Resistance Bands + Weights - Day 34 - Train Like Frank Zane

Today is Day 34 of the Train Like Frank Zane workout series. We're now past a full month of doing Frank's PPL (Push Pull Legs) split, which has given me some time to evaluate many aspects of it - but not all. I believe if you really want to form a solid opinion about something you have to really give it a fair shake. In the case of training I would say that's probably about 12-weeks, to really see what kind of results (muscle built) it can deliver. In this case, even though it's only been a month, it's still sufficient to give feedback on other aspects of the training, including practicality of the split itself, based on factors like your schedule, age, goals, and ability to recover. It's also been a great opportunity to try many of Frank's favorite exercises, as well as his training techniques.

With all that said, this will be the last week of Train Like Frank Zane, so in the last of these workouts I'll share all of my thoughts on these topics. In this first workout we talk about the split itself. Since it's our last week I also thought it would be fun to incorporate some resistance bands into the workout. Frank is known for combining the variable resistance of bands with weights, to both increase the intensity of the workouts, the consistency in the resistance curve throughout the ROM (range of motion) and to maximize peak contractions. In this Push Workout, we included bands plus weights in our chest, shoulder and triceps exercises.

Here's a quick breakdown:

CHEST:
Machine Chest Press w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Incline Dumbbell Press - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Dumbbell Pullovers w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)

SHOULDERS:
Machine Shoulder Press w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Dumbbell Lateral Raises w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Dumbbell Front Raise w/ band - 3 sets (12/10/8)

TRICEPS:
Bar Dips w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Overhead Dumbbell Extensions w/ bands - 3 sets (12/10/8)
Cable Pushdowns - 3 sets (12/10/8)

ABS:
Hanging Leg Raises, Crunches & Seated Twists (30 reps for each set)

Finish off the workout with 15-minutes of moderate intensity rowing.

That's it for this workout, and I'll see you next one, which will be our final PULL workout for this series.


-JG
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