Planning Your Workouts
To work out effectively and safely, you must plan your workouts according to the rules of experience and common sense, and use proper form.
Form is safety. Form is results. Form is everything.
To work out effectively and safely, you must plan your workouts according to the rules of experience and common sense, and use proper form.
Form is safety. Form is results. Form is everything.
Jargon
A Rep is one full cycle of the exercise.
A Set is a number of Reps performed in succession, after which you put the weight down and rest briefly.
A Split is the way you divide workouts for different muscle groups over the week.
FFF - Form Follows Function.
- Select a weight with which you can perform the exercise with correct form. There is no benefit in pulling a heavier weight if you can't use proper form.
- Perform every exercise slowly and in a controlled manner.
- Only use the muscle that is being exercised. The rest of your body should be perfectly static.
Muscle Groups
You categorize your exercises according to seven muscle groups. The seven groups can be classified as major and minor, and push and pull. A "push" muscle group is designed to push away from the body, a "pull" muscle group does the opposite.
Group
Back
Biceps
Triceps
Chest
Shoulders
Legs
Abs
Back
Biceps
Triceps
Chest
Shoulders
Legs
Abs
Type
Pull
Pull
Push
Push
Push
-
-
Pull
Pull
Push
Push
Push
-
-
Size
Major
Minor
Minor
Major
Minor
Major
Minor
Major
Minor
Minor
Major
Minor
Major
Minor
Exercises of the same type work together. Back exercises involve the biceps to a certain amount, because they are both "pull". Chest exercises use the triceps and shoulders for stabilization, they are all "push".
It is therefore common to work on the back and the biceps on the same day. By the time you have finished your back exercises, your biceps will already be warmed up and ready for more. Similarly, you can combine chest, triceps and shoulders.
When you do that, always begin with the major muscle group, i.e. the back before biceps, chest before triceps and shoulders.
It is therefore common to work on the back and the biceps on the same day. By the time you have finished your back exercises, your biceps will already be warmed up and ready for more. Similarly, you can combine chest, triceps and shoulders.
When you do that, always begin with the major muscle group, i.e. the back before biceps, chest before triceps and shoulders.
Complementary Exercises
When you do multiple exercises for a muscle group, try to select exercises that work the muscle in different ways. Vary a wide grip exercise with a narrow grip exercise. Vary a decline exercise with an incline, a vertical with a horizontal, and so on.
For example, after a wide grip Seated Lat Pulldown, you can do a narrow grip Seated Cable Row. This combines a vertical movement with a horizontal, and a wide grip with a narrow. Next week, you can do a narrow grip pulldown with a wide grip row.
Beginning to Intermediate Split
For the beginning and intermediate level, you should do three weight workouts per week, combining two or three muscle groups per day, doing four or five exercises in total between the muscle groups, each exercise performed in three sets of 12 repetitions.
When combining two muscle groups, pick one major muscle group, and combine with one or two minor ones. A typical weekly split:
- Workout 1:
The logic behind this split is to combine "push" muscle groups together, and do the same with "pull". There is often an overlap between exercises for muscle groups of the same type anyway. For example, chest exercises involve the triceps.
Always begin the workout with the major muscle group. Then move on to the minor muscle groups.
Advanced Split
When you feel that you are ready, you could try five workouts per week, four or five exercises per workout, four or five sets of 12 repetitions. A typical split would be:
- Workout 1:
The idea behind this split is that it gives every major muscle group its own dedicated workout, and combines the minor muscle groups.
Exercise All Muscle Groups
Everybody has their favorite workout, and nobody likes doing legs. But it is important that you develop strength evenly. If one muscle group gets much more exercise than another, you could end up hurting yourself in the long run.
