Power Programming by Boris

I got my first pair of dumbbells when I was 14 and I was instantly hooked. I started training in a gym when I was legally allowed, at the age of 18, and I started training under proper guidance at 21 when I moved to a hardcore gym.

Given that I have just turned 36 and have never really taken time off apart from travelling, I think it is fair to say that I have been lifting for quite a while.

I think I have tried more or less every training program or paradigm out there – and I have liked quite a few. I really enjoyed the volume progression of Renaissance Periodization, I loved the simplicity of WSB and conjugate, the insane intensity in 5/3/1, Escalating Density, Poliquin Principles, Arnold’s Encyclopedia, and the concentrated loading of Smolov was one of my favorites, but one structure keeps standing out and reappearing:

The training structure of Boris Sheiko.

The online templates and many of the examples in his book are customized for specific individuals, so you have to see past the exercise and volume specifics and if you do, a certain structure appears:

1 - Squats / Press / Squats / Row

2 – Deadlift / Press / Deadlift

3 – Press / Squat / Press / Row

4 – Deadlift / Press / Deadlift

Sometimes row and back exercises are there, sometimes they are not. Personally, I think they should always be there for balance and symmetry.

I recently listened to an old interview of Sebastian Oreb by Ben Pakulski. Sebastian is probably better known as the Australian strength coach, or as the coach of the World’s Strongest Man, Hafthór. But he is also known for his simplicity and no bullshit approach and can you guess which structure he lays out as his preferred approach?

His structure is similar - 4 days a week with 2 primary bench/upper body days and 2 lower body days. However, Sebastian usually works with lower frequency and less complexity, however i does an AM/PM split... doing his supplementary exercises in the afternoon and then suddenly you imulate very much of the same structure like Boris. Louie Simmons dishes out the same frequency and structure… the list of great coaches that suggest an average of 4 training days per week is really long and probably for a good reason. It just happens to support a good split to distribute volume, adequate time to recover and engrain good technique.

For some people the optimal frequency might be 3 days and for others 5, but 4 is a good starting point for someone intermediate and it can obviously support people that are at the pinnacle of strength sports as well.

Why do I then highlight Boris Sheiko’s 4 days per week structure as the one that reappears? Because it just happens to be a f…… good base template! Often, the other templates provide too little stimulus for hypertrophy, too little repetition to engrain good technique, and too much intensity for natural lifters to recover from. Sheiko has a lot of volume and that usually needs to be scaled down, but that is fairly simple. The intensity and frequency sit perfectly for most.

And it works fantastic for bodybuilders as well. Some of the best natural bodybuilders i have known have used this structure with fantastic results - they just swapped the exercises for things which change the moment arm and leverages so they got more stretch in the lengthened position by doing dips instead of bench or safetybar squat instead of low bar. The structure was more or less the same. And the picture of Lee Priest with mr Boris has to bear some proof in itself.

Here is a sample of a modified Sheiko template for a strong individual who has been in a weight loss phase – keeping the structure is fairly simple, and the volume landmarks for this young man give a lot of flexibility in relation to trying out new exercises and working with things that address potential weaknesses.

And pardon the danish.

	VOLUME	STRUCTURE				RIR
LEGS	15	1	2	3	4	0 = Fuld failure
POSTERIOR	24	BEN	BAG	BEN	BAG	1 = Meget hård
PRESS	24	BEN	BAG	RYG	BEN	2 = Hård
BACK	12	PRES	PRES	PRES	PRES	3 = Pump men ikke udmattet
		RYG	RYG	PRES		4 = Pump
DAY 1
Gruppe	Kategori	Øvelse	Sæt	Rep	RIR	noter
A	LEGS	SQ	4	6	3
B	LEGS	LEG EXT	3	12	2
B	POSTERIOR	LEG CURL	3	12	2
C	PRESS	BP	4	6	2	Pause på første
D	PRESS	PUSHUP +	3	MAX	1	https://www.youtube.com/shorts/06DhtUEl1R8
D	BACK	PU	3	?	1
DAY 2
Gruppe	Kategori	Øvelse	Sæt	Rep	RIR	noter
U	POSTERIOR	BACK RAISE	2	12	2
U		AB WHEEL	2	12	2
A	POSTERIOR	SEMI SUMO	5	5	3	Ed coan style sumo deadlift
B	BACK	DB ROW	5	8	2	Drej i ryggen i toppen
C	PRESS	BP	5	10.8.6.4.2	2	Pyramide - Pause på første
D	POSTERIOR	GM	4	4	3
E		BB CURL	3	4	1	27032025
DAY 3
Gruppe	Kategori	Øvelse	Sæt	Rep	RIR	noter
A	LEGS	PSQ	6	6	2	2 sek pause
B	LEGS	FSQ	2	12	2
C	BACK	OH PULLDOWN	4	8	4	Pump
C	PRESS	INC BP	3	6	3	Spænd lænden ind mod bænken og brystet op
D	PRESS	TRI EXT	2	12	1	Louie & Kenny: Rolling Dumbbell Triceps Extension
D	POSTERIOR	BACK RAISE	4	8	2
E		AB WHEEL	2	MAX	0
DAY 4
Gruppe	Kategori	Øvelse	Sæt	Rep	RIR	noter
U		KNÆLØFT	2	MAX	1
A	POSTERIOR	SL DL	6	6	2
B	PRESS	DB PRESS	4	10	2	Pump + stræk
C	PRESS	FLIES	3	12	2	Pump + stræk
C		CURL	3	12
C		X LATERAL	3	12		Do These For Bigger Delts!