One more thing, what is the reason you chose to order the lifts they way you did? I am trying to figure out the pattern, but cant.[/quote]
3 day per week programs generally work well with full body .
This is a full body program but both workouts feature a different emphasis.
The emphasis on Workout A is quads and horizontal movement. Workout B is Glutes / Hamstrings and vertical movement.
The two main upper body lifts are antagonist so one doesn’t hinder performance on the other. Example being bench press uses chest, front deltoids and triceps. One Arm Dumbell Rows uses, Trapezius, Lats, Rear Deltoids and biceps.
It’s the exact opposite.
I placed Squats first because they are hard and need full focus and full effort. It’s also a technical lift and is best performed when you are fresh.
Pullups are done first for the same reason. They are very tough and challenging thus need to be a priority and done whilst fresh.
Pullups are a verical pull whilst overhead press is a vertical push and can be done afterwards.
I prefer to do Romanian Deadlifts after I’ve warmed up a bit so I usually do them as the third exercise.
Isolation exercises are done last for an obvious reason. If you did BB curls before doing pullups you will fatigue in the biceps and your lats wont get stimulated at all. Same goes for Bench Press. If you trained triceps before hand you would only feel the lift in your triceps and would never stimulate your chest.
I actually placed the curls on bench press day and the triceps on Pullups day because after you have done lots of pullups your biceps wont need anymore stimulus for that day. Same with bench press and triceps.
After you train for a while these things will just be obvious.
[/quote]
That makes alot of sense. Thanks.
If I do end having time for 4 days a week, would I just do A,B,A,B every week?
If I do end having time for 4 days a week, would I just do A,B,A,B every week?[/quote]
No.
This is a full body program designed to have a rest day in between each session. It’s not practical to hit the same muscle group 2 days in a row.
Adding a fourth day changes things.
The fact that you aren’t sure whether you will train 4 days per week suggests that you should just stick to the 3 day plan and work at it hard and you will see good results.
After 5 or 6 months and you feel like you want to increase your training and switch it up a bit then you are ready for the next phase.
The next phase is to start splitting the body up into 3 groups. The benefit of this is that you could train 3 days in a row and no day would hinder the other.
Having said that for a 4 day week I would recommend Monday, Tuesday, Off, Thursday, Friday, Off, Off . If you want to train weekends that’s totally fine. This program can be rotated through as many days as you like but will work best with a minimum of 4 days per week.
This Push / Pull / Legs program is to be done in the exact order it is written.
Push .
Bench Press ramp up to a 5 or 3 . Alternate each session. (Use small jumps on last 3 sets.)
Dumbbell Incline Bench Press 3 work sets of 8-10 reps at same weight.
Bent Over DB Raises 3 sets of 10-12 (focus on rear delts. Go to failure on last set)
Lateral Raises 3 sets of 10 -12 (lean forward slightly to keep front delts out. Go to failure on last set).
Machine Overhead Press 3 sets 8-10
Parallel Bar Dips 3-5 sets of 10 -12. (Lean forward to hit chest. If you’re feeling beat up do 3 sets. If you’re feeling strong as a bull do 5)
Rope Pushdowns 3 sets of 10-12 (just go for the pump and focus on the squeeze).
Pull.
Wide Neutral Grip Weighted Pullups. 5 bodyweight reps then ramp up weight 4 more sets at 5 reps. Then go for max bodyweight reps to complete failure.
One Arm Dumbbell Row 4 work sets of 8-10. (Keep going on last set to failure.)
Underhand Grip Pulldowns 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps. (Pull bar to chest with your elbows. Focus on lats not arms. Feel the pump.)
Rope Facepulls 3 sets of 12-15 reps. (Use perfect form.)
EZ Barbell Curls ramp up to one all out set of 8.
Dumbbell Curls 3 sets of 10 with same weight. (Drop set on last if you’re up for it).
Legs
Squats ramp up to a 5 or 3 . Alternate each session. (Use small jumps on last 3 sets.)
Leg Press ramp up to a heavy 10-12. Then do 2 more sets with same weight. (Your quads should be burning).
Romanian Deadlifts. 5 sets of 5-7 reps. (Chest out back arched and force your but back. Do not lean forward).
Leg Curls 3-4 sets of 8-10. (Focus on the squeeze)
Calf Raises 5 sets of 10 for standing . 5 sets of 15 for seated. Alternate each session.
Abdominals - Hanging Leg Raises, Ab Wheel Roll Outs, Strict Crunches, L Sits or Hand Walk Outs are my preferred exercises. Can rotate a couple of these through at a time for a few weeks then switch. Generally lots of volume is the key. Never do sit ups though. Ever.
Just hope the OP really appreciates the input from Angus1 here, its awesome!
OP do what Angus says, dont chande a thing.
A/B routines are great, they also allow for life to happen, if,say one week you do A (Mon), B (Wed), A (Fri), B (Mon) and the have to work late / do something that upsets the plan for Wed (i.e. A but you can’t do it) just do A on Friday then continue…