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Buddy_Christ
New member
just joined the board last night because i saw some good stuff here and there while looking around, so i guessed this would be a good place for me to post and ask questions.
I'm looking to possibly modify my routine here and there, make any improvements where possible. i just started lifting in the beginning of september. it's been many years since i've lifted, and every time i tried lifting in the past, i didn't have a good structured workout or a good diet, so i always ended up just toning for a few months and then giving up because i wasn't making any gains besides looking a bit more cut. i also never had any spotters, so going with high weights was out of the question. now it's a different story.....
i run a 3 day split workout, which enables me to lift from M-F and take the weekends off. works out perfectly because i can't really get to the gym on the weekends anyway. the 3 day split (i'm sure most of you know what it is, but i'll say it anyway) consists of 3 different days worth of exercises. it's a constantly moving cycle, and whatever day i end the week on, i start the next day's workout on monday. so i really don't have a set 'Monday - chest, Tuesday - legs' type routine. downside of this routine is whatever falls on wednesday only gets worked once that week. but that's still good, because it gives me some recovery time and i'll put in extra effort on wednesday's workout, because that area hasn't been worked since friday and won't get worked again til monday. if i find something better to do than my 3-day split routine, i'm all for changing up. all my lifting is done in pyramids of 12, 10, 8, and 5 reps, and obviously, with increasing weight every set. my overall goal is to increase strength in every muscle group and have a balanced build, as well as add mass and basically make myself look better. i'm lucky that i have a decent frame to work with, and i'll post pics if anyone wants to see what i've got to work with. Here's my routine:
Day 1 - Chest and Shoulders
Incline Bench
Flat Bench
Decline Bench
Cable butterflies
Seated Overhead Press
Shoulder Shrugs (rolling)
Shoulder Shrugs (straight up and down)
all done with dumbbells (except the cable butterlies, obviously), except the last set of each bench press, which i've been doing negatives lately, but found out i'm doing them WAY too slow (10-15 seconds...too long)
Day 2 - Back and Arms
Pulldowns to chest
Pulldowns behind head
close grip pulldowns
2 arm rows
1 arm rows
Incline curls (with dumbbells)
Preacher Curls (with dumbbells)
Tricep Extensions (being replaced by using the cable setup, curl motion but pulling down)
Underhand wrist curls (with dumbbells)
Overhand wrist curls (with dumbbells)
Day 3 - Legs
Reverse Leg curls
this gets interesting.....
i do one set of squats, followed by a set of step-ups, and then calf raises, all at the same weight. then i up the weight by 40lbs and do it all over again. 4 sets of each.
Incline Leg Press
ABS i do as oven as possible, and (i kick myself for it constantly) i forget a lot. Cardio is one area i'm lacking severely. i NEED more cardio and i know it. i usually walk 1/2 mile while i strech, which is better than nothing, and i walk at a fast pace. at least it gets my heart rate up before i go lift.
i'm considering going to a 4 day workout next semester, M T TH F, leaving all day wednesday for cardio and taking the weekends off. this would fit really good, and i've got a partner for lifting 2 days a week next semester that's leaving the routine up to me. i've got about an hour, maybe longer, each day to workout, but anything more than an hour and a half is overkill from what i've been told, and i have to be seriously screwing off in the gym to make my routine go that long. i take minimal breaks, usually about a minute between each set. just long enough to walk to the water fountain and back, then mentally prepare myself for the next set.
i've been building strength in the past few months, but i'm always looking to modify my routine to get more out of it. for the past 2 months i've been practicing slow form on everything, trying to be perfect with it, and making sure i'm as slow if not slower on the "return" as i was on the execution, usually aiming for the return to start to be twice as long as execution. i'm thinking about changing that though, making all my executions as fast as i can safely do with a slow return to the starting position, so i can work fast and slow twitch muscles and get that "muscle memory" (if it does really exist) to work, as well as training my body to be fully prepared for power movements.
at 5'6" and 160lbs, i don't think i'm doing too terribly bad with the weight i push. some examples of where i started at in early september and where i'm at now:
pulldown to chest - 120 max, now pyramid up to 140; behind head and close grip i'm 10 and 20lbs less, respectively
incline dumbbell curls - don't remember where i started, couldn't curl more than 50lb barbell before, now my 3rd set is 25lb dumbbell and 4th set of 30lb dumbbell requires assistance from the other hand; same with preacher curls
Squat - don't remember where i started, maybe 200lbs and knew i could do more, pyramided up to 265lbs last week, going up in 40lb incriments, and i think i can do 285 5x
Bench press - couldn't do 5 reps of 145lbs. my estimated max is 205lbs now, but i havn't actually put it up yet. we estimated that after i attempted 165 once, then tried 175 3x, then did 185 3x, all within 10 minutes, and i was done after that. if i can't put 205 up, i'm pretty sure i can handle 195lbs. the only time i tried 205 i was kind of cold. i streched pretty good and did a warm up set real slow of 105lbs, but just wasn't able to push 205 off my chest. however, last week, i ended my bench presses with a set of decline negatives @ 185lbs. i actually put it up 3x on my own, and i was extremely worn out at that point. hitting my max bench press has been elusive, and i hope to get a max in by the end of next week, as the following week is finals week and i'll have no time to lift
a month ago, i was finishing off my 4th set of flat bench with a 60lb dumbbell in each hand, and felt ready for more, prolly 65lb. i took 2 weeks for supersets, and when i went back to pyramids, my 3rd set on the incline and flat bench is almost always a 60lb dumbbell now, then go for the high weight negative. so yes, i'm seeing strength improvements.
well, i think i've covered everything in an ultra long post (sorry, but i do long posts on every board i'm on, gotta cover everything i want to say.) at least it's better than just posting "i need some help with my routine" and then waiting for someone to post back "what is your routine?" i think i've covered just about everything. i'll give any exercise a shot once, but there's a few things i can't do, and not because of strength or unwillingness. i've been screwed with 2 herniated discs in my thoracic which are a constant source of aggrivation and can be pretty pain inducing. the strange thing is, when i'm in the gym, i don't hurt. that's probably due to the fact that i'm doing precise movements and doing them properly. seems in more of my day-to-day activities i flare my back up, and if there's something in the gym that pains me, i drop it from the routine. no point injuring myself further, but the presice controlled movements of lifting 99% of the time don't bother me one bit, and i don't hurt afterwards, so yeah, it's good for me.
Thanks for any help anyone can give me or any direction (web articles, previous posts, etc) that i can be pointed in. the help is really appreciated.
now time to move over to the diet forum and see if i can find the cause of this horrific gas that the whey protein shakes give me.......
I'm looking to possibly modify my routine here and there, make any improvements where possible. i just started lifting in the beginning of september. it's been many years since i've lifted, and every time i tried lifting in the past, i didn't have a good structured workout or a good diet, so i always ended up just toning for a few months and then giving up because i wasn't making any gains besides looking a bit more cut. i also never had any spotters, so going with high weights was out of the question. now it's a different story.....
i run a 3 day split workout, which enables me to lift from M-F and take the weekends off. works out perfectly because i can't really get to the gym on the weekends anyway. the 3 day split (i'm sure most of you know what it is, but i'll say it anyway) consists of 3 different days worth of exercises. it's a constantly moving cycle, and whatever day i end the week on, i start the next day's workout on monday. so i really don't have a set 'Monday - chest, Tuesday - legs' type routine. downside of this routine is whatever falls on wednesday only gets worked once that week. but that's still good, because it gives me some recovery time and i'll put in extra effort on wednesday's workout, because that area hasn't been worked since friday and won't get worked again til monday. if i find something better to do than my 3-day split routine, i'm all for changing up. all my lifting is done in pyramids of 12, 10, 8, and 5 reps, and obviously, with increasing weight every set. my overall goal is to increase strength in every muscle group and have a balanced build, as well as add mass and basically make myself look better. i'm lucky that i have a decent frame to work with, and i'll post pics if anyone wants to see what i've got to work with. Here's my routine:
Day 1 - Chest and Shoulders
Incline Bench
Flat Bench
Decline Bench
Cable butterflies
Seated Overhead Press
Shoulder Shrugs (rolling)
Shoulder Shrugs (straight up and down)
all done with dumbbells (except the cable butterlies, obviously), except the last set of each bench press, which i've been doing negatives lately, but found out i'm doing them WAY too slow (10-15 seconds...too long)
Day 2 - Back and Arms
Pulldowns to chest
Pulldowns behind head
close grip pulldowns
2 arm rows
1 arm rows
Incline curls (with dumbbells)
Preacher Curls (with dumbbells)
Tricep Extensions (being replaced by using the cable setup, curl motion but pulling down)
Underhand wrist curls (with dumbbells)
Overhand wrist curls (with dumbbells)
Day 3 - Legs
Reverse Leg curls
this gets interesting.....
i do one set of squats, followed by a set of step-ups, and then calf raises, all at the same weight. then i up the weight by 40lbs and do it all over again. 4 sets of each.
Incline Leg Press
ABS i do as oven as possible, and (i kick myself for it constantly) i forget a lot. Cardio is one area i'm lacking severely. i NEED more cardio and i know it. i usually walk 1/2 mile while i strech, which is better than nothing, and i walk at a fast pace. at least it gets my heart rate up before i go lift.
i'm considering going to a 4 day workout next semester, M T TH F, leaving all day wednesday for cardio and taking the weekends off. this would fit really good, and i've got a partner for lifting 2 days a week next semester that's leaving the routine up to me. i've got about an hour, maybe longer, each day to workout, but anything more than an hour and a half is overkill from what i've been told, and i have to be seriously screwing off in the gym to make my routine go that long. i take minimal breaks, usually about a minute between each set. just long enough to walk to the water fountain and back, then mentally prepare myself for the next set.
i've been building strength in the past few months, but i'm always looking to modify my routine to get more out of it. for the past 2 months i've been practicing slow form on everything, trying to be perfect with it, and making sure i'm as slow if not slower on the "return" as i was on the execution, usually aiming for the return to start to be twice as long as execution. i'm thinking about changing that though, making all my executions as fast as i can safely do with a slow return to the starting position, so i can work fast and slow twitch muscles and get that "muscle memory" (if it does really exist) to work, as well as training my body to be fully prepared for power movements.
at 5'6" and 160lbs, i don't think i'm doing too terribly bad with the weight i push. some examples of where i started at in early september and where i'm at now:
pulldown to chest - 120 max, now pyramid up to 140; behind head and close grip i'm 10 and 20lbs less, respectively
incline dumbbell curls - don't remember where i started, couldn't curl more than 50lb barbell before, now my 3rd set is 25lb dumbbell and 4th set of 30lb dumbbell requires assistance from the other hand; same with preacher curls
Squat - don't remember where i started, maybe 200lbs and knew i could do more, pyramided up to 265lbs last week, going up in 40lb incriments, and i think i can do 285 5x
Bench press - couldn't do 5 reps of 145lbs. my estimated max is 205lbs now, but i havn't actually put it up yet. we estimated that after i attempted 165 once, then tried 175 3x, then did 185 3x, all within 10 minutes, and i was done after that. if i can't put 205 up, i'm pretty sure i can handle 195lbs. the only time i tried 205 i was kind of cold. i streched pretty good and did a warm up set real slow of 105lbs, but just wasn't able to push 205 off my chest. however, last week, i ended my bench presses with a set of decline negatives @ 185lbs. i actually put it up 3x on my own, and i was extremely worn out at that point. hitting my max bench press has been elusive, and i hope to get a max in by the end of next week, as the following week is finals week and i'll have no time to lift
a month ago, i was finishing off my 4th set of flat bench with a 60lb dumbbell in each hand, and felt ready for more, prolly 65lb. i took 2 weeks for supersets, and when i went back to pyramids, my 3rd set on the incline and flat bench is almost always a 60lb dumbbell now, then go for the high weight negative. so yes, i'm seeing strength improvements.
well, i think i've covered everything in an ultra long post (sorry, but i do long posts on every board i'm on, gotta cover everything i want to say.) at least it's better than just posting "i need some help with my routine" and then waiting for someone to post back "what is your routine?" i think i've covered just about everything. i'll give any exercise a shot once, but there's a few things i can't do, and not because of strength or unwillingness. i've been screwed with 2 herniated discs in my thoracic which are a constant source of aggrivation and can be pretty pain inducing. the strange thing is, when i'm in the gym, i don't hurt. that's probably due to the fact that i'm doing precise movements and doing them properly. seems in more of my day-to-day activities i flare my back up, and if there's something in the gym that pains me, i drop it from the routine. no point injuring myself further, but the presice controlled movements of lifting 99% of the time don't bother me one bit, and i don't hurt afterwards, so yeah, it's good for me.
Thanks for any help anyone can give me or any direction (web articles, previous posts, etc) that i can be pointed in. the help is really appreciated.
now time to move over to the diet forum and see if i can find the cause of this horrific gas that the whey protein shakes give me.......
