Why is it that in this program it is called for a ME Upper Body and a Rep Upper Body but only a ME Lower body. Do the legs and lower back not need rep work… I figured that this would be opposite and there would be 2 lower body days as they are the bigger and more powerful muscles. I am thinking of trying this routine as it is 3 day a week and that is all I can manage till I start driving but, this question puzzles me and I would like to know the answer before I start coming up with my splits and routines. Thank you.
If you read through the whole program DeFranco explains his reasoning for this, but I’ll give you a summary here:
It’s not that the lower body DE day is a substitute for having a lower body RE day; in fact it’s pretty much the opposite. The upper body RE day is a substitute for having an upper body DE day. According to DeFranco skinny bastards aren’t strong enough to have a upper body DE day.
But the thing is that there is no lower body DE or Rep work there is only a ME day. There are two upper body workouts and only one lower body workout. Or did I just read the program wrong.
You probably read one of the older versions. You can find the newest version (version 3) here: http://www.elitefts.com/ws4sb/default.asp
It is also designed for athletes…who tend to do a greater volume of activities involving the lower body outside of the weight room…
[quote]Stronghold wrote:
It is also designed for athletes…who tend to do a greater volume of activities involving the lower body outside of the weight room…[/quote]
Bingo! The original version (if you read it) states that the lower body work is supplemented with sport specific drills (ie., practice), therefore, there was no need for a lower body RE/DE day. Defranco expected the athletes to be running/practicing 2-3 days per week.
Oh well I am not a school athlete I train for strongman could my event training be considered my lower body DE day.
Or should I include DE work
i think version 2 incorpereates a template with sprinting practice for those who are not athletes.
read version 3…it contains a DE day and an ME day for lower body. this will get you strong which what your looking for
My brother is doing WS4SB with a RE lower body day. The day is about the same as the ME day except with 20 rep squats and snatch grip deadlifts. It doing wonders for his lower body mass. He’s a hockey player so he’s off season and needs the strength endurance in his lower body.
I’ve been following the Westside template with both RE upper and lower days. The RE lower is a real fucking killer. I do 3 sets of as many squats as I can on a fixed weight (usually hit 15 for the first set, then whatever I can after) with 1 minute rest periods between sets, then just some assistance work and abs.
Been doing a good job improving my leg mass and work capacity.