Training Notes:
A1: Bilateral. Keep your torso hinged at ~30º relative to the ground. Maintain braced abs throughout and do your best to use your glutes to stabilize rather than your low back. The DBs should be semi-pronated. Focus on full scapular protraction and retraction on every rep. Rest ~60 sec before A2.
A2: These should closely resemble an overhead press. Keep the DBs semi-pronated. The start position should be lockout. Get a full ROM on each rep and control the tempo. Push these hard but leave a rep in the tank on each set. Full rest before returning to A1.
B1: Try to push the load on these. Make sure to perform feeder sets as needed to ensure you’re fully primed and ready to go before the first working set. Control the eccentric slowly and touch your chest softly at the bottom of each rep. Make sure to lockout fully at the top. Keep the load and intensity conservative here and have a spotter if possible to give your a liftoff. Rest ~60 sec before B2.
B2: Aim to make these biased towards the lats. Get a deep stretch on the eccentric and only bring the DB to your forehead on the concentric to maintain tension. Keep the tempo very slow and make sure to not force your shoulder mobility on the stretch. Take the last set to 1RIR. Full rest before returning to B1.
C1: Use dual pulleys and individual D-handles here if you can for more freedom of movement. Rotate from pronated to neutral through the concentric. Pause in contraction for a count and think about flexing your lats hard. Allow full scapular protraction and retraction. Keep your torso and hips locked into place throughout the set. Take the last set to 1RIR. Rest ~30 sec before C2.
C2: Use a load that would be challenging for the rep range with the upright rows. Each rep should be a strict upright row into a clean into the Bradford press. Keep the tempo controlled and aim to make these as fluid as possible. Allow some use of hip drive/momentum as needed but make sure to not get sloppy. End the set at the first point of failure within the sequence. Full rest before returning to C1.
D1: You can use assistance, bodyweight, or add weight for these but the resistance should be close to your ~15RM. Keep the tempo very controlled and get a full ROM on every rep. Alternate between D1 and D2 for time and aim to maximize density of reps.
D2: You can use assistance, bodyweight, or add weight for these but the resistance should be close to your ~15RM. Hands should be shoulder width and make sure to use straps for your grip. Keep the tempo very controlled and get a full ROM on every rep. Alternate between D1 and D2 for time and aim to maximize density of reps.