Thursday 1 January 2009

Compressed Volume, Upper Body Focus

The idea of this circuit is to complete a high volume workout in a short period of time by cycling through the sets, thereby giving the different muscle groups a chance to rest. It's quite demanding, but great for muscular conditioning and satisfying the need (if like me you still have it) to just throw some iron around and behave like a bodybuilder. The difference is, you don't stand around talking crap for a couple of minutes between sets, so you can still keep the workout short and intense, as it should be.

10 Dumbbell Bench Press
10 Single-Arm Dumbbell Bent-Over Rows
10 Single-Arm Dumbbell Snatch
An Ab exercise you can do 10 - 15 aggressive reps on - e.g. Hanging Leg Raise, Russian Twists

Repeat for 5 rounds as many as you want. Rest for 30 - 60 seconds between rounds.

It's important to pick weights that are not too ambitious. It's tempting to go for something close to your 3 x 10 weight - but bear in mind that when you do 3 x 10 you are resting between sets, not doing some other exercise! It soon takes its toll. I would suggest about 80% of your regular 3 x 10 weight.

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