Dorian Yates Workout Routine [1987-1992] Spreadsheet

Dorian Yates workout routine from 1987 to 1992 is an advanced bodybuilder routine that he followed during the middle of his competitive bodybuilding career.

This routine is a 4 or 5 day body part split that hits the following muscle groups per day:

• Day 1: Chest, Biceps, Triceps
• Day 2: Legs, Calves (Heavy)
• Day 3: Rest
• Day 4: Back, Shoulders
• Day 5: Rest
• Day 6: Chest, Biceps, Triceps
• Day 7: Legs, Calves (Light)

Because of how Dorian splits his workouts, each week has 4 or 5 training sessions in it. This is reflected in the spreadsheet.

1987-1992 Dorian Yates Training Style

While Yates’ later training style (i.e. Blood n Guts style training) utilized just 1 intense working set, his training from 1987 to 1992 used more volume: 2 working sets.

Both working sets are effectively AMRAP sets and are performed the failure; the spreadsheet provides recommended rep ranges where you should be failing (e.g. 6-8 reps means perform an AMRAP set where the last rep you can muster is the 6th, 7th, or 8th rep).

During these years Yates often used the drop set and, if necessary, forced rep technique for his second working set. After the first working set, he would rest 45 to 60 seconds, reduce the load by 10 pounds or so, and perform another set to failure.

Spreadsheet: Dorian Yates 1987 – 1992 Workout Routine

Dorian Yates 1987-1992 Workout Routine Spreadsheet | LiftVault.com

Body Part Split

Dorian would divide his training up by the following muscle groups per training session. Only the working sets are shown in the tables below.

Chest, Biceps, Triceps Workout

A triple drop set means performing one set to failure, dropping the weight, immediately performing another set to failure, dropping the weight, and performing a third and final set to failure. This is one triple drop set. Two of these are performed for the dumbbell fly.

Exercise Movement	Sets	Reps
Bench Press	2	6-8
Incline Press	2	6-8
Dumbbell Flys (Triple Drop Sets)	2	6-8
Concentration Curls	2	6-8
Barbell Curls	2	8-10
Hammer Curls	2	10-12
Cable Extensions	2	10-12
Lying Tricep Extensions	2	8-10
One Arm Dumbbell Extensions	2	8-10

Legs, Calves Workout

Dorian used two different leg workouts: heavy and light. The heavy workout is shown below. The light workout uses the same exercises, but in the 15-20 rep range.

Exercise Movement	Sets	Reps
Leg Extensions	2	8-12
Leg Press	2	8-12
Hack Squats or Smith Machine Squats	2	8-12
Leg Curls	2	8-12
Stiff Leg Deadlifts	2	8-12
Standing Calf Raises	2	8-12

Back, Shoulders Workout

Exercise Movement	Sets	Reps
Close Grip Pull Downs	2	8-10
Weighted Chins	2	6-8
Bent Over Row	2	8-10
Hyperextensions	2-3	12-15
Seated Dumbbell Press	2	8-10
Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raises	2	8-10
Bent Over Lateral Raises	2	8-12
Shrugs	2	8-12

About Kyle Risley

Kyle Risley founded Lift Vault in 2016 to make finding great powerlifting programs easier. Since then, the site has grown to include hundreds of programs for strength, bodybuilding, Olympic weightlifting, and more. He currently lives in Massachusetts and continues to compete in powerlifting.