Need Workout Appraisal

Training Bodybuilding
1

I’m a recent newcomer to this site and really like what I see. I have searched, and read articles almost everyday for the past three weeks. Just need a couple of expert opinions. Background: 39 years old, 5’9", 220 lbs., bf probably 22%. Have lifted on and off since high school. Have pushed 340 in the bench (three years ago), I gain pretty well here. Have some trouble getting real size on my thighs. Started going ass to grass in my squats, working my hams, and adding deadlifts. Just recently got serious about getting in the best shape of my life - meaning, yeah, I wanna look good in the bedroom, but I dig the hugeness factor, so size and mass (quality) are my main concern. Just finished taking two bottles of EquiBolan (I know, I know). Then I found this site. I now know that I need to drop some body fat before I can gain some quality mass. So here is my workout (subject to change) that I started two weeks ago to try and burn off some of this excess bodyfat:

Mon. Squats one week, deadlifts the next. Squat day - squats 3x6,3x3. Stiff legged deadlift - 3x6-8. Deadlift day - 5x5. Not sure what else to do here. Pretty whupped after the deadlifts.

Tues. Running for 30 minutes. Chopping wood with weighted axe - three sets till exhaustion. Stretching. Abs.

Wed. Bench - 3x6,3x3. Incline bench - 2x8-10. Push press - 3x8-10. Close grip bench - 2x8-10.

Thurs. (at the high school track) 2 sets of two legged jumps, jump up two steps, down one step, up two, etc., all the way to the top of the bleachers. 10 reps of dashes: first one is 5 yards, increasing 5 yards every time until 50 yards, for a total of 10 sprints, 30 sec. rest in between. Easy 1/4 mile lap for warmdown. Stretching. Abs.

Fri. Close grip (neutral) pullups, sternum to bar - 4x6 (bodyweight), bent over rows - 4x6, biceps, straight bar curls - 3x9, reverse grip curls 1x7.

Sat. Either running on hilly terrain, or biking for 30 minutes. Stretching. Abs.

I am trying to desperately hang on to what gains I have made, and not lose too much of what I have while trying to lose about 25 lbs. of body fat. Will this work, or can anybody suggest something that might work better. Oh yeah, and I am restricting cals, too, but not too much. Thanks for any help that you can throw my way - I appreciate it.

MO

2

I cant see why do you put your abdominal work with aerobics. thats a common error for people, your stabelizers will work everyday of the week and will weaken instead of getting stronger.

also, not enough volume in your workout for the legs, IMO. why not do just squats and RDLs instead of switching?

alot more info is missing like planned intensity of lifts and clarifictaion of your goals.

3

If your at 22% then you should just look at a new program from this site:

Meltdown or Fat to Fire.

The key to fat loss is not really in the trianing program, it is in the diet. Your post puts very little emphasis on your diet plan. You might want to ensure your diet is given adequate attention for your fat loss goal. Chech out some of the diets here like “Don’t Diet” or “T-Dawg” , good luck.

4

A couple of things…

I agree with Glute-spanker that cardio and abs should probably be separated. I’ve read previously that working abs will immediately drop heart rate and it’s been suggested that this can reduce (or halt) the prolonged thermogenic effects of cardio (ie. you stop burning fat). I’m not sure how true this is though…but I thought I’d throw it out there.

Why do squats one week and DLs another?
We here at the T-mag forum are big on legs…completeness is important. Don’t be lazy…work them both. Many of us (including myself) even recommend doing 2 leg days a week (1 quad dominant and the other hip dominant). Might want to give that a try.

How’s the diet? Most important detail you didn’t meantion.

5

First off, thanks for the replies. I will try to answer all your questions. First, I was doing the abs after the cardio cuz I am so freakin spent after lifting! But, I can make that switch, no problem. Second, as for the leg volume, I kinda thought that might not be enough, but wasn’t sure - they do quiver when I am done, though! I can pick that up, too. When you say squats and RDL’s, do you mean on the same day?

W. That’s what I am trying to do - lose some bodyfat so then I can make real gains in LBM. Goals are to be big and strong, but with about 10% bf. So, I am trying to burn off some fat. Diet is mostly high protein, low carb, med. fat. Meals about every three or four hours, five a day, cals mildly restricted.

ND. I don’t mean to be lazy, I would rather keep up the lifting, I was just under the impression that to lose the fat, I had to put the lifting on hold and get after the cardio and high intensity type work. I would rather lift more (4 or 5 days). I was making gains, but getting fatter, too. I am sooooo open to suggestions here, guys. My effort is there, trust me, but I am trying to make sure that is properly directed.

6

if youre adter body composition changes, I would go for meltdown training by don alesi with some low intensity aerobics or joel marion’s “ripped rugged and dense” with some interval training sessions.
try alternating them on 4 week cycles.

S-man.

7

Thanks, I am one step ahead of you. I already downloaded and printed out the Meltdown workout and I also printed out the T-dawg diet (v2). I start both of these tomorrow (Mon). I plan on doing a little cardio, low impact, but only when I feel like I have the energy, mainly because my endurance sucks. I walked up a 700’ “mountain” today, took about 10 min., and I was dying! Anyhow, thanks for the advice, really appreciate it.

MO

8

MO - you could also look at “running man” or HIIT by CT. They are great for keeping muscle and burning fat. They are basically a sprint, jog, spring jog, etc program. Some people claim to even have put mass onto their legs while doing these cardio routines.

9

MO,
If you’re planning on restricting calories & carbs, then you should stick with Joel’s RR&D program & HIIT sessions. Have you read Christian Thibaudeau’s “Running Man” and “Beast Evolves” articles?

10

JW and jbreak-that’s just the kind of info that I was hoping to get. But, I just did my first day of Meltdown, and I don’t think I wanna do any “extra” stuff right now (means I can’t!) Maybe after a couple more workouts and I get in better shape. But those articles are definitely getting downloaded and saved for future reference. Thanks a ton, I really appreciate the info. Have a great week. MO

11

as I said, the best thing for you will be to alternate those two approaches

A. high intensity, low volume, low density workouts coupled with high density (intensity devided by volume)

B. high density, medium volume workouts, high volume, low intensity and density aerobics.

the reason is that if you choose A, after a while the hormonal environment in terms of GH and testosterine will become unfavorable as low density resistance training fail to stimulate then over time, and if you choose B, your gonna lose your strength eventualy which will lead to lower workout intensity, density and overload on the body.
a simplistic explenation but good enough.

examples
A is the 5X5 method plus HIIT or 400m sprints
B is meltdown training with uphill walking

S-man