Advice Welcomed & Needed

[Pegesus]

Hey its been a couple of months since I posted here, I've been lurking just not posting. Due to excessive work and personal business barely got out to the gym for the past 2 months. I've been back now for the past 3 weeks and I've been having a damn hard time falling into a workout that I like. I was doing StrongLifts for a 4 months prior to taking my time off, I liked it but felt it was lacking something for me not sure what though. So when I came back I tried to create a new workout plan that merged alot of compound with some isloation, however I am not sure if its gonna work either here is my current routine and please comment on what you think about it:

 

Monday:

Squats 5 x 5

Dead Lift 3 x 5

DB Overhead Press 3 x 8

DB Incline, Flat, Decline 3 x 5 (alternating exercises between sets)

DB Side Bends 3 x F

 

Wednesday

DB Curls 3 x 8

Single Cable Tricep Pulldowns 3 x8

Barbell Shrugs 3 x 8

DB Front Shoulder Raises 3 x 8

Barbell Curl

Tricep Kickbacks 3 x 8

 

Thursday

Squat 5 x 5

Bench Press 5 x 5

Cable Row 3 x 8

Back Raises 3 x F (weighted)

Pull Ups 3 x F

 

Saturday

Incline DB Curl 3 x 8

Single Cable Tricep Pulldowns 3 x 8

DB Front Shoulder Raise 3 x 8

Wrist Curl 3 x 8

Barbell Calf Raise 3 x 8

Hammer Curl Cross Body 3 x 8

Dips 3 x F

 

This is basically it but I am wondering if I am slightly over training and if I can work this into a 3 day routine and achieve better results. I do cardio for warm up nearly every day and try to get in at least one 30 min cardio a week. What I didn't totally like about Stronglifts was the lack of isloation on arms. When I work my triceps and biceps I have noticed that my compounds were increase in weight faster than if I did compound excersises only. So I wanted to add them back in but maybe I added to much. Or maybe I just need to play out this routine a little longer.

 

Any thoughts would be great. Thanks!

 

Man it does feel great to be back in the gym constantly again.

[coroho]

What are your stats/lifts? My inclination is to ride out the program. Chinups should give you plenty of arm work if you work up to doing them weighted. They're basically inverse curls. Or if you still feel the need, you could just add in some curls at the end of your sessions. In general, I think getting your numbers up on the main lifts will do more for you than isolation exercises. Remember, you only get to make beginner gains with linear progression once, best to take full advantage of that.

[strawberryriddick]

This is basically it but I am wondering if I am slightly over training

That's up to your body, not our perceptions of your routine. Do you have enough time to recover? The easy way to find this out is if you're making any strength gains.

 

if I can work this into a 3 day routine and achieve better results.

Well, I'll tell you right now that I'd never do your program. When I go into the gym to see results, I want to focus on one muscle group at a time. Most people focus on two. It seems like you're doing some kind of hodge-podge, and if that gets results for you, great. I can't see how I could crush these into a 3 day routine without turning it into someone vaguely similar to something I'd do, so first I need to know why you're seemingly sporadically working out your muscle groups.

 

I do cardio for warm up nearly every day

Don't. There is a whole line of supplements dedicated to giving someone energy and even boasts of mental focus to make the user feel fresh, energized, and intense when approaching the weights. Doing cardio prior to weight training pre-exhausts you. When you don't approach the weights fresh, you aren't doing the best you can. When you aren't doing the best you can, then what are you doing in the gym at all? A good illustration is how we did it in the Marine Corps for our physical fitness tests. There are three parts: pull-ups or flex arm hang, crunches (an ab workout, but not like we think of "ab crunches"), then a 3 mile run. There's a reason they do it that way. Imagine if they asked us to run 3 miles, then to come back and try to do 20 pull-ups. Would that make sense? Or does it make more sense to try and do 20 pull-ups and then run 3 miles? The latter, of course. Save your cardio for after. I personally don't care to do a warm-up, never had a problem with it, but if you want to do a warm-up, do a warm-up set by using a light weight or even no weight and doing 10-15 reps of the exercise you're about to do.

 

Or maybe I just need to play out this routine a little longer.

Be patient and hang in there for 4-8 weeks. Don't like it? Change it up.

[Pegesus]

What are your stats/lifts?

 

Without getting into exact numbers I am able to steadily increase my weight by 5 lbs each week. So my gains are ok as of now.

 

I want to focus on one muscle group at a time...so first I need to know why you're seemingly sporadically working out your muscle groups.

 

Well I am mostly working toward strength training and with all strength training programs I have seen it incorporates only compound exercises done 3 days to 4 days a week. If I were to workout only 1 muscle group at a time I'd be hitting up the gym 5 days a week which I have done in the past but it just seems that if you work your compounds more you can achieve a great strength gain without the constant daily workouts. Even still I feel if you are hammering out say chest one day and then the next your gonna do arms for example you have less than 24 hours of rest and if you are pushing it every workout I just don't feel you have given yourself ample time for your muscles to rest. At least that's my opinion.

 

Strength training and bodybuilding are two different things in my book not taking away from either but one I feel consists of multiple compounds and the other is single muscle groups both can achieve great results its just what results you are looking for. I am looking for better strength and size so at this point I am working toward strength training it my seem sporadic but I have made my best gains doing this.

 

Thanks for the advice so far i appreciate it and if anyone else has been able to merge a 5 x 5 style workout with some isolation and its worked for them please chime in I would love your input as well.

 

Thanks