 1 x 8-12
Midrange & Stretch: Stiff-legged

deadlifts*†, 2 x 8-12
Contracted: Lying leg curls, 1 x 8-12
Midrange: Knee-extension leg

press calf raises*, 1 x 12-20
Stretch: Donkey calf raises, 2 x 12-20
Contracted: Standing calf raises, 1 x 12-20
Midrange: Incline presses*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

Stretch & Contracted: Incline cable
flyes, 1 x 8-12
Midrange: Bench presses*†, 2 x 8, 4-6
Stretch & Contracted: Decline cable
flyes, 1 x 8-12
Midrange: Lying extensions*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

Stretch: Overhead extensions, 1 x 8-12
Contracted: Kickbacks, 1 x 8-12
*Do one to two light warmup sets with about 50 percent of your work weight
on the first and 80 percent on the second prior to your two work sets.
†Add weight to each successive set so your reps decrease.

X-Rep.com’s 3D Power Pyramid Program ©
WORKOUT 2
Tuesday and Friday
Back, Delts, Biceps, Abs, Soleus
Midrange: Medium-grip
bent-over or cable rows*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4
Stretch & Contracted: One-arm
dumbbell rows, 1 x 8-12
Midrange: Front pulldowns*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4
Stretch: Dumbbell pullovers, 1 x 8-12
Contracted: Stiff-arm pulldowns, 1 x 8-12
Midrange: Wide-grip upright

rows or DB upright rows*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4
Stretch: Incline one-arm lateral
raises, 1 x 8-12
Contracted: Lateral raises, 1 x 8-12
Midrange (anterior heads): Dumbbell
presses, 2 x 8-12
Midrange: Barbell curls*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

Stretch: Incline dumbbell curls, 1 x 8-12
Contracted: Concentration curls, 1 x 8-12
Midrange & Lower Contracted:

Incline kneeups, 1 x 10-15
Stretch & Upper Contracted: Full-range
crunches or Ab Bench crunches, 1 x 10-15
Contracted/Stretch: Seated calf

raises*†, 3 x 12, 10, 6-8

3D Power Pyramid Tips and Reminders
1) Do one to two warmup sets with 50 percent of your work-set
weight on the first and 70 to 80 percent on the second on exer-
cises on which you pyramid the weight. Concentrate, make your
rep cadence sligtly slower than usual, and try to get in touch with
the target muscle. (Only the work sets are listed in the program.)
2) Push your work sets to at least positive failure—until you
can’t do another rep with good form. On some sets continue with
X-Rep partials, eight-inch pulses from the semistretch point,
such as near the bottom of an incline press, up to just below the
halfway mark on the stroke. X Reps will work best on the last set
of your pyramid—you may need help from your partner—and
one set of your stretch- and/or contracted-position exercises.
(For more on X Reps, see page 86.)
3) The ideal rep speed is 1 1/2 seconds up and 1 1/2 seconds
down; always keep your form strict—no momentum.
4) Rest about 2 1/2 minutes between sets on which you pyra-
mid the weight; rest 1 1/2 minutes between sets on other exer-
cises.
5) If you get 10 reps fairly easily on your first set of a pyramid
exercise, add weight at your next workout to all three sets—
enough so that your reps on your first set come down to eight.
6) After six weeks on the 3D Power Pyramid Program, back off
the intensity—use the same routine but stop every set two reps
short of failure.Then you can go back to the intense version or
another program in this book or any of the programs outlined in
our other e-books.
7) Eat plenty of protein, preferably over five to seven smaller
meals every day. Your protein intake should be about one gram
for every pound of bodyweight, and you should get protein at
every meal. (For a meal-by-meal template, see the 3D Muscle-
Building Fast-Mass Diet on page 100 of 3D Muscle Building—
www.3DMuscleBuilding.com.)
8) You may want to flip-flop incline presses and bench presses
at every chest workout—at your first chest workout, do inclines
first, 3 sets, bench presses after for 2 sets; at your next chest
workouts do bench presses first, 3 sets, inclines after for 2 sets.
You’ll obviously be stronger on the exercise you do first, so be
sure to write down your exercise poundages in the space pro-
vided.

2
WORKOUT 2
Anabolic Acceleration:
20-Rep Squat

Y
ou saw a multiangular training program based on 3D
Positions of Flexion in the last chapter. But you’re look-
ing for something even more basic. The 20-Rep Squat
Program in this chapter is perfect when you want to train two
or three days a week with a fast, simple program (the Time-
Bomb-Training Program in the next chapter is also excellent
and elegant in its sim-
plicity).
Can such a short
program really build
muscle? Absolute-
ly—in short bursts.
The reason is the
metabolic stimulation
ignited by the 20-rep
squat. The squat is
responsible for build-
ing more muscle than
any other exercise in
bodybuilding history.
It’s been used by al-
most every big name
The squat is a true in the sport through-
anabolic accelerator.
out the ages to pack
on tremendous mass
in the quickest time
possible. The squat
has been called ev-
erything from the
natural anabolic to
the exercise body-
builders love to hate,
and for good reason.
It’s tough, and it
works. It’s a difficult,
feared, revered exer-
cise—truly the king of
the mass movements.
In his book Super
Squats, Randall Strossen, Ph.D., says the following about the
20-Rep Squat regimen:
“Men who had been unable to register significant gains

with other routines were suddenly gaining 20 pounds of mus-
cle in a month or two.”
Strossen himself claims to have gained 30 pounds of

muscle in six weeks on such a program, and he’s a relatively
small-boned man.
The squat makes it almost simple to gain size. We say al-
most because this exercise is far from simple when you take a
set to the outer limits. Perhaps the more correct way to put it
is that it makes size more accessible.
Do your breathing-squat set only after you’ve started with
two progressively heavier warmup sets. Here’s how to per-
form this productive power exercise properly:
•Place a bar on a squat rack and load it with a poundage
that you can squat with in normal fashion for 12 reps, but tell
yourself that you’ll accept nothing less than 20.
•Take the loaded bar from the rack and place it at about
the midtrap line across your back. (You might want to drape
a towel across your upper back before shouldering the bar.)
The bar will be pushing against your rear-delt heads and
should feel somewhat low on your upper back but very
stable. Your feet should be just beyond shoulder width apart,
with your toes angled slightly outward (see the photos on the
previous page).
•Take a couple of breaths, and then inhale as you begin
your descent. Keep your back flat—no rounding—and your
eyes focused straight ahead. Don’t look up, or your lower back
will arch, which can lead to aches and injuries. You also want
to keep your torso as upright as possible. The descent should
take about two seconds.
•When the tops of your thighs dip just below parallel to the
floor, explode, but don’t bounce, out of the squat and ram the
weight back up to the starting position as you exhale.
•Take three deep breaths and start your second descent
as you inhale for the fourth time. You’ll never take less than
three deep breaths between reps, and after about your 10th
rep you’ll probably need six to 10 breaths to keep going.
•Do everything in your power to get 20 reps. Don’t quit.
Once you get 20, rack the weight and move immediately to
pullovers, breathing deep on
each rep. The weight should not
be too heavy. Inhale on the way
down, and exhale on the way
up. That will stimulate your re-
covery and your metabolism as
well as expand your rib cage.
•At your next workout and
every workout thereafter up you
squat poundage by five and get
20 reps again.
From the above descrip-
tion it doesn’t sound as if this
technique is all that difficult.
If you’ve ever done breathing
squats, however, you know all
too well that they’re a masoch-
Do two-dumbbell pullovers on a flat bench
immediately after squats. You can also use istic trip through hell. But their
a barbell, but dumbbells tend to be safer. brutality is exactly what makes
the squat such an effective
anabolic accelerator. When it
comes to building mass, harder
means better, which is why the
compound, multijoint move-
ments outperform the isolation
exercises every time when it
comes to size stimulation—and
the squat is one of the hardest
compound movements around.
How many sets of this tor-
ture must you endure? Are
you kidding? If you do more
than one set, not only are you
a glutton for punishment, but
you’d better have paramed-
ics standing by—911 squats might be an appropriate name
for this exercise. One set will be enough to stimulate plenty
of new growth over your entire body—no matter how much
bodybuilding experience you have. Remember that the squat
works many muscle groups simultaneously, which is one
reason why it’s such an effective movement. When you squat
hard and heavy, your thighs, hamstrings, glutes and lower
back get the brunt of the work and your calves, abdominals
and upper back get a secondary benefit—not to mention the
effect on your respiratory and cardiovascular systems. You’ll
be huffing and puffing like a speeding locomotive after one
20-rep set of properly performed breathing squats.
Another benefit of the squat is its effect on testosterone
production. Research shows that exercises that involve the
largest muscles, as the squat and deadlift do, stimulate the
production of the growth-promoting hormones. You actually
get a steroidlike anabolic effect from using these movements
properly, which translates into intensely and infrequently.
Intensely simply means that you must push yourself to the
limit—to momentary muscular failure. In other words, you
drive until you can’t possibly do another rep, and then get
two more. That’s intensity.
Infrequently, on the other hand, may not be as clear. It
means that you shouldn’t abuse this exercise. Don’t follow
the more-is-better protocol that so many bodybuilders fall
prey to. Squatting two days a week will give you all the growth
stimulation your body can handle without sending it into an
overstressed, overtrained state.
The 20-Rep Squat Program can work muscle-building
magic on even the skinniest individual. Give it a try exactly as
it’s outlined—don’t add exercises—and you’re guaranteed to
get a massive growth spurt that will surprise even the hardest
of the hardgainers.

X-Rep.com’s 20-Rep Squat Program ©
Six Weeks (Train Two or Three Days a Week)
WORKOUTS 1 & 2 or 1, 2** & 3

Monday & Thursday or Monday, Wednesday & Friday
Quads/Anabolic Acceleration
Superset**
Squats*, 1 x 20
Dumbbell pullovers, 1 x 15-20
Rest five minutes
Calves
Donkey calf raises
or leg press calf raises*, 2 x 15-20
Hamstrings
Stiff-legged deadlifts*, 1 x 10-12
Chest
Bench presses*, 2 x 9-12
Incline flyes, 1 x 9-12
Midback
Dumbbell rows (with chest
support, if possible)*, 2 x 9-12
Lats
Chins*, 2 x 9-12
Delts
Dumbbell upright rows*, 2 x 9-12
Dumbbell presses, 1 x 9-12
Triceps
Decline extensions*, 1 x 9-12
Biceps
Barbell curls*, 1 x 9-12
Abdominals
Full-range crunches*, 1 x 15-20
**If you train Monday, Wednesday and Friday, skip the squat/pullover super-
set on Wednesday; do one or two sets of leg extensions instead.

20-Rep Squat Tips and Reminders
cises with an asterisk (*). Concentrate, make your rep cadence
sligtly slower than usual, and try to get in touch with the target
muscle.
can’t do another rep with good form. On some sets continue with
X-Rep partials, eight-inch pulses from the semistretch point,
such as near the bottom of an incline press, up to just below the
halfway mark on the stroke. (For more on X Reps, see page 86
and any of our other e-books.)
down; always keep your form strict.
4) Rest five minutes after your squat/pullover superset; rest 1
1/2 minutes between sets on other exercises.
5) If you get close to the upper rep range listed for an exercise,
add weight at your next workout—enough so that your reps on
your first set come down to the lower range listed. Add weight—
five pounds—to your squat at every workout.
6) After six weeks on the this routine, back off the intensity—
use the same routine but stop every set two reps short of failure;
stop squats after 15 reps. Then you can go to another program in
this book or any of our other e-books.
7) Eat plenty of calories and protein, preferably over five to
seven smaller meals every day. Your protein intake should be
about one gram for every pound of bodyweight, and you should
get protein at every meal. (For a meal-by-meal template, see the
3D Muscle-Building Fast-Mass Diet on page 100 of 3D Muscle
Building—www.3DMuscleBuilding.com. It also contains a
bodypart-by-bodypart analysis of 3D Positions of Flexion and
more 3D POF programs.)
8) Most will gain best on a Monday/Thursday frequency. Some
extreme hardgainer types may need an even more abbreviated
version over those two days (an abbreviated version appears
on the next page). On the other hand, those who have better-
than-average recovery ability may do better training Monday/
Wednesday/Friday. If you choose three days a week, you may
want to skip the squats on Wednesdays to ensure full recovery by
Friday; you can do leg extensions instead.

X-Rep.com’s Abbreviated 20-Rep Squat Program ©
Six Weeks (Train Two or Three Days a Week)
WORKOUTS 1 & 2 or 1, 2** & 3

Monday & Thursday or Monday, Wednesday & Friday

Quads/Anabolic Acceleration
Superset**
Squats*, 1 x 20
Rest five minutes
Calves
Donkey calf raises or leg
press calf raises* (drop), 1 x 15(9)
Hamstrings
Chest/Triceps
Bench presses*, 2 x 9-12
Back
Chins*, 2 x 9-12
Delts/Midback
Biceps
Abdominals
Full-range crunches*, 1 x 15-20
**If you train Monday, Wednesday and Friday, skip the squat/pullover super-
set on Wednesday; do one or two sets of leg extensions instead.

3
WORKOUT 3
Time-Bomb
Training

A
lot has been written about ultra-abbreviated train-
ing—eight to 12 exercises for one work set each, all
of those work sets carried to momentary muscular
failure. Many have sung the praises of that style of training,
from Nautilus creator Arthur Jones to HIT advocate Ellington
Darden, Ph.D., to Heavy Duty practioner and pro bodybuilder
Mike Mentzer.
That ultra-abbreviated one-set-per-exercise, one-exercise-
per-bodypart training has its uses—for short periods, like
a one-to-five-week phase to get your muscles and nervous
system in sync. And those routines can build some strength
(that’s why they’re usually referred to as “strength-train-
ing” programs). But it takes more than one set to failure per
bodypart to pack on extreme muscle size. Why? Because one
set will only plump up a few specific fast-twitch fibers.
Even Jones said that most trainees can only engage about
30 percent of a target muscle on any one set to failure—and
that’s under perfect conditions. That’s due to a nervous sys-
tem short-circuit and/or fatigue-product pooling in the mus-
cle. (Some genetic anomalies, like Casey Viator whom Jones
used in the Colorado Experiment, can contract an enormous
number of fibers in any one set—but he’s a very rare excep-
tion.) A second set
can help activate
more fibers due to
a different recruit-
ment pattern. So with
two sets, you have
some built-in insur-
ance for a bit more
growth stimulation.
But attacking a few
more force-oriented
fast-twitch fibers with
Contracted-position exer-
cises, like pushdowns for
triceps, provide the best oc-
clusion/continuous-tension
mass-building effect.

a second straight
set to exhaustion is
only part of the ana-
bolic equation.
There’s also hy-
pertrophy of the
endurance-oriented
components of
the fast-twitch fi-
bers, capillary bed
enlargement and
even the possibil-
ity of hyperplasia,
or fiber splitting. To
properly potentiate Stretch-position exercises, like cable pushouts for tri-
ceps, provide key stress for possible fiber duplication
those factors for an and intramuscular anabolic hormone release; however,
extreme muscle-size sometimes you don’t have time to include stretch- and
contracted-position exercises. That’s where Time-
surge, you need spe- Bomb-Training tactics on one big midrange exercise
cific training mo- per bodypart comes in.
dalities.
For example,
extending sets with drop sets and/or X Reps, so the target
muscle is under tension for longer than 30 seconds, can help
trigger growth in the endurance-oriented fast-twitch fibers.
You also need target-muscle occlusion, or blood-flow block-
age, for an extended time to also affect endurance compo-
nents and build capillary beds in the muscle, which add to
overall size. Single-joint continuous-tension exercises—like
leg extensions for quads and pushdowns for triceps—best ac-
complish occlusion.
As for fiber splitting, stretch-position exercises have been
linked to hyperplasia, as shown in the animal study we dis-
cuss in all of our other e-books. Scientists triggered a 300
percent increase in muscle mass in only one month of pro-
gressive stretch overload in that study. (Stretch-position
exercises have also been shown to increase growth-factor
release in the target muscle, so they have a double impact on
muscle-size production!)
All of those mass factors are why we so strongly recom-
mend 3D Positions
of Flexion—training
each muscle with a
big midrange exer-
cise, a stretch-posi-
tion movement and a
continuous-tension
contracted-position
move, as you saw
in Chapter 1 and as
you’ll see in the next
few chapters. For
example, a 3D chest
program would be
decline presses (max
force), flyes (stretch
overload) and cross-
overs (occlusion).
With that efficient
X Reps combined with drop sets can infuse the big
midrange movements with more mass-building
mass-building ap-
power. It can take on the tension/occlusion charac- proach you can get
teristics of contracted-position exercises and even
provide some stretch overload.
optimal size stimula-
tion with only one to
two sets for each ex-
ercise, especially if you strategically use drop sets, X Reps and
X-hybrid techniques to enhance the various growth-devel-
opment characteristics of each position. Notice that 3D POF
zeroes in on force generation (midrange), stretch overload
and occlusion (contracted) with different exercises.
But some trainees simply don’t have time for even that pre-
cise muscle-building approach. And therein lies the attrac-
tion of ultra-abbreviated HIT programs—one set of eight to
12 exercises. Limited time requires limited training. But if you
can make time for just two sets per bodypart, you don’t have
to settle for limited gaining. You can still use one exercise for
each bodypart, but by attacking those two work sets in a spe-
cific manner designed to hit all of the mass-building factors,
you can grow almost as fast as if you were using multi-an-
gular training. Here’s the two-set per exercise Time-Bomb-
Training strategy:
Work set 1: Do repetitons to exhaustion, which should

occur at about nine reps, and than add X-Rep partials. That
provides max-force generation and some semistretch-point
overload (eight-inch X-Rep partials near the bottom of the
stroke). Rest for 2 1/2 minutes, then do a second set...
Work set 2: Use the same weight, reaching exhaustion

at seven or eight reps. When you hit exhaustion, reduce the
weight and immediately go to exhaustion again, driving out
five to seven more reps. That extends tension time to stimu-
late the endurance components and expands and enlarges
capillaries. Do X Reps on that second phase as well for even
more stimulation via semistretch-point overload and tension
time.
What about occlusion? We suggest you do those sets in

nonlock style—don’t go all the way to the top; in other words,
don’t lock out on presses or squats. That keeps tension on
the target muscle to block blood flow somewhat—not as ef-
fectively as isolated contracted-position exercises, but close.
Semistretch-point overload is also close to full-stretch-posi-
tion overload—but it’s not quite as effective as using stretch-
position exercises. Nevertheless, semistretch-point X-Rep
action at least provides some key stress to the target muscle
when it is in an elongated state.
So the two-set/drop approach is efficient and effective, but
obviously you can better attack all of the mass-building fac-
tors—max force, stretch overload, occlusion—with 3D POF.
It’s why we build most of our programs around it; however,
if your time is limited, this abbreviated mass-building attack
can help you build muscle at a darned good clip. It’s why we
call it Time-Bomb Training.
Note: The two-set Time Bomb Training approach also works

well with the Ultimate Exercise programs that are analyzed
and explained in The Ultimate Mass Workout e-book—www.
X-Rep.com.
X-Rep.com’s Time-Bomb-Training Program ©
Six Weeks (Train Three Days a Week)
WORKOUTS 1, 2 & 3
Monday, Wednesday & Friday
Quads
Squats* (mid X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Calves
Leg press calf raises*
(X Reps), 2 x 15-20, 12(8)
Hamstrings
Stiff-legged deadlifts*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Chest
Bench presses* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Lats
Chins* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Midback
Bent-over rows* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Delts
Dumbbell upright rows*
(X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Triceps
Decline extensions*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Biceps
Barbell curls*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Abdominals
Full-range crunches*, 1 x 15(9)
Note: The second set is a drop set, on which you reduce the weight and im-
mediately continue with as many reps as possible. Do X Reps on that second
phase only, not the first part of the drop set.

Time-Bomb Training Tips and Reminders
muscle.
can’t do another rep with good form. On the first set continue
with X-Rep partials, eight-inch pulses from the semistretch
point, such as near the bottom of a bench press, up to just below
the halfway mark on the stroke; on the second set, reduce the
weight at exhaustion and continue to rep out with the lower
poundage. Continue that second phase with X Reps when pos-
sible. (For more on X Reps, see any of our other e-books.)
4) Rest between two and three minutes between sets; on the
second set, which is a drop set, rest only long enough to reduce
the weight, then continue with the second phase immediately.
5) If you get close to the upper rep range listed for an exercise,
add weight at your next workout—enough so that your reps on
your first set come down to nine.
6) After six weeks on the this routine, back off the intensity—
use the same routine but stop every set two reps short of failure.
Then you can go back to the intense version or move to another
program in this book or any of our other e-books.
7) Eat plenty of calories and protein, preferably over five to
seven smaller meals every day. Your protein intake should be
about one gram for every pound of bodyweight, and you should
get protein at every meal. (For a meal-by-meal template, see the
3D Muscle-Building Fast-Mass Diet on page 100 of 3D Muscle
Building—www.3DMuscleBuilding.com.)
8) Most will gain best on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday fre-
quency. Some extreme hardgainer types may need more recov-
ery, with a Monday-Thursday frequency being best.
9) If you train on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, you may
want to use a few different exercises on Wednesday—such as
deadlifts (no drop set due to safety concerns) instead of squats,
leg curls instead of stiff-legged deadlifts, standing calf raises
instead of leg press calf raises, incline presses instead of bench
presses, overhead presses instead of dumbbell upright rows, etc.
An example of that alternate Wednesday workout is on the next
page. (We highly recommend that appoach.)

X-Rep.com’s Time-Bomb-Training Program ©
Six Weeks (Three Days a Week)
WORKOUT 2
Wednesday—Alternate-Exercise Version
Quads
Deadlifts*, 2 x 9-12, 7-9
Calves
Standing calf raises*
(X Reps), 2 x 15-20, 12(8)
Hamstrings
Leg curls*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Chest
Incline presses* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Midback
Shrugs* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Lats
Pulldowns* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Delts
Dumbbell presses*
(X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Triceps
Overhead extensions*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Biceps
Incline curls*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)
Abdominals
Incline kneeups (X Reps), 1 x 15(9)
Note: The second set is a drop set, on which you reduce the weight and im-
mediately continue with as many reps as possible. Do X Reps on that second
phase only, not the first part of the drop set.

4
WORKOUT 4
Volume/Intensity
Fusion

M
ost workout programs are either high volume, like
10 to 20 sets per bodypart, or high intensity, with
low set totals for each bodypart but a train-to-fail-
ure-and-beyond prerequisite (as in the previous chapters). As
we’ve explained in our other e-books, both methods can work
muscle-building magic, if they are used correctly—even for
hardgainer types (like Steve, pictured below).
The problem with most brief hardgainer routines is that
they ignore full-range work for complete development of
every muscle—multi-angular training, as in 3D Positions of
Flexion. They also usually neglect extended time under ten-
sion to develop capillaries and other endurance components
in the muscle structures (it’s been scientifi-
cally proven that hardgainers have more en-
durance-oriented muscle fibers and therefore
require longer tension times).
One exercise per muscle group for low reps
will do almost nothing in the mass depart-
ment for these skinny folks. (Steve knows
that from experience.) The Volume/Inten-
Hardgainers sity Fusion solution,
like Steve need however, makes it
specific anabolic
triggers to tap possible for anyone
their muscular to attack all aspects
potential.
of muscle growth
without spending
hour upon hour
in the gym every
day—an excellent
program, even for
hardgainers with
less-than-stellar re-
covery.
Wait! How can
more work, as in
Volume, intensity and ex-
tended-tension techniques
played a big role in Steve’s
twig-to-big transformation.

volume, trigger new growth in so-called hardgainers, trainees
who have limited recovery ability and who overtrain eas-
ily? The answer is that when hardgainers use a volume-ori-
ented routine, they keep all sets at medium intensity—that
is subfailure training—to minimize cortisol output. That way
they can get optimal muscle-fiber stimulation with six to 10
sets per bodypart without exhausting the nervous system or
burning valuable muscle tissue.
While training to failure is a key growth stimulus, it also
triggers excess cortisol production, as it increases the stress
level of any workout. Cortisol is a stress hormone, and when
output is high, your body eats up muscle tissue for energy.
So if higher-set, medium-intensity training works, why not
just do lower-set medium-intensity workouts to minimize
cortisol? You’ll minimize cortisol, all right, but you won’t get
enough mass stimulation. That’s because lower-set training
doesn’t activate the key growth fibers unless you go to failure
and beyond, a function of the size principle of fiber recruit-
ment. We discussed it earlier, but it bears repeating...
That principle states that with any set you recruit the low-
threshold motor units first, followed by the mediums and
finally the highs kick in at the end of the set. Those high-
threshold motor units activate the fibers with the most
growth potential. So going to failure and beyond, such as with
X-Rep partials, helps you dig deeper into the high-threshold
motor-unit pool. That means you don’t need as many sets for
optimal mass stimulation.
But what if you stop the set short, as in subfailure sets? Well,
you don’t tap into as many of those high-growth fibers—you
only hit a few at the end of any medium-intensity set. That
means you can and should do at least a few subfailure sets so
you tap into a few more growth fibers on every one (the order
of recruitment changes with each successive set).
So three or four subfailure sets equals one or two all-out
sets beyond failure. (That’s why we say that X-Rep sets are
about three to five times more powerful than standard sets—
they tap into so many more high-growth fibers.)
Back to hardgainers: Here are the reasons higher-set, me-
dium-intensity (subfailure) training can increase their mass:
1) Lower cortisol output means less catabolic muscle wast-
ing, a godsend for cortisol-overproducing hardgainers.
2) You insure a full pump in the target muscles, which can
increase capillaries, and that in turn increases muscle size.
3) You trigger complete development in all muscle
structures—if you use full-ROM training like Posi-
tions of Flexion—a midrange-, stretch- and con-
tracted-position exercise for each bodypart (POF is
included in most of the programs in this book—for a
more thorough muscle-by-muscle discussion, as well as
individual bodypart programs, see 3D Muscle Building—
www.3DMuscleBuilding.com).
4) You activate a large percentage of high-growth muscle
fibers.
While controlling cortisol (#1) is a big piece of the
hardgainer puzzle, another is achieving maximum fiber ac-
tivation in each muscle. Number 3 contributes to that. With
its stretch-position exercises that trigger emergency fiber re-
sponse and full-range-of-motion training, POF can go a long
way in activating as many growth fibers as possible with only
a few sets; however, most hardgainers have low neuromus-
cular efficiency to begin with. In other words, their nerve-to-
muscle connections are below average, so it’s impossible to
contract large masses of fibers during any one set. They have
two choices:
1) Use more medium-intensity sets (volume)

OR
2) Use low-set routines that included set-extending tech-
niques like X Reps for each bodypart (intensity).
Which is better, higher-set, medium-intensity workouts or

lower-set, high-intensity sessions? Well, either can build neu-
romuscular efficiency so you train more and more muscle
fibers. But some trainees, especially those who have a low
pain threshold, have a better chance of hitting the target with
10 shots instead of just one.

That’s not to say you should avoid low-volume high-in-
tensity training. As we said, both volume and intensity have
muscle-building merit. Suntanning is a good analogy. You can
increase the darkness of your tan via volume/frequency—
gradually increasing the time you expose yourself to the sun
each time you go out. Or you can use intensity/brevity—in-
tensifying the power of the sun’s rays by putting oil on your
skin, tanning in a tanning bed or sunbathing closer and clos-
er to the equator, where the sun is the most intense because
it’s closer to the earth. You can’t tolerate too much of the latter
(high intensity) at any one time, so it must be brief.
As the name suggests, the Volume/Intensity Fusion pro-
gram merges, or fuses, those two muscle-building forces. If
you choose to experiment with it, keep in mind that volume,
even at medium intensity, can trigger overtraining just as
high-intensity can, so after about six weeks you should go to
low volume with medium intensity (subfailure sets) for one
week to recharge. (That’s called Phase Training, which we dis-
cuss in many of our other e-books).
The Volume/Intensity-Fusion routine on the next few pages
provides two different workouts for each bodypart—me-
dium-intensity volume sessions alternated with short, high-
intensity all-out blasts. The variety is excellent for the mind
and the muscles, which grow continuously as they adapt to
the varied stresses at each workout. (If you were suntanning,
it would be like basking in the warm Southern California sun
for 1 1/2 hours in the late afternoon and at the next session
sunbathing near the equator for 15 minutes.)
The logic behind it is sound—you get the best of both
worlds. Try it as outlined and you may be pleasantly sur-
prised—even shocked—at your new growth. Hardgainers
who’ve tried this approach have been stunned by their prog-
ress!
Note: Train Monday through Friday with weekends off. Or

follow the sequence of workouts Monday, Tuesday, Thursday
and Friday (Wednesday and weekends off), picking up with
the next workout in the sequence on the following Monday.

X-Rep.com’s Volume/Intensity-Fusion Routine ©
Six Weeks (Train Four or Five Days a Week)
WORKOUT 1
(Quads, volume; Hamstrings, intensity;
Soleus, volume; Gastrocs, intensity; Abs, volume)
Squats*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Leg extensions, 2 x 10, 8
Smith-machine squats, 2 x 10, 8
Sissy squats, 2 x 10, 8
Stiff-legged deadlifts* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Leg curls (double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Hyperextensions, 1 x 7-10
Seated calf raises*, 3-4 x 15, 12, 9, 7
Donkey calf raises or leg press
calf raises (drop), 1 x 15-20(9)
Standing calf raises or one-leg
calf raises (double drop), 1 x 15(8)(6)
Incline kneeups, 2-3 x 12, 10, 8
Ab Bench crunch pulls
or full-range crunches, 2 x 12, 10
Note: A “drop” is two sets back to back, with a weight reduction on the sec-
ond; a “double drop” is three sets back to back with a weight reduction on the
second and third.

WORKOUT 2
(Chest, intensity; Delts, volume; Triceps, volume)
Bench presses* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Cable flyes or crossovers
(double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Incline presses* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Incline cable flyes or arms-high pec
deck flyes (double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Behind-the-neck presses
or dumbbell presses*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Incline one-arm lateral raises, 2 x 10, 8
Dumbbell upright rows*, 2 x 10, 8
Seated lateral raises, 1 x 10
Decline extensions*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Rope pushdowns, 2 x 10, 8
Overhead extensions, 2 x 10, 8
Straight-bar pushdowns, 1 x 10, 8
second and third.

WORKOUT 3
(Lats, volume; Midback, intensity;
Biceps, intensity; Forearms, volume)
Bent-over rows* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Dumbbell shrugs, 1 x 6-9(6)
Pulldowns or chins*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Stiff-arm pulldowns, 2 x 10, 8
Rope rows
or parallel-grip chins, 2 x 10, 8
Dumbbell pullovers, 1 x 10
Dumbbell preacher curls or
dumbbell curls (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Concentration curls
(double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Incline curls, 1 x 8-10
Barbell reverse wrist curls, 3 x 15, 12, 10
Barbell wrist curls, 3 x 15, 12, 10
Incline hammer curls, 2 x 10, 8
second and third.

WORKOUT 4
(Quads, intensity; Hamstrings, volume; Gastrocs, volume;
Soleus, intensity; Abs, intensity)

Squats* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Leg extensions
(double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Sissy squats, 1 x 6-9
Leg curls, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Stiff-legged deadlifts*, 3 x 10, 8, 7
Leg press calf raises
or donkey calf raises*, 2-3 x 15, 12, 10
One-leg calf raises, 2 x 15, 12
Standing calf raises, 3 x 25, 20, 15
Seated calf raises (drops), 2 x 15-20(8)
Incline kneeups (drop), 1 x 10-15(8)
Full-range crunches or Ab Bench
crunches (drop), 1 x 10-15(8)
Twisting crunches, 1 x 6-9
second and third.

WORKOUT 5
(Chest, volume; Delts, intensity; Triceps, intensity)
Bench presses*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Crossovers, 2 x 10, 8
Incline dumbbell presses*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Incline cable flyes or arms-high
pec deck flyes, 2 x 10, 8
Dumbbell upright rows
(drop)*, 1 x 6-9(6)
Dumbbell presses* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Standing lateral raises
(double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Incline one-arm lateral
raises, 1 x 8-10
Decline extensions* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Pushdowns (double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Overhead extensions*, 1 x 8-10
second and third.

WORKOUT 6
(Lats, intensity; Midback, volume;
Biceps, volume; Forearms, intensity)
Wide-grip chins* (drop), 1 x 6-9(6)
Stiff-arm pulldowns
(double drop), 1 x 7-9(6)(5)
Bent-over barbell rows*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Bent-arm bent-over laterals, 3 x 10, 8, 7
Barbell or dumbbell shrugs, 2 x 10, 8
Dumbbell curls
or preacher curls*, 2-3 x 10, 8, 7
Incline curls*, 2 x 10, 8
Concentration curls, 2 x 10, 8
Hammer curls (drop), 1 x 7(5)
Dumbbell reverse wrist curls
(double drop), 1 x 9-12(7)(5)
Dumbbell wrist curls
(double drop), 1 x 9-12(7)(5)
Rockers, 1 x 20
second and third.

Volume/Intensity Fusion Tips and Reminders
weight on the first and 70 to 80 percent on the second on exercises that
are marked with an asterisk (*). Concentrate, make your rep cadence
sligtly slower than usual, and try to get in touch with the target muscle.
2) Push your work sets during intensity routines to positive failure—
until you can’t do another rep with good form. On some sets continue
with X-Rep partials, eight-inch pulses from the semistretch point, such
as near the bottom of an incline press, up to just below the halfway
mark on the stroke. (For more on X Reps, see page 70.) Important: On
the volume routines, stop all work sets one to two reps short of failure.
3) The ideal rep speed is 1 1/2 seconds up and 1 1/2 seconds down;
always keep your form strict.
4) Rest about two minutes between sets. Do not rest between drop
sets or double drops. Only rest as long as it takes to reduce the weight,
then continue repping out.
5) When you can get the higher number listed in the rep range of
each exercise in intensitye workouts, increase the weight enough at
the next workout to bring your reps down to the lower number. For
volume workouts, pick a weight that allows you to get the upper range
with only minor discomfort; then reduce the reps on each set after. For
example, for squats on volume day, you do 10 reps on your first set, and
eight on your second. If you do a third, do seven reps.
6) When you see a set range listed, such as 2-3, do two sets the first
three weeks, and increase to three sets for the last three weeks. That
will give you progressive volume, a slight increase in workload that will
provide new growth stimulation.
7) After six weeks on the Volume/Intensity Fusion routine—or any
program—go back to a more abbreviated routine, such as those listed
in The Ultimate Mass Workout—www.X-Rep.com—or in Chapter 3
(Time-Bomb Training), for one week of medium-intensity (subfailure)
training. After that recovery week, you can up the intensity and stay on
that routine, or go back for another round of Volume/Intensity Fusion.
8) You can train five days a week, Monday through Friday, with
weekends off, following the sequence of workouts. If training five days
a week is impossible for you, or you feel too drained, you can take
Wednesdays off. Start the sequence with Workout 1 and 2 on Monday
and Tuesday, then pick up with 3 on Thursday. Use Workout 4 on Fri-
day, and then take the weekend off before resuming with Workout 5
on Monday, 6 on Tuesday and so on. That provides a little more time
between bodypart hits. Just keep following the workout sequence as it’s
listed.

5
WORKOUT 5
T/NT: The Traumatic/
Nontraumatic Program

A
ll right, you’ve seen some very different types of pro-
grams. Now it’s time for something a bit more exotic,
although it’s based on how the bodybuilders in the ’50s
and ’60s used to train—before steroids. It’s the traumatic/
nontraumatic approach. (Volume/Intensity Fusion in the
last chapter is actually a form of the traumatic/nontraumatic
concept.)
Alternating traumatic workouts with nontraumatic (or at
least less traumatic) ones for each bodypart is an excellent
way to accelerate results in the gym because of enhanced
recovery. Like we said, it’s not really a new concept. The body-
builders in the presteroid era often used a heavy/light system
to build phenomenal physiques with power to spare. While
the pure heavy/light concept makes a lot of sense—we’ll have
more on that in the next chapter—it’s refined here so that you
can more easily gauge and control the stress you impose on
the muscle fibers. Here’s a brief explanation of each type of
workout:
Traumatic workouts. These routines are not only heavy,
but they also in-
clude stretch-posi-
tion movements
from POF to fur-
ther traumatize
muscle fibers (re-
member, stretch
overload has been
linked to hyper-
plasia, or fiber
splitting, and is
responsible for a
lot of muscle sore-
ness). Also, most
of the exercises are
free-weight move-
Cable and machine work
are classified as less
traumatic than free-weight
exercises.

ments, which tend
to be more severe
than cables or ma-
chines.
Nontraumatic
workouts. These
sessions have no
stretch-position
exercises and in-
clude more cable
and machine
movements, which
tend to be less
stressful due to
weight-stack fric-
tion that reduces
eccentric, or nega-
tive, resistance.
Research shows
that the negative Barbell work is not limited in severity by weight-stack
drag and body positioning, so it’s usually more trau-
stroke of an exer- matic to fibers than machine work.
cise causes excess
fiber damage, and a weight stack reduces the severity. Ma-
chines can also lock you into position so your ability to ac-
tivate more fibers is somewhat compromised by restricted
movement (natural arcs, such as how the bar travels during
a bench press, are compromised).
Keep in mind that full recovery is critical if you want to ac-
celerate growth. That’s why many less-advanced trainees
will want to hold training days to three per week—so there’s
less chance of overtraining. Here’s the split of that program,
which is listed on pages 45 through 47:
Monday: Quads, hamstrings, chest, back, delts

Wednesday: Deadlifts, traps, calves, triceps, biceps,
forearms, abs
Friday: Quads, hamstrings, calves, chest, back, delts
Notice that arms get only one direct hit a week, on Wednes-
days. That workout includes a stretch-position exercise
along with a contracted-position movement and combines
free-weight and cable exercises for a traumatic/nontrau-
matic mix. Will one direct arm-training day be enough? Keep
in mind that your biceps, triceps and forearms get loads of
stress on Monday and Friday during chest, back and delt
work. All of that ancillary work is excellent complementary
stimulation to the one direct hit on Wednesday, so your arms
should grow quickly.
As for the bodyparts you hit on Monday and Friday, they
don’t get full 3D POF hits but rather the positions are divided
over two workouts. For example, quads get midrange and
stretch work on Monday with squats and sissy squats (trau-
matic), then midrange and contracted work on Friday with
Smith-machine squats and leg extensions (nontraumatic). In
other words, Monday it’s barbell work and stretch overload;
Friday it’s machine work and occlusion, or blood-flow block-
age, with another machine exercise.
Wednesday, your arm day, is also your deadlift day, but
on that so-called full-body exercise you want to lighten the
weight somewhat and pause at the bottom of each rep so
you can take a few breaths prior to driving to the top. Breath-
ing deadlifts, along with their pain infliction, are similar to
breathing squats (to review the technique, see Chapter 2).
Shoot for 10 to 15 reps. One set of these babies will have you
huffing and puffing, and you’ll feel the effects in your entire
body. In other words, it trains a lot of muscles at once and
also stokes your metabolism for serious growth! (The deadlift
is a key mass-building exercise, so go all out on that one set!)

X-Rep.com’s T/NT Program ©
WORKOUT 1
Monday

Quads: Traumatic
Squats*†, 3 x 9 ,7 ,5
Hamstrings: Nontraumatic
Leg curls*, 1 x 8-12
One-leg leg curls, 1 x 8-12
Chest: Traumatic
Bench presses*†, 3 x 9, 7, 5
Dumbbell flyes, 1 x 8-12
Dumbbell incline presses, 2 x 8-12
Delts: Nontraumatic
Dumbbell presses*, 2 x 8-12
One-arm cable laterals (stop short of
full stretch on each rep), 2 x 8-12
Cable upright rows*, 1 x 8-12
Midback: Traumatic
Dumbbell rows (with chest
support) or barbell rows*, 2 x 8-12
Bent-arm bent-over laterals, 1 x 8-12
Lats: Nontraumatic
Wide-grip pulldowns*, 2 x 8-12

WORKOUT 2
Wednesday
Deadlifts* (breathing style), 1 x 10-15
Dumbbell shrugs, 1 x 8-12
Donkey calf raises*, 2 x 12-20
One-leg dumbbell calf raises, 2 x 12-20
Overhead dumbbell
extensions*, 2 x 8-12
V-bar pushdowns, 2 x 8-12
Incline curls*, 2 x 8-12
Concentration curls, 2 x 8-12
Hammer curls, 1 x 8-12
Reverse wrist curls, 2 x 12-15
Wrist curls, 2 x 12-15
Ab Bench crunches, 2 x 10-15

WORKOUT 3
Friday

Quads: Nontraumatic
Smith-machine squats*, 2 x 8-12
Leg extensions,1 x 8-12
Hamstrings: Traumatic
Calves: Nontraumatic
Seated calf raises*, 2 x 12-18
Standing machine calf raises, 1 x 15-20
Knee-flexion leg press calf raises, 2 x 15-20
Delts: Traumatic
Wide-grip upright rows*†, 3 x 9, 7, 5
Incline one-arm lateral raises, 1 x 8-12
Lateral raises, 1 x 8-12
Chest: Nontraumatic
Smith-machine bench presses*, 2 x 8-12
Cable crossovers, 1 x 8-12
Smith-machine incline presses , 1 x 8-12
Incline cable crossovers, 1 x 8-12
Lats: Traumatic
Wide-grip chins*†, 2 x 9, 7
Machine or DB pullovers, 2 x 8-12
Midback: Nontraumatic
Machine rows*, 2 x 8-12

T/NT Tips and Reminders
muscle.
can’t do another rep with good form. Usually, on the last set of
each exercise continue with X-Rep partials, eight-inch pulses
from the semistretch point, such as near the bottom of an in-
cline press, up to just below the halfway mark on the stroke. (For
more on X Reps, see page 86.)
4) Rest about 2 1/2 minutes between sets on which you pyra-
mid the weight; rest 1 1/2 minutes between sets on other exer-
cises.
5) If you get at least 10 reps fairly easily on your first set of a
pyramid exercise, add weight at your next workout to all three
sets—enough so that your reps on your first set come down to
eight or nine. Add weight to other exercises when you can get
more than the lower rep range listed on your last set. For ex-
ample, if on stiff-legged deadlifts you get 10 reps on your second
set, add weight at your next workout to bring the reps back down
to eight on that second set. (You will be using the same weight
on all sets; the reps on the last one indicate the need for more
weight.)
6) After six weeks on the T/NT routine, back off the intensity—
use the same routine but stop every set two reps short of failure.
Then you can go back to the intense version or another program
in this e-book or any of our other e-books.
7) Eat plenty of protein, preferably over five to seven smaller
meals every day. Your protein intake should be about one gram
for every pound of bodyweight, and you should get protein at
every meal. (For a meal-by-meal template, see the 3D Muscle-
Building Fast-Mass Diet on page 100 of 3D Muscle Building—
www.3DMuscleBuilding.com.)
8) The above tips apply to the four-day Direct/Indirect version
of T/NT on the next few pages.

If you’d rather train four days a week instead of three, you
can try a different rendition of traumatic/nontraumatic train-
ing, direct/indirect workouts, and you’ll also get the benefits
of full-on 3D POF for each bodypart at every workout. A di-
rect/indirect program is very efficient and recovery-oriented
because you work each bodypart directly only once a week;
however, each bodypart gets a second hit via indirect work.
For example, you train lats at one workout, which indirectly
involves the midback; then you train midback at a different
workout that same week and indirectly hit the lats. Although
none of the workouts is light, we classify the indirect workout
as light. Here’s the four-day Direct/Indirect split:
Monday
Middle/lower chest (indirect upper-chest and triceps
work—bench presses and dips)
Lats (indirect midback and biceps work—chins,
undergrip rows and pulldowns)
Upper traps (indirect delt work—dumbbell upright rows)
Forearms/brachialis (indirect biceps work—reverse
curls and hammer curls)
Tuesday
Quads (indirect lower-back work—squats)
Hamstrings (indirect lower-back work—stiff-legged
deadlifts)
Gastrocs (indirect soleus work—calf raises)
Abs
Thursday
Delts (indirect trap work—presses, lateral raises)
Upper chest (indirect middle/lower-chest work—incline
presses, cable flyes)
Triceps
Biceps (indirect forearm work—curls)
Friday
Midback (indirect quad and hamstring work—deadlifts—
and indirect lat work—rows)
Soleus (indirect gastroc work—seated calf raises and leg
press calf raises)
Abs
Lower back
X-Rep.com’s Direct/Indirect T/NT Program ©
WORKOUT 1
Monday
Dumbbell flyes, 2 x 8-12
Crossovers, 2 x 8-12
Wide-grip chins*, 3 x 8-12
Dumbbell pullovers*, 1 x 8-12
Undergrip pulldowns, 2 x 8-12
Dumbbell shrugs, 2 x 8-12
Reverse wrist curls , 2 x 9-15
Reverse curls, 2 x 8-12

WORKOUT 2
Tuesday
Squats*†, 3 x 9, 7, 5
Leg extensions*, 2 x 8-12
One-leg calf raises, 3 x 12-20
or donkey calf raises, 2 x 10-15
Seated calf raises, 1 x 15-20
Ab Bench crunches
or full-range crunches, 2 x 10-12
Flat-bench twisting crunches, 1 x 10-12

WORKOUT 3
Thursday
Dumbbell upright rows*†, 3 x 9, 7, 5
Incline one-arm laterals
or one-arm cable laterals, 1 x 8-12
Lateral raises, 2 x 8-12
Dumbbell incline presses*, 2 x 8-12
Incline cable flyes, 2 x 8-12
Flat-bench cable flyes
(middle, low), 2 x 8-12
Decline extensions*, 2 x 8-12
Two-arm overhead dumbbell
One-arm pushdowns, 2 x 8-12
Concentration curls, 2 x 8-12

WORKOUT 4
Friday
Leg extensions*, 2 x 8-12
One-arm dumbbell rows or
simultaneous DB rows with
chest support*, 2 x 8-12
Bent-arm bent-over laterals, 2 x 8-12
Knee-flexion leg press
calf raises, 2 x 15-20
Seated calf raises, 3 x 12-15
Ab Bench crunches
or full-range crunches, 2 x 10-12
Low-back machine
or hyperextensions, 1 x 9-12

Exercises
Here are descriptions of a few of the uncommon exercises:
Sissy squats (stretch position, quads). Do these near an upright you
can hold to stabilize yourself throughout the movement (or do them in a Smith
machine with a towel looped around the bar so you can hang onto the ends).
Rise up on your toes and squat down, but do not bend at the waist. Keep your
torso and thighs on the same plane—like you’re doing the limbo under a low
bar. When your hamstrings meet your calves, and you feel a distinct pull in
your front-thigh muscles, reverse the movement, driving up with your quads
till you’re two-thirds of the way to fully erect. In other words, do not raise up
high enough to remove tension from your quads. Do not pause at the top or
bottom of the stroke.
Incline one-arm laterals (stretch position, medial delts). For these
you sit sideways on an incline bench, your nonworking shoulder against the
bench so your torso is at an angle. That’s important because you will have a
dumbbell in the hand of your outer arm, and that dumbbell must pull your arm
down and across your torso to create some stretch in your medial-delt head.
Keep a slight bend in your working arm, allow the dumbbell to move as close
to you as possible as your arm moves in front of your body. Before tension falls
off your delt, right before your arm is perpendicular to the floor, reverse the
downward movement and raise the dumbbell in an arc till your arm is parallel
with the floor. When you reach that point, immediately reverse the movement
and control the downward arc to the low, stretch position. Maintain tension on
your medial-delt head throughout the set—you should feel a distinct pull on
that head at the bottom of the stroke.
Full-range crunches (stretch and contracted position, abs). Recline
on a bench press bench, head and upper back hanging off the end and feet
up on the bar that’s resting arcross the bench uprights. Lower your head and
shoulders down past the plane of the bench till you feel a stretch in your abs,
then, without pausing, curl your upper body up into a crunch position. At the
top, abs-contracted point, don’t pause, but slowly lower (uncurl) back to the
stretch position and then immediately execute another rep. You can do full-
range crunches more effectively and comfortably on an Ab Bench (available at
www.Home-Gym.com).
Knee-flexion leg press calf raises (midrange position, calves). Posi-
tion yourself on a leg press with only the balls of your feet on the foot plate,
your knees locked. Lower the weight by allowing your feet to come toward you
as you simultaneously unlock your knees. From that slight bent-knee position,
with your feet in the stretch position of a calf raise, simultaneously push your
knees to lockout and your feet to the top calf-raise position. Do not pause at
the top or bottom—keep your calves firing with a pistonlike cadence and help
from a push-press action involving your quads. (You should be able to work
up to some impressive poundage here to really overload your gastrocs for new
growth!) When you can no longer do full-range reps, do X Reps out of the bot-
tom position.
Note: We are working on video presentations of many of the exercises in our
e-books. Watch our Web site, www.X-Rep.com for those and/or photos of
many key movements.

6
WORKOUT 6
The Heavy/Light
Program

W
e mentioned in the last chapter that the Traumatic/
Nontraumatic routines are hybrids of the classic
heavy/light system, although none of the workouts
is light. You still use the heaviest weights possible and train to
failure at every workout—less muscle trauma at nontraumat-
ic workouts is due to exercise choice, not load manipulation.
This chapter contains a true heavy/light program.
Heavy/light is a relatively simple concept that was used
successfully by bodybuilders in the late ’50s and early ’60s.
Unfortunately, it fell out of favor with the advent of steroids,
which suddenly enabled bodybuilders to recover much
quicker, making light training unnecessary. You can bomb
and blitz each muscle twice a week and grow without a hint
of overtraining. Or smash a bodypart once a week with ex-
cessive volume, like 20 to 30 sets per bodypart, and still grow
quickly. That’s not the case for most natural bodybuilders.
The real controversy with heavy/light programs is the light
workout. Many high-intensity advocates say it’s just not nec-
essary. Why not blast the muscle, then blast it again once it’s
fully recovered, which occurs five to seven days later? The
answer has to do with neuromuscular efficiency. From all in-
dications it appears as though the muscle structures recover
faster than the neuromuscular, or nervous, system, for most
trainees—unless they can
generate severe intensity
and totally blow out the
muscle. That’s hard to do
at every single workout,
so a good strategy is to hit
each muscle with a hard,
intense blast and then with
a lighter workout later in
the week to prevent atro-
phy without overstressing
the nervous system, which
is still recovering. That’s
especially true for more
advanced trainees who’ve
developed the mass and
strength to tax their systems to the extreme. Basically, the
light workout helps facilitate growth via enhanced blood flow
and milder muscle stimulation so the nervous system isn’t
disturbed to any great degree.
The difference in recovery between the nervous system and
the muscles may be the reason so many trainees experience
more strength gains than muscle growth when they train
each bodypart only once a week. The nervous systems recu-
perates completely after seven days, but the muscles recov-
ered a bit sooner, so size increases are somewhat sluggish.
While your body is ready for a double hit each week, a lot of
times it’s best not to hit each bodypart with two intense blasts
every seven days, so heavy/light training is an elegant solu-
tion (although traumatic/nontraumatic, direct/indirect and
volume/intensity are variations on the theme and also work
well). The heavy day for a bodypart consists of a compound
exercise, such as squats, done for three sets, but using a re-
verse pyramid—reducing the poundage on each successive
set, as opposed to adding, as you’ve seen in previous chap-
ters. The reps should go something like five, eight, nine, and
each of your work sets in the reverse pyramid should be taken
to exhaustion. That’s after a couple of warmup sets, of course.
Why a reverse pyramid? Nervous system priming for better
stimulation on your longer-tension-time size-building sets
(second and third—eight and nine reps). Remember we said
that with a standard pyramid you train for strength with a size
side effect; with the reverse pyramid you train for size with
a strength side effect. Here’s the reason: Heavy-weight low-
rep sets cause the nervous system to crap out early; however,
they also heighten nervous system response. That means
after one heavy low-rep set, you’ll be able to activate more
fibers on your second and third higher-rep growth-range
sets (30 seconds of tension time). You get descent strength
(force) activation on your first set and the best hypertrophic
(growth) stimulation on your second. Your third is size-surge
insurance.
You’ll feel it happening! When you reduce the weight for
your second set, you’ll feel much more powerful because of
heightened innervation. The weight will feel light, and you’ll
glide through the size principle of fiber recruitment much
more readily and activate more growth fibers toward the end
of that second lighter growth set—especially if you add X-Rep
partials at exhaustion.
The other reason you should do your heavy low-rep set first
is that you deal with less fatigue-product accumulation. You
want to be as fresh as possible so the muscles don’t crap out
early. Remember, low-rep sets to exhaustion cause your cen-
tral nervous system to balk very early—emergency shutdown.
Let’s say you do your higher-rep set first instead. Now the
muscles have more residual fatigue products so you may hit
the CNS wall on your second heavier set even earlier.
Won’t fatigue-product pooling happen doing the low-rep
set first? No—at least not enough to negatively affect your
second hypertrophy set. There isn’t much fatigue-product
pooling on a six-rep set. As we said, that low-rep power set
first will supercharge your second growth set due to height-
ened nervous system response.
Yes, fatigue-product pooling from your second higher-rep
set will affect your third hypertrophic set, but that last set
is just for insurance—to insure that you attacked as many
growth fibers as possible and to transition into endurance-
component work.
After that, you do a drop set on either a stretch- or con-
tracted-position exercise. You’ll hit the position you don’t hit
at the following workout on light day, which is Split-Positions
Training. In other words, you put the contracted-position
exercise on one day and the stretch-position exercise on an-
other. For example, your heavy quad day will be squats (mid-
range), done in reverse-pyramid fashion, and sissy squats
(stretch), done with a drop set. At your next quad workout
you’ll do light squats (midrange), followed by leg extensions
(contracted) with a drop set.
To repeat the drop-set technique, it involves going to ex-
haustion with a weight that allows you to get about eight reps
and then immediately reducing the poundage and cranking
out another five or six reps to exhaustion. That extends the
target muscle’s time under tension—and burns like the fires
of hell.
As we’ve said in our previous e-books, one of the big mis-
takes trainees make is using weights that don’t allow sets on
any exercise to last long enough to trigger an optimal hyper-
trophic adaptation. For example, they’ll use a weight that lets
them get seven reps with a one-up/one-down cadence—for
a grand total of 14 seconds under tension. That’s unaccept-
able if you’re looking for significant size stimulation. Most
trainees need close to 30 seconds of tension on at least some
sets if they want to build muscle. A 1.5/1.5 cadence gets you
closer, but that’s still only 21 seconds (three seconds times
seven reps); however, if you immediately decrease the weight
so you can do five more reps at that same cadence, you now
have 36 seconds, 21 plus 15. And if you add X Reps you get
the tension time even higher.
Drop sets force you to get enough time under tension—and
you won’t believe the skin-stretching pump they trigger. Add
a drop set at the end of each bodypart routine, and it’ll feel
as if your skin is as tight as a trampoline—stretched over the
throbbing muscle as far as it can go. It’s a very efficient size-
building tactic.
If you’ve glanced at the program, you may be wondering
about doing drop sets to failure on light day. Won’t they over-
stress your nervous system, something you’re trying to avoid?
No because you’ll be doing them on isolation exercises only,
not the big compound, or midrange, movements. Isolation
exercises take much less out of you. It’s overuse of the big
compound movements that tend to overstress the nervous
system.
There are two different routines. If you’re gung-ho for four
days a week, you’ll follow the same heavy/light protocol,
going to exhaustion on your midrange movements on heavy
day, but doing slightly higher reps with less weight on light
day and stopping each set a few reps short of failure. Remem-
ber, the point is to prevent overstressing your nervous system
and to further enhance the growth mechanism with the pre-
cise amount of moderate work on light day. Take your drop
sets to positive failure on both days, but only add X Reps on
heavy day. Confused? Don’t worry, the routine lists the proper
protocols for each exercise.
X-Rep.com’s Heavy/Light Program ©
WORKOUT 1
Monday

Quads: Heavy
Squats*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Smith-machine squats
or sissy squats (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Hamstrings: Light
Leg curls* (subfailure), 1 x 10-15
Leg curls (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Chest: Heavy
Dumbbell flyes (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Incline presses*, 2 x 8-12
Delts: Light
(subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Seated laterals (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Dumbbell presses (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Lats: Heavy
Wide-grip chins*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Machine or dumbbell
pullovers (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Midback: Light
Dumbbell rows* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Dumbbell shrugs (drop), 1 x 8(5)
†Reduce weight on each successive set so your reps increase.

WORKOUT 2
Wednesday
Knee-extension leg press
calf raises*, 3 x 12-20
One-leg dumbbell calf raises, 2 x 12-18
Overhead EZ-curl bar
V-bar pushdowns (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Concentration curls (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Reverse wrist curls (drop), 1 x 12(8)
Wrist curls (drop), 1 x 12(8)
Full-range crunches
or Ab Bench crunches (drop), 1 x 9(6)

WORKOUT 3
Friday
Quads: Light
Squats* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Leg extensions (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Hamstrings: Heavy
Calves: Light
Seated calf raises* (subfailure), 2 x 12-18
Standing machine calf raises
(drop), 1 x 15(8)
Delts: Heavy
Wide-grip upright rows (with EZ-curl
bar, if possible)*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Incline one-arm lateral
raises (drop) 1 x 8(5)
Chest: Light
Incline presses* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Incline cable crossovers (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Bench presses* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Cable crossovers (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Midback: Heavy
Barbell rows*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Bent-arm bent-over laterals
(drop), 1 x 8(5)
Lats: Light
Wide-grip pulldowns*
Stiff-arm pulldowns (drop), 1 x 8(5)

Heavy/Light Tips and Reminders
1) Do one to two warmup sets with 50 percent of your work-
set weight on the first set and 70 to 80 percent on the second
on exercises with an asterisk (*). Concentrate, make your rep
cadence sligtly slower than usual, and try to get in touch with
the target muscle. (You’ll probably only need one warmup set on
light days.)
can’t do another rep with good form—on heavy days. On some
sets, usually the last for an exercise, continue with X-Rep par-
tials, eight-inch pulses from the semistretch point, such as near
the bottom of an incline press, up to just below the halfway mark
on the stroke. (For more on X Reps, see page 86.) On light days
stop sets on the first (big midrange) exercise a rep or two short of
failure.
4) Rest 2 1/2 to three minutes between sets on your reverse-
pyramid exercise; rest 1 1/2 to two minutes between sets on
other exercises.
5) If you get at least seven reps fairly easily on your first set of a
reverse-pyramid exercise, add weight at your next workout to all
three sets—enough so that your reps on all sets stay in the listed
range. Add weight to other exercises when you can get more
than the lower rep range listed on your last set. For example, if
on stiff-legged deadlifts you get eight reps on your second set,
add weight at your next workout to bring the reps back down
to seven on that second set. (You will be using the same weight
on all sets; the reps on the last one indicate the need for more
weight.)
6) After six weeks on the Heavy/Light routine, back off the in-
tensity—use the same routine but stop all sets two reps short of
failure. Then you can go back to the intense version or another
program in this book or any of our other e-books.
7) If you are using the four-day version (listed on the next few
pages) and forsee only being able to train three days on any
given week, use the three-day version listed here. That’s better
than skipping a workout on the four-day version.
8) The above tips apply to the four-day Heavy/Light program
on the next few pages as well.

WORKOUT 1
Monday
(Chest, heavy; Delts, light; Back, light; Arms, heavy)
Crossovers (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Incline presses*, 2 x 7-9
Pec deck (arms high; drop), 1 x 8(5)
(drop), 1 x 8(5)
Wide-grip pulldowns*
Pullovers (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Shoulder-width cable
rows* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
(drop), 1 x 8(5)
Decline extensions*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Overhead dumbbell extensions
(drop), 1 x 8(5)
Barbell curls*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Incline curls (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Reverse wrist curls, 2 x 9-12

WORKOUT 2
Tuesday
(Quads, light; Hamstrings, heavy; Calves, heavy; Abs; light)
Squats* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Sissy squats (drop), 1 x 8(5)
calf raises*, 3 x 12-15
Donkey calf raises
or strict leg press calf raises*, 2 x 9-12
Seated calf raises (drop), 1 x 12(8)
Incline kneeups (subfailure), 2 x 10-12
Full-range crunches
or Ab Bench crunches (drop), 1 x 12(7)

WORKOUT 3
Thursday
(Delts, heavy; Chest, light; Back, heavy; Arms, light)
Wide-grip upright rows (with EZ-curl
bar, if possible)*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Lateral raises (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Incline dumbbell presses*
Incline cable flyes (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Bench presses* (subfailure), 2 x 10-15
Cable flyes (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Wide-grip pulldowns
or chins*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Stiff-arm pulldowns (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Shoulder-width cable
rows*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Dumbbell shrugs (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Decline extensions*
Pushdowns (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Barbell curls*
Concentration curls (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Hammer curls (subfailure), 2 x 10-15

WORKOUT 4
Friday
(Quads, heavy; Hamstrings, light; Calves, light; Abs, heavy)
Squats*†, 3 x 5, 8, 9
Leg extensions (drop), 1 x 8(5)
Stiff-legged deadlifts*
Seated calf raises*
(strict; subfailure), 2 x 15-20
One-leg calf raises (drop), 1 x 12(7)
Full-range crunches
or Ab Bench crunches
(drop), 1 x 8(5)

Exercises
Shoulder-width-grip cable rows (midrange/contracted, midback).
While this exercise puts your midback in the contracted position at the top of
each rep, it does have muscle synergy. Use an overgrip with a hand spacing
that’s just slightly wider than shoulder width. Pull the bar back toward you till
it almost touches our lower chest, squeezing your scapulae together as you
pull. To make that action more natural, keep your arms up slightly away from
your torso; if they are down next to it you will work your lats more than your
midback. Don’t pause at the top; reverse the movement immediately and lower
until your arms are almost fully extended. Right before full extension as your
scapulae move apart, reverse the action immediately and pull back to the top.
If you train at home you can do bent-over barbell rows, but keep your back flat
and your torso held in a position that’s only slightly higher than parallel to the
ground. You can also do this exercise with a dumbbell in each hand, rowing
them simultaneously. Chest support makes it one of the best moves, as it then
has stretch-, contracted- and midrange-position characteristics.
Dumbbell upright rows (midrange, delts). Stand erect with a dumbbell
in each hand at arm’s length down by your thighs. Pull the dumbbells up and
out as you bend your elbows. Your biceps and traps will help your delts create
the force necessary to raise the dumbbells. At the top your hands should be just
forward and slightly below your front deltoids, simulating a wide-grip upright
row. When you reach that position, lower without pausing till your hands are
down near your outer thighs and your arms are just out of the lockout posi-
tion. Once again, don’t pause; immediately reverse the downward stroke and
pull back up and out to the top, hands-wide, position. For variety, or when your
strength outruns your top-end dumbbells, try rack pulls. Use a barbell resting
on the long pins in a power rack set at about knee level. Grab the bar with a grip
that’s about a hand space wider than shoulder width on each side and stand
erect. With a slight heave and some leg drive, pull the bar up in an upright-row
motion till its just above your belly button, then lower immediately. Keep the
bar moving. Or you may want to try upright rows with an EZ-curl bar.
Incline kneeups (midrange and lower contracted, abs). Position
yourself on a situp slant board so your head is at the top high end. Grab the
sides of the bench next to your head for stability, then with a slight bend at your
knees raise your legs until your knees are above your chest and your hips are
rolled up off the bench. Without pausing lower your legs in an arc till your heels
almost touch the floor, then reverse the downward stroke without pausing
and pull your legs up to the highest position again. Keep tension on your abs
throughout the set; don’t throw your legs up and allow your feet to travel back
behind your head. At the top of each rep your feet should be above your face.
To add weight you can use a low cable and ankle straps.
Stiff-arm pulldowns (contracted, lats). Stand in front of a pulldown ma-
chine, take a shoulder-width overgrip on the bar and step back till your torso is
angled slightly forward. With the bar at eye level, bring it down in an arc to your
front thighs while keeping a slight bend at your elbows. When the bar reaches
your thighs, follow the same arc on the negative stroke till the bar is at eye level
again. Repeat.

many key movements.

7
WORKOUT 7
X-Rep Reload

I
f you’ve read our X-Rep Training Blog, you know that
we’ve recently gone back to the future. No, we’re not train-
ing with Michael J. Fox. We’ve revived our very first X-Rep
program, the one that gave us such great gains in one month,
but we’ve updated it with techniques we’ve found effective
since then. (Our original X-Rep program is outlined in our e-
book The Ultimate Mass Workout—www.X-Rep.com.)
We’ve been using Eric Broser’s Power/Rep Range/Shock
strategy, but more recently we’ve been tweaking it for our
body types—Jonathan is more mesomorphic (athletic/mus-
cular), while Steve is more ectomorphic (thinner/hardgainer).
We’re sticking with Broser’s plan on our new X-Rep Reload
Program, with a few variations. Here’s a review of the standard
P/RR/S strategy (for a standard P/RR/S program, see the last
chapter of 3D Muscle Building—www.3DMuscleBuilding.
com):
Week 1: Power. Train every exercise with straight sets—no
supersets, tri-sets or drop sets—and reps stay in the four-
to-six zone. Use slightly higher reps on endurance-oriented
muscles like calves, abs and forearms.
Week 2: Rep Range. For the first exercise you pick a
weight that gets you seven to nine reps. For the second ex-
ercise you do 10 to 12 reps. On the third exercise you move
the rep range up to the high end of fast-twitch recruit-
ment—13 to 15 reps.
Week 3: Shock.
This week is for
putting your
muscles through
the meat grinder
with supersets,
drop sets and so
on. Reps for most
muscles stay in an
eight-to-10-rep
range, but extend-
With Power/Rep Range/Shock, you must keep track of ed-set techniques
your exercise poundages.
are a must.
Other than squeezing our original X-Rep program into
that schedule, what other tweaks have we made? The first is
that we no longer schedule our phases in weeks. We are now
on the so-called ideal split we outline in our e-book Beyond
X Rep Muscle Building, which divides the body over three
workouts instead of the four-day split we were using. What’s
so ideal about it? Minimum overlap with a day off during
the week. It’s a three-way split, with workouts on Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. We’re off on Thursdays and
weekends. Here’s a day-by-day snapshot for two weeks. You’ll
see that we’re hitting all upper-body muscles more frequently
than once every seven days. Upper legs still get a once-a-
week hit—every Tuesday.
Week 1
Monday: Workout 1 (chest, lats, triceps, abs)
Tuesday: Workout 2 (legs and lower back)
Wednesday: Workout 3 (delts, midback, biceps, forearms)
Thursday: Off
Friday: Workout 1 (chest, lats, triceps, abs + soleus)
Weekend: Off (with cardio)
Week 2
Monday: Workout 3 (delts, midback, biceps, forearms)
Tuesday: Workout 2 (legs and lower back)
Wednesday: Workout 1 (chest, lats, triceps, abs)
Thursday: Off
Friday: Workout 2 (delts, midback, biceps, forearms +
soleus)
Weekend: Off (with cardio)
Repeat Week 1
What’s so great about that split? For one thing, notice that
we never hit the upper body two days in a row—there’s a leg
day, an off day or an entire weekend between those workouts.
So even the slight overlap that occurs with back—midback

and lats on different days—and a few other muscles is buff-
ered by at least one full recovery day.
We’re training quads and hamstrings only once a week,
but all other bodyparts now get hit every four or five days,
depending on where it falls during the week—Monday (four
days of rest, till Friday), Wednesday (five days, till Monday) or
Friday (five days, till Wednesday).
More frequent workouts seem to work better for us. We
don’t have hours to train—we train on our lunch break—so
we can’t use a lot of volume. That may be why our size gains
were sporadic when we were training each bodypart only
once a week—we weren’t damaging the muscle enough to re-
quire that extended recovery time. Or maybe we just respond
better to more frequent hits. So far we haven’t found a way to
make training bodyparts only once a week work for us with
our limited training time. When we train muscles only once
a week, we are always sore, which is an indication that body-
parts are recovering, then regressing a bit before the next ses-
sion—spinning our wheels a lot of the time.
Training bodyparts more frequently also means shorter
Power/Rep Range/Shock phases. Hitting bodyparts only once
a week was especially problematic with the Power phase,
in which you do all exercises for only four to six reps. That’s
more of a strength-building rep range than one conducive to
adding muscle size, so for an entire week we were technically
training only for strength. With our new split we begin the
next protocol after three workouts—every four or five days.
We’ve also bastardized each of the phases somewhat to
include other rep ranges to further address that problem. A
good example is the Power phase.
Power Reload
Midrange exercise: Standard Power—two sets of four to
six rep, but on the second set we do a drop set, the second
phase with about eight reps (that should sound familiar—it’s
the two-set/drop method from Chapter 3: Time-Bomb Train-
ing, one of our favorite mass-building protocols for big mid-
range exercises). We do X Reps on the first set and X Reps on
the second phase of the drop set. That provides max force
and extended tension—more tension time is something Steve
needs because of his hardgainer genetics...
Contracted exercise: Because Steve’s a hardgainer, and a
new study showed what he’d discovered after years of train-
ing—low reps don’t do much, if anything, for him in the size
department—we altered this exercise as well. Instead of
straight low-rep sets, as dictated in standard Power work-
outs, we are doing a drop set, the first phase in the Power
range—four to six reps—the second phase for eight reps. That
provides more tension time for some endurance-component
work, which Steve needs, but it still permits us to train the
exercise with a low-rep set on the first phase of the drop set.
For example, when we do cable flyes for pecs, we use a
heavy weight, power out four to six controlled reps, reduce
the weight, and then crank out about eight reps, followed by
X Reps or an X Fade, which extends the tension time even
more. In case you’re not familiar with an X Fade, it’s X-Rep
partial pulses in the top, contracted position followed by X
Reps down near the stretch position. It’s a killer technique,
especially on the second phase of a drop set.
If we use a superset—two exercises back to back—instead
of a drop set, we do the first exercise in the lower-rep zone
and the second exercise for around eight reps. For example,
for lats we superset machine pullovers for four to six reps
with rope rows for eight to 10. And we add X Reps and/or a
Static X to the rope rows. If you don’t feel that in your back,
you may have been born without lats!
Stretch exercise: We usually do a Double-X Overload
set—an X-Rep partial between each full rep—for more stretch
overload—and we’ll often end the set with a Static X. You’ll
see why this is so important for building more mass after you
read Appendix A on stretch overload.
Here’s our current Power midback program (M = midrange,
S = stretch, C = contracted):
M: Bent-over barbell rows (X Reps), 2 x 4-6, 4-6(7)
C: Bent-over bent-arm laterals
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
S: V-handle cable rows (DXO), 1 x 8-10

Rep Range Reload
Midrange exercise: Start every bodypart with a big mid-
range movement, same as Power, only with higher reps—two
sets of seven to nine reps. Once again we use the two-set/
drop method, reducing the poundage after the second set
and immediately doing another six to eight reps.
Contracted exercise: We do two straight sets—the first
for 10 to 12 reps; then we reduce the weight for a set of 13 to
15 reps on the second—and we usually add an X Fade at the
end for a killer burn and pump!
Stretch exercise: Same as Power, favoring DXO with a
Static X tacked on for extra stretch overload. Here’s our cur-
rent RR midback program:
M: Bent-over barbell rows (X Reps), 2 x 7-9, 7-9(7)
(rest; drop; X Reps), 2 x 10-12, 13-15
Shock Reload
Midrange exercise: Sometimes we use Dante’s multi-rep
rest/pause (DoggCrapp, or D.C.) formula—three sets with
the same weight, each set separated by only 20 seconds of
rest. And we add X Reps and/or a Static X to the last set. Reps
usually go something like 9, 6, 4—20 seconds between each.
Brutal! Or we continue using the two-set/drop method, same
as on Rep Range workouts. For the sake of variety, we will put
MRR/P in the Shock workout templates; however, keep in
mind that the two-set/drop is an option that we use often.
Contracted exercise: To up the shock factor, we take
the drop-set concept to the next level and do a double drop.
That’s three back-to-back sets with weight reductions. And
we attempt an X Fade, X Reps or a Static X on the last phase.
If we superset two exercises, one will be a drop set and the
other a regular set, which mimicks the double-drop tactic.
Stretch exercise: Once again one or two straight sets with
the DXO X-hybrid technique mentioned earlier (see page 86
for all of them explained).
Here’s our midback Shock workout:
M: Bent-over barbell rows (MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
(double drop; X Reps), 1 x 8(6)(5)
There are variations of each of those protocols for many

bodyparts, but the tactics we use for Power, Rep Range and
Shock are constant. For example, we always use the two-set/
drop on the midrange exercise for Rep Range. We follow that
with a more isolated (contracted-position) exercise for two
sets, one for 10-to-12 reps the other for 13 to 15. Quads are
an exception, as we use the contracted move, leg extensions,
to prime the heavily endurance-oriented quads for midrange
work (squats), as you’ll see in the templates on the next few
pages.
Even if you’re a little hazy on what to do when, just print the
program and follow it, if you’re motivated to train along with
us. Everything is there. And keep in mind that even we have
to refer to our printouts often during our workouts to keep
things straight.
If we do a superset and you can’t follow suit because you
train in a crowded commercial gym, just do a drop set or a
double drop on one of the exercises listed instead. You get the
same extended-tension-time effect without having to occupy
two pieces of equipment (the more abbreviated home-gym
workout on pages 87-95 have minimal supersets, so that may
be a better training option for you—even if you train in a
commercial gym).
Also, don’t let the listed programs intimidate you—they are
not as long as they appear. Most exercises are for one set only.
We get most workouts done in a little more than an hour, if
we push ourselves.
Note: To see how our program is evolving—and exactly

what we’re doing at any given time—visit our X Training Blog
at www.X-Rep.com.

X-Rep.com’s X-Rep Reload Program ©
WORKOUT 1
POWER: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms
Seated laterals/upright rows
(X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Standing laterals (drop), 1 x 4-6(8)
Forward-lean laterals (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
DB presses (X Reps), 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Bent-over laterals
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
One-arm cable laterals (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Bent-over rows (X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
V-handle cable rows (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Superset
Dumbbell shrugs (DXO)*, 1 x 8-10
Behind-the-back shrugs, 1 x 6-8
Preacher curls*, 1 x 4-6
Cable curls, 1 x 6-9(8)
Concentration curls
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Incline curls (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Incline hammer curls
(X Reps)*, 1 x 4-6(8)
Superset
Dumbbell reverse wrist
curls (X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Forearm Bar reverse wrist curls
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Superset
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Forearm Bar wrist curls
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Rockers, 1 x 20-30
*Note: If this workout falls on Friday, add soleus work—two sets of knee-ex-
tension leg press calf raises and two sets of seated calf raises.

WORKOUT 2
POWER: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back

Leg extensions
(drop; X Fade), 1 x 8-10(6)
Leg extensions (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Squats (middle X Reps), 3 x 10, 9, 8(6)
Leg presses (nonlock; X Reps), 1 x 4-6
Leg extensions (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Sissy Squats (DXO), 1 x 8-10
Lunges or feet-forward Smith
machine squats, 1 x 8-10
Leg curls (drop; X Fade), 1 x 4-6(8)
Leg curls (DXO), 1 x 8-10
Superset
Stiff-legged deadlifts, 1 x 6-8
Hyperextensions (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Stiff-legged deadlifts (DXO), 1 x 6-8
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 12, 10(7)
Superset
Standing calf
raises (X Reps), 2 x 12-20
Hack-machine
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 8-10
One-leg calf raises (X Reps), 1 x 10-15
Machine donkey
calf raises (DXO), 1 x 8-10
Low-back machine (DXO), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 3
POWER: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell
presses (X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
High cable flyes
(drop; X Fade), 1 x 4-6(8)
Wide-grip dips or bench presses*
(drop; X Reps), 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Middle cable flyes
(drop; X Fade), 1 x 4-6(8)
Pulldowns (X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Superset
Machine pullovers (X Reps), 1 x 4-6
Rope rows (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Superset
Undergrip pulldowns
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Dumbbell pullovers (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Decline extensions
(X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Superset
Pushdowns (X Reps), 2 x 4-6
Kickbacks or
Bench dips (X Reps), 2 x 7-9
Overhead DB extensions (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Incline kneeups (X Reps), 1 x 10-15
Superset
Flat-bench leg raises
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Tri-set
Ab Bench crunches (X Reps), 1 x 7-9
Twisting crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
End-of-bench kneeups
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 1
REP RANGE: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms
(X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Standing laterals
(rest; drop; X Reps), 2 x 10, 15
Dumbbell presses*
(X Reps), 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Bent-over laterals
Bent-over rows (X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (rest; drop; X Reps), 2 x 10, 15
Superset
Dumbbell shrugs (DXO)*, 1 x 7-9
Behind-the-back shrugs, 1 x 7-9
Cable curls, 1 x 7-9(8)
Concentration curls
(rest; drop; X Reps)*, 2 x 10, 15
curls (X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Rockers, 1 x 20-30

WORKOUT 2
REP RANGE: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back
Leg extensions
(rest; drop; X Fade), 2 x 10, 15
Leg extensions (DXO), 1 x 8-10
Squats (middle X Reps), 3 x 10, 9, 8(6)
Leg presses (nonlock; X Reps), 1 x 8-12
Leg extensions (X Fade), 1 x 8-10
Sissy squats (DXO), 1 x 8-10
machine squats, 1 x 7-9
Leg curls (rest; drop; X Fade), 2 x 10, 15
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 12-15, 12-15(9)
Standing calf
raises (X Reps), 2 x 12-20
Hack-machine
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 12-20

One-leg calf raises (X Reps), 1 x 10-15
Machine donkey
calf raises (DXO), 1 x 10-12
Low-back machine (DXO), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 3
REP RANGE: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell
presses (X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
High cable flyes
Wide-grip dips or bench presses
(drop; X Reps), 2 x 7-9(8)
Middle cable flyes
Chins (X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Rope rows (X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Superset
Undergrip pulldowns
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Decline extensions
(X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Kickbacks or
Overhead DB extensions (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Tri-set
Ab Bench crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
Twisting crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 1
SHOCK: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms
Seated laterals/upright rows*
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Standing laterals*
Dumbbell presses*
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Bent-over laterals
Bent-over rows*
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
DB shrugs (drop; DXO), 1 x 8(6)
Superset (20-second rest)
Cable curls (MRR/P; X Reps), 2 x 7, 5
Concentration curls
Incline hammer curls*
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 8(6)
Superset
Dumbbell reverse wrist curls
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Superset
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Rockers, 1 x 20-30

WORKOUT 2
SHOCK: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back

Leg extensions*
(double drop; X Fade), 1 x 9(6)(5)
Squats* (mid X Reps), 2 x 8-12
Leg presses*
(MRR/P; nonlock; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Sissy Squats (DXO), 1 x 7-9
machine squats*, 1 x 8-10
Leg curls*
Leg curls (X Fade), 1 x 8-10
Superset (20-second rest)
Hyperextensions
Knee-extension leg press calf
raises* (MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 15, 10, 8
Superset
Standing calf raises
Hack-machine calf raises
(X Reps), 2 x 10-15
Machine donkey calf raises
(drop; DXO), 1 x 10-12(7)
Low-back machine (X Reps), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 3
SHOCK: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell presses*
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
High cable flyes
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Middle cable flyes
Chins* (MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Superset
Rope rows (drop; X Reps), 1 x 8(6)
Superset
Undergrip pulldowns
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Dumbbell pullovers
(DXO), 1 x 8-10
Decline extensions*
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Superset
Kickbacks or
Overhead extensions (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Incline kneeups
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 12, 9, 6
Tri-set
Ab Bench crunches
Twisting crunches (X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 8-10

Exercises
Seated laterals/upright rows (midrange, medial-delt heads). This
is a form of lateral raise you rarely see—a combination lateral/upright row,
seated and with a forward lean. Larry Scott, the first Mr. Olympia, didn’t have
wide clavicles, so he created the illusion of width with deltoid mass using this
exercise. Sit on the end of a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand, keep your
torso angled forward and crank out lateral raises, but with a 90-degree bend
at your elbows. Your torso position should be between a bent-over lateral and
a standard lateral raise, on which the torso is upright. Scott stressed that at
the top of the forward-lean lateral raise, you must be able to see your rear-delt
heads in the mirror. In other words, stay forward at all times.
Bent-arm bent-over laterals (contracted, midback). These are a com-
bination bent-over lateral/bent-over row. It’s best to have some type of chest-
support bench, but you can do these in a standard bent-over row position as
well. With a dumbbell in each hand at arm’s length and your torso bent at the
waist, parallel to the floor, pull the dumbbells up as you bend your arms. Drive
your elbows back to squeeze your scapulae together at the top of the move-
ment, where the dumbbells are just outside your front delts, palms facing in
and your elbows bent at slightly more than 90 degrees—almost like a row, but
not quite. Lower and repeat.
High cable flyes (stretch, upper chest). Put a flat bench in the center of
the cable crossover machine, grab a low handle in each hand and recline on the
bench. Pull the handles up in an arc so they meet over your forehead, or slightly
higher. Pulling high will hit your upper-pec fibers. For more middle-area focus,
pull the handles up so they meet over your mid-chest. Or touch them low over
your crotch for lower-pec work.
Rope rows (contracted, lats). Hook a rope attachment to a low pulley,
grab an end with each hand, step back and bend forward at your waist. Extend
your arms till they are almost straight, then pull back as you bend your elbows
(row) till your hands touch your lower abs (oblique area). Maintain the forward
bend at your waist, torso angled at about 45 degrees. Extend your arms, then
repeat the row.
Cable pushouts (stretch, triceps). Hook a rope attachment to a high
pulley, grab an end with each hand, turn and face a way from the machine and
assume a forward lunge position so your torso is parallel to the floor. Bend
your elbows so you feel a stretch in your triceps, then extend your forearms till
your arms are straight. These mimick overhead extensions, but with less elbow
stress.

many key movements.

X Reps and X-Hybrid Tactics
Here are descriptions of the X-hybrid techniques used in the X-Rep
Reload program:
X REPS. These are eight-inch partials you perform at the end of
a full-range set to exhaustion. When you can no longer do full reps,
lower the bar, dumbbells or movement arm almost to the turnaround,
where the target muscle is elongated (like near the bottom of an incline
press), and pulse from that semistretch point up to near the halfway
point on the stroke. Think explosive movement, but stay in control. You
may need partner assistance for X Reps on some exercises. (The origi-
nal X-Rep manual is The Ultimate Mass Workout e-book—www.X-Rep.
com.)
STAGE SETS. Do the two-thirds of the exercise’s stroke that includes
the semistretched point first, like the bottom two-thirds of squats; at
nervous system exhaustion, move to lockout and do the top one third
of the stroke to exhaustion. ( Note: This technique works best on exer-
cises with bone support lockouts; for example, squats, bench presses,
overhead presses. If you use Stage Sets on exercises that have continu-
ous tension, like concentration curls, you’ll have to do the top two-
thirds of the stroke to exhaustion and finish with the bottom one-third.
DOUBLE-X OVERLOAD (DXO). Use a hitch, or X Rep, at the semi-
stretched point between every full rep. For example, on shrugs you
move the bar down to the lowest point, pull up a few inches, move the
weight back down to the lowest point and then do a full rep. You can
use this technique on almost any exercise, even squats; however, you
may have to lighten the weight. It’s ideal for stretch-position exercises
and may trigger fiber spitting!
X FADE. This is more for continuous-tension isolation exercises
(contracted), like leg extensions and leg curls. Do a normal set to ner-
vous system exhaustion, then get help to the top contracted spot. Do X-
Rep partials there (eight-inch pulses), then lower to the semistretched
point and do X Reps at that key point till the muscle is spent.
MRR/P. This is multi-rep rest/pause, based on Dante’s DoggCrapp
training. You do a set, rest 20 seconds, do a second set with the same
weight, rest 20 seconds, then do a third set with the same weight.
DROP SET or DOUBLE DROP. For a drop set you do a set, reduce
the weight and immediately do another set. Both sets should be to
exhaustion. This is ideal for extending the tension time on the target
muscle. A Double Drop is doing three sets back to back, with a weight
reduction on each.
Note: For a more detailed analysis of these and other X-hybrid tech-
niques, see 3D Muscle Building—www.3DMuscleBuilding.com.

X-Rep.com’s Home-Gym X-Rep Reload Program ©
WORKOUT 1
POWER: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms
(X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Standing laterals (drop), 1 x 4-6(8)
Dumbbell presses
(X Reps), 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)

Bent-over laterals
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Incline one-arm laterals (DXO), 1 x 7-9
Bent-over barbell rows*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Dumbbell shrugs (drop; DXO)*, 1 x 10(6)
Preacher curls*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Concentration curls
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Incline hammer curls (X Reps)*, 1 x 4-6
curls (drop; X Reps), 1 x 12(8)
Rockers, 1 x 20-30
tension donkey calf raises and two sets of seated calf raises.

WORKOUT 2
POWER: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back
Squats (nonlock), 2 x 6-8, 6-8(6)
Leg extensions
or old-style hack squats
(drop; X Fade), 1 x 6-8(6)
Front squats or old-style hack squats
(nonlock; X Reps), 2 x 4-6
Lunges, 1 x 4-6
Leg curls (drop; X Fade), 1 x 4-6(8)
Superset
Knee-extension donkey
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 8-10, 8-10(8)
Standing calf raises, 2 x 15-25
Donkey calf raises (DXO), 1 x 8-10

WORKOUT 3
POWER: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell
presses (X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Incline flyes
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
(X Reps), 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Flat-bench flyes
(drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Chins (X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Undergrip rows
(drop; X Reps)*, 1 x 4-6(8)
Decline extensions
(X Reps)*, 2 x 4-6, 4-6(8)
Kickbacks (drop; X Reps), 1 x 4-6(8)
Dips or bench dips (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
(DXO), 1 x 7-9
Superset
(X Reps), 1 x 10-20
Superset
Full-range crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 10-20

WORKOUT 1
REP RANGE: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms

(X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Standing laterals
Dumbbell presses
(X Reps), 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Bent-over laterals
(DXO), 1 x 7-9
Bent-over barbell rows*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (rest; drop; X Reps), 2 x 10, 15
Dumbbell shrugs (DXO; drop)*, 1 x 8(5)
Preacher curls*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Concentration curls
curls (rest; drop; X Reps), 2 x 17, 12
Rockers, 1 x 20-30

WORKOUT 2
REP RANGE: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back
Squats (nonlock), 2 x 10, 8(6)
Leg extensions
(rest; drop), 2 x 10, 15
Lunges, 1 x 7-9
Leg curls (rest; drop; X Fade), 2 x 10, 15
Leg curls (X Reps), 1 x 8-10
Stiff-legged deadlifts, 1 x 10
Hyperextensions (X Reps), 1 x 15
calf raises (X Reps), 2 x 15, 12(8)

WORKOUT 3
REP RANGE: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell
presses (X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Incline flyes
(X Reps), 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Flat-bench flyes
Chins (X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Undergrip rows
Decline extensions
(X Reps)*, 2 x 7-9, 7-9(8)
Kickbacks (X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(DXO), 1 x 7-9
Superset
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Superset
Full-range crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15

WORKOUT 1
SHOCK: Delts, Midback, Biceps, Forearms

(MRR/P; X Reps)*, 3 x 9, 6, 4
Standing laterals
Dumbbell presses (MRR/P;
X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Bent-over laterals
(DXO), 1 x 7-9
Bent-over barbell rows
(MRR/P)*, 3 x 9, 6, 4
Bent-arm bent-over
laterals (double drop;
X Reps), 1 x 8(6)(5)
Dumbbell shrugs (DXO; drop)*, 1 x 8(5)
Preacher curls* (MRR/P), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Concentration curls
(drop; X Reps)*, 1 x 8(6)
curls (double drop;
X Reps), 1 x 12(9)(7)
Rockers, 1 x 20-30

WORKOUT 2
SHOCK: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Lower Back
Squats (nonlock; MRR/P), 2 x 9, 6
Leg extensions
(double drop; X Fade), 1 x 8(6)(4)
Lunges, 1 x 7-9
Leg curls (double drop;
X Fade), 1 x 8(6)(4)
Superset
Stiff-legged deadlifts, 1 x 10
Hyperextensions
calf raises (MRR/P;
X Reps), 3 x 15, 12, 9

WORKOUT 3
SHOCK: Chest, Lats, Triceps, Abs
Incline dumbbell presses

(MRR/P; X Reps)*, 3 x 9, 6, 4
Incline flyes
(MRR/P; X Reps), 3 x 9, 6, 4
Flat-bench flyes
Chins (MRR/P; X Reps)*, 3 x 9, 6, 4
Undergrip rows
(double drop; X Reps)*, 1 x 8(6)(4)
Decline extensions
(MRR/P; X Reps)*, 3 x 9, 6, 4
Kickbacks (double drop;
X Reps), 1 x 8(6)(4)
(DXO), 1 x 8-10
Superset
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15
Superset
Full-range crunches
(X Reps), 1 x 10-12
(X Reps), 1 x 13-15

Abbreviated Home-Gym Program Notes
1) For drop sets on dumbbell exercises it’s best to have a selectorized
dumbbell set, such as the PowerBlock, if you don’t have a rack of fixed
dumbbells of various weights. Or you can superset the dumbbell ver-
sion of the exercise with the barbell version—for example dumbbell
wrist curls and barbell wrist curls.
2) If you don’t have a leg extension machine, do old-style hacks,
nonlock style. Your heels should be up on a 2x4 block, holding barbell
behind you at arm’s length (next to the bottom of your glutes) as you
squat.
3) If you don’t have a leg curl machine, use partner resistance, towel
around the ankles. If you train alone, you may be able to do the ex-
ercise with a dumbbell between your feet while your lying on a slant
board, head at the high end. If that’s not possible, do more stiff-legged
deadlifts.
4) The incline one-arm lateral raise is a stretch-position exercise for
the delts. For these you sit sideways on an incline bench, your non-
working shoulder against the bench so your torso is at an angle. That’s
important because you will have a dumbbell in the hand of your outer
arm, and that dumbbell must pull your arm down and across your
torso to create some stretch in your medial-delt head. Keep a slight
bend in your working arm, allow the dumbbell to move as close to you
as possible as your arm moves in front of your body. Before tension falls
off your delt, right before your arm is perpendicular to the floor, reverse
the downward movement and raise the dumbbell in an arc till your
arm is parallel with the floor. When you reach that point, immediately
reverse the movement and control the downward arc to the low, stretch
position. Maintain tension on your medial-delt head throughout the
set—you should feel a distinct pull on that head at the bottom of the
stroke.
5) If you don’t train with a partner, use a hip belt to secure weight
around your waist for donkey calf raises. If that’s not possible, do
standing calf raises, the two-leg or one-leg version.
6) If you don’t have dipping bars, use barbell or dumbbell decline
presses for chest.
Note: We are working on video presentations of many of the exercises

in our e-books. Watch our Web site, www.X-Rep.com for those and/or
photos of many of the movements listed.

APPENDIX 1
Stretch Overload
Research

W
e’ve had it hammered into our skulls that muscle
contraction is the ultimate growth stimulator, but a
lot of research points to something at the opposite
end of contraction action—stretch. Stretch overload appears
to have the potential to increase muscle size at an amazing
rate. You may be picturing a guy in a track suit, sitting with
legs spread, reaching for one of his feet. That’s not the type
of stretch work linked to extreme muscle size, although that
type of stretching can do good things too. You need overload,
and that comes from weights.
Don’t feel too relieved yet. The type of muscle-traumatizing
stretching we’re talking about isn’t fun. In fact, it can be bru-
tally painful—but the incredible muscle-building results are
well worth the tears. How about tripling the size of a muscle
in about a month’s worth of workouts? It could happen—and
did.
Are Muscle Fibers Splitting?

The study in question was performed back in 1994.1 The
researchers progressively added weight to a bird’s wing in
order to stretch its latissimus dorsi. The stretch overload was
increased over the course of a few weeks interspersed with
two-day rest periods. After 28 stretch-overload days the re-
searchers recorded a 334 percent increase in muscle mass. (In
case you glazed over that number, that’s more than a tripling
Incline flye stretch posi-

tion. Extreme stretch
overload can trigger faster
mass gains and may cause
fiber splitting.

of muscle size!)
Jose Antonio, Ph.D., one of the researchers who conducted
the study, is convinced that a lot of the size gain was due to
hyperplasia, or fiber splitting, in the bird’s latissimus muscle:
“I performed the study using the stretch model. I used a
progressive-overload scheme whereby the bird was initially
loaded with a weight equal to 10 percent of its weight fol-
lowed by increments of 15 percent, 20 percent, 25 percent
and 35 percent of its weight. Using this approach produced
the greatest gains in muscle mass ever recorded in an animal
or human model of tension-induced overload, up to 334 per-
cent increase in muscle mass with up to a 90 percent increase
in fiber number!”
Is that proof positive that hyperplasia exists? Well, some
scientists believe that it’s not splitting but rather fiber trans-
formation. In other words, with certain types of activity,
dormant fibers are called to action, and they hypertrophy.
Some studies show that many fibers that are classified as type
2B—power—fibers are merely dormant type 2As, which have
both power and endurance components and therefore a lot
of size potential. So perhaps fiber counts could be skewed
due to fiber morphing rather than splitting—it may just ap-
pear as though there’s more of a certain type of fiber, but it’s
really other types transforming.
Interesting if you’re into that stuff, but the bottom line for
bodybuilders is that the animal’s muscle mass increased at a
record rate. If you’re after rapid muscle growth, do you really
care if that huge mass increase occurred due to fiber splitting
or fiber morphing? Nope!
Lifting Speed: Faster Reps for More Muscle?

Stretch overload produced an incredible increase in muscle
mass in a very short time in the Antonio study. Other studies
show that lifting speed affects muscle gains, but is it really the
speed, or is that stretching the truth?
Twelve subjects trained for eight weeks. They trained one
arm using a fast velocity and the other at a slow velocity. Type
1, or slow-twitch, fibers increased in size in both cases. Type
2A and 2X muscle fibers increased in both arms, but the in-
creases were greater in the fast-trained arms.
So faster reps are best for stimulating muscle growth, right?
Not necessarily. Realize that when you move fast, it takes
more effort to stop the resistance and/or reverse it. In fact, re-
search indicates that when a trainee standing on force plates
moves fast and uses momentum, the actual weight he has
to reverse at the turnaround of a rep, near the bottom of the
stroke, can be double or triple the actual poundage he’s lift-
ing. That’s due to gravity plus momentum.
How does that cause more muscle growth? Excessive over-
load at the point where the muscle is stretched, or at least
semistretched. When you move fast through the negative
phase of the stroke, as in the study, it takes more effort to re-
verse or stop the poundage at the max-force point, where the
muscle is elongated.
For example, imagine dropping a heavy weight through
the lowering phase of a leg curl and then stopping it abruptly
right before your legs are straight. You traumatize the muscle
at the stretch point much more than if you slowly lower it
under control.
Obviously, training fast is much more dangerous than using
a slower, controlled cadence. Fast, ballistic movements aren’t
recommended. There are better ways to stress the muscle in
the stretch position, such as X Reps and stretch-position ex-
ercises.
We’ve explained how to do X Reps in this e-book, but here’s
a review: At the end of a full-range set to exhaustion, lower
the weight to the semistretch point, such as near the bottom
of an incline press, and do partial pulses from that point up
to near the midpoint. Do as many as you can, then do a static
hold at or very near the semistretch position.
Also be sure to include stretch-position exercises for every
bodypart, like pullovers for the lats and flyes for the pecs.
Those will place the target muscle in its most elongated state
against resistance—and you can increase the stretch over-
load by using a static hold near the stretch point at the end of
a set.
Okay, let’s get negative for a moment.

Heavy Negatives for Positive Muscle Gains
In a 2006 study reported in the Journal of Applied Physiol-
ogy, researchers concluded that doing heavy eccentric, or
negative, contractions (lowering a weight) reduces growth-
suppressing myostatin and increases the highly anabolic
substances of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) and mecha-
no-growth factor (MGF).2 All of that can result in impressive
muscle growth in very short periods.
Other studies have also shown superior muscle-building
results of heavy negative-only work vs. positive-only work.
So heavy negatives are best for muscle growth, right? Once
again, not so fast. Is it really the heavy negative along the full
stroke, or is it only the heavy overload in the stretch position
near the bottom that is producing results?
It appears that the stretch overload is the real key. Think
about how much more stretch overload you’re getting when
you do a pure negative set vs. a pure postive set. With the
pure negatives you have to fight the weight through the
stretch position and then stop it—at least you better stop it,
or you risk joint damage! With a positive-only action you’re
starting in the stretch position from a dead stop—and with
lighter weight. The result is that the target muscle gets much
less stretch overload.
For example, imagine wide-grip dips. If you have a heavy
weight around your waist, so heavy that you can lower it
slowly only six times, without positive movement, control-
ling that resistance through the bottom few inches of the
range produces extreme stretch
overload—and pectoral-muscle
trauma. With no weight you
can drive yourself from a dead
stop at the bottom position for
eight to 10 reps. There’s much
less stretch overload and a lot
less muscle damage, even if you
A lot of pec-muscle trauma occurs at the

bottom of a wide-grip dip, especially if slow
heavy negative-only reps are used and con-
trolled through the max-stretch point.
do both the positive and negative strokes, as in a standard
set. If you do positive-only work, you need an explosive ac-
tion to get you started out of the bottom. That does cause
some muscle trauma, but it’s not nearly as much as lowering
a much heavier weight through those last few inches of the
stretch position and then stopping it for a brief static con-
traction.
So should you include heavy pure-negative sets in your
mass-building workouts? If they’re practical. For dips and
chins you can use your legs to get into the top position so you
can lower slowly. You’ll need a chair or other sturdy object to
stand on. If you can lower the chinning and/or dipping bars
enough so you can use your legs and the floor to get you into
position, even better.
For some one-arm exercises, like concentration curls, you
can use your free arm to raise a heavy weight into the top po-
sition so you can lower it slowly. For other exercises you may
need one or even two partners to lift the weight into position.
That’s usually not practical. If and when you do pure nega-
tives, be sure to really concentrate on those last few inches
for key stretch overload. In fact, you may want to do an X
Rep or two at that point between reps. (That’s the X-centric
training technique we discuss in Beyond X-Rep Muscle Build-
ing—www.BeyondX-Rep.com.)
An option is to use the forced X-Overload technique. Let’s
use Smith-machine incline presses as an example. Load a
weight that’s about 20 to 40 percent more than your normal
eight-to-10-rep weight. Lower the weight to a few inches
off your chest, but don’t pause; drive it up to just below the
midpoint of the stroke, and then lower again. You may get
only one or two, but that’s where the forced Xes come in.
Your partner should now help you move through the positive
portion of the X Rep, but you should lower through that bot-
tom-range eight-inch negative with your own power under
complete control. Do as many as you can with partner assis-
tance.
Of course, you can also do partner-assisted, or forced, X
Reps after your standard X Reps at the end of a set; however,
that takes a high pain threshold. It really separates the moti-
vated men from the bailing boys. Either way—on their own or
after a regular set—forced X Reps have a lot of extraordinary
size-building potential.
X-treme Force, Maximum Muscle

A new study demonstrated how important maximum mus-
cle stress is, similar to that produced by forced X Reps, as well
as stretch overload.3 Max force coupled with stretch overload
created gains in muscle size that “surpassed previous expec-
tations of the time required to acquire gains.”
The researchers used a flywheel leg-extension apparatus
to train subjects’ quadriceps, and it provided more muscle
stretch than normal leg extension machines and maximized
every rep in a series of reps—almost like a group of max
singles in a row. That provided a series of all-out reps, which
resulted in max overload and tension time.
The design of the apparatus is important because the re-
searchers believe that on a molecular level, the training rap-
idly led to a production of intramuscular growth factors, like
IGF-1 and MGF. Those led to an increase in protein synthesis
and faster muscle growth. The researchers believe it was both
the maximal effort on every rep in the sequence of reps and
the enhanced stretch that triggered the anabolic environ-
ment.
They also said that the excess muscle stretch promotes
the orderly lining of sarcomeres within muscle, leading to a
stronger muscle contraction and setting the stage for archi-
tectural changes in the muscle that precede growth. That’s
more evidence of the importance of stretch overload for fast-
er mass gains.
Back to Fiber Splitting

So it’s obvious that stretch overload has serious growth-
stimulating effects. Is hyperplasia a part of all the rapid size
accumulation? According to Antonio, who is a leading au-
thority, absolutely.
“Researchers took needle biopsy samples from the outer-
quad muscles of five male bodybuilders, average age 27,
who’d been performing heavy resistance exercise for at least

two years, and from five male active but untrained control
subjects, average age 30.4 In the bodybuilders a preferential
hypertrophy of fast-twitch fibers took place, which was to be
expected, but there was more.
“The very large hypertrophy of the outer-quad muscles
could not be fully accounted for by single-muscle-fiber hy-
pertrophy. In fact, the cross-sectional area of the muscle
was 54 percent larger in the bodybuilding group than in the
control group, whereas mean fiber area was only 14 percent
larger in the bodybuilding group. What does that mean? That
the bodybuilders likely had to have increased their fiber
numbers in order to account for the much larger total size of
the muscle.
“It appears that the increase in muscle fiber numbers, or
hyperplasia, may account to some degree for the extreme
muscle size the bodybuilders attained.”
All very interesting to those of us obsessed with such
things, but the bottom line for bodybuilders is that max force
and stretch overload get muscles larger faster, whether from
hyperplasia or fiber hypertrophy. Here’s a review of ways to
enhance that get-bigger trigger:
1) Do X Reps—that is, partial reps that include the semi-
stretch point—at the end of some of your full-range sets.
And you may want to try a few forced X Reps and/or a Static
X after, if you can handle the pain.
2) Include stretch-position exercises for each bodypart,
such as flyes for the pecs, stiff-legged deadlifts for ham-
strings, pullovers for lats, incline curls for biceps, sissy
squats for quads and overhead extensions for triceps. (Most
of the programs in this e-book have stretch-position exer-
cises for each bodypart; for a more comprehensive look at
them and how they fit into Positions of Flexion mass train-
ing, see the e-book 3D Muscle-Building).
3) Do pure-negative sets, if practical—that is, use a weight
that’s 20 to 40 percent heavier than your normal eight-to-
10-rep weight and do the lowering portion of the rep only,
getting about six six-second negatives (focus on keeping
it slow all the way through the stretch point—that’s very
important!). You may want to try doing an X Rep or two or
a Static X near the bottom of each negative rep to enhance
the stretch or semistretch overload.
4) Do forced X Overload—that is, use a weight that’s 20
percent heavier than your normal eight-rep weight and do
only X-Rep partials in the semistretch position; do as many
as you can, and then have your partner help you with the
positive stroke on the eight-to-10-inch partials while you
lower with control on your own.
5) Use Static X Reps at the end of any of the above (but es-
pecially on stretch-position exercises)—holding a weight at
the stretch or semistretch point provides excellent stretch
overload.
6) Use Double-X Overload and Triple-X Overload on
stretch-position exercises. This X-hybrid technique is using
an X Rep (DXO) or two X Reps (TXO) between each full
repetition to get more stretch overload. For DXO on, say,
incline curls for biceps, you lower the dumbbells to the
bottom, raise up about eight inches, lower to the bottom
again, then curl the dumbbells all the way to the top. You
can count “one” when you hit bottom, “two” when you hit
bottom again, then do a full rep. For TXO you would count
“one, two, three,” each number for the bottom positions,
then do your full rep. At exhaustion, hold in the stretch po-
sition for a Static X. You’ll swear you feel the muscle grow-
ing and fibers splitting!
References
1 Antonio, J., and Gonyea, W.J. (1993). Skeletal muscle fiber hyperplasia. Med Sci
Sports Exerc. 25:1333-45.
2 Heinemeier, K.M., et al. (2007). Short-term strength training and the expres-
sion of myostatin and IGF-1 isoforms in rat muscle and tendon: Differential as-
pects of specific contraction types. J Appl Physiol. 102: 573-581.
3 Seynnes, O.R., et al. (2007). Early skeletal muscle hypertrophy and architec-
tural changes in response to high-intensity resistance training. J Applied Physiol.

102:368-373.
4 D’Antona, G., et al. (2005). Skeletal muscle hypertrophy and structure and
function of skeletal muscle fibres in male bodybuilders. J. Physiol. 570:611-627.

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X-REP.

Photography by Michael Neveux

Cover model: Jonathan Lawson

Copyright © 2007 by Homebody Productions

The material in this document may not be reproduced in whole or in part

All e-books are available at

2 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 3

4 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 5

6 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

As a bodybuilder you want to work the three positions

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 7

As we said, that type of pyramid is actually more strength

The 3D Power Pyramid Program is a simple, elegant pro-

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 9

Exercise, sets x reps Poundage

Midrange & Stretch: Stiff-legged

Midrange: Knee-extension leg

Midrange: Incline presses*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

Midrange: Lying extensions*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

†Add weight to each successive set so your reps decrease.

10 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

Midrange: Wide-grip upright

Midrange: Barbell curls*†, 3 x 8, 6, 3-4

Midrange & Lower Contracted:

Contracted/Stretch: Seated calf

†Add weight to each successive set so your reps decrease.

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 11

12 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 13

“Men who had been unable to register significant gains

Strossen himself claims to have gained 30 pounds of

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 17

WORKOUTS 1 & 2 or 1, 2** & 3

18 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 19

WORKOUTS 1 & 2 or 1, 2** & 3

Exercise, sets x reps Poundage

20 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 21

22 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

Work set 1: Do repetitons to exhaustion, which should

Work set 2: Use the same weight, reaching exhaustion

What about occlusion? We suggest you do those sets in

Note: The two-set Time Bomb Training approach also works

Exercise, sets x reps Poundage

Squats* (mid X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Leg press calf raises*

(X Reps), 2 x 15-20, 12(8)

Stiff-legged deadlifts*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Bench presses* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Chins* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Bent-over rows* (X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Dumbbell upright rows*

(X Reps), 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Decline extensions*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Barbell curls*, 2 x 9-12, 7(5)

Full-range crunches*, 1 x 15(9)

26 X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS

X-traordinary Muscle-Building WORKOUTS 27

Exercise, sets x reps Poundage

Deadlifts*, 2 x 9-12, 7-9