Context: 41 y/o male, 250 mg/wk testosterone (supraphysiological), L5-S1 bulging disc — all exercises machine/cable only. Jesper sessions (Mon/Wed/Fri) handle legs, core, and rehab — not counted here.
| Exercise Type | Rest Between Sets | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Compound (presses, rows, pulldowns, dips) | 3 minutes | Optimal for hypertrophy — full phosphocreatine recovery |
| Isolation (curls, raises, flys, shrugs) | 2 minutes | Sufficient recovery for single-joint movements |
Session target: ~75 min (9 exercises × 3 sets = 27 sets per session)
Double progression method — use across all exercises:
- Start at the bottom of the prescribed rep range with a given weight
- Each session, aim to add reps while keeping form strict
- When you hit the top of the rep range for all 3 sets, increase weight by the smallest increment available
- Drop back to the bottom of the rep range with the new weight and repeat
Example: Cable Curl prescribed at 3×10-12. You start at 15 kg for 10/10/10 → next session 11/10/10 → eventually 12/12/12 → bump to 17.5 kg and start at 10/10/10 again.
At 250 mg/wk you should see consistent load progression over the next 8-12 weeks. If a lift stalls for 2+ sessions, swap the exercise variation rather than grinding.
| Muscle Group | Target Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chest — Upper | 6-12 sets | |
| Chest — Lower | 6-12 sets | |
| Back (lats/rows) | 10-18 sets | |
| Front Delts | 6-10 effective | Heavy indirect from pressing |
| Side Delts | 12-18 effective | Key for capped shoulders |
| Rear Delts | 8-14 effective | |
| Traps | 6-12 sets | |
| Triceps | 10-16 effective | ~2/3 of arm mass |
| Biceps | 8-14 effective | Enhanced recovery supports upper range |
“Effective” = direct sets + indirect contribution from compound movements. Indirect contribution is estimated conservatively — back compounds contribute roughly 30-50% of a direct curl set for biceps, and pressing contributes similarly for triceps.
| # | Exercise | Muscle | Sets × Reps | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Incline Bench Press (Smith Machine) | Chest upper | 3×10-12 | 3 min | Pyramid from 10 kg. Compound. |
| 2 | Seated Cable Row — V Grip | Back | 3×10-12 | 3 min | 60 kg. Push/pull alternation with #1. |
| 3 | Chest Dip | Chest lower | 3×10-12 | 3 min | Lean forward, bodyweight. See spine note below. |
| 4 | Seated Shoulder Press (Machine) | Front delts | 3×10-12 | 3 min | Pyramid 20→25→30 kg. |
| 5 | Triceps Pushdown | Triceps | 3×12-15 | 2 min | Straight bar or rope. |
| 6 | Cable Bicep Curl | Biceps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | ADDED — restores bicep frequency to 3×/wk. |
| 7 | Lateral Raise (Cable) | Side delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | Single arm, controlled. |
| 8 | Rear Delt Reverse Fly (Cable) | Rear delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | 5 kg. |
| 9 | Dumbbell Shrug | Traps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | Squeeze at top for 1-2 sec. |
9 exercises / 27 sets / ~75 min Changes from v1: Added Cable Bicep Curl. Moved Seated Cable Row to #2 to alternate push/pull among the compounds and reduce pressing fatigue accumulation.
⚠️ Spine note on Chest Dips: Generally safe if controlled with no swinging, but creates some compressive torso load. If you ever notice low back tightness during or after, swap to High-to-Low Cable Fly (same lower chest emphasis, zero spinal load).
| # | Exercise | Muscle | Sets × Reps | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lat Pulldown (Cable) | Back | 3×10-12 | 3 min | Warm-up at 20 kg, working sets 40-42.5 kg. |
| 2 | Seated Cable Row — Wide Grip | Back | 3×8-10 | 3 min | 50 kg. |
| 3 | Decline Bench Press (Machine) | Chest lower | 3×10-12 | 3 min | 50 kg. |
| 4 | Overhead Triceps Extension (Cable) | Triceps | 3×12-15 | 2 min | Long head focus. |
| 5 | Lateral Raise (Cable) | Side delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | Single arm, slight lean. |
| 6 | Hammer Curl (Cable) | Biceps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | MOVED — sandwiched between lateral work to give delts a recovery window. |
| 7 | Lateral Raise — Rear Angle | Side delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | Behind body or machine variation. |
| 8 | Rear Delt Reverse Fly (Cable) | Rear delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | 5 kg. |
| 9 | Cable Curl — Supinated | Biceps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | ADDED — short head emphasis. Pairs with hammer curl (long head/brachialis) for full coverage. |
9 exercises / 27 sets / ~75 min Changes from v1: Reordered exercises 5-7 — hammer curl now sits between the two lateral raise variations so side delts get a brief recovery window instead of three consecutive shoulder isolation sets. Added supinated cable curl at #9 for additional direct bicep volume.
| # | Exercise | Muscle | Sets × Reps | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Incline Bench Press (Smith Machine) | Chest upper | 3×8-10 | 3 min | Heavier than Tue — lower rep range. |
| 2 | Low Cable Fly Crossovers | Chest lower | 3×10-12 | 2 min | 10 kg. |
| 3 | Incline Cable Fly | Chest upper | 3×10-12 | 2 min | ADDED — low-to-high angle. Boosts upper chest from floor (6) to mid-range (9). |
| 4 | Lat Pulldown — Close Grip | Back | 3×8-10 | 3 min | 45-50 kg. |
| 5 | Preacher Curl (Machine) | Biceps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | Short head emphasis via arm-in-front position. |
| 6 | Triceps Extension (Cable) | Triceps | 3×10-12 | 2 min | Lateral head focus. |
| 7 | Lateral Raise (Machine) | Side delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | |
| 8 | Rear Delt Reverse Fly (Cable) | Rear delts | 3×12-15 | 2 min | 5 kg. |
| 9 | DB/Cable Shrug | Traps | 3×10-12 | 2 min |
9 exercises / 27 sets / ~75 min Changes from v1: Added Incline Cable Fly at #3 to bring upper chest out of the floor of its volume range. Moved Lat Pulldown earlier to alternate push/pull.
| Muscle Group | UB1 | UB2 | UB3 | Direct | Indirect | Effective | Range | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chest — Upper | 3 | 0 | 6 | 9 | — | 9 | 6-12 | ✅ |
| Chest — Lower | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | — | 9 | 6-12 | ✅ |
| Back | 3 | 6 | 3 | 12 | — | 12 | 10-18 | ✅ |
| Front Delts | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | +4 | 7 | 6-10 | ✅ |
| Side Delts | 3 | 6 | 3 | 12 | +1 | 13 | 12-18 | ✅ |
| Rear Delts | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | +2 | 11 | 8-14 | ✅ |
| Traps | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | — | 6 | 6-12 | ✅ |
| Triceps | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | +8 | 17 | 10-16 | ✅* |
| Biceps | 3 | 6 | 3 | 12 | +5 | 17 | 8-14 | ✅** |
- Triceps 1 over ceiling from indirect pressing — cannot reduce without removing chest/shoulder compounds. Acceptable.
** Biceps above the natural ceiling at 12 direct sets. At 250 mg/wk testosterone, recovery capacity supports this volume comfortably and the literature on enhanced trainees shows productive adaptation at higher volumes than natural ranges suggest. This also matches Jai’s prior training history (was at 17 effective before v1 cut it to 12). The indirect estimate of +5 uses a conservative 30-50% contribution rate from rows/pulldowns — real effective volume is likely 15-16 rather than a full 17.
| Area | v1 | v2 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chest — Upper | 6 eff (floor) | 9 eff | 🔺 +3 (moved to mid-range) |
| Chest — Lower | 9 | 9 | ➡️ Maintained |
| Back | 12 | 12 | ➡️ Maintained |
| Side Delts | 13 eff | 13 eff | ➡️ Maintained |
| Rear Delts | 12 eff | 11 eff | 🔻 -1 (rounding — functionally identical) |
| Traps | 6 | 6 | ➡️ Maintained |
| Triceps | 17 eff | 17 eff | ➡️ Maintained |
| Biceps | 12 eff (6 direct) | 17 eff (12 direct) | 🔺 +5 eff / +6 direct (was undertrained) |
| Bicep frequency | 2×/wk | 3×/wk | 🔺 Restored |
| Exercises/day | 8-8-8 | 9-9-9 | Balanced |
| Sets/day | 24-24-24 | 27-27-27 | Balanced |
| Session time | ~60 min | ~75 min | +15 min (proper rest intervals) |
| Rest protocol | Unstandardized | 3 min compound / 2 min isolation | Standardized |
| Progression | None specified | Double progression | Systematic |
| Exercise | Day | Primary Target | Why It’s There |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cable Bicep Curl (supinated) | UB1 | Short head + overall | Restores frequency — UB1 had zero direct bicep work |
| Hammer Curl (cable) | UB2 | Long head + brachialis | Arm width, forearm tie-in |
| Cable Curl — Supinated | UB2 | Short head | Pairs with hammer curl for full coverage on pull day |
| Preacher Curl (machine) | UB3 | Short head (stretched) | Arm-in-front position biases peak/short head |
Three distinct movement patterns across the week. Each session hits a different emphasis. UB2 doubles up because it’s the back-heavy day — biceps are already warm and pumped from 6 sets of rows/pulldowns.
Exercise ordering philosophy: Compounds are front-loaded in each session. Within the compound block, push and pull movements are alternated where possible to reduce local fatigue (e.g., UB1 goes incline press → cable row → dip → shoulder press rather than stacking three presses consecutively). Isolation work follows, with antagonist pairing where practical (triceps → biceps on UB1).
UB2 lateral raise sandwich: The original v1 had lateral raise → lateral raise variation → rear delt fly back-to-back-to-back, which risks quality degradation on the later sets. The hammer curl is now placed between the two lateral variations to give the medial delts ~5 minutes of recovery before hitting them again.
Dip alternative: If chest dips aggravate the L5-S1 at any point, swap to high-to-low cable fly. Same lower chest stimulus, zero spinal compression. Monitor for any low back tightness during or in the 24 hours after UB1.
Rep ranges: All exercises now use ranges (e.g., 10-12) rather than fixed targets, to support the double progression scheme. Hit the top of the range for all 3 sets before increasing weight.
When to reassess: Run this program for 8-12 weeks. If any muscle group stalls on progression for 2+ consecutive sessions, swap the exercise variation for that muscle (e.g., incline Smith → incline cable press) before increasing volume further. Volume should be the last lever pulled.