PeterS
Apr-27-08, 11:14 PM
I recently joined the gym at uni and got a friend to put together a routine because I don't know how to structure it. I'll try and stick to NightHunter's advice guide format...
Goals
Build a foundation of strength, particularly my legs because I'm pretty sure they're really underdeveloped.
Put on some lean muscle mass (I'm not sure what's realistic here and what's not; how likely is it to put on a kilo or two per month? Would it be likely I could be maybe 65kg by the end of July?)
Equipment
Joined the gym, as aforementioned. It's decently sized, with lots of equipment. There's only been a few times when I've had to wait for stuff, but that's never been longer than someone finishing off a set or two.
Currently...
I'm 18 years old, roughly 174cm tall (about 5'8" I think?) and weigh 61kg. Yep, pretty skinny. No idea what the actual body fat percentage is, but I guess it'd be on the regular-low scale of things. In terms of knowing what exercises are what, I think I've pretty much the basics down. I did PDHPE/Health in high school and we covered that, plus I have that Strength Training Anatomy book to reference off too.
The routine that I've been given splits the workouts into two sessions; the first focussing on chest, triceps and legs, while the second does back, biceps and shoulders. The routines look like this:
Session 1
Chest
Bench Press: 12@30kg, 10@37.5, 8@50, then maxed at 2@55
Dumbbell Press/: 10@7.5, 10@10, 8@12.5, 8@15
Dumbbell Flyes: 10reps x 4 sets (@7.5kg) [the '/' there means they're supersetted... Is that the normal way of writing this?]
Push-ups: 3 sets of 10 normal ones, 10 wide gripped and 10 diamonds.
Triceps
Straight-legged Dips: 20, 20, 15, 15
Tricep Push-down: 10@15, 10@20, 8@20, 8@20
Legs
Squats: 12@30, 10@40, 10@40, 8@50 (I need to up the weight here next time - as weak as my legs are, I can probably add another 5-10kg on top of that)
Leg Press: 10@40, 10@40, 8@45, 8@50 (Same notes as squats)
Split Stance Squats: 10@20, 10@25, 8@35, 8@35
Hamstring Curls: 10x4 (20kg)
Session 2: (I haven't done this routine yet, I only got it yesterday so I'll try and fill in the weights I don't know on Wednesday)
Shoulders
Military Press: 12@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@? (He just meant that I should up the weight and try and do as many as I could there)
Lateral Raises/: 10x4 (@?)
Front Raises: 10x4 (@?)
Upright Row/: 12@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@?
Shrugs: 10x4 (@?)
Back
Lat Pulldown: 10@45 8@50 8@50 6@55
One-armed Rows: 12@15, 10@17.5, 8@20, 6@22.5
Deadlifts: 10x4 (@?)
Pull-ups: 10x3
Biceps
Preacher Curls: 10@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@?
Alternate Biceps Curls: 10x3 (probably about 7.5kg)
Alternate Hammer Curls: 10x3 (again, probably about 7.5kg)
So, that's pretty much it in terms of what exercises I'll be doing. I also do some light swimming afterwards to stretch it out, normally about 30 minutes worth. The idea is for my week to look something like this:
Monday: Session 1
Tuesday: Session 2
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: Session 1
Friday: Session 2
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Rest
History
I've played a lot of sport, namely stuff like soccer/football, as well as a bit of gymnastics when I was younger (read: 7-11). I've been messing around with weights and stuff at home for maybe the last two years, but that wasn't that serious. I would just do grease-the-groove chin-ups on and off (I normally make it to about 20, then get bored and forget about it for a few weeks, then do it all over again), push-ups, plus some other stuff with the small amount of weights that we have here (bench press, tricep extensions, flyes, one-armed rows, curls etc)... Nothing special, just bits and pieces with barbells and dumbbells. I've been trying to do a bit of running lately because my cardiovascular endurance is horrible at the moment. I'm not sure how/when to fit that into this new routine though.
Well, that's how it is at the moment. If you could provide some feedback/tweaking/fixing/demolishing, it'd be much appreciated. :smile: Oh yeah, and when listing weights... Are kilograms or pounds generally preferred?
Goals
Build a foundation of strength, particularly my legs because I'm pretty sure they're really underdeveloped.
Put on some lean muscle mass (I'm not sure what's realistic here and what's not; how likely is it to put on a kilo or two per month? Would it be likely I could be maybe 65kg by the end of July?)
Equipment
Joined the gym, as aforementioned. It's decently sized, with lots of equipment. There's only been a few times when I've had to wait for stuff, but that's never been longer than someone finishing off a set or two.
Currently...
I'm 18 years old, roughly 174cm tall (about 5'8" I think?) and weigh 61kg. Yep, pretty skinny. No idea what the actual body fat percentage is, but I guess it'd be on the regular-low scale of things. In terms of knowing what exercises are what, I think I've pretty much the basics down. I did PDHPE/Health in high school and we covered that, plus I have that Strength Training Anatomy book to reference off too.
The routine that I've been given splits the workouts into two sessions; the first focussing on chest, triceps and legs, while the second does back, biceps and shoulders. The routines look like this:
Session 1
Chest
Bench Press: 12@30kg, 10@37.5, 8@50, then maxed at 2@55
Dumbbell Press/: 10@7.5, 10@10, 8@12.5, 8@15
Dumbbell Flyes: 10reps x 4 sets (@7.5kg) [the '/' there means they're supersetted... Is that the normal way of writing this?]
Push-ups: 3 sets of 10 normal ones, 10 wide gripped and 10 diamonds.
Triceps
Straight-legged Dips: 20, 20, 15, 15
Tricep Push-down: 10@15, 10@20, 8@20, 8@20
Legs
Squats: 12@30, 10@40, 10@40, 8@50 (I need to up the weight here next time - as weak as my legs are, I can probably add another 5-10kg on top of that)
Leg Press: 10@40, 10@40, 8@45, 8@50 (Same notes as squats)
Split Stance Squats: 10@20, 10@25, 8@35, 8@35
Hamstring Curls: 10x4 (20kg)
Session 2: (I haven't done this routine yet, I only got it yesterday so I'll try and fill in the weights I don't know on Wednesday)
Shoulders
Military Press: 12@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@? (He just meant that I should up the weight and try and do as many as I could there)
Lateral Raises/: 10x4 (@?)
Front Raises: 10x4 (@?)
Upright Row/: 12@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@?
Shrugs: 10x4 (@?)
Back
Lat Pulldown: 10@45 8@50 8@50 6@55
One-armed Rows: 12@15, 10@17.5, 8@20, 6@22.5
Deadlifts: 10x4 (@?)
Pull-ups: 10x3
Biceps
Preacher Curls: 10@?, 10@?, 8@?, max@?
Alternate Biceps Curls: 10x3 (probably about 7.5kg)
Alternate Hammer Curls: 10x3 (again, probably about 7.5kg)
So, that's pretty much it in terms of what exercises I'll be doing. I also do some light swimming afterwards to stretch it out, normally about 30 minutes worth. The idea is for my week to look something like this:
Monday: Session 1
Tuesday: Session 2
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: Session 1
Friday: Session 2
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Rest
History
I've played a lot of sport, namely stuff like soccer/football, as well as a bit of gymnastics when I was younger (read: 7-11). I've been messing around with weights and stuff at home for maybe the last two years, but that wasn't that serious. I would just do grease-the-groove chin-ups on and off (I normally make it to about 20, then get bored and forget about it for a few weeks, then do it all over again), push-ups, plus some other stuff with the small amount of weights that we have here (bench press, tricep extensions, flyes, one-armed rows, curls etc)... Nothing special, just bits and pieces with barbells and dumbbells. I've been trying to do a bit of running lately because my cardiovascular endurance is horrible at the moment. I'm not sure how/when to fit that into this new routine though.
Well, that's how it is at the moment. If you could provide some feedback/tweaking/fixing/demolishing, it'd be much appreciated. :smile: Oh yeah, and when listing weights... Are kilograms or pounds generally preferred?