Layne Nortons PH3 Phase 1 Review

5 Weeks ago I had finished my 3rd time of running my very own program SHDUPA (you can get that here) I finished the program with my lifts the strongest they ever have been in my life but with that said i really wanted to try Layne Norton's PH3 Routine. Layne Norton the creator of PHAT (Power Hypertrophy Adaptation Training) is what i have based my training style off of for over 5 years now and i continue to make more gains each year by following his methods so when i saw that he created another new program i knew that i was eventually going to have to give it a go.

Returning from the Arnold i was motived as heck to start PH3. I started prepping the program by figuring out my estimated one rep maxes and plugging them into the online program calculator. I started the program with all estimated one rep maxes set at

- Squat 230lbs

- Bench 165lbs

- Deadlift 330lbs

those were all pretty conservative since i really was not actually sure where my numbers exactly were. The cool thing about PH3 is the AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible) sets at the end of each week. On the AMRAP days you plug in your reps you got that week and then the program will either make the program more intense by increasing your one rep max numbers, decreasing them if you did bad on the AMRAP, or even just keeping things the same if you only hit the minimal reps on the AMRAP.

It Starts

Going into the first week the weights felt light and i expected them too. With that said tho even with lighter weights this program is not easy by any means. PH3 used DUP (Daily Undulating Periodization) so the reps are always changing through the week. Something new this program did that i was not used to was training hypertrophy rep ranges at the beginning of the week and then got heavier so by the end of the week you are lifting your heaviest. Before this program i have always trained to opposite. I always trained my heaviest at the beginning of the week and then moved into lighter weight and higher reps as the week progressed. At first i was skeptical if that would work. I can now say i actually really enjoy it! The weeks have a sling shot progression to them meaning that you feel fresh for your hypertrophy rep work on Monday and instead of getting more worn out as the week goes you actually are able to lift heavier and heavier so by the heaviest training days of the week (Friday, and Saturday) you are actually ready to kill those heavy sets and AMRAPS. 

This Program Is Fun PERIOD

I know i said it already but this program is just PLAIN FUN! Each time you go into the gym you just want to hit your numbers and improve from the week before. The motivation is very high in this program. I'm on my 5th week now and I'm still not bored!

Don't Worry About Losing Your Gains.... You Won't Trust Me

Going into this program i feared that since i was not doing nearly as much assistance work as i was used to that i would lose some of the muscle i had built with SHDUPA. That was stupid to even think such a thing. There is a reason Layne looks the way he looks. This program has you hitting a tons of power lifts but this program also allows for plenty of hypertrophy work and BFR (Blood Flow Restriction Training) With everything your doing each week i can clearly say i am not losing any muscle but I'm actually getting bigger!

This Is Not For When Your Dieting...... Thats For Sure

Layne does say you can do this program when your dieting but even he states that while you can do it in a calorie deficit he says that it will work way better if your in a surplus. My last round of SHDUPA i was maintaining weight at around 145 pounds and i was happy where my calories were. My training was great, recovery was great, and i was putting on muscle at a nice slow rate. Well one week into PH3 i found out real quick that i had to up my calories. The first week of PH3 i could see it in the mirror i was getting leaner which was not my goal right now so i upped my calories some and i still think i might even need to up them more but i'm gonna give it some time. I can easily say tho that for this program you need to eat. Squatting 3 times a week, Benching 3 times a week and deadlifting 2 times each week burns serious energy and to perform at your best YOU NEED TO EAT FOR PERFORMANCE!

How Many Training Days A Week?

Well the program is built on you training 5 days a week with 2 recovery days but i modified the schedule a bit since I'm used to training 6 days a week. For right now i enjoy training and have the time for 6 days a week but some weeks i only train the recommended 5, it just depends on the week. My schedule I'm going off of right now is usually

- Monday - Squat, Bench Dead

- Tuesday - Upper Hypertrophy

- Wednesday - Squats, Bench, Lower Hypertrophy

- Thursday - Back, Shoulders Hypertrophy

- Friday - Deadlifts, Bench, Chest, Arms

- Saturday - Squats, Lower Hypertrophy

- Sunday - Rest Day

Thats for the weeks when i feel like training 6 days a week and for weeks i don't i follow

- Monday - Squat, Bench Dead

- Tuesday - Upper Hypertrophy

- Wednesday - Squats, Bench, Lower Hypertrophy

- Thursday - Rest Day

- Friday - Deadlifts, Bench, Chest, Back

- Saturday - Squats, Lower Hypertrophy, Shoulders, Arms

- Sunday - Rest Day

So as you can see i have adjusted the hypertrophy days at the end of the week a little bit to allow for not such long workouts and to split some of the volume up. One more way i have done it if i want to take the weekend off is by doing

- Monday - Squat, Bench Dead

- Tuesday - Upper Hypertrophy

- Wednesday - Squats, Bench, Lower Hypertrophy

- Thursday - Deadlifts, Back, Shoulders

- Friday - Squats, Bench, Lower Hypertrophy, Chest, Arms

- Saturday - Rest Day

- Sunday - Rest Day

Any of those options work just about the same, the one i choose is just depending on my schedule for the week and what i have planned.

How Long Are The Routines?

The routines take as long as you need because you rest as long as you need to perform your best. I myself usually rest between 3-4 minutes on my compounds and then i rest about a minute on my accessory/ hypertrophy exercises. For me each workout takes about an hour and a half except Friday, Friday takes about 2 hours.

My First Test Day

So this program has 3 phases and at the end of each phase is a test day where you put on 87% of your one rep max and after a warm up go for as many reps as possible, then you plug those numbers into the online calculator and the program then creates your next training block for you, its really cool how it works! So last Friday was my first test day and i got to say it went pretty well! You can view my Phase 1 Test day below.

So Lets recap on what you just watched. First off squats. Squats i had set to do an AMRAP with 195lbs and i got 10 reps with possibly 2 more reps saved in the tank. For me since i have a history of getting too crazy on AMRAPS and getting injured i decided that for every AMRAP set in this program i will do as many reps as i can get until i hit 10. If i hit 10 then i just estimate in my head how much i think i had left. After training 5 years i have a decent idea of how far i can push myself. By stopping at 10 i can hopefully prevent the chance of injuries more often. So back to the rep test i hit 10 reps with about 2 more reps in the tank. It was what i had expected to happen because the previous week i had also hit 10 reps with that same weight on the AMRAP so i knew i could do it again. The program upped my max squat 5 pounds and i can say that this next phase i can already notice it. The weights are getting heavier.

Next up bench. Now if you have been following me for a while you know bench is my worst lift. I'm not making excuses but i do think my bench sucks for several reasons.

- small boned

- small wrists

- Scoliosis spine (so my back is not all the way straight on bench)

- Several shoulder injuries in my life

Like i said I'm not making excuses im just stating the facts and why i think my bench sucks. That said this program is about improving and i can defiantly say I'm improving. Bench i had 140lbs and i got 5 reps and failed on the 6th rep. Lets talk about that a second. When i had unracked the weight i knew right then something felt off and i knew i was not straight on the bench and i new that was going to affect the reps. I knew right then i should have re racked the weight and set up again but i was already amped up and just went for it. The reps felt just sloppy and i had predicted i was going to hit 7 but once i hit 5 i thought i had one more and since i had safety pins i said just go for it. I knew if i could get it off my chest i could lock it out because contrary to what you may think my lockout is my strongest, I have strong triceps. The week point of bench for me is right off the chest. So missing halfway up the rep surprised me. That last rep i knew i was not center on the bench and i knew that if i would have been center i could have locked it out. Next time I'm making sure i am straight on that bench.

Last up the deadlift. Deadlifts went great! by this time i was already training for about an hour and a half so i was starting to get tired but thanks to Layne's intra/ recovery product (Carbon Recover) i was able to get my energy back for deadlifts. Now the week before this test i had hit 285lbs for 10 reps on my AMRAP and while it about killed me i did it. So i knew today that after maxing out on reps for squat and bench i figured 10 reps was not in the cards tonight. I made the goal of at least 7 after doing my warm ups. After a nice rest i went for it and i got 8 reps! pretty shocked at that as i was completely toast after that. I slept for over 10 hours that night!!! The total training session took about 2 hours and 20 min. Between exercises i took 10 minutes to fully recover tho and before each AMRAP set i took at least 8 min to get completely ready mentally and physically. The test days are FUN but very mentally and physically draining. Pre workout that day i used Carbon Prep and i also had a Monster. That was the perfect blend of pre workout for that type of training day. The majority of the time i just train with Carbon Prep because i prefer to train in a calm state but during the test days i like to get amped up so i add the extra caffeine on those days.

Lets Recap

So Phase one is in the books now and we are now onto Phase 2. The weights are gonna start getting heavier now and the true work is about to begin. The program now has my maxes set at; (Squat 235lbs +5) (Bench 165lbs same) (Deadlift 340lbs +10)

So far i am loving this program and the gains I'm making are truly incredible. I can't wait to see how far this program is going to take me. 

I decided for each Phase I'm going to rate it what i think of it on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best)

Phase One of PH3 for me is a 9/10!

- The only thing that kept it from getting a 10 out of 10 is I personally think there is not enough deadlift sets. But with that said my deadlift feels great right now so that might be for a reason! I was just used to doing a lot more sets before this program but I'm stronger than i was before so there must be a reason for it.

I want to also add a big thanks to Layne Norton and Bodybuildling.com for building this program and releasing it for free!!!! I would have happily paid for this system but the work you guys put in for this and the online calculator is truly awesome! I appreciate your guys work so much! You guys make it possible for anyone to get stronger if they so choose to. 

So thats it for now guys. I will talk to you after i finish this next phase and finish the next test day. If you guys redoing the program moment below with what you are thinking of it. Also if you want to do the program you can get it here!

If you enjoyed this review please click on the share buttons below to show your appreciation and spread this article around for others doing the program and that could benefit from my reviews. Till next time...

Stay Strong,

Shawn Fausey