Forget GreySkull LP. Introducing SkullStrength DUP. Get gains for longer and avoid plateaus, while sticking to the basics.

[thecel]

SkullStrength DUP

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SkullStrength DUP is a strength-and-hypertrophy lifting program. It’s a spin-off of the popular and proven Phraks GreySkull LP (Linear Progression) program that adds a simple and effective form of periodization: Daily Undulating Periodization (DUP).

Phraks GreySkull LP:

SkullStrength DUP takes this to the next level. Literally. It gets you to the next stage in your training—a stage in which you’ll need to start periodization.

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Why DUP?

Linear progression with a select few compound movements will only get lifters so far. It won’t take long for most lifters to get stuck on strength plateaus, unable to increase the weight and complete the prescribed 3 sets of 5 reps.

To progress beyond the noob gains phase, lifters can start utilizing periodization in their training.

Daily Undulating Periodization is fantastic for lifters beginning periodization. DUP doesn’t require the trainee to schedule training blocks and calculate 1RM percentages. All it means is that rep ranges and working weights vary in undulating patterns to provide a variation of stimulus to the body.

DUP Example:

In this DUP example with 3 sessions per week, the 1st workout in each week has high reps with light load, the 2nd workout in each week has medium reps with medium load, and the 3rd workout in each week has low reps with heavy load.

The best way to train is dup

For lifting

looksmax.org

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The SkullStrength DUP Program

SkullStrength DUP has an A and a B workout and has 3 weekly training sessions. Each successive session alternates between A and B. One week has the workout sequence of A,B,A, and the week after goes B,A,B. Many other 3-day full-body programs, such as StrongLifts 5x5 (a giant cope) and Starting Strength (a giant cope), use the ABA|BAB structure.

SkullStrength DUP includes the incline bench press to target the upper chest. The program also spreads out the flat bench volume so that the lifter benches 3 times per week. This is done because many people say that higher frequencies helped them progress past bench press plateaus. However, if you don’t like this, you can just do 4 sets of bench in Workout A and 4 sets of overhead press in workout B, like conventional A/B 3-day programs.

Workout A: Main Push Part 1: Bench Press | 2 Sets Main Push Part 2: 30º Incline Bench Press | 2 Sets Main Pull: Weighted Chin-Up | 4 Sets Main Legs: Barbell Squat | 3 Sets Arm Accessory: Skull Crusher | 3 Sets Shoulder Accessory: Dumbbell Lu Raise | 3 Sets

Workout B: Main Push Part 1: Bench Press | 2 Sets Main Push Part 2: Overhead Press | 2 Sets Main Pull: Barbell Row | 4 Sets Main Legs: Deadlift (Varying Type) | 3 Sets Arm Accessory: Dumbbell Bicep Curl | 3 Sets Shoulder Accessory: Machine Lateral Raise | 3 Sets

What the fook does varying-type deadlift mean? It means the type of deadlift you do is linked to the program’s daily undulating periodization—the cycling of rep ranges and loads in every week. The 3 training days in a week of SkullStrength DUP are heavy, medium, and light days respectively.

1st Workout of the Week = Heavy Day	Main Movements: 4 thru 6 reps Accessories: 10 thru 15 reps
2nd Workout of the Week = Medium Day	Main Movements: 7 thru 9 reps Accessories: 10 thru 15 reps
3rd Workout of the Week = Light Day	Main Movements: 10 thru 12 reps Accessories: 10 thru 15 reps

If you prefer the DUP cycle to flow in the opposite direction—light, medium, heavy—you can reverse the order as you wish.

The type of deadlift you do depends on what kind of day the workout is on:

If the day is a heavy day, do the Conventional Deadlift, the Sumo Deadlift, or the Trap-Bar Deadlift (pick one and stick to it).

If the day is a medium day, do the Stiff-Legged Deadlift, the Romanian Deadlift, or the Trap-Bar Deadlift (pick one and stick to it).

If the day is a light day, do the Romanian Deadlift.

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Programming Example Through 2 Weeks

Day	Week 1	Week 2
Monday | Heavy	Workout A | Main Movements: 4–6 Reps	Workout B (Conventional DL) | Main Movements: 4–6 Reps
Wednesday | Medium	Workout B (Trap-Bar DL) | Main Movements: 7–9 Reps	Workout A | Main Movements: 7–9 Reps
Friday | Light	Workout A | Main Movements: 10–12 Reps	Workout B (RDL) | Main Movements: 10–12 Reps

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Taggin’ de gym schmuxx:

@Arborist @pneumocystosis @zv1212 @Glidarn

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Not a fan of DUP? Rather do linear? Try this 4-day linear/double progression gymmax program:

@thecel’s UPPL 4-Day Begintermediate. The Best Gymmax Program Ever Designed.

looksmax.org

 

[Gaygymmaxx]

Dnrd

 

[Orc]

this one is nice and simple, I like it.

 

[pentamogged9000]

i dont really like working out only 3 days a week but when i get a gym membership ill try it out

 

[longjohnmong]

I still can't tell if you're serious.

 

[thecel]

I still can't tell if you're serious.

It’s clearly serious. Why doesn’t it seem so to you?

 

[longjohnmong]

It’s clearly serious. Why doesn’t it seem so to you?

Because you're stuck at low level strength and instead of sticking with a simple proven routine you immediately start making shit more complicated than it needs to be.

 

[thecel]

I do legs and ass isolations, so I don’t run this program.

I run this one:

Try this 4-day linear/double progression gymmax program:

@thecel’s UPPL 4-Day Begintermediate. The Best Gymmax Program Ever Designed.

looksmax.org

 

[User49]

Clearly doesn’t work when you’re plateauing at 70kg bench as a grown man

 

[thecel]

Clearly doesn’t work when you’re plateauing at 70kg bench as a grown man

Not again with this single-individual-lifter-centric shit mindset.

I’ve said it numerous times on this forum, and I’ll say it again. The quality of a training program isn’t determined by how well it “worked” for the person who published it. The program’s publisher may have terrible genetics (e.g. me) or elite-level genetics. The program’s publisher may be taking steroids. Or they’re jacked but never followed the program they posted (they got jacked by running a totally different program). Why assume there’s any link between a program and the program-poster’s physique?

Imagine if a scrawny weakling sneaks into a private elite bodybuilding gym, steals a top-secret classified program, posts it online, and all he gets are “post physique for proof” “dnr cus ur small” “shit program you’re weak” “stfu if you don’t lift yourself” etc. Why is it so hard for forum users to assess programs by inspecting the programs?

Forum copers be like:

• Jacked poster = program is good.
• Not-jacked poster = program is shit.

 

[longjohnmong]

Not again with this single-individual-lifter-centric shit mindset.

But by your own admission your program is not working as you have been stuck for months and have frequent plateaus. You should read Mark Rippetoe's Practical Programming, although I could just summarize for you. It's real simple: Workout-to-workout linear periodization is the best and fastest progress you can make. But it only works when you're a novice lifter, which you are. The reason more complicated periodization schemes exist is so that lifters who have moved beyond the novice stage can continue to make progress. But there's no reason to use it if you can still make progress using work to workout linear periodization because more complex programming is slower.

 

[thecel]

But by your own admission your program is not working as you have been stuck for months and have frequent plateaus.

I’m not following SkullStrength DUP.

I do legs and ass isolations, so I don’t run this program.

The program I’m running stopped working for me—it had worked well in the past—but it would work for other guys.

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You should read Mark Rippetoe's Practical Programming, although I could just summarize for you. It's real simple: Workout-to-workout linear periodization is the best and fastest progress you can make. But it only works when you're a novice lifter, which you are. The reason more complicated periodization schemes exist is so that lifters who have moved beyond the novice stage can continue to make progress.

The program I’m running has a linear/double progression. Increase the weight by 5 pounds per week. If cannot, increase reps, then increase weight once possible.

SkullStrength DUP is for those who want to make progress past the novice phase by adding one of the easiest types of periodization: daily undulating.

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But there's no reason to use it if you can still make progress using work to workout linear periodization because more complex programming is slower.

Since I’ve been on a plateau for months, I’m inclined to conclude that simple linear progression is done for me. My genetics are trash, and I need to use intermediate programing methods to make more progress.

The quality of a training program isn’t determined by how well it “worked” for the person who published it. The program’s publisher may have terrible genetics (e.g. me) or elite-level genetics. The program’s publisher may be taking steroids. Or they’re jacked but never followed the program they posted (they got jacked by running a totally different program).

 

[longjohnmong]

Since I’ve been on a plateau for months, I’m inclined to conclude that simple linear progression is done for me. My genetics are trash, and I need to use intermediate programing methods to make more progress.

Nope. You weren't eating enough.

 

[thecel]

Nope. You weren't eating enough.

Unlikely. I started plateauing while I was bulking. Then I temporarily switched to a home workout program over the winter holiday, during which I made gains while cutting and maintaining. I went back to bulking when I got back in the gym, and my numbers started low, climbed up, and stalled out at the same plateaus. Recently, I went from bulking to maintenance because I don’t want to get too fat. My body fat percentage is higher than 20%.

If I need to eat more at this stage, my genetics are trash. People who have decent genetics can get stronger even when cutting, as long as they’re novices and not extremely skinny. “I can’t make gains unless I’m bulking” is an intermediate-to-advanced thing. If this is the case for me, my genetics are very subpar.

 

[longjohnmong]

If I need to eat more at this stage, my genetics are trash.

Even if that's the case (it's not) you'll still need to eat more to progress. You might as well make the fastest progress possible using linear periodization. I've been in your shoes. I know exactly what's going on. I've trained other people besides myself. I trained my ex-gf using linear periodization. She squatted more than you do. She weighed 114 pounds.

 

[thecel]

Even if that's the case (it's not) you'll still need to eat more to progress. You might as well make the fastest progress possible using linear periodization. I've been in your shoes. I know exactly what's going on. I've trained other people besides myself. I trained my ex-gf using linear periodization. She squatted more than you do. She weighed 114 pounds.

She got there just from linear? Das crazy.

 

[thecel]

This approach is similar to how The Texas Method works.

 

[Deleted member 24940]

Just do a PPL it's way less complex than this shit and you get more volume.

 

[thecel]

Just do a PPL it's way less complex than this shit and you get more volume.

PPL is a split not a program. DUP can be used in PPL splits.

SkullStrength DUP is a giga-simple full-body routine (e.g. GreySkull LP, Starting Strength, StrongLifts 5x5) with DUP. Muh complex.

 

[longjohnmong]

She got there just from linear? Das crazy.

She had elite genetics.

 

[HighClassMaxing]

Thecel is high iq as fuck

 

[thecel]

bump