Roll of the Dice: Planned Variety for Size and Strength

A Unique Training Idea for Renewed Size and Strength Gains (Plus a Little Fun)

     To make consistent gains in size and strength, you need two vital components.  You need to actually be on a training program but you also need one that has enough variety for continued progress.  I’ve always believed that this is the reason training programs, even though they might be diversely different, such as Westside Barbell and Bill Starr’s heavy-light-medium program work so well.  They have a template that never changes—you can stick with that template for years on end—but one with a lot of variety inherently “built” into its system.

     Many of your average gym-goers train the exact same way all the time.  When they train their chest, it’s always flat bench presses for 3 sets of 10 reps or maybe 5x5 if they’re interested in more strength, or whatever it is.  It’s pretty much the same thing for all of their other muscle groups, though, honestly, let’s admit, they’re more likely to not train squats or any kind of heavy pulls.  Since I haven’t been to a commercial gym in a number of years, I can’t say for sure, but I bet the exercises that get trained the most are bench presses, curls (of whatever sort), and lat pulldowns.  (If another exercise has usurped one of those at today’s gyms, let me know below in the “comments” section.)  Lifters get stuck in a rut.  And they need a change of pace.  Also, many of them train in too random of a manner, doing whatever workout they just saw on YouTube or looked at on some website or read in Men’s Health.

     If you’re serious about building size and strength, you just can’t go wrong with full-body workouts that involve a handful of lifts.  Some kind of squat, a heavy pull (or row or chin), a vertical press of some kind, a horizontal press of some sort, and, yes, even a heavy curl of some type.  I’m not opposed to curls, by the way—I think they’re great for building size and strength, even for more than just the biceps, but they shouldn’t comprise 50% of your training, the way they do for a lot of guys.  Add in a loaded carry of some sort or a finisher at the end of the session and you have a damn-near perfect workout.  But just what should you do at each workout and over the course of a program to make consistent gains?  Well, you don’t want to train completely randomly but you also don’t want to just do 3 sets of 8 (or whatever) at every single workout.

     Here, I want to propose a method you can use that covers all of the above.  It uses full-body workouts trained 2 to 3 days per week, but it also allows for plenty of variety.  You could call it “planned randomness.”  That might seem a bit oxymoronic, which it is, I suppose, but stay with me.  This training plan also makes your workouts, dare I say, fun.  You’ll know the basics of what you’re going to do at each workout—full body with 5 “big” compound lifts—which are great at building both mass and power, but what exactly you are going to do is going to be up to the roll of the dice.  Yes, you read that correctly and I mean that literally.

     I got this idea from Dan John, though he suggested completely different lifts, workouts, and finishers, but the concept is his.  (As I’ve written before, I’m great at Stealing Good Ideas.)  My way of doing it works like this: Grab a die (singular for dice) and roll it 3 times.

• Roll one will determine the lifts you will use.

• Roll two will determine the program you utilize, the workout itself.

• Roll three will determine your finisher.

Roll #1: The Lifts of the Day

Roll a 1: squats, bench presses, power cleans, military presses, barbell curls

Roll a 2: front squats, incline bench presses, power snatches, seated military presses in the rack, alternate dumbbell curls

Roll a 3: rack squat (bottom-position or as low as you can get under the bar), weighted dips, high pulls, one-arm dumbbell overhead presses, E-Z bar curls

Roll a 4: sumo deficit deadlifts, board presses, weighted chins, behind-the-neck presses, reverse barbell curls

Roll a 5: Thick-bar workout.  Purchase a pair of “Fat Gripz” or another brand that you can easily wrap around a barbell or dumbbell to make each movement a thick-bar exercise.  Use it for all of these lifts: deadlifts, bench presses, barbell rows, one-arm dumbbell overhead presses, barbell curls

Roll a 6: Dumbbell-only workout: dumbbell deadlifts (use a thick-bar on these, as well, if you wish, especially if you don’t have access to heavy enough dumbbells for the program-of-the-day), dumbbell bench presses, dumbbell power cleans, two-arm dumbbell overhead presses (you can combine the cleans and presses as one movement if you want), hammer curls

Roll #2: Workout of the Day

     All of the sets listed in these workouts are the “work sets.” Do one to a few warm-ups (depending on the lift and your individual strength) before beginning the sets outright.

Roll a 1: 3 sets of 5 reps.  Use a weight where you have at least one rep left “in the tank” on the first set.

Roll a 2: 5 sets of 3 reps.  Again, use a weight for your first work set where you have at least 1 rep left in the tank and attempt 5x3 with that weight.

Roll a 3: 5 sets of 5,4,3,2,1.  Start your work sets with a weight where you can get 5 reps with a rep left in the tank.  Add 5 to 10 pounds on each successive set (the amount will depend upon the lift) as you work up to a heavy single.

Roll a 4: 8 sets of 2 reps.  This is your “density” workout.  Use a weight where you could get 5 or 6 reps for one all-out, hard-as-heck set.  Take minimal rest between sets, around 30 seconds.

Roll a 5: 5 sets of singles.  Use a weight that’s 90-95% of your absolute 1-rep maximum.  Rest plenty between sets.

Roll a 6: 1x10-12.  This is your “HIT” style workout. Do one incredibly hard set to complete momentary muscular failure.  Although I’m not a big fan of HIT training as the only workouts that you do, they are great in this case for a complete change of pace compared to the rest of the sessions.  To do this workout with the “quick lifts” make sure that you have your form down-pat.

Roll #3: The Finisher

     For all of these, do 1 to 2 hard but not quite all-out sets.

Roll a 1: farmer walks

Roll a 2: sandbag carries

Roll a 3: hill sprints

Roll a 4: backward sled pulls

Roll a 5: forward sled pulls

Roll a 6: overhead carries.  Use a pair of heavy dumbbells or kettlebells, press them overhead, and go for a walk.

     This works out to 216 possible workout combinations!  You could theoretically train 3 days per week for years and not repeat the same session.  It’s great because the template doesn’t change but the variety is abundant.

Tips and Suggestion

• Train 2 to 3 days each week.  You can train on set days such as Monday, Wednesday, and Friday or Monday and Thursday.  You can also start by taking off 2 days after each workout and, as you adapt, then go to a 1-on, 2-off schedule before finally settling on 3 days each week.  You can also train on a 1-on, 2-off schedule consistently or alternate between 3 days of training the 1st week and 2 days of training the 2nd, going back and forth between 3 and 2 days from week-to-week.

• If for some reason you actually roll the same lifts and the same workout on back-to-back days, you can re-roll one of them.  Don’t re-roll just because you don’t like the “pick” for the day.  Enjoy the spontaneity.  You’ll get really good results from doing workouts that you don’t want to do or lifts that you’re not good at.  Many lifters don’t get results for one simple reason: they stay away from lifts and the workouts that they suck at, but those are exactly the ones that they need to be doing.  If you love roll #5, you’re going to hate roll #6, and vice-versa.  Good.

• If you’re really sore on a workout day—probably from doing a workout or a lift your body’s not accustomed to—or if, after a few workouts, you feel particularly drained, don’t just take off on that day.  Back-off on your poundages to about 80% of what you would usually use for that workout and go ahead and train.  Of course, after several weeks of training, if you really feel as if you could use an extra day or two off, then take it, but don’t come up with an excuse not to train when you need to.

• If you don’t have access to an implement for one of the finishers, such as a sandbag or a sled, you can replace it with something else.  Other options include tire flips, suitcase carries (single-arm farmer walks), stone carries, or walking lunges.

• Want even more spontaneity and variety?  Try this.  Write down each one of the lifts for the day, based on the die roll, on an individual, small piece of paper.  Fold each piece of paper and place it in a hat or cup.  Toss the papers around a bit, then pick them out one by one and then train the lifts in the order that they are selected.  If you added this to the roll of the dice, you’d end up with thousands of different workout combinations!

Final Thoughts

    If you want something unique, fun, and result-producing, then give this program a try.  You can stick with it for as long as you want.  Heck, you could do this for years and not need a single other training program.  I might be putting myself out of business if everyone who reads my blog did that but, hey, it’s still a possibility.

     You can also use this concept for other training plans, not just full-body workouts.  You could, for example, train every day with a one-lift-per-day program and use the first roll to select your lift; in other words, only squat or only deadlift or only bench press, and so on.  On the 2nd roll, use workouts such as 10x10, 8x8, 10x3, 8x5, 10x1, and 6x20.  That’s just one example.  The concept would work for any system or training split.

     As always, if you have any comments or questions about this program, leave them in the “comments” section below.  You can also send me an email if you prefer private correspondence.  I typically get around to answering my emails every couple days.

     Also, if you enjoy reading this blog and would like to support my work, then please consider purchasing one of my books.  You can find more details about all of my books HERE.  If you want more 3-days-per-week, full-body training plans, you just can’t go wrong with my most recent book on Bill Starr’s methods.

     Until my next post, stay strong and stay at it.  Consistency is the key.