Old School Hypertrophy: The 20-Rep Squat Program

 The "Original" Rapid Mass-Gaining Regimen

A picture of a young Ken Leistner, one of the modern "popularizers" of 20-rep programs such as the one below. 

     When writing my “Old School is Still the Best… and Always Will Be” essay, I mentioned that I would begin to write regular programs on various old school training regimens.  And even though it wasn’t that long ago that I wrote about a 20-rep squat program (in a post a few months back on power rack training), and even though several of my articles/posts have mentioned 20-rep squat programs, I still thought that this would be the best program to begin any series on old-school muscle-building.

     The 20-rep squat program is the original mass-builder.  Before steroids even came onto the scene, a couple of men named J.C. Hise—who first used the program to great success—and Mark Berry—who first wrote about the program—made this form of training the method for packing on muscle mass in a fashion never seen before.  And I’m not sure if it’s improved much since.

     Of course, if you’re just now starting on a program—or if you’re getting back into training after an extended layoff—you’re probably not thinking about squats and “leg training.”  You’re thinking about packing on muscle on the chest, the shoulders, and the arms; you know, the “showy” muscles that you want the world to see.  But, the thing is, heavy squats—particularly high-rep, “breathing” squats—will pack on mass in your shoulder girdle, torso, back, and arms like nothing else.  The aforementioned Mark Berry had this to say in the 1930s:

     “Experience has been proven beyond any doubt that the most certain means of expanding the chest is through the medium of strenuous leg exercise, and it has likewise been the experience of those that have tried out this theory that improvement of the shoulders and arms will in time follow when the standard of the legs and torso has been raised.” (Berry, 1933)

     Here is what Randall J. Strossen also had to say about Berry in his book “Super Squats: How to Gain 30 Pounds of Muscle in 6 Weeks” just so you will understand the extent of Berry’s influence:

     With the aid of squat racks, a number of Mark Berry’s students in the 1930s used heavy, flat-footed squats.  By working up to weights in the 300 to 500-pound range, they started to gain muscular bodyweight at previously unheard of rates.  The gains in this period that resulted from these methods were so conspicuous that Mark Berry was said to have ushered in a “new era” as a result of his emphasis upon intensive training of the body’s largest muscle groups.  The Milo publications were filled with dramatic success stories based on these methods.

     Here is a program you can use for the next 8 weeks or so (6 weeks at minimum; 12 weeks at the longest) that will work wonders for anyone starting their muscle-building journey, or returning to it after a layoff.  It’s also great even for “advanced” lifters who need to get “back-to-the-basics” after an extended amount of time doing split workouts, multiple sets of multiple reps, or any other form of high-volume training.

     Perform the following workout twice each week on non-consecutive days, taking two days off after the first workout, and three days off after the 2nd.  If you like to train during the week, and not train on the weekends, then Monday and Thursday will probably work best.  If you like to train at least one day on the weekend—either Saturday or Sunday, doesn’t matter—then train either Saturday and Tuesday, or Sunday and Wednesday.  When performing programs similar to this one, I, for instance, always liked to train on Sundays and Wednesdays.  Sundays were good because I felt like it was a great way to end my weekend, and prepare myself for the coming week.  By getting a hard session in on Sunday evening, I felt as if I could tackle my work on Monday morning with relative ease.  And then I liked training on Wednesdays, because it was a perfect way to “split” the middle of my work week.  Just make sure that you pick two days, as well, that will be easy for you to stick with.

Old-School Hypertrophy Program:

• Squats: 1 set of 20 reps.  The general “consensus” when using the traditional 20-rep program is to pick a weight (after warm-ups, of course) that you would typically use for a set of 10 reps.  Now do 20!  Here is what Randall Strossen wrote in Super Squats: “The first approach to 20 reps squats is simple.  First, load the bar with what you normally use for 10 reps.  Now, do 20 reps—no kidding.  Second, every single workout, add 5 pounds to the bar.  These two elements are what separates the men from the boys and produces results, by simultaneously embracing the two cardinal principles in weight training: overload and progressive resistance.”

• “Light” Dumbbell Pullovers: 1 set of 20 reps.  Do these immediately after your squats—or as soon as you’ve recovered enough to handle them.  Don’t use a weight that is too heavy.  Simply get a deep stretch on every repetition, and take a deep breath as you lower the weight on each rep.

• Dips: 2 to 3 sets of 5 to 8 reps.  Warm up with either another exercise or, if you’re strong on dips, do a warm up set or two with your bodyweight, then add poundage for your “work” sets.  Start off with only 2 sets, then increase to 3 after a few weeks on the program.  Stop each set about a rep shy of failure, always leaving a little something “in the tank” so to speak.

• Chins: 2 to 3 sets of max or “near max” reps.  If you can do at least 8 reps on each set, then use a weight belt to add additional weight for the exercise.  Perform this exercise in an “underhand” fashion so that you get a total workout of the back, lats, and the biceps.

• One-Arm Dumbbell Overhead Presses: 2 to 3 sets (each arm) of 5 to 8 reps.

• Farmer’s Walks: For this exercise, mix it up by sometimes performing farmer’s walks with both hands, and sometimes by just using one hand, and then switching hands midway through your “set.”  A good distance is about 20 to 30 yards.  Use a weight that makes this one tough!

     After a few weeks on this program, feel free to start adding exercises.  You could add barbell curls one week, followed by some sort of “quick lift” the next (think power cleans or power snatches), and then either a rowing movement or a deadlift movement the week or two after that.

     Eat plenty of food, as well.  Don’t make it too complicated.  Just make sure you’re eating 4 or 5 “hearty” meals each day that have plenty of protein, good fat, and carbohydrates.  You need it all if you’re really trying to pack on the muscle mass.  If you can’t eat enough food, then consume one or two protein/mass-gaining shakes in addition to a couple of meals.  But don’t force it.  As you follow the program, your hunger will naturally increase.

     Every few days (or at least each week), I plan on posting a different old school program, so stay tuned!