starting afresh. comments welcome

[JohnRobHolmes]

ive been lifting for the past 3 months, and i want to really pick up the pace. im an active person, with gymnastics and moutain biking as some hobbies. as far as the weights, i have been working out with a lower body, upper body split five days a week. upper body mwf, and legs tth. i dont like that split, and i have trouble keeping it balanced time wise and muscle wise. i have been browsing these boards for more than a month now and decided that a HST routine would do me nice. 3 days a week, full body workouts.

im 22yrs, 5' 10", 135 lbs and my goals are more power, a fuller physique, a few lbs of meat would be nice, and a balanced body. im not out of shape by any means, but im far from my potential.

my new workout
MWF

squat/ deadlift alternating
incline bench
chinups
rows -focusing on middle traps especially
shrugs
shoulder press
lateral raises (my favorite)
rear delt
curls
skullcrushers
calves
forearms (another favorite)
abs

it might be a long workout, but time will tell. im hoping to keep it under 1.5 hours with warmup and stretch. any suggestions?

 

[wnt2bBeast]

you mentioned fuller more powerful physique..i would get on a 5x5 routine..very good for strength/size..if your a fan of hitting with more frequency look inot doggcrap (DC) training..im on 5x5 and love..i havent trained DC style but he has produced some very big guys..

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

from what i can gather, the hst routines are focused around bigger muscles. power and strength arent really part of it, but rather a by-product right?
with the 5x5 routine, it seems that i will be in the gym even longer.

from what i can gather for a nice 5x5

upperbody pushing
bench 5x5
incline fly 2x8
skull crushers 2x8

shoulder press 5x5
lateral raises 2x8
shrugs 2x8

upperbody pulling
chinups/pulldowns 5x5
rows 2x8
rear delts2x8

forearms 5x5
curls 2x8

lower body
squat/deadlift 5x5
leg extensions 2x8
calf raises 3x10

MWF is upperbodyA, T TH is lowerbody and upperbodyB.
i would switch upperbody from week to week, ie. week one is pushing mwf, week two is pulling mwf.

theres just so much info and routines out there. i know working out some is better than none, but i dont like wasting my time on something that is inferior, unbalanced, or just plain wrong. thanks for the help

 

[wnt2bBeast]

im not sure why you have mwf split..if you have the time you could do m-t-th-fr
heres my split
mon squats
tues chest/bi
wed off
thurs deads
fri delts/tris

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

i could put the squats and upperbody pulling into one workout and have chest/tri's be on thier own.

do you stick to mostly compound motions or single joint motions for upper body? if i only worked my chest once a week i wouldnt get much, i would have five days for my chest to forget what i did last week. maybe i should post some pics of where i stand physique wise. skinny, skinny, skinny

 

[wnt2bBeast]

heres my chest routine
incline BB 5x5
flat dbell press 2x8-10
decline press 2x8-10
trust me its enough for you to grow especially once you start getting to your heavier weights..but like i said as well DC training might be an option for you as well if you want more frequency and a mwf split

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

thanks for the help. ill try a 4 day 5x5 and see how that does me for a few months.

 

[wnt2bBeast]

thanks for the help. ill try a 4 day 5x5 and see how that does me for a few months.

give this routine time and you will see results..

 

[bigstve12]

i def put on some meat and strength with the 5x5...i think youll like it once you get into it

 

[Backlash]

do you stick to mostly compound motions or single joint motions for upper body? if i only worked my chest once a week i wouldnt get much, i would have five days for my chest to forget what i did last week. maybe i should post some pics of where i stand physique wise. skinny, skinny, skinny

Any lifting you do will be fine as long as you use good compound exercises and progressive resistance (upping the weight each week, or at least whenever possible).

The main thing you need to concentate on is EATING correctly (usually this means eating more food in general). I was 6'3" 140 in high school. I lifted but never fixed my diet until recently. I didn't really gain shit until I made a very concerted effort to eat more. I am now at 195 (still skinny but not nearly as bad) and looking to hit 210 by end of the year.

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

first day was excellent! i combined the pulling and lower body together. the routine needs some tweaking, mostly my forearms moved to a 2x8 set and the rows moved to a 5x5. it was nice though. cant wait for the morning!

got a question though. my legs are powerful enough to squat about 180, but my knees dont like it at all. i started today with some warmup squats with like 80lbs and only bumped up to 95 for my sets. they were way too easy, but i can tell my knees dont like it. i keep a wider stance and point out my toes a little and it helps. whats the best way to work my weight up? just keep at it until my tendons get used to the weight? i dont want another knee injury from squats. my high school football coach decided to load me up really heavy one day as an example of how much more we could push ourselves. me right knee is still fucked from that bastard

 

[wnt2bBeast]

check your form..if your knee hurts its most likely a form issue..

 

[wnt2bBeast]

heres how to squat BUT make sure you hold onto the bar!! lol
http://www.finnishpower.net/pics/patteri200.mpg

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

hahaha, thats a pretty squat. i think it is my form, but i just figured out that my knees hurt whenever they go out farther than my toes. if i try to keep my knees back, my butt swings out at the start. should i just widen my stance more or what? ive been wrestling with getting squats that dont hurt for years now, and i havent been sucessful.

thanks backlash, on the eating. the last two weeks i figured out i wasnt eating enough when i started getting sick and sore for no reason. yesterday i started a 6 meal per day regimine that i can actually stick to. i feel better already! food is key.

 

[wnt2bBeast]

hahaha, thats a pretty squat. i think it is my form, but i just figured out that my knees hurt whenever they go out farther than my toes. if i try to keep my knees back, my butt swings out at the start. should i just widen my stance more or what? ive been wrestling with getting squats that dont hurt for years now, and i havent been sucessful.

thanks backlash, on the eating. the last two weeks i figured out i wasnt eating enough when i started getting sick and sore for no reason. yesterday i started a 6 meal per day regimine that i can actually stick to. i feel better already! food is key.

when u said your knees hurt thats generally the problem knees past the toes..try starting the squat by breaking at the hip first not the knee..sit back and down..notice in the video his shins pretty much stay verticle..there no correct stance find what i comfortable for you the wider your stance the harder it will be for your knees to go over your toes so maybe your too narrow

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

sweet. ill practice it with my light weight for a few weeks until i can get my form really good, and then start bumping it up 20 lbs per week till i max. thanks again for the help guys

 

[Backlash]

if i try to keep my knees back, my butt swings out at the start.

Sounds great! As wnt2bBeast mentioned, breaking at the hips first (i.e. moving the hips/butt back before the knees move) is what you want.

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

wow, tried breaking at the hips first, and no pain!! ive never been doing it right! i was always worried about my back being angled too much or something, but i dont think thats a problem at all. hips break, and once my ass is out the back stays the same. i bet deadlifts are the same. im gonna switch deads and squats for my first few months. once again, i cant thank yall enough for the input.

 

[Backlash]

Just make sure that you don't lose the arch in your back at the bottom. Leaning forward some is fine, letting your lower back round is not. Sounds like you are doing them right though.

 

[JohnRobHolmes]

my butt is flexible enough that my back wont round out, knees to chest and my back stays straight. ill just make sure im givin the ladies a good shot!