Serge Nubret’s ‘Pump Training’ Routine (Build Muscle with Light Weight)

Serge Nubret was the king of high volume training.

Have you ever wondered ‘how much volume is too much volume’? Well, think of an amount of volume that you think is too much volume, then quadruple that amount. That’s a Serge Nubret’s Pump workout.

Each workout consists hundreds of reps to pump muscles to their max. It doesn’t take a lot of weight to build muscle with this approach. Which makes it a safe and effective way to train.

Serge Nubret’s training style goes to show that you don’t need to train with heavy weight to get results.

But before we reveal the pump routine, let’s take a look at the man behind the method.

Who is Serge Nubret?

Serge Nubret was a world champion bodybuilder in the 1960’s and 1970’s who competed against Frank Zane, Mike Mentzer, Franco Columbu, Arnold Schwarzenegger and many other elite bodybuilders during this ‘Golden Era of Bodybuilding’.

Despite intense competition, Serge Nubret always earned a top spot on the winner’s podium.

When Serge wasn’t crushing weights in the gym, he was playing the lead man in many French films and likely slept with every women West of the Maginot Line.

The Black Panther

Nubret earned the nickname the ‘Black Panther’ because he was big, strong and graceful.

He stood 6 feet tall and weighted a rock-solid 200 pounds during competition. Serge wasn’t a mass monster like you see today. Instead he looked like he was a sculpted by Michalagelo.

Rather than focusing solely on building muscle mass, he strived for aesthetics: “muscle symmetry, balance, proportion and overall shape”, were his aim.

And his specialized ‘Pump Training’ routine was uniquely suited to do just that.

What is ‘Pump Training’?

Pump training is proof that you don’t need to lift heavy weights to build muscle.

‘Pump Training’ is done with light weights and extremely high volume.

It’s all about chasing the ‘pump’. The pump is when your muscle fills with blood due to the constant lifting and lowering of the weight.

A pump is that tight feeling in your muscles, like your muscles are about to burst out of your skin.

The muscle pump is incredibly satisfying and addicting. Once you feel it, you want to feel it again and again. The pump is very motivating.

A muscle pump is a powerful bodybuilding technique. For example, catch a pump and take a look at yourself in the mirror.

Not only can you feel the pump, but you see the difference a pump makes immediately.

Actually seeing your body in this pumped-up state helps you visualize a larger version of yourself. Hold this image in your mind long enough and your body can’t help but follow suit and grow bigger.

Pump Training brings an onslaught of repetitions to flood muscles full of blood to the point they felt like they’d explode. When Surge picked up the weights he didn’t put them down for 2 hours straight.

The Serge Nubret Workout Routine

Serge trained hard 6 days a week. Each workout contained an absurd amount of volume. See for yourself –  his workout split is as follows:

Monday & Thursday: Chest and Quads

• Squats – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Leg Press – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Leg Extension – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Bench Press – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Flat Bench Fly’s – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Incline Bench Press – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Incline Fly’s – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Dumbbell Pullovers – 6 sets of 12 reps

Tuesday & Friday: Back and Hamstrings

• Chin-ups – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Behind the Neck Lat Pulldowns – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Lat Pulldowns to the Front – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Barbell Bent-over Rows – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Lying Leg Curl – 8 sets of 15 reps
• Standing Leg Curl – 8 sets of 15 reps

Wednesday & Saturday: Shoulders, Arms, and Calves

• Behind the Neck Barbell Press – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Alternate Dumbbell Front Raise – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Barbell Upright Row – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Cable Lateral Raise – 6 sets of 12 reps
• Barbell Curl superset with Triceps Pushdowns – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Dumbbell Curl superset with Triceps Dips – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Standing Calf Raises – 8 sets of 12 reps
• Seated Calf Raises – 8 sets of 12 reps

Sunday:

Sunday was a rest day. Or maybe he did a few thousand sit ups if he felt like it

Train Abs Everyday

He also trained abs everyday for an hour straight. Sometimes working up to 2000 sit ups per day. He followed those up with 6 sets of leg raises.

Like I said, it’s a lot of freaking volume. This workout is pretty intense but a lot of fun. You can actually feel your muscles working and growing.

Rest between sets was kept to 30 seconds, making pump training excellent conditioning workout because it burns fat.

Try this routine for 3-6 weeks and see how it treats ya.

How You Lift is MORE Important than What You Lift

Use the Right Weight – The right weight for pump training is one you can rep 15-18 times in a set. If you would achieve muscle failure when lifting the weight 15-18 times in a row, that weight is OK.

This way when you lift for 12 reps, by the time you get to set 3 or 4 you should be struggling to get the full 12 reps.

Eliminate Momentum – Take reps nice and slow.  Take 2-3 seconds to move the weight in each direction using a nice, smooth motion the entire time.

Make sure the muscle contraction is moving the weight and not momentum. Weight momentum is a workout killer and gains stealer.

Slow down and do it right. Use less weight if necessary. Quality matters more than quantity. Maintain full, deliberate control of each rep.

Keep Good Form – Aim for perfect form for the duration of each set. Good form results in full, balanced muscles and healthy joints and tendons. Bad form will saw holes in your tendons and grind your bones into dust.

Tension must be kept on the muscle at all times. No ‘resting’ at the top or bottom of the movement, or shifting the weight to joints or secondary muscles.

Keep muscles tight through the entire range of motion.

Squeeze Those Reps – Squeeze your muscles by flexing them hard at the top of each rep. Keep the muscle tight and tense all the way to the bottom of the motion.

Focus – Train with laser focus for best results. Zero in on your muscles and feel them working.

Benefits of Pump Training

There are many benefits to pump training including building muscle, burning fat, gaining size and getting stronger.

Build Mind-Muscle Connection with Pump Training

“Mind power gave me this body” – Serge Nubret

The pump sensation makes it easier to build mind-muscle connection. It allows you to hone in on the working muscle. Eventually you’ll be able to move the weight using only the power of your mind to contract the muscle you’re targeting.

The tight feeling will help you concentrate on the pumped up muscle group.

You should strive to be able to flex each muscle individually without engaging any other muscle around it.

Strong mind-muscle connection is KEY to building an otherworldly physique. It’s how you build well defined, nicely shaped, dense muscles.

The Pump is Proof

The pump is proof that you’re making progress. It’s feedback from your body. No need to wonder if you’re getting a good workout. If you have a pump, you are.

A pump your body’s way of telling you, “Yes! That was a great workout! Now feed me so I can grow!”

Pump Training Burns Fat

High reps and short rest between sets are a recipe for fat destruction.

Expect to burn a ton of calories each workout. Expect to burn a lot more as you grow new muscles. (Muscle burns calories 24/7.)

Pro Tip: Layer up for extra fat annihilation.

Pump Training is Safer

Serge Nubret’s bodybuilding career spanned 50 years. He is a testament that training hard is sustainable as long as you train smart.

Just use perfect form and your joints and tendons will stay healthy and you’ll stay jacked well into your twighlight years.

You Will Get stronger with Pump Training

Serge Nubret could bench press over 500 pounds even though he routine trained with between 70-100 kg.

The sheer volume forces your muscle to go stronger so you can hoist big weights.

Pump Training is Fun

What’s more fun then getting a great pump, feeling strong, and looking good with and without clothes?

Serge Nubret’s Diet

You can’t build an amazing body without proper nutrition.

When working out it’s importing that you get enough protein, calories and nutrients to recover from workouts and grow stronger.

What would Serge Nubret’s workout be without his diet to go with it?

Serge would eat one meal a day and ate mostly red meat, rice and beans. Horse meat was his dish of choice. Sometimes up to 6 pounds of meat a day!

As long as you eat when you’re hungry and eat clean, you’ll get results.

Many bodybuilders during Serge’s day took liver tablets to give them energy for tough workouts and provide protein for muscle recovery.

Legendary Motivation

How did he stay so motivated to workout this much?

Needless to say, lifting weights really turned Nubret’s crank. Lifting truly was a labor of love for Serge.

Bodybuilding was about brining the mind, body and spirit together in harmony.

He was passionate about training and that gave him the desire to workout hard for many, many years.

You don’t have to love training to give the Serge Nubret workout a try.

Try it for 4-6 weeks and see what you think. My prediction is that your muscles will shape up and become more defined and dense.

Another way to benefit from pump training is to incorporate it into your current routine.

Say you lift Chest heavy on Monday, then on Thursday you can do Serge’s training routine for your chest.

Just lighten the weight and increase the volume.

 The Verdict on the Serge Nubret Workout and Pump Training

It works – there’s no doubt about that. The Serge Nubret workout isn’t practical for those with limited time to workout.

Pump training workouts can sometimes take over 90 minutes to complete.

Overall, I think pump training can be a great addition to a workout routine.

Lift heavy one or two days then try pump training on day three.

This is a good way to keep your muscles guessing and encoring them to grow by introducing a new stimulus.

I do recommend that you have a solid two years of strength training before trying pump training.

Do a linear strength building routine to build a good muscle foundation first.

You want to work on your total body strength and muscle gains and build a solid, strong foundation before moving on to more advanced techniques.

Give the Serge Nubret workout a shot if you want to get an amazing pump and shock your muscles into gaining more size!

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