Vince Girondas 8 X 8 Workout

One of the reasons the name Vince Gironda is as popular as ever in bodybuilding articles is that the
man had ideas that were truly revolutionary and way ahead of their time. 50 years before Charles
Poliquin wrote about German volume training and new workout templates such as FST-7
appeared on the scene, Vince was advocating the benefits of volume training for maximum
hypertrophy.

Vince was known for his unusual training methods. Some of his unique exercises included the bench
press to the neck, the sternum chin up (touching the chest to the bar), drag curls and sissy squats
with what he called a Burlesque Bump. His training systems included 15 sets of 4, 3 sets of 12, 6
sets of 6, 10 sets of 10 and 4 exercises in a giant set one for each side of the muscle. Of all
Vinces techniques, the 8 sets of 8 program was his favorite for the advanced bodybuilder. I have a
definite preference for the 8 X 8 system of sets and reps, wrote Vince. I come back to this high
intensity honest workout more often than any other for maximizing muscle fiber growth in the
quickest possible time for the advanced bodybuilder.

8 sets of 8 might be the most effective set and rep combination ever developed for rapidly building
muscle fiber size while simultaneously shedding body fat. Vince called it the honest workout
because of the pure muscle fiber size that can be achieved on it. Keep to 8 X 8 and your muscle
fiber will plump out, giving you a solid mass of muscle density as a result, promised Vince. 8 sets of
8 is so effective that as a 20 year old novice competitive bodybuilder, I was able to gain 17 pounds of
muscle drug-free (contest weight from one show to the next) in under nine months using this
system. To this day, I still use the 8 sets of 8 system whenever I need a shock program to bring up
a lagging body part. Vince warned that this set and rep combination is not for beginners: You have
to build up to the stage where you can benefit from this extremely advanced form of training. I
doubt if anyone with less than two years of training experience could benefit from this method.

How it Works

8 sets of 8 is a high volume, fast tempo, size building workout. It is not designed for strength
development its purely for bodybuilding or cosmetic improvements. 8 sets of 8 will also help
you get leaner. The short rest intervals stress the cardiovascular system to the point where calories
are burned, the metabolism is stimulated, hormones are stirred up and fat is melted away. Heres
how it works: You will select three or four exercises per muscle group and perform 8 sets of 8 on
each exercise. Yes thats 24 to 32 sets per body part! You will work two or three muscle groups per

session and rest only 15 to 30 seconds between sets. Each workout will be completed in
approximately 45 minutes and never more than 60 minutes.

Although this apparently excessive volume might seem reminiscent of the Steve Michalik and John
Defendis Intensity or Insanity style of training its NOT the same thing. These are not two or
three hour marathon workouts. You are completing this routine in under an hour. The reason this
doesnt constitute overtraining is because youre not exceeding the workout duration that begins
having a negative effect on recovery and anabolic hormones. You are simply overloading the
muscles by condensing more training into less time. Why it works: More work in less time = higher
intensity and bigger muscles

Many people are under the impression that the only way to make a muscle larger is to increase the
amount of weight you use. This is not true. Overload is an absolute requirement to build muscle, but
the overload can come in more ways than one. Progressively adding weight may be one of the best
ways to provide an overload, but its not the only way. Vince was all in favor of adding weight to the
bar, (provided good form was maintained), but he believed that performing more work in less time
was a better method of overload. The Iron Gurus advice: To acquire larger muscles you must
increase the intensity of work done within a given time.

This means minimum rest between sets. Push yourself. I feel workouts should be timed and you
should constantly strive to shorten the time it takes to get through your routine. This is another form
of progressive resistance, and is more important than raising your weights. This principle of overload
explains why sprinters have bigger muscles than distance runners. Although its more work to run a
mile than it is to run 100 yards, the sprinter is doing more work per second. Consequently, his
muscles will become larger.

Why Use 8 Sets Of 8 Instead Of Conventional Training?

The most popular method of training for advanced bodybuilders is to choose between two and four
exercises per muscle group and perform three or four sets of 6-12 reps on each exercise. The rest
intervals range from 60 seconds to four minutes, depending on the goal. So why bother with such an
outrageous program as 8 sets of 8?

The answer is because this type of honest, high volume, fast tempo training will be a complete
shock to your body, especially in the beginning when you are unaccustomed to it. An advanced
bodybuilder will adapt to any training program within a matter of months and often within just
weeks. Once adaptation occurs, you must seek out new types of stress to coax your muscles into

continued growth. Although Vince did not advocate over-training in any way, shape or form, he did
advocate using muscle confusion for stimulating gains, even if this meant, temporarily
overtraining. 8 sets of 8 is simply an unusual and effective method of overload and muscle
confusion. Obviously, this program is not intended for constant use. Its a shock routine you can
use for brief periods to kick-start a new growth spurt when you need it most. After completing a
cycle of 8 sets of 8, you can go back to more conventional methods.

How long should you use 8 sets of 8? As long as it keeps working. Another advantage of 8 sets of 8 is
that it can be used to work around an injury. Heavy training with 5-6 rep maxes is impossible when
youre babying a strain, pull or soft tissue injury. But you can do 8 sets of 8 because you get such an
honest workout with a fraction of your usual weight. 8 sets of 8 is a fantastic method for precontest definition training because 50-60 sets in under an hour is decidedly aerobic. You can easily
count each
weight training session as a cardio workout. Fast-metabolism types may not even need any other
aerobic work while using 8 sets of 8.

How much rest between sets?

Vince advocated a very businesslike approach towards tempo. He said that using the 8 sets of 8
format is not enough to ensure muscle gains. Whats more important is the speed with which you
get through the program. Minimum rest between sets is a must, said the master. When Vince was
training Mohamed Makkawy for the Olympia, he had Mohammed conditioned to the point of doing
8 sets in as little as 5 minutes or less. Your goal is to reduce your rest intervals to 30 seconds or less,
ultimately cutting them down to just 15-20 seconds between each set.

Once your conditioning has adjusted to the demands, youll need just five to ten deep breaths
between each set, then its on to the next set. If your tempo on each exercise is 2-0-2-0 (2 second
eccentric, no pauses and two second concentric), then each rep will take you four seconds. Eight
reps per set means that each set will take you 32 seconds. With a 15-20 second rest interval, 24 sets
will take only 18 to 21 minutes to complete and 32 sets will take 25 to 28 minutes to complete.

Tempo

The proper tempo combined with the correct resistance is the key to the success of this program.
Vince defined optimal tempo as the evenly spaced sets (time-wise) without any distractions and
complete concentration on when to pick up the next weight and do the next set. This means no

magazine reading, no walking around the gym, no gossiping, no changing the CD in your Walkman,
and no not even going to the bathroom. This program requires 100% total concentration.

If you get interrupted or distracted, you might as well pack up your gym bag and go home. Do not
put the dumbbells down between sets. Rest them on your knees, but dont put them down or rerack them. Also, dont release the bar between sets; rack it, but keep your hands on it. If youre using
straps, dont unwrap them. Stay on the bench or machine until all 8 sets of 8 are completed. Take no
rest between body parts. When you finish the last exercise for the first muscle group, move directly
into the first exercise for the next muscle group. By the way, to follow these tempo guidelines means
youll have to ditch your training partner. This program must be done alone.

How much weight?

Using 15-20 second rest intervals will limit the amount of weight you can use, but thats ok. Initially,
there will be a large drop in your normal training poundages. Most people will need to reduce their
normal 8 rep max by about 40% to successfully complete 8 sets with such brief rest intervals. For
example, if you normally perform dumbbell flyes with 55 pounds for 8 reps with a 60 90 second
rest interval, youre going to have to reduce your weight to about 35 pounds to successfully
complete 8 sets of 8 with 15-30 second rest intervals. You become more conditioned, it will amaze
you how much weight you will be able to build back up to while maintaining the short rest interval.

Amazingly, you may even get close to your original poundage. At this point, some serious growth will
begin to occur. Proper weight selection is critical. The first workout should be made intentionally
easy. If you attempt too much weight too quickly, you wont be able to complete 8 reps on the last
several sets nor will you be allowing room for progression over a period of weeks. Vince cautioned
that the same weight for all eight sets is imperative. If you fail on the sixth or seventh rep on the last
set or two, thats fine, but if your reps drop below 8 by your 4th or 5th set, the weight you selected
is too heavy.

Intensity: Training Over your head

Most of your sets will not be taken to failure, and none of them will be taken beyond failure. On
your last set or two of each exercise, its normal to fail at the 6th or 7th rep. When you can easily
complete a full 8 sets of 8 reps, then increase the weight on the next workout. Although you wont
be reaching failure on most of your sets, make no mistake this is some of the most difficult training
you will ever undertake. Training large muscle groups and doing multi-joint free weight exercises are
especially difficult. You will face the burn of local muscle fatigue, the challenge of oxygen debt and

the difficulty of maintaining mental concentration. 8 sets of 8 is a test of strength, endurance and
mental toughness. Gironda called this training over your head. At times, you wont be sure if you
can go on, but once you start, you cannot stop.

How Many Sets & Exercises

As a general rule, Vince suggested limiting your total sets to no more than 12-15 per body part. He
said that if you cant get a workout in 12 sets, youre not concentrating properly. However, he also
said there are certain occasions where this rule could be broken. The 8 sets of 8 program for the
advanced bodybuilder is one of them. As far as how many exercises, Vince recommend anywhere
from one to four exercises per muscle group, depending on the circumstances. For this particular
variation of the program, you will perform 8 sets of 8 reps on two to four exercises per body part.
The number of exercises per body part will also depend on what type of split routine you choose.
The most important factor is to do only as many exercises as you can fit into the 45 minute time
limit.

What Type of Split Routine?

Vince advocated different types of split routines for various purposes. Sometimes he had his pupils
train as often as six days in a row with each muscle group being worked three times per week! More
often, Vince was partial to routines split two or three ways so that each muscle group was trained
twice per week. He advised advanced bodybuilders to use a three-day split with 72 hours of
recuperation between maximum-intensity workouts. These days its more popular to split a routine
four or even five ways. With a four or five day split, each muscle group is worked once every five to
seven days.

If Vince were around today, he would surely give me a verbal beating for saying this, but Ive
discovered that 8 sets of 8 works with nearly any split routine whether you work each muscle group
once a week or twice a week. The important thing is to adjust your volume so you can observe the
tempo and time limit rules. If you have a split routine that works well for you, by all means stay with
it.

For example, if youre on the popular four-day split where you train two days on, one day off, youll
get great results on 8 sets of 8. With this type of split, you can perform seven or eight exercises for 8
sets of 8 reps and fit it all inside of forty-five minutes. If you are on a two or three day split as Vince
often recommended, you may have time for only one or two exercises per muscle group, each
performed for 8 sets of 8. The sample routine Ive outlined is based on a four day split.

Sample Routine:

Day 1

Chest
Decline low cable crossover (touch hands at waistline) 8 X 8
Bench press to neck 8 X 8
Incline Dumbbell Press (palms facing each other) 8 X 8
Wide Grip V-Bar Dips 8 X 8

Biceps
Drag Curl 8 X 8
Preacher curl (top of bench at low pec line) 8 X 8
Incline Dumbbell Curl 8 X 8

Forearms
Zottman Curl 8 X 8
Barbell Wrist Curl 8 X 8

Day 2

Shoulders
Dumbbell Side Lateral raise seated 8 X 8
Wide Grip upright row 8 X 8
Front to back barbell shoulder press 8 X 8
Dumbbell bent over rear deltoid lateral 8 X 8

Triceps
Kneeling rope extension 8 X 8
Lying Tricep Extension 8 X 8
2 Dumbbell Tricep Kickback 8 X 8

Day 3

Back
Sternum Chin up 8 X 8
High bench two dumbbell rowing 8 X 8
Low cable row with 18 high pulley 8 X 8
Medium Grip Lat Pulldown to Chest 8 X 8

Abs
Double Crunch (pull in knees and elbows together at same time) 8 X 8
Weighted Crunch 8 X 8
Lying Bent Knee Leg Raises 8 X 8

DAY 4

Quads
Front Squat 8 X 8
Hack machine squat 8 X 8

Sissy Squat 8 X 8
Leg Extension 8 X 8

Hamstrings Supine Leg Curl 8 X 8

Seated leg Curl machine 8 X 8

Calves Standing Calf raise 8 X 20

Seated Calf raise 8 X 20

In Conclusion

8 sets of 8 is a little known and very misunderstood program. This is partly because Vince never
explained it clearly in great detail- not even in his famous mail order courses. Even when fully
understood, most people will never even attempt this type of training because it seems like too
much volume and the weights seem too light to get anything out of it. Too bad for them! The real
reason most people never finish a full cycle of 8 sets of 8 is because its very demanding! 8 sets of 8
reps performed in five minutes for a large muscle group can test the grit of the toughest
bodybuilder.

You dont have to agree with all of Vinces teachings to use this program. Its natural to resist
concepts that are so radical. Vince was quite used to it. Nearly all of Vinces ideas met with a certain
degree of skepticism initially, yet eventually sometimes two or three decades later many of his
methods became accepted as standard bodybuilding truths.

When questioned, Vince advised, If in doubt, try these concepts and try others. Results count.
Examine. Test. Then make up your own mind. The secret to success is to believe that the course I
give will work and it will. If you have doubts, you will find it wont work. Regardless of whether you
think Vince was the greatest trainer of all time or just an old crank with weird ideas, I urge you to
give this honest workout an honest try.