Tri-Phase Workout Log
By Derek Charlebois B.S. CPT
Team Scivation
www.scivation.com

These pages are here to provide a way to print your workout log and not duplicate the great job that Derek's done to provide us with this valuable information.  Please refer to Scivation's web site for a list of the quality suplements they make. My personal favorite is Xtend.

Phase 1 - Volume

The goal of Phase 1 is to increase the volume (number of sets) each week. In addition to adding sets each week you should always strive to lift a greater load each workout.

Rep range for Phase 1 is 6-10, which means you want to get at least 6 reps but no more than 10 reps. If you cannot get 6 reps then the weight is too heavy. If you can get more than 10 reps then the weight is too light. Once you can complete 10 reps with a given weight, you should increase the weight for the next set. For example, if you can squat 225 lbs. for 10 reps, then increase the weight to 235 lbs.

Rest time = 90 secs between sets.

  Back and Traps Chest & Shoulders Legs Arms & Calves
Week 1 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 2 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 3 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 4 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4

Phase 2 - Intensity

The Goal of Phase 2 is to lift a near maximal load for low reps. There will be no changes in the number of sets you complete, just the load you lift.

The rep range for Phase 2 is 2-6, but unlike Phase 1, you are going to shoot for a given rep number for each workout. The goal for week one is to use a weight that allows you to complete 3 sets of 8 reps; week two is to complete 3 sets of 6 reps; week three is to complete 3 sets of 4 reps; week four is to complete 3 sets of 2 reps. Each week you will be lifting a heavier load. For Deadlift it may be something like:
If you prefer, you can do arms after legs on the lower body day since the volume is lower on leg day. Some people may prefer to do all of the upper body in one workout because they find leg training more taxing or just because of personal preference. I leave it up to each individual to decide whether they prefer to train arms in the upper body workouts or the lower body workouts.

Rest time = 2-3 minutes between sets.
  Upper Body A Lower Body A Upper Body B Lower Body B
Week 1 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 2 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 3 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
Week 4 Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4

Phase 3 - Frequency

The Goal of Phase 3 is to hit each muscle more frequently than Phase 1 & 2.

Workout 1 Whole Body A 2 x 4-6 Rest = 2 mins
Workout 2 Whole Body B 2 x 6-10 Rest = 90 sec
Workout 3 Whole Body C 2 x 10-12 Rest = 30 sec
Workout 4 Weak Point    

Each workout uses different exercises and different rep ranges, though the same exercises can be used for each workout if one prefers. The goal is to do two sets of an exercise for each muscle group. Here is an example of how this workout could be set up:

Muscle Workout A (Mon) Workout B (Wed) Workout C (Fri)
Quad
Ham
Calf
Chest
Back
Delt
Trap
Tris
Bis		 Squats
Stiff Leg Deadlift
Seated Calf Raise
Flat Press
Bent Over Row
Military Press
Barbell Shrug
Close Grip Bench
Barbell Curl		 Leg Press
Lying Leg Curl
Standing Calf Raise
Incline Press
Pull-up
DB Side Lateral
DB Shrug
Skull Crusher
DB Curl		 Leg Extension
Seated Leg Curl
Donkey Calf Raise
Decline Press or Dips
Seated Cable Row
Cable Lateral
Low-Pulley High Row
Tricep Pressdown
Cable Curl

 

Weak Point Training (Saturday)

The weak point training day is here so each individual person can pick what they need to work on. If you need to bring up your back and calves, then work your back and calves. If you need to bring up your chest and biceps, then work your chest and biceps. An example Weak Point day for chest and biceps would be:

Incline BB Press
Flat DB Press
DB Curls
Hammer Curls		 3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12

It is common for people to have underdeveloped calves, forearms, and posterior (rear) delts. The weak point training day would be perfect to work on these muscles. An example routine for these weak points would be:

 

Calves Standing Calf Raise
Seated Calf Raise		 3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12
Forearms BB Forearm Curl
DB Forearm Curl		 3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12
Rear Delt DB Rear Lateral
Reverse Pec Dec		 3 x 4, 8, 12
3 x 4, 8, 12

At this point in your training you should have an idea of what exercises you need to do in order to bring up your weak points. Because of the low volume of training during the week (a total of 6 sets per muscle group), there should be a low chance for overtraining to occur even though you are hitting your weak muscle group very frequently.

***We recommend lifting on Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat or Tuesday, Thurs, Sat, Sun.

***We want you to try to get a full day of rest between each workout if possible, especially during phase 3.

Week 13

After twelve weeks of intense training your body may be pretty “beat up.” Therefore, week 13 should be a deload or recovery week. A deload week is a week of less than maximal training. During a deload week, I recommend keeping your reps in the higher rep ranges (8-15 reps) and not taking your sets to failure. A recovery week is a week completely off of training. This off time will help your body recover and refresh you for your upcoming training weeks. Whether you do a deload week or take a week off will depend on how you feel after week 12. If you feel burned out or have lost your motivation in the gym, then a full week off will do you good. If you don’t feel burned out, but rather just a little fatigued, a deload week might be all you need. After your deload week or week off, you can restart the Tri-Phase Training Program at phase 1.