ive looked into max-ot and i think its great but im having trouble trying to see how i can use it. firstly it requires to use compound exercises like squat and bench press. im uncomfortable with squat because of my form but im working on that. but with bench press i have no workout partner to spot and the gym im gonna start going to is small so not alot of people there to help. also being that since maxot is 5 times a week theres no time for me to do cardio. unless i do 45 minute cardio in the morning which is hard cuz i have school. also what is better, max-ot cardio or HIT cardio. and when can i do them while following the MAXOT program. since its seems complicated for losing fat i was thinking of doing 3 days pyramiding like john did. please any comments or opinions will help cuz im stuck :mad:

One of the max-ot routines is setup for 3 days a week. It is described in week 5 or 6 of the max-ot article. Max-ot cardio and HIIT are very similar. I'm not even sure what the differences are, assuming there are any. I've seen varying descriptions of HIIT, and I'm sure the max-ot max-ot cardio fits into one of them.

Regardless, max-ot specifies that cardio and weight training should be split by at least 8 hours I believe. If you can't manage to go twice in one day, try doing the 3-day routine and doing cardio on other days.

As far as bench goes, I know how you feel. When I'm at my gym, the weight room is usually almost empty. Usually, I find this rather appealing, but when it comes time to do bench, it would be nice to have a spot once in awhile. It is still possible to do bench, even max-ot style, without a spotter. You have to be very careful and know your body though. You can usually tell when you're not going to be able to get the next rep out on your own. Sure, in the best of worlds you would have a spotter and be able to push it hard to go for that last rep. For those of us that can't, we have to cheat a little. You can probably afford to have your intensity suffer a little as a safety concern with bench, but you can't really afford to remove it altogether.

If you still don't feel comfortable doing it on your own, try some of the other chest exercises he suggests. Dumbell bench might be a good bet for you. You can always just drop the dumbells if they get too heavy.

My only other tip is to read through the ENTIRE max-ot article. It's very informative and most of your questions about it will probably be answered along the way.

As far as bench goes, I know how you feel. When I'm at my gym, the weight room is usually almost empty. Usually, I find this rather appealing, but when it comes time to do bench, it would be nice to have a spot once in awhile. It is still possible to do bench, even max-ot style, without a spotter. You have to be very careful and know your body though. You can usually tell when you're not going to be able to get the next rep out on your own. Sure, in the best of worlds you would have a spotter and be able to push it hard to go for that last rep. For those of us that can't, we have to cheat a little. You can probably afford to have your intensity suffer a little as a safety concern with bench, but you can't really afford to remove it altogether.

If you still don't feel comfortable doing it on your own, try some of the other chest exercises he suggests. Dumbell bench might be a good bet for you. You can always just drop the dumbells if they get too heavy.

My only other tip is to read through the ENTIRE max-ot article. It's very informative and most of your questions about it will probably be answered along the way.
thx wop, uve helped alot

...stuff about bulking... since its seems complicated for losing fat ... Are you trying to cut, or bulk? There's a lot written here about how it's possible to do both at the same time. That may work for some, but if you're pressed on time (since you're a student) and resources (since you have a small gym and no spotter) I'd suggest concentrating on one or the other: cutting or bulking.

Personally, I'm cutting first, then I'll bulk. I know myself well enough that I won't be as enthused about bulking if I don't see any progress: plus I just feel fat :)

I'd suggest slowing down and doing one at a time. If you're really gung-ho on both, I sincerly wish you the best of luck!

Just keep working and you'll make it! :tu:

Are you trying to cut, or bulk? There's a lot written here about how it's possible to do both at the same time. That may work for some, but if you're pressed on time (since you're a student) and resources (since you have a small gym and no spotter) I'd suggest concentrating on one or the other: cutting or bulking.

Personally, I'm cutting first, then I'll bulk. I know myself well enough that I won't be as enthused about bulking if I don't see any progress: plus I just feel fat :)

I'd suggest slowing down and doing one at a time. If you're really gung-ho on both, I sincerly wish you the best of luck!

Just keep working and you'll make it! :tu:
nah my goal is to drop 39 bs of fat by may 31, and then bulk during the summer. but i was thinking if i could gain even a few lbs of muscle while cutting that would be great. but my main goal right now is cutting

if you are working out, exercising and eating well, from a base of doing nothing and eating junk (like most of us are), then you will lose weight AND gain muscle.

Really the whole cutting and bulking thing i feel should be left to those with a lot of experience and who have been at this for a long time, anyone else is going to find they're doing both automaticly.

if you are working out, exercising and eating well, from a base of doing nothing and eating junk (like most of us are), then you will lose weight AND gain muscle.

Really the whole cutting and bulking thing i feel should be left to those with a lot of experience and who have been at this for a long time, anyone else is going to find they're doing both automaticly.


well jingo, ive been dieting for about 3 months now and have only lost 30 lbs, so right now im getting desperate cuz my BF is somewhere between 29-30% and i wanna drop it below 14% by may 31.

also anyone have suggestions with the max-ot? should i do a 3 day split instead of 5? and exercises like dips and pull ups im not in shape for that. also my small gym i dont think has anything for cable crunches and stuff so im think ill just do crunches and reverse crunches :confused:

First thing you might want to do is lower your expectations :) 30lb in 3 months is a great result, it definatly isn't an only! I've lost 10lb in just over 1 month, same rate as you and i'm super happy, i'd love it if i could keep this up!

As for MAX-OT, i'm doing 3 days too. I do 3 days of cardio, 3 of weights and 1 rest day. The exercises you pick is obveously limited by what you have access too, but just try to include atleast 2 for each main muscle group and you should be fine. I'm working totally from home and not having a cable machine is hurting my options, but i'm working around it.

let me go link to my routine to give you an idea of what i'm doing.

http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=920

there you are, i'm no expert but i beleive i have the main points covered, giving me 2 solid exercised for each muscle group, avoiding isolation and including the main compound lifts, those that really push you and have several muscles involved.

And please don't refer to losing 30lb in 3 months as an only ever again :D

First thing you might want to do is lower your expectations :) 30lb in 3 months is a great result, it definatly isn't an only! I've lost 10lb in just over 1 month, same rate as you and i'm super happy, i'd love it if i could keep this up!

As for MAX-OT, i'm doing 3 days too. I do 3 days of cardio, 3 of weights and 1 rest day. The exercises you pick is obveously limited by what you have access too, but just try to include atleast 2 for each main muscle group and you should be fine. I'm working totally from home and not having a cable machine is hurting my options, but i'm working around it.

let me go link to my routine to give you an idea of what i'm doing.
alright sounds cool, ya like to see ur routine. ya i know i may have high expectations but ive been meaning to do this now for like 3 years and finnally i have the motivation and knowledge to do this cuz i hate being fat, and living in Miami, i cant even go to the beach :cool: so i wana drop, but thx man

http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=920

there you are, i'm no expert but i beleive i have the main points covered, giving me 2 solid exercised for each muscle group, avoiding isolation and including the main compound lifts, those that really push you and have several muscles involved.

And please don't refer to losing 30lb in 3 months as an only ever again :D
hey jingo, 10 lbs is awesome, well have u gotten stronger in ur workouts? what cardio do you do? what equipment do you have?

Yeah, 30 pounds in 3 months is amazing progress. Keep after your diet, throw in max-ot, and you'll be very happy with your results. As jingo mentioned though, don't have your expectations too high. I too have been meaning to drop some weight for some time now. I have started numerous times. The problem I always run into is patience. Don't think of it as a "diet," think of it as a lifestyle change. You may or may not be where you want to be by early summer, but don't let that discourage you. Keep up the good work, stay determined, and it'll come in time.

As jingo also mentioned, don't worry if you can't do the exact exercises outlined in the max-ot routines. If you read through the entire thing, you'll see that he gives many examples of both good and bad lifts. Try to find a couple of the good for each muscle group that you can do at your gym, and you will be ok. Also, always keep in mind that doing anything is better than doing nothing at all. Don't let a few setbacks tear down your determination to continue.

Edit: By the way...

I have been at it for about 3 weeks now. I've lost about 6 pounds and I've gained both lean mass and strength. The advantage of just starting out is that you're able to gain some muscle despite cutting. The diet is very important to achieve this though. I've been doing a combination of max-ot and HIIT (or max-ot cardio). I am doing the 3-day weight split, and cardio on the other 3 days. My gym has MOST of the equipment I need. If you haven't been doing much cardio lately, you may not want to jump right into HIIT or max-ot cardio. It's fairly hard on the body. Do some standard cardio for a few weeks, or even months, to get your body used to the extra effort.

http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=920

there you are, i'm no expert but i beleive i have the main points covered, giving me 2 solid exercised for each muscle group, avoiding isolation and including the main compound lifts, those that really push you and have several muscles involved.

And please don't refer to losing 30lb in 3 months as an only ever again :D
hey ive been looking at ur routine and i might just copy if u dont mind, cept im gonna prolly turn that rest day into cardio :bb:

sure no problem.

I basicly have one bench and a bunch of weights. I can't MAX-OT my squats as i don't have the correct equipment, so i do those with as much weight as i am safely able to get up there, either cleaning it or lifting from the stands on my bench.

Also for calf raises i really can't work them effectively in any way, so i just rep to fail with my normal squat weight

Apart from those two everything else is done MAX-OT style. I feel safe enough repping to fail even on the heavy weight exercises. Bench i can happily rest the weight on my chest for long enough to recover to get it back on the stands, anythign else i can just put the weight straight down.

I'm still playing with it a little where i find an exercise leaves me unable to do a following one, trying to swtich them around a bit, but it's working ok so far. I've only really just got into this properly so no real noticable strength or muscle size gains yet

sure no problem.

I basicly have one bench and a bunch of weights. I can't MAX-OT my squats as i don't have the correct equipment, so i do those with as much weight as i am safely able to get up there, either cleaning it or lifting from the stands on my bench.

Also for calf raises i really can't work them effectively in any way, so i just rep to fail with my normal squat weight

Apart from those two everything else is done MAX-OT style. I feel safe enough repping to fail even on the heavy weight exercises. Bench i can happily rest the weight on my chest for long enough to recover to get it back on the stands, anythign else i can just put the weight straight down.
I'm still playing with it a little where i find an exercise leaves me unable to do a following one, trying to swtich them around a bit, but it's working ok so far. I've only really just got into this properly so no real noticable strength or muscle size gains yet

well ive lost weight with no weights and limited cardio(wrestling practice) so i was thinking, with more cardio and adding weights ill lose more. ya i think the hard part with max-ot is doing all the exercises it asks for.
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