Exercises per session

Lombardo86

Hi All,

Lurk around this forum quite a bit and have learnt a lot.. currently trying to put together a program for myself that will help me progress.

About me..
5ft 11, over the last year or so i have gone from 14.5 to 13st 3 (fluctuates a pound or two upwards depending on diet etc) but have never really had a structure to training. I am convinced i train hard but when i actually think about what i am measuring my training against it's nothing!

Diet is now in check, with the exception of chocolate 2-3 days a week, although not in large amounts. And obviously the beer. Not on it nearly as much as i used to be. Try limit it to once every two weeks and it would be 6-7 pints that night. Obviously this is hampering me but its progress compared to what i used to do, i am not sure i ready to stop completely just yet (I am 26)

Goals..
Looking to get under the 13st mark. I am a broad build, big shoulders, but no reason why i should be hitting a plateau at the weight i am stuck at. Like i said above, i train 'hard'.

Routine..
Each routine would aim for a particular body part (although i would only get two weights sessions a week.. lifting relatively heavy. Squat would be 100-110 for 2/3 x 5. Try to do lat pulldowns, rows etc but not heavy really. I mix these sessions in with 2 9-10k runs per week also.

Questions..
- On my runs.. should i be doing as much cardio?
- On my weights.. how many different exercise would most people do per session/bodypart, like i said i am convinced i do enough but have never compared against others. I clearly dont do enough or results would improve!

In general.. is the split between cardio/weights good enough for my goal? Am hoping for a steer in the right direction on actually having structure in my program and a clear reason for each session rather than aimlessly trying to improve random lifts/times etc each time i go.

Thanks!

Chancer3001

its your diet making you plateau so.

YOU CANT OUT TRAIN A BAD DIET.

I do 3 exercises per session

Bench, squat, Pull ups

Deadlifts, dips and rows.

All lifting as heavy as I can for 4-8 (kind of)

You cna over eat "healthy foods too". If youre taking in too many calories, youll keep the weight on even if you just eat healthily.

Hailhail1967

With you saying your diet is in check but you eat chocolate a couple of days I would wonder what else you actually eat. You might not even realise, try making a diary of ALL the food you eat for a few days and see how ya fell about your diet then.

You are right about one thing, structure is very important.

How long does it take you to run 10k? I am not a big fan of long slow runs.

Read about the forums there are plenty of reputable weight training programs you can follow that will work and add some structure to your training.

Mellor

Don't try and create your own program. You'll end up with holes everywhere. Just use a tried and tested program put together by people who know what they are doing.

Stop working a body part every session. It's not the right training for your goals or your frequency.

Focus on the main compound lifts. 3-4 exercises per session is fine.

If you are training 2 days per week, a program that alternates two days would be far better than current plan, 3 day would be an option but I'd go with 2 for simplicity.

Lombardo86

Hi All,

Thanks for the input.. appreciated.

Really is the exercise i want to focus on, i was quite honest when i said chocolate 3 times a week but it would literally be 2-3 chocolate digestives at say 60cal per biscuit which would only be ~400 calories per week. I can cope with that given the amount i exercise i am doing.

Runs for 10k are nearly always bang on 50 minutes.. i only seem to have one speed which is annoying but i have come to accept it!

Regarding the program, i'll definitely take on board primarily compound lifts, 3 (heavy) exercises per session and leave my cardio as is (twice a week). Based on Mellors input ill go for alternating workouts, initially is it best to split back/biceps and then maybe legs/shoulders/core?

Hopefully i am not way off..

Hailhail1967

Where are these 60kcal chocolate biscuites you get? Most I see and eat have 85 or more kcals. I know you say you want to concentrate on the exercise but its your diet primarily that will get you more trim, there is no way around that i'm afraid.

I would suggest 3 chocolate biscuits 3 times a week would be more along the lines of 750 kcals a week add that to the alcohol and you have would be more than 5000 kcals a month, if you are trying to shift weight that's not something you can ignore. Sorry for harping on about it.


Any split that you feel comfortable with is ok, but \I would def follow one of the well used programs, it takes the guess work out of it and you have your plan laid out for you.

Lombardo86

Thanks for the feedback folks

Stern.. but definitely fair! Much appreciated

Mellor

Lombardo86 wrote: »

Hi All,
Based on Mellors input ill go for alternating workouts, initially is it best to split back/biceps and then maybe legs/shoulders/core?

Forgetting chest and triceps there.

Do either this;

Workout A
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench Press
1x5 Deadlift

Workout B
3x5 Squat
3x5 Press
5x3 Power cleans

Or this,

Workout A
Squat 5x5
Bench Press 5x5
Barbell Rows 5x5

Workout B
Squat 5x5
Overhead Press 5x5
Deadlift 1x5

3x5 and 5x5 are interchangeable
(3x5 = warm-up then 3 work sets, 5x5 = progress to a top personal best set)

Start light and add 2.5-5kg to each per session, then later weekly

Chancer3001

the above post should be copied and pasted on the numerous times the "help me with my new programme" threads appear.