T Nation

Three Exercises Per Workout?

Beginners
#1

My main question is… is it alright to only use 3 exercises per w/o if they are BIG ones?

For instance, today I did 4x8 with Squats; 4x a mixture of reps/negatives with chin-ups; and 3x8 with DB overhead press. I would be doing deads, rows, and bench(or any exercise you guys can think of) the other days

My main goal is fat loss while preserving muscle. I’m 195lbs, 6’1", and have been working out steadily for a month. I worked out sporadically throughout jr. and sr. high.

And if anyone could offer advice on chin-ups that would be great too. I can only do 2-3 chins at a time. So what kind of parameters can I use to increase my chins to be able to do 3x8. Up until lately I’ve been too fat, so chin-ups were out of the question. I’m almost a total beginner at them.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

#2

3 exercises are ideal. 1 lower body, 1 push, 1 pull. A complete whole body work out. If you have any lagging parts you want to give attention to just tag them on the end. Add some light abs and back work into your warmup.

There are lots of chinup routines on the internet. Here’s a good one.
redwhiteandbluefitness.com/x.pro/ModShow/ShowPage/25809

It gives progressions if you can’t do any or if they become to easy.

Stu

#3

It’s still 11 sets, and the exercises youve chosen are good ones. At 6"1’ weighing 195 shouldnt make you appear fat at all, i was a bit surprised to read that!

#4

I’ve been doing something very similar for a while now for bulking but I think it would work for cutting too. Just stick to the low-medium rep range.

Workout 1:

Squat
Clean
Pull-up
Overhead press

Workout 2:

Deadlift
Front squat
Bench
Bent-over row

It’s not easy but it’ll make you strong that’s for sure. With just those exercises you’ll probably be doing a more effective workout than most people in the gym. Or at least that’s that case for me in a college gym where everyone seems to love holding the 5 pound weights and swinging their arms around.

#5

Thanks for the replies. I’ll put you guy’s advice to good use.