13 Mar Dan Dalenberg | Powerbuilding Offseason | Week 1, Day 1 &2

I recently lifted at the Arnold XPC Finals. This was my first meet at 220 since 2010 where I managed a 955 squat, 675 bench and 675 deadlift for a 2305 total and lightweight best lifter win. Now that the meet is over and I won’t be competing again until the fall I am taking my first of two offseason blocks to train more like a bodybuilder and look better than Paul Oneid. 

I felt really good after the meet! Typical soreness and the like, but nothing that wasn’t expected. The first week, I didn’t do anything. I walked a little and did some McGill work but that was it. My body needed a break so it was good to not worry about training. My primary goal for the next 10 weeks is eating even better, getting leaner and training like a bodybuilder. For the first week back I asked Paul for some ideas, since our goals are basically the same right now. Moving forward, I will be using some of the content that Tucker and Brian are putting together to create a powerbuilding offseason.

Day 1- Legs

On paper this looked really easy. It wasn’t.

Calf Raises- 20, 15, 12, 12. I rigged up a short block and used a safety bar to load some weight. 135 for all 4 sets. My calves are LIT UP. Usually I think calf raises are dumb and don’t get anything out of it. I think since I wasn’t using a fixed range machine and had to balance myself with the SSB it recruited much more muscular activity.

Banded Side Walk/Banded Abductor Super set- 15, 15, 15, 15. This was another one that I thought was dumb. It wasn’t. I thought glute pumps weren’t real. They are.

Hamstring Curl (banded)/Single Leg Deadlift Superset- 15, 12, 10, 10.

Leg Extension (banded)- 20, 15, 12, 10

SSB Squat- 12, 10, 8, 8. 225 for all sets. Was cramping up pretty bad by the end. This session was much more challenging than I expected.

Day 2- Chest/Shoulders/Arms

Machine Press- Superset 2 grips: 12, 10, 8, 8

Machine Shoulder Press/Dumbbell Side Raise Superset: 12, 10, 10, 8

Cable Front Raise- 12, 10 , 8 ,8

Pec Fly- 15, 12, 10, 10

Machine Preacher Curl/Tricep Pressdown Superset- 15, 12, 10, 8, 8

Cardio- 15 minutes LISS

Pretty good session. My upper body is definitely more conditioned to the higher volume.

So far so good

I’m looking forward to the next several weeks. I feel really good and bodyweight is dropping nicely. It will be fun to see what I look like come June.