Bodybuilding Routine

When you hit the gym to workout, you are going to need a decent bodybuilding routine. Sure, there are people that head to the gym and perform random workouts. They might jump all over the map hitting different muscle groups. Honestly, it is possible to develop a somewhat decent physique with a workout of that nature. But, you will never reach your full potential. What you want instead is a logical bodybuilding routine.

Safety- When you are performing the proper routine you can reduce the potential for suffering a training related injury. Venturing into an advanced split training routine too soon can lead to serious injuries. Selecting a good - and good being defined as appropriate - bodybuilding routine you can avoid disaster scenarios where you become injured. A good routine is also a proper one for your experience level. Don't lose sight of that fact.

Basic Concepts

What to expect - most new bodybuilders, regardless of age, get into it after seeing a picture of some current/past bodybuilder.

Everyone is different, with different lifestyles, and age plays a big role, so exact numbers are impossible to quote, but most new lifters see impressive strength and size gains in their first six months or so of training.

In terms of actual gains, depending on the factors listed above, maybe 12-15 lbs. of muscle, 15 lbs. being on the high end. This assumes you are natural, by the way. Drugs are a personal choice, but my experience is as a natural bodybuilder, so I'm not going to pretend to know a lot about how steroids affect your gains. Having said that, it makes sense to at least be aware of what they are and what they do, purely from a knowledge standpoint. There are enough knowledge resources available on line that you can learn about them if you choose to pursue that option.

Your First Routine

The classic 3-days a week, full-body routine, training Monday-Wednesday-Friday, is of little use beyond getting a feel for the exercises and working on form. Why? Because this type of routine allows for next to no recovery, once you start training hard. 

Right now, right at the beginning, is when you want to understand how critical proper recovery is. Growth cannot occur if you are not recovering from your workouts, regardless of your level of experience. Recovery does not happen from hitting the gym 6 days a week for hours on end, something I'll talk about when I discuss common mistakes.

The above routine is useful as discussed, and should be used for the first month, to allow the development of good form, rep performance and getting a feel for what exercise works what muscles. By the start of the second month, you should use a split routine, this will allow you to train harder and to use more exercises, and this type of routine enhances recovery significantly.

Sets And Reps:
 The first month, after warm-ups, 2-3 sets per body part is good. Reps at this stage are 10-12 per set.

Weight:

Your first month is more about learning how to perform the exercises correctly, so you should be using a weight that easily allows you to hit the prescribed 10-12 reps, with maybe 1-2 tough reps at the end.

Trial and error with weights really is an easy and somewhat fast way to get started - expect your first session to be one of trying different weight to determine comfortable working poundages. There are, of course, more accurate but more complicated ways to determine starting weights but this method works well enough.

Pyramiding:

Pyramiding refers to starting with an easy warm-up set with light weight, hitting 15 easy reps. Add weight and decrease the reps over 1-2 more sets ( I like to use 3 warm-up sets) until you arrive at your first "working set," the first set where you are training with your required reps, in the example, 8 reps.

This set, seeing as how you are a beginner, should still be easy, but the last 1-2 reps should be a little tough to complete.

Example:

• Set #1 = 15 reps
• Set #2 = 12 reps
• Set #3 = 10 reps
• Set #'s 4-5 = 8 reps

Pyramiding will be introduced along with split routines in the second month.  

 Progressive Resistance:

One of the basic tenets of weight lifting: you must either add weight, add sets, increase intensity or decrease rest time to encourage continued progress. At this stage, adding weight makes the most sense and will be recommended throughout the first 6 months or so. But by the very nature of acquiring experience, you'll also be adding sets. Decreasing rest time and the use of intensity techniques is used as you reach strength plateaus, when you are more advanced.

Rest Between Sets:

At first, you may find you need 2-3 minutes between sets, working down to 1 minute is ideal. As you get in better shape, you may find you need even less. A good rule of thumb is to rest just long enough to catch your breath.

Rep Tempo/Performance:

You want to take a few seconds (2-3) to raise the weight, and a few seconds to lower it, slow and controlled, not just heaving it up there any way you can and then letting the bar drop back to the start position.

You can pause at the top for 1 second and squeeze the muscle being worked, this may help develop a sense of what muscles are doing what during each exercise. There is more than one way to perform a rep, and there are numerous tempos you can use, but for now, follow the above.

Mind-Muscle Link:

This refers to the idea of being able to feel the muscle being worked. This requires being in touch with your body and the functions of your muscles. Take the time to look at anatomy, you should know what each muscle is called and what it does, and you should try to flex these muscles to get a feel for each one.

As you work out, think about that muscle and it's function. Try to focus on the muscle as your going through your sets. In time, you will have no problem "connecting" with the muscle you are working.

Form:

Proper performance of every exercise is critical. Doing an exercise with poor form can easily lead to injuries, and can limit your progress. The point is to make the target muscles work hard, not just heave the weight around however you happen to do it.

Bodybuilding.com has complete descriptions and video demonstrations of every exercise I'll list in the upcoming "routines" sections, so take the time to watch them and take the time to work on proper execution with a light weight. If you have a training partner, they can help you get your form down. The time spent now will lead to much better long term results with a much smaller chance of injury.

Training Diary:

From day 1, you should keep a log of your exercises, weight used, reps and sets performed, time the workout started and ended, and how it felt: was this set or that set hard, too easy, how did the exercise seem to feel. This is your guidebook that allows you to chart progress from workout to workout.

Routine #1 - Month #1

Perform on Monday/Wednesday/Friday. Time of day doesn't matter. If those days do not work, adjust to your schedule, as long as you work out every other day or no more than 2 days in between.

• Squats - 2 warm-up sets, 15-20 reps, 2 working sets, 12 reps. The squat is considered by many to be the best over-all exercise out there - it hits, either directly or indirectly, most of the muscles of the body. Primarily, it will work the legs, but your lower back will also come into play as well.
• Deadlifts - 2 warm-up sets, 15 reps, 2 working sets, 10 reps. This is like the Squat, working many muscles of the body at once, but primarily a back exercise.
• Chins ( or lat pulldowns) - as many chins as you can do, or 2 sets of pulldowns for 12 reps The key here is to begin the pull with your lats, not your arms. This is an important part of back training and you want to think about it from Day 1.

• Barbell Curls - 1 set, 12-15 reps. Don't swing the weight up, let your biceps pull it up.
• Bench Press - 2 warm-up sets, 15 reps, 2 working sets, 10-12 reps. This can be a hard exercise to feel for some people, as this hits the front delts and triceps pretty hard as well as the chest. You have to think about the muscle being worked, in time you will feel the exercise there.
• Seated Overhead Press - 2 sets, 12 reps this works mostly front and side deltoids.
• Triceps Extensions - 1 set, 10 reps. Let your triceps push the weight, if you feel this in the elbows, adjust where your elbows are - bring them a little closer to your head, or move them out a little.
• Crunch - 2 sets, 15 reps.

Cardio:

If fat loss is your primary goal, you'll need to add some cardio to your program. To start, I would use a simple program of 20 minutes 3 times a week and gradually build up to longer sessions and perhaps one extra session a week.

Use whatever cardio equipment you like, a treadmill is a great choice. You can help the time pass by listening to music or watching TV. Try to do cardio either after weights or first thing in the morning.

Basic Nutrition

One of the most misunderstood areas for new bodybuilders is nutrition. I talk to guys all the time that have no idea of their daily calorie intake, their daily protein intake, their carbohydrate intake. They have no idea of what types of foods they should be eating, or when they should be eating them. They don't know what supplements do what and what they should using. Let me refer readers to some of my other articles that detail these areas.

Your protein intake should be 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. Take this total and divide by 6, this is the number of meals you need to eat every day. By meals, I don't mean 6 five-course feasts. I mean smaller meals. You should be eating every 3 hours, 2-3 meals can be a protein shake and a low fat, low sugar sports or granola bar. A meal like this works great if you're in a hurry.

Carbohydrate intake should be 2 grams per pound of bodyweight. Fat intake should be watched and kept low, for me low is 7 grams or less. I recommend eating clean, the sample food lists and diet will reinforce this, clean eating results in fat intake being kept low by the very nature of what you're ingesting every meal, in this way fat intake takes care of itself.
 
Sample Food Lists:

Protein:

• Lean beef
• Chicken
• Turkey
• Fish
• Low fat dairy (such as skim milk, or eggs using 2-3 whites to 1 yolk)

Carbohydrate:

• Oatmeal
• Brown rice
• Sweet potatoes
• Multi or whole grain breads (in moderation)

Pre and post work out, you want simple carbs, such as fruit or yogurt, these are usually combined with protein powder as part of a shake.

Fats:

• Cold water fish
• Sunflower seeds
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Peanuts
• Canola oil
• Safflower oil

Sample Meal Plan:

Here's a sample meal plan for one day:

Breakfast:

• Omelet - 1 yolk to 2 egg whites
• Oatmeal
• 1 scoop protein shake

Mid Morning Snack:

• 2 scoops protein shake
• 1 granola bar

Lunch:

• Lean beef on whole grain bread
• veggies
• water

Mid Day Snack:

• 2 scoops protein shake
• 1 granola bar

Dinner:

• Lean meat
• sweet potato
• salad
• water

Evening Snack:

• 2 scoops protein shake
• 1 granola bar
• or protein pudding

Calories:

Serving sizes should be based on your appetite, you should never be over full when done eating but should be satisfied. Daily calorie intake should be based on the following formula: which takes into account your metabolism and activity level. Here's what you do:

Body weight x 10 (men) or 9 (women) x activity factor x metabolism level.

Activity factor is determined like this:

• sedentary lifestyle (sitting a lot, no real exercise) = 1.1
• mildly active - standing at work, 2-3 workouts a week = 1.2
• very active = 1.3

Metabolism level is determined like this:

• fast metabolism = 1.1
• average = 1.0
• slow = .9

Here's an example for a 170lb man:

170x10 = 1700 x 1.2 (mildly active) = 2040 x .9 (slow metabolism) = 1836 calories per day.

For this same man, let's assume he has a faster metabolism and is more active:

170 x 10 = 1700 x 1.3 = 2210 x 1.1 = 2431 calories per day.

This formula determines what you need to maintain your current weight. If you want to add muscle, take your base calorie intake and add 500 quality calories a day, divided over your 6 meals. When adding calories, monitor how the extra calories effect your physique. Pay attention to your midsection, you want to gain muscle, not fat.

If fat loss is your goal, decrease calories by about 500 per day. Be careful to reduce carb intake after dinner, and keep an eye on your sugar intake, really the only time you should have any type of sugary or fast carb is in the morning and around your workout.
 
Pre/Post Workout:

On training days, you should make two additions to your eating plan: a pre/during workout drink and a post workout shake. One of the newer concepts in supplementation is the idea of a carb/ protein drink that you can have leading up to and during the workout.

An example of this might be Gatorade with a packet of Amino Vital. Probably the most common example is a carb drink like Vitargo mixed with protein and maybe creatine. This keeps you in an anabolic state while training, which speeds up recovery and can promote faster gains.

Conclusion –

My advice is to keep it simple until you start to get a feel for the exercises and the lifestyle- just do the basics for now- see how your body responds, see how much rest you need to recover fully, etc.

I would not worry about the cardio just yet, concentrate on building some muscle first- that will make it easier to see what results you get from working out (less variables in the equation make analysis much easier). Keep up the healthy diet, as it is the most important thing. Make sure you get enough protein (and calories, in general) to support muscular growth.

Basic Full-Body Starter Routine

(MWF are workout days)
Quads/Hams- Barbell squat or Leg press (squat preferred)/Deadlift
(alternate these two exercises on each workout day: if you squat on Monday, you will deadlift on Wednesday, then squats again on Friday). These two exercises will increase your metabolism, and also overall strength, by leaps and bounds if you work hard at them.

Chest- Flat bench press
Back- Bent over rows or pullups
Shoulders- Lateral raises or dumbell press
Biceps- Curls (BB or DB)
Calves- Seated calf raise/standing calf raise (alternate these exercises in the same manner as the squat/deadlifts, as they target different aspects of the lower leg musculature.

If, on Wednesday, you are still fatigued from Monday's workout, take an extra day off. You'll get the most out of your workouts if you feel fresh- not fatigued or tired when you lift.

Good luck!!