full body workout?

[hammer421]

My personal trainer said to do a full body workout 3 times a week for the first three months using 3 sets of 10-12 reps, after six weeks switch the exercise routine to avoid plateauing. following the first 3 month peroid do 6 weeks of heavy weight 3 sets 5 reps. Is this good advice or should i start isolating the muscle groups? Ive been working out for 1.5 months now

 

[sabre81]

This could go either way i suppose depending on your goals. I say avoid the full body workout. Others may disagree.

 

[hammer421]

he suggested this to build mass first then worry about indivdiual muscles and building definition

 

[sabre81]

Hmm, my personal opinion, to build mass you need to hit a muscle group hard then rest it. Rest is where the building occurs. There wont be much rest hitting the muscle group directly every other day. Definitely concentrate on the compound movements like pulll ups, bench press, squat, deadlift etc.. but i wouldnt do a full body workout if your goal is to build mass.

 

[hammer421]

well, so far i've gone from 110 to 115 in 6 weeks

 

[sabre81]

If your taking creatine, that could be water weight. Best bet in my opinion is get a good diet going and just train religously and youll see results. Again, i dont like the full body routine for building mass, especially for a full 3 months.

 

[hammer421]

thanks, i just started the creatine. I guess i'll have to do some research and talk to the trainer again.

 

[shellspeare]

what do you do sabre, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[sabre81]

Well im far too lazy to type out my eintire workout /
I do a 4 day split.

tues - chest/triceps
thurs - back/biceps
Friday - shoulders OR legs depending on how i feel.
Sunday - shoulders or legs depending on what i did on friday.

I switch the days up sometimes, sometimes i do a 5 day split sometimes i do a 3 day split. Unlike most people, i do not plan my workouts. I formulate my workout on the drive to the gym and when im there. so i basically wing it As for exercises, i just do a routine until it stops 'working' or producing results i suppose.

 

[LAM]

you can do a full body workout Mon-Wed-Fri but you have to use low volume. Full body workouts are great for increasing overall muscular endurance. you also need to focus on your diet to take advantage of your training sessions...

 

[Luke9583]

he suggested this to build mass first then worry about indivdiual muscles and building definition

deffinition comes with lower body fat.

 

[shellspeare]

As you can see from my pic i've way too much body fat and i'm trying to tone up and lose the fat, any tips?

 

[sabre81]

As you can see from my pic i've way too much body fat and i'm trying to tone up and lose the fat, any tips?

too much body fat? if im judging from your avatar, you could have fooled me As for tips, just manage that diet and keep on training, and drink tons of water, at least a gallon a day. I cant give any tips from personal experience because ive worked from bones up. i would definitely run if your not already doing so, as my friend droped a good amount of weight, and toned up from running every other day.

 

[soxmuscle]

Sabre -- You got some massive arms, very nice.
Shellspeare -- Judging from your avatar, you look fine. A good diet, a good cardio and weightlifting routine, aswell as talking with the Jodi's, Britchicks, etc. to get some tips and you'll be just fine.

 

[CowPimp]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with full body routines. Far too many people on these forums are biased towards working out muscles once per week. In fact, according the some info I read on the HST website there are hormonal benefits to working out muscles more frequently. You just have to make sure you use the right volume. For example, instead of doing 9 sets for chest, do 3 x 3 days per week. Here is the routine I recommend to beginners, which I update based on newly acquired knowledge:

Full Squats 3 x 8-12
Straight-Legged Deadlifts 2 x 8-12

Deadlifts 3 x 8-12
Bent Rows 2 x 8-12

Bench Press 3 x 8-12
Military Press 2 x 8-12

Decline Situps 3 x 8-12

 

[shellspeare]

too much body fat? if im judging from your avatar, you could have fooled me As for tips, just manage that diet and keep on training, and drink tons of water, at least a gallon a day. I cant give any tips from personal experience because ive worked from bones up. i would definitely run if your not already doing so, as my friend droped a good amount of weight, and toned up from running every other day.

Thanks for the advice and compliment. I have been running, managed to get myself up to 3 miles a day (huge achievment as i couldn't have walked that 6 months ago) but it only seems to be toning my legs, my arms and upper body need loads of work.

 

[Cold Iron]

Thanks for the advice and compliment. I have been running, managed to get myself up to 3 miles a day (huge achievment as i couldn't have walked that 6 months ago) but it only seems to be toning my legs, my arms and upper body need loads of work.

Diet is key. Post your diet in the nutrition section and you should get lots of great feedback.

 

[Robboe]

How long you been training for?

Probs a good idea doing a full body w/o for the first few months in order to develop and master the mind-muscle connection. Once you can lift with perfect form and concentrate on the target muscle then maybe start a split routine.