Unpredictable Schedule

Maybe I should have titled the thread “shitty schedule” instead…

I am wondering if there are guys out there in the same boat as me. I have a very erratic schedule that changes day to day and this really fucks up my lifting. Sometimes, I may have 2-3 days off in a row (rarely), while other times I can’t hit the gym for 4 days straight. How do you guys build a program around this shit? For example, this week I hit the gym on Sunday, couldn’t make it on Monday or Tuesday, was planning to go today but again I’m fucked and can’t go because of work!!

What’s the best training strategy with such an erratic schedule? Should I just do split body training and train whenever I can OR should I do full body any day that I can? Shit gets real annoying. And NO I CAN’T GET A NEW JOB!!!

how many hours do you put in in a day at work and how far are you from the gym?

go to Alpha’s log in the training log section and read my last post

bigj: I put in anywhere from 80 to 110 hours per week…some days are longer than other obviously.

Alpha: will do

I travel do some stupid hours, and some overnights or 24’s Plenty of others here are ER nurses,
cops fireman etc.

just make your time count 3 hours a week of high intensity is more than people think.
Evaluate your training, establish your priorities, I know this is in the bodyduilding section,
but many strength training popular programs are 3 to 4 days a week 45 to 1 hour tops.

you could do 3 days of just heavy big compound work and still progress.

kmc

Fit it any way that you can. If you have 2-3 days off and 5 days on, split it up for those days and go balls-out.

Reading some of Arthur Jones’s Nautilus Bulletins that talk about “breif, intense and infrequent” training may give you some other ideas and/or direction.

Plenty of others in the same boat. Takes some time to get used to it. I personally think the best method with limited time is TBT or upper/lower splits. Make the time count.

In all seriousness, I would have to fucking love my job to do 110 hours a week of it. People who dedicate ALL their time to making other people rich need to step back and look at the bigger picture. I have worked those hours before, and it got me nowhere(long term), so I really hope it is worthwhile for you.

Upper/lower splits if your schedule is very irregular. It’ll allow you to train very hard with big lifts and not worry about the little things.

[quote]Gup wrote:
bigj: I put in anywhere from 80 to 110 hours per week…some days are longer than other obviously.

[/quote]

So sometimes you’re pulling 20 hour days? I’d get a new job.

If your job is really that unpredictable, then for me I think TBT or a two way split would be best. If I split too much, then most likely I’m gonna miss some workouts (and coincidentally its going to be leg days) and the time period between training sessions of a particular bodypart might be too long, for e.g. training arms today, and the next arms session is two weeks later. However, if you really want this badly, you’ll find a way no matter what.

so what exactly do you do?

running a business?

Ya own business plus another gig on the side.

Thanks for the tips. During a day that I have off, what do you guys think about training twice that day? I can do a split and say do something like chest/tris in the AM and do legs in the PM…I guess it is possible but I am sure it will be taxing as hell. Or instead of splits of splits I was just thinking of single day TB workouts any day that I get off but alternate between low reps/heavy weight and higher reps/lower weight …

I can go to the gym today, and, with my weekend being off, I can go on Sat and Sun (twice even)…but then not again till probably Tuesday. How does bench + row then military press + lat pulldown then deads or squat sound? I can just do this program each day and alternate between day 1 being 5X5 then day 2 being 3-4 sets X 8-10…and just keep doing this for a few weeks and then switch it with other compound movements…

[quote]Gup wrote:
Ya own business plus another gig on the side.

Thanks for the tips. During a day that I have off, what do you guys think about training twice that day? I can do a split and say do something like chest/tris in the AM and do legs in the PM…I guess it is possible but I am sure it will be taxing as hell. Or instead of splits of splits I was just thinking of single day TB workouts any day that I get off but alternate between low reps/heavy weight and higher reps/lower weight …

I can go to the gym today, and, with my weekend being off, I can go on Sat and Sun (twice even)…but then not again till probably Tuesday. How does bench + row then military press + lat pulldown then deads or squat sound? I can just do this program each day and alternate between day 1 being 5X5 then day 2 being 3-4 sets X 8-10…and just keep doing this for a few weeks and then switch it with other compound movements…[/quote]

Your hours may be erratic, but do you start work at the same time everyday?

[quote]forbes wrote:

Your hours may be erratic, but do you start work at the same time everyday?[/quote]

Yes - everyday early as f*k…early enough that I can’t go the gym in the morning b/c it ain’t open.

Any last minute input on the workout routine before I hit the gym today?