Overtraining...I am confused, help please

[Dan111]

Ok, so this is my first thread on these forums, but I have been a lurker for awhile. My question is one that seems to be answered in a contradictory manner depending on who is answering it.

I'm 24 and have been seriously lifting for the past 2 years, before that it was very on an off. I am about 5'10 and 170 with around 8% BF. 2 years ago I was around 145 pounds with about 15% BF. My goals are to be well over 200lbs, however I'd like to stay defined, so I'd much rather go the bodybuilder route than the power-lifter route.

I'm a big fan of Arnold's book...however if I compare much of what has been said in that with what a lot of people on these forums and BB.com forums have to say...there are a lot of contradictions.

I am trying to figure out the best possible workout routine for what my goals are.

In Arnold's book he advocates in the "Advanced" and "Competition" programs to workout basically every single day and be on a 2-day split. So basically every other day you're doing the workout from 2 days ago. Essentially you're working out the ENTIRE body up to 3-4 times per week. Now I understand that I should NOT be following this, just for the simple fact that I have only been serious about weight training for around 2 years which by no means constitutes me as "advanced".

But lately I've been seeing on these forums and BB.com forums how it's much better to workout the whole body over a 7 day period, giving your CNS and muscles time to recover and rebuild.

But why is it that legendary bodybuilders such as Arnold and Franco were able to workout as often as they did and achieve their results....but yet everyone nowadays would scream "overtraining!" in a split second if they heard their workouts? I understand they were all on steroids....but so are pretty much all pro bodybuilders today. And besides, even on steroids, rest is needed.

What I'm trying to figure out is really what should I be doing and what is better? I am wanting to put on mass and definition and I understand it will take hard work and time, but what is the proper way? A 2-day split? A 3-day split? A 7-day split?

Right now, based off of the majority of routines that I have been reading, I am going to be doing the following routine:

Monday - Chest (4 exercises, 4 sets each exercise) /Biceps (3 exercises, 4 sets each exercise)

Tuesday - Legs (5 or 6 exercises, 4 sets each exercise)

Wednesday - Off

Thursday - Shoulders (4 exercises, 4 sets each exercise)/Triceps (3 exercises, 4 sets each exercise)

Friday - Off

Saturday - Back (5 or 6 exercises, 4 sets each exercise)

Sunday - Off

Is this a decent routine? Should I be doing more/less sets for each exercise? According to Arnold's book it would probably be better to be working out far more often that the routine above....but with all the contradictions I don't know what's really better?

Any advice would help and any questions are certainly welcome. I apologize in advance for the long post, but I thank you if you read all of it and are willing to contribute.

[bmit]

With a once a week split i like:

Back (avoids chest on monday as that's what everyone in gym is doing)
Chest
off
Legs
Shoulders (gives you a couple days for front delts to recover from chest day)
Arms
off (need off or leg day after arms)

If you are only doing once a week, I would be in gym at least 5x a week. IMO. that keeps workouts from losing intensity when you try to do too many sets.

[Dan111]

Ok, so what I'm really trying to find out is if it's more beneficial to workout the whole body over 7 days, as opposed to 3-4 days?

Reason why I'm asking is because for the past several months I've been going about 6 days a week and hitting all the muscle groups 2 times a week. According to virtually everyone on here (from reading other posts) and on some other forums, that's overtraining.

So I was going to change my routine, as I obviously want better results and want to change if I am overtraining. So will working out the whole body over a 7 day period (like the one I mentioned in my first post) be more beneficial?

The reason I'm confused is like I said in my first post, you have people like Arnold in his book saying how he would workout for hours a day pretty much everyday and train the entire body multiple times per week. But then I start researching on various sites, including this one, and most people are saying to train the whole body only once per week. So does this all come down to a matter of opinion? Or if there is a science behind it, what is the explanation?

[sean_holland]

I like 7 day split too. I try and gas out one muscle group per day and not try and workout more than one encase energy levels/stamina dip. I like to get focused, get in, and smash the weights around, then give that muscle ample time to get fed and healed before doing the same to it 7 days later.

[Skyler]

Listen to your body. Your body will tell you how many exercises or sets you need before the muscle has had enough. It will also tell you when that muscle is ready for punishment again.
The balance of how much to work and how much to rest is different for everybody.
If you follow any routine that is based off of what works for someone else, it probably won't work very well for you. Listen to your body and you will see the best results.

[Dan111]

Makes sense, guess I'll just start experimenting with different routines and see what yields the best results for me. I've been doing a 3 day split for around 6 months, might as well try something else and see how that works. Thanks.

[Regular guy]

X2 on listen to your body.

On deployment I lifted weights, Crossfit WOD, and either ran 3-5miles or rucked with weight/equipment every night that the situation allowed. I was natural then. Ate like shit, had limited options, but made sure to get adequate protein and carbs.

Make sure your body is getting pretty of nutreints. If you don't replace what you teardown you'll be in trouble.

Can't comment on your workout.