Mike's Power Weight Training Program

I am 32 years old, 6 feet 3 inches tall and I weigh about 225.  I own my own business and am married with a 3 year old daughter and a 6 month old son which means that I don't have a lot of free time.  I've used this program for the past year (Jan 2006 to current) and my gains have been as follows: 

- Bench Press started at 335, now is at 415;
- Squat started at 425, now is at 505;
- Deadlift started at 505, now is at 600. 

All of these numbers are raw with NO equipment whatsoever except for a belt on sqauts and deadlifts.  It is pretty simple and consists of a 16 week power cycle that I simply repeat over and over again.  The program starts with 2 weeks of 8-10 reps per set (2 "work" sets per exercise), 2 weeks of 6-8 reps, 5 weeks of 4-6 reps, 3 weeks of triples, 2 weeks of doubles, 1 week of maxing out (on Bench Press, Squat, Deadlift, Military Press and Close Grip Press). 

After completing the cycle, I take 2 weeks "off" where I do chins, dips and pushups supersetted for 8-10 total sets of 10 reps per set on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and then I run 3 miles (timed for speed) on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday followed by heavy ab and calf work.  This provides a nice break and gets me psyched up to start the cycle over again with a target of increasing my PR's in each rep range by 10%, including my 1RM. 

The training split is as follows: 

Mondays. I Squat and follow that up with Barbell Rows, T-Bar Rows, Shrugs and Calf Raises. 

Tuesdays . I do Close Grip Bench Press and follow that up with Dumbbell Bench Press, Incline Dumbbell Presses, Weighted Dips and Chins. 

Wednesdays . I do Military Press and follow that up with Behind the Neck Presses, Dumbbell Shoulder Presses, Side Laterals and Barbell Curls. 

Thursdays . I do Deadlifts and follow that up with Barbell Rows, T-Bar Rows, Shrugs and Calf Raises. 

Fridays . I do Bench Press and follow that up with Incline Bench Presses, Decline Bench Presses, Weighted Dips and Chins. 

I get up early Saturday morning and run 3 miles (timed for speed) and then rest on Sundays.  If I feel overly tired, I take a day off and resume the program as if no day had been missed. 

As far as diet goes, I eat 6-8 times per day with each meal consisting of 50g of protein, 30-50g of complex carbs (no carbs after 7pm) and one piece of fruit or vegetable (vegetables only after 7pm).  The only supplements that I use are a daily multivitamin/multimineral, whey protein powder, creatine and glutamine, all of which I buy wholesale which makes this "stack" very affordable.  I used to use a fat burner to give me extra energy for my workouts, but I have found that I get a better effect simply by drinking a cup of coffee or green tea about 15-20 minutes before heading to the gym. 

This program is simple, cost-effective and can be repeated over and over without getting stale as it's based around progressive resistance and the rep ranges are always changing.  You could also extend the chins, dips, pushups and running routine that comes in between power cycles as I've found it GREAT for cutting up, especially if I've put on a little too much bodyfat during the heavy cycle.  The diet is simple, easy to follow and cost-effective.  I plan on continuing on with this program and hope to be at the following 1RM's by the December of 2007 (all RAW lifts):  Bench Press = 500; Squat =  600; Deadlift = 700.  We'll see!  Thanks for your time. 

Mike

For illustrations and descriptions of the weight training exercises, please go to the following page:

Weight lifting exercises