The volume of Westside is relatively low compared to a bodybuilding program. You WILL not get the same kind of hypertrophy that you would on a bodybuilding program either. HOWEVER, you WILL notice huge increases in strength, and over time....the increased force placed on your body, along with your body adapting to heavier movements WILL lead the growth. The REASON for this low volume is it allows you to focus ALL your energies on either your DE, or ME exercises. THESE are what will make you stronger! The accessory exercises are normally done with higher volume then your main movements, HOWEVER you do NOT want to go to failure on these most of the time. All the heavy, compound movements week in, and week out will get very taxing on your CNS, and your body in general.
As far as other guidlines:
1) In general you want a day apart between your ME days. Back to back maxing can and WILL wear you out fast.
2) You generally want to seperate your DE, and ME days for both the squat and bench by 72hrs
3) Volume on your main movement for DE days would be 10 sets of 2 reps for the squat, 8 sets of 3 reps for the bench, and 6 sets of 1 rep for the deadlift. These #’s come from extensive testing on WSBB lifters by Louie, and is what they seem to respond best to. In my experience, I go by my own bar speed. Sometimes my speed is off a little, so I’ll do lower volume. Sometimes my bar speed is high, so I do a little more volume.
4) Intensity on DE days.... 50-60% of your max for squat and DL, and 50-60% of your max for bench. The key here is NOT to lift maximal weights, but go for MAXIMAL speed. You are NOT going to be fast lifting maximal weights, so this is why your lifting relatively "light" weight
5) Volume on your main movmeent for ME days is really left up to the lifter. I generally warmup with triples, consistently adding weight till it gets heavy. Then I drop to singles. I would tell you to use no more then 8 sets total (warmup, and working) before going for your 1RM. Take plenty of rest in between.
6) Intensity on ME days. I normally tell people to try and beat their previous max by 5lbs. Far too many people try throwing an additional 20lbs on the bar from the previous session, then are angry they don’t get it. Building strength takes TIME people! Its taken me 5 YEARS of hard training to tickle a 475bench....so don’t expect it to happen overnight. Since you are constantly switching exercises on ME days, it always gives you a new goal to shoot for, and keeps you from getting bored of the same exercises.
7) Rotate your ME exercises every 1-3 weeks depending on how advanced you are. This prevents CNS fatigue, and keeps your body adapting to different types of stress.
Here’s just a sample layout of what a 2 week begginer program would look like:
Monday: ME Squat/DL day
Me movement: Stiff leg Good Mornings...work up to a max single
Supplemental movement for hamstrings: Glute/Ham raises 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Accessory movment for glutes/hams: Pullthroughs 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Accessory movement for lower back Hyperextensions: 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Accessory movmeent for the abdominals: 3 sets of 8-12 reps (I’ve always found higher reps work best for abdominal movements)
Tues: OFF
Wed: ME Bench day
ME movement: Close grip bench press...work up to a max single
Supplemental movement for triceps: DB Floor press 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Accessory mvmt for lats: Bent over barbell rows: 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Accessory mvmt for shoulders: External Rotations with DB’s 3 sets of 8-12 (Once again, I’ve found high reps work best for rotator cuff muscles)
Thursday: DE Squat/DL
DE Movement: Box Squats 10 sets of 2 reps @ 60% of max
DE Movement: Speed Deadlifts 6 sets of 1 rep @ 60% of max
Same supplemental, and accessory movements as on ME day
Friday: Misc. Day
This is a day where I work muscle groups that arne’t worked in a typical WS routine. This is also a day where you can bring up ONE weakpoint. Don’t go crazy, and do a fullblown workout. Just something to add more volume to one weakspot, and work other muscles that are overlooked. An example would be:
Bicep curls 3 sets of 8 reps
Shoulder Shrugs 3 sets of 8 reps
Calf Raises 3 sets of 8 reps
Glute/Ham Raises 3 sets of 8 reps
Saturday: DE Bench day
DE Bench 8 sets of 3 reps at 60% of your max
Same supplemental, and accessory exercises as on ME bench day
Sunday: OFF
Your goals for the next week would be to beat your previous PR in the ME Bench, and ME Squat/ DL exercise by at least 5lbs. You should also notice your speed on DE Bench, and DE Squat/DL getting a little faster. Generally what I would tell people is to do 7 week cycles. You would have 3 2 week cycles where you would change your ME movement, and assistance exercises. Then on week 7 you would find your NEW maxes to work off of for %’s on DE days. There are more principles involved with this, but I’ll direct you right to the source:
www.westside-barbell.com
Also check out:
www.elitefts.com
That site is run by Dave Tate. He’s trained under Louie for years, and is about THE smartest man I know when it comes to strength and conditioning. Many of the WS articles are listed there in more detail.
Good luck, stay strong, and be proud!