My updated workout

Here is what im doing these days. Its a five day program as you will see. Please give me your opinions and tweaks.

Im starting to see some results but im always reworking everything i do to make sure im doing what i need to.

thanks gang




Day 1-arms (superset)

Preacher curl 3 sets, 12 reps
Dumbbell curls 3 sets, 12 reps
Standing tri Pull downs 3 sets, 12 reps
Seated tri Push downs 3 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine
25 mins jogging @ 4.7-4.9 mph

Day 2-chest

Incline Bench press 3 sets, 12 reps
Flat bench press 3 sets, 12 reps
Pec deck 3 sets, 12 reps
Decline machine 3 sets, 12 reps
25 mins jogging @ 4.7-4.9 mph


Day 3-shoulders

Barbell shoulder 3 sets, 12 reps
Lat raises 3 sets, 12 reps
Shoulder press 3 sets, 12 reps
Shrugs 3 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine
25 mins jogging @ 4.7-4.9 mph

Day 4-back

Pullovers 3 sets, 12 reps
Hammer pull downs 3 sets, 12 reps
Bend over row 3 sets, 12 reps
Strap burnouts 3 sets, 12 reps
25 mins jogging @ 4.7-4.9 mph

Day 5-legs

Leg Press 3 sets, 12 reps
Leg extensions 3 sets, 12 reps
Lying leg curls 3 sets, 12 reps
Calves Standing 3 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine
25 mins jogging @ 4.7-4.9 mph

Looks awsome bro. Think I may just print it out and implicate it into my routine...


metz

hehe thanks bro

Im about to change the bicep routine a bit i think.

something like

preacher curl
reverse preacher curl

the reverse curls look great for working the forearms and biceps.
Heh i bought the Arnold book on lifting.

somethings i think are a bit dated but for a mostly newbie like me it really helps to learn different exercises.

That's a good overall split, i'm just wondering if you might quickly find it inconvenient (if not impossible) to hit chest hard with tris still reeling from the day before...especially given the amount of pressing you're considering on chest day. Seems like it might be a cause of less than desired performance on those lifts if the tris are still recovering...in addition to (being that it is followed the next day by shoulder presses) your tris getting very little chance to fully recover.

For some reason i never seem to have a problem with it. I hit the tris heavy all the time any never sore.

But you do bring up a good point. I may need to mix up my days a bit so i can give each group beter rest.

any thoughts on a possible remix?

Like i said, i havent noticed a problems with my tri's but i could be over working them without knowing.

I only have a few questions not flaming buddha...


Anyway ive done a 5day/week program this summer and ive added good size strength!

I did:

Monday - Chest,triceps
Tuesday - Back
Wednesday - Legs
Thursday - Shoulders
Friday - Biceps,Triceps

Abs when i felt like it.

Now if it works for you to start the week with Arms do that, however i would not have 3 pressing days in a row. And for me i needed to do legs on day 3 to get uper body rest.

But if it works for you bro then go for it!

very good suggestion bro

i appreciate it alot. It makes alot of sense what each of you have said

Im starting to see results but im not sure if im doing the most effecient routine i can.

Its a trip, nothing outstanding yet but im noticing muscles where i have never seen them and im very pleased.

Im going to rework my routines out and try a different mix keeping in mind the things yall have brought up.

it doesnt make much sense to work all upper body day after day then all lower.

how about this?

Day 1-arms (superset)

Day 2-legs

Day 3-shoulders

Day 4-chest

Day 5-back

As you said, what works for you is what is at issue here. That being said, it never hurts to see if (despite the lack of soreness) giving your tris and shoulders some time off before you hit chest might help. Chest was a priority part for me (being my worst part by far) and, at a buddy's suggestion, I made sure shoulders and tris had been well rested (at least 48 hours) before training chest. Immediately, my 10 rep working set went from 185 to 205, then 225. My chest didn't necessarily explode, but it became obvious my tris being overworked had been a detriment to my chest training (they would fail before the chest had a chance to be thoroughly fatigued).

Whenever I redesign or plan a split, I start with the amount of days the split will encompass, and place tris and chest as far apart as possible (unless, of course, i'm undertaking a split where i hit them on the same day as chest) and fill in the blanks according to my weaknesses and strengths. Some people i know need to distance back and shoulders (go figure)...it's a matter of figuring out what your specific makeup allows you to work in close conjunction with other bodyparts etc. Though, bottom line, distance your tri and chest training somewhat and i think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the strength you get in your basic pressing movements. Hell, on more than one occassion i've ommitted tricep training altogether (i was, of course, undertaking many, many sets of pressing movements on chest and shoulder days) and i actually got some impressive bulk added on to my tris. Best of luck

it really does amaze me the quality and willingness of our members to help out.

I made two different splits and i will test them out to see how i feel. Im really going to mind how my tri's feel since i completely didnt think of how they are working during all my press workouts.
hehe that might explain why my tris are more defined than my bi's hehe

Everything i do is subject to change and tweaking so as long as im not hurting myself i will tweak a bit until i get exactly the best i can get.



everything in this thread is a huge help to me. thanks again everyone!!

Id like to open this up to anyone that may have any suggestions on if i am doing enough with each day.

with this 5 day split i feel i can work harder even though im hitting each exercise as hard as i can.

should i add more to each day or leave it where it is? i find the more i workout the more i want to work out heh

but im always trying to think of that balance between work and rest too.

Also, do you think cardio at 25 mins post weights x 5 is too much?
it doesnt seem to be, but then again i cant tell much of a difference lately. its the weights that are starting to take over ever so slowly.

thanks again everyone, yall are the best!

It looks good but here are a few suggestions I have

1, on your tri exercises you may want to change the motion between the 2 exercises,maybe keep the pushdown and add an overhead extension or kickbacks just to hit it at some diff angles

2,instead of incline barbell I'd use d-bells. With a barbell you'll be using your shoulders more and they may be tired the next day, also you get more range of motion with the dbell.

3, on back day I would incorporate some type of low rowing or pulling exercise. You can add this every 2 weeks or so to change things up.
And don't forget the lower back!

4,I think you should drop the leg presses and put some squats in. As much as people hate to do these, they WORK! I would stay away from the smith machine altogether. Just go in the rack and lift whatever you can. It doesn't have to be heavy just do a couple of sets.

Hope this helps, again, it's just my opinion.

awesome suggestions vegas kid.

Great minds think a like.. i dropped the leg press today and added squats and hack squats.

Your ideas sound good and i have been thinking of many of those changes from time to time.

any ideas on lower back exercises? im going to add a cable row on back day since i knew i was supposed too heh
i will let you know how it goes. thanks bro

I keep my split similar (one muscle group a day) I usually do 4 different lifts and 4 sets of each lift. The only exception is arms I do 3 differents lifts for bi then 3 different ones for tri's all at 4 sets (bi's and tri's are the same day). This has been great for me!

Lower back: You can use the hyperextension stand with a plate in your hands or do pullthroughs with the rope on the lower pulley. You can go to www.elitefts.com to see how it's done (under ask dave, exercise index.)

Stiffleged Dl's and GM's also work the lower back.

Hope that helps.

sure does, thanks again for the help bro!

here i go again

For the last week i have been giving serious thought about how many reps im doing.

Im currently doing 12 reps @ 4 sets but im really thinking that isnt what i should be doing.

Im thinking going heavier and cutting it to 8 reps @ 4 sets.
Im seeing results now from what im doing, but im never finished tweaking my workout.

Im thinking if i do this, i will switch my results to adding more muscle while still dropping BF.

any thoughts are great

thanks yall

I tried to arms prior to my chest but felt that it took away from my bench. Have you noticed this?

i found that to be true also. i moved my chest day to friday which leaves me plenty of time to recover from my bi's/tri's

heres my current one just to make things more clear.

not perfected yet but getting there hehe



Day 1-arms (superset)

Preacher curl wide grip 4 sets, 12 reps
Reverse Preacher curls 4 sets, 12 reps
Concentration Curls 4 sets, 12 reps
Standing tri Pull downs 4 sets, 12 reps
Overhead extension 4 sets, 12 reps
Parallel Dips 4 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine


Day 2-legs

Squats 4 sets, 12 reps
Hack Squats 4 sets, 12 reps
Leg extensions 4 sets, 12 reps
Lying leg curls 4 sets, 12 reps
Calves Standing 4 sets, 12 reps
Seated calves 4 sets, 12 reps


Day 3-shoulders

Seated Military press 4 sets, 12 reps
Lat raises 4 sets, 12 reps
Front Dumbbell raises 4 sets, 12 reps
Shrugs 4 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine


Day 4-Back
Pullovers 4 sets, 12 reps
Hammer pull downs 4 sets, 12 reps
Bend over row 4 sets, 12 reps
Cable row 4 sets, 12 reps
Ab routine


Day 5-Chest

Incline Barbells 4 sets, 12 reps
Flat bench press 4 sets, 12 reps
Pec deck 4 sets, 12 reps
Decline machine 4 sets, 12 reps
Cable crossovers 4 sets, 12 reps

Looks good!

I like that last work out plan i have to tri it. How much time do you spend in the gym are you in and out? I have a messed up work schedule so my biggest thing is time...

Im out of the gym within 1 1/2 hours which includes 35 mins cardio.
some days are longer than others. leg day usually takes longer but most days are never more than that.

i try to limit my time in the gym, i get in, kick some ass and get the hell out.