In my introductory post, I mentioned that Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are “gym days”. On those days, I do a full body workout as opposed to a split routine. A split routine is where each major body part is trained only once (maybe twice) a week. Here is an example of a split routine:
- Monday: Back/Biceps
- Tuesday: Shoulders/Abs
- Wednesday: Off
- Thursday: Legs/Calves
- Friday: Chest/Triceps
For a split routine, I would have to hit the gym at least one more day during the week. For what I’m trying to accomplish with regard to my health and fitness goals, I just simply wouldn’t have the time to dedicate to a split routine. After all, I’ll never be another Arnold Schwarzenegger anyway. I would rather use the other days to cross train, e.g. running, swimming, cycling. My goal is nothing more than to attain the highest level of overall fitness that I can. I couldn’t care less about being able to bench 300 pounds, but I do want to be fit enough to run a (half) marathon or do a (sprint) triathlon.
WIth all of that being said, I thought I’d share the full body routine I’m currently using. I’ve tried many variations in the past, but I’ve seen better results with this one than any of the others. I must give credit where credit is due – I found this routine on t-nation (I won’t link the site because it can be pretty risque) and it was designed by Chad Waterbury. I’ve removed or changed some (slightly) offensive wording. I hope you get the same results that I have.
Every session is going to consist of six exercises.
It’s imperative to base your exercise selection around compound, multi-joint exercises. Four out of the six exercises for each session must be compound exercises. Six single-joint isolation exercises ain’t gonna do the trick. But, you can perform a few of the recommended single-joint exercises for two of the six exercises. Here’s the list you must choose from:
Compound Exercises
- Chest: Incline, flat, decline barbell or dumbbell bench presses. Wide-grip dips.
- Back: Upright or horizontal rows. Pull-ups or pulldowns with pronated, semi-supinated, and supinated grips.
- Deltoids: Standing or seated military presses with a barbell or dumbbells utilizing pronated, semi-supinated or supinated hand positions.
- Quads: High-bar full barbell squats, hack squats or front squats.
- Lower Back/Hips: Traditional and/or sumo-style deadlifts or Good Mornings. Power cleans or snatches.
Single-Joint Exercises
- Biceps: Barbell curls, hammer curls or preacher curls.
- Triceps: Lying barbell or dumbbell triceps extensions, and pronated or supinated grip pressdowns.
- Deltoids: Front, side or rear dumbbell raises.
- Hamstrings: Glute-ham raises or leg curls.
- Calves: Standing, seated or donkey calf raises.
Stick to the above list of exercises for optimal results.
The Total-Body Plan
First and foremost, proper periodization planning is imperative. Without sufficient set/rep/load/rest parameters, even the best exercises won’t produce results. Therefore, I’ve devised the following periodization plan for unsurpassable hypertrophy increases:
Week 1
Workout 1
Sets: 3
Reps: 5
Rest: 60 seconds between sets
Load: Choose a weight that forces you to near-failure for the last rep of the last set.*
*This is the recommended load for all workouts.
Workout 2
Sets: 3
Reps: 8
Rest: 90 seconds between sets
Workout 3
Sets: 2
Reps: 15
Rest: 120 seconds between sets
Week 2
Perform with the same parameters as Week 1, but execute antagonist training for all six exercises (more on this later).
Week 3
Workout 1
Sets: 4
Reps: 5
Rest: 60 seconds between sets
Workout 2
Sets: 4
Reps: 8
Rest: 90 seconds between sets
Workout 3
Sets: 3
Reps: 15
Rest: 120 seconds between sets
Week 4
Perform the same parameters as Week 3, but execute antagonist training for all six exercises.
Week 5
Workout 1
Sets: 2
Reps: 18
Rest: 120 seconds between sets
Workout 2
Sets: 2
Reps: 8
Rest: 60 seconds between sets
Workout 3
Sets: 2
Reps: 12
Rest: 90 seconds between sets
Week 6
Perform the same parameters as Week 5, but execute antagonist training for all six exercises.
Week 7
Workout 1
Sets: 3
Reps: 18
Rest: 120 seconds between sets
Workout 2
Sets: 3
Reps: 8
Rest: 60 seconds between sets
Workout 3
Sets: 3
Reps: 12
Rest: 90 seconds between sets
Week 8
Perform the same parameters as Week 7, but execute antagonist training for all six exercises.
Explanation
1) Weeks 1,3,5 and 7 are to be performed with straight sets. In other words, perform one set of the first exercise, rest, perform your second set, and continue for all the recommended sets before moving on to the next exercise.
2) Weeks 2,4,6 and 8 are to be performed as antagonist training. Every session consists of six exercises so antagonist training is simple; all you have to do is perform three antagonist exercise groupings during each workout. For instance, perform quads/hams, chest/back, and biceps/triceps exercise pairings for the recommended sets and reps.
Example: Do one set for chest, then one for back, then another for chest, etc. Then move on to the next pairing, like quads/hams or biceps/triceps.
3) Choose four exercises under the list of compound exercises. Choose two exercises under the single-joint exercise list. Don’t leave out any major muscle groups.
4) Constantly rotate exercises from each category. In other words, don’t always start your session with a chest/back pairing. You must keep rotating the body parts and exercises you begin each session with.
5) Don’t perform the same exercise for more than two weeks in a row. For example, if you performed a flat barbell bench press as your chest exercise for Weeks 1 and 2, you must switch to either incline, decline or dumbbell bench presses for another two weeks before switching again.
6) Increase the load 1.25 to 2.5% with each subsequent workout.
7) Perform all three workouts within a seven-day timeframe with 48-72 hours rest between workouts.
Be creative! I’m giving you endless options. Just be sure to pick four compound exercises and two single-joint exercises with each session. You can rotate exercises as much as you desire. All you have to do is follow the prescribed parameters.
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