Quote: (09-21-2014 01:35 PM)cmrocks Wrote:
Hi,
Most novice to intermediate programs that I see recommend lifting for approximately 1 to 1.5 hours, 3 or 4 times a week.
Due to my schedule with work and commuting, I would prefer to workout 5 or 6 times a week but for a shorter duration. I leave early for work to beat the rush but I need to fill about 45 minutes until I really need to be at work. My preference would be to just go to the gym everyday before work.
Is there anything inherently wrong about working out more frequently but with less volume per workout?
Yes This is the best workout I have seen for a potential everyday workout.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_8369kB...ZDU1E/edit
I have attached it below. There are follow up parts that explain the workout which I will link to if I can find them.
While almost any workout can make someone look better, a program with the primary goal of making men and women sexier is appropriate for many people that workout. In part 1 I discussed why looking sexier is an admirable goal, and why it is the main goal most people have when they workout. In part 2 I went over the considerations that need to be made when training females to look more sexually attractive, before getting into the considerations for men in part 3. In this last part I will go over the specifics of program design for both men and women.
For the men’s and women’s programs many of the same worouts will be used. For this reason I will list the workouts first and then explain how they will be used.
* (Mens only rep range): Example 3 Sets: (Mens # of reps), women’s # of reps
Unless otherwise listed men should take 2-3 minutes of rest between sets and women should take 1.5 – 2 minutes of rest between sets.
WORKOUT A
1. Incline DB Bench Press – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
2. Weighted Pull-ups – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
3. Weighted or un-weighted Dips – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
4. Standing Alternating DB Curls – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
5. DB Lateral Raises – 3 sets x 8-12 reps
WORKOUT B
1. Sumo Deadlifts – 2 sets: 4-6
2. DB Bulgarian Split Squats – 3 sets: 6-12
3. Standing One Leg Calf Raises – 3 sets x 8-12 reps
4. Hanging Leg Raises – 3 sets x 6-12 reps
5. Kneeling Abs Wheel – 3 sets x 6-12 rep
WORKOUT C
1. Seated Shoulder Press – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
2. Dumbell Rows – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
3. Close Grip Bench Press – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
4. Seated DB Curls – 3 sets: (4-8), 8-10
5. DB Lateral Raises – 3 sets x 8-12 reps
WORKOUT D
1. Barbell Glute Bridge or Barbell Hip Thruster – 3 sets: 8-15
2. Romanian Deadlift – 2 sets: 6-12
3. walking lunge – 2 sets: 8-12 *per leg
4. Standing 1 leg calf raise– 3 sets: 8-12 reps
5. Kneeling Ab Wheel – 3 sets x 6-12 reps
HIIT / SPRINTs
*Always begin with 3-10 minutes of warming up such as a jog, or a few sets of mobility drills.
For HIIT, alternate periods of all out sprinting with walking or jogging. For High intensity interval training the objective it to not recover completely before the next interval begins. Use a work/rest period of 30/30 (seconds) 60/60, 20/40, 30/60, 15/45, 30/90. All of these work / recovery schemes can be used effectively. The important thing to remember is that you should be working at an all out effort during your work periods, and should begin your next interval before you are fully recovered. Your heart rate should not drop below 120BPM during the duration of the workout. Most workouts should consist of between 3-5 minutes of warming up, followed by 10-20 minutes of intervals, and another 3-5 minute cool down.
For sprints, the objective is to progressively increase the speed at which you complete a specified distance. The main difference between a sprint workout and an HIIT workout is that you will recovery almost completely between repetitions of sprints. An example of a sprint workout could be 3-5 minutes of warming up by jogging or utilizing some type of mobility drill. After this you could go into all out sprints of varying distance. It Is advisable to start with a submaximal effort at a manageable distance when beginning, and to gradually build intensity over the weeks. An example of this would be to start with 6 x 80 meters at 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 90%, 90% for workout 1, and progress to something closer to max effort such as 6 x 100 meters at 75%, 80%, 90%, 95%, 95%, 95% as your conditioning improves.
Women example setup
Week 1 Week 2
Monday Workout B Workout C
Tuesday HIIT HIIT
Wednsday Workout A Workout B
Thursday Off Off
Friday Workout D Workout A
Saturday Sprints Sprints
Sunday Off Off
Week 3 Week 4
Monday Workout D Workout A
Tuesday HIIT HIIT
Wednsday Workout C Workout D
Thursday Off Off
Friday Workout B Workout C
Saturday Sprints Sprints
Sunday Off Off
The women’s example setup repeats itself every month. You alternate between both upper and lower body workouts A&C and B&D. Because there are only 3 weight training workouts a week you will repeat the sequence only once a month. The important thing to remember is to not lift weights on consecutive days. If you are not able to make it into the gym drop the conditioning or sprint days. Do not drop the weight training days. The program’s long term effectiveness relies on consistency with your weight training. Additionally on one of the off days you can perform low intensity steady state cardio. Some people just like feeling like they are making progress every day. For those people I would suggest taking one of the off days and performing the cardiovascular activity of your choice at no more then 75% of your age related maximum heart rate, for no more then 40 minutes. For example a 30 year old women would take her age related max heart rate 220-30=190 and times that by 75%, 190 x .7 = 143. So in this example on one of the off days the trainee could perform any type of cardiovascular activity at a heart rate at or below 142 BPM for 40 minutes or less. Keep in mind that going too hard on your off day will begin to seriously limit the intensity you can put into your workout days. So if you are unsure of where to place the majority of your effort, it should be put into your weight training workouts.
Men’s example setup
Week 1 Week 2
Monday Workout A Workout A
Tuesday HIIT HIIT
Wednsday Workout B Workout B
Thursday Off Off
Friday Workout C Workout C
Saturday Sprints Sprints
Sunday Off Off
The men’s example setup repeats the same workout sequence every week. The two upper body workouts combine to really hit the musculature surrounding the shoulders. Over time, this will greatly enhance the size of the shoulders in comparison to the waist. Like the women’s workout the mens workout includes a sprint and HIIT session every week. For the men the HIIT session is arguably more important then the sprint workout. For this reason, if you can only make 4 workouts per week drop the sprint workout. If you can only hit the gym 3 times per week drop the HIIT workout. And finally if you can only make it to the gym twice per week simply rotate the workouts. Week one you would perform workouts A and B, followed by week 2 where you perform workouts C and A, followed by week 3 where you perform workouts B and C, before returning to week one. For those extra ambitious men who feel that 5 workouts a week are not, you can perform low intensity steady state cardio for up to 30 minutes on one of your rest days. I would keep the intensity at or below 70% of your age predicted max heart rate. So for a 30 year old man that would be (220-30=190), (190 x .7 = 133). So you could hop on a treadmill or elliptical and perform cardio at or around 135 BPM for no more then 30 minutes.
*Program Notes
As you can see there is a lot of overlap between what men and women should be doing in the gym in order to improve their sex appeal. The majority of what men and women should be doing is focused on improving the basic strength, mobility and energy production capabilities of the body. Men have a larger percentage of their body’s musculature in their upper bodies and therefore need to spend a larger percentage of their training time and effort on their upper bodies. Women have a larger percentage of muscle in their lower bodies, and therefore should spend a larger percentage of their time and effort on their lower bodies. In the men’s split they hit a basic lower body strength workout once a week. This will keep their leg strength going up while adding some overall muscle. Women hit two specific leg workouts. They have one leg workout focused on overall leg strength, and another focused on adding muscle to the glutes and hamstrings. Along with the sprint workouts and a sensible diet this will assist women in developing their glutes and reducing the troublesome fold of skin many women have right around their hamstring/gluteus tie in (area that tends to sag right below the butt). The mens program focuses hits the type II muscle fibers slightly harder at the expense of type I and IIa fibers by using slightly decreased rep ranges and slightly increased rest periods for some of the big lifts. Women have a slightly higher percentage of type I and IIa fibers then men and can therefore benefit from a slightly greater workload and shorter rest periods. Finally the recommendations for cardio for men are slightly lower due to their overall decreased relative ability to tolerate overall work. In other words men see a sharper drop off in results when they begin to do to much exercise. Women tend to see a more gradual decrease in results, and can usually tolerate more additional work such as cardio. For this reason you will see the cardio recommendations for men and relatively less intense and include a shorter total work time.
In addition to utilizing this workout as written, this framework is meant to highlight the main differences between a men’s physique enhancement program, and a women’s physique enhancement program. This training plan is intended for someone with a normal life, and as such can be adapted to 2-6 days a week of training. Obviously someone looking to become a fitness competitor who has aligned their lifestyle to accommodate training and recovery might be able to handle a greater total workload, specifically more weight training. For the majority of people, with normal lives, 3 days a week seems to work well. In addition it is beneficial for normal people to get some quality energy systems work for their bodies main energy systems. This program will without a doubt help to improve a man’s shoulder to waist ratio, and a women’s hip to waist and shoulder to waist ratios. In addition anyone who includes these workouts with a sensible diet and rest program will become a tougher, more fit individual over time.
