Hey guys...

I have been attending regurarly my local gym for the past 5months now, 3 times per week. On Tuesdays I do Chest and Triceps, Wednesdays, legs and shoulders and Fridays Back and Biceps, doing 3 sets of 10/8/8 reps, each set and trying (not always succeding) to increase wieght every passing week.

I make sure I consume about 120 grams of protein per day and about 2700 calories. I am basing my nutriton on tuna, chicken, fish and red-meat, avoid fat and eat pasta once a week.

I weigh 169.5 lbs and am 9'6 ft tall.

From an aesthetic point of view I can witness a slight improvement in mu body-shape. However I have not accumulated any wieght to my starting 169.5lbs.

My gym instructor thinks that training each body part only once per week is hugely affecting my progress. He thinks that with a 4-day split, I would see significant improvement.

What do you guys think?

Thanks for any suggestions.

Hey guys...

I have been attending regurarly my local gym for the past 5months now, 3 times per week. On Tuesdays I do Chest and Triceps, Wednesdays, legs and shoulders and Fridays Back and Biceps, doing 3 sets of 10/8/8 reps, each set and trying (not always succeding) to increase wieght every passing week.

I make sure I consume about 120 grams of protein per day and about 2700 calories. I am basing my nutriton on tuna, chicken, fish and red-meat, avoid fat and eat pasta once a week.

I weigh 169.5 lbs and am 9'6 ft tall.

From an aesthetic point of view I can witness a slight improvement in mu body-shape. However I have not accumulated any wieght to my starting 169.5lbs.

My gym instructor thinks that training each body part only once per week is hugely affecting my progress. He thinks that with a 4-day split, I would see significant improvement.

What do you guys think?

Thanks for any suggestions.

You're 9'6" tall and only weigh 169.5 lbs.???:confused:

Ha, I know that was only a typo ;) . Honestly, how tall are you? If you are eating 2700 kcals per day and 120 grams is protein, that is really on the low end of things. I don't understand why you are avoiding fat, and am unsure of how many grams of carbs eaten per day. If improvements are being noticed, yet your weight is the same, it's quite possible that you might be adding lean mass while burning some fat.

And I would disagree with your trainer. In the long term, it's going to be the NUTRITION which dictates how effective a training routine winds up being. I've probably done all the splits out there over the years..... one of my favorites for lean mass being 1 day on, 2 days off.

List your diet so people can chime in with suggestions. :)

I make sure I consume about 120 grams of protein per day and about 2700 calories. I am basing my nutriton on tuna, chicken, fish and red-meat, avoid fat and eat pasta once a week.

Can you give us more detail? How many meals is this broken up into each day? Do you eat a specific way on weight training days opposed to off days? Are you avoiding ALL fats? What kind of carbs are you getting in and how much? How are you calculating 2700 calories? Are you eating veggies? Give us as much detail as possible.

9'6 ft tall.

:blank:
My gym instructor thinks that training each body part only once per week is hugely affecting my progress. He thinks that with a 4-day split, I would see significant improvement.

What do you guys think?


He could be right. It's hard to tell without seeing your actual routine and nutritional approach. I will however suggest that you look into a 3 day fullbody routine or a 4 day upper/lower split. This way, you'll be hitting your muscles a couple of times each week, and for beginners this is a great way to start.

EDIT: Mastover beat me to it :)

First of all thanks for the replies

My length as listed is a typo. sorry, actual length 5'9 and a 1/2, just below 5/10 around the 180 cm mark.

I am going to list some more detail as regard to mu diet and training routine.

Training routine:

Tuesday : Chest and Triceps

Bench-press is a must for me.
The other 2 exercises I like to vary them each week mainly between, incline bench press, decline bench press, flies and pull-overs.

Triceps
Cable-push down
Over-head dumbell extension
Reverse-grip cable press-down


Wednesday: Shoulders and Legs

Shoulders
Seated military press (with the bench-press machine)
Barbell upright rows
Shoulder raises

Legs
Lying Leg Curls
Seated Leg Press Machine
Seated Leg Curls

Fridays Biceps and Back

Back
Lat Pull-Downs
Close-Grip Seated Cable Rows
Bent-Over Barbell Row

Biceps
EZ- Bar preacher curls
Standing Bicep barbell curls
Hammer Curls

As stated I perform 3 sets of each exercise with 10/8/8 reps each, trying to increase weight every-time.

Nutrition

Breakfast - Big Bowl or two of low-fat cereal with skimmed milk
1 whey Protein Shake
1 Multi-vitiamin pill

mid-morning 1 whey Protein Shake

Lunch - generally 1 big bun of whole-meal bread with 1 big can of tuna and some fresh salad

Afternoon snack (before going to gym)- generally 1 banana, some straw-berries and couple of whole-grain crisp bread (ryvita) toppled with cottage-cheese.

Dinner- generally 7/10 ounces of either red-meat, chicken or fish with veggies as a countour


Before going to bed 1 whey protein shake

Drink abt 2 liters of water a day.



(On Sundays, I don t really pay attention to my diet. I may eat pasta, roast anything basically.)

I hope I have listed enough detail.

Looking forward to your replies, Thanks for your help.:claphigh:

Well, your diet can be improved big time!
Many people say that the diet gives you 80% results.
Looks like you are not eating enough to allow for strength and growth.

I personally have seen huge difference when I cleaned up my diet and started eating MORE.
More complex carbs like brown rice, yams, oatmeal (especially after workout)
More protein: chicken/turkey breast, fish, egg whites
Good fats: flaxseed, avocado, almond butter, PB, coconut oil
LOTS of veggies: broccoli, asparagus, dark leefy greans, tomatoes
Some fruit: grapefruit, blueberries, pineapple, sometimes banana, other berries, apples

Training wise:
Do more compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, lunges, pull ups....and squats and deadlifts...and more squats :D

What do you guys think of this as a three-day split? I am in the same boat and trying to optimize my exercises as much as possible:

Monday - Pull
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) wide stance deadlift (sumo?)
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) assisted pullups
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) seated cable rows
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) lat pulldown
3 sets (12) hammer curls


Wednesday - Push
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) decline bench
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) assisted dips
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) incline bench
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) shoulder press
3 sets (12) skull crushers
3 sets (20) bodyweight wall pushups


Friday - Legs
4 sets (10) squats
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) leg curls
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) leg extensios
3 sets (10) leg press
4 sets (15) calf raise
4 sets (10) bodyweight lunges

Just calculated my basal metabolic rate and it is around the 2500 calories a day...So to bulk I should consume 3000 calories per day and to cut I should consume 2000 cals per day?

I will try to add more cals to my diet, by adding 1 more pre workout meal to my diet, this being some rice with tuna with a tablespoon of flax seed and cooked avvocado...

Hi Toni. I'm no expert by any means, but my program and physical stats (I'm 5'9.5/170lb) are nearly identical to yours right now, and I have been getting excellent results lately. I was working a 3 on/1 off split and went to the 3 days/week with nearly the same exercises you are doing.

Anyhow, some suggestions I have are: increase your protein grams/day. How about some eggs for breakfast? I also eat alot of (lowfat) cottage cheese, usually 0.5-1 cup at lunchtime and a cup before bed. Also, I would add a couple of exercises to your routine - squats and deadlifts for sure!

I'm also doing 30-40 mins low intensity cardio usually 6 days a week to keep the fat in check (I've gone from about 240/ridiculous bf% to 170 and about 11%bf)...but I have found, as others mentioned, diet is the key.

Best of luck to you!

Hi Toni. I'm no expert by any means, but my program and physical stats (I'm 5'9.5/170lb) are nearly identical to yours right now, and I have been getting excellent results lately. I was working a 3 on/1 off split and went to the 3 days/week with nearly the same exercises you are doing.

Anyhow, some suggestions I have are: increase your protein grams/day. How about some eggs for breakfast? I also eat alot of (lowfat) cottage cheese, usually 0.5-1 cup at lunchtime and a cup before bed. Also, I would add a couple of exercises to your routine - squats and deadlifts for sure!

I'm also doing 30-40 mins low intensity cardio usually 6 days a week to keep the fat in check (I've gone from about 240/ridiculous bf% to 170 and about 11%bf)...but I have found, as others mentioned, diet is the key.

Best of luck to you!

Thns for the reply.

Will you kindly post your daily meals?
How many cals and grams of protein do you conume per day?

Sure thing...I just finished up a quick spreadsheet to calculate it all. I'd done this half-assed before, but really tightened up the numbers this time. I highly recommend everyone do this, definitely good information to know!

Anyhow, heres my breakdown:

Wake at 6am, 30-40 mins liss, ~115-120 HR.

Breakfast (7am):
2 whole eggs, 4 egg whites. 238 cal, 28g protein.

Mid-morning snack (10am-ish):
0.5 cup raw oats (rolled) + 1 scoop whey. 280 cal, 27g protein.

Lunchtime (12:30pm):
lean pocket, 0.75 cup low-fat cottage cheese. 345 cal, 33g protein.

Afternoon meal (3:30-ish pm):
2 slices sprouted grain bread, ~6oz chicken breast, spicy mustard. 418 cal, 56g protein.

Pre-workout (5:30 pm, MWF):
1 small banana. 100 cal, 1g protein.

Post workout (7pm):
1.5-2 scoops whey. 180-240 cal, 32-42g protein.

Dinner (8pm):
6 oz chicken breast, 1 cup brown basmati rice, 1 cup broccoli. 500 cal, 56g protein.

Bedtime snack (10pm-ish):
1 cup low fat cottage cheese, 2 Tbs. natural peanut butter. 380 cal, 34g protein.

Totals: 2441 cal, 283g protein. (still haven't calc'd the fat and carb totals...on my to do list). My height is just under 5'10, weighed in at 173 this morning, and estimate bf% of 11-ish. Its tough to say, I do have some loose skin around my belt-line leftover from being very heavy for a few years (topped out at 243!). Top abs (4-pack lol) are starting to really show. I've estimated my BMR at about 2780 (1.55 multi for activity level).

Sorry if the formatting sucks, I just typed it all out from the spreadsheet. Also, there is some variation in quantities (I don't weigh or measure precisely) and ingredients, depending on my mood. I pretty much stick to this diet everyday, and occasionally have a cheat but not too often.

This has worked very, very well for me. The other key though is consistency, very important. As much as I'd like to see overnight miracles, it can take weeks to see noticeable progress.

Again, best of luck to you!

EDIT:

Some other thoughts after reviewing...you may consider adding more veggies, seems I am a bit low in that department. (I've been using psyllium fiber to help stay regular, might not be needed with more veggies). Also, I've recently bought some Udo's oil, using about a Tbs/day, which is about 125 cals for more good fats.

Friday - Legs
4 sets (10) squats
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) leg curls
4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6) leg extensios
3 sets (10) leg press
4 sets (15) calf raise
4 sets (10) bodyweight lunges

I would do squats, then leg press/or lunges, then leg extension, then leg curl and calf raise.

I would do squats, then leg press/or lunges, then leg extension, then leg curl and calf raise.

I would also replace one of the body weight lunges with a heavy hamstring movement like a romanian deadlift or good morning and move it earlier in the workout (after squats maybe).

Why would you want your heavy hitting compounds next to eachother? That is going to tire you out quicker. Is there any advantage to doing that?

Why would you want your heavy hitting compounds next to eachother? That is going to tire you out quicker. Is there any advantage to doing that?

I'm not sure if this is true for everybody, but I personally find I can go much heavier on RDLs if I perform them earlier in the workout. If I do squats, lunges, legpress, hamstring curls, pullthroughs and then RDLs, my lift would suffer.

RDL?

Wouldn't it be better that your lifts suffer so the muscle is worked in an exhausted, tired state?

RDL?

Romanian deadlift

Wouldn't it be better that your lifts suffer so the muscle is worked in an exhausted, tired state?

Would you rather squat as heavy as you can earlier in the workout or perform a bunch of quad isolation movements and then do squats in a very weakened state?

The exercise is prioritized by it's location in the workout and even where it is in the week. So, if you put the big compound moves first, they're getting more emphasis.

In the case of squats and dead variants, I normally do one big move of one followed by one lighter variant of the other. So, back squats then RDLs, single legged deads, etc. Conventional deads then front squats, BB hack squats, Bulgarian split squats, lunges, etc.

IMO, this works very well. I'm personally not a big fan of leg extensions or leg curls anyway. Of course, I don't like three day splits, either :D I'm more full body or maybe upper/lower.

In my opinion it all comes down to intensity. If I posted my workouts they'd look pretty skimpy, but if I posted a video link of how I did each exercise it would be a different case all together. If you do the exact routine you listed, and really gave it your ALL, you would be completely exhausted and would grow just fine. You don't need to change...rather, focus on improving form and intensity.

I agree with others that diet is far more essential, seeing as how you cover most body parts well. Just to let you know, I cut from 255lbs. to 172lbs. (at 5'11") by eating 65% carbs. IMHO, and that of many others who follow HIT programs, you only need 20% (though you can never assume exact numbers are ideal for everyone) protein. Some of the greatest bodybuilders ever agree. You can be successful eating 20% protein, but you can also be successful at 50%... everyone has their own opinion. My advice is to keep very strict journal and make some changes. Take note of changes. Also, I personally don't care for protein supplements. I get all mine from eggs, cottage cheese, chicken and turkey, and various others. Again, just my opinion.

WIth that said, you will have 100 different people giving you 100 theories. Follow the schedule that works for you, not your trainer. By the way, I took the CanFit Pro personal trainer course (the top course in Canada) and they say the only difference between splits is based on which fits your schedule the best.

Cheers,

Mike

In my opinion it all comes down to intensity. If I posted my workouts they'd look pretty skimpy, but if I posted a video link of how I did each exercise it would be a different case all together. If you do the exact routine you listed, and really gave it your ALL, you would be completely exhausted and would grow just fine. You don't need to change...rather, focus on improving form and intensity.

I agree with others that diet is far more essential, seeing as how you cover most body parts well. Just to let you know, I cut from 255lbs. to 172lbs. (at 5'11") by eating 65% carbs. IMHO, and that of many others who follow HIT programs, you only need 20% (though you can never assume exact numbers are ideal for everyone) protein. Some of the greatest bodybuilders ever agree. You can be successful eating 20% protein, but you can also be successful at 50%... everyone has their own opinion. My advice is to keep very strict journal and make some changes. Take note of changes. Also, I personally don't care for protein supplements. I get all mine from eggs, cottage cheese, chicken and turkey, and various others. Again, just my opinion.

WIth that said, you will have 100 different people giving you 100 theories. Follow the schedule that works for you, not your trainer. By the way, I took the CanFit Pro personal trainer course (the top course in Canada) and they say the only difference between splits is based on which fits your schedule the best.

Cheers,

Mike

In my opinion it all comes down to intensity. If I posted my workouts they'd look pretty skimpy, but if I posted a video link of how I did each exercise it would be a different case all together. If you do the exact routine you listed, and really gave it your ALL, you would be completely exhausted and would grow just fine. You don't need to change...rather, focus on improving form and intensity.

I agree with others that diet is far more essential, seeing as how you cover most body parts well. Just to let you know, I cut from 255lbs. to 172lbs. (at 5'11") by eating 65% carbs. IMHO, and that of many others who follow HIT programs, you only need 20% (though you can never assume exact numbers are ideal for everyone) protein. Some of the greatest bodybuilders ever agree. You can be successful eating 20% protein, but you can also be successful at 50%... everyone has their own opinion. My advice is to keep very strict journal and make some changes. Take note of changes. Also, I personally don't care for protein supplements. I get all mine from eggs, cottage cheese, chicken and turkey, and various others. Again, just my opinion.

WIth that said, you will have 100 different people giving you 100 theories. Follow the schedule that works for you, not your trainer. By the way, I took the CanFit Pro personal trainer course (the top course in Canada) and they say the only difference between splits is based on which fits your schedule the best.

Cheers,

Mike

just wanna thank everyone for the replies.

Hear you advice. will keep u posted.

S
Training wise:
Do more compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, lunges, pull ups....and squats and deadlifts...and more squats :D

Couldn't agree more, though I'd add the squats should not be overlooked here ;-)

P