I was just wondering whether I should cut down on the volume of my training and if I could get away with no rest day/whether that would be wise. Currently I’m on a 4 day split (chest/bi’s, back/tri’s, shoulders, legs) with 1 day of rest before I repeat. A sample day would look something like this:
Note: I usually don’t make it to 8 reps on the last 1 or 2 sets of some exercises and do up to 10-12 reps on the first set of some as well, not really sure if that makes a difference though.
Some basic info:
Age: 27
Height: 5’ 11"
Weight: 216
Cut the volume. You are doing to much. You are doing 5 exercises for chest. If you can do that type of volume you are not lifting heavy enough. Your first mistake is hitting incline twice. Pick either BB or DB. When you stall out on one drop it and pick the other and keep repeating. There is no reason to do two incline press movements. Cut the the number of exercises down to 3 for each bodypart and use more weight.
18-20 sets per body part is high. 9-12 should be sufficient.
I’m not sure I agree about the incline presses, though. I do two incline presses at different angles simply because, like most, my mid and upper pecs are lagging behind my lower pecs.
[quote]JayPierce wrote:
18-20 sets per body part is high. 9-12 should be sufficient.
I’m not sure I agree about the incline presses, though. I do two incline presses at different angles simply because, like most, my mid and upper pecs are lagging behind my lower pecs.[/quote]
I just have a different approach to lifting. My upper chest is lagging as well but i put my incline movement first so i am fresh. I cant do two incline movements and another chest movement because i lift as heavy as possible for each set. My opinion is that if you are doing 4/5 exercises for 4/5 sets a body part you simply arent lifting heavy/intensely enough
It’s not so much that I want 0 rest days. It’s just that currently when it comes to that rest day my chest and bi’s feel good to go, so I was starting to think that if my body could handle it I should just go with no rest day. The routine has been working okay I guess. I don’t really have a basis for comparison though, so I’m not sure what kind of numbers I should be putting up at the moment.
Another question though. Someone posted an article in another thread about building your own routine that said to always do primary exercises first which makes sense. But, at the same time I’ve also read alot of people to incline presses first despite being classified as a secondary exercise. Does anyone have any thoughts on this, or am I just complicating this way more than I have to?
[quote]JHK wrote:
ACTrain wrote:
Why do you want 0 rest days? How has this routine been working for you?
Looks like way too much I’d cut some of the exercises.
I suggest, if possible. to use alternating sets.
For example
It’s not so much that I want 0 rest days. It’s just that currently when it comes to that rest day my chest and bi’s feel good to go, so I was starting to think that if my body could handle it I should just go with no rest day. The routine has been working okay I guess. I don’t really have a basis for comparison though, so I’m not sure what kind of numbers I should be putting up at the moment.
Another question though. Someone posted an article in another thread about building your own routine that said to always do primary exercises first which makes sense. But, at the same time I’ve also read alot of people to incline presses first despite being classified as a secondary exercise. Does anyone have any thoughts on this, or am I just complicating this way more than I have to?
Thanks for the responses everyone.
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Firstly you need a rest day. Its very important. If you feel your recovery is good you might want to up the weights. It really sounds like you are not pushing as hard as you can on the days you lift.
Your second question. The way i see it is that primary exercises mean compound exercises like chest press (incline or flat, dbs or bbs), BB Bentover Rows, Squats, etc… These compound exercises should be done first. The isolation movements (such as flys, quad raises, etc.) should be done towards the end. Incline presses are not a secondary exercise, its a compound movement.
Only if on each and every workout you are progressing, then I would say that you don’t need the rest day (and would be almost inhuman). But otherwise, you should have some recovery days built in. Remember, training is just the stimulus, recovery is when you grow.