i have recently started doing full body workouts instead of splits i thought it was better because i was able to hit all body parts 3x a week however when ever i do the full body i get to tired or lazy by the time i get to the legs that i end up skipping it sometimes would it be ok if i were to do an upper/lower split 3 times a week? it would be somethinGlike this:
monday:A.M UPPER
P.M LOWER
REPEAT WED AND FRI.
Check out Bodybuilding’s Next Frontier
by Chad Waterbury.
Sounds like you may be doing more exercises then necassary
also try doing legs first… yes it will sap your energy at first but you will adapt and be better conditioned for putting up with it. At least do legs first somedays, because remember what ever you do first is being prioritized.
Punctuation would be something I’d learn before starting a new routine.
Here’s a revolutionary idea: How about starting w/ legs? If you are “too tired” by the time you get to legs in a full body workout, then you are probably doing too many exercises for upper body. If you really want feedback, you should post an example of your workout. Otherwise it seems like you are just looking for the vague answer of “yes - go for two a days” without really knowing if its something you should be doing.
thanks
well my routine is something like this i start off with:
set:4 reps:10
- incline bench
- flat bench
- military press
- deadlift
- barbell rows
- lunges
- squats
- barbell curls
- calves or triceps
30 min cardio
Why the 4 sets? If you are doing full-body routines, I’d say 2 sets tops (actuall I’d say just do 1 set, but I don’t want to shake your foundations too much).
Just up the weight ~10% per exercise and get on it.
And don’t waste a lot of energy with excess warm-up sets. Warm-up for one push exercise, one or two pull exercises), and one leg. For instance on your sample workout, just warm-up on the following:
Incline bench (50% of work set x 4-5, 65-70% x 2-3)
Deadlift (50% WS x 4-5, 65-70% x 2-3)
Barbell Rows (60-65% WS x 3-4 or no warm-up)
Lunges (60-65% WS x 3-4)
Squats (65-70% x 2-3)
Try at least some of these things and you shouldn’t feel so wiped-out.
In answer to your original question: No.
i didn’t mean i warm up with 4 sets i meant i start with incline bench and so on. i set per exercise seems like a little bit
why two forms of bench press and a military press? followed by the deadlift? how can you handle it? I always deadlift first since just about any other excercise seems to impair my performance on the big deadlift (ok, tiny by everyone else’s standards)
Legs first again methinks
[quote]maverick88 wrote:
i didn’t mean i warm up with 4 sets i meant i start with incline bench and so on. i set per exercise seems like a little bit[/quote]
One set can be plenty, if you do it right (NOT one set per bodypart, just one set per exercise). If you don’t buy that, it’s cool. I really didn’t expect you to — it took me a long time, and many plateaus before it was clear to me.
But please believe me when I tell you that 4 sets is a waste of energy with that many exercises. Cut it back to 3 at the very least. Even then, I’d sayit MIGHT be OK if you cut the workouts in half doing A and B workouts:
Workout A
- incline bench
- deadlift
- lunges
- barbell curls
- triceps*
*If triceps start to plateau rapidly, make this one a forearm exercise or maybe neck
Workout B
- flat bench
- military press
- barbell rows
- squats
- calves
That’s 15-20 good work sets per workout. With a steady progression on weights, you should be on your way.
If you are not proressing steadily now, then the proof’s already in the pudding (in case pooping out halfway through your workout isn’t proof enough).
i think you should read Chad Waterbury’s articles more. here is my suggestion:
1)TBT(Total Body Training)
2)Building your own HFT program!
i think you can pick up some great idea to make a whole body program.
I second everything Simon-Hecubus said. 36 sets total? I make gains with only 7 sets per whole-body workout, twice a week, and I’ve been lifting for almost a decade now. You definitely can afford to do less sets, or at least figure out a way to spread out your exercises more.
The only time I’ve ever heard that it’s okay to work out twice in one day is if you’re doing contest prep, and that was from bodybuilders in Weider magazines so take it for what it’s worth.
*Your “I meant 4 regular sets, not warm-up sets” response was priceless. 
[quote]BFBullpup wrote:
The only time I’ve ever heard that it’s okay to work out twice in one day is if you’re doing contest prep, and that was from bodybuilders in Weider magazines so take it for what it’s worth.
[/quote]
I guess you’re a new comer to T-Nation, because you don’t know Chad Waterbury well, and he stand for High Frequency Training(HFT).
His best articles for HFT are:
Bodybuilding’s Next Frontier,
Building your own HFT program;
and the newest one: 2 x 4 program
this one alone have you train two days per week, and two workouts on each day(AM/PM), both are whole-body workout.
[quote]Monster Wong wrote:
I guess you’re a new comer to T-Nation, because you don’t know Chad Waterbury well, and he stand for High Frequency Training(HFT)…
…and the newest one: 2 x 4 program
this one alone have you train two days per week, and two workouts on each day(AM/PM), both are whole-body workout. [/quote]
So MW, how well are those 2-a-days working for you?
you could also try drinking something with sugar in it during your workout. This might give you the extra energy you need to pull it off.
[quote]simon-hecubus wrote:
Monster Wong wrote:
I guess you’re a new comer to T-Nation, because you don’t know Chad Waterbury well, and he stand for High Frequency Training(HFT)…
…and the newest one: 2 x 4 program
this one alone have you train two days per week, and two workouts on each day(AM/PM), both are whole-body workout.
So MW, how well are those 2-a-days working for you?[/quote]
my plan is something extreme, and it’s not what Chad will suggest me to do.
i’m doing 2-a-day, 4days per week(8 workouts), i’ll do that for 2 weeks only, and doing Phase IV of BNF to rest a bit. after that i’ll start my fat loss plan.
all my lifts is going up, but normally you should build up your frequency slowly, not like me (4=> 8 workouts per week).
[quote]maverick88 wrote:
i didn’t mean i warm up with 4 sets i meant i start with incline bench and so on. i set per exercise seems like a little bit[/quote]
Let me clarify what I meant:
Doing 4 work sets per each exercise is a waste of energy. You can probably “get the message across” for your body to grow with fewer sets.
Doing warm-ups AND 4 work sets per each exercise is really, really, really a waste of energy.
Capisce?
thanks everyone