PHAT
Power Hypertrophy Adaptive Training by Dr. Layne Norton. Two power days (3–5 reps) for strength, three hypertrophy days (8–15 reps) for size. Each hypertrophy day starts with 6×3 speed sets on the corresponding compound at 65% — a defining feature of the program.
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What is PHAT?
PHAT — Power Hypertrophy Adaptive Training — is Dr. Layne Norton's five-day powerbuilding routine, written by a lifter who competed in both natural bodybuilding and powerlifting and wanted a program that fed both. The week opens with two power days: Upper Power built around bent rows and dumbbell bench at 3×3–5, Lower Power around squats at 3×3–5 and stiff-leg deadlifts at 3×5–8. Then come three hypertrophy days — Back and Shoulders, Lower, Chest and Arms — where the volume gets serious.
PHAT's signature is how those hypertrophy days begin: 6×3 speed sets at 65% of the weight you moved on the matching power day, done explosively on 90-second rests. Speed Pendlay rows open the back day, speed squats the leg day, speed dumbbell bench the chest day. It is a Westside-borrowed idea that lets you practice the heavy movement patterns a second time each week without the recovery bill, before the pump work — waves of 8–12, 12–15 and 15–20 reps — takes over.
Is PHAT right for you?
This is an advanced program and the workload is real: five long sessions, over twenty working sets on some days, and every muscle hit twice a week. Run it after you have handled something like PHUL for a few months and recovered well — jumping into PHAT training straight from a novice program usually ends in a two-week burnout. It rewards lifters who eat enough, sleep enough and genuinely enjoy being in the gym. If your priority is purely the powerlifting total, the three hypertrophy days are more assistance than you need; a dedicated strength block serves better.
How progression works
The power lifts add weight whenever you finish every set within the 3–5 (or 5–8) rep prescription. The speed sets do not progress on their own — they are calculated at 65% of the paired power movement, so every power-day PR automatically makes speed day heavier. All remaining accessory work runs double progression: fixed load, climb to the top of the rep range on every set, then increase. Because squat, dumbbell bench and several other lifts appear on both a power day and a hypertrophy day, each role keeps its own independent working weight — Durata manages those separate progressions per slot and computes the 65% speed loads for you, which is exactly the bookkeeping that makes people give up on running PHAT from a spreadsheet.
Durata runs this progression for you — every session's weights are computed automatically from your training maxes and logged AMRAP sets.
PHAT — every set, every session
Percentages are of your training max (TM). AMRAP = as many reps as possible on the final set.
Upper Power
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bent Over Row (Barbell) | 3×3–5 | 2:30 |
| Pull Up (Weighted) | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Chin Up | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 3×3–5 | 2:30 |
| Triceps Dip (Weighted) | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Overhead Press (Dumbbell) | 3×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Bicep Curl (Barbell) | 3×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Skullcrusher (Barbell) | 3×6–10 | 2:30 |
Lower Power
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 3×3–5 | 2:30 |
| Hack Squat (Machine) | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Leg Extension (Machine) | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Romanian Deadlift (Barbell) | 3×5–8 | 2:30 |
| Lying Leg Curl (Machine) | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 3×6–10 | 2:30 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 2×6–10 | 2:30 |
Back & Shoulders Hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Pendlay Row (Barbell) | 1×3 @ 65% 5×3 @ 65% | 1:30 |
| Chin Up | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Seated Cable Row - V Grip (Cable) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Dumbbell Row | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Lat Pulldown (Cable) | 2×15–20 | 2:30 |
| Overhead Press (Dumbbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Upright Row (Barbell) | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Lateral Raise (Dumbbell) | 3×12–20 | 2:30 |
Lower Hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 1×3 @ 65% 5×3 @ 65% | 1:30 |
| Hack Squat (Machine) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Leg Press (Machine) | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Leg Extension (Machine) | 3×15–20 | 2:30 |
| Romanian Deadlift (Barbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Lying Leg Curl (Machine) | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Seated Leg Curl (Machine) | 2×15–20 | 2:30 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 4×10–15 | 2:30 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 3×15–20 | 2:30 |
Chest & Arms Hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 1×3 @ 65% 5×3 @ 65% | 1:30 |
| Incline Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Chest Press (Machine) | 3×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Cable Fly Crossovers | 2×15–20 | 2:30 |
| Preacher Curl (Barbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Concentration Curl | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Spider Curl (Dumbbell) | 2×15–20 | 2:30 |
| Skullcrusher (Barbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Triceps Pushdown | 2×12–15 | 2:30 |
| Triceps Kickback (Cable) | 2×15–20 | 2:30 |
PHAT — common questions
What are the 6×3 speed sets for, and how fast is fast?
They train rate of force development and give you extra technique practice at a load that barely dents recovery. Use 65% of your power-day working weight, move every rep as explosively as you can with clean form, and keep rests to 90 seconds. If bar speed visibly slows, the weight is too heavy — cut it, don't grind.
How long do PHAT workouts take?
The hypertrophy days are the long ones — 8 to 10 exercises means 75–90 minutes even with brisk 60–90 second rests on the pump work. Power days come in nearer 60–70 minutes. Expect six-plus hours a week under the bar.
Can I run PHAT while cutting?
You can, but it is a lot of volume to recover from in a deficit. Norton's own advice is to trim accessory sets rather than drop sessions — cut the 15–20 rep finishers first, keep the power work and speed sets intact, and expect to hold strength rather than gain it.
Do I need to deload on PHAT?
Yes. The common approach is a lighter week every 6–12 weeks depending on how beat up you feel: keep the movements, drop the loads to 60–70%, and halve the accessory sets. Stalling on the power lifts two weeks running while sleeping badly is your cue.
What is the difference between PHAT and PHUL?
Frequency and volume. PHUL is four days with one hypertrophy day per region; PHAT is five days with three hypertrophy days plus speed work opening each of them. PHAT delivers more size stimulus and costs far more recovery — it is the step after PHUL, not an alternative to it.
Source: PHAT — Dr. Layne Norton
Durata is not affiliated with or endorsed by the program's author. The program structure (sets, reps, exercise selection) is presented as published methodology.
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