Westside help

[FLEX 2000]

hey, happy new year! i have been reading about westside on deepsquater.com and a few other sites but i have a few questions on how the routine would be set up.

does it matter if the Max effort day comes before the dynamic day?

also, there is no box at my gym. i could use a bench but that might be to high.

mon DE day bench

bench press 10sets 3reps @60% no shirt, using different grips(45-60sec rest)
lying bar extensions 4sets 8reps
what else should be added for delts and back?

tue DE day squat
no sure what to do here with no box. also unsure about assistance exersices.

wed off

thurs ME bench
unsure what to add here

fri ME squat
unsure here also

should assistant ex. be taken to failure?

my gym does not have a rev. hyper, only the regular one.

as you can see im still learning about westside and have been reading many articles on it, including paul's a few threds down. i do NOT plan on starting this routine until i have it down. thats why im asking these questions here, to learn and get more opinions so i can do this right. feel free to email me also. thanks

[PowerManDL]

Originally posted by FLEX 2000
does it matter if the Max effort day comes before the dynamic day?

You can do it that way, but research (and actual results...) show that the wey Westside structures it, ie, dynamic work 72 hours before maximal, is "optimal."


also, there is no box at my gym. i could use a bench but that might be to high.

Boxes aren't critical; I've never used one. But they do help a lot. If you can get access to one, by all means use it.


mon DE day bench

bench press 10sets 3reps @60% no shirt, using different grips(45-60sec rest)
lying bar extensions 4sets 8reps
what else should be added for delts and back?

A shoulder raise, probably frontal, and a row for the back.


tue DE day squat
no sure what to do here with no box. also unsure about assistance exersices.

An example would be:

Speed Squat, 8x2 @ 55%
SLDL 4x6
Weighted Crunches 3x8
Reverse Hypers (or your choice of lower back movement) 3x8


thurs ME bench
unsure what to add here

fri ME squat
unsure here also

ME Bench:

ME movement
Tricep movement 6-8 sets of 8-12 (Westside's recommendation. I would say no more than 5 sets.)
Rowing movement 3-6 x 5-8
Shoulder raise same

ME Squat/DL:

ME movement
Hamstring movement 3-6 x 5-8
One or two ab movements
Reverse Hypers (lower back)


should assistant ex. be taken to failure?

Rule of thumb: with volume this high, HELL no. They need to be reasonably heavy, but absolutely not to failure.


my gym does not have a rev. hyper, only the regular one.

That answers my earlier question. You can do pull-throughs, Romanian Deadlifts, or even regular hyperextensions in their place.


as you can see im still learning about westside and have been reading many articles on it, including paul's a few threds down. i do NOT plan on starting this routine until i have it down. thats why im asking these questions here, to learn and get more opinions so i can do this right. feel free to email me also. thanks

That's a good idea. Westside will reward you if you do it right, but if you mis-apply it, it will be an evil bitch-god from Hell.

[Jim101]

I dont quite understand the West Side training in general, it supposed to develope mad power and str. right?
Does this type of training work well?

[PowerManDL]

In a word, yes.

Go look at Latty's journal.

He was a skinny weak ****, now he's just skinny.

[FLEX 2000]

thanks, that helped alot.

ill stay with dynamic days then go to max days.

on mondays, how many sets and reps should be done for shoulders and back? can pull ups or pull downs be done on one day and a row movement on the other?

instead of rev. hypers, can weighted regular hypers be done?

on ME days for ME movements what is the set/reps?

what is the board press and floor press? pull throughs?

i couldnt find the list of ME squat/dead movements, do you know a link for them?

thanks again!!!

[PowerManDL]

Originally posted by FLEX 2000
on mondays, how many sets and reps should be done for shoulders and back?

3-6 sets. Reps, between 5 and 8.

can pull ups or pull downs be done on one day and a row movement on the other?

That's what I do.

on ME days for ME movements what is the set/reps?

Do singles or triples. When you can't go any heavier, you're done.

what is the board press and floor press? pull throughs?

The board press is the bench press done with 2x4's on your chest to limit the ROM. The floor press is a bench press done on the floor.

Pull throughs are done with cables, and simulate the glute/ham/lower back activation of lower-body lifts. They're done exactly as they sound-- pull a cable between your legs.


i couldnt find the list of ME squat/dead movements, do you know a link for them?

Not off the top of my head--- check elitefts.com and deepsquatter.com. Its there somewhere.

[FLEX 2000]

i found some of the exersices on elite.

on thursday, im going to start with close grip inclines, and work up to a 1rep max.

not sure what i will use on fridays yet. do you have any favorites, btw?

how long should i use these exersices? should they be switched every few weeks?

any ideas for a hamstring exersice on fridays?

[Chris Rodgers]

Westsssssiiiiiiidddddddeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!


I would start with a form of goodmorning on Friday. There is a list of like 100+ of the various forms on Elite.

I'm partial to pulling(various forms of deadlifts).

Good luck with it.

[FLEX 2000]

for fridays, can leg curls be done for the hamstring movement or should i replace it with something else?

is close grip inclines ok also for ME chest day? or should it be changed?

LATMAN, im going to use the good morning, thanks.

[Adam]

Heres the basics on westside flex http://www.wannabebig.com/article.php?articleid=46
You can use close grip incline press on ME bench day, its a good tri and shoulder movement. If possible do glut ham raise instead of leg curls. If you dont have glut ham raise then do sldl,pull thrus,sumo deads, zerchers etc.
Westside works great if you do it right!
For a bunch of workouts check out Latty's journal or my journal starting on page 3 or 4.
For the lists of ME movements go to elitefts.com and click on articles, at the bottom are the different lists.
Read as many articles from that site as you can! Everything writen by Dave or Louie is excellant.

[FLEX 2000]

I noticed in the article it said speed deadlifts, should i add these in?

i read that ME exersices should be changed every 3weeks tops, what about the assistance exersices?

[Franco]

The ME exercises are changed from anything to 1-3 weeks depending on how long you've been lifting. As a more advanced lifter you would be able to recruit around 80% of your muscles(so change your ME every week) whilst less experienced individuals will recruit around 40% and would therefore be better changing every 3 weeks.

The assitance movements also known as the Bodybuidng method are changed anywhere from 1-5 weeks, and these will be stopped 1-2 reps before failure.

One of the most comprehensive articles on Westside is the Periodisation Bible Part 2 - http://www.testosterone.net/html/body_133per.html