Training program for strength and hypertrophy

The training program Layne Norton has made famous combines two goals: building strength and building muscle mass, also known as hypertrophy. The idea is simple: early in the week you lift heavier, and in the second half of the week you give your muscles more volume and more reps.

This is not a beginner’s first program. If your technique on the basic exercises is solid and your recovery is in order, this split can give you a very good rhythm: the heavy days teach your body to use its strength, while the longer sets give the muscle the work volume it needs to grow.

Why does this training program work?

Many programs pull in one direction: either only heavy, short sets or only pump-style volume training. Layne Norton’s approach puts the two together. On the upper-body and lower-body strength days you use a lower rep count, while on hypertrophy days you do more sets, supersets and moderate weights.

The first day is upper-body strength. Pick 3 – 4 basic exercises, both presses and rows. For each exercise you do 3 – 5 sets of 5 – 6 reps. On top of that comes one accessory exercise.

The second day is lower-body strength. Here you pick 2 – 3 pull and/or squat variations. The basic rhythm is the same: 3 – 5 sets and 5 – 6 reps. The third day is a rest day. That isn’t laziness; it’s part of the program.

Weekly structure of the training program

A practical week looks like this. You can move the days around, but the logic should stay the same: two strength days, one rest day, three hypertrophy days and another rest day.

• Sunday – upper-body strength: 5 x 5 or 3 x 5 on all lifts. 5 x 5 suits a mass-gaining phase, because recovery is usually better. 3 x 5 suits times when you are preparing for competitions, for example. Exercises: barbell bench press, bent-over barbell row, standing or seated barbell press, barbell shrug.
• Monday – lower-body strength: 5 x 5 or 3 x 5 on all lifts. Exercises: barbell squat, stiff-leg deadlift or Romanian deadlift, standing calf raise, 6 – 8 sets and 6 – 8 reps.
• Tuesday – rest: light aerobic work if you like. Keep it genuinely light, otherwise it will interfere with the following days.
• Wednesday – chest and arms – hypertrophy: 3 pressing exercises, 2 – 3 sets of each exercise in the 8 – 12 rep range. Each set ends 1 – 2 reps short of failure.
• Thursday – shoulders, back and traps – hypertrophy: 4 supersets. In total 3 exercises for the shoulders, 3 exercises for the back and 2 exercises for the traps. Trap exercises stay in the 10 – 15 range, shoulder and back exercises in the 8 – 12 range.
• Friday – thighs and calves – hypertrophy: two pairs of supersets. One superset consists of 2 – 3 exercises, and each superset is done for 4 – 5 sets in the 8 – 15 rep range.
• Saturday – rest: aerobic work if you wish, but recovery matters more here than extra work.

How to divide the training program into exercises?

On hypertrophy days there is one firm rule: don’t go all the way to failure. End each set 1 – 2 reps before the end. This keeps your technique cleaner and helps you last until the end of the week.

Chest and arms

• Incline dumbbell press 3 x 8 – 12.
• Close-grip barbell bench press 3 x 8 – 12.
• Flat-bench dumbbell press 2 x 8 – 12.
• Superset: preacher curl + standing French press 3 x 8 – 12 of each.
• Superset: cable pushdown + dumbbell hammer curl 3 x 8 – 12 of each.
• Machine chest fly 3 x 8 – 12.
• Superset: machine biceps curl + machine dip 3 x 8 – 12 of each.

Shoulders, back and traps

• Superset: seated dumbbell press + dumbbell front raise 3 x 8 – 12 of each.
• Superset: bent-over dumbbell row + Arnold press 3 x 8 – 12 of each.
• Superset: wide-grip lat pulldown 2 x 8 – 12 + dumbbell shrug 2 x 10 – 15.
• Superset: close underhand-grip lat pulldown, palms facing you 2 x 8 – 12 + dumbbell upright row 2 x 10 – 15.
• T-bar row 2 x 8 – 12.

Thighs and calves

• Superset: hack squat 5 x 8 – 12 + standing calf raise 5 x 10 – 15.
• Superset: leg extension 5 x 10 – 15 + leg curl 5 x 10 – 15 + seated calf raise 4 x 8 – 12.

Practical notes on the training program

Honestly, the biggest risk of this program is too much enthusiasm. If the strength days get very heavy and every set is pushed to failure on the hypertrophy days, recovery quickly falls apart. Then neither strength nor muscle mass grows.

Start with some reserve instead. Leave room for the weight to go up, keep an eye on your sleep and write down whether the same weight moves better next week. If it doesn’t, the answer isn’t always even more sets. Sometimes the answer is one calmer week.

The program comes from here: http://muscleandbrawn.com/layne-nortons-workout-routine-power-and-hypertrophy/

FAQ: training program

Is this program suitable for a beginner?

Not really for a complete beginner. Before starting, you should know the basic technique of the squat, press, row and deadlift. Otherwise the large weekly volume simply becomes confusing.

Can the days be rearranged?

Yes. You don’t have to start the cycle on a Sunday. Just keep the rest days and don’t put two very heavy, similar days back to back.

Are all the supersets mandatory?

They don’t have to be. The translator also noted that you don’t need to use so many supersets on the hypertrophy days. You can fit the muscles into the days according to your own recovery.

Translated by: Janar Rückenberg

Come and train! ArtGym