I love being in the gym, lifting weights, and seeing gains. My problem is that I have never stayed with a program for more than 6 or 7 months. I’ve decided to start a training log here because a lot of guys/girls on here seem to know what they are talking about, and I can really use the feedback on where and when to tweak my program.
I’d really like to see an increase in my squat, deads, and bench. I’m using a program that is split over 3 days, with the 4th day being a total rest day. The program I’m following is below:
Day 1: Chest/Triceps/Quads/Core
Day 2: Back/Biceps/Hamstrings/Core
Day 3: Shoulders/Calves/Core
Day 4: Rest
Although it says to do core 3 days in a row, it is not an all-out, intensive program, it is simply 2 or 3 exercises a work-out. Each muscle group will have 3 or 4 exercises (depending on how I feel) for 3 to 4 sets. My current 1RM’s are as follows:
Bench: 275lbs
Deads: 370lbs
Squat: 260lbs
I’m currently 5’11" and weigh about 192lbs. If I had to guess my BF% I would say 10 to 12%.
I start tomorrow, so wish me luck, and comment on anything you feel fit!
Today’s Work-Out was great. I got about 9 hours of sleep, and a good breakfast this morning. I wasn’t feeling chest today however, so I started with my back and biceps. I wanted to lift heavy for deadlifts so I went for a new 1RM.
Core - Planks, Side Planks, Reverse Crunches, Leg Raises
I thought I would get a picture of me doing my 1RM. In the picture I’m just about to lock out my hips. My form was not the best, but I did what I had to so I could get the weight up.
It was another great day in the gym today. I managed to get around 8 and a half hours of sleep, and a full breakfast. Today was Chest/Triceps/Quads/Core. It took me about and hour and a half to finish everything up. I also tried playing around with a few videos. I took one of my max leg press, and one of warming up for bench press.
[quote]Papa Nick wrote:
The problem I see here is the music your gym is playing, good vibrations and if you want it?
good lifting though.
whats your goals?[/quote]
Yes, the music is terrible. There a lot of cardio machines at the other end of the gym, and most people who come to my gym are not serious lifters. As for my goals, I would like to add a couple of inches to my arms and forearms. I’d also like to develop my inner/upper chest, as it is lacking, and my rear delts. Overall I would like to add 10-15 pounds to my Personal Bests.
Today was another great day in the gym. Running on about 9 hours of sleep, a good breakfast, a good lunch, and motivation, Shoulders, Calves, and Core were a breeze. I took a video of the shrug machine that we have at my gym. I know that my form is terrible, but again I just wanted to get the weight up.
[quote]RJK wrote:
You could be doing too many reps per muscle group. [/quote]
I think you might be right, I’ve had a few people mention this to me. I think for my next round of work-outs, I’ll lower the amount of reps for each exercise.
You have way too many movements in these sessions, and since you described one of your workouts as a “breeze” it appears you’re not bringing the appropriate intensity.
If you’re going to structure your workouts in this fashion, pick one movement per bodypart. An example would be
Close grip press or dips
Incline flye
Stiff Leg Deadlifts
Rollouts
Done.
Ramp up the intensity, and focus on your form. Those reps on the leg press and shrug machine are not effective. Get your hands off your quads on the leg press and don’t do the 1/8th squat on the shrugs. A set of lighter shrugs where you feel the movement in all the appropriate musculature is much more worthwhile than one where you are “just trying to get the weight up”.
[quote]Doug Adams wrote:
You have way too many movements in these sessions, and since you described one of your workouts as a “breeze” it appears you’re not bringing the appropriate intensity.
If you’re going to structure your workouts in this fashion, pick one movement per bodypart. An example would be
Close grip press or dips
Incline flye
Stiff Leg Deadlifts
Rollouts
Done.
Ramp up the intensity, and focus on your form. Those reps on the leg press and shrug machine are not effective. Get your hands off your quads on the leg press and don’t do the 1/8th squat on the shrugs. A set of lighter shrugs where you feel the movement in all the appropriate musculature is much more worthwhile than one where you are “just trying to get the weight up”. [/quote]
Thanks for the advice. Today I’m off where my gym is closed, but I’ll see what I can put together for tomorrow. I’ll for sure keep this in mind when I’m planning my day. I’ll post when I’ve got an updated routine.
[quote]Bear943 wrote:
The gym where you train is fantastic compared to my one squat/curl rack, 40kg dumbell (max weight) gym where I train.[/quote]
It is a great gym. The only problem with it is over-enthusiastic trainers trying to motivate under-enthusiastic people. There are also a lot of people who try to use the equipment for something other than its intended purpose.
Time for me to continue with this training log. Since returning to school I have not had the time to post what I have been doing both in, and out of the gym. In comparison to my previous program, I have re-vamped my routine. I decided to split my routine into three days.
Day 1 - Chest/Triceps/Core
Day 2 - Back/Biceps/Core
Day 3 - Shoulders/Legs/Core
I average between four and five exercises total, then finish with core. I will update later tonight as to the work-out I followed.
