how many reps and how many sets?
kiku76
Posts: 352 Member
I'm just started strength training at home, by myself. I use resistance bands.
How many reps and sets should I be doing?
I have read 12-15 reps and 3 sets, but I've also read 5-8 reps and 3 sets.
How many reps and sets should I be doing?
I have read 12-15 reps and 3 sets, but I've also read 5-8 reps and 3 sets.
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Replies
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Here is a post I made to another member that asked a similar question. You can get a 40lb set of Cap adustable dumbbells at walmart for $30.00 and add additional plates as needed for $2-4 dollars each.
Ok here is the program/split. To keep it simple try to do 8 reps for every set. If you can do 10 reps, raise the weight for the next set, if you can only do 7 reps or less ,lower the weight for your next set. Also try to limit your rest periods between sets to between 1 minute and 1 minute and 30 seconds. I choose to do my cardio and abs on my off days but you can mix them in to fit your schedule/ needs etc. Also please dont be intimidated by lifting!! (we all were when we started but quickly realized that there wasnt anything to be scared of)
Monday: Legs-
Squats x 3 sets. http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/DBSquat.html
Lunges x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-lunges
Step ups x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/dumbbell-step-up.html
Calves-
Seated Calf Raises x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/seated-dumbbell-calf-raise.html
Front Raises x 3 sets. http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Tuesday: Back-
Pull Ups x 3 sets ( use a chair and push off it with one foot to assist you as much as needed to complete each rep.)
Dumbbell Rows x3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/one-arm-dumbbell-row
Bent Over Rows x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/bent-over-two-dumbbell-row
Biceps-
Curls x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-bicep-curl
Concentration Curls x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/concentration-cur.html
Thursday: Chest-
Bench press x 3 sets. (use your bar)
Incline pushups x 3 sets ( use the bottom step of any set of stairs and do as many as possible for each set)
Dumbbell Flys x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-flyes
Triceps-
Extensions x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/one-arm-seated-dumbbell-extension.html
Kickbacks x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/tricep-dumbbell-kickback
Saturday: Shoulders-
Shoulder Presses x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-shoulder-press
Front Raises x 3 sets. http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Lateral Raises x 3 sets http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Traps-
Shrugs or Seated Shrugs x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-shrug
Lower Back / Glutes- ( Yes its leg exercise but you dont want to do deadlifts and squats on the same day)
Dead Lifts x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/stiff-legged-dumbbell-deadlift0 -
thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.0
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The answer to your question would depend on your goal.0
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bump0
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Here is a post I made to another member that asked a similar question. You can get a 40lb set of Cap adustable dumbbells at walmart for $30.00 and add additional plates as needed for $2-4 dollars each.
This inspired me and I just ordered these off Amazon free shipping. I don't have access to a gym and do all my workouts at home with iphone apps and needed some new motivation. Thanks for taking the time to post a workout plan with weights that seems very doable... I'll consider this my own personal trainer workout
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To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.0 -
Not really, in another month etc. I would reccommend that the OP. either adds one more set to each exercise or adds an additional exercise x 3 sets for every muscle group. Also there is no reason to do more than 8 reps per set. There is some exercises that more reps would be better but not at this stage of the game for the OP.The answer to your question would depend on your goal.0 -
Glad I could help!! Please PM. me if you have any questions. :happy:Here is a post I made to another member that asked a similar question. You can get a 40lb set of Cap adustable dumbbells at walmart for $30.00 and add additional plates as needed for $2-4 dollars each.
This inspired me and I just ordered these off Amazon free shipping. I don't have access to a gym and do all my workouts at home with iphone apps and needed some new motivation. Thanks for taking the time to post a workout plan with weights that seems very doable... I'll consider this my own personal trainer workout0 -
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?0 -
definitively bumping to save !0
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This may help you to know what you should do. It depends if you are working on endurance, strength or power
http://fitlode.com/2010/06/12/hypertrophy-strength-power-and-periodization/0 -
bump
Also, Turbofire has a set of strength sessions using resistance bands0 -
This workout will do far, far more than you can do with a home dumbbell set (and is free), only takes 30-45 minutes, 3x a week...and is stupidly effective:Another Bodyweight Culture article, this one courtesy Cheesedog at:
http://www.bodyweightculture.com/forum/showthread.php?11058-Bodyweight-Strength-Training
Bodyweight Strength Training
People are always asking about strength training using only bodyweight. This is nothing new or revolutionary. I am borrowing HEAVILY from Rippatoe, Bill Starr, and lots of other great authors and trainers. This is your basic 5 x 5 template. (To clarify, 5x5 is 5 reps x 5 sets. The idea is to work at a difficulty level where you could only do maybe 7-8 reps on the first set, and are struggling to finish 5 reps on the last set). You would do strength training 3 times a week, say Monday-Wednesday-Friday with the weekends off. These are done "lazy circuits" style, with about 1 minute rest between each set.
Workout A
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Horizontal push - 5 x 5
1C. Horizontal pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - flexion - 3 x 5
2B. Ab - static 3 x 30 seconds
Workout B
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Vertical push - 5 x 5
1C. Hip dominant - 5 x 5
1D. Vertical pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - rotation - 3 x 5
2B. Grip and neck training - 3 x varies
Exercise Progressions - with regular weight training you can just add weight to the bar. With bodyweight progression is mostly about changing your leverage. These are just a few examples, I'm sure we could come up with dozens more if needed. You can always add resistance in the form of a weighted vest or backpack or resistance bands.
1. Knee Dominant -- squats, lunges, step-ups, bulgarian split squats, unilateral bent leg deadlift, partial one leg squat, one leg squat, box or stair pistols, full pistols.
2. Horizontal Push -- pushups, decline pushups, resistance pushups, side to side pushups, stair one arm pushups, negative one arm pushups, full one arm pushups.
3. Horizontal Pull -- body row, resistance body row, negative one hand row, incline one hand row, full one hand row.
4. Ab - flexion -- crunches, situps, resistance or incline situps, reverse situp, resistance or incline reverse situps, hanging knee or leg raise, hanging pikes, rollout from knees, rollout from feet, dragon flag. Also included are oblique moves like side lying crunches with or without resistance and side lying two leg raise.
5. Abs- static -- 4 point prone bridge, 3 point prone bridge, 2 point prone bridge, 4 point supine bridge, 3 point supine bridge.
6. Vertical Push -- pike pushup, hindu pushup, divebomber pushup, decline pike pushup, decline hindu pushup, decline divebomber pushup, one arm pike pushup, negative handstand pushup, handstand pushup with head touching floor, full handstand pushup.
7. Hip Dominant -- supine hip extension, good morning, one leg stiff leg deadlift, split one leg good morning, one leg supine hip extension, hyperextension, one leg hyperextension, natural glute-ham raise.
8. Vertical Pull -- jumping or assisted pullups, pullups, resistance pullups, side to side pullups, negative one hand pullups, one hand pullups. All these can refer to chinups or neutral grip pullups as well.
9. Ab - rotation -- twist crunches or situps, resistance or incline twist crunches or situps, russian twists, lying windshield wipers, standing rope rotations, hanging windshield wipers.
10. Grip and Neck Training -- for grip you can use handgrippers, deadhangs from a pullup bar (especially a fatbar or gripping a towel). For neck nothing beats wrestlers bridges. If you are involved in a striking martial art or sport, finger and fist pushups are very important also.
None of these lists have to end here. If you get strong enough you can always add resistance to your full range of motion one limb exercise. Or if you can do more than 5 one hand pushups do decline one hand pushups, or start working on one hand hindu and then eventually one hand dive bombers, and so on.
The nice thing about this routine is it scales dramatically depending on your fitness level. If you can't do even ONE regular pull up, you can scale it down and do assisted pull ups (legs on a chair), or ballistic pullups (where you jump to provide the initial momentum). It's actually easier to do properly when you're very unfit...because once you're healthy and strong...you're going to be searching for challenging enough exercises to only allow you 5 reps max by the finish of the 5 sets.
Trust me, it works.0 -
Bump to save0
-
bump to save0
-
This workout will do far, far more than you can do with a home dumbbell set (and is free), only takes 30-45 minutes, 3x a week...and is stupidly effective:Another Bodyweight Culture article, this one courtesy Cheesedog at:
http://www.bodyweightculture.com/forum/showthread.php?11058-Bodyweight-Strength-Training
Bodyweight Strength Training
People are always asking about strength training using only bodyweight. This is nothing new or revolutionary. I am borrowing HEAVILY from Rippatoe, Bill Starr, and lots of other great authors and trainers. This is your basic 5 x 5 template. (To clarify, 5x5 is 5 reps x 5 sets. The idea is to work at a difficulty level where you could only do maybe 7-8 reps on the first set, and are struggling to finish 5 reps on the last set). You would do strength training 3 times a week, say Monday-Wednesday-Friday with the weekends off. These are done "lazy circuits" style, with about 1 minute rest between each set.
Workout A
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Horizontal push - 5 x 5
1C. Horizontal pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - flexion - 3 x 5
2B. Ab - static 3 x 30 seconds
Workout B
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Vertical push - 5 x 5
1C. Hip dominant - 5 x 5
1D. Vertical pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - rotation - 3 x 5
2B. Grip and neck training - 3 x varies
Exercise Progressions - with regular weight training you can just add weight to the bar. With bodyweight progression is mostly about changing your leverage. These are just a few examples, I'm sure we could come up with dozens more if needed. You can always add resistance in the form of a weighted vest or backpack or resistance bands.
1. Knee Dominant -- squats, lunges, step-ups, bulgarian split squats, unilateral bent leg deadlift, partial one leg squat, one leg squat, box or stair pistols, full pistols.
2. Horizontal Push -- pushups, decline pushups, resistance pushups, side to side pushups, stair one arm pushups, negative one arm pushups, full one arm pushups.
3. Horizontal Pull -- body row, resistance body row, negative one hand row, incline one hand row, full one hand row.
4. Ab - flexion -- crunches, situps, resistance or incline situps, reverse situp, resistance or incline reverse situps, hanging knee or leg raise, hanging pikes, rollout from knees, rollout from feet, dragon flag. Also included are oblique moves like side lying crunches with or without resistance and side lying two leg raise.
5. Abs- static -- 4 point prone bridge, 3 point prone bridge, 2 point prone bridge, 4 point supine bridge, 3 point supine bridge.
6. Vertical Push -- pike pushup, hindu pushup, divebomber pushup, decline pike pushup, decline hindu pushup, decline divebomber pushup, one arm pike pushup, negative handstand pushup, handstand pushup with head touching floor, full handstand pushup.
7. Hip Dominant -- supine hip extension, good morning, one leg stiff leg deadlift, split one leg good morning, one leg supine hip extension, hyperextension, one leg hyperextension, natural glute-ham raise.
8. Vertical Pull -- jumping or assisted pullups, pullups, resistance pullups, side to side pullups, negative one hand pullups, one hand pullups. All these can refer to chinups or neutral grip pullups as well.
9. Ab - rotation -- twist crunches or situps, resistance or incline twist crunches or situps, russian twists, lying windshield wipers, standing rope rotations, hanging windshield wipers.
10. Grip and Neck Training -- for grip you can use handgrippers, deadhangs from a pullup bar (especially a fatbar or gripping a towel). For neck nothing beats wrestlers bridges. If you are involved in a striking martial art or sport, finger and fist pushups are very important also.
None of these lists have to end here. If you get strong enough you can always add resistance to your full range of motion one limb exercise. Or if you can do more than 5 one hand pushups do decline one hand pushups, or start working on one hand hindu and then eventually one hand dive bombers, and so on.
The nice thing about this routine is it scales dramatically depending on your fitness level. If you can't do even ONE regular pull up, you can scale it down and do assisted pull ups (legs on a chair), or ballistic pullups (where you jump to provide the initial momentum). It's actually easier to do properly when you're very unfit...because once you're healthy and strong...you're going to be searching for challenging enough exercises to only allow you 5 reps max by the finish of the 5 sets.
Trust me, it works.
ok, I'm confused. If there are 2 workouts and three days.....uhm, when do you do what?0 -
Bumping also0
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Dont worry the Cap adjustable dumbbells come in box about the size of a show box. The program is designed to give you the perfect amount of recovery time for each muscle group (recovery time is as important as what exercises you choose to do because the exercises tear your muscles down and the recovery is when they actually grow) But if your schedule doesnt permit you to follow the program/split to the letter than just adjust it to fit your needs.
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?
I also did 3 days of cardio per week but did my cardio on my off days. I have seen awesome results ( please see the pics in my profile) using this program over the past 13 months and will continue to do it in the future.0 -
Dont worry the Cap adjustable dumbbells come in box about the size of a show box. The program is designed to give you the perfect amount of recovery time for each muscle group (recovery time is as important as what exercises you choose to do because the exercises tear your muscles down and the recovery is when they actually grow) But if your schedule doesnt permit you to follow the program/split to the letter than just adjust it to fit your needs.
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?
I also did 3 days of cardio per week but did my cardio on my off days. I have seen awesome results ( please see the pics in my profile) using this program over the past 13 months and will continue to do it in the future.
got it. so it's probably better to just focus on one muscle group per day then?0 -
Dont worry the Cap adjustable dumbbells come in box about the size of a show box. The program is designed to give you the perfect amount of recovery time for each muscle group (recovery time is as important as what exercises you choose to do because the exercises tear your muscles down and the recovery is when they actually grow) But if your schedule doesnt permit you to follow the program/split to the letter than just adjust it to fit your needs.
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?
I also did 3 days of cardio per week but did my cardio on my off days. I have seen awesome results ( please see the pics in my profile) using this program over the past 13 months and will continue to do it in the future.
got it. so it's probably better to just focus on one muscle group per day then?
That depends. For beginners, no, it's not. You're better off doing a full-body routine, ideally focused on compound movements.0 -
No two per day (unless you need to adjust due to your schedule)
Dont worry the Cap adjustable dumbbells come in box about the size of a show box. The program is designed to give you the perfect amount of recovery time for each muscle group (recovery time is as important as what exercises you choose to do because the exercises tear your muscles down and the recovery is when they actually grow) But if your schedule doesnt permit you to follow the program/split to the letter than just adjust it to fit your needs.
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?
I also did 3 days of cardio per week but did my cardio on my off days. I have seen awesome results ( please see the pics in my profile) using this program over the past 13 months and will continue to do it in the future.
got it. so it's probably better to just focus on one muscle group per day then?0 -
doesnt matter if your a beginner or not, I did this program when I started 13 months ago and still do, I just do more exercises x 4 sets each for each muscle group now. With that said there are other programs / splits that will give you just as good of results.
Dont worry the Cap adjustable dumbbells come in box about the size of a show box. The program is designed to give you the perfect amount of recovery time for each muscle group (recovery time is as important as what exercises you choose to do because the exercises tear your muscles down and the recovery is when they actually grow) But if your schedule doesnt permit you to follow the program/split to the letter than just adjust it to fit your needs.
thanks. I will start with the bands and look into the dumbbells you recommended. I have a 4-y-o and a 1-y-o and a small apartment. I like that I can easily store the bands away where they will not try to pick them up. (and they will! my 14 month old picks up the 1-lb weights at my grandma's and runs around with them)
To start they will be fine, but as you make progress you will need to keep increasing the resistance/ weight in order to keep making progress. I would suggest buying some adjustable dumbbells they are cheap and the most versitile peice of excercise equipment there is.thanks. are resistance bands not as effective? I already have them and it would be nice to not buy any more equipment.
Is there a diff between working one muscle group a day and working all of them. Like if I do cardio 3 days and strength 3 days a week, is it better to break up the groups than do all of them each of the 3 days?
I also did 3 days of cardio per week but did my cardio on my off days. I have seen awesome results ( please see the pics in my profile) using this program over the past 13 months and will continue to do it in the future.
got it. so it's probably better to just focus on one muscle group per day then?
That depends. For beginners, no, it's not. You're better off doing a full-body routine, ideally focused on compound movements.0 -
does it make a difference that I'm using bands? I dont think I can do all the exercises with bands so each day will be shorter.No two per day (unless you need to adjust due to your schedule)
btw, thanks. you've been really helpful0 -
bump (need to save this post!!!)0
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Bump to save...I just started lifting today.0
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Bump!0
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Bump0
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Here is a post I made to another member that asked a similar question. You can get a 40lb set of Cap adustable dumbbells at walmart for $30.00 and add additional plates as needed for $2-4 dollars each.
Ok here is the program/split. To keep it simple try to do 8 reps for every set. If you can do 10 reps, raise the weight for the next set, if you can only do 7 reps or less ,lower the weight for your next set. Also try to limit your rest periods between sets to between 1 minute and 1 minute and 30 seconds. I choose to do my cardio and abs on my off days but you can mix them in to fit your schedule/ needs etc. Also please dont be intimidated by lifting!! (we all were when we started but quickly realized that there wasnt anything to be scared of)
Monday: Legs-
Squats x 3 sets. http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/DBSquat.html
Lunges x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-lunges
Step ups x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/dumbbell-step-up.html
Calves-
Seated Calf Raises x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/seated-dumbbell-calf-raise.html
Front Raises x 3 sets. http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Tuesday: Back-
Pull Ups x 3 sets ( use a chair and push off it with one foot to assist you as much as needed to complete each rep.)
Dumbbell Rows x3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/one-arm-dumbbell-row
Bent Over Rows x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/bent-over-two-dumbbell-row
Biceps-
Curls x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-bicep-curl
Concentration Curls x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/concentration-cur.html
Thursday: Chest-
Bench press x 3 sets. (use your bar)
Incline pushups x 3 sets ( use the bottom step of any set of stairs and do as many as possible for each set)
Dumbbell Flys x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-flyes
Triceps-
Extensions x 3 sets. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/one-arm-seated-dumbbell-extension.html
Kickbacks x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/tricep-dumbbell-kickback
Saturday: Shoulders-
Shoulder Presses x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-shoulder-press
Front Raises x 3 sets. http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Lateral Raises x 3 sets http://weighttraining.about.com/od/exercisegallery/tp/frontdumbbell.htm
Traps-
Shrugs or Seated Shrugs x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/dumbbell-shrug
Lower Back / Glutes- ( Yes its leg exercise but you dont want to do deadlifts and squats on the same day)
Dead Lifts x 3 sets. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/stiff-legged-dumbbell-deadlift
Do you see any benefit if any to breaking up the program like this, apart from say the time you have to do the work out/resting time?
Just curious as this seems like a lot of different exercises that you could probably achieve the same muscle group activations from a smaller number of compound exercises?
Im no guru, have only been lifting for just over 6 weeks and have seen marked improvement in the increase weight I am no repping along with a change in body compostion, just curious on your oppinion :drinker:0 -
This workout will do far, far more than you can do with a home dumbbell set (and is free), only takes 30-45 minutes, 3x a week...and is stupidly effective:Another Bodyweight Culture article, this one courtesy Cheesedog at:
http://www.bodyweightculture.com/forum/showthread.php?11058-Bodyweight-Strength-Training
Bodyweight Strength Training
People are always asking about strength training using only bodyweight. This is nothing new or revolutionary. I am borrowing HEAVILY from Rippatoe, Bill Starr, and lots of other great authors and trainers. This is your basic 5 x 5 template. (To clarify, 5x5 is 5 reps x 5 sets. The idea is to work at a difficulty level where you could only do maybe 7-8 reps on the first set, and are struggling to finish 5 reps on the last set). You would do strength training 3 times a week, say Monday-Wednesday-Friday with the weekends off. These are done "lazy circuits" style, with about 1 minute rest between each set.
Workout A
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Horizontal push - 5 x 5
1C. Horizontal pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - flexion - 3 x 5
2B. Ab - static 3 x 30 seconds
Workout B
1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
1B. Vertical push - 5 x 5
1C. Hip dominant - 5 x 5
1D. Vertical pull - 5 x 5
2A. Ab - rotation - 3 x 5
2B. Grip and neck training - 3 x varies
Exercise Progressions - with regular weight training you can just add weight to the bar. With bodyweight progression is mostly about changing your leverage. These are just a few examples, I'm sure we could come up with dozens more if needed. You can always add resistance in the form of a weighted vest or backpack or resistance bands.
1. Knee Dominant -- squats, lunges, step-ups, bulgarian split squats, unilateral bent leg deadlift, partial one leg squat, one leg squat, box or stair pistols, full pistols.
2. Horizontal Push -- pushups, decline pushups, resistance pushups, side to side pushups, stair one arm pushups, negative one arm pushups, full one arm pushups.
3. Horizontal Pull -- body row, resistance body row, negative one hand row, incline one hand row, full one hand row.
4. Ab - flexion -- crunches, situps, resistance or incline situps, reverse situp, resistance or incline reverse situps, hanging knee or leg raise, hanging pikes, rollout from knees, rollout from feet, dragon flag. Also included are oblique moves like side lying crunches with or without resistance and side lying two leg raise.
5. Abs- static -- 4 point prone bridge, 3 point prone bridge, 2 point prone bridge, 4 point supine bridge, 3 point supine bridge.
6. Vertical Push -- pike pushup, hindu pushup, divebomber pushup, decline pike pushup, decline hindu pushup, decline divebomber pushup, one arm pike pushup, negative handstand pushup, handstand pushup with head touching floor, full handstand pushup.
7. Hip Dominant -- supine hip extension, good morning, one leg stiff leg deadlift, split one leg good morning, one leg supine hip extension, hyperextension, one leg hyperextension, natural glute-ham raise.
8. Vertical Pull -- jumping or assisted pullups, pullups, resistance pullups, side to side pullups, negative one hand pullups, one hand pullups. All these can refer to chinups or neutral grip pullups as well.
9. Ab - rotation -- twist crunches or situps, resistance or incline twist crunches or situps, russian twists, lying windshield wipers, standing rope rotations, hanging windshield wipers.
10. Grip and Neck Training -- for grip you can use handgrippers, deadhangs from a pullup bar (especially a fatbar or gripping a towel). For neck nothing beats wrestlers bridges. If you are involved in a striking martial art or sport, finger and fist pushups are very important also.
None of these lists have to end here. If you get strong enough you can always add resistance to your full range of motion one limb exercise. Or if you can do more than 5 one hand pushups do decline one hand pushups, or start working on one hand hindu and then eventually one hand dive bombers, and so on.
The nice thing about this routine is it scales dramatically depending on your fitness level. If you can't do even ONE regular pull up, you can scale it down and do assisted pull ups (legs on a chair), or ballistic pullups (where you jump to provide the initial momentum). It's actually easier to do properly when you're very unfit...because once you're healthy and strong...you're going to be searching for challenging enough exercises to only allow you 5 reps max by the finish of the 5 sets.
Trust me, it works.
ok, I'm confused. If there are 2 workouts and three days.....uhm, when do you do what?
It goes:
Monday A
Tuesday Rest or HIIT
Wednesday B
Thursday Rest or HIIT
Friday A
Saturday Rest or HIIT
Sunday Rest
Monday B
Tuesday Rest or HIIT
Wednesday A
Thursday Rest or HIIT
Friday B
Saturday Rest or HIIT
Sunday Rest
Start the next Monday with A...rinse and repeat.0 -
Buying dumbbells was the best thing I've ever done. I've been doing a full body workout 3 days a week for a month now and am definitely reaping the rewards.
Squats, Deadlifts, Overhead Press, Bench Press, One Armed Row, Bicep Curls, Tricep Extensions 3x10 followed by an ab workout (I do as many crunches as I can followed by planking for as long as I can repeatedly).
There is a lot of conflicting information to be found about strength training on the internet. It took me weeks to sort through everything then decide what would be best for me. The most important thing is finding a program that suits you and sticking with it.
I based my workout around this article: http://exercise.about.com/cs/exerciseworkouts/a/weight101.htm0
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