[HELP] 3-Day Split.

[GeorgeLaw]

Hello members of Bodybuilding.com I have just joined the forum, after a small lurking that I did, and after I witnessed the vast knowledge in here I decided to post, so you can help me out.

I have been excercizing for the past 6 months, got some good gains using a 4-day Split, but now I'm interest in building (with your help) a 3-day split due to the fact that I have limited time since I work and I'm a University student.

My equipment is kinda Limited, so I would really appreciate if you could give me your insight on which excercises I should do in the 3-Day split, aswell as which muscle groups I must combine in a 3-day split.

Equipment :

1 Set of Dumbbell. ( x10Kg each )
1 E-Z Curl Bar. ( 22Kg)
1 Pull-Up Bar.
1 Decline Ab Bench.

Will propably buy a Bench soon aswell.


So which are the best possible excercizes given this equipment ? Also how many sets of each muscle group should I do in a 3-day Split ? And lastly what's the best possible muscle combination in a 3-day Split ?

Sorry for asking that much, I would really appreciate if you could answer me instead of linking me to another simillar thread or a sticky.


Thanks a lot in advance.

[CaliberIsNumUno]

Well, what are your goals?

Do you want to bulk up? Do you want to lose fat? Are you happy with your body weight and just want to tone up?

[GeorgeLaw]

Well, what are your goals?

Do you want to bulk up? Do you want to lose fat? Are you happy with your body weight and just want to tone up?

Oh correct, forgot to add that, well I'm currently on a bulk I'm currently 172lb 1.76 height, diet is ok. My body weight I suppose is ok.


Generally I want to add more muscle.


So what do you suggest me ?

[GeorgeLaw]

Bump.

[CaliberIsNumUno]

OK, I'll try and drum up something you'll like.

You're my height, and I naturally rest at about 210-220lbs. I've been working out for a year and a half, and I'm up to about 265lb now, as you can see in the photo, I've done alright with my bulking.

It's good you're changing up your routine, because you're at the point now where you've got all the gains you're gonna get from being a beginner.

The best type of moves for bulking, is compound movements. Moves that involve an array of bodyparts, not just isolation moves that single out a certain muscle.

I know you want a three day split, but what I find best, is to workout every 3rd day. In that
Monday - workout
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - rest
Thursday - workout

Rest is imperative as you go along in working out. As of late I've read articles/interviews from past legends who say that they wish they'd rested more when they were in their prime. Hell, just yesterday I read an interview with Tom Platz where he said that exact thing. So, rest is imperative.

OK, so I'd set you up like this...
Workout 1 - Chest/Biceps
Workout 2 - Shoulders/Triceps
Workout 3 - Back
Workout 4 - Legs

Now, before we get into anything, I want give you a tip that'll make your workouts harder, more intense, and will have you getting a lot more out of them. Most people who lift weights, they do a full rep in about a second or two. They use momentum and other things just so they can get more reps in. Well, reps don't mean ****. Your arms don't know the difference between 1 bicep curl, or 20. It just knows how hard it's being worked. So, from here on, whenever you do a lift, take 3 seconds to lift, take 1-2 seconds to hold, then 5 seconds to lower it. The lowering portion of weight lifting is where all the action happens. Once you do a workout with this type of lifting speed, you'll realize just how much better it truly is.

OK, now that I've given you a little advice on how your schedule should look, and the lifting speed, the rest of it, building the program is really up to you. I might suggest doing Dumbell Flies, but then you don't have a bench, or a yoga ball or anything to be able to do them. So, I'll just include what basic compound moves you must have, and you can fill in the rest.

Chest/Biceps
Flat Bench
Incline Bench
Chest Flies
Bicep Curls

Shoulders/Triceps
Military Press
Upright Rows
Dips

Back
Pull-Ups
Rows

Legs
Squats
Leg Extension


Now, deadlifts are great. They work everything, so, pick a day when you're working out, once every cycle [by cycle, I mean when you've done your legs day and now you're back to chest] and put the deadlift in.


Now, go ahead and add one or two isolation exercises per workout. Any exercises that you can't do that I've listed, just google for a substitute exercise.


Alright, good luck, buckshot, I hope I was of some help for you.

[Lucharilla0311]

^ I think you might have missed a few crucial details.

Equipment :

1 Set of Dumbbell. ( x10Kg each )
1 E-Z Curl Bar. ( 22Kg)
1 Pull-Up Bar.
1 Decline Ab Bench.

Will propably buy a Bench soon aswell.

So which are the best possible excercizes given this equipment ?

In all honesty, I would be doing lots of push-ups and pull-ups. There's no way you can succeed without any weight (or even a barbell). I won't blow smoke up your ass.

[CaliberIsNumUno]

He said he was gonna get a bench.

And everything I listed, he can do. For bench, he can do push-ups, for incline bench, incline push-ups. It's all visible. Look what the P90X guys accomplish, and they use even less than he has.

George, you can succeed with limited equipment. I'm a pretty big guy, and I've never worked out in an actual, real gym. I've only used my apartments gym, and it doesn't have much. I had to order my self the set of 40lb dumb bells, and get some resistance bands. So trust me, you can make things happen with out much. But, it does help to get a fair share of some weights on your side.

[pumplikecuming]

Look in the stickies. There are tons of good 3 day splits

[Anzy]

He said he was gonna get a bench.

And everythinyg I listed, he can do. For bench, he can do push-ups, for incline bench, incline push-ups. It's all visible. Look what the P90X guys accomplish, and they use even less than he has.

George, you can succeed with limited equipment. I'm a pretty big guy, and I've never worked out in an actual, real gym. I've only used my apartments gym, and it doesn't have much. I had to order my self the set of 40lb dumb bells, and get some resistance bands. So trust me, you can make things happen with out much. But, it does help to get a fair share of some weights on your side.

he's going to deadlift his 22kg ez bar? How long do you believe he's going to make progress lifting the same pair of dumbbells and the same ezbar for presses? Yes, you can do more reps, but once your able to do more than 15 which given the low weight should be soon, your not going to develop much muscle.
Since your goal is putting on mass, the best piece of equipment is a barbell and weight. Do squats, deadlifts, ohps until you get a bench then add those.

[musikguy72]

With your equipment and only training for 6 months, my guess is that you can't bench 1.5 times your body weight or squat twice your body weight. I bet you could still add weight/reps to the bar daily/weekly. Plenty of beginner gains to come. But you need more weights.
Find a bench, barbell, and weights on craigslist. You can probably find some for under $200. Then get on a good beginners routine which typically has you lifting for about an hour or less 3 days a week, full body. You will put on mass in no time as long as your eating and sleeping enough (which can be tough in college).

I'm sure money and time is tight, but if you can find an extra C note or two for the weights and squeeze in a full body workout 3 days a week, you could making some good progress.

[GeorgeLaw]

OK, I'll try and drum up something you'll like.

You're my height, and I naturally rest at about 210-220lbs. I've been working out for a year and a half, and I'm up to about 265lb now, as you can see in the photo, I've done alright with my bulking.

It's good you're changing up your routine, because you're at the point now where you've got all the gains you're gonna get from being a beginner.

The best type of moves for bulking, is compound movements. Moves that involve an array of bodyparts, not just isolation moves that single out a certain muscle.

I know you want a three day split, but what I find best, is to workout every 3rd day. In that
Monday - workout
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - rest
Thursday - workout

Rest is imperative as you go along in working out. As of late I've read articles/interviews from past legends who say that they wish they'd rested more when they were in their prime. Hell, just yesterday I read an interview with Tom Platz where he said that exact thing. So, rest is imperative.

OK, so I'd set you up like this...
Workout 1 - Chest/Biceps
Workout 2 - Shoulders/Triceps
Workout 3 - Back
Workout 4 - Legs

Now, before we get into anything, I want give you a tip that'll make your workouts harder, more intense, and will have you getting a lot more out of them. Most people who lift weights, they do a full rep in about a second or two. They use momentum and other things just so they can get more reps in. Well, reps don't mean ****. Your arms don't know the difference between 1 bicep curl, or 20. It just knows how hard it's being worked. So, from here on, whenever you do a lift, take 3 seconds to lift, take 1-2 seconds to hold, then 5 seconds to lower it. The lowering portion of weight lifting is where all the action happens. Once you do a workout with this type of lifting speed, you'll realize just how much better it truly is.

OK, now that I've given you a little advice on how your schedule should look, and the lifting speed, the rest of it, building the program is really up to you. I might suggest doing Dumbell Flies, but then you don't have a bench, or a yoga ball or anything to be able to do them. So, I'll just include what basic compound moves you must have, and you can fill in the rest.

Chest/Biceps
Flat Bench
Incline Bench
Chest Flies
Bicep Curls

Shoulders/Triceps
Military Press
Upright Rows
Dips

Back
Pull-Ups
Rows

Legs
Squats
Leg Extension


Now, deadlifts are great. They work everything, so, pick a day when you're working out, once every cycle [by cycle, I mean when you've done your legs day and now you're back to chest] and put the deadlift in.


Now, go ahead and add one or two isolation exercises per workout. Any exercises that you can't do that I've listed, just google for a substitute exercise.


Alright, good luck, buckshot, I hope I was of some help for you.

Well to begin with, thanks a lot for the time you dedicated to write this, I really appreciate it man.

I'm well aware about how rest is important, from the very beggining of my training I gave it a major focus, since I had some friends who were actually overtraining, and you can tell that I learned from their mistakes.

I will also definetly listen to your advice and I will train from now on in every third day. One question though, do you suggest me doing a small time of cardio in the rest days ? ( I know that I'm on a bulk and cardio is almost a no when bulking but I want to reduce the fat gains as much as possible).

I really like the split you made for me aswell. Since this split will be different than the one I'm currently using I got one question, how many excercises should I do for example chest/bicep day ?( In each muscle group )

I personally believe with my limited knowledge that 3 excercises for chest and 3 for Bicep will suffice, what do you think ?

As I have planned it right now, the first day will look something like this :

Chest Workouts :

1) Dumbbell Bench Press 3x10
2) Dumbbell Flyes 3x10
3) Push-Ups 3x10

It got 1 Isolation and 2 that combine many muscle groups.

Bicep Workouts:

1) Hammer Curl 3x10
2) Concentration Curls 3x10
3) Dumbbell Bicep Curl 3x10

Well about the thing that you wrote with speed I will definetly try it out. So far I can say that I was doing the excercises with 'normal' speed (the positioning was Perfect since in each excercisee so far I looked how to position from BB.com ). By increasing the time will be more tough indeed, although I'm afraid that I won't be able to hit the necessary repetitions for each set, but what can you do.

About Deadlifts, yeah I know they are one of the best excersises for the legs, but I did a little research and I have found many substitudes such as :

1) Stiff-Legged Dumbbell Deadlift
2) Lunges
3) Dumbbell Squat

So a barbell isn't a must, at least in my point of view.

Again thanks a lot for the information man, I really appreciate it.

he's going to deadlift his 22kg ez bar? How long do you believe he's going to make progress lifting the same pair of dumbbells and the same ezbar for presses? Yes, you can do more reps, but once your able to do more than 15 which given the low weight should be soon, your not going to develop much muscle.
Since your goal is putting on mass, the best piece of equipment is a barbell and weight. Do squats, deadlifts, ohps until you get a bench then add those.

Well I can always use alternative for actual barbel deadlifts, I have already found 1 excersise which is a really good substitute, there are many options, of course the results won't be the same I know but I'm of the philosophy that you work witha what you have.

Also weights can always change, I always increase my weight on dumbbells when I can do the excercises with ease, for example this week I will increase the weight of each of my dumbbells by 1kg ( will increase it more if I find that the intensity is the same ).

Bench is a matter of time, so it won't be a problem.

I'm sure money and time is tight, but if you can find an extra C note or two for the weights and squeeze in a full body workout 3 days a week, you could making some good progress.

Well I will buy weights this week, how much weight do you suggest me to add ? currently each of my dumbbell has 10kg , I was thinking to add 1kg in each.

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Also do you think that Full body excersise x3 a week is going to be better for me due to the limited equipment ?



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Also forgot to add my supplementation. Currently I'm taking the following :

1) Whey Protein ( Optimum ) at morning and immidietly after a workout.
2) Muscle Milk as a meal replacement, due to the increased calories is good for my bulk too.
3) Creatine.

[CaliberIsNumUno]

he's going to deadlift his 22kg ez bar? How long do you believe he's going to make progress lifting the same pair of dumbbells and the same ezbar for presses? Yes, you can do more reps, but once your able to do more than 15 which given the low weight should be soon, your not going to develop much muscle.
Since your goal is putting on mass, the best piece of equipment is a barbell and weight. Do squats, deadlifts, ohps until you get a bench then add those.

He could easily make do. I've never had the proper weights to do deadlifts, so I deadlift the sofa....it's close enough.

[CaliberIsNumUno]

Alrighty, George...let's get down to answering your questions:

First off, you're more than welcome. I know how hard it is to try and get people answer your questions.

No on the cardio. If you want to bulk, cardio is just going to slow your progress down. With this new lifting speed you'll be doing, it'll make the work out more intense, and push your heart rate higher, just like cardio would. So, you get it in then.

I'd say that 3 exercises for a major muscle, like chest and back and such. But things like tricep, bicep and smaller ones like that, you really only need two.

The chest/bicep split you came up with looks great. When you do push-ups, make sure you elevate your feet. Now, cut a bicep exercise. You'll be perfect then.

You're right about the barbell. There's a ton of subs for deadlifts, so you'll be fine.


As for the extra poundage, yeah, I'd say buy an extra 10lbs for each. You'll really start so see your abilities go up, so it'll be nice having the weight ready.


Full body, that's not necessary. You'll be able to do just as much going body-part by body-part. Besides, working your whole body over 3 times a week would be massive over-kill.

As for your sups...
don't do a meal replacement. Just have the muscle milk as a snack or something. Unless you're at work, or something like that. But whole foods are always a better choice than just a shake.
Creatine, good choice as always. As always, people say drink a gallon of water a day. It's just good advice, but don't lose your mind if you miss a few days here and there. So long as you're peeing clear, you're OK.

[musikguy72]

Full body, that's not necessary. You'll be able to do just as much going body-part by body-part. Besides, working your whole body over 3 times a week would be massive over-kill.

Umm, I think you missed the fact that he is still in the beginner stages and can make much better progress by going with a full body routine several days a week than he would doing an advanced body part by body part split. 3 days a week verses 1 or 2 days a week is NOT doing just as much.
And working his whole body 3 days a week would be over kill for someone who has been lifting for a while and can move a lot more weight around (like benching 1.5 times his body weight) but in the beginner stages, he can recover a lot faster.
Don't give him bad advice because you like intermediate splits.

[gnarly0531]

it isnt necessarily bad advice man for a beginners program Arnold even said do a three day split twice a week, so that would be 6 days of lifting. and how do you know his body will respond as well to full body when everyone is different how do you know this kid aint gonna beast on a 3 day split, quit acting PRO and saying advice is bad when there is nothing bad about it. dont say his advice is bad cause you like beginners full body routines.

[musikguy72]

it isnt necessarily bad advice man for a beginners program Arnold even said do a three day split twice a week, so that would be 6 days of lifting. and how do you know his body will respond as well to full body when everyone is different how do you know this kid aint gonna beast on a 3 day split, quit acting PRO and saying advice is bad when there is nothing bad about it. dont say his advice is bad cause you like beginners full body routines.

Maybe you aren't paying attention but I said that a beginner could make better gains with a beginners routine than with a more advanced split.
How do I know he will respond better to a full body? Because he isn't moving as much weight and has better recovery than a more advanced lifter. Did you miss that part?