Back in 04 I started lifting using a split similar to below. I had a very crappy diet which really held me back. After moderate gains I stopped after 18 months.
8 weeks ago I got my diet very much on track and am started lifting again. Having my diet on track has really made the difference, I am seeing nice gains so far.
I wanted to get your feedback on my split and supplements.
41 year old Male 6�??1�?? 189lb (BF? Not sure got a fat tire to get rid of)
Goal is bodybuilding, as far as I can go
5 on 2 off split, all are 3 sets of 10 reps to failure unless specified
Legs:
Squats
Front squats
Calf Raises (3x15)
Reverse-Calf Raises (3x15)
Standing leg curls (hams)
Crunches (3x20)
Chest & Tri’s:
BB Bench press
DB Arnold Bench Press (twist on raise)
Straight arm pull overs
Serratus (pulley) Crunches
Machine Flies
DB Flies
Tricep Kickbacks
Tricep Pressdown
Back & Lats:
Dead Lift
Good Mornings
Rear delt flies
neutral grip Pulldowns
DB rows
Leg Raises (3x20)
Delt & Traps:
Military press
DB Press
Lateral Raises
Alternating DB front raises
Upright Rows
Shrugs
Biceps & Forearms:
BB Curls
DB Preacher curls
DB wrist rolls
reverse db wrist rolls
hand grips (3x20)
Alternating crunches (3x20)
BB 21�??s
Supplements:
ON Protein
Glutamine
Creatine
BCAA
ZMA
Flax seed oil
Glucosamine/Condroiten/MMF
Vitamin C
Multi-vitamin
I don’t see anything wrong with the supps but the training split could definitely use some tweaking. The biggest problem I see is that you have 5 chest exercises and only 2 back exercises.
I see that you included deadlifts and good mornings on your back day, which is fine, but they are primarily posterior chain exercises. The deadlift will help add thickness to your back, but that is only if your posterior chain is strong enough to pull big weights.
I guess you can consider reverse flys a back exercise but it’s working mainly the posterior delt, a shoulder muscle. So you have 2-3 (depending on who you ask) direct back exercises. This means my first suggestion is to add another form of row and another form of vertical pulling movement.
My second suggestion is that I don’t think you should work delts and traps immediately after back. Again, you’re targeting your posterior delt and then hitting delts again the next day. Yes it’s not a primary mover in any of those exercises, but it’s very much involved. Your traps also get hit doing the deadlifts and rows.
The final thing I don’t get is that you have an entire day devoted to biceps and forearms. Given your training history, I think it’s pretty safe to say that you should be considered a beginner. This doesn’t mean you are a beginner knowledge-wise, but it means that your body is not adapted to weight training enough to be considered anything but a beginner.
With this in mind, I think it is not very wise to split your training up like this, especially the bicep and forearm day. I think you would be much better off doing something like push/pull/legs/off/repeat or maybe even total body 3 days a week with a lot more emphasis on compound movements and less on isolation.
Look up the “shut up program” I think that was a split similar to this, that spread everything out so you didn’t hit the same groups two sessions in a row.
Thanks for the feedback guys.
(and I do agree with the beginner comments, I almost posted this in that forum)
I found the Shut-Up program and like the looks of the 4day program. Perhaps even the 3 day then add some 2 much needed cardio days to get rid of the spare tire.
But on deeper read I notice this routine for intermediate and up.
What tweaks would you recommend to the ‘shut-up’ program to fit a beginner?
