You’ve mastered the basics and have cycled through several programs, but yet again, you’re looking for something “new” to see how far you can push your body’s physique. For this basics+science plan from rising fitness star Ian Canrobert (@CanrobertFitness), you’ll be incorporating the compound movements you’re already familiar with, but with a dedicated “focus” for each exercise. As what would be expected from a basics program, compound lifts will be the meat and potatoes of your training and will also be supplemented with specific accessory work.
The “new factor” you’ve been looking for will be the exercise “focus”. Each of the focused-approaches to your lifts will help you grow in multiple departments including power, strength, muscle hypertrophy, muscle endurance, stability, mobility, and flexibility.
HOW IT WORKS
This program “focuses” consists of mechanical tension, muscle damage, metabolic stress, accommodating resistance, occlusion training, and intra-set stretching. Here is a cheat sheet:
Mechanical tension (MT): big lifts, heavy weight, low reps.
Muscle damage (MD): various lifts, slow-controlled repetitions for placing the muscle under maximum time under tension.
Metabolic stress (MS): various lifts, quick repetitions for maximum blood flow.
Accommodating resistance (AR): use of bands or chains to keep resistance on the muscle throughout the range of motion.
Occlusion training (OT): also known as blood-flow restriction to increase pumps and growth
Intra-set stretching (ISS): statically holding an exercise in the finished position to improve hypertrophy and mobility.
*Rate of perceived exertion (RPE): how you physically feel will be how you determine how much weight to use.
The plan is structured into a five day split broken down into a push, pull, shoulders, legs, and a weakness/supplemental day in between shoulders and legs). The weakness/supplemental day may range from foam rolling and myofascial release to mobility work to a few sets of a lagging body part of your choice.
DIRECTIONS
For the first two weeks you may slightly increase your weight used on lifts, however, the focus should primarily be on adapting to this as a new training plan. In the third week will you may “overreach”, which means increasing the weight you use and volume of sets you perform. In the fourth week, it’s advised that you come back down to a moderate weight and volume to regain mental and physical traction so that your performance won’t suffer in the coming weeks. Repeat this cycle over a long-term period of 14-22 weeks.
This program will last for a suggested 14-22 weeks (allow the first two weeks for finding a groove that works best).
Rate of Perceived Exertion Cheat Sheet (RPE)
10 – Very energetic – Hard/Heavy
8 – Good energy – Heavy/Heavy
6 – Moderate
5 – Moderate
4 – Moderate
2 – Fairly tired – Easy/Light
0 – Exhausted – Easy/Light
THE WORKOUTS
Day 1: Chest/triceps
| Focus | Exercise | Sets x Reps | Goal Weight | Rest |
| MT | Flat barbell bench press | 4×6 | RPE 9 | 2-3 minutes |
| MD, AR | Flat barbell bench press + chains | 4×8-12 | RPE 6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD, ISS | Incline DB press | 4×8-12 | RPE 7 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, ISS | Incline DB fly | 4×15 | RPE 4 | 30sec-1min |
| MD | Incline wide/narrow pushups | 4x AMRAP | RPE 4 | 1-2 minutes |
| MT | Cable straight bar press downs | 4×6-8 | RPE 7-8 | 2-3 minutes |
| MD, ISS | Incline DB skullcrusher | 4×10-12 | RPE 6-7 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, OT | Cable rope tricep extensions | 4×15-20 | RPE 3-4 | 30sec-1min |
Day 2: Back/biceps
| Focus | Exercise | Sets x Reps | Goal Weight | Rest |
| MT, AR | Deadlift | 4×6 | RPE 9 | 3 minutes |
| MS | Single arm DB row | 4×8-12 | RPE 7 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD | T-bar row | 4×12-15 | RPE 5-6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, ISS | Lying incline bench single arm cable pulldown | 4×10-12 | RPE 4 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS | Cable rope pull through | 4×15-20 | RPE 3-4 | 30sec-1min |
| MT | Wide grip bar curls | 4×6-8 | RPE 7-8 | 2-3 minutes |
| MD | DB hammer curls | 4×8-12 | RPE 6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, OT | Close grip cable straight bar curls | 4×15-20 | RPE 3-4 | 30sec-1minute |
Day 3: Shoulders/abs
| Focus | Exercise | Sets x Reps | Goal Weight | Rest |
| MT | Seated DB military press | 4×6-8 | RPE 8-9 | 2-3 minutes |
| MS | Standing BB overhead press | 4×12-15 | RPE 4-5 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD | Bent over isolated DB lateral raises | 4×8-12 each side | RPE 6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD | Bent over DB posterior flies | 4×8-12 | RPE 6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, ISS | Cable rope posterior face pull | 4×15-20 | RPE 3-4 | 30sec-1min |
| MT | Side cable crunches | 4×8-10 each side | RPE 7-8 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD | Decline bench weighted side crunches | 4×10-12 | RPE 6 | 1 minute |
| MS | Seated bench DB jack knives | 4×15-20 | RPE 4-5 | 30sec-1min |
Day 4: Weakness – FREE DAY
Day 5: Quads/calves (alternate with ham week)
| Focus | Exercise | Sets x Reps | Goal Weight | Rest |
| MT, AR | High/low bar barbell back squat | 4×6 | RPE 9 | 2-3 minutes |
| MD, OT | DB split squat (each side) | 4×8-12 | RPE 7 | 1-2 minutes |
| MD, ISS | DB goblet squat | 4×10-12 | RPE 6-7 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS | Lunge | 4×15-20 | RPE 4-5 | 1 minute |
| MS | Moon jump lunge | 3x 30 sec | RPE 4-5 | 30sec-1min |
| MS, ISS | Seated calve raises (machine or w/ barbell) | 5×15-20 | RPE 4-5 | 30sec-1min |
| MD, ISS | Standing calve raises | 5×8-12 | RPE 6-7 | 1-2 minutes |
Day 5: Hams/calves (alternate with quad week)
| Focus | Exercise | Sets x Reps | Goal Weight | Rest |
| MD, AR | Barbell Romanian deadlift + chains | 4×8-12 | RPE 7-8 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS | Barbell Romanian deadlift on box | 4×12-15 | RPE 4-5 | 1 minute |
| MD, ISS | Lying DB hamstring curl | 4×8-12 | RPE 5-6 | 1-2 minutes |
| MS, OT | Banded prone hamstring curls | 4×15-20 | RPE 3-4 | 30sec-1min |
| MS, ISS | Standing calve raises | 5×12-15 | RPE 4-5 | 30sec-1min |
| MD, ISS | Seated calve raises | 5×20-25 | RPE 6-7 | 1-2 minutes |