My routine -- feedback welcomed

[Spine]

So after about four months of working out, I'm pretty happy with the results I'm getting and all the different exercises I've discovered. I thought I'd post my approximate routine here, in the hopes of getting a few words of advice from anyone who sees any red flags or opportunities for improvement. I feel that my back is my weakest area right now.

 

I usually work out four days a week, broken up by a day off here and there. Lately I've been thinking it's hard to train back/abs and shoulders/triceps on consecutive days. Curious to know what you think. Also curious to know what you think about this split in general. It really varies where my days off fall.

 

I usually do three or four sets of each exercise. A warmup set of 15-20 reps with light weights, then 12 reps of medium weights, 10 reps heavy weights, and 6 or 8 reps really heavy weights (sometimes to failure).

 

I warm up with 10 minutes of cardio, and a few times a week I try to get longer periods of cardio.

 

Day 1: Back/Abs

- V-Bar pulldowns

- Wide-grip chins, assisted (just started doing these--really hard for me at this point)

- Machine row (traps/rear delts)

- Hyperextensions

 

- Kneeling pulldowns

- Decline crunches

- Leg raises (straight and bent)

- Stability ball or floor crunches

 

Day 2: Shoulders/Triceps

- Clean and press

- Upright rows

- Overhead dumbbell press

- Bent-over lat raises (why are these so hard?)

- Dumbbell shrugs

 

- Bench dips

- Dumbbell triceps extension

- Straight-bar pulldowns

 

Day 3: Rest

 

Day 4: Legs

- Squats

- Leg press

- Machine leg extension

- Seated calf raise

 

Day 5: Chest/Biceps

- Dumbbell bench press

- Dumbbell flys

- Incline dumbbell press

- Decline dumbbell press

 

- Straight barbell curls

- Concentration curls

- Incline dumbbell curls

 

Day 6: Rest

Day 7: Rest or start routine again

[Lean and Green]

I'm not quite sure why you would be encountering trouble with training your shoulders after your back. I've always designed many workouts with these back tow back on days. Perhaps when you are triggering your rear deltoids on your back day and then the fact that you are most likely hitting them again on day two like on the bent-over lateral raises that you expressed as being difficult?? I usually take caution from not hitting my rear delts two days in a row when i train shoulders and back on two consecutive days.

 

I would suggest that you place flyes at the end of your workout on chest day. They don't exhaust as much energy and I would much rather save my juice for presses.

 

Granted, clean and presses hit the shoulder pretty well but wouldn't you consider than a mjm (multi joint movement) type of exercise ion which you hit several major parts of the body? They definitely fit well into this routine and more power to you for being able to pull them off. I could never grasp the concept of snapping the bar properly. I was always so spastic at it. I guess it's that goofy leftie trait of mine that my technique in some sports is a little peculiar. They'll pack on muscle fast as all mjm's tend to so right on with those.

 

Looks good man, you'll be getting some good results from your routine.

[Im Your Man]

seems good in general, especially if Lean & Green says it's a good program; he knows better than me.

 

But if I can give my opinion (maybe Lean & Green or someone else can tell if I'm right or wrong), I'd say that to train a muscle group only one day per week leave a too long resting time (except if you feel soreness for a week). It takes between 48 to 72 hours for complete recovery, depending for each person and depending how intense was the training session. After that time, the muscles are at like 110% or more of potential capacity and it last for a day or two. Longer, the muscles potential goes back to 100%. You lose some of the benefits.

To make it simpler, as soon as you don't feel any soreness, that's the time to work that muscle again, for maximum progress.

 

But I would say that especially for the slow-contraction muscles or endurance muscles groups if you want. Like abs, lower-back and calfs. Bruce Lee had amazing abs and he was working them every single day.

 

But maybe when you start in bodybuilding, muscles need longer periods of rest! all this is a complex science...

Edited March 16, 2008 by I'm Your Man

[Spine]

Thanks for the feedback.

 

I would suggest that you place flyes at the end of your workout on chest day. They don't exhaust as much energy and I would much rather save my juice for presses.

 

Done!

 

Granted, clean and presses hit the shoulder pretty well but wouldn't you consider than a mjm (multi joint movement) type of exercise ion which you hit several major parts of the body?

 

Definitely--I learned that the first time I did clean and presses, when my hamstrings were shot the next day. I put them in the shoulder category because of the press part--and because that's how it's categorized in the book Natural Bodybuilding.

 

But if I can give my opinion (maybe Lean & Green or someone else can tell if I'm right or wrong), I'd say that to train a muscle group only one day per week leave a too long resting time.

 

I've heard different opinions about this, and I'd like to know more. Right now my routine works pretty well for me, and I don't mind if my gains are a little slower as a result of hitting each muscle group only once a week. At the same time, if someone convinces me that I'm wasting energy this way, I'd be willing to try something else.

 

I wonder how the routine would be structured if, for example, I trained each group twice a week. How could I do this while training the same amount of hours per week as I do now?

[Im Your Man]

 

 

I wonder how the routine would be structured if, for example, I trained each group twice a week. How could I do this while training the same amount of hours per week as I do now?

 

The possibilities are almost infinite, but I like this one, it leave about 72 hours for recovery (program from a pro bodybuilder in a magazine:

 

Day 1 - pecs, arms, abs

Day 2 - back, shoulders, abs

Day 3 - quads, ischio, calfs, abs

Day 4 - pecs, arms, abs

Day 5 - back, shoulders, abs

Day 6 - quads, ischio, calfs, abs

Day 7 - rest

 

If you don't have time, you can do only 3 days for abs ( like day 2, 4 and 6)

 

other programs supposed to facilitate muscular developement, but using a different method, and shorter rest period, about 48 hours, but if you want 1 hour session or less, you have to chose only the most efficient exercices for you. But what's good is that's its only 3 days/week! This technique should stimulate more muscular growth and progress than only training at 100% max strenght.

 

1- overall - maximal strenght (the heavier you can, always to failure)

2- rest

3- overall - 3/4 of your max strenght, longer series

4- rest

5- overall - maximal strenght (the heavier you can, always to failure)

6- rest

7- rest

 

Or:

 

1-upperbody- max

2- lowerbody - max

3- upperbody - 3/4 max

4- lowerbody - 3/4 max

5- upperbody - max

6- lowerbody - max

7- rest