just be doing 3 days a week

day 1: chest and back
day 2: legs
day 3: shoulders and arms

thinking about switching it up a bit, maybe dividing days by push/pull instead of by muscle group. any suggestions

8/5/2006 9:19:39 PM

Day 1: chest

Day 2: no workout

Day 3: Legs

Day 4: no workout

Day 5: chest, shoulders, arms (you'll be working all 3 with the bench)

You really should give your muscles some downtime man.

8/5/2006 9:45:28 PM

I was doing that..there was a day in between each of those work outs

8/5/2006 9:50:27 PM

http://www.exrx.net/Lists/WorkoutMenu.html

any of those look good?>

8/5/2006 10:13:31 PM

1. Bend over.
2. Pick it up.
3. Bend elbows some.
4. Set down.
5. Build muscle.
6. Get chicks.
...
7. Profit.

8/5/2006 10:19:21 PM

Before this become 2 pages of non-sense, what are your goals?

8/5/2006 10:19:56 PM

chest + biceps

back + triceps

shoulders + legs

8/5/2006 10:28:13 PM

Curls get the girls

8/5/2006 10:30:11 PM

overall strength is my goal

8/5/2006 10:42:30 PM

I'm retracting my post

[Edited on August 5, 2006 at 10:46 PM. Reason : I'm not getting involved.]

8/5/2006 10:45:40 PM

i had never done any real weight lifting before but I just started this program six weeks ago and have seen tremendous results.

http://www.menshealth.com/cda/article.do?site=MensHealth&channel=fitness&conitem=9bd999edbbbd201099edbbbd2010cfe793cd____

8/5/2006 10:51:54 PM

^ what phase are you doing of that

8/6/2006 1:55:02 AM

i'm at phase 1 fixing to move into phase 2. It's a workout plan for one year so you start at phase 1 and work up to 10.

8/6/2006 11:52:39 AM

Have you been lifting lately? If not I would recommend something different. But if you have a good base then try this.

if your goal is overall strength then use a major/minor system for a while. Include low rep sets (2-3), and say an 8-10 rep range, on the bigger lifts. Don't worry about doing low rep stuff for say bi's and similar groups. The lower rep stuff is going to build up your power. Incoporate these lifts into your routine at some point: bench, squats, deadlifts, power cleans, bentover rows (compound movements), shoulder presses (not behind your head). Also use pyramiding, if you don't know what that is look it up (it's somewhat self-explanatory).

with the reps you don't want to just count off the number, you should be failing at or around that number. If your goal is 10 reps and you get to 10 but could really do 15 then increase the weight next time. It comes down to intensity not necessarily the amount of weight being used. If your goal is strength then you want to be using a higher percentage of your one-rep max than say a bodybuilder.

For strength one of my favorite bench routines is the Bigger, Faster, Stronger routine. If you want, let me know and i'll find a way to send you a copy. You may be able to find on the internet.

Over 3 days:
Chest/Tris
Back/bis
legs/shoulders

If you're doing it that way (and in general) don't over-do it on the small muscle groups. They already just got hit as support muscles on you bigger lifts and sometimes I see people doing just as much for their bi's as they do for their back. Your bi's are 2 small muscles, doesn't come close to the size of your back. Don't over train. 2 exercises/4-6 sets for the smaller groups are usually plenty.

you could also switch it up:
Chest/bi's
Back/Tri's

Something like this your bi's won't be very worn after chest so you can do a little more.

Make a list of all the exercises you can think of for each muscle group. There are a lot. If you can only think of a few, get a book or look around on the internet. Don't do all of the same lifts all of the time, and don't do them in the same order evey workout. Switch it up every few workouts, so say every 3rd or 4th time you do chest swap out a lift or two. And it can be staggered so you're doing a new lift every week. Like 1234 1234 1234 5234 5634 etc.. You want to allow enough exposure for the muscles to adapt, but you eventually want to shock them with something you're not used to as well. Switching up the order would be like 1234, 1234, 3412, etc.. Don't start off every chest day with flat-bench, as people tend to. And of course this is just general info., I'm not saying to use that pattern or way of changing exactly. I myself probably wouldn't go more than 2 weeks without doing flat bench, and in that 2 weeks I would be doing incline-bench, or some dumbell bench, etc..

Which reminds me; If one side of your body is stronger than the other do not use dumbbells to even them out, this is wrong. The right way to do it is to use bar exercises with perfect form. This will force your weak side to work harder than the other side. Of course if you're using sloppy form it's not going to make a difference.

Get plenty of low-glycemic carbs throughout the day.

8/6/2006 2:44:13 PM

M: Heavy Upper
T: Heavy Lower
W: Cardio/Martial Arts
H: Light Upper
F: Light Lower
S: Cardio/Martial Arts
S: Rest

8/6/2006 3:40:05 PM

Quote :

"i had never done any real weight lifting before but I just started this program six weeks ago and have seen tremendous results."

Are you doing the beginner's or intermediate/advanced program?

8/7/2006 1:36:12 PM

http://www.crossfit.com/


I was skeptical when I started it, but if you follow it, you realize that its pretty badass. I've gotten stronger and faster with crossfit than just regular weight training and running.

good stuff.

8/7/2006 1:45:35 PM

i've heard nothing but good things about crossfit, if that is your goal. If you want to do powerlifting then it's not going to be the best method.

They actually have gym around here I think their website is http://www.crossfitnc.com
I wanted to take jiu-jitsu up there but I think you have to join the gym to take classes there.

^do you train there?

If anyone trains there send me a pm, I'd like to go check it out some time, or at least get some ideas as to what the pricing is like.

[Edited on August 7, 2006 at 2:07 PM. Reason : ?]

8/7/2006 2:06:21 PM

Monday: Chest and cardio (running)
Tuesday: Abs and cardio
Wednesday: Tris and Shoulders
Thursday: Legs and cardio
Friday: Back and Bis
Saturday: Abs and Cardio/Rest
Sunday: Abs and Cardio/Rest

I've done that for the majority of the summer and am in the best shape of my life. If you miss a day, try to double it up by combing the abs and the cardio. It only gives you one day of rest, but I go through my workouts rather quickly and I'm only in there for an hour on most days...and I don't do all of the cardios.

8/7/2006 2:09:04 PM

^^ since I"m not in town this summer, I train a bit more local to where I am. I just check the site for the workout of the day and then go to the gym and knock it out.


but yeah its awesome.



[Edited on August 7, 2006 at 2:19 PM. Reason : didn't put enough ^'s on there.]

8/7/2006 2:18:35 PM

all through High School i basically followed this routine and for my weight i was lifting a ton:

M Chest/shoulders/back/all arms
T Legs/all arms
W Chest/shoulders/back
H Legs/all arms
F Chest/shoulders/back/all arms
S Legs/all arms
S Day Off

at some points i did biceps/triceps every day but i really needed sunday off while wrestling since tournaments were usually saturday and i was so sore on sundays i didnt lift at all, maybe just ran.
i took 1 protein shake a day and that was it. however every single day i did pushups and situps after waking up and before going to bed

the fun part was doing all this and still watching my weight. i generally went really light on the legs since you can carry a lot of weight down there that i didnt want

8/7/2006 2:53:09 PM

i dont get how some of you are doing the same muscle groups on back to back days

8/7/2006 2:54:13 PM

Embrace the power of the Westside

8/7/2006 2:55:13 PM

^^ like what? arms? you can do arms everyday if you want to. when you first start you will probably be too sore too i suppose. but after even a week with arms if you are getting enough protein and lifting properly most days you should be fine to do arms

[Edited on August 7, 2006 at 2:57 PM. Reason : ]

8/7/2006 2:55:48 PM

^What a joke

8/7/2006 2:59:16 PM

yea seriously, you HAVE to give your muscles rest if you want to increase their mass

8/7/2006 3:04:57 PM

yea ok..what about it is a joke?

i wrestled for 12 years of my life and my dad is a certified lifting instructor. i was in the best shape of my life in HS on my dads routine

but if you wanna tell someone who was wrestling 130 but benching 240, approaching a 5 minute mile(never been much of a runner :/) and doing 150 consecutive full pushups before bed that my workout routine is a joke go ahead

^ i wasnt worried about increasing their mass. i could care less about that, i just wanted to be strong. every camp or anything said arms everyday are fine they repair extremely fast when receiving the amount of amino acids they need. i gave them a 1 day a week break or a manual break when they were sore and not healthy for a day.

[Edited on August 7, 2006 at 3:07 PM. Reason : ]

8/7/2006 3:05:17 PM

I CAN LIFT A TANK WITH MY BARE HANDS

8/7/2006 3:06:50 PM

Rest is the key to lifting, yes you might have been able to do some impressive stuff but you are just limiting your full potential by not resting your muscles.

8/7/2006 3:07:21 PM

meh. i was still only doing *Major* muscle groups 3 days out of 7 a week it was fine.

but geez i feel like crap after reading this thread. i continued lifting while i lived on campus but now that i live off i hvaent been to the gym in over a year

[Edited on August 7, 2006 at 3:09 PM. Reason : ]

8/7/2006 3:08:57 PM

Quote :

"just be doing 3 days a week"

i dont understand why you people are giving this guy a 7-day routine

this is your best bet buddy:

chest + biceps
back + triceps
shoulders + legs

you can ofcourse switch the chest/bi, back/tri comination to a chest/tri, back/bi combination.

dont lift and do cardio in the same day if you are trying to increase mass

8/7/2006 4:07:50 PM

Cricket, I'm doing the beginners workout. Even so it may look easy but you'll sweat like you've never sweated before. Give it a try.

8/7/2006 5:08:13 PM

It really doesn't matter what you do if you don't work out consitently for a long time. I started pretty slow, but got used to going 3-4 times a week . After a couple YEARS you will have results

8/7/2006 5:22:54 PM

nice first post

8/7/2006 6:04:48 PM

^^ partly true. You can see good results fairly quickly (certainly not years) if you know what you're doing. Some of it is genetics, most of it is knowledge of exercising and nutrition and correctly implementing said knowledge.

you were right about being consistent though.

8/7/2006 6:34:05 PM

anyone else doing crossfit on campus? i've been doing it pretty religiously for the last month with a couple friends; we split time between Lee Field and the IM fields. Im a thin guy, but Im seeing much better results from Xfit than from typical workouts. The WODs make it really easy to get motivated because the program mixes it up so much.

8/8/2006 9:11:50 AM

Get ideas, but in the end find out what works for you.

8/8/2006 10:08:22 AM

Quote :

"chest + biceps back + triceps shoulders + legs"

Why work biceps the day before your back, when most back excercises require pulling the weight towards your body? Your biceps could end up being the weakest link if you worked them the day before.

In HS I always did:

day 1: chest, then front shoulders, then triceps
day 2: back, rear shoulders, then biceps
day 3: rest
repeat (I ran for wrestling most days, so I didn't work legs)

I usually did two positions for each muscle, with some type of lower back or ab excercise in between for recovery time.

[Edited on August 8, 2006 at 2:20 PM. Reason : .]

8/8/2006 2:18:35 PM

here is what i do:

M - full body workout/cardio
T - run
W - full body workout/cardio
T - run
F - full body workout/cardio

and sometimes do something on the weekend (either run or something else)

along with eating healthy throughout the week (but the weekends are a challenge, drinking and whatnot)

but it's worked for me so far (lost nearly 20 lbs) since late March, and still losing lbs steady

8/8/2006 2:23:10 PM

MAN...I LOVE THESE THREADS...EVERYTIME SOMEONE MAKES A WORKOUT THREAD A BUNCH OF OUT OF SHAPE LOSERS CHIME IN ABOUT HOW YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO EXERCISE EVEN THOUGH THEY DON'T ACTUALLY DO ANY OF THESE ROUTINES

8/8/2006 2:39:20 PM

WolfpackKC, yeah same here as far as the results.

I've noticed that I've gotten stronger quicker with Xfit than other workouts.

its good stuff.

8/8/2006 3:00:16 PM

nvm

[Edited on August 8, 2006 at 3:11 PM. Reason : ]

8/8/2006 3:11:19 PM

Make sure you EAT...none of this is going to matter if you arent eating enough.

currently I do

upper, lower, off, upper, lower, off, off

8/8/2006 3:35:42 PM

J_Rip, do you do a lot of substituting for the WODs...or do you have most of the equipment?

Currently we are just using an olympic set and the pull up and dip bars outside for a majority of the WODs and every once in a while getting in the gym for squats and BW bench workouts. Do you think its a big deal to substitute stuff for like the wall ball and what not?

8/8/2006 4:00:15 PM