Thread: Critique My (Potential) New Workout Routine

So I've been doing a strict strength program for the last three months, and I've been thinking of switching over and doing something a little more bodybuilding-esque for a little while. Here's what I've come up with so far:

Monday - Chest/Triceps
Tuesday - Legs
Wednesday - Off
Thursday - Shoulders/Traps
Friday - Back/Biceps

Chest/Triceps
Incline DB Bench Presses - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Flat BB Bench Presses - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Dips - 3 sets of 10-12 reps
DB or EZ-Curl bar French Presses - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Cable Pressdowns - 2 sets of 8-10 reps

Legs
BB Squats - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Front Squats - 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Romanian Deadlifts - 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Calf Raises - 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Shoulders/Traps
BB Military Presses - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Seated DB Shoulder Presses - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Bent DB Lateral Raises - 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Shrugs - 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Back/Biceps
Bent BB Rows - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Pull Ups - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Deadlifts - 2 sets of 4-5 reps
DB Curls - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
DB Hammer Curls - 2 sets of 8-10 reps

Anyways, nothing is set in stone yet, obviously, this is just what I've been thinking as a general idea.

What would you change up? Eliminate any exercises? Change the reps? Etc.

Any help/suggestions you guys could give me would be very much appreciated.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by DangerousK

So I've been doing a strict strength program for the last three months, and I've been thinking of switching over and doing something a little more bodybuilding-esque for a little while. Here's what I've come up with so far:

Monday - Chest/Triceps
Tuesday - Legs
Wednesday - Off
Thursday - Shoulders/Traps
Friday - Back/Biceps

first off, the traps don't necessarily need any direct work. They get worked indirectly in many major lifts. The same goes for bi's and tri's. Also, the legs make up half of your body, so if you're putting as much attention into your upper body as you are then why not do the same to the legs? Try splitting legs into two days -- quad dominant and hip dominant OR push/pull. Regardless of how you classify the workouts, it still gives your legs the attention they need.

Chest/Triceps
Incline DB Bench Presses - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Flat BB Bench Presses - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Dips - 3 sets of 10-12 reps
DB or EZ-Curl bar French Presses - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Cable Pressdowns - 2 sets of 8-10 reps

You didn't state your goals, but either way your rep ranges are still all over the place. It's good to periodize, but you want some consistency. Maybe try 3 x 7-8 one week and 4 x 5 another (with altering intensities, of course). Can you maybe explain why you chose these rep ranges for the exercises listed? Also, if you really want to train triceps directly, keep in mind (note that one of your 2 exercises does do this..just to let you know for reference) that triceps movements above the head work all three heads

Legs
BB Squats - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Front Squats - 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Romanian Deadlifts - 3 sets of 6-8 reps
Calf Raises - 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Classics. Good job choosing these exercises. I like that you have not one (which a lot of people can't even handle :P ) but TWO squat variations! Again, maybe consider splitting legs into two -- you'll thank me later! Also, the calves seem to respond to frequent training, so don't be afraid to bring in one or two more exercises...or even performing them twice a week! The calves are the trickiest!

Shoulders/Traps
BB Military Presses - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Seated DB Shoulder Presses - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Bent DB Lateral Raises - 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Shrugs - 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Got Built? » The Shoulders of Giants

Back/Biceps
Bent BB Rows - 3 sets of 4-5 reps
Pull Ups - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Deadlifts - 2 sets of 4-5 reps
DB Curls - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
DB Hammer Curls - 2 sets of 8-10 reps

While deadlifts do work the back, they're primarily a hamstrings/hip-dominant exercises. If you make a lower pull workout, you could keep these along with your Romanian Deads and maybe add a ham isolation or better yet another compound like stiff legged deads or good mornings. Good stuff on the pullups.

Anyways, nothing is set in stone yet, obviously, this is just what I've been thinking as a general idea.

What would you change up? Eliminate any exercises? Change the reps? Etc.

Any help/suggestions you guys could give me would be very much appreciated.

Thanks!

Read my comments above. I tried bolding them, but it's not working for some reason :P

Overall, you have a lot of good exercises in here. I like that you've included a lot of compound. But, if you really want to see results (not that isolation work and "muscle group training" doesn't work) you might want to consider training in terms of mechanics and planes of motion. For instance, my weekly workouts:

Upper - Horizontal Pull/Vertical Push
Lower - Push/Calves
Upper - Horizontal Push/Vertical Pull
Lower - Pull/Calves

I don't do any isolation...it's all compound (aside from the superset of lateral raises, as stated in Built's Shoulder Module..which works wonders by the way!!!). Isolation isn't bad, but compound hits larger muscle groups, more muscles at once, and elicits more growth hormones!!! Also, these growth hormones will stay in your body and help other muscles grow. This is why it's so beneficial to train both sides of your legs evenly, as these are the largest muscles in your body. I bet you never would have though doing a lot of deadlifts and squats would make your biceps bigger? Well, it does -- assuming your doing your row variations, pullups, and chins, etc.