KSC 8/5/2 Powerbuilding

The reality is that most guys (and many gals) want both – more strength and more muscle.  The pursuit of just one or the other will indeed yield gains in both areas, but not nearly as quickly or dramatically as when both are pursued simultaneously.  The key is striking the right balance in the amount of energy you invest into each area.   There are in fact, many strong power lifters who don’t look the part.  And on  the  flip  side,  there  are  some  genetically  gifted  bodybuilders  and physique athletes who quite simply aren’t that strong.  In my opinion, athletes in BOTH categories would improve in their constituent sports if they borrowed a little bit from each other.   And why wouldn’t you want both?   Strength is foundational to a better life.  There is no instance in life or sport where stronger isn’t better.  But who wants to put in all that time under the barbell and not have anything to show for it?   There  is  nothing  wrong  with  wanting  to  look  like  you  lift.  A  better physique  breeds  higher  levels  of  confidence  in  both  your  professional and personal life.

The heavy main lifts follow a 8/5/2 method on a 3 weeks cycle (3 sets of 8 reps one week followed by 3x5 and 3x2), once you get back to the 8s add 5-10 pounds and run it through again. A good starting point is for the 8s to use 70% of 1RM, the 5s 80% of 1RM and for the 3s 90% of 1RM. If you miss reps for any given cycle then next time through use the same weight but try and add one more rep (if you missed the 8s but made the 5s continue to add weight to the 5s). 

For exercises 2-5 you can utilize a handful of techniques. First would be taking each set to or near muscular failure by utilizing drop sets where you would perform an exercise for 8 reps @ 100lbs then drop 10% weight and go to failure maybe 10-11 reps and final set drop another 10% and repeat. Use double progression on these exercises. The other method is to use density sets where you target a set numbers of total reps anywhere between 20-100 reps and perform the exercise using rest pause method. For example if you are doing Dips for 40 total reps, perform your first set to failure, say you get 12 reps, rest for 15-20 seconds then perform your next set to failure, keep repeating till you have completed all 40 reps. Progression for this scheme can be trying to complete the total set in less time. 

Supplemental and assistance exercises (exercises 2-5 each day) for the main assistance stick with the 3 x 8-12, but for everything else mainly utilize density sets when you feel you can handle it or traditional is fine. 

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Week 12

Bench Press (Barbell)

Incline Bench Press (Barbell)

Dip (Weighted)

Bicep Curl (Barbell)

Bayesian Curl

Deadlift (Barbell)

Romanian Deadlift (Barbell)

Lying Leg Curl

Standing Calf Raise

Cable Crunch

Overhead Press (Barbell)

Seated Overhead Press (Dumbbell)

Lateral Raise (Dumbbell)

Bench Press (Close Grip)

Tricep Extension (Cable)

Pull-Up (Weighted)

Lat Pulldown

Bent Over Row (Barbell)

Face Pull

Shrug (Barbell)

Squat (Barbell)

Squat (Paused)

Leg Extension

Hanging Knee Raise

Incline Bench Press (Dumbbell)

Bicep Curl (EZ Bar)

Hammer Curl (Dumbbell)

Arnold Press

Overhead Tricep Extension (Cable)

Chin-Up (Weighted)

T-Bar Row

Rear Delt Fly (Dumbbell)

Bulgarian Split Squat (Dumbbell)

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