Weight Training Workouts Build Muscle Fast

For those of you who don't know a 3 day a week total body workout simply means hitting all your body parts in 1 workout doing it 3 days a week.

Back in the bad old days( pre steroid monsters this is how all the top bodybuilding and strength athletes trained.

Good starting point for beginners but can be used by anyone. You can adjust your sets and reps to your fitness level.

Monday: This is your heaviest day

1- Squats 4 sets, 6-10 reps

2- Bench Press 4 sets, 6-10 reps

3- Bent-over-Rows 4 sets, 6-10 reps

4- Calf Raises 3 sets, 8-15 reps

5- Presses 4 sets, 8-10 reps

6- Tricep Extensions 3 sets, 8-12 reps

7- Barbell Curls 3 sets, 8-12 reps

8- Crunches 3 sets 10-15 reps

Wednesday: Lighter weights and higher reps

1) Deadlifts 4 sets, 8-12 reps

2) Incline Bench Press 4 sets, 8-12 reps

3) Wide grip Upright Row 3 sets, 8-12 reps

4) Dumbell lunges 3 sets 8-12 reps

5) Close grip bench presses 3 sets, 8-12 reps

6) Dumbell incline curls 3 sets, 8-12 reps

Friday:Same as Monday decrease your weight for each exercise by 15%

On Tuesday and Thursday do some Interval and Tabata Training

I like to change things up and challenge myself. This workout involves doing 3-4 compound weight training exercises and 3-4 Interval Training exercises.

This is more of an advanced type of workout(some people think it's nuts). For a beginner you can cut down on the amount of sets say to 3 and increase the reps to 8-10.

If you are a seasoned trainer use the 5 x 5 method on your compound exercises.

Monday:The heaviest weight I can handle for the reps

1- Bench Press(barbell) 5 sets, 5-8 reps

2- Bent-Over-Rows(barbell) 5 sets, 5-8 reps

3- Presses(barbell) 5 sets, 5-8 reps

4- Close grip Bench Presses 5 sets, 5-8 reps

Intervals:remember Intervals are done one right after the other.

1- Dumbell or Kettlebell Thrusts 5x8

2- Dumbell Squat and Upright Row 5x8

3- Barbell High Pull 5x8

Tuesday: Off eat clean and rest

Wednesday:

1- Squats 6x5-8

2- Barbell Curls 4x6-8

3- Romainian Deadlifts 4x6-8

Intervals:

1- Dumbell or Kettlebell Snatches 4x8 (each arm)

2- Dumbell or Kettlebell Swing 4x8

3- Dumbell or Kettlebell Cleans 4x8

Thursday: Off

Friday: same as Monday change out exercises Incline instead of flat bench, deadlifts instead of bent-over-rows etc.

Saturday: Off

Sunday: Same as Wednesday change out exercises.

Now keep in mind I have been working out for years and only follow this for 2-3 weeks at a time.

When you decide to start working out one of the first things you need to decide is how often do you want to weight train.

A training split is simply deciding how many days a week to devote to weight training and what muscle groups to train on what days.

Your decisions should be based on your Bodybuilding and weight loss goals, work schedule and social obligations.

Your training goals are based on what you want to accomplish, weight loss gain some lean musclea or do you aspire to build huge pro bodybuilder size muscles.

Training for size and strength requires training each muscle group 1-2 times per week. To lose weight and shape and tone you might want to hit each muscle group 2-3 times a week plus doing Tabata's and Interval's.

Whole Body Split is exactly as it sounds training each muscle group 3 times a week. Typically this is done on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday split or some variation of.

This type of split is great for fat loss, muscle endurance and shaping and toning. If you put in 2 other days of Tabata and Interval training you have a fine fat loss workout week.

Training your whole body in one workout does require extra time per workout. To get the best effects you should do 4 sets 2 exercises per muscle group.

Two Day Split In this split your working 2-3 muscle groups in one workout. As an example:

Monday and Thursday
Chest, Delts and Triceps
Tuesday and Friday
Back, Legs and Biceps

This is a good schedule for size and strength training 2 days on 1 off 2days training and 2 off as it gives you rest days inbetween. When training rest is very importent it's not in the gym where the effects of training take place but while you are resting.

Avoid Building Muscle The Wrong Way! Part 1

By Vince DelMonte

How would you feel if you discovered that almost everything you were doing with building muscle was dead wrong? Imagine all the time, money and effort you have spent in the gym was contributing to building muscle - the wrong way! Everything you have read on building muscle has left you with little to show for your hard earned efforts...

There are dozens of muscle building mistakes that we all fall victim to which results in bringing you progress to a complete halt. Don't be too hard on yourself, because like all things in life, building muscle is a learning process. That does not mean you must forfeit years of personal trail and error when we can learn the mistakes of seasoned trainers who walked before us.

To Continue reading click Build Muscle

Hi again this weeks tip 9/20/08 the secret to building serious muscle, losing weight and weight training in general.

Consistancy - If you don't weight train on a consistent basis you will never see the results you are looking for.

It's not always easy you work, you run the kids here and there it seems there is never enough time for anything else.

Tough make Time. You know you need to do it and you want to so make sure you set aside time for yourself. I know that's my attitude I am doing this for me. Hey 45 minutes 4 or 5 times a week is not going to interrupt anything.

And to keep your enthusiasim up don't be afraid to change up your workouts different exercise, change your exercise sequence etc.

Only consistent workouts will you improve your health and see the results in the mirror.

Okay that's it for this week Jag252

Hi this week's tip - When you train your Chest work the angles for a complete chest workout.

Everybody loves the flat Barbell Bench Press. Why? well it does prompt the most growth but it's also ego you can use the most weight in the flat bench.

If you want a great looking and strong chest you need to work it from all angles.

The flat bench works mainly the middle chest muscles and to a smaller degree the upper and lower. But if you want a great chest start using incline and decline presses.

Either with barbells or dumbells your choice. Dumbells do give you more range of motion. Most people when they work chest always do the flat bench first change it up every other workout do inclines first.

That is how you will get a great looking chest.

That's it for now talk to you next week! jag252

Last week's tip Is For The Begginner

Start With and Learn the Basic's

If you read any of my Lenses you know I'm a big believer in compound exercises.

The Begginning weight trainer should base his or her workout on these lifts while learning to do them properly. Start with very light weights till you can use text book form.

Injuries are no joke proper form is essential. Do Not let your ego take over.

Learn how to do each exercise properly add weight gradually be consistent in your workouts. These are the keys to getting fit and healthy.

Till Next Time

Jag252

Q. For shoulder exercises, you say that one needs to keep the shoulder-girdle down. I've always thought that one had to shrug the shoulder-girdle up for more effective shoulder presses. Can you tell me about this?

The reason you want to keep the shoulder girdle down is that if you let it come up, the trapezius muscles will assist with the press, reducing the tension you place on the delts. To better isolate the delts, you need to minimize trap involvement and this means keeping the shoulders down.

Raising the shoulder girdle isn't the end of the world but you'll get more out of the exercise if you keep the shoulder girdle down.

Do you still do barbell and dumbell presses for your Delts?

Want to try a killer exercise that will fry your Delts and add some variety to your delt workout?

Try this on for size!!

You are going to use a barbell for this and do 3 movements in one.

Dead hang clean
Front Press
Behind the Neck Press

From a hang clean position clean the weight to shoulder height.

Do a front shoulder Press

Bring the bar down behind your neck and then press back overhead.

Return bar to hang position. Repeat.

This will fry your Delts. Don't use to heavy a weight keep your reps around 8 for 4-5 sets.

A Back Blasting Superset - Bent-Over Rows to Deadlifts
By Nick Nilsson

Harness the power of the superset to
send your back training to the next level.

The power of supersets is undeniable. Supersets (doing 2 exercises one after another with no rest in between) are very effective for building strength and muscle mass.

The following is a superset for your back that will pile on muscle like no other. One word of warning: you should be comfortable doing both of these exercises separately before attempting them together in a superset. There will be a link to exercise performance tips and the end of this article.

The first exercise is the barbell bent-over row. You can use either an overhand, wide grip or an underhand, close reverse grip. Both grips are effective but work different areas of the back.

Select a weight that will cause you to reach failure in the 6 to 8 rep range. Do a hard set of bent-over rows then immediately after setting the weight down, move into the second exercise: deadlifts.

You will use the exact same weight for deadlifts, however, you may wish to change your grip to a mixed grip (one overhand, one underhand) so that you can hold onto the bar better.

Do reps of the deadlift until either your grip fails or until a rep before your back fails (don't do deadlifts to absolute failure - always keep the do-or-die rep in you).

After you get done with the deadlifts, your lats should be extremely pumped up.

There are several reasons why this superset is so effective:

1. It uses two of the best mass-building movements for your back (and body!).

2. The bent-over row uses the lats to actually move the weight while the deadlift uses the lats to help support the weight. Since the lats are already fatigued from the rowing, they will be forced to work far harder when you do the deadlifts. In a nutshell, the rest of your body will help push your lats harder!

3. The weight you use for bent-over rows should be relatively easy for you on the deadlift. This allows you to do even more reps with the deadlift.

4. It is very easy and convenient to go from the bent-over row to the deadlift. All you need to do is change your grip (if even that! You may choose to use the same grip.).

Give this superset a try in your next back workout. The results will speak for themselves!

For tips on exercise performance for the bent-over row and the deadlift go to:

Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss

------------------

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including
Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss
"The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of" "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of"

I decided to start recording some of my workouts here to give you some other workout options.

I go by how I feel and if for some reason I feel like doing a particular exercise I do it. Today I just felt like working Chest and Back together.

I also felt like doing them in two exercise complexes.

Complex#1

1 - Flat Bench Press(barbell)
2 - Bent Over Barbell Row

Complex#2
1 - Dips (Bodyweight Only)
2 - Cleans

Complex#3
1 - Incline Dumbbell Press
2 - Dumbbell Row

Complex #1 5 sets x 5-8 reps

Complex #2 5 sets x 5-10 reps

Complex #3 3 sets x 6-9 reps

That's it short and effective upper body workout.

Tommorrow I'm feeling Kettlebells and Intervals but you'll have to go to those lenses to see that workout.

This is the workout I did yesterday I was a little pressed for time so I made it short, sweet and Effective.

1 - Snatch Grip Deadlifts
6 sets of 5-8 reps

2 - Cleans
5 sets of 5-8 reps

3 - Dumbbell Thrusts
4 sets of 8 reps

That was it pretty much a total body workout efficient and effective.

And total time 40 minutes

Supersetting involves doing two exercises with no rest in between.

If your looking to pack on muscle you should know by now you want to concentrate on compound exercises.

So for arms Curls and Tricep presses right? Wrong!

Let me give you a superset to do for Bi's and Tri's:

Chin-ups and Dips.

Chins:
A chinup-specialization program will not only build impressive width and thickness in your back but also pack solid inches on your arms by promoting growth in your biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis and pronator teres.

Grasp a chin-up bar with a palms-facing-you grip. Your hands should be about 6 inches apart on the bar. You want to keep them fairly close together to maximize the tension on the biceps.

Dips:
Dips are one exercise that works all three heads of the triceps muscles at once. Often called the "upper body squat," dips are a must for any bodybuilding program.

When performing dips aimed at triceps mass, try to remain as upright as possible. Leaning forward will incorporate the pectoral muscles more, taking some of the workload off of the triceps.

That's it 5 sets of 6-8 reps will pound your arms.

Use this for arms when your workouts are geared for packing on serious muscle.

Try this Exercise next time you work your Triceps

After you click the link you'll get a full explanation of how to do it Plus a Video demo.

You Fit And Healthy

Interval Training

Nutrition 101

Guaranteed Weight Loss In 30 Days

Kettlebell Training

Tabata Training

Get Big Muscles In 3 Simple Steps

By Vince DelMonte

Do you know what it really takes to build big muscles? Do you think it's as simple as buying a gym membership, training each body once per week, slamming back some protein shakes and trying to eat as much chicken and tuna possible? Viola, you are big enough to enter a bodybuilding contest. Can you imagine it was that easy to build big muscles? Unfortunately, your monthly gym membership, regular weight training workouts and casual eating habits, isn't going to cut it. Here are five simple steps to getting big muscles fast :

Squat and Deadlift

Squatting and Deadlifting are known as two of the Big Three exercises that are responsible for power and mass muscle building. Consider these two animal exercises the kings of the jungle! Without them, you do not have a chance of survival. These two exercises alone, work out about 75% of your entire musculature, including your traps, shoulders, arms, back. Gluts, hams, calves and core muscles.

Not to mention the degree of intensity, squats and dead lifts force your body to release greater volumes of growth hormone, which results in bigger muscles all over your body. This spillover effect results in strength gains in all you other lifts which translates into a more muscular you! Squatting and dead lifting are especially critical for hard gainers because of the hormonal spikes affecting the entire body.

Stick to Compound Exercises

What is going to isolate more muscle fibers? A bench press or cable cross over? A military press or lateral raise? A chin up or bicep curl? A dip or tricep kickback? If you ever hope to get big muscles than compound lifts are not optional, they are mandatory. Stick to squats, leg presses, deadlifts, bench preses, barbell rows, pull ups, chin ups, over head presses, and dips.

If all you do is concentrate on building your puny muscles like arms and calves, then you will end up with exactly what you focus on - puny muscles!

Keep Your Rest Periods Honest

When was the last time you were in the gym and you watched the average guy time his recovery with a stop watch? Stop watches are not just for endurance athletes but should be used by every person who is serious about building big muscles.

Generally, the closer you lift to your one rep max, the longer the rest period and the higher the number of reps, the shorter the rest period. This is a crucial variable, which is often overlooked, yet will determine whether you create the correct training response.

For example, if you are training for maximal strength which requires at least 3-5 minutes rest between sets and you are only taking 2 minutes, you are not giving your nervous system an honest workout. If you are training for muscle size which requires shorter 30-90 second style recoveries but are gazing at the cute girl on the elliptical letting your rest periods carry over these ranges, you are not giving your metabolic system an honest workout.

Lastly, how do you know if you are truly stronger if you do not monitor your rest period? For example, let's say last week you bench pressed 135 pounds for four sets of ten. This week you bench pressed 145 pounds for four sets of ten. Assuming the rest period was identical for both workouts, this is a tremendous improvement and a measurable sign of improvement! However, what if you took an extra minute or two between each set on the recent workout? This means that you did not actually become stronger. You just had a longer rest period!

Conclusion

You now know that building big muscles is not easy as showing up at the gym and throwing back a few protein shakes. Apply these three simple steps in your next program and I promise that you will start building brand new muscle all over your body!

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of No Nonsense Muscle Building: Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain The Muscle Building Zone

He specializes in teaching skinny guys how to build muscle and gain weight quickly without drugs, supplements and training less than before.