5-Day Mike Mentzer Workout Split

One in all history’s most influential bodybuilding workouts is Mike Mentzer’s workout routine. Mentzer, winner of the 1979 Mr. Olympia Heavyweight Division (the general title went to Frank Zane), retired from bodybuilding to concentrate on helping others achieve their goals in bodybuilding. A person who trained with legends like Arnold Schwarzenegger, he developed a high-intensity training program referred to as Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty training system.

Mentzer developed this program through years of coaching and exploring various kinds of training in hopes of making the proper workout routine. He found a method to challenge the body beyond failure with unique training methods like negative reps and pre-exhaust supersets. In this text, we are going to teach you the Mike Mentzer workout routine and explore his training philosophies which have helped countless people add muscle mass. 

Table of Contents

• Mike Mentzer 5-Day Split Routine
• Mike Mentzer 2-Day Split Routine
• Who Is Mike Mentzer?
• Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty System
• Mike Mentzer’s Workout Philosophy
• Mike Mentzer’s Eating regimen Plan
• Mike Mentzer Workout Reddit Testimonials
• Outro

Mike Mentzer 5-Day Split Routine

Mentzer utilized various splits throughout his profession, using training clients as guinea pigs to check which workout routine was best for muscle gains. Nowadays, most weight training separates muscle groups using a four- or five-day split. Below is a 5-day split workout based on Mike Mentzer’s workout routine.  

Monday: Chest

• Incline Dumbbell Flyes: 5 sets of 8 reps
• Body weight Dips: 5 sets x 6 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Incline Bench Press: 5 sets at 6-8 reps
• Flat barbell bench press: 5 sets at 6-8 reps
• Flat dumbbell fly: 5 sets at 6-8 reps

Tuesday: Back

• Straight Arm Lat Pulldown: 5 sets of 5-8 reps
• Reverse Close Grip Cable Pulldown: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Barbell Bent-Over Row: 5 sets of 5 reps
• Standing Barbell/DB Shrugs: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Barbell Upright row: 5 sets of 6-8 reps

Wednesday: Shoulders

• Bent Over Dumbbell Raise: 5 sets of 8-10 reps 
• Seated Machine Press: 5 sets of 6-8 reps 
• Dumbbell Side Lateral Raise: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Behind The Neck Overhead Press: 5 sets of 6-8 reps*
• Front Barbell Raise: 5 sets of 8-10 reps

Thursday: Legs

• Single Leg Extensions: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Single Leg Hamstring Curl: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Barbell Squats: 5 sets of 6-8 reps
• Leg Press: 5 sets of 6-8 reps
• Standing Calf Raise: 5 sets of 10-15 reps
• Walking Dumbbell Lunges: 5 sets of 8-10 reps

Friday: Arms

• Reverse Grip Chin-Up: 5 sets of 6-8 reps 
• Body weight Dips: 5 sets of 10 reps  
• Barbell Preacher Curl: 5 sets of 8-10 reps 
• Triceps Cable Pushdowns: 5 sets of 8-10 reps 
• Standing Dumbbell Curl: 5 sets of 8-10 reps
• Overhead Triceps Cable Extension: 5 sets of 8-10 reps 
• Barbell Reverse Grip Forearm Curls: 5 sets of 8-10 reps 

*The overhead press behind the neck could cause unnecessary stress and injury to the rotator cuff, neck, shoulders, and joints, especially when training heavy. Be happy to do normal overhead presses, especially if you’ve a severe shoulder injury.

Mike Mentzer 2-Day Split Routine

Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty workout routine was originally designed as a two-day split, meant to be performed twice per week. Reasonably than divide the workouts by upper body or lower, Mentzer went with more of a push-pull type strategy. Every exercise is performed with six to eight reps.

Workout A: Legs, Chest, Triceps

Legs:

• Leg Extension Superset with Leg Press: 1 set
• Squats: 1 set
• Leg Curls: 2 sets
• Standing Calf Raise: 2 sets

Chest:

• DB Fly: 1 set
• Incline Presses: 2 sets
• Body weight Dips: 2 sets

Triceps:

• Tricep Pushdowns Superset with Dips: 1 set
• Lying Tricep Extension: 2 sets

Workout B: Back, Traps, Shoulders, Biceps

Back:

• Machine Pullovers Superset with Close-grip Underhand Lat Pulldown: 2 sets
• Barbell Row: 2 sets

Traps/Shoulders:

• Machine Shrugs Superset with Upright Row: 2 supersets
• Side Lat Raise Superset with Machine Shoulder Press: 2 supersets
• Rear Dumbbell Lat Raise: 2 sets

Biceps:

• Standing Barbell Curl: 1 set
• Dumbbell Concentration Curl: 2 sets

Who Is Mike Mentzer?

Mike Mentzer (1951-2001) was knowledgeable bodybuilder that’s as known for his unique training philosophy and contributions to fitness as he’s for competing. Mike began bodybuilding at age 11 and spent years competing within the bodybuilding scene, gaining national attention when he won the 1976 Mr. America contest. After Mike turned pro in 1979, he went on to win the heavyweight division of Mr. Olympia (over 200 lbs) but lost the general to Frank Zane.

The Mr. Olympia contest removed weight divisions the next yr in 1980, nonetheless Mentzer tied for fourth place, with Arnold Schwarzenegger winning in a controversial fashion. Several competitors, including Mentzer and 3-time defending champion Frank Zane, boycotted the 1981 Mr. Olympia in outrage over the choice to crown a noticeably smaller Arnold. Mentzer took it to a different level and retired entirely from bodybuilding following the 1980 Olympia, citing the competition was rigged for Arnold to win.

Mike Mentzer Bodybuilding Notable Finishes:

• 1976 IFBB Mr. America – 1st (Overall)
• 1977 IFBB North American Championships – 1st (Overall)
• 1978 IFBB World Amateur Championships – 1st (HW)
• 1978 IFBB Mr. Universe – 1st
• 1979 IFBB Mr. Olympia – 2nd Overall, 1st (Heavyweight Division)

After his retirement in 1980, Mentzer shifted his focus to developing a workout routine to maximise muscle growth. Mike modeled his ideas based on concepts created by Arthur Jones, the inventor of Nautilus exercise machines. Mike took Arthur Jones’ high-intensity training (HIT) concept and perfected his unique twist through trial and error. He developed and published various workout programs, including his Heavy Duty training system.

He gained national attention within the early Nineteen Nineties when he introduced his high-intensity training to Dorian Yates, who then went on to win six straight Mr. Olympia’s from 1992 to 1997. Mentzer sadly passed away at age 49 in 2001 from heart problems. He was posthumously inducted into the IFBB Hall Of Fame in 2002. His presence and contribution to bodybuilding will live without end through his revolutionary Heavy Duty workout program. 

Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty System

Like all bodybuilders, Mentzer believed in altering his workout program and used several different splits. Nevertheless, a lot of Mike’s theories and training methods go against conventional wisdom. The Mike Mentzer Heavy Duty training routine is sort of different from what you see in your local gym. Mentzer’s heavy duty program was originally created as a two-day split, divided right into a Workout A and Workout B. The workouts are supposed to be high-intensity and train to failure, so that you need 48 hours of rest between workouts to get well fully. It’s essentially a push-pull split, except he adds legs to the push day and shoulders to the pull day. 

Mentzer’s Heavy Duty Two-Day Split: (routine above)

• Workout A: Legs, Chest, Triceps
• Workout B: Back, Traps, Shoulders, Biceps

Nearly every skilled bodybuilder experimented with Mentzer’s heavy duty program within the Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties, although they went back to something more conventional. Mike adjusted this routine to a three-day split in “High-Intensity Training The Mike Mentzer Way,” his final book before passing away. 

Mentzer’s Three-Day Split:

• Workout A: Chest/Back
• Workout B: Legs/Abs
• Workout C: Shoulders/Arms

Over time, Mentzer continued to expand his Heavy Duty workout routine into various splits to accommodate every lifter. A sample four-day split would seem like the next:

Mentzer’s 4-Day Split:

• Day one: chest and back
• Day two: legs, calves, and abs
• Day three: shoulders, biceps, and triceps
• Day 4: legs, calves, and abs

Mike Mentzer’s Workout Philosophy

Mike Mentzer’s training philosophy was an easy approach where “less is more” for constructing mass, so the goal is brief, intense workouts that take the muscles to failure. The concept of HIT is to perform an exercise in a single set to failure within the 20 rep range. The thought is to construct size and strength by specializing in intensity quite than volume. Each Jones and Mentzer believed that high-intensity training that emphasizes quality over quantity is best for muscle growth since it minimizes muscle damage, allowing you to lift heavier. 

Mentzer took Jones’ HIT approach and tweaked it so that you perform 6-8 reps using heavy weights to failure. The work is removed from over when you reach this failure point after 6-8 reps. Mentzer developed his program based on the concept of coaching beyond failure, which he called Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty system. The 4 essential concepts are forced reps, negative reps, rest-pause, and pre-exhaustion supersets. 

1. Forced Reps: Forced reps are where a spotter helps you at little as possible, mainly to guide the load to complete the reps past failure. 
2. Negative Reps: Negative reps are where you utilize a spotter to assist you to complete the “positive” portion of the rep, then lower the load in a slow, controlled manner for roughly six seconds. The positive portion of a lift (concentric portion) is when the muscle shortens (contracts), whereas the negative portion (eccentric part) is when the muscle lengthens. For a curl, the positive part is the lifting up of the load, while the negative part is if you lower the load back down. 
3. Rest-Pause: Rest-Pause is an old-school technique that Mike is credited with creating. After you hit failure on an exercise, take a 15-second break then perform one other rep. Mike would employ this strategy for 4-6 reps, taking a break between. He would drop weight by 20% for the ultimate sets if he couldn’t finish on the starting weight. 
4. Pre-Exhaust Supersets: Pre-exhaust supersets are where you do an isolation exercise set immediately followed by a compound exercise set of the identical body part. This idea stimulates muscle growth in a selected muscle group of a compound exercise. For instance, perform a dumbbell chest fly then immediately do a set of bench press without resting. The concept is to work the targeted muscle as much as possible so that exact muscle (chest muscles) gives out before the weaker muscles do (akin to triceps or shoulders). Other isolation exercises that will be used to pre-exhaust include pullovers before lat pulldowns or leg press/leg extension before squatting. 

Mike developed these concepts in training sessions along with his brother Ray Mentzer, one other successful skilled bodybuilder. Mike encourages people to have a training partner because they’ll assist with training past failure and motivate you to coach harder. 

Low Volume: 

Mike Mentzer’s workout routine followed a low-volume approach considering the high intensity level. Mike likes to work within the 6-8 rep range to failure. Each workout must have roughly 3-6 working sets per body part, with 1-2 light warm-up sets at not more than 75% of the working set weight. Keeping a low-volume approach, combined with a correct recovery, is important to stop burnout. There’s a spot for high-volume training, but Mike believed this training style was best for constant muscle growth. 

Give attention to form: 

For the reason that workouts are high-intensity and low volume, having perfect form is important. It’s more essential to concentrate on having a full range-of-motion with a slow, controlled form quite than adding more weight. Mentzer advocated for lifters to spend two to 4 seconds on each portion of the lift to essentially emphasize strain on the muscle fibers. Form is much more essential when training to failure and using techniques like negative reps because you’re at a better risk of injury. 

Progression: 

A giant a part of the Heavy Duty training program focuses on progression. Progression is required to stimulate muscle growth, which Mike believed will be done in 3 ways. The three ways in which Mentzer used for progression were: 

• Increase the variety of reps
• Increase the quantity of weight 
• Decrease rest time/total time to finish the workout

Mentzer advocated for keeping a workout journal to trace progress and ensure you make gains. 

Mike Mentzer’s Eating regimen Plan

Mike Mentzer stressed that a workout routine just isn’t enough to extend muscle mass; you could follow a strict weight loss plan and maximize recovery. Mike’s weight loss plan strategy is fairly different from the standard bodybuilding routine. Reasonably than specializing in eating as much protein as possible, Mike believed that more carbohydrates are the important thing to maximum muscle growth.

The whole macronutrient breakdown must be roughly 60% carbs, 25% protein, and 15% fats. Mentzer is one in all the one bodybuilders advocating such low protein, but it surely clearly worked for him. Be happy to extend your protein, depending in your specific goals. 

While Mike primarily focuses his writing on lifting techniques and workout routines, he gives insight into his weight loss plan in his book “Heavy Duty Nutrition.” Mike wasn’t super strict about his weight loss plan within the sense of what he ate, but he believed in a balanced weight loss plan and ensuring you reach your calorie goal. Mentzer is one in all the primary bodybuilders to emphasise calorie count and macros, showing he was ahead of his time.¹

In his book, he divided food with dietary value into 4 categories. 

Mentzer’s 4 Food Categories:

1. Cereal and Grains:

Foods include baked goods, cereals, breads, and flour products. This group comprises source of carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals. It represents an affordable but helpful method to hit your macros, especially for carbs. Mike recommends 4 servings day by day from this group. His breakfast is primarily from this group, often having bran muffins and whole wheat toast. 

2. Fruits and Vegetables:

Mentzer recommends 4 servings a day from this group, which incorporates any fruits or vegetables, in addition to potatoes. This group is essential for getting vitamins, minerals, and carbohydrates. 

3. High-Protein Group

Foods include meat, poultry, eggs, fish, and protein-containing vegetables akin to beans, nuts, and peas. This group is important for muscle growth, providing the body with B vitamins, iron, other nutrients, and protein. Mike recommends at the very least two servings a day from here, which is much lower than the common bodybuilding weight loss plan. 

4. Milk and Milk Products

Milk, cheese, and other milk products provide a terrific source of protein, vitamin B2, and calcium. Watch out to not have greater than two servings a day, as milk comprises saturated fats and excess calories. 

A few of his favorite foods that belong to those categories include:

• Oatmeal
• Eggs
• Chicken breast
• Salmon
• Tuna
• Lentils
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Orange juice (especially in his protein shake)

Adding Or Losing Weight

Mike was a believer in following a balanced weight loss plan yr round and avoiding drastic weight changes. He believed that too many skilled bodybuilders would pack on size too fast, which causes fat accumulation. When you follow a gentle training method, you will not should cut so drastically. 

• Gain weight: To achieve weight, increase your day by day caloric intake by 300-500 calories. Follow calorie dense foods quite than overeating. 
• Drop pounds: To shed weight, decrease your day by day caloric intake by 500-1,000 calories, depending on weight. It is vital to never go below 1,200 calories for the day. When you still cannot shed weight at 1,200 calories, increase your cardio. 

Along these same “slow and regular” principles, Mentzer believes people can add 10 kilos of muscle in a yr by following his program. Within the book, Mike states that one pound of human muscle tissue comprises 600 calories, while one pound of fat has 3500 calories. So, to realize ten kilos of muscle in a single yr, which means you wish an excess of 6,000 total calories.

That translates to an additional 16 calories a day. Since only a couple of quarter of muscle tissue is protein, we only need 1 / 4 of the additional calories from protein, which could be 4 calories (4/16). One gram of protein is 4 calories, so in theory, you simply must eat one extra gram of protein a day above your maintenance level to realize 10 kilos in a single yr.

Tissue Type Caloric Content

Supplements:

Considering Mentzer passed away in 2001 and stopped competing in 1980, the usage of supplements wasn’t as prevalent because it is today. The one complement Mike openly approved of was a multivitamin and mineral combo.

He believed that food was the very best and most vital method to get your dietary needs, but supplements is usually a nice complement. It is also essential to notice that anabolic steroids were much more accepted in the game during Mike’s prime, and he openly discussed steroid use on multiple occasions.

Mike Mentzer Workout Reddit Testimonials 

There’s a big divide across web forums in terms of the Mike Mentzer Heavy Duty training method and his philosophies. Many individuals discuss with Mike as crazy resulting from his amphetamine drug abuse and deteriorating mental health within the later parts of his bodybuilding profession. A few of his theories, akin to a lower-protein weight loss plan, go against conventional wisdom that weight lifters depend on. 

Within the subreddit “Mike Mentzers’ Beyond Failure’ Training,” users debate if this system is simply too intense for somebody natural (not on steroids). Many users defended and supported the training method, with one user stating, “”²

User LordChaoticX also shared a positive review, praising Mentzer, “.”³ Users agree that following the weight loss plan and rest protocols is important to get well when following a high intensity training routine fully. 

One other common trend is that folks short on time are likely to like Mike Mentzer’s workout since it doesn’t require hours within the gym. Between work and family life, it could possibly be difficult to get to the gym greater than three days per week, so Mentzer’s splits are ideal. User formerfattie90 posted, “.”⁴ This shows how a wide selection of individuals can profit from trying Mike Mentzer’s training routine. 

The overall consensus is that Mentzer had effective training programs and significantly contributed to bodybuilding along with his concepts, akin to negative reps, but it surely’s best to mix his ideas with modern knowledge, akin to increased protein consumption.

Outro

Although Mike Mentzer passed away in 2001, his presence within the bodybuilding world continues to be felt today. The Mike Mentzer training philosophy follows an old-school approach, a high-intensity workout routine that emphasizes form and pushing the body beyond its limits. Mike believed that a workout session shouldn’t take hours, so he found a method to train all muscle groups in only two workouts.

The most vital points of Mike Mentzer workout’s are lifting heavy weights with perfect form and training the body past failure. The first grievance with the Mike Mentzer workout routine is that it’s too intense, which is why rest and nutrition are so helpful. One other flawed concept that Mentzer advocated was that an individual’s protein requirement depends strictly on body weight, not physical activity. People are likely to agree that the very best method to utilize the Mike Mentzer workout routine is to regulate your weight loss plan, specifically adding more protein.  

When you were fortunate enough to observe Mike Mentzer train, you’ll have seen an intensity that many skilled bodybuilders lack today. Mentzer trained with a number of the biggest legends in bodybuilding, from Schwarzengger to Zane, and his influence reached hundreds more, including Dorian Yates. You possibly can perform the Mike Mentzer workout in various splits, from two-day as much as five-day, so there’s an option for everybody. If you’ve trouble constructing muscle mass along with your current routine, we encourage you to try a Mike Mentzer training session.

References