Written by Branch Warren
03 September 2015

15NN114-BRANCH

Q&A with Branch Warren

The Texas Titan Answers Your Training Problems

 

 

DEADLIFTS

 Do you ever start back day with deadlifts? Or do you switch from starting with deadlifts and ending a workout with deadlifts? What do you feel are the benefits of starting with them and ending with them?

 For most of my lifting career, I started off my back workouts with deadlifts. It’s the most basic and raw movement you can do, just like squats for legs. And aside from warming up with leg extensions, starting legs off with squats is also something I always did. You want to hit those exercises fresh because you can put the most energy and effort into them and get the most out of them.

 I had to start doing deadlifts at the end of the back workout once I tore my triceps back in 2008. I was concerned about putting too much pressure on that elbow tendon, so I started doing 315 for sets of 20 instead of working up to 500 for sets of 8-10 like I had for all those years. I tell you, it was brutal! High-rep deads are no joke. Your whole body feels like it’s on fire and your lungs are about to bust. Now that my quad was torn and I have to be careful with my tendons there, it’s just another reason to do deadlifts at the end. I’m already fatigued from all the pulldowns and rows, so I don’t have to go as heavy to get the same feeling from them.

 So it really all depends on you and your situation. If you’re healthy and have no injury issues, do your deads first so you can go as heavy as possible and build some serious power and density in your back. If you need to be careful for whatever reason, do them at the end of the workout.

 STRETCHING

 I know Jay Cutler takes a lot of time to stretch and even has someone he sees a few times a week just to stretch him out. How much stretching do you do and when do you do it, before or after training?

 I start every workout off with light warm-ups and light stretching, for the upper body if that’s what I’m training that day, or the lower body. At the end of the workout, I’m pumped and everything is loosened up, so I will stretch again but a little more aggressively. Since my quad tear, I’ve been doing a lot more stretching for my quads and hams even on days I don’t work them, because I wanted to get a full range of motion back as soon as possible in my right leg. It was a pretty big deal for me the day I could touch my right heel to my butt again!  

 STUBBORN DELTS

 My shoulders are pretty big, but they don’t have that real round shape like yours do. I’ve always done just dumbbell laterals along with my presses. Should I start adding in some other types of laterals, like cable or machine?

 Dumbbell laterals have always been my favorite, but it sounds like you might need to switch things up and throw in cable laterals too. Shoulders used to be my worst body part, no lie. They had no caps to them. For a couple of years I worked them twice a week, making sure I hit them from every angle. I would start off with either a barbell military press or seated dumbbell presses, then follow that up with dumbbell and cable laterals. I would also do front raises with a barbell or dumbbells, upright rows and something for rear delts, either dumbbells or a machine. You could try this too, but if you do make sure you cut back a little bit on your chest training or else it could be too much for your front delts to take in one training week. On your dumbbell laterals, you could do one-arm raises, drop sets or go up and down the rack without resting. If a body part isn’t responding, you have to give it no choice but to grow.

 CHEAT MEALS

 Branch, I know some guys eat one or two cheat meals a week in the off-season. Do you indulge in cheat meals?

I’m not much for junk food, but in the off-season I have been known to order a large pizza when I’m watching my Sunday football games. Even then I make sure it’s a meat-lover’s pizza, with sausage, chicken, beef and pepperoni.

 

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