ok. I’ve been working out for a bit over a month following the push/pull split routine.
I am 6’5’ and about 214 (just gained about 6 lb in the past few weeks…prolly muscle gain??)
My plan:
Monday/Thursday : Push
Tuesday/Friday: Pull
3 x week HIIT cardio in the am for 30 minutes
Pull:
Seated row: 3x10 120lb
Supported pull-ups: 3x10
One-arm DB bent over row:3x10 50lb
Good Mornings: 3x10 60-70lb
BB Upright row: 3x10 50-80lb
Seated shoulder shrug: 3x10 110lb
bicep: 3x10
abs
The weight sometimes varies, depending on the shape i am in. So do the reps…sometimes i cannot get to 10, only like 8 or so.
My main goal is to gain some mass but also get somewhat defined. And i need cardio for my blood pressure issue.
How does this routine look to you guys?
My main concern are my delts. They don’t seem to gain much mass…same with my upper chest. Any suggestions here? Should i use different reps? Should I add another shoulder and chest exercise in there on my push days?
I usually drink a mix of powdered greens and BCAA before working out, and a Protein shake after.
Please pay particular attention to Phill’s responses (especially where he describes the weaknesses in your program).
Specifically note were he mentions that by trying to do everything in one day, he questions your intensity.
Think of it this way, if you could only do 5 exercise movements in your push session, what would they be? Knowing that your limited in the amount of movements will help you focus on making them all count.
So in a month, what changes and what progress have you made?
Your also going to have to decide if you want to “lose the love handles and beer belly” (as per your previous thread) or gain mass (as per this thread). Don’t you think it’s odd that you’re using the same program for both?
Finally, what is the blood pressure issue? Doctor’s recommendation?
Well for one I would recommend more leg exercises, like some unilateral work and deadlifts. Also, try other rep/set schemes. Others will pick out other flaws. You want a mass program, have you read the most recent 2 mass articles here on T-Nation.
I actually already saw some progress by doing this routine and the cardio. My belly fat got less and i gained about 6 lb of muscle. But it’s just the delt and upper chest that are developing that great.
The bp issue. well, i used to be on meds for my bp. The doc then just told me to stop taking them since it was under control. Since then my bp is ok but always borderline high. I am trying to keep it low by taking natural supplements, doing cardio and lifting weights (just posted another question regarding weghtlifting and bp).
So, I am kinda trying to do all this at once: gain some muslces, lose the belly fat, control my bp
ok. u know how they sometimes change your topic when u post something. that’s what happened. I want to gain SOME muscles yes…but it is not my main goal to just get huge.
i think the problem i have is to understand how just 5 exercises (one of them being shoulder press) will give me more results than let’s say 8-10 exercises where i will use a combo of shoulder press, front raise and or seated shoulder press. I always think that i should do as many exercises for one muscle group as possible to see good results.
I love OH work and inclines but you have a complete lack of anything flat or decline on pressing every thing is incline and above. might think about that maybe some dips at the least etc
i think the problem i have is to understand how just 5 exercises (one of them being shoulder press) will give me more results than let’s say 8-10 exercises where i will use a combo of shoulder press, front raise and or seated shoulder press. I always think that i should do as many exercises for one muscle group as possible to see good results. [/quote]
First off 5 was just an example, there is no magic number.
But take a look at your plan, you only have 3 sets in total for your quads, hamstrings and glutes, but you have 6 sets primarily for your shoulders plus 6 more sets (incline movements) that will partially hit your shoulders.
Using the movements you’ve listed consider something like this as an alternative to your Push days:
Monday
Squats (after a warmup) at least 5-6 hard sets
Incline press
1 shoulder movement
Calfs
Ab work
Thursday
Leg presses
Flat bench
An overhead press
Triceps
Calfs
Ab work
You don’t have to do this exactly it’s only an example, but I was trying to address the following weaknesses:
Your legs are way to weak and your program did nothing to address this. You should also have someone look at your squat form, it’s easier to fix now rather than later.
You basically had 2 days dedicated to your upper chest and shoulders with a little leg and ab work thrown in. You can always just add another set to shoulder presses, you don’t need another movement.
You may be different but for calf muscles to grow, most people need frequent exposure. Many also respond best to high reps (25-50).
another point
4. Don’t worry too much about 3x10. Vary your rep ranges, but just try to beat your previous best ie. if you did 110lbs shoulder press 3x10, try to get 12 reps, or 120lbs for fewer or the same reps, or maybe add an additional set.
If you like either fullbody or the push/pull, check out Waterbury’s stuff, you may like it. If you do there is a excel spreadsheet for many of his programs that shows a progression from one program to the next. I think I have it somewhere.