Please critique my workout

[tnfirefighter]

Hey everyone, I am completely new to the world of bodybuilding so I am really lost when it comes to this sort of thing. I am 38, around 6 ft tall and weigh right at 193 pounds right now. I currently am around 14-15% bodyfat right now. My goals are to gain around 10 pounds of muscle and get bodyfat down to around 8-10%. I have always tried to stay in shape but never really lifted weights consistently. Here is my routine that I have planned out so far, please read and tell me what you think.

Monday- Legs
Tuesday- chest and tri's
wednesday- back and bi's
thursday- shoulder and traps
Friday- arms again.

I do the arms twice a week because they seem to grow better that way.

I have been lifting now for about 2 months but I don't think that I am making the progress that I should. I really need help with my diet the most. I don't think I am eating enough. Also supplements. I take creatine, whey protein(both the six star brand) and I am taking animal Pak and Animal Stak 2. Any other suggestions on supplements or opinions on these are welcome. I am looking forward to your feedback.

[ectoBgone]

One thing I don't understand is how you know your arms grow best by training them twice a week if you're new to bodybuilding. I'm not saying it won't work for you, but I didn't get the basis for your conclusion.

It would definitely be good for you to provide a sample daily eating plan to be evaluated. Also, what kind of exercises are you doing? Are you hitting the big compound movements like deadlifts, squats, and bent over rows?

Finally, make sure you're getting a solid 8 hours of rest each night.

[Capt_Lou]

How did you come up with the figure that you are at 14-15% BF?

[tnfirefighter]

The reason that I thought my arms were responding better was that I noticed a big difference in them after hitting them twice a week.

As for the compound movements I am sort of limited right now. I broke my right fibula while in Iraq at the end of March and I am still in a cast so I am pretty much limited to upper body only right now.

A sample day of meals would be something like this

breakfast- 5 egg omelet, with one yolk left in
snack- protein bar or small can of tuna
lunch- tuna sandwich with fruit
snack #2 - again protein bar, tuna or maybe some cottage cheese with fruit
dinner- chicken breast or fish with a salad

supplements

I am taking creatine after my workouts
20 grams of whey protein before my workout
50 grams immediately after
20 grams of caesin protein before bed
I am also taking Animal Pak and Animal Stak 2

Let me know if you need any more info

[tnfirefighter]

that was using the military system of measuring, but it is probably more

[QQ]

that workout schedule seems solid .

mines just like it except i do chest/tris on monday and legs on tuesday.

[ShaolinSoccer]

'Please Critique my workout' - if you don't work harder I'll put my footy right up yer booty, your workout sucks man!

Oh sorry you meant constructive critique - lol! 5 days is bit too much depending how much you are doing each day. When you think you are resting some bodyparts you aren't really. Only real rest is 2 days when you are not training, which may or may not be enough & you could be overtraining.

[tnfirefighter]

The other reason that I do arms twice a week is for example after doing chest, my tri's are pretty wiped out and I feel like I get a better workout if I do them on a day on their own when they are fresh.

[Wayne Evans]

Originally Posted by tnfirefighter

The reason that I thought my arms were responding better was that I noticed a big difference in them after hitting them twice a week.

As for the compound movements I am sort of limited right now. I broke my right fibula while in Iraq at the end of March and I am still in a cast so I am pretty much limited to upper body only right now.

A sample day of meals would be something like this

breakfast- 5 egg omelet, with on yolk left in
snack- protein bar or small can of tuna
lunch- tuna sandwich with fruit
snack #2 - again protein bar, tuna or maybe some cottage cheese with fruit
dinner- chicken breast or fish with a salad

supplements

I am taking creatine after my workouts
20 grams of whey protein before my workout
50 grams immediately after
20 grams of caesin protein before bed
I am also taking Animal Pak and Animal Stak 2

Let me know if you need any more info

Welcome.....

I'm not convinced of the necessity to train arms 2x a week either but if you believe it works for you that's OK.

One small thing I would think about is the fact you are not eating any of the egg yokes....I'm not sure that is the best approach.
They are a portion of the protein you will need also (not to mention many other nutrients) and I believe that it's been substantiated that dietary cholesterol, should THAT be your concern, is not a factor in bodily cholesterol measurments.

Of course, I will await the more knowledgeable here to correct me.

Good luck with your goals.

[Mataz]

Something to consider.

Monday- Legs
Tuesday- chest and tri's.............arms
wednesday- back and bi's...........arms
thursday- shoulder and traps.......arms
Friday- arms again.

[tnfirefighter]

you might be right, had not thought about it that way

[eddied27]

Welcome TN! Great to have you on board!

I don't typically post much in here other than my journal but your thread caught my eye for some reason.

I too agree about the arms. They get so much work from all the other movements that direct arm work can in fact be minimal. Excessive arm work will only lead to everything suffering. Same with shoulders BTW. I was reading somewhere a bb'er did no direct arm work but was huge because of all the rows, presses and deadlifts he had done.

Anyway.....my .02! Spend your money on food. A good multi, whey protein, fish oil and creatine is all you really need for supps.

In terms of food......fish, chicken, lean cuts of beef, eggs, oatmeal, potatoes, brown rice, natural peanut butter, olive oil, flaxseed oil, almonds are really the staples for a good diet. A couple of good links for you below:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=1713071
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hreadid=167918

In terms of your routine, I'm a big believer in less is more. If 5 days works for you, then go for it. Dependent on your goal, be mindful of # exercises per body part (typically 3-4 at most; any more than that is useless IMO) # sets, # reps and rest between sets.

IMO.....stick with compound movements. Best way to develop muscle mass. Your triceps will grow more doing dips than doing kickbacks for example.

Rows, presses, deadlift type moves, squats are essential for any good training program. Some may not be able to do some of the moves due to injury, etc. but if you have a green light health wise then these should be the moves in your routine.

Last suggestion.......if you tire with your current routine.....try something like this if you want.....

Monday - Legs, Back and Biceps
Wednesday - Chest, Shoulder and Triceps
Friday - Legs, Back and Biceps

Following Monday - Chest, Shoulders and Triceps

You see where I'm going?? You'll hit your bodyparts 3 times every 9 days instead of every 14 which should get your better results. Also, you'll do different exercises each time you come back to a bodypart which will keep it fresh. If you're interested in a routine like that, PM me and I'll give you some ideas.

Best of luck!

Ed