SWEAT!
Special Workouts, Exercises and
Advanced Techniques
By Geoffrey Verity Schofield
1
SWEAT!................................................................................................................................................................... 1
Special Workouts, Exercises and Advanced Techniques........................................................................................1
Introduction............................................................................................................................................................. 4
About the Author & Book........................................................................................................................................ 5
Compendium One: Body Parts.................................................................................................................................6
Compendium Two: Exercises................................................................................................................................. 12
Hinge...................................................................................................................................................................15
Squat...................................................................................................................................................................29
Row.....................................................................................................................................................................41
Push.................................................................................................................................................................... 50
Pull...................................................................................................................................................................... 60
Press................................................................................................................................................................... 65
Shoulders............................................................................................................................................................71
Curl..................................................................................................................................................................... 79
Extend.................................................................................................................................................................86
Abs...................................................................................................................................................................... 90
Calves..................................................................................................................................................................96
Compendium Three: Programming....................................................................................................................... 98
Sets and Reps..................................................................................................................................................... 98
Volume............................................................................................................................................................... 99
Intensity............................................................................................................................................................103
Frequency.........................................................................................................................................................104
Balancing Volume, Intensity and Frequency....................................................................................................105
Example Volume and Intensity Combinations................................................................................................. 107
Choosing a Split................................................................................................................................................ 109
Putting It All Together...................................................................................................................................... 112
Example of Creating a Training Plan.................................................................................................................112
Risk vs Reward..................................................................................................................................................114
Keeping a Training Log..................................................................................................................................... 116
Compendium Four: Equipment........................................................................................................................... 117
Essential Equipment......................................................................................................................................... 117
Optional Equipment......................................................................................................................................... 119
Personal Equipment......................................................................................................................................... 122
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Compendium Five: Special Workouts and Techniques....................................................................................... 124
Manipulating Sets.............................................................................................................................................125
Manipulating Reps............................................................................................................................................132
Compendium Six: Cardio......................................................................................................................................139
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).............................................................................................................. 139
HIIT Protocols................................................................................................................................................... 143
Low Intensity Steady State (LISS)..................................................................................................................... 144
Tracking Cardio.................................................................................................................................................144
LISS vs HIIT: How to Program Cardio................................................................................................................146
Compendium Seven: Injuries...............................................................................................................................148
General Strategies for Staying Healthy............................................................................................................ 148
Exercise Specific Technique Cues.....................................................................................................................152
My ______ Hurts.............................................................................................................................................. 155
Compendium Eight:............................................................................................................................................. 157
Sample Training Plans.......................................................................................................................................... 157
Training Plan One: The Lazy Man’s plan............................................................................................................ 158
Training Plan Two: The Busy Man’s plan..........................................................................................................163
Training Plan Three: Athlete Power Plan......................................................................................................... 166
Training Plan Four: Beast Plan..........................................................................................................................171
Training Plan Five: Deva Plan........................................................................................................................... 178
Training Plan Six: Spartan Plan......................................................................................................................... 181
Compendium Nine: Making Progress.................................................................................................................. 183
Swapping Exercises...........................................................................................................................................183
Progressing....................................................................................................................................................... 183
Minor Adjustments...........................................................................................................................................185
Major Adjustments...........................................................................................................................................189
Compendium Ten: Strength Standards............................................................................................................... 192
Frequently Asked Questions................................................................................................................................194
Appendix.............................................................................................................................................................. 196
Acknowledgements............................................................................................................................................. 219
3
Introduction
Exercise is the elixir of life, and the single best thing that you can do for yourself.
The only people who don’t agree with that statement are those who have never exercised and thus have
never experienced its benefits, or those who always have and thus take it for granted.
The goal of this book is not to set you on the path of exercising. You are clearly already interested in
pursuing that goal if you have opened this book. It will give you ideas, options and general guidelines to
optimize your plan. This book can be read from page one straight through, or in any order that you want.
Read some of it, all of it, or none of it. It’s up to you.
The information is here for you to take, but you’ll need to apply it to yourself through personal
experimentation. You will not be spoon-fed, but you will be better off because of it. Doing so will allow
you to become a better personal trainer of yourself than I or anyone else can. It will give you the
satisfaction of taking the responsibility of how you look and feel onto your own shoulders. Or, into your
own hands, if you prefer deadlifting metaphors. That’s my gift to you.
Compendium one is a brief introduction to your muscles, divided up by body parts. Also included are the
three most effective exercises as a reference for those who want to specifically develop that area.
Compendium two is the movement pattern section with a variety of exercises to choose from, divided up
into beginner, intermediate and advanced. A description of how to do the exercise, a few pictures of yours
truly and some tips and tricks are included. At the end it gives a suggested rep range, recovery cost and
overall effectiveness. All pictures are from REAL SETS, not just posing for the camera!
Compendium three will teach you about programming-how best to take the exercises from compendium
two and schedule them into your week for maximum results. How many sets, how heavy of weight to use,
how often you work out and more will be addressed here. The goal is to “hack” working out to get more
results in less time and effort. Time and willpower are limited resources, and you want to use them
intelligently. Compendium four is all about the equipment that will help you reach your goals and how to
tell if a gym is garbage. Compendium five introduces some special techniques that can help intermediate
and advanced lifters get more out of their training. If you’re looking for something to redefine what it
means to work hard and supercharge your progress, this is the section for you!
Compendium six is all about cardio and how to implement it into your schedule. Regardless of the
intensity or the form of exercise you choose, all the information you’ll need is here. Compendium seven
talks about injuries. How they happen, how to avoid them, and what to do if you’re already experiencing
one.
Compendium eight shares some sample training plans that you can try if you don’t want to fully develop
one for yourself. Compendium nine is about making adjustments to your training plan. Sometimes
entropy gets in the way of the best laid plans, and this will show you how to make things right.
Compendium ten is about strength standards, to give you an idea of how you compare to the rest of the
world.
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About the Author & Book
Ever since I popped out of the womb, I’ve always been interested in how things
work. I’ve also always been pretty active. In high school I ran cross country and
track and field, but was constantly injured due to poor training choices. I was either
skinny, or worse, skinny-fat. Diet was less than an afterthought, as a lot of it got
burnt off in the furnaces of youth and hard miles, but often
my progress was transient and unpredictable. About five
years ago, I started lifting weights. I started with just the bar
on a lot of exercises, and some less than that. I made good
progress though, and went from 68kg to 78kg in about four months. I was hooked.
Over the next few years, I read hundreds, if not thousands of hours about training.
Websites, articles, books, forum posts, social media groups, old Soviet training
manuals, descriptions of Olympians favorite workouts, anything I could get my
hands on about how to get top results. During this time I went up to about 96kg,
all drug free. I made a lot of friends along the way too! I don’t have a degree in
physiology or anything fitness related, but I’ve discovered what works for me, and I’m determined to help
you find what works for you. Every body is different, and I would never claim that my plan should be
your plan-but between these pages is something that is perfect for you.
I’ve read many workout books that looked professional but were actually complete crap-the knowledge
between these covers is what motivates me to write it. In some ways it’s like
the training itself. If you stick to the basics
and work hard, you don’t need a lot of
fancy technology or automation to get the
job done.
You can find a plethora of posts on quora15 million or more views there, and
training videos on Instagram. My DMs are
open, just mention that you are a proud
owner of this book.
https://www.quora.com/profile/Geoffrey-Verity-Schofield
https://www.instagram.com/geoffreyverityschofield/
Finally, a shout-out to my sponsors, www.baleaf.com You guys are the best.
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Compendium One: Body Parts
This section will give a brief and simple introduction on the anatomy of the area and its main functions.
It won’t go into excruciating detail or use overly scientific language, but will share enough to help you
train more effectively. When you know the function of a muscle, you can target it better. This section is
also useful for those who are interested in developing or improving a certain area of their body. If you
want bigger biceps or quads, this can give you a quick glance at the “best” three exercises for that area.
There is some overlap between this section and the movement pattern sections. You’ll see the same
exercises in both.
Shoulders
Shoulders, or “deltoids”, are one of the most important body parts. They are vital to create a “V-shape”
of the body which is aesthetic for both men and women. Direct shoulder work
can also help maintain shoulder health, something
that is certainly important for long term progress
in the gym!
Shoulders can be difficult to train, because the
shoulder joint has a huge range of motion and the
various parts of the muscle have many different
functions. The front of the shoulder raises the
upper arm or brings it in front across the body,
and is heavily involved with pressing and pushing exercises like bench press,
dips and overhead press. The side of the shoulder raises the arm to the side and is involved in overhead
work, particularly behind the neck, as well as lateral raises. The rear shoulder does the opposite of the
front of the shoulder, moving the arm from in front to back behind you and is recruited with most
pulling and rowing exercises. Shoulders respond well to higher reps (twelve to twenty) and recover fast as
well, making how frequently you train them important.
Three best front shoulder exercises:
• Standing Barbell Overhead Press
• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press
• Incline Bench Press
Three best side shoulder exercises:
• Lateral Raise
• Cable Lateral Raise
• Seated Lateral Raise
Three best rear shoulder exercises:
• Seated/Prone Rear Delt Raise
• Standing Rear Delt Raise
• Face Pull
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Traps
The traps are a large muscle in the back that attaches the entire length of the
shoulder blades. The main function of
the traps is to move your shoulder
blades up, together or down. Since the
first and last of those functions are
complete opposites, a variety of
exercises are necessary to fully develop
the traps.
Large traps convey an appearance of power and density, and proper development is crucial for long term
shoulder health. Because they are near the head, trap development is very recognizable, if someone has
development in this area it can completely change the way they look. They have the fastest growth
response of any muscle group listed here. If you train them properly you should notice results almost
immediately, certainly in less than a week. They respond very quickly to heavy weights with a bit of higher
rep work. They’re also very durable so don’t be afraid to really go after ‘em.
Three best upper trap exercises:
• Shrug
• Farmers Walks
• Low Pull from the Hang
Three best middle trap exercises:
• Barbell Bent Over Row
• Cable/Chest Supported/Machine row
• Kroc Row
Three best lower trap exercises:
• Wide Grip Pullup
• Behind the Neck pulldown
• Face Pull
Lats
The lats are the largest back muscle and are among the largest in the entire body.
They are mainly responsible for bringing the upper arm from above the body to
down alongside it. Well-developed lats are important for creating width in the
upper body and are visible from both the front and back. They are also the only
muscle that attaches to both the upper and lower body,
making them a vital stabilizer during many lifts. The lats
respond best to higher rep training, in the twelve to
twenty rep range, and a higher overall volume. They’re
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very durable and can tolerate a lot of punishment. I’ve never even heard of someone tearing a lat. Attack
those bad boys.
The three best lat exercises are:
•
Pullups
•
Pulldowns
•
Standing Cable Pullover
Chest
The chest, or “pecs”, are a vital and visible part of the
upper body. Even when wearing clothes, it is very clear
when fully developed. The chest is mainly responsible
for bringing the upper arm across the body. The chest
is best hit with compound exercises like all sorts of
bench pressing and dips, but isolation work like flys
can be useful as well. The chest responds to a good range of motion and stretch,
and a variety of rep ranges. They are a bit more fragile than some other muscles, so be slightly more
conservative when training chest. Pec tears and strains are very common in those who bench press a lot.
The three best chest exercises are:
• Incline Bench Press
• Dips
• Dumbbell Bench press
Triceps
The triceps are a three-headed muscle that are located on the back of the upper arm. Their main function
is to extend the elbow, straightening the arm. The triceps are
actually a lot bigger than the biceps,
particularly if the arm is resting alongside the
torso. Since it is most of the time in life, if
you want bigger arms, triceps are the place to
put emphasis on.
The triceps are hit quite hard from both
pushing and pressing exercises such as bench press, incline press and overhead press. Direct exercises to
isolate the muscle is not necessary but can accelerate growth. Overhead triceps work is the best way to hit
the “long head” of the triceps, which has the most potential for growth. Triceps respond best to low to
moderate reps. The six to eight rep range for compound exercises (dips and close grip bench press) and
the eight to twelve for isolation is perfect. No need to go crazy with the volume.
The three best exercises to hit the triceps are:
• Overhead Cable Extension
• Dips
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• Overhead Dumbbell Extension
Biceps
The biceps are a small yet potentially visually
stunning muscle. When someone asks you to
flex a muscle, they invariably expect you not to
show your leg, chest or back but to raise your
arm and show your bicep. The main function
of the bicep is to flex or curl the elbow, which
happens during pulling and rowing exercises, but isolation work is
perhaps useful for maximal growth. The best way to train the biceps
are through pullups and rows, but also through curling variations such as basic barbell curls, reverse curls,
preacher curls, dumbbell curls and hammer curls. Biceps respond best to the eight to fifteen rep range, and
can handle quite a bit of volume. Try to keep your form strict when curling, not swinging the weight. It’s
very easy on some of these exercises to be working hips, shoulders and lower back rather than the actual
bicep!
The three best bicep exercises are:
• Pullups
• Standing Barbell Curl
• Preacher Curl
Forearms
Forearms are a crucial, yet often overlooked body part. When
wearing clothing that humans typically prefer, they are one of the
few body parts that are visible, and thus their development or
lack thereof is almost always on display. They are also critical for
elbow and wrist health, and holding onto heavy rows and
deadlifts. The forearms will naturally get trained when holding
onto such heavy barbell work, but for maximal growth some
specific work should be done.
•
The three most effective forearm exercises are:
•
Bent over row
•
Reverse Grip Curls
Farmers Walks
Quads
Aesthetically, quadriceps are the most impressive
muscle in the lower body. Furthermore, well
developed quads are important for keeping the knee
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joint healthy. Their main function is to extend the knee, like in a kicking motion. They also greatly
contribute to squatting and deadlifting strength, sprinting and overall sports performance. Quads respond
well to high volume, but to make sure that your knees feel fine, it’s best to add sets gradually over time.
Additionally, when squatting, make sure that you are actually using the quads rather than the hamstrings,
glutes and lower back-see the squat movement pattern section for more details.
The three best quadriceps exercises are:
• High Bar Back Squat
• Front Squat
• Bulgarian Split Squat (short step)
Glutes
Glute development is the most widely sought out
muscle group for female trainees but they are
important for men as well. They mainly extend the
hips which happens naturally when walking, running or
getting up from a chair. Strong glutes greatly
contribute to athletic performance. The squat, deadlift, Olympic lifting as well as
sprinting and jumping all rely heavily on “dat ass”. If you want to be more athletic,
the glutes are a good place to add muscle. They respond well to low reps, but the occasional high rep set
can also be very effective.
The three most effective glute exercises are:
• Glute Bridge
• Sumo Deadlift
• Lunge (long step)
Hamstrings
The hamstrings are located on the back of the upper leg and are responsible for
extending the hip joint, just as the glutes, but also
flexing the knee joint. While not a particularly visible or
aesthetic muscle, the hamstrings are vital for sports
performance. Sprinting, jumping, deadlifting and
Olympic lifting are all very reliant on the massive
explosive power that the hamstrings provide. If you
want to run faster and jump higher, focus on the
hammies. They respond best to low reps and low
volume. They definitely aren’t the most resilient muscle
group in the body, so it’s best not to go crazy with how many sets you do.
The three most effective hamstring exercises are:
• Romanian Deadlift (RDL)
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• Nordic Hamstring Curl
• Hamstring Ball Curl
Calves
When calves are not very well developed it is very obvious, contributing to the “chicken leg” appearance.
They mainly extend the ankle, like when a ballerina is
dancing. The calves are somewhat stimulated by lower body
movements such as squats and Olympic lifting, as well as
running and sprinting, but for maximal development
isolation work is definitely needed. You can do damn near
anything to the calves and they won’t have problems. We
walk around on them all day so they are build to last.
Higher reps, or slower reps including pauses to really feel
the calf muscle rather than the Achilles tendon work, are
ideal due to the range of motion naturally being pretty short.
The three best calf exercises:
• Standing calf raise
• Seated calf raises
• Leg press calf raise
Abs
The abdominal region is comprised of several distinct muscle groups and
fully developed abs are very visually impressive, especially at a low body fat
percentage. That last point is mainly a factor of
diet, not training, which is slightly beyond the
scope of this book.
Many of the abdominal muscles will be hit
during overhead presses, squats and deadlifts,
but targeted work can really make the
abdominal muscles appear clearly. They can
also help you maintain correct posture and prevent injury. Abs respond
better to higher reps and high variety of movements.
The three best ab exercises:
• Side bend (obliques-side of abs)
• Ab wheel (upper abs)
• Foot to bar (lower abs)
Section Recap: Each muscle group has a unique group of functions,
and requires specific exercises to maximize its potential.
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Compendium Two: Exercises
The exercises listed below are grouped by movement pattern. This means that each group of exercises
works similar muscles, listed below:
Hinge-Hamstrings, Glutes, Lower Back, Abs
Squat-Quads, Glutes, Lower Back, Abs
Row-Lats, Traps, Rear Shoulders, Biceps, Forearms
Push-Chest, Front Shoulders, Triceps
Pull-Lats, Rear Shoulders, Biceps, Forearms
Press-Front+Side Shoulders, Triceps, Abs
Shoulders-Front+Side+Rear Shoulders
Curl-Biceps, Forearms
Extend-Triceps
Abs-Abs (duh)
Calves-Calves (also duh)
Having a good variety of movements to choose from allows you to really tailor your program to yourself.
Don’t like a movement? Then don’t do it. Switch it out for something similar but different. That isn’t to
say you should completely avoid squatting variations just because you don’t like them, but if you really
like back squatting and detest front squatting, there is absolutely no harm in choosing what you like to do.
You need to enjoy your training for it to be sustainable.
I don’t give you hundreds of exercises so that you can do hundreds of exercises. I give you hundreds of
exercises so that you can find the best twenty to forty that are ideal for you. Find two to four exercises per
movement pattern that target the muscles that you want to develop, you enjoy doing on some level, and
can do pain free.
How to read this section
This section is broken down into the eleven movement patterns, with roughly ten to fifteen exercises for
each. In each movement pattern section, it will note which muscles it targets, give some tips and tricks on
how to get optimal results, share some considerations for volume, frequency and intensity as well as how
to keep you safe and injury free. For each exercise, there will be a picture or two showing the movement
and a short description of how to perform the exercise. There will also be a few notes for every exercise:
difficulty, effectiveness, recovery cost, rep range and priority.
Difficulty is simply when it is suggested to try this movement.
Beginner means that this exercise is appropriate for anyone, even someone on their first day starting in the
gym.
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Intermediate exercises are ones that should be tried only after a few months of mastering beginner level
exercises. A beginner COULD start off would these, but there is no real reason to-they are better off left
for later in most cases.
Advanced exercises are ones that complete beginners have no business attempting
under any circumstances. These exercises are often extremely effective, but are
more difficult to learn and are potentially risky if you haven’t already mastered the
lower levels. Try them after you have a few months of beginner and intermediate
exercises under your belt.
Keep in mind that some exercises in the
beginner section are extremely effective. Just
because they are easy to learn does not mean
that they are not great exercises. Even Olympic
level athletes have a lot to gain from “simple”
exercises like back extensions (see left) and
pulldowns (see right). When you “graduate” to
another level of exercises, that doesn’t mean you can’t go back to or keep doing the lower level ones.
Effectiveness is simply how effective the exercise is at changing your body. This number is compared to
the other exercises in the same movement pattern, but also as a whole. For example, the average hinge
exercise, many of which work half a dozen or more major muscle groups, has an effectiveness higher than
that of a curling exercise, which is mainly targeting just part of the arms and not much else. A deadlift will
be far more effective at changing your body than a bicep curl will be, just because it is affecting more of
your body. It’s science.
Pulling and rowing exercises can work the biceps just as well as curling exercises, pushing and pressing
exercises can stimulate the triceps about as well as extending exercises, and other upper body movements
can replace some direct shoulder work.
The curl, extend and shoulder movement patterns are thus best thought of as
supplements to the main lifts. You could cut them out and not see much of a
difference. They’re replaceable. No exercise, however, can truly replace hinging,
squatting, pressing, pushing, rowing and pulling exercises, especially the heavy
barbell and dumbbell movements. They are fundamental.
You’ll notice that there is no exercise listed that is a ten-that’s because no
exercise is fully effective. I just couldn’t bring myself to put any exercise on that
pedestal. You’ll also notice that no exercise listed is below a three. That’s
because I’m not going to write a book and bother including shitty exercises. You only get the good ones.
Three=Niche movement, perhaps useful in some situations
Four=Fully replaceable, but useful in some circumstances
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Five=Decent exercise, worth cycling in occasionally
Six=Good movement, use it sometimes
Seven=Great exercise, consider scheduling it in often
Eight=A staple. Definitely worth regularly using.
Nine=Truly amazing exercise, keep in your program much of the time.
Recovery Cost is how much of a physical and mental toll the exercise takes on your body. This often
closely correlates with effectiveness. The more effective an exercise is, generally the longer it takes to
recover from. That’s just the nature of the game. Greater risk sometimes equals greater reward. The
exercises that can “mess you up” also trigger the most possible gains, for that very reason.
Rep Range is how many reps you should do per set for the exercise. Just because a certain number is listed,
doesn’t mean you have to use any or all of them, it just means that generally speaking, that range is a good
place to be.
For example, pulldowns are listed at eight to twenty, so that means that you could do sets of ten reps, sets
of twelve reps, sets of sixteen reps. You could do eight reps per set sometimes and twenty sometimes, even
in the same workout. Now…you could do sets of six reps, or sets of twenty-five reps. I’m not your mom.
It just means that it is either inefficient, less effective, or dangerous.
Priority is how you can program the movement, which I’ll admit is somewhat subjective. This is mostly
just to give you a general idea of which exercises you should be focusing on. Main movements are those
that can be focused on and progressed for years and years. These are mainly barbell and dumbbell
movements and are your “bread and butter”. If you are gluten intolerant, pick another phrase-I guess they
are your “rice and oil”. Assistance movements are slightly lower priority-they are mainly used to correct
weaknesses, get in extra volume and add some variety to your program. They’re usually slightly easier to
recover from. Tertiary movements are those that are the lowest priority, easiest to recover from and are
mostly used to balance your physique, bring up your weak pointsor target a specific area.
Equipment is what you need to do the movement. Make sure you have access to these items before
charging into battle. There’s no point in planning to do back extensions when you don’t have access to a
forty-five degree back extension machine or benching when your gym doesn’t have a bench press!
14
Section Recap: Each exercise has a difficulty, effectiveness, recovery
cost, suggested rep range, programming priority and required
equipment listed in it’s description, as well as instructions on how to
do the exercise itself in bold.
Hinge
Hinge exercises generally work the hamstrings, glutes and lower back. If you want an attractive back of the
body, incorporating some of these exercises is a must. These are some of the most physically and mentally
difficult of physical things you can do, but the payoff is worth it, because no movement pattern can so
completely transform your physique.
I would encourage everyone to deadlift in some manner, and there are many types in this section to choose
from that vary in difficulty. It’s the best lower back muscle strengthener out there, and when those
muscles are strong, they will actually protect you from back pain. They’re also a great trap, lat and
forearm developer. However, I would not recommend doing deadlift variations with high frequency or
volume-because they are so taxing, it’s better to be conservative. A good rule of thumb would be
deadlifting once a week in most circumstances, and if you want to add more hinge type work, substitute in
exercises that are easier to recover from such as back extensions, hamstring curls, pullthroughs and glute
bridges.
For almost all of these exercises, it is vital that you are hinging at the HIPS, not the lower back. You want
your spine to move minimally, if at all. Before lifting, make sure that you take a deep breath into your
belly to stabilize your core. Breathing through the nose will help make sure you are breathing into your
belly. Pretend like you are about to get punched in the stomach. A lifting belt can help, see the section on
equipment for details.
Back Extension
One of the best hamstring and glute exercises, the back extension is beginner friendly, very safe, and the
best way to learn how to properly hinge at the hips. The pad locks you into the correct position and you
can focus on using the glutes and hamstrings. It’s important to place the pad in the correct place-it should
be at the top of your thigh as shown in the pictures. If it is too high, it will prevent you from hinging at
the hip and it will turn into a lower back exercise. If it is too low, it’ll bother your knees. Find the correct
15