Reactive Pump™  Training

1-1.25 - Leg Curl

Do 2-4 warm up sets to get started. This week we're going to do 1.25's, or 1-¼ reps, which are a great way to add extra tension and pump in your hams. You lower the weight, bring it up 4-6 inches (like a partial rep), and then go back down to the bottom before going all the way up for 1 rep. Do 4 sets of 10 like this. Keep your form perfect – hips on the pad, and all reps nice and smooth with no jerking.

2 - Chain Squat

Pick any bar – a Safety Squat bar, Spider bar, Cambered bar, regular bar, Buffalo bar, etc. – and start hitting squats for sets of 6. Remember, look for that "switch" when you feel the weight all of a sudden get lighter out of the bottom, and your explosiveness increases. Always keep that in mind when doing these.

We aren't doing any extended sets this week – the focus is strictly on explosiveness. As much as I love the challenge sets, you can't do them every week.

Do the sets of 6 as a warm up, and then do sets of 4 reps as your work sets. Once "turned on," go up in weight by just adding chains, stopping once you lose explosiveness and the reps turn into grinders.

To show you what I did on these, see below:

3 - Leg Press

The goal here is to develop a ton of mechanical tension, so all sets will be performed with a 3-second descent. Do a couple of low-rep sets to get up to your working weight. Once you find it, do sets of 8 with 3-second descents. Drive up hard out of the bottom – don't worry about tempo, just drive the weight up with force. Don't lock out either; stop at 3/4 lockout. Use the foot placement that allows you to be at your absolute strongest. If you hit 8 reps, go up 25 or 45 pounds per side. Keep going until you just miss 8 reps. We'll call this 4 sets.

4 - Bulgarian Split Squat

These might look easy, but they're going to scorch your thighs. These are also known as rear-foot elevated split squats. Hold onto a pole – or something similar – in front of you for balance. Drop down into the reps, keeping your shins perpendicular to the floor. Ddon't let your shins shift too far forward. Avoid coming up all the way – only come up about 4/5 of the way to keep tension high. Do 15 reps per leg. Take your time in between sets. Do 3 sets of 15 per leg.

Stretches – After each set of split squats, stretch your quads intensely for 30 seconds!

5 - Chain Barbell Stiff-Legged Deadlift

You can use 45-pound plates on these this week instead of 25s, as we aren't going for a massive stretch. This week, the goal is to work the top of the movement harder with the chains. Drape 4 chains over the bar to start, and gradually add plates. Do sets of 8 reps and come up all the way, flexing your glutes to take full advantage of the chain resistance. You should feel your glutes firing hard at the midway point in the exercise. Start counting sets when they start getting tough (meaning you're at about 90% exertion – only a couple reps left in the tank). The last set, however, should be to failure. We'll call this 3 sets.

1 - Banded Hammer Press

This is the single best movement I've found for pec contraction. If you normally have trouble feeling your pecs, this is your answer – it gets a ton of blood flowing in there. If you're creative enough, you can usually "band" most pressing machines, but there's something about the arc of the press on a Hammer press that really works well. Regardless, any machine with bands will force your pecs to contract hard at or near the lockout.

Keeping your reps at 6, do a few warm-ups and then do 4 sets of 6 reps. Drive to lockout and flex. Don't let your elbows travel past 90 degrees if you're using a flat or decline hammer press, as it's not good for shoulder health. Stop the reps at 45 degrees and ram the weight up, flexing against the bands.

Note: Use one red Pro-mini band per side.

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2 - Reverse Band Bench Press

One more time with these! You've now done these two weeks in a row and you've found your groove. Now it's time to break a record. I still want sets of 5 reps, but I want you to push yourself to do something you haven't done before. See if you can beat what you did last week - you'd better or else!

Note: Use the thick orange bands from EliteFTS on these. They're called "light" bands.

3 - Incline Dumbbell Press

The first few movements have been geared more towards the middle and end of your ROM. On these, you'll do the opposite. I want you to really focus on getting a good stretch at the bottom, and only driving up to ¾ of lockout before heading right back down. The stretch and tension will feel awesome. Do 2 sets of 8 reps in this fashion, and then I want a third set done as a drop set. Do your 8 reps, then drop the weight and do 8 more.

4 - Dip

Time to max out the pump. You're going to do dips with your elbows flaring out and chin tucked into your chest as you come down. Work the stretch and only come up halfway. Go balls out to failure. Do this 2 times.

Stretches – In between each set of dips, do a chest stretch for 30 seconds. I like to sit on a bench, have a partner put their knee in my back, straighten my arms, and have them pull back (like making a wish), until I feel a searing burn in my chest, and then hold it for 15 seconds.

5 - Dumbbell Bent-Over Lateral

Let's start with rear delts. Use a full range of motion and do 4 sets of 15 reps. It won't take much weight. Remember to relax your traps and back in order to just use your rear delts.

6 - Heavy Side Lateral Partial

Grab 2 fairly heavy dumbbells and let your arms hang straight down at your sides. Tilt your head back, relax your traps, and just swing the weight 4 to 6 inches. Resist the urge to shrug and cheat. Just keep the weight moving. Do 3 sets of 25 reps. Fight the intense burn. Be tough mentally.

7 - Cage Press

Let's do another session where you tilt your head forward as you drive up to engage the traps while you crush your delts. So, as you explode the weight up, lean your head and upper body forward and flex your traps in the locked out position. You have to be leaning forward for this to work correctly. Try a few light sets to get into the groove before you start. Do 4 sets of 5 reps with a weight you can do with perfect form.

1 - Meadows Row

Use 25-pound plates to allow for a better stretch at the bottom of the movement. Remember to keep your body slightly upright (not hunched right over to 90 degrees). Let your arm hang down at the bottom -- think about reaching down while keeping your torso stable. The more ROM, the better for your lats. Do 4 sets of 8 reps.

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2 - Smith Machine Row

Do these explosively; don't try to do these slow and smooth or your arms and delts will take over. Keep your back tight, wear a belt, and remember to ram your elbows up. If you do this right, you'll feel it all over your back, not just in one area. Drive the weight up hard and think 'elbows' – your arms are just attachments! Do 4 sets of 6 reps.

3 - Dumbbell Pullover

Remember to use the 'lying on the bench' style, as opposed to lying across the bench. Also, remember to not force the stretch. Take your time lowering the weight to maintain tension on your upper lats and serratus. Bring the dumbbell to the top of your forehead – if you bring it up all the way to above the chest you'll lose valuable lat tension. Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

4 - Barbell Shrug

On each rep, pause and flex at the top for 2 seconds. Do 3 sets of 10 reps. Do your best to keep your arms as straight as you can. They'll bend a little, just do your best so that your traps are pulling the weight up and not your arms.

5 - Banded Hyperextension

Get ready for an unbelievable lower back/spinal erector pump. Let's do 3 sets of these this week – the extra set will really make a difference. I want you to use a band while doing hyperextensions. Loop one end of the band around the machine at the bottom and hold the other end behind your head, or you can hold it out in front against your chest. Do 2 sets to failure. You may end up doing 10 reps, or you may end up doing 40 reps – it all depends on how strong your lower back is.

Aside from providing a powerful pump, these are also incredible for strengthening the lower back. As you come up, the band tension will make it harder. You'll probably feel your glutes and hams working hard too, and that's okay. There's no way for your lower back to not be working hard.

1 - Machine Press

After a few warm up sets, do 4 sets of 12 reps using a full range of motion. Use a neutral grip where your palms face each other. Work the stretch at the bottom and get a good, hard, 1-second flex. When you get to the deepest point, make sure your sternum is "lifted," and that you're fully arched. You'll feel an awesome stretch right in the middle of your chest on the sternal fibers when you do this right. Make sure you flex for 1 second in the contracted position as well. Drive blood in there! Use the same weight for each set unless you drop 4 or more reps from the previous set (lighten it some if you do). If you lose a rep or two, that's okay. Execute these perfectly.

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2A/B - Pec Minor Dip / Dumbbell Bent-Over Side Lateral

This is the same as last week except we're going to try to add a little extra resistance on the way down. If you're able to get 10 good reps, I want you to attach a little weight to yourself using a dip belt. It doesn't have to be much weight – a 25-pound plate is plenty. Focus on keeping your arms straight and flexing your pecs! We're going to superset these with a rear delt exercise.

Supersetted with dumbbell bent-over side laterals:

Do sets of 20. Remember to not use your traps or back, just hinge off your shoulder joints and flex your rear delts. It won't take much weight.

3A/B - Dumbbell Hex Press / Face pull with a Band

Lie on a flat bench and using a neutral grip (palms facing each other), press up two hex dumbbells while you simultaneously push them together. They need to stay in contact with each other the whole set. Think of it this way: try to smash them together. Lower the dumbbells to your chest, and then drive up and flex hard. Smashing the dumbbells together is what provides the magic in this exercise. The neutral grip also helps you avoid any extra shoulder stress on this day. Do 10 hard reps. The weight you use will be about 50% of what you would normally do for a 10-rep set. You're going to superset these with face pulls.

Supersetted with face pulls with a band:

Grab a micro-mini band and pull your hands out to the side with straight arms. Once your arms are straight out to the side, flex your rear delts and hold it for a second. Do 10 reps in this manner.

4A/B - 6 Way / Over and Back with a Band

Ready to put the finishing touches on your delts? Grab two light dumbbells and sit down. Take the dumbbells out to the side (a side lateral) and then horizontally bring them together in front of you. They should be at about chest level. Now raise them straight over your head using your anterior delts. You'll feel a massive flex in your front delt. Now lower them back to chest level, and then swivel them back out to the side lateral position, and finally drop them back down to your side. That's one rep. Do 3 sets of 10. Superset these with over and backs.

Supersetted with over and backs with a band:

You're going to go over and back 20 times each set like we did previously. I expect your delts to be in a pumped and swollen state like never before!

1A/B - Rope Pushdown / Seated Dumbbell Curl

This week we're going to do pushdowns with a rope just for variety. Do as many warm ups as you need. Don't worry about flexing at the bottom; I just want continuous blood pumping tension up and down. Do sets of 12 reps.

Superset with seated dumbbell curl:

Keep your palms up the entire time. Do 4 reps on one side and then 4 on the other and then repeat for a total of 8 reps on each arm per set. Flex at the top for a split second. Drive blood in there!

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2A/B - Barbell Curl / Cable Extension

Do 8 reps of barbell curls. Don't lower the weight all the way down; find that sweet spot range of motion and squeeze the bar hard throughout the set to activate the biceps as much as possible.

Superset with cable extension:

These extensions are done standing and facing away from the cable station and letting the cable come back over your head for a nice stretch. Do 10 reps, and then pump out 5 partials in the fully stretched (not contracted) position.

3A/B - Close Grip Push-Up / Reverse Curl

For the push-ups, place your hands right at shoulder width and tuck your elbows in. Come down slow and let your torso touch the ground (with a straight back) and then drive up to lockout, focusing on flexing the long/inner head of the triceps. Do as many reps as you can. If you do at least 15 reps on the first set, throw a chain or two across your back.

Superset with reverse curl:

Bring the bar up to just past 45 degrees. Pump these out! Let your arms straighten out completely at the bottom. Squeeze the bar hard throughout the set. Do sets of 15 reps.

4A/B - Standing Calf Raise / Dorsiflexion

We're going heavy this week. Do sets of 8 reps working up in weight and just keep going up in small increments until you've done 8 quality sets of 8 reps. On the last 2 sets, do 10 additional partials out of the stretched position.

Superset with dorsiflexion:

After each set of calves, I want you to stand up and simply dorsiflex your foot repeatedly to train the anterior tibialis. Do them until your tibialis goes numb. This usually happen between 30-50 reps.