Doggcrapp (DC) training is a high-intensity, low-volume system from Dante Trudel. You hit each body part with one brutal rest-pause set, rotate your exercises, and try to add weight to the bar every single session.
It is built around short, hard workouts and a blast-and-cruise structure, so you push all-out for a stretch and then back off to recover. Trudel shared the whole thing for free on the IntenseMuscle forums years ago, and it built a cult following for good reason.
This one is for intermediate and advanced lifters with solid technique, not beginners. The intensity only pays off if your form holds up when you are deep into a set. If you want a more measured hypertrophy approach, our HST program is a gentler option.
Table of Contents
Doggcrapp (DC) Training Spreadsheet
The rotation is the part that trips people up, so I built a free tracker that lays it out. Both workouts are on their own tabs with each body part’s three exercise choices listed, so you always know what is up next.
Log your three rest-pause mini-sets in the green cells and the sheet adds them up and tells you when you have earned a weight jump (15 total reps). The Read Me tab walks through rest-pause, the exceptions, and blast-and-cruise.
Program via Dante Trudel’s Doggcrapp method, originally shared on the IntenseMuscle forums.
How Doggcrapp Training Works
DC flips the usual high-volume bodybuilding approach on its head. Instead of several sets per exercise, you do one all-out working set per body part and make it count. You hit each muscle about three times every two weeks, which lets you recover and add weight often.
There are two workouts. You alternate them across three training days a week. Week 1 looks like W1, W2, W1. Week 2 is W2, W1, W2. Each body part has a trio of exercises that you rotate through, pushing weight on each one until it stalls.
The Two-Workout Rotation
Workout 1 covers your upper-body pushing and back. Pick one exercise from each trio per session and rotate to the next one the following time that workout comes up.
| Body Part | Exercise Trio (rotate) | Protocol |
|---|---|---|
| Chest | Incline Barbell Press / Decline DB Press / Incline DB Press | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Shoulders | Standing Military / Smith Press / Seated DB Press | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Triceps | Reverse-Grip Smith Press / Close-Grip Bench / Dips | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Back Width | Pull-Up / Chin-Up / Lat Pulldown | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Back Thickness | Deadlift / Bent Barbell Row / Rack Pull | Straight sets (no rest-pause) |
Workout 2 covers arms and legs. The big lower-body lifts get special treatment, which the table notes.
| Body Part | Exercise Trio (rotate) | Protocol |
|---|---|---|
| Biceps | Barbell Curl / Alt DB Curl / Cable Curl | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Forearms | Reverse Curl / Hammer Curl / Reverse Cable Curl | Rest-pause to 11-15 |
| Calves | Seated / Standing / Leg Press Raise | 10-12 with 5s negative + 15s stretch |
| Hamstrings | Romanian Deadlift / Leg Curl / Glute-Ham Raise | Rest-pause, higher reps |
| Quads | Back Squat / Leg Press / Front Squat | 6-10 straight set, then a 20-rep Widowmaker |
Rest-Pause Sets
The rest-pause set is the heart of DC. Pick a weight you can take to about 8 reps and rep it out to failure with clean form. That is mini-set one.
Re-rack, take 10 to 15 deep breaths (around 15 seconds), then rep out again to failure. Breathe again and do one more rep-out. Add up all three mini-sets. Your target is 11 to 15 total reps. Hit 15 and you add weight next time. Come in under 11 and you hold or drop the weight.
Squats, deadlifts, rows, and calves do not use rest-pause. Quads are a straight set of 6 to 10 followed by a 20-rep Widowmaker. Deadlifts are straight sets. Rows are a straight 10 to 12. The tracker and Read Me spell out each exception.
Extreme Stretching
After the working set for a body part, DC calls for a loaded stretch held for 45 to 60 seconds. For chest that might be dumbbells held in the bottom of a press. It is uncomfortable, and Trudel believed it was part of the growth stimulus rather than just a cooldown.
Blast and Cruise
You run an all-out blast for 6 to 12 weeks, then cruise for 10 to 14 days, training light or resting fully before the next blast. Do not blast 16 weeks straight. The cruise is what keeps the joints and the nervous system fresh enough to keep adding weight.
Eat for growth on the blast, around 2 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight, and add a few easy 30 to 40 minute cardio sessions a week to stay conditioned.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Doggcrapp (DC) training?
Doggcrapp is a high-intensity hypertrophy system from Dante Trudel built on one rest-pause set per body part, rotating exercises, extreme stretching, and blast-and-cruise cycling. The goal is to add weight to the bar as often as possible while keeping volume low and recovery high.
Is DC training good for beginners?
Not really. Rest-pause sets taken past failure demand technique that holds up under heavy fatigue, which beginners usually do not have yet. Build a base on a structured program first, then DC becomes a powerful tool once your lifts and form are solid.
How many days a week is Doggcrapp?
Three days a week. You alternate two workouts, so each one gets done about three times every two weeks. That low frequency per workout is what lets you push so hard and still recover.
What is a rest-pause set?
It is one set broken into three rest-pause mini-sets. You go to failure, rest about 15 seconds, go again, rest again, and go a third time. You count all the reps together and aim for 11 to 15 total on most exercises.
What is blast and cruise?
A blast is an all-out training phase of 6 to 12 weeks. A cruise is 10 to 14 days of light training or rest that follows it. Cycling the two keeps you progressing instead of grinding yourself into the ground over months of nonstop intensity.
How long until I see results on DC?
Most people notice strength climbing within the first few weeks because you add weight so often. Visible size usually follows over a full blast, assuming you are eating in a surplus and sleeping enough to recover from the intensity.
