Countdown to Strength Challenge Week 3 Live Tutorial Transcript

Note: This tutorial video was recorded as a live Facebook event. The text below is an edited transcript of the tutorial intended to provide members with a convenient means of referring to and further researching the topics and content detailed in the video.

Transcript

Happy Sunday, JYM Army. We're going to be talking about Week 3 of my Countdown to Strength Challenge. Now, remember, today's the last day—you can still—just because I'm on Week 3—I'll be starting Week 3 tomorrow—doesn't mean you can't start at Week 1 tomorrow. So April 15th—that's today—last day to sign up for the challenge. 

Gain Strength, Lose Fat, and Build Muscle with Countdown to Strength

Now, since it's the last day, I will remind everyone of the benefits of this challenge. Even though it's called Countdown to Strength Challenge, in addition to the strength gains that you're making people are absolutely dumbfounded after two weeks—at least those who started with me two weeks ago—at the amount of fat loss that they're experiencing during this strength-training program. 

They're getting stronger while they're getting considerably leaner, and it's rather easy because that full-body training keeps your metabolism on fire all day long. You're literally a calorie-burning machine because you have all the metabolic genes activated in most of your muscle fibers throughout the body every single day, meaning you're burning more calories, more fat, every single day—all while you're making gains in muscle strength and muscle size. 

So, if you haven't signed up, you are missing out on not just the fun that we're all having training together—because, remember, I'm going through this right along with you guys, so we're essentially long-distance training partners. No matter where you're training in the world, many of us, tomorrow, are starting this Week 3 Workout 1 together—long-distance training partners. 

We'll get into Week 3 today, but like I said because today's the last day to sign up I really want to talk about the incredible results that people with this program, let alone the fun. Fun with training? Yeah. I'm all about designing programs that keep you from getting bored so that you're always looking forward to the next workout, the next week—there's something new coming. 

Each and every week with my Countdown to Strength Challenge, we change the program. Not the exercises—remember, the three main lifts that we're focusing on are the bench press, the squat, and the deadlift. 

I've been putting up video tips throughout the weeks as I'm going through this Countdown to Strength Challenge: How to figure out your 1-rep max, because we really want to get a true 1-rep max; I've talked about using the 1-rep max table that is available in the overview. I'll say, for those of you tuning in right now, even if you haven't joined the challenge you could still do the workouts with me.

You can go to the Countdown to Strength Challenge overview at JimStoppani.com—you can look, I've put the link up several times on Facebook and Instagram—you can find that link and go directly to the article that explains the entire program. You can follow right along, you can let me know whether you're doing the workouts—whether or not you've even joined the challenge, you can still do the workouts—or you can go right along with me. It's up to you. 

Fewer Reps and Heavier Weight Mean Continued Results

Go there now to the Countdown to Strength Challenge overview so that you can see what I'm talking about with the design of this program. Each and every week we get heavier in weight, mainly on these three lifts—the bench press, squat, and the deadlift—so it's a classical linear periodized program. Getting heavier each week; reps are getting lower. 

Week 2 we did 4x4s on all three lifts. Week 1, we did 5x5s. Now as we get into Week 3—or at least those of us who are getting into Week 3—some of us might be starting Week 1 tomorrow, if you just signed up. Some of us may have completed Week 1 and are into Week 2, and some of us are right along with me going into Week 3. Doesn't matter where you are, this information will eventually be very helpful for you. So, 4x4s into 3x3s. 

Now, for all the assistance exercises—and now I'm talking about your rows, your lateral raises, your shrugs, your curls, your calf raises, your triceps extensions—we're going to be doing, in Week 3, 30 reps per exercise. Week 2, it was 40 reps per exercise, and I'll state again that just because the reps are dropping doesn't mean the program is getting any easier—it's actually getting harder because the weight is going to go up. And we'll talk about these assistance exercises in just a minute.

On the bench press, the squat, and the deadlift, we are also increasing the weight each and every week—like I said, 5x5 to 4x4 in Week 2, 3x3 in Week 3, 2x2 in Week 4, and then we'll be back at 1 set testing our true 1-rep max in Week 5 again to see how we do. 

Now, we're not only—when we do these 3x3s, 4x4s, 5x5s—we're not just loading up as much weight as we can do and doing 3x3s. Oh, we're going to do that—we'll definitely do that, for one workout. But in the other workouts, we're going to be doing slow reps and fast reps in the same style, 3 sets of 3. 

Estimating Weight Used for Week 3

I've explained this in my other live tutorials, I've explained this in the overview that you guys should be looking at right now, but I'll say it again. We are going to be using—you can't use your 3-rep max to get 3 sets of 3, or your 4-rep max to get 4 sets of 4. So, in Week 2, I recommend using somewhere around 80% of your 4-rep max for 4 sets of 4, because remember you have to complete all 16 reps. 

It's not just putting on the weight you can get 4 reps, getting 4 reps on Set 1, maybe 4 reps on Set 2, and then 2, maybe 3 on Sets 3 and 4. No, that doesn't equal 16 reps—you must hit all 4 reps on all 4 sets, so it would be impossible unless you're resting 20 minutes. Even if you're resting that long, by the 4th set you'd probably be too fatigued to complete all 4 reps if you're truly using the max weight that you can get 4 reps with. No matter how long you rest, by Set 4 you're not going to be able to get 4 reps, or you didn't use your true 4-rep max.

So I'm recommending you go a bit lighter—around 80% of your 4-rep max—so that you can complete all 4 reps. Now, using 80% means that Set 1 is going to be not to failure, but stop at 4. Set 2 might not even be to failure. It might not be until you get into Set 3 or Set 4 where you're truly hitting failure on the 4th rep. That's the point: To complete all those reps. 

It's All About Reps, NOT Training to Failure

Remember, this program, reps are the ultimate goal, unlike my Shortcut to Size program. In Shortcut to Size, for the bench press, you had a rep range. Let's say it was Week 1: 12-15 reps, 4 sets. Now, you don't have to get 12-15 reps in all 4 sets in Shortcut to Size. That's where the confusion may come in. 

With Shortcut to Size, you pick a weight that you can get 12-15 reps with, and then on Set 1, you make sure you get at least 12-15 reps. You have to hit the rep range for that set. Set 2, it doesn't matter if you get 3, okay? But you keep the weight the same on all sets. In Shortcut to Size, completing those reps doesn't matter. 

Countdown to Strength, both the weight and the reps matter—but, unlike with Shortcut to Size where you're going to failure on every single set, here with the 4 sets of 4 you're not going to failure on that first set or you'll never get 4 on the last set. 

So now, in Week 3, we drop down for the bench presses, squats, and deadlifts, 3 sets of 3 reps. You can go considerably heavier. You're going to look at your 1-rep max table to figure out your 3-rep max. Then, I would recommend you use about 90% of that as your weight to do 3 sets of 3, because you have to get all 9 reps. With 90% of your true 3-rep max, that first set of 3 is going to be short of failure—you're not going to hit failure, it's going to be a bit light. But like I said, that's exactly what you want. You don't want to hit failure until you get to that last 2 sets or so. 

You May Already Be Stronger Than You Think

Now, I will say, for those of us who are getting into Week 3, we tested our 1-rep max over two weeks ago, right? You're already stronger. So, we're estimating our 3-rep max here from our 1-rep max from a few weeks ago. That's no longer accurate because you're probably stronger already, at least a good 10-20 lbs on each one of those lifts, I'm guessing. 

So when you get to Week 3, now, because you're considerably stronger, the 3-rep max that you're looking at on the table that corresponds to your 1-rep max is history, because you can lift probably more now. So you may find that 90% of your estimated 3-rep max on that 1-rep max table is too light, and you'll know right at Set 1. You'll just bang out 3 reps and you're like, "Wow, I could get six with that weight," far, far too light. 

You may be able to do 100% of your 3-rep max for 3 sets of 3 during this week. That weight will no longer be your real 100% 3-rep max, because you're considerably stronger. Remember, we're going with old numbers, but it's close enough. So just be aware that when you look at the table, and then you find your 3-rep max and you use 90%—that's not in stone. I'm not saying that's what you have to use for weight. 

All that is is an indicator of the weight you should be choosing somewhere around. It just helps you select a better range of weight. It's not going to help you select the exact weight for you—we're all individuals, so we're all a bit different—but it gives you an indication of the weight right around what you should be using, based on your previous—but you may need to go heavier, or lighter, depending on where you are in the program and how you respond.

When we do the fast and the slow reps, now—and I've said this before as well—you're going to take whatever weight—the 90% of the 3x3—and use half of that. But again, it's just a ballpark figure. So, let's say your 3-rep max is 200 lbs. 90% of that is 180 lbs. Half of 180 is 90 lbs, so when you get to these 3x3s on both the fast day and the slow day, you're going to be using 90 lbs. That's it. 

Now, if you find that to be far too light, you certainly can increase the weight. If you find it to be heavy, you can decrease the weight. Remember, these are just ballpark figures for you guys to get a good estimate of where you should be. From there, you're going to have to make a decision of whether or not you need to go a little heavier, a little lighter, or that really nailed it—it was perfect. Some of you are going to find, "Damn, that one-rep max chart puts me right where I need to be every single time." For the rest of us, it might not even be close. 

Increase Weight for Assistance Exercises, Too

Let's talk about the assistance exercises. 40 reps in Week 2, 50 reps in Week 1, 30 reps in Week 3, and again—to the untrained eye—it looks like the program's getting easier. We did 50 reps for the barbell row in Week 1, we're only doing 40 reps of the barbell row in Week 2, and we're only doing 30 reps of the barbell row in Week 3. Easier? No. Just fewer reps, heavier weight. 

Because when we get to Week 2, we're doing 4 sets of 10; Week 3, we're doing 3 sets of 10. Week 1, we did 5 sets of 10. So you would think, "Well Jim, three sets of ten is one set less than four sets of ten, which is one set less than five sets of ten. So, fewer sets, less total work, right? Fewer reps." No. We also have resistance moved. So even though we have fewer repetitions, we're using considerably heavier weight because, like I said, this isn't putting on a weight that allows you to get 10 reps and then doing 4 sets. 

You need to get all 40 reps in Week 2. So each set, you need to complete 10 reps. In Week 3, each set you need to complete 10 reps as well, but when you have to do 4 sets of 10 versus 3 sets of 10, well you need to use considerably lighter weight when you're doing the 4 sets than the 3 sets. Week 3 looks like far less work, but remember you're going to be able to lift more weight. 

Each and every week, all of these exercises should be increasing in weight. I mentioned this last week in the tutorial, your goal really should be—if you're doing 4 sets of 10 on the barbell rows in Week 2 with, let's say 225 lbs, when you get to 3 sets of 10 you'd better not be using 225 lbs. You'd better be using at least 230, 235—whatever you do, make sure you try to at least increase the weight the smallest increment that still allows you to get all of those reps. 

Each week, the exercise that you're doing—whether it's the wrist curl, the barbell curl—should be slightly heavier than the week before. Might be considerably heavier than the week before depending on how strong you're getting. So don't be fooled into thinking that because we're dropping reps here down to 30 reps per exercise that it gets any easier. We're just swapping out sets and rep ranges which means you're using heavier weight.

For example, in the dumbbell lateral raise, last week we did 2 sets of 20. This week we're doing 2 sets of 15. 2 sets, fewer reps, heavier weight. Actually more intense of a workout when you consider it that way. So, don't be fooled into thinking that it's getting easier, it's just a different way to mix up your rep ranges. 

Variety of Set and Rep Schemes Keeps it Interesting

You'll notice, what most people really enjoy about this program—other than the results that they're getting—is the way that I mix up the rep ranges. You're not just doing the same crap each workout. You're not doing barbell row 4 sets of 10, dumbbell lateral raise 4 sets of 10, dumbbell shrug 4 sets of 10, overhead triceps extension 4 sets of 10, barbell curl 4 sets of 10. Although you're hitting all 40 reps—or all 30 reps in Week 3—the set and rep ranges are very unique, but all totaling 30 reps. 

3x10 equals 30, 2x15 equals 30, 10x3 equals 30—those are all considerably different set and rep ranges, and weight that you would figure you need. 2 sets of 15 is very light weight, right? 10 sets of 3 is on the heavy side. However, you can't just look at the 3 here. You can't just say, "Oh, three reps versus fifteen. If this was the same exercise, this one would be considerably easier than—" No. It's 2 sets of 15 versus 10x3, so even though you would think that with 3 you'd be going considerably heavier to do fewer reps, you have to do 10 sets of 3 reps. 

What I recommend is, to complete those 10 sets—and if you read the notes that I have how you're doing that, you're just banging those out as quickly as possible—it ends up not being that heavy of a weight because you're not getting that much rest between those 10 sets. So don't be fooled into what these rep ranges look like. They're all difficult and they're all going to get you, at 30 reps—fatigue you in a different manner using a different set and rep range, all equaling the same total reps when you're done. 

The variety of the sets and rep ranges is what everybody loves, not to mention the variety of the exercises because you're training—we've got 5 workouts per week, and we're going to be doing bench press three times per week: A heavy set, 3x3 this week for me; a light, fast set, 3x3; and then a light, slow—where you're doing 5 seconds on the negative, 5 seconds on the positive—same with the squat, same with the deadlift. Each week, we do those exercises three times a week. 

We're also doing other assistance exercises for chest and legs. You don't see it in this workout because this workout involves the squat and the bench press, but there are workouts that involve other leg and other chest exercises: Cable crossovers, step-ups, etc. You will be training each of these lifts three times a week, and again not only is it changing up the set and rep ranges, but you're also changing up rep speed. 

So a lot of variety in this program, which is delivering the insane results that people are already getting after just two weeks. People are already, like I said, getting considerably stronger. They can tell, and although we're not retesting yet, they can tell just based on the weight that they're moving in each of these weeks, and considerably leaner and more muscular. 

That's my rundown on Week 3. Like I said, it's very similar to Week 2. Remember, I did a tutorial last week on Week 2, and I'll keep doing it in Week 4 as well, but each week you guys need less information because some of this is redundant from the previous tutorial. It's just that now we're moving down to 3x3 reps and 30 reps for the assistance exercises. 

Exercise Selection: Making the Workout Your Own

I will mention again, as I mention each time, don't get caught up on these exercises. If you don't have a barbell so that you can't do barbell curls, don't worry about it—do dumbbell curls, do cable curls, do band curls, do curls with whatever you have, whatever you can make resistance out of. It doesn't matter as long as you include a biceps exercise. 

Even on these three main lifts that we're focusing on—the bench press, squat, and the deadlift. These are the three main lifts used in powerlifting. I talked about this before, but the bench press is used because it's considered the ultimate upper-body strength pushing movement. The squat is considered the ultimate lower-body pushing movement. The deadlift, which is both a push and a pull—legs are pushing, upper body is pulling—is what's considered the ultimate overall body strength move.

With these three we test upper body individually, lower body individually, and then the body as a whole with the deadlift, for strength. Because these are popular moves in powerlifting and weightlifting in general, these are the three that we're focusing on. If you don't have a squat rack or a barbell, you've seen me do squats and deadlifts with dumbbells. Dumbbells are fine. Bands are fine. A Smith machine is fine. A squat machine—whatever you need to do—or, you don't even have to use these types of exercises.

Apply the Countdown to ANY Exercise for a Bigger 1-Rep Max

If you want to do curls, for example, you could do the same thing with curls—3 sets of 3 heavy, light but fast one day, light but slow another day. Any exercise you want, you could use this same concept. Or, like I said, if you don't have a bench press and you have dumbbells, do dumbbell bench press, or machine bench press, or Smith machine bench press. Make it work for you. 

Like I said, you could either swap out the chest for a different chest exercise, or you don't even have to test your chest—you want to test your curling strength, you want to test your leg press strength, you want to test your shoulder overhead press strength, your row strength—you could do the same concept with those exercises. It does not need to be these three exercises if that's not what you want to do. You can adapt this to your goals and your equipment that you have available, and your schedule as well. 

Still Have Questions? 

That's my Countdown to Strength tutorial, guys. On Facebook, I post it—I post it on Instagram as well, but it only stays up for 24 hours, and you can't post questions really on the Instagram one. So go to my Facebook page if you're not watching on Facebook, I will post this video. There, you can post your questions, and I will go back within the next 24 hours, get you an answer, but try to keep it focused on the Countdown to Strength Challenge—at least your questions under the post that I'm going to put up with this video.

If you want to ask me a question about intermittent fasting—if it's related to the challenge, great—if you just have a random intermittent fasting question, save it and you'll find plenty of posts where you can ask a nutrition question, like one of my nutrition posts. Try to keep your questions under this post specific to the challenge so that I can focus on getting everyone who has challenge questions—while they're going through the challenge—I can get them their answers in a timely manner, versus wading through all kinds of unrelated questions. 

I want to get you guys an answer, too, but not on this post. Let me focus on the Countdown to Strength Challenge, answering those questions on this post. Any other questions, try to find another more relevant post. You guys know I post all day long on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, so you should find a post that's relevant to your question.

Post your questions for the challenge, I will get you an answer in the next 24 hours. Thank you guys for training with me, and remember last day to sign up guys. This is it. If you want to train with the same program that I'm using to bring back my strength following my injuries—and the rest of the JYM Army is using to increase their strength, drop body fat, and build muscle—this is the program. 

Miss Your Chance to Enter This Challenge? Don't Sweat It!

And don't worry, as soon as this one ends, a few weeks after I will be having another challenge because I always do throughout the year. Keep looking for my future challenges, if you failed to sign up today—last day for this challenge—and good luck to all my challenge participants. Who am I going to meet right here in the Hollywood JYM? Because that's the grand prize, coming out here. 

Fly out here, all-expense-paid trip to Los Angeles, you get to hang out with me right in my home area—Hollywood, California. That's where my new studio JYM is. That's where I get my donuts. That's where we're going to go have dinner. We're going to train right here and have a blast. So, congrats to everyone who's participating in the challenge, because you're all going to be winners with the results you get, and good luck to those of you in the running to come out and hang out with me. 

Alright, guys, enjoy the rest of your Sunday, the rest of your weekend. I'm going to get in a good workout, probably do some Tabatas or one of my new programs that you should be looking for like my Drop and Give Me 50 program—you can see that soon. Once I'm done with this challenge, it'll be one of my Train with Jim workout weeks. So expect that as well, and as always, guys, stay JYM Army Strong. Thank you, guys. 

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