Benching and workout routine...

[CowPimp]

I actually think that leg routine looks pretty good. Nice compound movements with a reasonable amount of volume. I think squats and SLDLs are my two favorite leg exercises.

 

[Seanp156]

Yeah, I'm feeling sore today, but not as much as last week. Last week the day after killed when I walked, but now it's just a little sore, not really hard to deal with. I don't know if that's good or bad or what...

 

[KarlW]

It's OK. Keep lifting, making sure you go heavier each week IF you hit the target rep range the week before. You will get less and less sore as the weeks go by, which is why after 4-6 weeks you would change things up. We'll worry about that when you get there.

 

[Seanp156]

Ughh, tomarrow's Thanksgiving...thursday's my normal day for the chest workout...I'm going to a lodge, and I'm not sure but I think they might have a little weight room there. I remember there was last time our family went there, but I don't remember what equipment they had. I guess if they don't have the right stuff there I'll just do it friday and the back workout on saturday (as normal)...Or maybe bump the back workout to sunday if need be, but I shouldn't need to if their different muscle groups...

 

[Randy]

Blowing a little creatine powder at the Cow whifffff *+*+*+*+*+**+*+**+*++**+*+*+*

 

[KarlW]

In the news in Australia they said that thanksgiving was snowed out.

 

[Randy]

Poor Kangaroos

 

[KarlW]

 

[Seanp156]

Ok, here's what I've been doing

Friday 11-26-04
Chest/Shoulders

DB Bench Press:
1st set - 30 lbs DBs, 10 reps
2nd set - 30 lbs DBs, 10 reps
3rd set - 35 lbs DBs, 8 reps

Dips
1st set - 10 reps 10lbs assist
2nd set - 10 reps 20 lbs assist
3rd set - 10 reps 30 lbs assist

Military Press
1st set - 55lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 50lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 50lbs 9 reps

Upright Rows
1st set - 55lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 60 lbs 9 reps

Close Grip Bench Press
1st set 65lbs 10 reps
2nd set 75lbs 10 reps

Saturday 11-27-04
Back

Pull Ups
1st set - 6 reps 20 lbs assist
2nd set - 6 reps 30 lbs assist
3rd set - 6 reps 40 lbs assist

Deadlift
1st set - 65lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 75 lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 85 lbs 8 reps

DB Row
1st set - 35lbs DB's 10 reps
2nd set - 35 lbs DB's 10 reps
3rd set - 40 lbs DB's 8 reps

DB Shrugs
1st set - 40lbs DB's 10 reps
2nd set - 50lbs DB's 10 reps

Barbell Curls
1st set - 65lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 60 lbs 7 reps

Tuesday 11-30-04
Legs

Squats
1st set - 105lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 95lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 95lbs 8 reps

Leg Press
1st set - 115lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 130lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 145lbs 10 reps

Calf Raises
1st set - 145lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 160lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 175lbs 10 reps

SL Deadlifts
1st set - 85lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 95lbs 8 reps
3rd set - 85lbs 8 reps

Leg Curls
1st set - 100lbs 6 reps
2nd set - 90lbs 4 reps (did very quickly after first set)



















Yeah, about diet...What should I eat? I have pretty much no knowledge of cooking good, healthy food. Right now I don't really eat much, maybe a bowl of cereal or pop-tart in the morning, a pb-j and some baked chips for lunch, and fast food for dinner, yes I know my diet's horrible for the most part, so what can I do?

 

[KarlW]

Sean, workouts looking good. Keep upping the weight (with good form of course!)

As for diet, start with the Nutrition section. Best learn it yourself.

 

[CowPimp]

That workout looks great. My only suggestion is that you do deadlifts before pullups. Exercise selection is great, and volume looks pretty good. I'm glad to see you don't do 12 sets for each of your arm muscles!

 

[Randy]

I did 3 sets of 10 on the deads today....felt good. I'm going to stick with the small weight for my 6 week routine, then I will add after that. Whenever I introduce something new I don't focus on weight, I focus on proper form. Once I feel comfortable with form and get acclimated to the exercise then I will increase weight and move towards a mass routine to build strength.

Actually I forgot today I was supposed to switch to RR (Rep Range).. Oh well, I'll add that one in tomorrow. Actually I don't really know if I should do RR for my benching.

 

[KarlW]

You can do deads b4 pullups as CP suggests. I only do pullups 1st cause I find em friggin hard and can get more out if I do em first so it makes me feel better. After deadlifts I'm pretty

. Prob not the best way of thinking.

 

[Randy]

I do the same thing Karl... I try to target the hardest exercises first.
As for deads, I don't know if it is because I they are new to me or not, but after doing 10 sets I can feel my heart going pretty good. It seems like an exercise that gets the blood flowing much more so then other exercises.

 

[Seanp156]

I was so tired yesterday after my workout, I fell asleep at like 6:45 while I was studying for a test, then I woke up studied for about 10 more minutes then relaxed and went to bed at 9:30. That's the earliest I've gone to be since as long as I can remember. My body's used to about 6 hours of sleep, so I woke up at like 3 in the morning for no reason, but I fell right back asleep...Kind of random. Hehe

On a side note, I'm kind of thinking I'd like some exercises for my abs + obliques. I've been doing crunches, sit-ups + v-ups for a while but don't really see much improvement.

 

[Randy]

Seanp,

Coming from those who have maintained 6 pack abs, the key is cardio and lean diet.
The crunches, situps, and other exercises will build the muscle underlying the fat. But to expose the muscle, you must burn off the fat. Since I am not lean myself I can't speak first hand, but I believe that will set you on the right track.

 

[KarlW]

I do the same thing Karl... I try to target the hardest exercises first.
As for deads, I don't know if it is because I they are new to me or not, but after doing 10 sets I can feel my heart going pretty good. It seems like an exercise that gets the blood flowing much more so then other exercises.

Rand, what do you mean by 10 sets? do you mean reps?
Yes deads, followed by squats, followed by BOW's are the 3 that exercises where after a set your body turns to you and says "Wot the hell are U tryin' ta doota me?????". The reason?...

1. Weight used compared to other exercises.
2. The recruitment of more muscle mass / joint involvment compared to other exercises. Well that's my theory anyway.

 

[KarlW]

Sean, you can throw abs in once or twice a week for good measure.

Thing is, as Rand says, until you get BF% down you won't see em.
Good to train the midsection for strength and stability anyways but it's debatable whether you get all you need from the other exercises (deads/squats etc)

 

[Seanp156]

Guess I need to change my diet, although that may be very difficult...

Thursday 12-2-04
Chest/Shoulders

DB Bencher press
1st set 40 lbs DBs 8 reps
2nd set 35 lbs DBs 8 reps
3rd set 30 lbs DBs 10 reps

Dips
1st set - 20 lbs assist 8 reps
2nd set - 30 lbs assist 10 reps
3rd set - 40 lbs assist 8 reps

Military Press (bit of trouble here)
1st set - 65lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 65lbs 5 reps
3rd set - 60 lbs 5 reps

Upright Rows
1st set 65lbs 8 reps
2nd set 60 lbs 8 reps

Close Grip bench press (felt good today like I could've done more weight the first set)
1st set 75lbs 10 reps
2nd set 95lbs 7 reps

 

[Randy]

Whoops....Yes, I meant 10 reps . I am doing 3 sets of 10 reps.

Rand, what do you mean by 10 sets? do you mean reps?

Yes deads, followed by squats, followed by BOW's are the 3 that exercises where after a set your body turns to you and says "Wot the hell are U tryin' ta doota me?????". The reason?...

1. Weight used compared to other exercises.
2. The recruitment of more muscle mass / joint involvment compared to other exercises. Well that's my theory anyway.

 

[KarlW]

wow my CG bench went way up today from 3 weeks ago (doing P/RR/S). For my first set I started with the same weight I did 3 weeks ago + 10 lbs ready to do 4-6 reps. Well I got to 4 and wasn't even trying, so I put on another 10lbs, did 4 reps which seems too easy, so I put on another 10lbs and that was about right (near failure on rep 6). I'm thinking WTF? checked the weights again and thought........... COOL!!!!.

 

[Seanp156]

Here's what I did saturday:

12/4/04
Back

Pullups
1st set - 0 lbs assist 6 reps
2nd set - 20 lbs assist 6 reps
3rd set - 30 lbs assist 6 reps

Deadlift
1st set - 85lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 95lbs 10 reps
3rd set - 85 lbs 8 reps

DB Row
1st set - 40lbs 10 reps
2nd set 45 lbs 8 reps

DB Shrugs
1st set - 45 lbs 10 reps
2nd set - 55lbs 10 reps

Barbell Curls (too much weight on first set maybe?)
1st set - 70lbs 5 reps
2nd set - 60 lbs 5 reps


Anyway, I got a bunch of healthy food at the grocery so hopefully I'm on track to getting my diet right as well.

 

[Randy]

I will need to borrow some of those healthy foods Sean.
My ass is burning from that damn mexican food I ate last night.
Damn, I'm not eating at that place anymore.
I need some detox food to bring me back to normal. I think I will eat broccoli tonight for dinner

 

[Seanp156]

I'm kind of getting the feeling it's time to up the intensity of my workout. Some of my friend start at about maybe 50-60% of what they figure to be their max and then keep adding 10 lbs each set until they reach 100% each set they just try to do as many as they can until failure. After that, they go all the way back down 10lbs at a time. I think this is probably overkill, but I don't know.

I guess I should probably keep with this routine for the 3 or so more weeks and then discuss changes?

 

[Randy]

I found I can't lift as Much doing that method Sean. Myself I warmup well at the 135 mark then I jump to 180 and do like 5 sets, then jump to 220, then 250, then 270, then 300. If I worked my way up to my 100 percent zone at 10 pounds each set I would be tired and out of power by the time I hit 100 percent. That is why I cut my reps down to 5 too, so I can conserve strength. Once I hit 300 then I will usually drop down to like 180 and lift to failure.

 

[Seanp156]

As you may have seen in my other post I'm getting my wisdom teeth out soon, so I'll probably be taking a week off from lifting. In the mean time could someone (maybe KarlW) help me change up my routine? 3 Day split works out very nice for me time wise.

Also you may have noticed I stopped updating my workouts. I have written them down, I just haven't posted them here. Last night I typed them up and I have a full journal here: http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/showthread.php?p=863120#post863120

But yeah, if someone could come up with a semi new routine with different exercises than my current one, and maybe separate chest/shoulders into different days, I would be very appreciative. maybe mix shoulders with leg day or something I don't know, is that a bad idea?

 

[KarlW]

Thing is Sean, on a 3 day split you have to put shoulders somewhere or not do them at all, maybe that's an option? If you don't want them with chest then another split would be:

Quads/Hamstrings/Shoulders
Chest/Triceps/Calves
Back/Biceps/Traps

Now a lot of people r gunna tell u don't do shoulders on leg day, but there you have it with a 3 day split. Otherwise you have to go to a 4 day split but I think a 3 day split is fine. How's sound?

 

[Seanp156]

I guess that makes sense, but why move calfs to the chest day? Couldn't you just move shoulders to the normal leg day with all the leg exercises or is that too many muscle for the body to repair at once?

Are there really any different leg exercises I can do on leg day or no?

I know for chest I can change to barbell bench press, inclined bench, triceps I could do skull crushers, biceps preacher curls, standing or sitting dumbbell curls etc.

What would be the most beneficial workouts for these muscle groups to change to for the next 6-8 weeks?

 

[KarlW]

I guess that makes sense, but why move calfs to the chest day? Couldn't you just move shoulders to the normal leg day with all the leg exercises or is that too many muscle for the body to repair at once?

mmmmm.......too many exercises to do in one session. Quads/Hamstrings/Shoulders is pushing it as it is. I mean you can if you want but it makes the workout too long IMO.

Are there really any different leg exercises I can do on leg day or no?

Definately, though it can be argued whether you should do anything other than squats. Same goes for deadlifts. Well there's no harm in changing for a while.

I know for chest I can change to barbell bench press, inclined bench, triceps I could do skull crushers, biceps preacher curls, standing or sitting dumbbell curls etc.

you got the idea!!!!!!!

What would be the most beneficial workouts for these muscle groups to change to for the next 6-8 weeks?

I got a better idea.......gimme a while.

 

[KarlW]

Actually Sean I would only change a few things for the next 6 weeks since you'll be having a week off or so. We can vary the rep ranges and change a few exercises. Remember to take it easy (relatively speaking) for the first week back from time off.

Day #1 Thighs/Shoulders

Squats - 3 x 6-8
Hack Squats - 2 x 10-12 (if you can't do these see what else your gym has got)
Shoulder Press - 3 x 6-8 (do them differently to before, i.e use a BB instead of DB's or vice versa)
Lateral Raises - 2 x 10-12
Seated Leg Curl - 2 x 6-8 (if you have this machine, if not then lying leg curl)
SLDL's - 1 x 10-12

Day #3 Chest/Calves/Triceps

Incline Bench in Smith machine - 3 x 6-8
Decline Bench w/ DB's - 2 x 10-12 (if you can do them, get used to them using light DB's at first!)
Calf Raises - 3 x 6-8
Skull Crushers - 2 x 6-8
Cable pushdowns - 1 x 10-12

With declines, form is important. On inclines, you bring the bar to your upper chest. With declines, you bring the bar or DB's to the bottom of your rib cage, otherwise you can blow your shoulders out. However, if done correctly they feel great.

Day #5 Back/Biceps/Traps

Bent Over Rows 3 x 6-8 (One word here.....form. Learn how to do them. Start light at first. I find using the E-Z bar gives the best squeeze in the back and most comfortable grip).
WG Lat Pulls - 2 x 6-8
CG Cable Rows 2 x 10-12
DB curls - 2 x 6-8
Hang Cleans 2 x 8-10 (let me know if you're not sure about these)


Throw Abs in somewhere if you want.
See what you think and let me know.

Cheers