Critique my Program please

[Zalayeta]

I haven’t trained properly for about a year and I’ve only been doing cardio so I think I’ve lost most of the muscle that I had. I’m 5”8 and 65kg. I just want to add some muscle and I’m not worried about putting a bit of fat at this stage. I’ll stick to it for 12 weeks doing 4x6. However, I’m not sure how much cardio I should be doing. I know I probably do way too much at the minute so I don’t know how much to cut it down by. I currently do 10 miles up to 3 times a week. Takes about 1 hour and a half.

Monday - Pull
• Deadlifts
• Dumbbell rows
• Dumbbell curls

Tuesday - Cardio
• 7 miles jogging/1 hour

Wednesday - Push
• Flat barbell bench press
• Barbell shoulder press
• Close grip bench press

Thursday - Cardio
• 7 miles jogging/1 hour

Friday - Legs
• Back squats
• Barbell stiff leg deadlifts
• Weighted crunches

Saturday & Sunday - Rest

Many thanks.

[surfstak]

Id drop the cardio to 30 mins and lower the pace.

[Resurrected]

Most regular members on here wil no I am an advocate of the p/p/l style of training, so I would say that is a good regime you have there (as long as you happy and getting results )

I recommend this :

Pull

Deadlifts
WG Chins
Bent Over Row
Alt DB Bicep Curls

Push

BenchPress
Incline DB Press
Seated DB Shoulder Press
Dips

Legs

Squats
SLDL
Calf Raises
Crunches

Your question realting to cardio is a difficult one.....If you are going to build muscle then you have to weigh up the adverse effect that completing a lot of cardio may have on this goal.

If you look at the above p/p/l routine I would suggest setting your goal to complete each session within 45 minutes, this will tax your CV capacity; admittedly not as much as running (jogging). However if you are not gaining muscle you need to do one of two things (decision is yours).

Carry on as you are and increase your calorie intake or stop the CV activity and see if your body composition changes (muscle).

Personally mt recommendation would be to cut back on the cardio to maybe 2 sessions a week of 15 minutes

[nrage04]

I think what 43aso suggested is alot better. Also the cardio, its a personal thing, although a 14mile jog every week is abit much if your trying to gain. If it works for you though stick with it.

How does your diet look? ...that is the real key

[Tom]

i agree that whole routine could be useless if ur diet isnt right, post it up!

[Zalayeta]

Thanks for the replies guys.

This is what I am suggesting for a diet:

8:30 – 10g whey in water
9:00 – Meal 1 – 1 boiled egg & 100g shredded wheat & banana
12:00 – Meal 2 – 2 slices of wholegrain with mackerel & a tin of beans (not baked beans)
13:00 - Train
14:00 – PWO - 25g whey in water
15:00 – Meal 3 – bulgur wheat with chicken, mixed vegetables & a piece of fruit
18:00 – Meal 4 – tin of tuna with salad & olives
21:00 – Meal 5 – tin of tuna with a tin of beans (not baked) & a portion of sugar free jelly
23:30 – Meal 6 – 200g cottage cheese

Cardio will be in the morning after 10g whey.

I would rotate mackerel with sardines & peanut butter.
I would rotate shredded wheat with porridge & no added sugar muesli.
I would rotate bulgur wheat with whole-wheat pasta & wholegrain rice.
I would rotate chicken with turkey & red meat.
Olive oil included in most meals.

None of this is in motion yet. This week I've just done cardio 3 times at 10 miles each session and I've been eating 4 meals. I know this is horrible. I'll gradually up my meals next week, lower the cardio and start my training.

I'll be working out with my bench at home so I've tried to keep the routine quite simple. Would it be important to add in those extra exercise that you suggested 43andstartinover? So do you guys think 2 sessions of cardio at 7 miles each is too much? I've obviously not tried it yet so I don't know how it would impact gains compared to 2 sessions at say 5 miles or 4 miles each.

Thanks.

[Gareth83]

If you wanna pack on muscle you wanna be eating loads (well 500cal + day above maintenace)

Have a look at my journal! I rate this much higher than push pull legs. Each body part is being hit every third day and you're not doing 4x6 every session as you're alternating between 3x8-10 and 4x4-6.

To pack on weight you need to stick to compound movements, chest press, squats, deads, bB rows and mil presses

[Zalayeta]

Quote

If you wanna pack on muscle you wanna be eating loads (well 500cal + day above maintenace)

Have a look at my journal! I rate this much higher than push pull legs. Each body part is being hit every third day and you're not doing 4x6 every session as you're alternating between 3x8-10 and 4x4-6.

To pack on weight you need to stick to compound movements, chest press, squats, deads, bB rows and mil presses

I've checked out your journal and as you have enjoyed the pull, push and legs routine, i'll stick to that for at least a 12 week program before trying something else.

I like how your day A and B routine works though, with 2 days rest. Can I ask why you don't do the cardio on a separate day though? Oh I just noticed that you play football too.

When I used to train, I would just warm up with stretches but I notice that a lot of people have a warm up set, how does this work? Also, if I'm doing say 4x6, should I try and hit the same weight on every set for 6 reps before moving up? When I do move up, is it best to just keep the new weight for the 4 sets regardless of how many reps I can do?

What is the advantage of alternating between 4x6 and 3x8?

Thanks.

[zander999]

i wouldnt worry about food too much. lol got to be careful saying that! what i mean is just focus on getting 2 grams of proetin per pound of body weight. to counter the large intake of protein make sure your drinking at least 3 to 4 gallons a day. after you eat the protein eat your carbs, then fill up on the vegtables. if you are worried about putting on fat then introduce a carb cut off which is you halt any carb intake apart from trace carbs after a certain time (around 4 hours before bed). really try and pack the protein in. i know many may not agree with this but it has worked for me! and yes this is a part of the DC style of training. a smaple diet would be; the numbers represent grams of protein;

meal 1: protein shake (75g), oatmeal, olive oil, multi

meal 2: protein shake (75g), oatmela, olive oil

train

meal 3: protein shake, carb drink, creatine, any other PWO supps.

meal 4: steak (70g), potatoes, veg

(carb cut off)

meal 5: chicken (70g), veg

meal 6: steak, veg, pre bed supps




alex

[MartinM]

Quote

what i mean is just focus on getting 2 grams of proetin per pound of body weight.

I understand where you are getting that figure wrong but it is not really a figure that has ANY credence.

I would be interested to hear about your experiences with DC training if you do use it. If you wouldnt mind outlining them, possibly post a thread in the Bodybuilding section so as not to take this thread off track