photo credit: d_vdm
Lyle McDonald of BodyRecomposition is very well known for his in depth and no BS approach when discussing nutrition and fat loss. He has published a total of seven books, all of which are incredible resources especially when learning about proper dieting. To date, he has not published any books on training, but I suspect that day may come eventually.
Speaking of training, he has developed his own generic bulking routine which has its own sticky in the bodybuilding section on his infamous discussion forum. The program has been hashed out ad nauseam by the forum members and Lyle has referenced it in one of his training articles in which he discusses a few popular hypertrophy training programs such as DC Training and HST Training.
Lyles Bulking Routine is a combination of strength training and higher rep hypertrophy training. Here is an excerpt of the training article in which Lyle explains his bulking routine.
My generic bulking program is stock in the middle because I’m a middle of the road kind of guy. I generically like to see a body part hit about 2X/week with slightly lowered intensity (relative to DC) although higher than Bryan’s HST. I recommend about a rep short of failure so that the volume (which is higher per workout than either DC or HST) can be accomplished. I’m trying to strike a volume between the issues of frequency (for gene expression and protein synthesis), recovery (failure training can burn people out) and progression (I want to see the poundages going up consistently over the cycle).
Who is Lyle McDonald’s Bulking Routine for?
Bodybuilders, intermediate trainees, and your basic gym rats who train to look good naked. I cannot recommend such a program for newbies as they are more likely to benefit from more strength oriented training as well as full body programming.
The Bulking Routine
As presented directly on the forums.
Mon: Lower
Squat: 3-4X6-8/3′ (3-4 sets of 6-8 with a 3′ rest)
SLDL or leg curl: 3-4X6-8/3′
Leg press: 2-3X10-12/2′
Another leg curl: 2-3X10-12/2′
Calf raise: 3-4X6-8/3′
Seated calf: 2-3X10-12/2′Tue: Upper
Flat bench: 3-4X6-8/3′
Row: 3-4X6-8/3′
Incline bench or shoulder press: 2-3X10-12/2′
Pulldown/chin: 2-3X10-12/2′
Triceps: 1-2X12-15/1.5′
Biceps: 1-2X12-15/1.5′For the Thu/Fri workouts either repeat the first two or make some slight exercise substitutions. Can do deadlift/leg press combo on Thu, switch incline/pulldown to first exercises on upper body day. A lot depends on volume tolerance, if the above is too much, go to 2-3X6-8 and 1-2X10-12
This is a four day training program and could possibly be converted into a three day program alternating upper and lower workouts every other day. As Lyle suggests, if the routine as laid out is a bit much, start conservatively with the volume and subtract a set on each exercise.
I highly recommend this programming to trainees who are past the beginner phase. I usually have them start out on the lower end of the spectrum regarding volume, and ask that they slowly ease into more volume as their work capacity improves.
Recently, a member on the BR forums by the name of alisenon came out of nowhere and gathered all of the great pieces of info in the generic bulking thread. Soon after the information was gathered another member by the name of Conciliator edited and converted the guide to PDF format. Lyle McDonalds Generic Bulking Routine FAQ
Can this be done on a cut?? I can’t imagine myself doing all these on a caloric deficit,
reduce volume by about half for best results and possibly vary the frequency – maybe every other day instead of 4 days per week.
Great article there
Love this routine JC. I’ve been doing Lyle’s generic bulking routine for quite a while.
Just FYI – I believe Lyle added ab work to the Lower component now.
Thanks for the kind words GMichel. I was literally thanking the bodybuilding gods when I found this PDF myself.
JC, great summary and discussion of, Lyle’s Bulking Routine. I also find it quite enjoyable that you posted a link to a pdf guide version of the program, personally whenever I looked for it, it proved to be elusive. Thanks!