Is my workout routine bad?

[CDuane]

Hi, i think my workout routine is bad but il see what u guys say...

I am 17 (almost 18) years old and i train 4-5 times a week (1-2 hrs every training session) i train alone at my home

i have a scoop of whey protein at noon and train at 2pm and have another scoop of whey protein in the evening when i train

i do warmup & stretching
then i do 50 reps pushups twice, (2 sets)
and then 50-100 situps straight

sometimes i also do 10 reps 3 sets bench press and sometimes also 10 reps 3 sets dumb bell curls ( light weight, about 5-10 kgs (11-22 lb) )

and i also do some punching bag work and some cardio exercises.

I do these almost daily as u can see, and ive been doing it for about 6 months, ive seen little improvment in my body

I also train shotokan karate twice a week

so, is this bad?

[Frodocious]

What are your goals (strength, conditioning, weight loss/gain etc) and what equipment do you have access to?

If you're trying to build muscle you need to be working heavy weights (or difficult bodyweight exercises) with low reps. What cardio do you do? What is your diet like? There is no real point using whey protein if the rest of your diet sucks.

If you give us some more details, we can help you with a better routine that is more suited to your goals

[CDuane]

im looking for strength,speed and stamina, to be a better martial artist and also to build my body so i will be muscular :P

i do cardio like jogging, bag work, skipping rope, think thats all

my diet is break fast, noon meal, evening meal , and sometimes eat in between too, i eat anything from pasta to meat, i also take 2-5 fruit daily

my equipment is, barbell, dumbell, well, i'll just show an image of one like mine..
http://www.sport-tiedje.com/kettler/kraftstationen/classic2007_detail.jpg

hope i answered well, but dont hesitate to ask more... thanks alot

[Fish Of Doom]

dude, work your legs

seriously, if you don't, i'll refer to you as johnny bravo

[CDuane]

i do squats sometimes, and calf raises, and leg raises and also shotokan karate helps with ur legs because of the low stances but i should work on them harder i think, what im concerned about is that i think im working too much on my body and im damaging it instead of beign healthy

[righty]

Do you have a job?
Do you study?

Your workout is bad because you don't have any clear goals to work towards.

[YouKnowWho]

Push up, sit up, weight training cannot be called as MA training. You need to have a training partner. MA cannot be trained "solo".

[CDuane]

currently im not studying or working but im starting in the next few weeks, i wanna know if im doing any harm to my body because im doing it daily, and i also wish to get a new routine that is more effective , the most important for me is to get a muscular body because il do the rest at my karate training

[Patrick Smith]

Push up, sit up, weight training cannot be called as MA training. You need to have a training partner. MA cannot be trained "solo".

That's not true. The definition of martial arts training is not training with a partner. Besides sparring or reaction drills, I can't think of anything that you'd need a partner for. You can do strength training alone (although having a partner/instructor definitely helps at times). You can do speed training alone. You can do technique training, balance training, and flexibility training alone.

Why can't a lot of martial arts be trained solo?


CDuane, I recommend that you check out Joe Defranco's Westside for Skinny Bastards Program (http://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/60-westside-for-skinny-bastards-part1.html). It's a great place to start.

By the way, that article has three parts. The links to the other two parts are in the link bar to the right.

[Frodocious]

im looking for strength,speed and stamina, to be a better martial artist and also to build my body so i will be muscular :P


Each of these will require a different way of training. Strength can be done with weights, speed for your martial art can be done using sprint drills, explosive weight lifting and by training technique so you get better (and quicker at it). Stamina can be done with cardio training, including sprint work, interval work and longer efforts.


i do cardio like jogging, bag work, skipping rope, think thats all


Have a look at Ross Enamait's site for some excellent cardio training ideas:

http://www.rosstraining.com/articles.html

You'll need to mix short, intense interval sessions (e.g. tabata training or sprints) with longer sessions (e.g. 400m or 800m runs).


my diet is break fast, noon meal, evening meal , and sometimes eat in between too, i eat anything from pasta to meat, i also take 2-5 fruit daily


That's not your diet, that's when you eat your meals. What do you eat at each meal?


my equipment is, barbell, dumbell, well, i'll just show an image of one like mine..
http://www.sport-tiedje.com/kettler/kraftstationen/classic2007_detail.jpg


For strength gains and to build muscle you need to sort your diet out and then do compound exercises with heavy weights. Do squats, deadlifts, overhead presses, rows, bench presses, pull ups and dips. Mark Rippetoe's 'Starting Strength' is an excellent beginner's programme, buy the book if you can

http://www.aasgaardco.com/store/store.php?action=show_detail&crn=199&rn=312

If not, details of the programme can be found here:

http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ:The_Program#Three_Flavors_of_Starting_Strength

Scroll down the page for information about warm up lifts (note: ignore the weights he's used and work out your own depending on your current strength levels).

currently im not studying or working but im starting in the next few weeks, i wanna know if im doing any harm to my body because im doing it daily, and i also wish to get a new routine that is more effective , the most important for me is to get a muscular body because il do the rest at my karate training

If you schedule exercises carefully and allow time for recovery, eat enough and get enough sleep you shouldn't damage your body. Don't try to do everything in the first week, start off with a few sessions and work up to more. Take one day a week off.

What days do you do your karate on?

[Freeform]

i train 4-5 times a week (1-2 hrs every training session) i train alone at my home

A common misconception is that longer is better (ooh err!).

For the kit you have available I suggest that you go to:

www.t-muscle.com

and search for 'complexes'.

I guarantee you will find some excellent workouts that will probably only take about 25 mins (including warm up), which are more applicable to fight skills than what you are currently doing.

[CDuane]

What days do you do your karate on?

i do karate at tuesday and friday, 7.30pm

That's not your diet, that's when you eat your meals. What do you eat at each meal?

well, it always vary for me but i have milk and toast or fruit or cereal breakfast, pasta or pizza and protein shake noon, and chicken , or other meat evening... i know my diet sucks and its not good for body building but i need one thats why im refering to you guys :) and i appriciate everything u say

thanks for the info guys, i will check these links out

[Patrick Smith]

Awesome info, Frodocious. :)

I recently received Alwyn Cosgroves "Secrets of Martial Arts Conditioning" which includes a 16 week strength program going from basic body weight exercises to explosive lifts with weights. The book also includes a heck of a lot of information about stamina training, speed, agility, nutrition, almost everything that a martial artist needs to know. I think it's a great book for someone just beginning to sort things out. LINK (http://www.flexcart.com/memberS/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=308&pid=1552) I'd recommend it to anyone, it's such a great book. A well rounded general guide to training.

[Frodocious]

i do karate at tuesday and friday, 7.30pm



well, it always vary for me but i have milk and toast or fruit or cereal breakfast, pasta or pizza and protein shake noon, and chicken , or other meat evening... i know my diet sucks and its not good for body building but i need one thats why im refering to you guys :) and i appriciate everything u say

thanks for the info guys, i will check these links out

Do your Karate classes involve a lot of conditioning drills or are they mainly technique based?

You could do something like:
Sunday: Strength
Monday: Tabata intervals
Tuesday: Karate
Wednesday: Strength
Thursday: Longer interval cardio
Friday: Karate
Saturday: Day off

As for your diet, I still don't really have enough info to recommend changes, except that you definitely need to eat more vegetables! Try starting a food diary at http://www.fitday.com/ and monitoring your eating habits over a month or so, then you can start to see where you need to make changes.

[CDuane]

Do your Karate classes involve a lot of conditioning drills or are they mainly technique based?

My karate training involves pushups, situps, and more strength training, also cardio, conditioning, flexibility and techniques

i definetly need to eat more vegtables yes, and im going to increase on the fruit too ;)

[CDuane]

thanks Frodocious i really like your schedule and i am going to do something like it but after the tabata interval im going to do some stretching to get flexibility to finish the session

i also like that website you gave me i find it very interesting

also, what type of strength training do you recommend? for a teen ager who is skinny and needs muscle gain

:note, i checked those websites about strength training so should i stick with them?

[Frodocious]

Sorry, I didn't include stretching in the routine as I assumed you'd fit that in depending on your schedule. Have a look at Van Zandt's posts in the Flexibility section for ideas on fitting stretching into your routine.

Muscle gain will be a combination of strength training (using heavy weights with low reps - e.g. 5x5 - as suggested by Rippetoe) and diet (consuming enough calories - including protein - to build muscle). The routine I linked to is as good a beginner's routine as any of the others out there. However, if you are new to some of the lifts, I would recommend starting with lighter weights and more reps for the first month or so, just so you can make sure your form is ok. If possible, find a local weightlifting gym with instructors who can show you what to do.

[CDuane]

thanks alot u have been much help and i like that flexibility post too very intresting.. ive got one more question tho, do you know how much calories i should get daily to get muscle? and how much to burn? thanks

edit: also when do i train my legs? or do i train my whole body on those strength days?

[Frodocious]

The amount of calories required will depend on your current size, weight, lifestyle and metabolism. I think Fitday should be able to give you a ball park figure for how many you'll need.

If you follow the Starting strength routine, you'll do a full body work out 3 days a week. If you just do 2 sessions a week then do the following:

Workout A (Sunday)
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench Press
1x5 Deadlift
3 sets of chins ups or pull ups

Workout B (Wednesday)
3x5 Squat
3x5 Press
5x3 Power cleans (or rows if you aren't sure about power clean technique).
3 sets of Dips

Squats, cleans and deadlifts will work your legs.

[Stuart H]

CDuane, I strongly recommend that you buy Starting Strength and Practical Programming for Strength Training. It will answer ALL of the questions you've put forward in great detail, plus everything else you need to know as a novice lifter.

[CDuane]

im currently sick so il lay low for a while and then il try this routine

[Taiji_Lou]

You need to increase your resistance.

Try doing pull ups. That iron gym home pull up bar is really good.

Do shanti standing to build leg strength. Also try doing sitting horse for half an hour, that'll just about kill you.

Don't forget to stretch.

[Patrick Smith]

You need to increase your resistance.

Try doing pull ups. That iron gym home pull up bar is really good.

Do shanti standing to build leg strength. Also try doing sitting horse for half an hour, that'll just about kill you.

Don't forget to stretch.

I can't back it up with a link, but I read somewhere here that holding a horse stance for too much more then five minutes can cause knee damage. I don't know if it's true or not, but I'd refrain from it until you know more just in case! :)

[Taiji_Lou]

I can't back it up with a link, but I read somewhere here that holding a horse stance for too much more then five minutes can cause knee damage. I don't know if it's true or not, but I'd refrain from it until you know more just in case! :)

Huh! Had no idea. Makes sense though. But then, doing roundhouse kicks probably isn't the best thing for the ol' hyeline, either.

[Patrick Smith]

Huh! Had no idea. Makes sense though. But then, doing roundhouse kicks probably isn't the best thing for the ol' hyeline, either.

How would doing roundhouse kicks be bad for your knees?

I think that holding a *very* wide horse stance for over five minutes can be bad for your knees, but it has to be so wide that it puts a lot of pressure on the knees.

Like this:
http://www.stadion.com/images/kiba_7f.JPG

Compared to this:
http://www.doppiofuoco.com/Res/Posizioni/3Mabu2.jpg

I think the main thing (if you're going to hold a horse stance for over five minutes or longer) is that your feet are reasonably close to being directly under your knees. I **think** that reduces the pressure.

Correct me if I'm wrong, somebody! :D