Hey, I'm 15 and I just started lifting wieghts about 3-4 months ago, and my current workout isn't really working and I found this website and decised to change my routine to this one. I will have to adjust the wieght of course considering my max is 160.. I guess that's all right since I just started maybe I dunno, could you guys give me any tips or advice for a beginner?
__________________
They get a program that lasts 74 weeks, and this week calls for a protocol of four sets of seven partial quarter arm extensions with an L-bar twist doing a 12-0-9 tempo with 32.9% of their projected monthly three rep max. Daniel John
First, welcome to the forum. Glad to have you here!
At 15 your body is still developing, and the routine you do will not be anything like the routine you will do in just a couple of years. Here is a quote from a thread from another young man who was asking the same basic questions. Bill Hartman, one of the resident experts who posts in here, gave him this advice:
At your stage of the "game" you have several issues...
1. You are young (a good thing by the way) so as was mentioned by Silas you'll adapt to anything. This is absolutely true.
2. You are neurologically inefficient. You don't recruit a hell of a lot of muscle fibers at any one time. This is an adaptation which will come with heavier and more frequent training.
3. While you may be at a surplus caloric intake, it probably isn't enough. For "growing boys" the typical calculations for caloric intake are low estimates. In other words, you may actually be in deficit.
4. Your recovery ability is lower than you think. This goes along with your neurologic efficiency issue (all muscular adaptations are neuromuscular in origin) and your caloric intake issue. Unless you are a sloth during the day, other than your workout time, you also burn more calories from regular activities than the typical adult. This slows recovery.
With that in mind, consider the following:
1. To increase neural efficiency you must workout more frequently. One time per week per "body part" will slow down progress. Think at least twice per week. Your Mon/Thurs Tues/Friday split will work nicely. Train trunk muscles (chest, back, shoulders) on M & Th and Legs on T & F.
2. Increased frequency precludes you from training to failure. There is no research at all that states that you must train to failure to make maximum gains in size and strength. You must only achieve sufficient stress to cause adaptation in contractile units, energy storage, and organelle hypertrophy/hyperplasia. In fact, if you train too hard too often the organelles responsible for growth will not be able to keep up and progress will stop. Have you ever seen those guys in the gym who bust there ass to failure every set, every workout and never get anywhere? There's your answer.
3. Stick to basic exercises. Bench press, Rows, Standing Military Presses (not seated), Chins, Squats, Deadlifts, etc. Avoid attempts at isolation for the time being. It won't help. You'll recruit more muscle fiber in your basic exercises than any "isolation" movement.
4. Don't train arms, abs, calves, or forearms directly. Also, avoid aerobics like the plague. You need to give your body sufficient adaptation time. Now don't fret about the arm thing, you'll actually gain plenty of size. What does more for leg size/strength? Squats or knee extensions? Squats right? So think of the chins and presses as squats for your arms.
Try this for about 3 weeks:
Monday
Warm-up (general but no static stretching)
Explosive push-up 3-5 sets x 3 reps (start with 3 sets and increase by 1 set each week)
Bench Press 3 x 7,5,3
Dips 3 x 4-6
Plate Drops 3-5 x 3 (quickly pull a plate to your chest like a bent over row and drop it, but catch it before it reaches arms length)
Chins 3 x 4-6
BB Rows 3 x 7,5,3
Standing Military Press 3 x 7,5,3
Go Home at eat!
Tuesday
Warm-up (as monday)
Jump squats 3-5 x 3 (same progression as the push-ups with 30% of your best squat)
Back Squat 3 x 7,5,3
Romanian Deadlift 3 x 7,5,3
Go Home and eat
Thursday
Warm-up
explosive push-ups
Bench Press 3-5 x 8-10 (3 sets week 1 and add one set each week)
Dips 2 x max reps
Plate drops
Chins 2 x max reps
BB rows 3-5 x 8-10
Standing Military Press 3-5 x 8-10
Go home and eat
Friday
Warm-up
Jump Squats
Back Squat 3-5 x 8-10
Romanian Deadlift 3-5 x 8-10
Go home and eat
Week 1 intensity 2-3 reps shy of failure
Week 2 intensity 1-2 rep shy of failure
Week 3 intensity the set ends on the last rep you can complete without cheating or assistance.
Rest periods between sets should be 3-5 minutes for heavy sets and 2-3 minutes for lighter sets.
Adjust weights upward each week to accomodate intensity changes and strength increases.
Follow week three with a week of "easy training" with intensity similar to week 2
Try it, you'll like it. Then you'll be ready for the next step.
Bill Hartman
(Don't let the golf fitness thing throw you!)
I don't understand alot of that, I don't really know like lifting vocabulary.. For example: Whats explosive pushups? or whats jump squats?... You think you could dumb that down a bit it sounds great other wise..
Bill, I actually couldn't find the original post you put this in. I looked and looked for it, and I could only find this quote as a quote in a seperate thread. It was as answer to Desyphor (sp?) so if you can remember approx when he posted all of his questions we can go back and manually search.
JaW, stand by. I am going to try to find some illustrations somewhere on the Net for you. Be patient and keep checking back with us.
Hrmmm, if anyone could explain that work out part by part it would be great...Hrmm, and maybe add how long I should wait between sets..And between the different workouts thanks..Ummm, also for like the push ups 3-5 set x 3 reps? Only 3 reps that doesnt seem like that much.. Also, for the bench and anything else that involve weights its 3-5 setx x 3,2,1 reps (example) do I increase wieght each set or... what its really confusing..
Linear Mode
