teen1216

Sorry about the disjointedness and horrible grammar, spelling etc in the post, im typing as fast as i can; OK a lil background first; in 13 days I'll turn 14 and I currently weigh about 143. I have been eating a lot lately to try and gain some weight but it seems to come real slow if at all. I'm trying to increase the weights in all my exercises, but once again its comin real slow. Some of my poundages just plain suck, and im working on them the hardest (you'll see in a sec). I know this is a bodybuilding forum, but I'm pretty much trying to to train for strength in all the exercises, then once I get them to an acceptable level, I may switch up the training. I workout at home for now with free weights, leg extension, leg curl, lying machine flies ( i know these are supposed to work chest but i dont feel it in my chest when i do em, more like between chest and shoulder) It gets very hot in the room here the weights are, i.e. on a 90 degree day itd prob be at least 95 id say about 100 not including humidity, so i try and keep sworkouts short or else im drained by the heat.
Anyways, here is what I do now:
Monday and Thursday:
flat bench: (doing add 50 pounds to your bench program)
on workout 7 will continue these reps, sets until I can finish this workout
my max about 5 weeks ago was 115 pounds ( this is one of the exercises that sucks and thisis the one id like to improve on the most)
2 sets, 5 reps at 100
2 sets, 3 reps at 110 < idnt finish second set, had to wait a minute then finish
at least 2 reps at 110 < got 1 rep barely not perfect form

this week I tried incline dumbbell press
1 set, 8 reps 25 pounds
1 set, 6 reps 25 pounds
1 set, 4 reps 25 pounds
felt like i could have done more weight on this exercise, try 30 pounds next time?

then ill either do the flies on my bench with 30-35 pounds on each side for 8-10 reps or pushups 2 -3 second down til nose almst touches then fast up normally can do somewhere around 5-15

for back ill normally do it monday or tuesday i don 't really have a set workout yet, i did deadlifts this week (never done em before) i didn't go to failure i jus tried em out sorta)
3 reps at 125
2 reps at 125

sometimes ill do rows or shrugs or something, but nothing every time, i need to change that, decide on some exercises and do em for back what do yall do?

shoulders ill do on monday or thursday normally (another body part that needs major improvement)
over head press either both arms at the same time for less reps or 1 arm at a time with 25 pounds for 8-10 reps then another 8 or so then however many i can do

bis, forearms (tris i only do a few light overhead extensions if anything cuz of benching twice a week)
bis i normally do tues, wed, or thurs and i do
standing barbell curls failure
1 set, 5 reps at 70
1 set, 5 reps at 70
incline dumbbell curls 1 arm at a time
yesterday i did
4 reps with 25 (couldnt do anymore)
then 6 with 15 (prob coulda done more)

(both these aren't failure)
wrist curls 15 or 25 pounders for 8 reps 1-2 sets
reverse curls 15 or 25punds for 8 reps 1-2 sets
grip things (the things you squeeze) whenever I have time during the day most days

legs i normally do wednesday (none of this if ailure except for leg extensions where i eventually can't take the burn)
i can't do squats without a spotter, no rack, and i don't have a spotter available most of the time so i normally do some lunges with 25 pounds in each hand for about 5 reps some squats with the dumbbells in hands for about 6 reps then ill do leg extensions with 75-80 until i cant take burn this week i did 14 reps 1 set then 8 reps squeezing hard at top
leg curls about 40-50 pounds for 8 reps squeezing hard at top

I think that covers everything, so I'd like your help on deciding what exercises, rep range etc to do and ways to increase the parts that suck the most, i.e. chest shoulders. thanks for reading this far and now i hope you'll post with some suggestions since this took me a while to figure out and type.

Scotty the Body

Well you know your only 14 so I think you need to keep it simple for now.

Work on core lifts like deadlifting, squats(with Dumbells if you don't have a rack).

You need to come up with a plan and stick to it, sounds like your flying by the seat of your pants on your workouts, not to productive.

Also I'd drop some of the movements like wrist curls. Also keeps your reps a little higher, I know you want mass but at your age I think it would be more important to keep the reps up and work on good form.

Here's a simple routine you can do at home:

Mon Chest/back
Flat DB press 2x8-10
Flat Flies 2x8-10
Deadlifts 2x8
DB rows 2x8
Pull ups/downs 2x8

Wed Legs/abs
DB Squats 2x10
Leg curl 2x8
leg ext 2x8
standing calf raise 2x10
Crunches 2x15 (add weight if you can)

Fri Arms/shoulders
BB curls 2x8
DB hammer curl 2x8
Narrow grip bench 2x8
Seated tri ext 2x8
Scull crushers 2x8
Seated Military press 2x8
Bent over side raises 2x8

That's it, try to eat good and a lot, get plenty of rest. Your 14 so do things right now and you'll grow like a weed.

------------------
Just another day in the gutter

w8lifter

You must be able to press more than 25's. I can't even bench 100 yet and I use 30's for db press. Give it a try next time.

As for not being about to do the squats cause of a lack of a rack. What about doing front squats, using the beginning of a clean to get the weight up? I don't know if it would work or not, but it sounds good lol

------------------
Behind every great man is his BUTT

My FitPit

ALBOB

Also, you could try dumb bell squats. Some people even prefer squats with dumb bells because you don't have the balance problem with the weight being on your back. Give it a try and see what happens. A note about your wrist curls. I completely understand about wanting stronger wrists for baseball, I'm a lifelong baseballer/softballer myself. My thinking is that you're better off just sticking to what Scotty originally suggested. The reason for this is that just by holding the weights you'll be using for deadlifts, barbell rows, dumb bell rows, chin ups, etc. your wrists and your grip are going to get VERY strong. And by eliminating the isolation movement you're giving your body a better chance of getting stronger by letting it heal.

------------------
Life is hard so quit whining and go out there and be alive.

teen1216

I do wrist curls for forearm strength for baseball, which is also why i don't normally train stuff like shoulders (throwing) and arms (hitting) on friday because I do baseball workouts on sunday to prepare for high school tryouts and I want to be rested, you think if my muscles will still be tired on sunday if I do that training?

O and I eat pretty well In my opinion, the only hard part is sleep, I'll have to get up at 6:15-6:30 starting the 13th because of high school.

<FONT COLOR="#000002" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[Edited 1 time by teen1216 on 08-03-2001 at 12:26 PM]</font>

teen1216

OK thanks ALBOB and w8lifter! I'll drop the wrist curls and try 30s for presses.

Cenox

You definately should not be lifting when you're only 14

Scotty the Body

I was 14 when I started, I'm 32 now and I didn't see any problems starting that young??

Cool

TriZZle305

I strongly disagree.. it is common belief that you will interupt or hurt your growth plates if you workout at a young age but this is untrue as long as you maintain correct form and have the guidance of an experienced lifter... i dont know if anyone has seen the episode of Ripley's Believe it or not and seen the boy of about 8 lifting weights without any probem.. both of his parents were/are bodybuilders and personal trainers and they have his growth plates checked on a regular basis and there have been no problems... im only maybe a little bit older than teen1216 and there are countless people our age beginning to workout... IMO its a good time to start working out because our testosterone levels are beginning to rise and creating protein

the original post was a day before my 14th birthday

My "Quest for Strength" Journal

The Cheapest Supplement is knowledge!

Improve BACK to improve BENCH

Mudge

I started lifting when I was 11, and I'm 6'2", I grew just fine. So long as you don't do stupid things that hurt your back/stunt your growth, eat well, don't see a problem myself.

Kinesiology Vote @ Top 25 Deads Comp Bench
Motivation Bench form MaxCalc Charles Poliquin
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. Lao-Tzu
I don't know any sources so don't ask - thanks

DWB

Personly, I think your doing very well. A lot of youngsters don't have a clue what their doing, yet you seem to have a good indication of the exercises and you also have some clear goals. So, congratulations.

As for what to do in the way of a routine, well, the one the fella up above (STB) posted is as good as any, so start there.
The important thing to get your head around is not worrying about the poundage your pressing, in relation to what you see in the mags and on-line.
Just be sure to work your hardest on each and every work set you attempt and over the course of time the weights will increase, along with your own strength levels.

The amount any of us push is of little importance. The effort we put into our training is of paramount importance.
Currently, I'm helping a 45 year old mechanic with weight training and he thought he was strong in the upper body, or, so he told me. However, five weeks into his routine and he still can't bench 90 pounds and last week finally hit the 100 mark on squats.
Is he embarassed? No way! Why? Simple. Each and every session he puts in and gives 100 percent. This effort has seen his press increase from 60 pounds to almost 90 and I know that sometime in the next 4 to 6 weeks he wil bench that magic 100 mark. Of course, along the way his body is changing (growing) and adapting to the stress he puts on it as he chases those goals, which will then be reset once he reaches them.

You too can do the same. Just set your sights on say, 130 pounds, which might take 5 or 6 chest workouts to reach, maybe more, but along the way to that goal you will of had some awesome workouts, which will only equate to both growth and strength.

Good luck with it.

~DWB~

Cenox

Ok, I was always told that it would be very bad to start early. Even when playing elite basketball at the age of 14 or so, I wasn't allowed to start lifting by my coach...
Guess that was all just BS...

Scotty the Body

i think its more being mentaly ready, most 14 year olds are know it alls that will likly hurt themselves trying to max out all the time and not using proper form.

I wouldn't just let a 14 year old loose on a bunch of free weights with his buddies but a good routine and some help from an experienced lifter should be just fine.

Cool