Intense Arms Workout
- Biceps & Triceps Emphasis -
WORKOUT SUMMARY (+ CLICK TO ENLARGE)
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| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overcoming Isometric Curl and Squat | #1,#2,#3 | 2 | 6 per side | 60" | 7 | 2" + 2-3" at top |
Option #1
Option #2
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OPTION #1
Besides creating enormous mechanical tension & metabolic stress on the biceps - a potent combo for muscle growth, these overcoming isometric bicep curls from a 90 deg eccentric isometric squat help reinforce proper squat form. That’s because as you pull into the pins with your biceps you’re simultaneously creating co-contraction in the hamstrings & hip flexors to help pull you down almost as if you’re using the pins to help pull you into your squat.
This co-contraction is a critical yet often neglected component of movement. If you go past 90 not only do you place more tension on joints & less on muscles but you’re producing less co-contraction as the antagonist muscles experience active insufficiency meaning you’re compromising recruitment patterns.
Notice my feet are straight as this represents optimal foot alignment & ensures you’re neither externally or internally rotating your hips. The only time we would want to produce significant internal & external rotation of the hips is if we have lateral force vectors we’re dealing with. Otherwise it’s a mismatch of force vectors.
Remember, feet & hips are connected, whatever one does the other matches. If hips externally rotate (which again is a force vector mismatch & wasted energy) then feet will want to rotate as well. Keep your hips & feet in neutral unless there are lateral forces or you insist on squatting below the optimal 90 point in which case you’ll need to become efficient at performing dysfunctional squats.
In other words in this scenario you will need to externally rotate the feet & hips in order to collapse & passively sit in the bottom of a squat position that mimics a 3rd world squat. Unfortunately the 3rd world squat is functional for chilling, sitting, & bowel movements, not for producing or absorbing force. But if you insist on using this “taking a crap” position in the weight room that was never intended for high force scenarios then yes I recommend externally rotating the feet & hips.
OPTION #2
This first exercise wakes up the entire body, spcifically blasting the biceps, triceps, lats, and rear deltoids, not to mention the entire musculature of the core. Essentially you’re performing a renegade row/single arm plank position while simultaneously performing concentration curls on one end and a long lever row tricep kickback commination on the other end.
Besides blasting just about every muscle from your hips up these are also very metabolically exhausting and physically fatiguing making them a great move to throw in at multiple phases of the workout particularly at the end as a finisher. Just remember to keep the core hollowed out and hips tall rather than allowing them to sag. Additionally try to keep the torso as square to the floor as possible without excessive twisting or tilting.
Lastly, focus on holding each of the contracted positions for each phase of the movement. This exercise relies heavily on mechanical tension rather than eccentric muscle damage therefor the ability to hold the contracted position and squeeze the daylights out of the targeted musculature is paramount to optimizing the effectiveness of this exercise.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eccentric Isometric Ring Dips with Contralateral Knee Drive | #1,#2,#3 | 3 | 6 (3 per side) | 60-90" | 8-9 | 2-3" |
Option #1
Option #2
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Although dips are a great mass builder, most folks end up performing them with very little core activation, collapsed shoulders, and poor spinal rigidity. This often contributes to dips that look very sloppy while also producing joint angles that are significantly past 90 degrees. Simply put, the way most folks perform dips, you could argue that they would be better off not performing them at all at least in terms of optimizing muscle function, shoulder health, and overall posture. And while they may still gain some strength and size from them, dips that are performing with proper technique, 90 degree joint angles, and high levels of full body tension will produce exponentially greater muscle growth and strength.
With that said, one of the best ways to increase full body tension, core activation, and posture alignment is by performing dips with contralateral hip activation. Throw in the mini band as my awesome client Leslie Petch does here and you’ve now just insured maximal full body activation from head to toe due to the nature of the posterior and anterior oblique slings.
Simply put, the harder the hips drive into their contralateral hip flexion and hip extension positions, the greater the core as the core musculature is used to transmit from across the lower and upper extremities. Additionally, due to nature of these slings, this setup produces even greater pectoral and lat recruitment. That’s because the harder the hips drive into their positions the greater the recruitment up the kinetic chain. This increased lat activation also helps to insure the shoulders don’t move excessively into protraction and elevation – 2 very common problems during dips that typically contributes to collapsing at the bottom and going below 90 degrees. This setup helps remedy that as it’s literally impossible to go past 90 degrees if you maintain the contralateral hip positions with maximal full body tension. To go deeper you would have to sacrifice these important kinetic elements.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eccentric Dumbbell Cheat Curls | #1,#2,#3 | 3 | 4-6 | 2-3 minutes | 8-10 | 3" |
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When it comes to producing functional mass & strength, it’s difficult to beat eccentric overload. That’ s because it takes advantage of all 3 key known mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy including mechanical tension, muscle damage, & metabolic stress.
Here Marcelis is using a cheat curl by incorporating his hips & legs into the concentric phase allowing him to handle supramaximal loading (greater than his 1RM) for the eccentric phase. In other words the heaviest he might use for curls would be 65 lb dumbbells however this method allowed him to handle 75’s for the eccentric phase of the reps thereby maximizing the overload effect & ultimately inducing the greatest levels of functional strength & hypertrophy.
If I had to give one critique I would recommend using more hip drive on the concentric to avoid the use of so much lumbar & low back extension to drive the weight up. This improved throughout the set as he began to rely more on his hips & less on his back.
Due to intensity of eccentric overload, I recommend incorporating several sets of 3-5 reps once ever 7-15 days as anymore can produce excessive muscle damage & neural fatigue making it difficult to recover from training. In fact, eccentric overload has actually been shown to produce muscle atrophy when used excessively simply because the tissues can become over-damaged and over-stressed. Read more about eccentric overload on my website as I have numerous articles on this topic.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Underhand Inverted Row on Foam Roller | #4 & #5 | 2 | 8 | 60" | 7-8 | 2" |
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NOTE: Perform this exercise with an underhand grip even though the video illustrates it with an overhand grip.
When it comes to building upper back strength and improving postural alignment, inverted rows are tough to beat. While there are numerous variations you can perform many of which I’ve highlighted in past articles and posts, one that I’ve recently found to be incredibly effective is the foam roller version. Simply place the back of your ankles/heels on the foam roller and perform inverted rows. It may look a bit unusual but allow me to explain with 4 key points why this is perhaps the single most natural feeling inverted row variation I’ve ever used.
1. OPTIMIZES SHOULDER MECHANICS
When it comes to maximizing the effectiveness of any row including inverted rows, one of the keys is optimizing natural scapulohumeral rhythm and glenohumeral joint positioning. During a row, the stretched position, when the arms are fully extended, should involve a slight amount of shoulder elevation and protraction to allow full eccentric elongation of the upper back as well as natural movement of the scapula and shoulder blades. Keep in mind this is very subtle as most coaches and lifters overdo this shoulder protraction and elevation to the point that the shoulders round up and over which is never ideal.
During the concentric phase the opposite should occur, as the shoulders should move into retraction and depression. Again this represents the opposite phase of the movement for maximizing natural scapulohumeral rhythm. However, during many rows including inverted rows the arms and shoulder can have a tendency to feel stuck into position particularly if the individual does not have a solid muscle mind connection and understand how to adjust and position their body on each phase of the movement.
This is where the foam roller comes in. Placing the feet on the foam roller allows the body to roll back and forth during each phase of the row thereby optimizing scapulohumeral rhythm and glenohumeral joint positioning. That’s because as you pull into the contracted/concentric phase of the row your body will gradually roll up towards the shoulders allowing more natural and automatic retraction and shoulder depression. In contrast when the lifter returns into the eccentric phase, the body rolls down slightly towards the feet thereby promoting natural levels of shoulder elevation and protraction ultimately producing the perfect amount of stretch and elongation in the upper back without over-stretching (i.e. shoulder rounding) or losing optimal spinal alignment. All of this occurs very naturally without the lifter having to force either phase or position.
2. ALLOWS MORE NATURAL BODY POSITIONING
The foam roller also provides another unique feature when performing inverted rows. It actually allows the lifter to more easily lock their elbows and shoulders into the proper position. Here’s why.
When performing standard barbell inverted rows with the feet on the ground or on the bench, the feet are very fixed into their position and won’t move significantly unless the lifter deliberately makes an adjustment. This may seem like it would make the movement more conducive for locking into the appropriate position however the opposite is true.
When the lifter performs a row or any upper body pull or pushing motion, the arms and hands need to move to a very precise position relative to the rest of their torso. Positioning the feet too far away from the bar, resulting in the hands and the bar being positioned too high (closer to the person's neck), can cause the elbows to flare and shoulders to elevate. In contrast, positioning the feet too close to the bar, resulting in the arms being positioned too low (closer to their stomach), can cause the shoulders to internally rotate as the shoulder joint will be crowded.
In essence, if the lifter is not in a perfect position he or she will have to continually adjust his or her feet until the hands and bar lock into the precise position that allows optimal and natural scapulohumeral rhythm and optimal osteokinematics of the glenohumeral joint. And yes this perfectly locked-in position is very precise for each lifter and deviating even slightly can result in greater strain to the surrounding joints and significantly less tension to the targeted musculature. So what are the implications here?
The foam roller allows the lifter’s feet to roll and move with each repetition adjusting perfectly to the precise location needed to dial in the upper body joint segments for optimal pulling mechanics. Although the foam roller does in fact make the lift more strenuous and challenging in terms of stress to the targeted musculature, core, and stabilizers, most lifters will find it significantly easier on their joints due to the continually adjusting nature of the roller that allows them to lock in their ideal body mechanics.
3. PRODUCES GREATER TENSION IN THE CONTRACTED POSITION
Another unique feature of using the foam roller for the inverted row is the increased tension in the contracted position due to the significant anti-shoulder elevation forces involved. In other words, when you row and pull into the top portion of the movement, the body rolls back/up towards the shoulders. As previously mentioned this helps depress and retract the shoulders. However, as you hold this contracted position there are significant forces attempting to elevate your shoulders and roll you forward to the starting/stretched position all of which you must resist. Simply put, if you pause in the top contracted position of the row (as you should) not only are you resisting protraction and flexion forces (pulling you towards the floor and away from the bar) but there are significant forces attempting to elevate your shoulders and roll your body forward/down towards your feet. As a result this top contracted position feels very similar to both a row and a pullup/lat pulldown. In turn, the upper back and lats get absolutely pummeled.
4. REINFORCES ANKLE DORSIFLEXION
Another unique feature of the roam roller is that it forces the lifter to incorporate ankle dorsiflexion during inverted rows. This may seem like a subtle and semi-unimportant component however it’s actually quite critical. In fact the dorsiflexed foot position is perhaps the most subtle but also the most important cue for locking in the inverted row. Here’s why
The ability to dorsiflex the feet and ankles during upper body movements that involve a straight leg position promotes enhanced spinal rigidity and improved shoulder mechanics. There are several reasons for this. First, aggressive dorsiflexion of the ankles and feet helps to produce greater concurrent activation potentiation and irradiation and ultimately increased neural drive up the kinetic chain. Simply put it produces greater activation to all muscles including the working extremities.
The dorsiflexed ankle position also helps place a slight stretch (while simultaneously keeping tension) on the hamstrings, glutes, and calves, thereby promoting improved spinal rigidity, which contributes to better thoracic positioning. That’s because a lengthened posterior chain is more conducive for maintaining a neutral arch and t-spine extension. Simply put it facilitates a more lengthened spinal position, improved postural alignment, and greater upper back activation. This helps to reinforce proper shoulder mechanics as the lifter will find it more natural to fire the lats and centrate the glenohumeral joint. So yes, dorsiflexing the ankles actually translates to improved shoulder function and upper body mechanics. To ensure excessive lumbar extension does not occur focus on keeping your stomach pulled in as you contract your posterior chain and extend your hips.
For athletes, dorsiflexion also does wonders for improving sprinting and running mechanics as it plays a key role not only in gait and postural control but also in sprinting speed and foot and ankle positioning/shock absorption.
TWO ADDITIONAL CUES
There are two other additional cues that are critical not only for inverted rows but for rows in general.
The range of motion should be natural without over-pulling at the top or overstretching at the bottom. When the shoulders and spine have to lose position you know you've moved too far. Over-stretching will result in excessive protraction and lateral rotation of the scapula away from the spine. Over-pulling at the top contracted position (with the humerus traveling significantly past the plan of the torso), will cause the shoulders to elevate and also fall into internal rotation resulting in faulty positioning of the glenohumeral joint. As you’ll notice in the video, my body stops 1-2 inches away from touching the barbell, which is optimal not only for this row but any row including bent over rows, cable rows, and machine rows. This is something I’ve discussed quite extensively in previous writings highlighting how important it is to use optimal range of motion not maximal or exaggerated range of motion. To move further and touch the bar to the chest would result in faulty shoulder mechanics with reduced tension to the upper back and lats not to mention pressure on the glenohumeral joint, cervical spine, and elbows. Incorporating a pause in both the bottom and top position by using an eccentric isometric protocol allows the lifter to find his or her optimal mechanics as each repetition can be precisely executed with proper technique and body alignment.
Besides producing an optimal range of motion, there needs to be a significant degree of t-spine extension just like there would be on any row. As I tell my athletes and clients try to tilt the chest up to the point where it feels like your body and head are about to lean back into the floor while simultaneously keeping the core tight and stomach in. In other words focus on military style posture with an elongated and tall spine including a big chest and tall head. Technically you should be able to take a snap shot of your inverted row and tilt it up 90 degrees and it should resemble perfect standing military-like posture.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reverse Grip Bench Press | #4 & #5 | 2 | 8-10 | 60-90" | 8 | 2" |
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The Reverse Grip Chain Bench Press is a great chest press variation that also taxes the triceps heavily due to the accommodating resistance towards the top of the movement. Combined with a reverse grip the triceps and chest really receive intense stimulation. The reverse grip is also very effective for teaching proper mechanics as it essentially forces the lifter to tuck the elbows in the same fashion they should be in during any standard bench press variation. As a result the transfer to other horizontal pressing movements is excellent not only because of the newfound strength and size gains in the triceps, chest, and shoulders but also because of the more refined and dialed in pressing mechanics.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Underhand Weighted Pullups (optional fat grip) | #6 & #7 | 2 | 5-6 | 60" | 7-8 | 2-3" |
Option #1
Option #2
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OPTION #1
The underhand or supinated grip chinup is one of the most conducive variation for achieving centration of the shoulder joint and locking the scapula into position while also crushing both the back and biceps.
OPTION #2
This variation is a pullup anti-rolling barbell lateral shuffle which involves the athlete shuffling or marching their hands back and forth on the bar while its on the squat pins so it wants to roll. Tons of forearm and grip activation here as well as lats.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close Grip Overhead Press | #6 & #7 | 2 | 6-8 | 75-90" | 4-5 | 2-3" |
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The close grip overhead press is a great technique enhancer as it reinforces the idea of keeping the elbows tucked and close to the body while using a pronated grip – a critical component of proper pressing mechanics. In addition it improves the overhead slot position. In essence the lockout is much more challenging than a typical overhead press as the closer grip makes it more difficult to achieve this all-important finishing position. If you can teach yourself to drive the arms through and in line with the ears at the top of a close grip overhead press, all other variations will become significantly easier.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottoms Up Good Morning | #8,#9,#10,#11 | 2 | 4-5 | 45-60" | 7 | 2-3" |
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Learning to keep your whole body as tight as possible is critical on all movements particularly ones that involve axial loading such as the good morning. The bottoms up kettlebell good morning as demonstrated here by NFL athlete Marcelis Branch is one of the most effective variations there is for teaching the athlete to maintain maximal intramuscular tension, spinal rigidity, and full body tension throughout the good morning exercise. That’s because bottoms up movements help increase core stabilization and grip activation which has been shown to produce concurrent activation potentiation and irradiation. In other words it teaches you to stay tight from head to toe thereby increasing neural drive and recruitment to the working extremities. Be ready to brace every muscle fiber in your being on these as the level of intensity is through the roof. These also blast the arms, grip, and forearms. Read more HERE.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goblet Squat Jumps | #8,#9,#10,#11 | 1-2 | 3-4 | 60" | 7-8 | 2" |
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If you’re looking for a way to amp up the difficulty of traditional goblet squats you’ll want to try goblet squat jumps. In fact if you can successfully perform several repetitions of this movement with half of your bodyweight, chances are you’re strong from had to toe.
Besides being one of the most challenging lower body exercises you’ll ever perform there are five reasons why the goblet squat jump exercise is so effective.
Most fitness facilities only have dumbbells that go up to 100 pounds. While this is ample for many individuals, stronger athletes will find this to be a relatively light load for the goblet squat. However, most individuals will find they need to drop their weight by at least 50% to successfully perform goblet squat jumps. Unless you consistently goblet squat over 200 pounds, the 100 pound dumbbell should suffice for most individuals.
The goblet squat is a great movement for targeting the quads. Add in an explosive jump and you’re now forcing more of the fast twitch fibers in your quads to activate quickly. As a result this exercise has a tremendous impact for increasing vertical jump height and jumping performance not to mention sprinting and running speed.
One of the benefits of the traditional goblet squat is the full body activation involved. When combined with a jump and landing sequence not only do the legs get crushed but the upper back, shoulders, arms, and core get absolutely pummeled from this.
Deceleration and force absorption are some of the most critical yet oftentimes overlooked components of strength and performance. Jump squat variations are excellent not only for addressing acceleration, speed, and power, but also deceleration and force absorption. However, many loaded squat variations can be somewhat taxing on the spine and low back as a result of the high impact. Due to the front loading nature of the goblet squat, the low back receives minimal stress even on the landing phase, however, the quads, glutes, upper back, core, shoulders, and arms get hammered.
The goblet squat jump is also very effective for teaching proper squatting mechanics. Part of this is due to the fact that you’ll be using approximately half the weight you would typically use during traditional goblet squats thereby allowing the lifter to hone in on their form particularly on the eccentric phase of the movement. However, another reason the goblet squat jump is so effective is that it teaches the lifter to avoid collapsing at the bottom and using excessive range of motion, both of which are common issues on goblet squats. That’s because jumping from a collapsed position feels very unnatural and incredibly weak. As a result the lifter will be forced to find a squat depth that allows them to produce strong and powerful jumping mechanics. Inevitably this will be somewhere around 90 degree joint angles.
Oh and just in case you were wondering, the grunting you hear from me in this video was not forced or purposeful. It was actually a result of having to fire every muscle fiber in my being to decelerate a 100 pound dumbbell.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Half Kneeling Chaos Triceps Pressdown & Eccentric Isometrics | #8,#9,#10,#11 | 2 | 8-10 | 60" | 8-9 | 2-3" |
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This next exercise is a half kneeling tricep pressdown using the band strap method with 90 deg eccentric isometrics. The half kneeling position helps reinforce keeping the core braced while also maximizing hip and body alignment. The band strap method further adds to the stabilization component & requires even smoother mechanics as the instability can become quite intense if the lifter uses anything but smooth & controlled eccentric isometrics. It also forces the lifter to centrate & pack their shoulder joint – a common but oftentimes overlooked problem during arm training.
Additionally, the half kneeling tricep pressdown is often not possible with traditional grip attachments (even traditional ropes) as the hands end up running into the legs. The band strap method not only provides oscillating kinetic energy and unpredictable perturbations but also allows the lifter to perform half kneeling tricep pressdowns without worrying about the legs impeding the natural movement of the arms.
Also notice the use of the 90 degree eccentric isometrics which doesn’t just apply to large compound movements such as squats, deadlifts, hinges, presses, and pulls, but also to many isolation movements. This not only maximize joint health and body mechanics but also functional strength & hypertrophy.
| EXERCISE | SUPERSET | SETS | REPS | REST | RPE | EI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eccentric Isometrics Bulgarian Squats and Biceps Curls | #8,#9,#10,#11 | 2 | 6-10 (3-5 per side) | 2-3 minutes | 9 | 2-4" |
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I often use lunge holds and Bulgarian squats to perform bicep curls, shoulder raises, and more as it’s a great way to kill 2 birds with one stone particularly if you’re looking to crush the upper body while also working on hip mechanics and lower body muscle function. There are 4 unique benefits of this.
- Holding an eccentric isometric split squat position forces the lifter to use smooth and controlled lifting mechanics as excessive momentum, cheating, or swinging, will cause the lifter to loose his or her balance. As a result, even lighter loads will crush the biceps.
- A properly performed Bulgarian squat or lunge involves a slight hip hinge position with a 20-30 deg torso lean. This creates constant tension in te biceps throughout the motion particularly in the contracted position of the curl thereby eliciting high levels of intramuscular tension & cellular swelling.
- In addition the torso angle produced from the lunge allows the dumbbells to move through a larger range of motion than a typical bicep curl. Besides activating more motor units this large ROM creates greater mechanical tension and muscle damage which maximize hypertrophy.
- Besides blasting the legs & upper body, this also acts as a therapeutic mobility exercise for the hips. That’s because the lifter is essentially holding an eccentric isometric Bulgarian squat. Lunges & Bulgarian squats are the only types of movement that simultaneously target eccentric muscle elongation of both the hip flexors & hip extensors. This does wonders for loosing up the hips and creating a proper balance of tension between the anterior & posterior sides of the leg & lumbopelvic hip complex. If you’re looking for a way to finish up an intense workout that pumps loads of blood into the arms yet also leaves your hips & low back feeling loose as a goose, these can’t be beat.
| EXERCISE | DURATION | # OF DRILLS | REST BETWEEN DRILLS | RPE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Intensity Interval Cardio (HIT) | 30 minutes | 4 | 10-30 seconds | 7-9 |
High INTENSITY Interval CARDIO (HIT)
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