Fitness Routine Advice

xmfd

xmfd

Winger
26, 5'11", 12st12. Pretty much a novice at the gym, since December I've been trying to get strong and fit, basically lose fat and build muscle. I'm eating as much protein as I can while maintaining a calorie deficit. It's working slowly, I have reduced the belly and have gained some chest/arm mass + general strength. My workout routine consists of:

Monday - Chest, Shoulders, Triceps
Tuesday - Back, Biceps, Abs
Wednesday - 5k Run
Thursday - Chest, Shoulders, Triceps
Friday - Back, Biceps, Abs
Saturday - 5k Run
Sunday - Rest

I'm wondering if I should change Sundays to legs. While I do deadlifts and run two days a week, I currently don't incorporate squats at all, and I know that these are massive muscles I'm ignoring. I also don't know if squats are the best idea the day after a run? I'm enjoying this routine, should I just keep doing it for now, or would I benefit from changing it sooner rather than later?
 
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Stronglifts 5x5
Starting strength
Greyskull LP

Rest more.
You will struggle to build much muscle on a deficit.

Stick to HIIT for cardio or bin it if you want more muscle.
 
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This is the workout I was given a couple of years ago. I loved it but have moved on to different types of training now cos I never stick at weights for too long.
There’s a sense of achievement when you’re doing 50 chin ups in a session at 47 year old and 14 clem.


Weeks 1-8

The format for this phase will be a 5x5 setup. Five sets, five repetitions with timed rest periods. The weight should be uncomfortably heavy, we

are trying to get a hormonal response in these early weeks, and get you used to

heavy compound lifts.



Day 1 Upper Body Compound Exercises

Standing barbell strict overhead press.

Approach the bar and adopt a slightly wider than shoulder width grip. Push your elbows through and under, brace the weight through your palm and support with a vertical forearm. Unrack the weight and take a step back. These reps should be

uncomfortable from the start, as is the nature of strength training. Explosively press

the weight vertically up, clear of your chin and face, as it passes the bar should then travel slightly behind your head (as in the sessions) to a fully overhead position and

your head slightly forward of the bar. This should be fast, hard and explosive to

make the press. Lower the weight in a controlled tempo back down to your clavicle, take a deep breath, and prepare for another explosive press.

Perform five repetitions

Set your timer

Move onto the pull-up station.


Pronated shoulder width grip pull-ups

Adopt a shoulder width pronated grip (palms away), hang until your body adjusts to a fully vertical position (angle of the pull) then again, explosively pull hard, retracting your shoulder blades, all the way up until you are clear of the bar, and arms fully flexed. Control the descent back down to a full lockout, brace yourself and repeat.

Head back to the military press. Once the timer has reached 2 minutes, perform

another set, set your timer, and repeat the pull-ups.

Repeat this antagonistic superset five times. So you’ll have done five sets of military presses, spliced with five sets of pronated pull-ups, with a two minute rest period between each.

After completion, rest for two minutes.



If you find you become proficient in the pull-ups to the point where they are easy, and you are hitting all five reps and sets, after completing five reps, switch to a supinated grip (palms facing) and add a single rep. the next week, add two reps, then three and so on, until the point, if you are able, to hit five pronated and five supinated in the set.

You are quite advanced so I can see this happening with you.


Body weight dips

Start with your grip at the ends of the station, facing out (away) from the frame.

Control your descent for a count of five until your upper arms are below parallel.

Pause in the bottom position for one. Squeeze hard with your chest and triceps, and again, explode up vertically to top position. Take a deep breath, brace and repeat.

Perform five repetitions

Set your timer

Move to the parallel pull-up station.

Parallel bodyweight pull-up

This is the same as the pronated pull-up except for (you guessed) the grip. You

should be pretty spent at this point so these may be a struggle. Just try and hit five reps, with your head clear of the bars, and ensure a disciplined, controlled descent.

Head back to the dipping station, once the timer has hit two minutes, perform

another five reps as before, then immediately back to parallel pull-ups. Repeat this antagonistic superset five times.


Day 2 Posterior chain compound lifts

Squats and Deadlifts

Squats

Approach the bar, take a slightly wider than shoulder width grip. Step under the bar with bent knees, and the bar resting on your traps, not your neck. You should be vertical under the bar, with bent knees. Stand up tall and take a step back (use a plate under your heels if flexibility in the hip flexors is an issue), feet should be

shoulder width and pointing out at a five to one/ten to two position. Take a deep

breath, exhale out hard and descend under control. Your quads should be AT LEAST

parallel with the floor, lower if you can without your pelvis tilting in the bottom.

Repeat sessions will improve your flexibility. At the bottom, pause for one second, inhale and exhale hard as you explode upwards. Repeat for five repetitions and have

two minutes rest. Repeat for five sets. The reps should be uncomfortable from the start, this is the essence of strength training, it isn’t easy, far from it. You are after

maximum CNS stimulation and hormonal response.


Deadlifts

Approach the bar, stand tall. Feet should be about shoulder width apart (wherever you feel you could do the most powerful vertical jump and land) and pointing forwards. You should have about a two inch gap from bar to shin. Now, flex forward at the hip by sticking your bum out, maintain neutral spine with a natural arch in your lower back, bend at the knees and let your arms hang until they meet the bar. You should have your legs in a half squat position, shoulders slightly forward of the bar, neutral spine and shoulders retracted. Prepare yourself. Press hard with your legs through the floor, your arms are just attachments, they play no part in the pull, it’s all legs in the first part of the lift. Once the bar is level with the knees, squeeze your glutes and push forward with your hips hard. Stand tall but don’t hyperextend backwards, just stand tall with a high chest and shoulders retracted. The descent is the same but in

reverse, flex forward at the hips allowing the bar to ride down your quads, once at

the knee, bend your legs until the bar touches the floor. Brace and repeat five times.

Rest for two minutes and repeat for five sets.


This is the setup for the first four weeks, we are trying to build a solid strength base,

improve mobility and get you used to moving heavy weights about, correctly, safely and kick start your endocrine system into releasing some muscle building hormones.


To recap, the setup will be:

Day 1 – Upper body strength compounds

1.

5 strict military presses, set timer

2.

5 strict pronated pull-ups

At two minute mark repeat from 1.

Repeat for five sets.

Move onto dipping station and functional area.

1.

5 strict bodyweight dips, long descent, pause, press, set timer

2.

5 strict, full depth parallel pull-ups, long descent, powerful pull

At two minute mark repeat from 1.


Day 2 – Posterior Chain compounds

1.

Strict back squats, slow descent, pause, powerful ascent, set timer, repeat

squats after two minutes

Perform five sets of squats and only then move onto deadlifts, never superset squats and deadlifts.

2.

Deadlifts, follow the instructions, performing five reps and five sets, set timer,

repeat sets after two minutes recovery.

With the posterior chain workout, if you hit all sets and reps, increase load by 2.5kg a week on squats and 5kgs on deadlifts.

And yes I’ve thor’d It from my phone notes. :D

And I’ve put it on the wrong thread.
 
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RossTheNinja said:
Skip abs. Compound exercises will sort them and you won't see them until you're at a pretty low body fat percentage anyway.
Click to expand...

Disagree.

This is something I've somewhat changed my stance on over the last few years. They need to be hit like any other muscle really for maximum hypertrophy.
 

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