questions

[blut wump]

You should take a look at the madcow5x5 thread and especially post 15 which details the SingleFactor version.

The essence of the 5x5 is that it works the whole body with the large compound exercises, particularly squats, pressing, rowing and deadlifting. You don't necessarily do 5 sets of 5 and you'll typically only do three or four exercises on each workout, three times per week. I suggest you also take a look at AnotherButters most very excellent log on here.

If you eat well and get enough rest then you should get a lot stronger over the next few months and probably add quite a few pounds to your frame too. There are lots of people here who'll be glad to help you with any questions you have. Just do a bit of research and don't look back.

Even if you decide that the program is not for you, you can gain a lot of general training information by reading around a lot of the links on the first page of the madcow 5x5 thread.

 

[anotherbutters]

There are lots of people here who'll be glad to help you with any questions you have. Just do a bit of research and don't look back.

This is especially so because of your age. At 16, you've still got a good few years of growth left in you, so you have the potential to make massive gains in size and strength if that's what you want. If you do a bit of reading and learning, people will be glad to help you.

Here's a link to the 5x5 mentioned by Blut Wump: TOC (Table of Contents) for the 5x5

In particular, you should probably look at these links from the above:
- Intermediate - Bill Starr 5x5 Linear Progression (Single Factor 5x5)
- Training Methodology
- Overtraining Explained
- How Many Times Should I Hit a Muscle Each Week?

The single factor program isn't an ideal starting point for a beginner because you ought to be able to make faster gains on a simpler program at your stage. Unfortunately, I don't have a link to something that I can just say "follow this" to get you started. madcow said he's working on something, so keep an eye on the TOC link above. It's still a good starting point, just not ideal.

Do you have access to anybody that can teach you the correct form in each of the exercises? If not, you'll do well to get yourself a copy of Starting Strength.

 

[mortious]

This is especially so because of your age. At 16, you've still got a good few years of growth left in you, so you have the potential to make massive gains in size and strength if that's what you want. If you do a bit of reading and learning, people will be glad to help you.

Here's a link to the 5x5 mentioned by Blut Wump: TOC (Table of Contents) for the 5x5

In particular, you should probably look at these links from the above:
- Intermediate - Bill Starr 5x5 Linear Progression (Single Factor 5x5)
- Training Methodology
- Overtraining Explained
- How Many Times Should I Hit a Muscle Each Week?

The single factor program isn't an ideal starting point for a beginner because you ought to be able to make faster gains on a simpler program at your stage. Unfortunately, I don't have a link to something that I can just say "follow this" to get you started. madcow said he's working on something, so keep an eye on the TOC link above. It's still a good starting point, just not ideal.

Do you have access to anybody that can teach you the correct form in each of the exercises? If not, you'll do well to get yourself a copy of Starting Strength.

Thank you a lot man. Yeah i have access to people who can show me the correct form. The problem is, i can't do 5x5 because my gym doesn't have things such as squatting machines/bars available, only other machines.

Do you think i'd get a good ammount of muscle gain//the programme would be benefitial if i worked each muscle group 2 times with 12 reps?? so doing 2x12, 3 times a week??

thanks for help.

 

[anotherbutters]

A gym isn't a gym unless it's got a few olympic bars and plates in it, plus somewhere to bench and somewhere to squat with safety bars. There are lots of threads on here about machines vs freeweights and the results are always the same - use freeweights and avoid the machines. You will stimulate much more growth using freeweights. Use the search function on here or go back a few pages looking for 'machines'. If you don't have access to freeweights, I suggest trying to find another gym if you can.

As for the number of reps, a smaller number of reps (1-3) is more conducive to strength gains, whereas a larger number of reps (say 12) is more conducive to size gains (so long as you eat enough). As a beginner, you will want a bit of both and 5 reps is a good middle ground. There was an article on here a while a go about hypertrophy (increasing muscle size) and rep ranges but I can't find it.

 

[blut wump]

As a newbie almost anything will make you grow for a couple of months. After that you'll be mostly spinning your wheels on the machines with that kind of program. Is there an alternative gym around? Machines are not the ideal way to workout and in many ways can be bad to overall development due to lack of synergy.

Also you mention working each muscle-group. When you take a compound exercise you can often be working almost the whole body in one set. If you take squat, barbell row and benchpress then you have a whole-body workout in three exercises. What's more, the muscle groups are being worked synergistically as in real-life and you end up with functional real-world strength rather than just gym-strength. Throw in some overhead pressing and deadlifts and you have a complete exercise set. With these five exercises you can dispense with all others for a very long time until you start to identify particular weaknesses in your physique.

You could even break it down further to squat and overhead pressing for a complete workout which works all of the 'muscle groups'. Try to think less about muscle groups and more about body movements pulling and pressing. Legs as a whole combined with glutes, core and lower back rather than breaking them down into calves, quads, hams, glutes, abs. Why do half a dozen exercises when you can do one to work them all together?

I suspect that I'm rambling by now so I'll stop. Get a fresh gym if you can.

 

[tay1506]

I wish i would have had all of this help 2 years ago when i was 16 i would be alot farther than i am now and also from experience coaches and ur average trainer that u may find in places like the ymca don't really know that much. Most of them probly know less than me and i dont know that much. For 3 1/2 months the coaches had our football team doing some workout they made up and said pros did it. I dont think anyone in that whole class went up more than 15 lbs. on bench or squats and thats not much considering we were all beginners. I read over this sight and in 3 months i went up 70lbs. on almost everything. I also suggest doing much lower reps this has helped me more than u would believe i think for me 5-8 is very good. Just depends on the person but i wouldent go above 8.

 

[mortious]

ok guys.. the problem is theres no other local gyms, this is the only one i can go 2. So i'd appreciate it if u could give me some advice on a programme seeing the 5x5 1 isn't going to be a good choice for me. Squats are not either, as my knees are not good because i have osgood schlatters disease which causes frequent knee pains. At my gym we do have free weights, just not the big bars.

What do u recommend i do for now?? as i can not get another programme for 2 months. What kind of programme?? like 12 reps , 2 sets or what?? i want to see both strength and size gain... there must be SOME WAY.