All righty fellas. As you probably know, I'm a big believer in DC, or DoggCrapp training. I assure you, it has nothing to do with Canine Feces, don't worry lol
DoggCrapp has it's distinct moniker because it's creator, Dante Trudel, was a member to an online forum, not unlike our own and his online handel was "DoggCrapp"
DC is a method of training that involves rest-pause training (meaning if failure is reached, you would rest for 10 - 30 seconds and continue until the desired rep ranges
is reached) Many other training programs use this method as a way of failure and beyond to employ new growth. The thing with DC is that you only use one exercise per bodypart because that one exercise will push the desired area to complete failure and anything else would be pushing the envelope on saftey.
You may be asking yourself "Hey Beef, what exercises are DC approved?"
To anwser that question I've come across a list of approved exercises:
CHEST
incline Smith
decline smith
hammer strength press (incline and decline)
other good machine press
incline barbell
decline barbell
incline dumbbell press
flat dumbbell press
decline dumbbell press
SHOULDERS
smith presses to front
smith presses to back of head
hammer strength press
other good machine press
barbell press to front
barbell press to back of head
dumbbell shoulder press
TRICEPS
close grip bench in smith
reverse grip bench in smith
skull crushers
dips (in upright position)
BACK WIDTH
rack chins to front
rack chins to back of head
reverse grip rack chins (close grip)
assisted pullups
hammer strength "pulldown" machines
other good "pulldown" machines
pull downs to front
pull downs to back of head
BACK THICKNESS
deadlift
rack deadlift
T-bar rows
smith rows
barbell rows
BICEPS
barbell curls
alternate dumbbell curls
barbell preacher curls
hammer strength machine curls
other good machine curls
cable curls
incline db curls
close grip ez-bar preacher curls
standing medium grip ez-bar curls
FOREARMS
hammer curls (alternated)
pinwheel curls (alternated)
reverse grip one arm cable curls
CALVES
calves on a leg press
standing calf raises
calves in hack squat
seating calf raises
any calf machine with a good range of motion
HAMSTRINGS
seating leg curls
standing leg curls
lying leg curls
stiff leg deadlift
sumo presses
QUADS
squats
smith squats
hack squat
leg press
I understand that all of you may not be able to do some of these, which is okay because as long as you train DC style, you'll be getting the full appreciation for it
Now you may be asking "Hey Beef, if this DC training of yours is so effective, why doesn't everyone do it?!"
In a short and faily simple anwser it's because people do what they know. The way you were trained dictates your training preferance. If you train like a powerlifter, it may be because the person who taught you was a powerlifter or THEY were trained by one who was. Every form of modern day training stems from what the guys in the 60's and Arnold was doing. Finally Yates and some others got people thinking about what truly is working when it comes to training. If you think about it-it's ridiculous some of these recommended routines in the magazines. Most training comes from peoples egos. People are so driven and desperate to get big that they believe they MUST do this and MUST do that every workout. Thirty sets here, with multiple exercises to hit every angle there. You know what that does? It dramatically cuts into your recovery ability (never mind amino acid pools and glycogen stores) so you cannot train that body part again in a couple days time. That defeats the purpose of rapid accumulation of muscle mass.
Now you may be saying "That sounds reasonable and possible, but how do I, a reader, come about starting such a simple, effective, program?"
To start-Three key exercises are picked for each body part. USING ONLY ONE OF THOSE EXERCISES PER WORKOUT you rotate these in order and take that exercise to it's ultimate strength limit (where at that certain point you change the exercise to a new one and get brutally strong on that new movement too). That can happen in 4 weeks or that can happen 2 years later but it will happen some time (You cannot continually gain strength to where you are eventually bench pressing 905 for reps obviously) Sometime later when you come back to that original exercise you will start slightly lower than your previous high and then soar past it without fail.
"Oh I see what you mean Beef, but what about DC makes it so effective? What do you believe it is?"
Every exercise is done with a controlled but explosive positive and a true 6-8 second negative phase. The science is there just read it. Almost every study states an explosive positive motion is the priming phase and the negative portion of an exercise should be done controlled and slowly. I have the mindset that I hope you guys develop. I try so hard to get the weight up only for the sole reason I can lower it slowly to cause eccentric phase cellular damage. And I STONGLY believe in Extreme Stretching. Extreme Stretching:it must be done, it's imperative. It stretches fascia and helps recovery immensely. It will dramatically change your physique in a short amount of time if done right, trust me on that. I hit on it in the first article of this series.
I'll look for my log-book of a few DC sessions that I have done in the past, but this is one of
someone else that knows what he's talking about
:
Example Day one
First exercise smith incline presses (I'll use the weights I use for example)
135 for warmup for 12
185 for 8 warmup
250 for 6 warmup
315 for 4 warmup
Then all out with 375 for 8 reps to total absolute failure (then 12-15 deep breaths) 375 for 2-4 reps to total absolute failure (then 12-15 deep breaths) 375 for 1-3 reps to absolute total failure (then a 20-30 second static hold) DONE!-that's it 375lbs for 8+4+3= 375 for 15 reps rest paused..... next week I go for 385 (again rest paused)-----directly after that rest pause set I go to extreme stretching flyes as described earlier and then that's it for chest and on to shoulders, triceps and back. The next time I come in to do chest I would do hammer flat presses in the same rest paused manner (and then extreme stretching again)---the time after that I come in to do chest I would do my third favorite exercise rest paused/stretched and then the cycle repeats.
Now that is pretty intense, if I do say so myself.
"Okay, I'm done your DC training for the day. Now what Beef?"
Technically, you're not finished until you do extreme stretching.
(Just a note: this is not for the faint hearted, DC extreme stretching is meant for people who can handle it and should not be attempted my a novice level person who's just looking for a new spilt and workout. It's for people with workout experiance and who know when to stop and call it quits)
Chest
Flat bench 90lb dumbbells chest high--lungs full of air--first 10 seconds
drop down into deepest stretch and then next 50 seconds really push the
stretch (this really, really hurts) but do it faithfully and come back and
post on the AE message board in 4 weeks and tell me if your chest isn't much
fuller and rounder
Triceps
Seated on a flat bench-my back up against the barbell---75lb dumbbell in my
hand behind my head (like in an overhead dumbbell extension)--sink dumbbell
down into position for the first 10 seconds and then an agonizing 50 seconds
slightly leaning back and pushing the dumbbell down with the back of my head
Shoulders
This one is tough to describe--put barbell in squat rack shoulder
height--face away from it and reach back and grab it palms up (hands on
bottom of bar)---walk yourself outward until you are on your heels and the
stretch gets painful--then roll your shoulders downward and hold for 60
seconds
Biceps
Just like the above position but hold barbell palms down now (hands on top of
bar)--sink down in a squatting position first and if you can hack it into a
kneeling position and then if you can hack that sink your butt down--60
seconds--I cannot make it 60 seconds-- I get to about 45—it’s too painful--if
you can make it 60 seconds you are either inhuman or you need to raise the
bar up another rung
Back
Honestly for about 3 years my training partner and I would hang a 100lb
dumbbell from our waist and hung on the widest chinup bar (with wrist straps)
to see who could get closest to 3 minutes--I never made it--I think 2 minutes
27 seconds was my record--but my back width is by far my best body part--I
pull on a doorknob or stationary equipment with a rounded back now and it’s
way too hard too explain here--just try it and get your feel for it
Hamstrings
Either leg up on a high barbell holding my toe and trying to force my leg
straight with my free hand for an excruciating painful 60 seconds
Quads
Facing a barbell in a power rack about hip high --grip it and simultaneously
sink down and throw your knees under the barbell and do a sissy squat
underneath it while going up on your toes. Then straighten your arms and lean
as far back as you can---60 seconds and if this one doesn't make you hate my
guts and bring tears to your eyes nothing will---do this one faithfully and
tell me in 4 weeks if your quads don’t look a lot different than they used to Calves
My weak body part that I couldn’t get up too par until 2 years ago when I
finally thought it out and figured out how to make them grow (with only one
set twice a week too). I don’t need to stretch calves after because when I do
calves I explode on the positive and take 5 seconds to get back to full
stretch and then 15 seconds at the very bottom "one one thousand, two one
thousand, three one thousand etc" --15 seconds stretching at the bottom
thinking and trying to flex my toes toward my shin--it is absolutely
unbearable and you will most likely be shaking and want to give up at about 7
reps (I always go for 12reps with maximum weights)--do this on a hack squat
or a leg press--my calves have finally taken off due to this and caught up to
the rest of me thank God.
If you doubt the extra muscle growth possible with stretching I urge you to research hyperplasia (and the bird wing stretching protocols) where time X stretch X weight induced incredible hyperplasia. Our stretching is done under much lower time periods but fascial stretching and the possibility of induced hyperplasia cant be ignored. I’ve had too many people write me or tell me in person that the "extreme stretching" has dramatically changed their physique to ever doubt its virtues.
"Wow, thanks Beef, I'm truly spent! If I have any questions, can I ask you?"
Absolutely! If you have any questions, feel free to post here (preferrably) or PM me.
I know there are some guys on here that do DC, and any help you can give to me and others would be appreciated. I'm not an EXPERT on DC, but I am pretty knowlegeable on the subject.
(P.S. - If I made you laugh, or this has helped at all reps are appreciated
)
I threw some of my humor in there, if you laughed, good. If you didn't, don't tell me how un-funny I am lol
