Lewis trains with at least one partner. This helps raise his intensity, especially during week 3 workouts.
Flex Lewis is a bodybuilding phenom. He won the British Championships at 23 and his first pro contest at 24. Last year, at 28, he was victorious at the Olympia 212 Showdown—a title he’ll defend on Sept. 28. Through it all, fellow 5’5″ Welsh physique champ Neil “Yoda” Hill has served as Lewis’ trainer and nutritionist. It was Hill who developed Y3T (Yoda Three Training), the system that helped grow Lewis into the world’s best under-213-pound bodybuilder.
Y3T prescribes a method for changing your workout style every seven days. the first week is heavy—compound exercises for 6–10 reps per set. the second week is moderate—compound and isolation exercises for 10–14 reps per set. week 3 cranks up the pain: It’s all about high reps (14–30+) and high intensity, and it incorporates techniques like supersets, dropsets, and rest-pause. After three weeks, it starts all over again. The shoulder routine included here is Lewis’ Week 3 workout.
Y3T Tip Sheet
Decrease workout volume in week 3 because of the increased intensity.
Your next two times through the three-week cycle, repeat the same exercises you did the first week. strive to increase your weights or reps on those exercises.
After three times through the three-week cycle, change the exercises
Lewis’ Shoulder Routine—Week 3
Exercise
Sets
Reps
Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raise
3
14-16
-superset with-Seated Dumbbell Front Raise
3
14-16
Standing Dumbbell Lateral Raise*
1
20
Incline Rear Lateral
2
14-16
Bentover Rear Lateral**
1
20-30
Seated Dumbbell Overhead Press
3
14-20
*Raise the dumbbells one-third of the way up and hold that position as long as possible on each rep. **Dropset.
