Here is my new workout plan, this is what seems most easily managable gien my current situation.I only use whey and I have a rather healthy diet but nothing very dedicated. probably 85/15 healthy meals. any comments or tips appreciated. thanks
Day 1 Working Sets(sets x reps)
Barbell Bench Press 3 x 8-10
Incline Barbell Bench Press* 3 x 8-10
Flat Bench Dumbbell Flyes 3 x 8-10
Close-Grip Bench Presses 3 x 8-10
Skullcrusher 3 x 8-10
Straight Bar Cable Pushdowns 3 x 8-10
Every other workout, alternate Incline Barbell Bench Presses with Incline Dumbbell Presses.
Start with JUMP ROPE 10 minutes end with 10 minutes of cycling sprints. Cycle at a moderate pace for 60 seconds, sprint for 15 seconds, moderate cycle for 60 seconds, sprint for 15 seconds
Day 2* Working Sets(sets x reps)
Pulldowns or Wide-Grip Pull-Ups 3 x 8-10
Low Cable Rows 3 x 8-10
Dumbbell Rows or Bent-Over Barbell Rows 3 x 8-10
Standing Barbell Curls 3 x 8-10
Alternating Dumbbell Curls 3 x 8-10
Cycle sprints 10 minutes to start then after lift walking on treadmill on incline 20 minutes
Day 3 Working Sets(sets x reps)
Leg Extensions 3 x 8-10
Squats 4 x 8-10
Stiff-Legged Dead Lifts or Lying Leg Curls 3 x 8-10
Jump rope 10 minutes incline walk 20 minutes
Day 4 Working Sets(sets x reps)
Seated Dumbbell Overhead Presses or Barbell Military Presses 3 x 8-10
Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raises 3 x 8-10
Bent-Over Rear Lateral Raises or Reverse Pec-Deck Lateral Raises 3 x 8-10
Ab crunches on a bench 3 x 12-15
Hanging Leg Raises (knees bent) 3 x 12-15
Incline walk 20 minutes jump rope 10 minutes
I take the fifth day off and I run two miles every Saturday but nothing else on saturday.
Maybe you should try mixing up the rep scheme during the week. 3 sets of 8-10 for every exercise of every workout gets real boring real quick. It would also be nice to see some regular deads in there and maybe some weighted dips. Also do chins and pull-ups instead of the lat pulldowns.
Unbalanced program. Too many sets. Too many exercises. Not enough weight. No time under tension noted. No rest periods noted. Not enough variety of reps. Bad exercise order and far too ‘bodypartish’. Unless you’re on steroids, you’re going to have a hard time recovering from this workout.
There you go. Critiqued the fark out of it. But I know that’s bad value. So here’s the mod I’d do.
Day 1
Clean & Press 3 x 2-5. 2-3min Rest
Barbell Bench Press 2 x 3-5. 100 1-2min Rest
Incline DB Press* 2 x 8-12. 311 1-2min Rest
Dips. 2x as many as possible 1-2min Rest
Tricep Extension. Drop set.
Day 2
Deadlift. 3x 3-6. 2-3min Rest
False Grip Pull-Ups 2 x As many as possible. 002. 1-2min Rest
Seated Row 2x 8-12. 012. 1-2min Rest
Preacher DB Curls
supersetted w/Chin ups. 2 sets.
Day 3
Barbell Squat. 3x5-9. 300
DB Standing Shoulder Press. 2x6-12. 012
Short DB Lunges. 2x8-15. 211
Stiff Legged Deadlifts. 2x 8-15. 311
DB Lateral Raises. 1 x Work down the rack. 112.
Day 4 got ejected. 1 day merely for shoulders is a waste of time unless you’re extremely advanced.
If you concentrate on the mind-muscle connection and truly work to your limits, this is all you need. If you need to do 18 sets for one body part then you’re not working the muscles properly. If this is the case I’d reduce weight and concentrate on form first.
The responses are much appreciated and I think that probably explains why I havent been getting the type of gains I expected. I figured I was over training and thats why I posted.
So what your recommending is I do that program three days in a row and then take hte fourth off? or do i take a day off between each or what? thanks
It depends how you feel on the day. As there’s a leg movement in every session I’d wait at least a day between, but if you’re still sore/tired or just not into it, there’s nothing wrong with waiting 2 or even 3 days bet.
It’ll be easier to stick with if you ensure that you do all 3 in one week though.
Remember that this is just a guide though, chop and change to suit yourself my man. As a basic guideline though, if you’re not on drugs, 14 work sets, 3 or 4 times a week IMO is about the limit of what you’ll be able to handle without overtraining.
Hey Sxio, I’m intrigued by the wo you propose. However, I’m curious what your response would be to someone who said they dead certain that 2 sets of flat bench, especially at only 5 reps each, could never produce any results for them and would in fact cause their bench to steadily drop.
In my experience, I have to do at least 20reps of flat bench + incline + something like flys, dips, etc. to get any kind of results in chest at all. And my chest is behind the rest of my body. What are the possible explanations for my results. Note that I’m not pleased at all w the results i"m getting w my method either, yet could swear lower volume not the answer
[quote]2ms wrote:
Hey Sxio, I’m intrigued by the wo you propose. However, I’m curious what your response would be to someone who said they dead certain that 2 sets of flat bench, especially at only 5 reps each, could never produce any results for them and would in fact cause their bench to steadily drop.
In my experience, I have to do at least 20reps of flat bench + incline + something like flys, dips, etc. to get any kind of results in chest at all. And my chest is behind the rest of my body. What are the possible explanations for my results. Note that I’m not pleased at all w the results i"m getting w my method either, yet could swear lower volume not the answer[/quote]
Well first up dude, that workout doesn’t only have 2 sets on the chest. If you think about the movement being trained (push, pull etc) you see that including dips, there has 6 sets + the pressing portion of the clean and press. Every movement done involves the pecs, shoulders and triceps to some degree.
For chest alone I’d say 6 sets would be plenty when following a full bodyish program as long as you control the weights descent fully on every rep. No jerky reps! By full bodyish I mean a program in which you work legs every workout.
I reckon maybe you’re chest is behind the rest of your body could be because you’re working really hard on it. Do you find your other workouts can lag, but your chest workouts are always good? This could mean you’re overdoing it. You only need to give it the same consideration as your other body parts and in conjunction with them it will grow.
But it’s really hard to say as I can’t see you or talk to you in person. I think it’s best to concentrate on strength increases, size always comes with strength, so the program that’s the best is the one you can increase the numbers every set, every workout. Not as easy as it sounds after 4 workouts and you’ve found your limits!