Subj: High Intensity Training the Dorian Yates way.
Dorian Yates is an Englishman built like a tank. He dominated the bodybuilding stage throughout the 90’s and won six Mr. Olympia titles.
His victories catapulted his career and made him a force in the fitness industry. He’s a successful gym owner, athletic trainer and health and fitness advocate. To this day he is one of the most sought after trainers in the world.
Dorian Yates came from a nowhere town located somewhere in the English countryside. Labor jobs were the norm and people there lived and died in obscurity.
Dorian wanted more out of life than a blue collar job and hanging around the pub in his free time.
Bodybuilding was his way out. He trained with fury knowing full-well that someday all his hard work would pay off. After years of fierce training he broke onto the big stage and was crowded king. He reigned supreme for six years. Not bad for a ‘nobody’.
He went from a nobody to somebody by building his body.
It just goes to show what can be accomplished with passion and perseverance.
This post shows you how Dorian Yates trained to get into championship shape.
High Intensity Training the Dorian Yates Way
Like most bodybuilders, Dorain Yates has tried it all. He has distilled years of training experience into a method called High Intensity Training.
High Intensity Training (HIT) was popularized by 70’s bodybuilder Mike Mentzer.
Legend has it that Mentzer showed Yates the HIT style of training and Dorian was hooked after one workout.
Over the years Yates refined his own version of High Intensity Training that worked best for him.
Dorian Yates’ Workout Routine
Here’s a quick overview of Dorian’s workout routine:
- 4 workouts per week
- Train 2-4 muscle groups per workout
- 1-2 exercises per muscle group
- 1-3 warm-up sets per exercise
- 1 working set per exercise
- 6-12 reps per set
- Cardio 2-3x per week
Rep Range – Typically 6-12 reps per set, but if you can do more reps then do more. The goal is to train using the right intensity. The number of reps is irrelevant.
Warm up sets – The first 2-3 sets are warm-up sets to prepare you for the one working set. The purpose of these sets is to prime your body and mind for action. They activate your muscles and get you ready for the working set. The warm up sets are performed at 60-80% intensity, respectively.
Take one set to failure – The one working set is taken to failure. That is, absolute, complete muscle failure. You need a training partner to push you past the 100% mark.
Focus on the negative – The negative is the lowering part of the rep. Muscles are strongest in the negative part of the motion. To reach complete muscle failure you must train the muscle in the negative until it can no longer resist gravities pull against the weight.
This workout only works if you pour everything you’ve got into this workout set.
Rest between sets is about 1 minute (sometimes longer). Rest longer when training larger muscle groups. Large muscle groups require lots of oxygen. If you don’t rest adequately then your respiratory system will fatigue before your muscle. The result is suboptimal training.
Give everything you’ve got on the final set. Every ounce of your mind, body and soul is put into that set. The building could crumble around you and you wouldn’t know it because you are focused solely on one thing – moving the weight.
Dorian Yates Training Routine:
This example is a 4-day split. Dorian, like all the other greats, mixed things up from time to time.
- Monday: Shoulders, Triceps and Abs
- Tuesday: Back
- Wednesday: Rest
- Thursday: Chest, Biceps and Abs
- Friday: Rest
- Saturday: Legs
- Sunday: Rest
Many people may be surprised to learn that Dorian only trains four times a week. Each workout is about 45 minutes in length.
The intensity is so awesome that all he needed was to train a muscle once or twice a week.
Dorian Yates Shoulders, Triceps and Abs Workout
- Shoulder Press
- Lateral Raises
- Cable Side Lateral Raises
- Dumbbell Shrugs
- Tricep Pushdowns (so heavy he had to hang a weight from his waist.)
- Skull Crushers
- Single-Arm Tricep Extensions with the Pulley
Dorian Yates Back Workout
- Machine Pullover
- Lat Pull Down
- Barbell Row
- Machine Single-Arm Row
- Rear Delt Raises
- Rear Delt Machine
- Back Extensions
- Deadlifts
Dorian Yates Chest Bicep and Abs Workout
- Incline Chest Press
- Chest Press
- Incline Flyes
- Cable Flyes (Pulleys set High)
- Seated Dumbbell Curls
- Barbell Curls
- Preacher Curls – one arm at a time.
Dorian Yates Legs Workout
- Leg Extension
- Prone Leg Curl
- Leg Press
- Hack Squat
- Romanian Deadlifts
- Single-Leg Hamstring Curl
- Standing Calf Raise
Abdominal Training
Ab training consisted of mostly simple bodyweight exercises. Sit-ups, crunches, and the occasional cable crunch made up the core of his ab routine.
Dorian didn’t want a bulky waist so abs where trained only once or twice per week.
Machines vs. Free Weights
This is a matter of preference. Every body is a little different so you’ll need to experiment and find out what’s right for you.
Yates preferred machines like hack squat and leg press for training legs. The barbell squat was too risky and he didn’t get enough benefit from it.
Machines also provide stability so you can focus on muscle contraction rather than balancing free weight.
Recovery
You don’t grow in the gym, you grow when you recover.
Rest and nutrition must be adequate enough to fully recover and grow bigger and stronger than before.
You damage the muscle when you train. The muscle repairs itself when you rest and is rebuilt stronger.
Cardio
The weight lifting workout routine was supplemented with 20-30 minutes of cardio a few times a week.
Cardio is important so that you can take your muscles to failure. You need endurance to train with intensity.
Rest Between Sets Varies by Muscle Group
The larger the muscle group being trained the longer the rest should be. The weights should be heavy enough so that you achieve muscle failure BEFORE your respiratory system fatigues.
Large muscle require lots of oxygen to perform. If you train too light you’ll run out of air before the muscle gets tired.
Every 5 or 6th week is a Deload Week
Lifting takes a toll you your body. Give yourself a physical and mental break by lifting light every 5th or 6th week. This allows you time to recover and come back strong and feeling fresh.
Focus on the Negatives
Train the Muscle through the Positive and Negative portion of the exercise. Many guys leave gains on the table because they slack on the negatives. Negatives should be slow and controlled, otherwise you will waste half the rep.
Recap of Dorian Yates Workout Routine
Train efficiently.
If you train with intension and give your all for 45 minutes straight you’ll get all the benefit you possibly can from this routine.
Do your one working set correctly and that’s all you need. One perfect set gets the job done.
Winner’s Mindset
Yates has the mindset of a winner. He’s always learning and keeps up to date on the latest research. He tries it all and keeps what works while eliminating what doesn’t work.
Yates is a student of bodybuilding. He devoured studies stay up to date on the latest muscle research.Each time he grasped the bar you are taking destiny into your own hands.
Yates is a student of bodybuilding. He devours studies and stay up to date on the latest scientific research.
Train with Purpose
Each time you grab the bar you are taking your destiny into your own hands.
Train with passion – you must have a burning desire to be more if you want to have more.
Dorian Yates Diet and Nutrition
COMING SOON
Dorian Yates Steroids
Yes, believe it or not Yates took steroids. (Gasp!)
He ingested/injected a cocktail of testosterone, HGH, deca and dianobol. A potent mix that made him look like He-Man.
So, keep that in mind folks. There is no magic bullet workout routine that makes you a muscle monster.
Obviously, no natural bodybuilder could ever hope to achieve Dorian’s muscle size. It’s a lot of pain and hard work to get in shape, yes, but in order to reach alien proportions you’re gunna need some chemical assistance.
Luckily for you, you can have an athletic physique by following the principles on this site.
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