Training routines!

ethos

ethos

ethos

Soldato
Joined
5 May 2003
Posts
4,515
Location
UK
Hi guys,

Thought this could be fun and maybe help some people that have dodgy routines! Basically post your routine and the goal of this routine, be it size, strength or for a specific sport.

I've been following some of Chad Waterburys routines over at t-nation lately, they are normally fully body routines 3 times a week.

:D
 
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Currently without a gym but for the past few months have been doing Bill Starr's 5x5 which should need no introduction. Goal = strength. It's a great routine, I wish I'd discovered it sooner.
 
Currently using GordyR's routine which seesm to be working fairly well. . When I go back to uni and have a proper gym available I'll probably try Bill Starr's 5x5. Basically my aim for the past 6 months has been to bulk up for the rugby season.
 
normal routine:

3 day split x 4 days a week (means not waiting 7 days per body part!)

day 1
chest / tris
flat barbell bench
incline dumbell press
decline dumbell press
cable crossovers (finisher)
standing overhead tricep extension
skullcrusher/close grip bench combo (do a skullcrusher, then at top of rep to a close grip bench)

day 2
back / bis
bent over barbell rows
single dumbell rows
deadlifts
lat pull down / assisted chins (too heavy and weak to do them on my own :/ )
barbell curl / 1 arm preachers
high level cable curls (finisher, feel the burn!!)

day 3
legs / shoulders
standing oly bar military press
seated alternate dumbell press
superset side lateral raises & rear delt raises
leg press
squats (currently im not really doing much weight on squats, so supplementing with leg press as pre exhaust (even tho leg press is currently 3x my squat!)
ham curls / sldl's
standing calf raises
shrugs

day 3 is quite long, but its almost always on a sunday which allows me some more time in the gym.
i would prefer to do a 4 day splitting legs / shoulders but atm i cannot garentee to be in the gym 4 days a week :/

i do abs any session that i have worked quicker than normal, weighted crunches / oblique crunches and hanging (from chin bar) leg raises (when grip fails move onto specific bar).

its not optimal and i will change it again soon. thinking of doing chest / bis and back / tris, reason being i can utilise them more when they havent been pre exhausted, also to some extent it will help the growth due to a double hit each week.
i also try to do cardio before each session:
10-15 mins on treadmill
10 mins on xtrainer
8 mins on static bike
all depends on how much time i have.
doing it before as i still need to lose much fat, doing it after the weights would mean i wouldnt do it, as i knacker myself :D
 
Currently doing my own routine with the aim of cutting. I finished Bill Starrs 5x5 just over a month ago and felt physically shattered so decided to take it easy for a while. While doing 5x5 I gained a lot of fat, because I had to increase my calories to give me energy during the heavier weeks, so now I'm trying to lose it before I have another go at 5x5 in October.

@Goatboy - What week are you on? I found the last loading week to be the worst but managed to complete everything so added another which didn't seem as bad. If you've not started to deload yet prepare yourself for a holiday because it really does feel easy for a few weeks.
 
I've only been doing this version:

http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm

I am still a fair way off being as strong as I used to be so I'm not concerned about deloading or anything like that, my training keeps getting interrupted so it's not been an issue to worry about backing off.

Only managed four weeks of training recently and it might be five weeks before I can train properly again.

My training right now is bodyweight squats, hindu pushups etc. etc.
 
Doing a routine by Steve Justa at the moment from his book "Rock Iron Steel" Basically involves the following

Day1. Squats 24 singles, Bench 12 singles
Day2. Bench 12 singles, Deadlift 12 singles

Train every other day, maybe take an extra day off here and there if i've had a hard day.

Some extra bits thrown in from time to time if i have the energy eg chest,upper back work, oh and hand thigh lifts off the rack... brutal on the whole body.
 
Im doing Needsize 5x5 routine at the moment, mines slightly adapted but this is his original below:

Day 1 chest/calves
Bench press 5x5
Incline db press 3x 10-8
Incline db flies 3x 10-8
standing calve raises 5x15

day 2 back/shoulders
military press 5x5
side laterals 3-5x8-10
deads 5x5
chins 2x8-10
shrugs 2x8-10
rows 2x8-10 (Bent over Rows)
bent over laterals 2x8-10

Day 3/4 Rest

day 5 bis/tris
close grip bench 5x5
standing barbell curls 5x5
weighted dips 2x8-10
incline dumbell curls 2x8-10
skull crushers 2x8-10
preacher curls 2x8-10

day 6 legs
squats 5x5
leg press or hacks 2x8-10
stiff legged deads 2x8-10
leg curls 2x8-10
seated calve raises 5x15
abs - weighted static holds

Before that I was doing Frankies 5x5 which worked wonders for mass gaining.
 
last night was shoulders/legs.

after trying this last week (but doing legs first) i found that my shoulders killed, was tempted to just do legs this week to rest my delts, instead i thought nah give it a go, do shoulders first. so i did! went for seated dumbell press first rather than standing military, this gave my shoulders more time to warm up :D

excellent workout (even tho i was actually exercising for near on 90 mins inc cardio!!)
 
I'm currently doing a simple 3 way split.

Tuesday: Chest/Shoulder/Tri's
Bench 3x6-8
Incline Dumbells 2x6
Dips 3x5
Close Grip Bench 2x6
Cable Push down 2x8
Military Press 2x6
Lateral Raises 2x6

Thursday Back/Bi's
Deadlift 3x5
Pullups 3x5
Bent over rows 2x6
Barbell Curl 2x6
Chin Up 1x8

Saturday Legs/abs
Back Squat 3x5
SLDL 2x6
Lunges 2x6
Hanging Knee lifts 2x8
Decline Crunch weighted 2x5

I've just started this split after a period of 5x5 and a period of full body training coupled with 2 half hour swims per week and keeping my diet largely in order i'm expecting a steady progression of fitness and growth.
 
when i bulk i tend to eat and lift hard n heavy... something like this
Mon - Pull
Deadlift 5x5
Chins 3x6
BOR 3x6
BB curl 3x6

Wed - Push
Decline Bench 5x5
Incline Bench 3x6
Shoulder press 3x6
Dips 3x6
will sometimes add Upright Row or Close-grip Bench press

Fri - Legs
Squat 5x5
SLDL 3x6
Leg press 3x6
Calf Raise 3x6

and properly eat and eat and EAT!!!
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Now I'm currently trying to lose bodyfat but more than just try to keep muscle size I want to try and gain a little more muscle, no matter how small... and it is possible.
At the moment I'm switching between the HST program (3 full body workouts) and my own tried and tested hit each bodypart once a week. I've done both in the 12-10 rep range and I'm currently on my 2nd cycle in the 8-6 rep range.
MON - HST Workout 1 - 60-90 sec MAX rest between sets
  • ATG Squat - 3 sets
  • Decline Bench Press - 3 sets
  • Close grip Pull-ups - 3 sets
  • Military Press - 2 sets
  • BB Shrugs - 2 sets
  • Rear Raises - 2 sets
  • Calf Raises - 3 sets
  • SLDL - 2 sets
  • Rope Pushdowns - 2 sets
  • Hammer Curls - 2 sets
  • Hyperextentions - 1 set

WED - HST Workout 2 - 60-90 sec MAX rest between sets
  • Deadlifts - 3 sets
  • Incline DB Bench Press - 3 sets
  • Upright Row - 3 sets
  • Rear Raises - 2 sets
  • Close-grip Bench Press - 2 sets
  • EZ-Bar Curls - 2 sets
  • Calf Raises - 3 sets
  • BB Step-Ups - 2 sets
  • Leg Curls - 2 sets
  • Crunches - 1 set

Fri - HST Workout 3 - 60-90 sec MAX rest between sets
  • Squat - 3 sets
  • Bench Press - 3 sets
  • BB Bent Over Rows - 10x3
  • DB Press - 2 sets
  • BB Shrugs - 1 set
  • Calf Raises - 2 sets
  • SLDL - 2 sets
  • Dips - 2 sets
  • EZ-Bar Curls - 2 sets
  • Leg Raises - 1 set

I'll do this for 3-4 weeks, first week is light and pretty easy. I'll judge it so I'm hitting my 10 rep Max in the final week on all exercises... that last week is absolutely brutal! :eek: love it :D
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I've now finished the HST cycle, here's my other workout from last week
Monday - 90-60 sec rest bewteen sets MAX!!
  • Decline Bench Press - (6x60, 6x80) 8x100, 8x100, 8x102.5
  • Inc DB Bench - 8x32, 8x35, 8x35
  • DB Flyes - 8x15
  • Front Press - 8x40, 8x45, 8x50
  • Upright Rows - (8x30) 8x40, 8x45, 8x50
  • Rear Raises - 8x20, 8x25, 8x30
  • Close-grip Bench Press - (6x50) 8x65, 8x70, 8x75
  • Dips - 8 +10kg, 8 +10kg, 8 +10kg
  • DB Shrugs - 8x45, 8x45, 8x45

Wednesday - 90-60 sec rest bewteen sets MAX!!
  • Deadlifts - (10x60) 8x90, 8x100, 8x110
  • Pull-Ups - 8, 8, 8
  • Bent over BB Rows - (8x50) 8x60, 8x70, 8x75
  • EZ-Bar Curls - (8x30) 8x40, 7x40, 6x40

Friday - 90-60 sec rest between sets MAX!!
  • ATG Squats - (10x60) 8x80, 8x100, 8x110, 8x115
  • Barbell Step-Ups - 8x50, 8x50, 8x50
  • SLDL - 8x35, 8x35, 8x35
  • Calf Raises - (10x145) 8x165, 8x185, 8x205

I went straight to 5-a-side football after this workout... Can't tell you how sore my legs were the next day LOL!

Quite a lot of volume here as it's the first week of this routine and the weights aren't too heavy, as I raise the poundages each week I'll cut back on the sets and on Deadlifts & Squats I'll raise the rest time to 120 seconds... because I'm blowing out my bum hole :D
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Using these routines along with a good diet and some quality supplements (Whey, Creatine, Taurine, Omega 3-6-9 oil and multi-vit) I managed to bulk upto 15st 7lbs in March and I'm now just under 15st and if anything I gained some muscle in the process :)

Pic 1 - 5th March @ 15st 7lb
Pic 2 - 18th July @ 15st 1lb ./. lat spread ./. front pose

I managed to cut doing zero cardio because I just find it mind numbingly boring. It's also unnecessary!! keep rest times to a minimum between sets, I work up a real sweat in the gym, it literally pours off me! Just means a closer eye needs to be kept on the calories...

Though I do play football once a week and the odd game of badminton. I'll also run 1 mile in 5 minutes for a warm-up before every workout and another mile in 5 minutes as a warmdown.
 
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ill try and remember mine

5mins life cycle
5x pec dec
5x cable pushdowns
5x wide grip pull downs
5x shoulders
5x leg extensions
5x lying thigh curls
5x preachers bicep curls
5x leg raises
5x sit ups

norm finish with a 15min run i think thats all of it, i started off 1st two weeks with 3 sets of everything now for almost two weeks onto the 5 sets. Its for overall fitness to start after these sets are up ill be moving into a different program where ill be concentrating mainly on bulking up :D
 
Chong Warrior said:
Cheers mate... though I did link to completely the wrong the wrong pics :o sorted now :)
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Thats some impressive gains, congrats.

Might have to have a read into this HST training lark :)
 
Morba said:
wow, that looks even better in comparison.

excellent work :D
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PAz said:
Thats some impressive gains, congrats.

Might have to have a read into this HST training lark :)
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Kind words :)

PAz I'd highly recommend the HST routine if you're an intermediate and have been training for the last 12 months, it's definately not a beginners workout for sure! It's quite difficult to workout the weights to use and to time all your exercises correctly so you hit your 10 rep Max (or whatever rep) all together in your final workouts.

I tried following the original to the letter but it didn't quite work for me so I changed it to suit my needs. The original works on 2 week cycles, so basically a very light week and a brutal week, too hit and and miss. Also they they do a 2 week 15 rep cycle, 2 week 10 rep cycle, 2 week 5 rep cycle then a week off.
I think 12, 8 , 5 are better rep ranges? and 3-4 week cycles give you the chance to build your strength a bit better and time the weight increases better too.

You'd need to be bordering on pro to follow it perfectly, you'd really need to know your own body and your strength inside out...

Have a look, see what you think http://www.hypertrophy-specific.com/articles.html
 
Yeh I've been reading over it today, have glanced at it a couple times before but never delved further. I thought the 15 rep looked a little high (considering I'm used to 5-6 rep sets), so may consider your route of 12, 8, 5 instead of you say it worked for you.

I've got a week left on the current program and then a week in Poland, so think I'll give HST a try when I get back :D

What was your diet like whilst on the program btw, you said you were cutting so I'm assuming your food intake wasn't particularly massive?

Cheers.
 
PAz said:
What was your diet like whilst on the program btw, you said you were cutting so I'm assuming your food intake wasn't particularly massive?
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My diet was high in protein and good fats and almost all my carbs were low G.I. except post workout when I'd down around 70g of Dextrose and Maltodextrin along with 40g Whey.

I used quite a few supplements too. I also used ephedrine 20mg-40mg per day with 200mg caffeine. I used this for over a month, very usefull when cutting as it's also anti-catabolic :)

Used a few herbs too, Cissus Quadrangularis (possibly the most amazing supplement I've ever tried! annihilated my tendonitis in just a few weeks) Grape seed extract and Green Tea extract.

All very usefull when cutting and are very powerfull antioxidants :)
 
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