Hardcore Bodybuilding Workout
When talking about hardcore bodybuilding we can either talk to bodybuilders who have been training for years and/or compete on a regular basis, or we can talk to bodybuilders that have trained their whole body three times a week for about six months.
Hardcore bodybuilding is about upping your intensity whether you are just starting or you have been training for 20 years. Increasing strength comes together with increased size of the muscle targeted. When you have been training regular three times a week for 6 months you need to up your intensity to continue getting stronger.
If you like to squat as heavy as you can for only 5 reps or less then you should seriously think about powerlifting. If you want to change the shape of your body, improve your health and get stronger you need to increase the poundage you lift and increase the intensity.
You need to only work in the anaerobic pathway to increase muscle size and the program you work needs to keep this objective. The size of your muscles now is the size they have adapted to from regular training, your objective is to fatigue the targeted muscle group using a weight that will reach the point of failure in 30 to 90 seconds.
Raising the amount of reps when the objective is muscle gain is only going to result in overtraining. Lots of reps for any well-conditioned athlete is simply not enough to achieve increased strength as it will not be recruiting enough muscle to cause a cardio-respiratory effect.
Unless the training done is sports specific this type of volume training will rarely result in muscle gain. When high intensity training techniques are used effectively a rep range of between 6 and 12 reps should get the job done. The types of movements you do and the many different ways you can do them will depend on your training style.
The workout below is done 3 times a week training the whole body. It is advanced because the weight selected is the heaviest you can go for one set using 80% of 1RM, you would fail on the last rep using good form. The point is that this set is only done once for 8 to 20 reps, it is not repeated, the movement is over.
Resting a full 48 hours before the next workout is part of the routine. The high intensity is achieved because you are not resting more than 60 seconds between each movement. It is strongly advised that you use a spotter for the first few months.
If you don't know what your 1RM (one rep maximum) is then ask your gym instructor how to work it out. It is the heaviest weight that you can lift using good form for only one rep. The workout done 3 times a week listed below should be done using 80% 1RM.
The workout is just one set of each movement for 8 to 20 reps depending on the weight you select. But the objective is intensity which is why 80%1RM is recommended so you are shooting for 20 reps. At least two days of rest a week is part of this routine along with cardio on the off days but never after or before the workout below.
ADVANCED HARDCORE STRENGTH TRAINING WORKOUT
1. SQUATS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
2. HACK SQUATS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
3. SEATED CABLE ROWS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
4. LYING T-BAR ROWS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
5. INCLINE D/B PRESS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
6. ARNOLD D/B PRESS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
7. FRONT PLATE RAISES 1 X 8 to 20 reps
8. EZ BAR TRICEP EXTENSION (DECLINE) 1 X 8 to 20 reps
9. CONCENTRATION CURLS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
10. D/B SHRUGS 1 X 8 to 20 reps
11. STANDING CALF RAISES 3 X 25
12. CABLE CRUNCHES 3 X 25
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