my workout

[CraigLeeJKD]

In light of certain criticisms that have just been made to my workout (of which I am grateful), I thought I'd better do a thread specifically based on my workout so as not to steal the attention from Daywalker's question :p

I do this Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and it takes about 55 minutes.
For the first three exercises I do 4 sets. Three are heavy (about 5 reps) and the fourth is light (10-12 reps). For the last two exercises I do only three sets (6-8 reps for the pull ups, 12 - 15 for the squats).

Barbell curl
Incline bench press
Military press (standing)
Wide grip pull ups
Squats

Since switching to this routine (from working 1-2 body part per workout) my definition, gains, and strength have all increased. Now feel free to tear it apart :D

[jabcrosshook]

In light of certain criticisms that have just been made to my workout (of which I am grateful), I thought I'd better do a thread specifically based on my workout so as not to steal the attention from Daywalker's question :p

I do this Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and it takes about 55 minutes.
For the first three exercises I do 4 sets. Three are heavy (about 5 reps) and the fourth is light (10-12 reps). For the last two exercises I do only three sets (6-8 reps for the pull ups, 12 - 15 for the squats).

Barbell curl
Incline bench press
Military press (standing)
Wide grip pull ups
Squats

Since switching to this routine (from working 1-2 body part per workout) my definition, gains, and strength have all increased. Now feel free to tear it apart :D

Well I've just put a little comment on the other thread to I'll repeat it here :) Just thought I'd make a few suggestions! You're free to ignore them (I don't mind :D)...

•Is that the order of what you do? It would seem a bit silly to wreck your biceps and then try pull ups, which recruit the biceps quite a bit.
•Maybe make the incline bench a flat bench, then you've got horizontal and vertical pushing movements.
•Add deadlifts?
•How about a horizontal pulling movement (rows?) to even it all out?

Hope that gave you some food for thought.

[TheMachine]

HOw much do you weigh and what are you lifting for each?

[CraigLeeJKD]

I weigh 170lbs. For the curls, military press and squats I'm lifting roughly 40kg. I use dumbell for the chest press and I'm using 10kg dumbells.

[CraigLeeJKD]

Well I've just put a little comment on the other thread to I'll repeat it here :) Just thought I'd make a few suggestions! You're free to ignore them (I don't mind :D)...

•Is that the order of what you do? It would seem a bit silly to wreck your biceps and then try pull ups, which recruit the biceps quite a bit.
•Maybe make the incline bench a flat bench, then you've got horizontal and vertical pushing movements.
•Add deadlifts?
•How about a horizontal pulling movement (rows?) to even it all out?

Hope that gave you some food for thought.


Thats the order of what I do yeah. Deadlifts are out of the question due to back problems. If the physio had his way, I would not even be lifting at all :p

I could add rows but then I would be doing a lot of work on my back, and it would also make my workout well over an hour, and I like to try and keep it under an hour.

I could get rid of the bicep curls but I don't want them to lose their size :rolleyes: Any other suggestions how I can combat this?

I appreciate your help.

[jabcrosshook]

I could get rid of the bicep curls but I don't want them to lose their size :rolleyes: Any other suggestions how I can combat this?


Put them AFTER the pullups :)

I weigh 170lbs. For the curls, military press and squats I'm lifting roughly 40kg. I use dumbell for the chest press and I'm using 10kg dumbells.

You curl as much as you squat??? :eek:

[CraigLeeJKD]

Put them AFTER the pullups :)


Yeah true, but a lot of people have suggested I just discard the curls altogether but until I'm convinced I can replace the curls with another compound movement that will allow them to keep their size, I'm leaving them in my routine.
EDIT: Now that I think about it, would replacing the curls with reverse grip bent over rows be a good idea? At least then my biceps are being worked with that motion, and on the pull ups, or am i still likely to lose size in them? They are not huge or anything in the first place but I wouldn't really want them any smaller lol


You curl as much as you squat??? :eek:

Lol I know it's pitiful but I don't have any more weights right now, and I can do 15 reps for the squats, and between 4 and 6 for the curls, depending on the day.

[harhar]

They will GROW not shrink. Now you'll just have your back and biceps grow in proportion to each other.

[blessed_samurai]

A)Squat

B1)Incline bench press
B2)row

C1)military press
C2)chins

And if you wanna' have some fun-
D1)back extensions:2X12
D2)lunges:2X12 each leg
D3)abs:2X12

There, no need for bb curls. If you did 4 sets on A-C, you'd have 20 sets. You should be able to get through that part in 40 minutes. Then you'll run D as a circuit, your only rest on this is enough time to move from movement ot movement.

[TheMachine]

Looks good to me.

A)Squat

B1)Incline bench press
B2)row

C1)military press
C2)chins

And if you wanna' have some fun-
D1)back extensions:2X12
D2)lunges:2X12 each leg
D3)abs:2X12

There, no need for bb curls. If you did 4 sets on A-C, you'd have 20 sets. You should be able to get through that part in 40 minutes. Then you'll run D as a circuit, your only rest on this is enough time to move from movement ot movement.

[TheMachine]

I used to think about the same thing, my arms might get smaller if I don't directly work them Guess what? I haven't done a curl for some time but my arms are still the same. If you do a lot of pullups and rows, your bis may even improve without curling.

[CraigLeeJKD]

Thanks for all your advice.

Blessed_Samurai, I shall use the routine you have described and see how it goes :) I may have to get a chin up bar, the kind that you can fix onto your doorway, as I am currently doing chin ups on the opening of my loft, therefore I can only use palms facing outwards.

Thanks again.

[iamraisen]

Thanks for all your advice.

Blessed_Samurai, I shall use the routine you have described and see how it goes :) I may have to get a chin up bar, the kind that you can fix onto your doorway, as I am currently doing chin ups on the opening of my loft, therefore I can only use palms facing outwards.

Thanks again.

have a look at the ones from argos that go in a doorway. i tihnk they are only £6.99 which is bargainous by anyones standards :D

[CraigLeeJKD]

have a look at the ones from argos that go in a doorway. i tihnk they are only £6.99 which is bargainous by anyones standards :D

I actually bought one from argos, but I live in an old house and I'm unsure of wether my doorframes could handle the pressure, so am reluctant to risk it.

[iamraisen]

I actually bought one from argos, but I live in an old house and I'm unsure of wether my doorframes could handle the pressure, so am reluctant to risk it.

what age? im a surveyor so can hopefully give you an idea :D

i live in a new build and only the doors on the loads baring walls are big enough to fit mine. that means i have it in between the kitchen and the study much to my parents protest ;)

[CraigLeeJKD]

The house was built in 1937, and the only place I would be allowed to put it is on the door frame of my bedroom. Near the door frame there are some cracks too so all in all does not seem too safe.

I tried the workout modifications suggested by Blessed Samurai and it went great. I got as much of a pump on my arms as I did when doing curls. The only problem I found was that with the reverse grip bent over row, there was a lot of stress on my lower back which has been problematic for me. Also, I used the same weight as I would with curls, yet I managed more reps, to my great surprise.

[iamraisen]

The house was built in 1937, and the only place I would be allowed to put it is on the door frame of my bedroom. Near the door frame there are some cracks too so all in all does not seem too safe.



its best to play it safe if you dont know. best bet would be to find a good tree :D