I first met Alexey Semerenko at the EC’s in Lithuania, 2001. He weighed 80 kg back then. I remember how surprised I was when he told me that to get there he usually has to cut some 8 – 10 kg. I didn’t think this was actually possible, much less healthy. In 2002, Aleksey decided to drop this habit and he went up to 110 instantly. His shape and power levels changed along with his weight, and this allowed him to go pro. When PAL offered him a chance to fight for the European championship, Aleksey accepted joyfully. His victory over Taras Ivakin wasn’t easy, especially seeing as he’s lost to him many times before.

Alexey does no “secret” exercises. Most of his workout consists of bodybuilding exercises. Power that comes from exercising is more important to him than technique, he fights at the table only once a week.

Here is Alexey’s training plan:

Monday:

1.Deadlifts, 3 sets of 8,6,4 reps.

2.Pullups, wide grip, 3 sets of 8,6,4 reps.

3.Bench press on incline bench, 3 sets of 10 reps.

4.Bicep curls with hammer grip, using pulley, 3 sets of 10 reps.

5.Wrist curls using pulley – 3 sets of 10 reps.

Wednesday:

1. Pullups, narrow grip, 3 sets of 8,6,4 reps.

2. Bench press on horizontal bench, 3 sets of 8,6,4 reps.

3. Flyers, 3 sets of 10 reps.

4. Wrist curls using pulley – 3 sets of 10 reps.

5. Wrist pronations using pulley and judo belt – 3 sets of 10 reps.

6. Finger workout on Iron Hand machine.

Friday:

1. Bench press on incline bench, 3 sets of 8,6,4 reps.

2. Flyers, 3 sets of 10 reps.

3. Bicep curls, using pulley, 3 sets of 10 reps.

4. Wrist curls using pulley – 3 sets of 10 reps.

5. Sparring at table – 20 – 25 mins.

Igor Mazurenko