04 Nov Brian Carroll week 1 – offseason – bench

18 weeks out until the Arnold, which is March 7. I plan on taking these next 2 weeks to get back into the groove and lay a more solid foundation as I approach 5 weeks of offseason, then 10 weeks leading into the meet, starting at the end of Jan.

I plan on bringing my bodyweight down to the 260 range vs 265 – 268 so I can make the cut as simple as possible. I’ll be working on dropping the bodyweight slowly over the next 10 weeks.

I’ll continue with my walks every day, and I’ve actually added in some hill sprints to switch it up for a while.

The goals for the Arnold are to place well, and hit some big numbers at 242. I think with a good day, there’s only a few people who can beat me.

I’ll be working on building up my tricep/chest strength as well and back and quads. This last cycle was more of a retention cycle, as I tried to keep as much strength from 290+ as possible, so now the goal is to have some solid offseason time to build some strength/momentum going into the prep phase. You can read more about how I do this in 10/20/life.

Monday’s training:

Normal warm-up with Mcgill’s big 3/band fly

Floor press with football bar: Top set of 5, low RPE
225×5
275×5
315×5
365×5 – 2 sets

CG with pad top set of 5
315
365
405

DB press to finish off pecs
3×15

Band fly
3×15

Band skull/bench dip super set
4×15

Very fun session. I’ve been itching to start moving some weight again, so this was perfect. Nothing felt really heavy, just awkward as I’m knocking off some rust.

As I write this, I’m VERY VERY sore and it’s a good feeling. Time to get in shape, as the next 17 weeks or so will FLY by.

I’ll be doing a lot of high volume, fast paced but lower intensity over the next 7 weeks with each mini cycle being stepped up a bit in both. I’m really looking forward to putting some work in and seeing what happens in March at the XPC. Looks to be shaping up to a good meet. [share title=”Share this Article” facebook=”true” twitter=”true” google_plus=”true” linkedin=”true” pinterest=”true” reddit=”true” email=”true”][author title=”About the Author”]

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Brian Carroll

Owner and Founder at PowerRackStrength.com

Brian Carroll is committed to helping people overcome back pain and optimizing lifts and movement. After years of suffering, he met back specialist Prof. McGill in 2013, which led to a life-changing transformation. In 2017, they co-authored the best-selling book "Gift of Injury." On October 3, 2020, Carroll made history in powerlifting by squatting 1306 lbs, becoming the first person to break this record. He retired with a secure legacy and a life free from back pain.

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