Day 1 (Raw bench training and upper accessory)

Warm Up

1. Cable Internal / External Rotation (2 sets)
2. Cable Rear delt flyes (single arm) (2 sets)
3. Prone Dumbbell Y raises (2 sets)
4. Dumbbell External Rotation (2 sets)
5. Barbell Guillotine Bench Press (3 sets) Up to 60kg for 6’s.

A. Raw Bench Variation – Reverse Grip 3 brd Bench – Trebles up to 190kg

B. Reverse Grip Bench to touches – 3 x 3 reps @ 140-150kg

C. Feet Up Wide Grip Bench (5’s @ 90-120kg)

D. Rolling Dumbbell Tricep Extensions (3 sets of 10 @ 35kg DBs)

E. Dips (2 sets of reps) Bodyweight.

F. Football Bar Inverted Rows (50+ reps total)

G. Lat Pull Downs (Wide grip) 3 sets of 10 @ 80-115kg

H. Seated dumbbell Power Cleans (performed like a cuban press) 2 sets of 13 @ 12kgs.

Day 2 (dynamic lowerbody)

Warm up

1. Single Leg Reverse Hypers
2. Standing Cable Crunches
3. Front foot elevated Split Squats with iso holds

A. Dynamic Squats – Bow BAr Box Squats –  plus choked average and light bands – 8 doubles between 175-210kg

B. Dynamic Deadlifts – Speed Pulls plus elitefts light bands(orange) – 15 x 1 @ 50% bar weight

C. Low Pause Deadlifts (low shin and just below knee for 2 secs) – 6 singles between 220-270kg

D. Dumbbell Bent Over Rows (twin DB) with intentional upper back flexion and extension – 3 sets of 10 with 35kg DBS.

E. Inverse Curls – 3 sets of 10 (reduced weight on counter arm by 5kg)

F. Hanging Knee Raises – 3 sets of 10 reps

G. Leg Press – 3 sets of 15 reps ( close stance, on balls of feet, maximum quad stretch) Added 20kg to last weeks weights.

Day 3 – Equipped Bench Day

Warm Up

1. Cable rear delts
2. Banded Upper back warm ups
3. Tricep Extensions on cables.
4. Pec Flyes with dumbbells.
5. Arching over roller
6. Hip mobility

A. Equipped Bench – after warming up raw to 180kg, I stuck a slingshot on for 5 plates, and then put my Mutiply Redline Bench Shirt on.

Worked up in trebles as worked down the boards. 260 x 3 to 4 brd, 280kg x 3 to 3 brd, 300kg x 3 to 2 brd, 310kg x 1.9 reps to 1 brd (bit uneven on lockout so spotters took before right elbow was totally locked).  Not the cleanest sets I’ve done in the shirt this week so need to tidy things up next week.

B. Dumbbell Bench – 40kg dumbbells for 3 sets of 10 reps

C. Supinated Grip Chin Ups – 3 sets of 5-6 reps

D. EZ bar tricep Extensions (on bench) – 3 sets of 12 reps

E. Hex dumbbell grip carries, Rolling thunder Grip lifts.

Day 4 – Max Effort Lower

Warm up

1. Revers Hypers – 4 x 10-15 reps @ 505 DL 1RM
2. Copenhagen Planks 2 sets of 20 seconds
3. Glute Ham Raises – 4 sets of 6 reps

A. Bow Bar Squats,  (free squat) with 80kg chains (60-65kg active on bar at top) – Up to 350kg bar weight for a single. Need a little better depth, but great to have these weights back on the squat.

B. Back a little tight so skipped my rack pulls this week.

C. Romanian Deadlifts (conventional stance) – 100kg x 10, 130kg 3 x 10 reps

D. Seated cable rows – 4 x 10 reps up to 120kg

E. Thick Grip DB farmers.

Day 5 (dynamic bench)

Warm up

1. banded warm ups
2. Cable warm ups
3. Press ups

A. Reverse Grip Speed Bench – doubled megamini bands (green elitefts) – 10 x 3 @ 50% (95kg)

B. Slingshot Bench (using Iron Forge Gym’s very own ‘BenchBolt’) – 8 x 3 @ 165kg plus doubled megaminis.

C. Single Arm Braced Dumbbell press – 3 x 10 2 25kg DBs ( I am finding these pretty tough to do at this stage of the week, and will be switching these out for an overhead movement which feels better on the shoulders, probably side press with a kettlebell or monster DB. )

D. 6 Point Shoulder Raises (borrowed from the late great John Meadows). 2 sets.

E. EZ bar bicep curls – 3 x 10 reps @ 50kg

F. Arm wrestling cable drills (just experimenting with these for the moment and need a little more research to find some useful drills)

Few things to work on from this week. Squat depth under maximal loads and need to improve my pick up of the weight as losing my brace a little bit. Have given myself a few  drills to try next week to fix this.

On the bench I need to ensure I’m not rushing my set up and make sure I warm up and mobilise more before getting into the bench shirt else the first few sets in the shirt feel horrible and I can’t keep my chest up.

If you’re interested in coaching / programming for your next powerlifting competition (or any other strength related goal) then email info@ironforgegym.co.uk or call 07788268672.