A Good Training Split

All I am a 41 yo Naval Officer currently serving in Afghanistan teaching the new Afghan Army. I have most of the day open to workout. Please advise.

Currently I’m 6’2" tall, weigh about 245, 17% bf. Built like an ex-football player (which I am BTW)

Goals??? Get more defined and cut, and to increase strength.

I am built like a big burley bear. Max bench 245, Dead Lift 325, Squat (bad knee) 245.

Thanks from the bottom of my heart for your service to this (and other) countries!

I really enjioy the freedom of my current “routine”.

I pick three big exercises for the day from a list of my favorites ie; squat, bottom position squats, seated press lockouts in the rack, RDL, cleans, close grip bench, reverse grip bench, row, military press, dips etc., etc. and hit my best 5RM. Then pick a “finisher” like a truck push, sandbag carry, keg clean & press, sled drag etc and do that to wrap it up.

Each day is full body, each day is relatively heavy and the finishers work on conditioning. I like to hit the bag, walk, hill sprint etc. two times per week to allow me to eat large quantities of food and maintain relatively low BF levels.

Very simple, very effective.

I’m also experimenting with going from my 5x5 to 5x3, then to 5x1 and ending with a week off. Each phase is 2-3 weeks.

First off, there’s about a million programs on here you could follow. The Articles sublist in the left frame will help you find some.

Second, I think you might be deluding yourself a tad. 17%, built like an ex-football player, and burly like a bear? Hard to tell when you’re wearing the uniform and gear, but unless you carry all 17% in your neck, my guess is you got a crapload more fat to lose than you think.

I know I’m being harsh here, but sometimes taking an HONEST look at yourself is the most important first step you can make. Fat is a great deceiver. It piles ontop of your muscles and makes you look much bigger than you are, but the numbers you’re putting up in the gym don’t lie. Guys with over 200lb LBM don’t max bench 245, they generally put up 3 plates minimum.

Establishing good dietary habits and following any of the programs on this site will move you towards achieving your goals. I recommend looking up Berardi’s “7 Highly Effective Habits” article and then following Waterbury’s “Anti-bodybuilding Hypertrophy” to get you started.

Ouch…

Ok thanks for the no pulled punches. I will try to have some pictures taken w/o clothes on.

I do appreciate the input. I will read the articles mentioned.