12 reviews for Fazlifts Upper Lower (The Barbarian)
This routine is the correct way to program an Upper/Lower for beginners and early intermediates primarily interested in hypertrophy, with a secondary focus on strength. The core principle of hypertrophy is progressive poundages, in standardised form for medium to high reps. That is the basis by which all my routines are written, and that is the key to hypertrophy.
Upper Days - These days will cover the chest, upper back, delts, biceps and triceps. I show you how best to program this to accomplish the core principles we follow for increased muscle mass. At this stage volume should remain low to moderate and effort should be encouraged. Direct volume for the biceps and triceps is lower, as they will receive indirect loading from the heavy chest and back work. Too much can be not only detrimental for growth at this stage, but can also lead to tendinitis in some. Additional work for neck/forearms is not included, as experience has shown me their inclusion is unneccessary in most people, however that can be added per preference.
Lower Days - These days will cover the quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves. These days also follow the core principles, and I include a reasonable degree of variety within that framework for balance. Programmed correctly the volume on this day should perfectly mirror that of the upper days.
Progression
At this stage, it is super simple and you should expect to make progress every single time you come to repeat a session, that is assuming two major things:
1. You actually trained hard enough the previous session
2. You ate and rested well
That’s your first point of call, if you ever feel progression has stalled. It’s not a routine change or moving to stage 2, no if you didn’t progress at this stage it’s more than likely an effort or R&R and nutrition issue. So sort that out first or no routine will ever work. Eventually of course you will outgrow this basic stage, but it’s unlikely that will be the first resort. Or even the second, or third. You are going to progress with either weight or reps using a very simple double progression scheme. This means adding reps until you hit the top of the rep range, and then adding weight. For example:
Session 1: 60 x 5, 4
(This means you performed a set of 5 and a set of 4 with 60kg)
Session 2: 60 x 6, 5
Session 3: 60 x 6, 6
(You hit the top of the rep range for both sets and that only took 2 weeks, nice. Go up next time)
Session 4: 65 x 5, 4
(You added 5kg and your reps dropped, so now build this back up)
Session 5: 65 x 6, 5
And so on…
Very simple.
For more information
To get indepth more about the routine, get Fazlifts' The Barbarian ebook here.
To inquire online personalized coaching from Fazlifts, apply here.
Zach B.
Man3 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
I’m an experienced lifter who has taken a year or so off. I entered my way back into the gym with one of Alex Bromleys programs. They were decent at first but I felt it had a lot of junk volume. I started this program and have enjoyed every session. My strength has increased and my muscles have developed. I will stay on this program till summer is over.
Andrew Gorny
Man, 4212 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
I started this program as intended and realized I was way too inexperienced to execute this program on my own, so I opted for basically double the rep ranges and aimed for failure at the last set of each exercise. I still made great progress, hitting PRs once every 1-2 weeks. I'd like to give this another go as intended. I also added Ab/dductor exercises to leg day and alternated them with calf/hamstring exercises to keep the pain balanced. I saw some people do a 1-1-2 schedule with this as opposed to 2-2, and I think I'd like to try that. The two days rest didn't seem to have a significant benefit for me after the first 6 weeks so the other half I just took one day off in between the two work days for the second half of the program. I'd like to try the 1-1-2 next time. I'm 41 and pretty out of shape, so I'm guessing no matter what I do it will benefit me! Thanks Faz
Michael G.
Man, 473 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Victor T.
Man6 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
I’ve been following the program from his ebook, currently still making progress with Phase 1. I didn’t realize I still had a lot of noob gains, and the simplicity and straightforward structure of the Barbarian is helping me get strong and big faster than any other program i’ve done so far. Can’t recommend Faz enough.
Ezio
Man, 2912 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Favorites: fast workouts, high intensity, simple progression scheme As a novice I'm not sure what else could be improved about this plan. I ran variant 1. I just loved progressing each session/week and surpassing previous PRs on various lifts. My physique is definitely changing and I'd totally recommend this program to others. I think the whole FazLifts universe of content is an excellent supplement to this program itself, and everyone who is doing the program should consume more of his content to get the most out of your training.
gianna
Woman, 243 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
I felt like there wasn’t enough focus on glutes
Derek M.
Man, 493 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Volume feels low, but every set is basically failure so it evens out.
Ortt O.
Man, 513 weeks complete
6 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
I’m following the intermediate version of this program and typically hit failure on the last set, which feels just right. I leave the gym with a solid pump every time, and after just a couple of weeks, my shoulders are already looking broader. At 51, I’ve made a few adjustments, swapping Good Mornings for Hyperextensions and Deadlifts for Hip Thrusts to better suit my needs. My upper body days take around 1 hour and 15 minutes, while lower body days usually wrap up in about an hour. Overall, it’s a great fit so far!
Roshen T.
Man, 271 week complete
3 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Tony S.
Man3 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Well balanced program, enjoying the regular strength gains.