Anyone do 2x a week full body lifting routine?

ana3067
ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Been doing a 4 day split for months now but I'm thinking that 2x a week might be better for recovery and minimizing over-training of muscles, especially since I'm in a deficit still and need to minimize muscle loss. I've had to do this method a few times lately because of school work and I found that my workouts were more vigorous but not draining, while also being a bit shorter when I total both days vs 4 days. Also nursing tennis elbow and had to lighten the load on some upper body stuff... maybe fewer days but still lots of intensity will help? I have found that upper body work feels more vigorous if I'm doing a FB day.

Any thoughts? Back when I first started a few years ago (lifted on and off) and I think last spring I was doing 3x a week but it was too much for me and the latter half of the WO always sucked on days 2 and 3.

Replies

  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    Sounds good.
    To minimize muscle loss, it doesn't take many sets per muscle group each workout - about 3 heavy sets for legs, and 2 for chest, back & shoulders. (That assumes compound exercises are done, not isolation.)

    For the tennis elbow, try eccentric exercises. ;)
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
    Cherimoose wrote: »
    Sounds good.
    To minimize muscle loss, it doesn't take many sets per muscle group each workout - about 3 heavy sets for legs, and 2 for chest, back & shoulders. (That assumes compound exercises are done, not isolation.)

    For the tennis elbow, try eccentric exercises. ;)
    I have a history of over-training, so I definitely am trying to make exercise as minimal but impactful as possible! I am not doing any isolation work, although probably will incorporate some when bulking if I feel some muscles are imbalanced aesthetically. Doing about 3 working sets for all muscle groups, although i do still need to find a good posterior chain exercise to do when I'm not doing deadlifts (cannot DL and squat on the same day or whichever one I do second will lack energy).


    And yes, I should do those! I am going to physical therapy and have been told to do grip strength work, which has helped. I'll give these a shot, might need to start being diligent with icing again too. I have some 3lb dumbbells that should do the trick.
  • philwrightfitness
    philwrightfitness Posts: 122
    When you say you have a history of over training... Is this a self diagnosis? It's an over used term....if you mean you are prone to injury or feeling drained then it may be your diet and technique that are at fault not your workout volume...over training is quite difficult to achieve .
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    I don't think it's a bad idea. You could at least try it and see how you like it and how recovery goes.
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
    herrspoons wrote: »
    Hmm... you have tennis elbow and feel tired and burnt out? Sounds like overtraining.

    Why not take a deload week and see how you feel after that, although if you have tennis elbow you may have to bite the bullet and stop upper body for a bit or find work arounds.

    Over the years I've learned the hard way that trying to train through injuries is a recipe for disaster.

    I have tennis elbow which has improved, but I do not feel burnt out. I am just wondering if fewer days, even though training for each muscle will be about the same per week, will allow for stronger recovery since I'm still eating at a deficit.

    I have been going to physical therapy for my tennis elbow btw, lowering the weights and increasing grip strength have pretty much been all I needed to do to alleviate the pain while lifting, so that has been my work around.
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
    SideSteel wrote: »
    I don't think it's a bad idea. You could at least try it and see how you like it and how recovery goes.

    That's true. I'm thinking I might at least try FB again though, I think I switched out of that when I should have just lessened the volume. I was also not warming up properly at that point, likely worsening the overall fatigue.

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