Block Training: Brief and Brutal Workouts

[01dragonslayer]

Rest-pause training. It's one of my favorite ways to build muscle.

Forget normal sets and reps. Instead, think brutality. Intensity. Limited rest. Heart-racing, pump-inducing madness.

Back in the day I created a lifting style called Bulldozer training. It featured a specific number of sets for each exercise, with a defined rest period in between each effort. Rest periods were typically 30 seconds. This allowed you to catch your breath, but didn't allow a muscle to fully recover.

This was the point.

Tax a muscle. Catch your breath for a brief moment. Hammer that muscle again (and again, and again), never fully allowing it to recover.

This style of training was highly effective. In 2008 I ran it for a complete year and had some of the best muscle building results of my 30 year lifting career. Workouts were typically 45 to 50 minutes in length, but they were non-stop, action-packed brawls.

Over the years many of you have tried Bulldozer training. Gains were made. Testimonials poured in. And as a result, people wanted more. More rest-pause workout splits. More rest-pause training options. More gains.

So this weekend I was sitting around analyzing my goals for the rest of 2016. I needed to pare down my time in the gym, while also allowing time for cardio. So I said to myself:
Self! This is a good time to break out rest-pause training.

Building Muscle Using Block Training​

OK, so what exactly is rest-pause training?
Rest-pause training is a muscle building approach that restricts rest in between sets, maximizing time in the gym and the bodybuilding process by never allowing a muscle to fully recover.
Bulldozer training is effective. But after having run it for a straight year I wanted to try something new. Some more intense. Something a bit different and a bit more insane.

Enter block training.

Block training tosses out the concept of sets. It also tosses out defined rest periods. So with no fixed number of sets, and no monitoring of rest in between sets, I know what you're thinking... How the heck does it work.

Well before you click away, understand that block training is anything but complicated. It's simple. Deviously simple.

You pick a weight. You pick a block of time. You hammer our as many reps as possible during this time frame, resting only briefly between efforts. This pattern of "sets" and limited rest is repeated until the block of time expires.

Are are some of the program nuts and bolts:

• Exercise blocks. Exercise block periods are generally 3 or 5 minutes.
• Weight. Start with a weight that you could normally perform 15 reps with.
• Rep goal. This if your goal for each block of time. If you reach this level (or more), add a small amount of weight the next time you perform this exercise. Progressive overload is king. If you aren't pushing for progress you are handicapping your muscle gains.
• Rest. Rest only briefly, and as needed, while in the middle of an exercise block. Catch your breath, gather your wits, and attack.

Remember that sets and rest periods do not matter. Reps do. Attack the weight and try to perform as many reps as possible during the exercise block. Rest as needed, only long enough to catch your breath and gather your wits.

Included in this feature are the following splits:

• 3 or 4 day Upper/Lower Split
• 3 Day Split
• 4 Day Split

3 or 4 day Upper/Lower Block Training Split​

This block training split features 4 workouts. They can either be performed as part of a 4 day upper lower split, or cycled as part of a 3 day upper/lower split.

4 day split sample schedule:

• Day 1 - Upper A
• Day 2 - Lower A
• Day 3 - Off
• Day 4 - Upper B
• Day 5 - Lower B
• Day 6 - Off
• Day 7 - Off

3 day split sample schedule:

• Day 1 - Upper A
• Day 2 - Off
• Day 3 - Lower A
• Day 4 - Off
• Day 5 - Upper B
• Day 6 - Off
• Day 7 - Off
• Day 8 - Lower B
• Day 9 - Off
• Day 10 - Upper A
• Day 11 - Off
• Day 12 - Lower A
• Day 13 - Off
• Day 14 - Off
• Continue cycling through A and B workouts.

Upper a
Upper/Lower Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Bench Press	4 minutes	40
Lat Pull Down	4 minutes	40
Seated Overhead Dumbbell Press	4 minutes	40
Push Ups	2 minutes	AMAP
Seated Cable Rows	2 minutes	30
Side Laterals	2 minutes	30
Cable Triceps Extensions	4 minutes	40
Seated Dumbbell Curls	4 minutes	40

Upper B
Upper/Lower Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press	4 minutes	40
Pendlay Rows	4 minutes	40
Upright Rows	4 minutes	40
Low Cable Crossovers	2 minutes	30
Machine Rows	2 minutes	30
Push Press	2 minutes	25
Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extensions	4 minutes	40
EZ Bar Curls	4 minutes	40

Lower a
Upper/Lower Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Squats	4 minutes	40
Leg Curls	4 minutes	50
Leg Extensions	3 minutes	40
Reverse Lunges	3 minutes	AMAP
Seated Calf Raises	4 minutes	50
Plank	4 minutes	AMAP

Lower B
Upper/Lower Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Leg Press	4 minutes	50
Dumbbell Romanian Deadlifts	4 minutes	40
High Box Step Ups	3 minutes	AMAP
Good Mornings	3 minutes	30
Standing Calf Raises	4 minutes	50
Ab Wheel Roll Outs	4 minutes	AMAP

​

3 Day Block Training Split​

3 day split sample schedule:

• Day 1 - Chest and Arms
• Day 2 - Off
• Day 3 - Quads and Shoulders
• Day 4 - Off
• Day 5 - Back, Hamstrings, Calves and Abs
• Day 6 - Off
• Day 7 - Off

Chest and Arms
3 Day Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Bench Press	5 minutes	50
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press	3 minutes	30
Machine Chest Press	2 minutes	30
Push Ups	2 minutes	AMAP
EZ Bar Curls	3 minutes	30
Cable Triceps Extensions	3 minutes	30
Hammer Curls	3 minutes	30
Close Grip Bench Press	3 minutes	30

Quads and Shoulders
3 Day Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Squats	5 minutes	50
Seated Overhead Dumbbell Press	5 minutes	50
Leg Press	3 minutes	40
Upright Rows	3 minutes	35
Leg Extensions	3 minutes	40
Side Laterals	3 minutes	35
High Box Step Ups	2 minutes	AMAP
Face Pulls	2 minutes	25

Back, Hamstrings, Calves and Abs
3 Day Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Deadlifts	5 minutes	30
Dumbbell Stiff Leg Deadlifts	5 minutes	50
Pendlay Rows	3 minutes	35
Leg Curls	3 minutes	40
Seated Cable Rows	3 minutes	35
Seated Calf Raise	3 minutes	40
Lat Pull Downs	2 minutes	25
Ab Wheel Roll Outs	2 minutes	AMAP

4 Day Block Training Split​

4 day split sample schedule:

• Day 1 - Chest and Triceps
• Day 2 - Back and Biceps
• Day 3 - Off
• Day 4 - Shoulders, Traps and Abs
• Day 5 - Quads, Hamstrings and Calves
• Day 6 - Off
• Day 7 - Off

Chest and Triceps
4 Day Split
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Bench Press	5 minutes	50
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press	3 minutes	30
Machine Chest Press	3 minutes	35
Low Cable Crossovers	3 minutes	35
Close Grip Bench Press	3 minutes	30
Cable Triceps Extensions	3 minutes	35
Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extensions	3 minutes	35

Back and Biceps
4 DAY SPLIT
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Deadlifts	5 minutes	30
Pendlay Rows	3 minutes	30
Lat Pull Downs	3 minutes	35
Seated Cable Rows	3 minutes	35
EZ Bar Curls	3 minutes	30
Seated Dumbbell Curls	3 minutes	30
Rope Cable Curls	3 minutes	35

Shoulders, Traps and Abs
4 DAY SPLIT
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Push Press	5 minutes	50
Seated Overhead Dumbbell Press	3 minutes	30
Upright Row	3 minutes	35
Side Laterals	3 minutes	35
Face Pulls	3 minutes	35
Power Shrugs	3 minutes	40
Ab Wheel Roll Outs	3 minutes	AMAP

Quads, Hamstrings and Calves
4 DAY SPLIT
Exercise	Block	Rep Goal
Squats	5 minutes	50
Leg Press	3 minutes	40
Leg Extensions	3 minutes	40
High Box Step Ups	3 minutes	AMAP
Dumbbell Stiff Leg Deadlifts	3 minutes	30
Leg Curls	3 minutes	40
Seated Calf Raise	3 minutes	40