AllPro: A Simple Beginner's Routine part III

[Kottermode]

I'm bulking trying to put on weight and muscle not lose
would it be wise to do cardio on off days? I'm thinking maybe just abs or at least a low intensity cardio
any suggestions?
What have you guys been doin your off days?

Ab work is fine, even encouraged, considering you don't burn that many calories. However walking at even a moderate pace, for example, will still burn a good amount of calories.

The reason I mention this is because gaining weight is all about taking in more calories than you exert. So you're making it harder for yourself if you're doing cardio without eating more to even it out.

[brake]

This is a curious routine

Are there any skinny/fat hardgainers out there that have had good results on this? I'm talking about the skinny brahs that have a hard time gaining muscle and tend to gain fat easier. (in before no such thing as hardgainer, only under eaters etc)

Just getting back into lifting after 8 years off and I feel l like my current program isn't really working, I'm doing:

Same structure as Starting strength:

Mon (workout A)
Wed (Workout B)
Friday (workout A)
Mon (workout B)
Etc

Workout A (chest, Tri's, shoulders):
2x8-10 DB Bench Press
2x8-10 Flies/pec deck (Need to hit chest again here, was doing superman dips w/weight, then I couldn't do shoulders which I really need to do desperately)
2x8-10 Smith Military press
Calves
Seated Leg press 3x10-12

Workout B:
SLDL 3x10-12 (just started due to back)
2x8-10 Cable Seated Row
2x8-10 Lat Pulldown
1x10-12 DB bicep curl
Abs

I should be able to start doing Squats soon. Due to back injury the chiro said no downard pressure on spine. I'm gonna check next week when I see him to see if it's OK yet. Only just started doing LIGHT SLDL last week, and I don't go all the way vertical, I stop just before vertical so there is no downward pressue, is this bad?

I've skimmed through the threads but I might have missed any (if there was anything posted about this)

Thanks fellas, need some mass!

No hardgainers tried this routine yet?

[whiskeysticks]

Bit of advise for those just starting thinking on doing two heavy days vs all three days in a week...if you can help it, don't do it. It may not be that bad early on...but as you've been doing this for a while, your body will remind you why they have those medium and light days.

Only managed to get two day in last week - both heavies - because of work. Right now my body isn't that excited for the start of another week with the heavy day...dreading squats this morning! But as Les Claypool says, Fish On!

[Nomkat]

Hi all
Quick question ....
Im bulking at the moment and eating between 300-500 cals a day surplus, all macros good etc so diets looking solid. Also taking multi-vits (Ot) creatine, whey and a few other bits..
Anyway, im on my 3rd cycle of this routine and have stuck to it exactly as it says on the tin. I train every rep with control and good form and am lifting as heavy as i can. My problem is, I never have any muscle ache/soreness at all and feel like im not doing enough and that i should be doing more sets. I havnt trained for many years but used to train for about 9 years when i did and always had a good ache on chest, legs etc..
Just looking for some views on this??

[DeltaCharlie75]

Hi all
Quick question ....
Im bulking at the moment and eating between 300-500 cals a day surplus, all macros good etc so diets looking solid. Also taking multi-vits (Ot) creatine, whey and a few other bits..
Anyway, im on my 3rd cycle of this routine and have stuck to it exactly as it says on the tin. I train every rep with control and good form and am lifting as heavy as i can. My problem is, I never have any muscle ache/soreness at all and feel like im not doing enough and that i should be doing more sets. I havnt trained for many years but used to train for about 9 years when i did and always had a good ache on chest, legs etc..
Just looking for some views on this??

Are you lifting more now than you could have before you started the first cycle and do you feel the weights are a challenge on week 3+ heavy days? If so, don't worry about muscle soreness. Program is designed to allow for recovery and has deloads built in. If you don't feel the heavy days are a challenge you may have started at to light a weight.

Personally, I feel tired after my heavy days but don't have any signs of doms, although all my lifts are progressing.

[Nomkat]

Are you lifting more now than you could have before you started the first cycle and do you feel the weights are a challenge on week 3+ heavy days? If so, don't worry about muscle soreness. Program is designed to allow for recovery and has deloads built in. If you don't feel the heavy days are a challenge you may have started at to light a weight.

Yes they are a challenge and i hit every rep slowly and strictly to really push myself. It just seems theres nothing to recover from. Maybe im just so used to doing between 9-12 sets per bodypart in the past and having to nurse some
muscles lol il stick with it for atleast another 2 full cycles tho and then evaluate it..
Ive read some great reviews about the routine so it obviously works.. Was looking to do max-OT then or similar
Cheers

[DeltaCharlie75]

Yes they are a challenge and i hit every rep slowly and strictly to really push myself. It just seems theres nothing to recover from. Maybe im just so used to doing between 9-12 sets per bodypart in the past and having to nurse some
muscles lol il stick with it for atleast another 2 full cycles tho and then evaluate it..
Ive read some great reviews about the routine so it obviously works.. Was looking to do max-OT then or similar
Cheers

If you feel that you could do some more work, at your stage you could add an extra exercise to the program.

[Desparado]

This is a curious routine

Are there any skinny/fat hardgainers out there that have had good results on this? I'm talking about the skinny brahs that have a hard time gaining muscle and tend to gain fat easier. (in before no such thing as hardgainer, only under eaters etc)

Just getting back into lifting after 8 years off and I feel l like my current program isn't really working, I'm doing:

Same structure as Starting strength:

Mon (workout A)
Wed (Workout B)
Friday (workout A)
Mon (workout B)
Etc

Workout A (chest, Tri's, shoulders):
2x8-10 DB Bench Press
2x8-10 Flies/pec deck (Need to hit chest again here, was doing superman dips w/weight, then I couldn't do shoulders which I really need to do desperately)
2x8-10 Smith Military press
Calves
Seated Leg press 3x10-12

Workout B:
SLDL 3x10-12 (just started due to back)
2x8-10 Cable Seated Row
2x8-10 Lat Pulldown
1x10-12 DB bicep curl
Abs

I should be able to start doing Squats soon. Due to back injury the chiro said no downard pressure on spine. I'm gonna check next week when I see him to see if it's OK yet. Only just started doing LIGHT SLDL last week, and I don't go all the way vertical, I stop just before vertical so there is no downward pressue, is this bad?

I've skimmed through the threads but I might have missed any (if there was anything posted about this)

Thanks fellas, need some mass!

I think I qualify. I'm still too early in the routine (Cycle 2) to notice any significant gains but I intend to find out myself if this routine is for me. I've always kept myself in pretty good shape and have lifted weights since high school but never really made a conscious effort to "bulk up." My weight have stayed pretty constant between 150-155 lbs with 15-18% BF. Only recently did I decide to try to gain mass and I hope to wind up to around 175 lbs and stay relatively lean.

One thing that I'm really trying to be diligent about is my diet ( I know, here we go again, blah, blah, blah ). The program itself is just another part of many equations. I am now watching my macros and recording what I eat everyday. If I am going to be serious THIS is something that I HAVE to do otherwise I'm just guessing and I'll just be spinning my wheels. This is not the only program out there that will produce results, and I have tried many, but this is the first program I saw that is very structured with built in deloads.

One thing to keep in mind. THIS IS A BEGINNER'S PROGRAM! This will give you a solid base to work from. Unless you have never lifted weights in your life and is currently in horrible shape you shouldn't expect to see immediate results. I'm not under the illusion that a BEGINNER'S program will get me " buff" in 3-6 months. I am using this program to give me a head start.

The proper combination of diet, rest AND exercise program WILL get anyone to their desired results ( genetic potential ). This program, I believe, is a start.

[Tupperwolf]

Just finished my Cycle 3 Week 3 heavy workout
Feels fcking great man. Like I could take on the world.

Or that could just be my PWO buzz lingering...

[EddieFromEurope]

anyone have any tranformation pics on this routine?

[FitBeyondForty]

Just finished my Cycle 3 Week 3 heavy workout
Feels fcking great man. Like I could take on the world.

Or that could just be my PWO buzz lingering...

Awesome job Tupp! I know what you mean about the PWO effect....some of them out there are intense...LOL

I have been taking BRX. It's great! Does the job without the jitters etc. No crash afterwards either. It doesn't hit you like some of the others, but it keeps a good even clean focus going.

I'll be back at it tomorrow ( Monday ) after taking a week off to rest my elbow. C2W4 heavy day.

I'm going to be dropping the weight of my curls and gradually bringing them back up.

Weighed myself this morning. 160-163lbs. Feels good

anyone have any tranformation pics on this routine?

Check out the poster above you. Look at his bodyspace

[scubahsteve]

As they say, there's a first time for everything. C3W2 Heavy day today and I failed BP by 1/2 rep on the 2nd set. BP wasn't something I felt I would fail at, but knew it was getting tough. I will say that for those of us on a cut, get your calories in to keep dropping the lbs. I have my TDEE at 2800...-500 for a deficit put me at 2300. After a month of losing an average of .5 lbs per week, I ran an average on my calorie intake and found it to be at an average of 1800. After a couple of weeks of getting it closer to 2300, I'm averaging back to 1lb loss/week. feelsgoodman

[jasonp360]

I keep stalling on bench
I made it through 165 lbs easy cycle 5 and cycle 6 went to 175. I just cant do it I keep failing after 7-8 first set 4-6 second set.
Medium days I am whipping off 160 no problem and light days 140 easy super easy. But come heavy day and 175 it KILLS me.

I'm on the 11 rep week, and will complete the cycle. What should I start at for bench? Drop to 165 or 170 and start again?

This is my second cycle at failed 175

[Dank16]

What is the best preworkout stuff? What is everyone taking?

Right now I just squirt some mio into a glass of water and drink that right before i head out to wake up. But I certainly wouldnt hesitate to purchase something better...something that will wake me up and pump me up and give me energy to plow through my workout

[brake]

I think I qualify. I'm still too early in the routine (Cycle 2) to notice any significant gains but I intend to find out myself if this routine is for me. I've always kept myself in pretty good shape and have lifted weights since high school but never really made a conscious effort to "bulk up." My weight have stayed pretty constant between 150-155 lbs with 15-18% BF. Only recently did I decide to try to gain mass and I hope to wind up to around 175 lbs and stay relatively lean.

One thing that I'm really trying to be diligent about is my diet ( I know, here we go again, blah, blah, blah ). The program itself is just another part of many equations. I am now watching my macros and recording what I eat everyday. If I am going to be serious THIS is something that I HAVE to do otherwise I'm just guessing and I'll just be spinning my wheels. This is not the only program out there that will produce results, and I have tried many, but this is the first program I saw that is very structured with built in deloads.

One thing to keep in mind. THIS IS A BEGINNER'S PROGRAM! This will give you a solid base to work from. Unless you have never lifted weights in your life and is currently in horrible shape you shouldn't expect to see immediate results. I'm not under the illusion that a BEGINNER'S program will get me " buff" in 3-6 months. I am using this program to give me a head start.

The proper combination of diet, rest AND exercise program WILL get anyone to their desired results ( genetic potential ). This program, I believe, is a start.

Thanks for the reply man . Keep us updated on your progress, it will be interesting to see how it goes.

I'm probably just going to try this program anyway as my current lifts are stalling pretty badly, although I use dumbells so I can't do really small increments as I could with barbells. SO I'll probably switch to barbells this week and see how I go for a month first.

What is the best preworkout stuff? What is everyone taking?

Right now I just squirt some mio into a glass of water and drink that right before i head out to wake up. But I certainly wouldnt hesitate to purchase something better...something that will wake me up and pump me up and give me energy to plow through my workout

I know you're looking for supps, but I have 1 or 2 apples (royal gala, pink lady or fuji) pre workout most times and I feel great during my workouts. Assuming I get enough sleep the night prior, without proper sleep it doesn't matter what I do, I have a fail workout.

[stevebeans]

I've decided to modify my routine a little this week so I can keep doing the exercises while remaining injury-free. I mentioned earlier in the thread that my shoulder pops doing military presses, yet for some reason it doesn't seem to do it while using the press machine.

In addition, I can't seem to get bent over rows completely proper, so every time I do them my lower back feels off. It's been bugging me all weekend and I can feel it mostly when I do the rows. I am going to substitute BOR for cable rows, while using a straight bar so I can try to keep the form as close to BOR as possible.

I think an issue with BOR is that my legs are incredibly weak (ie I have trouble squatting my own body weight), so when I'm squatted down doing the rows, I feel some motion instead of stability. I think my legs need to catch up to the rest of my body before I can do a nice stable row that doesn't hurt my back.

I will keep trying BOR and shoulder presses maybe once a week with light week to build up surrounding muscles and proper form, but last thing I want is to get injured where I can lift at all.

[Tupperwolf]

Awesome job Tupp! I know what you mean about the PWO effect....some of them out there are intense...LOL

I have been taking BRX. It's great! Does the job without the jitters etc. No crash afterwards either. It doesn't hit you like some of the others, but it keeps a good even clean focus going.

I'll be back at it tomorrow ( Monday ) after taking a week off to rest my elbow. C2W4 heavy day.

I'm going to be dropping the weight of my curls and gradually bringing them back up.

Weighed myself this morning. 160-163lbs. Feels good



Check out the poster above you. Look at his bodyspace

You're doing great with the cut, keep it up! Hopefully that elbow quits giving you trouble.

As they say, there's a first time for everything. C3W2 Heavy day today and I failed BP by 1/2 rep on the 2nd set. BP wasn't something I felt I would fail at, but knew it was getting tough. I will say that for those of us on a cut, get your calories in to keep dropping the lbs. I have my TDEE at 2800...-500 for a deficit put me at 2300. After a month of losing an average of .5 lbs per week, I ran an average on my calorie intake and found it to be at an average of 1800. After a couple of weeks of getting it closer to 2300, I'm averaging back to 1lb loss/week. feelsgoodman

Nice, I have slipped on my diet in the past and actually eaten at too big of a deficit for a few weeks as well. I actually stalled in weight loss this week, scale didn't move, but I'm not too concerned.. I was planning on cutting back slightly on calories for the final push anyhow. I'm hoping to just lose 3-6 more lbs to get to my goal leanness and then bulk!

What is the best preworkout stuff? What is everyone taking?

Right now I just squirt some mio into a glass of water and drink that right before i head out to wake up. But I certainly wouldnt hesitate to purchase something better...something that will wake me up and pump me up and give me energy to plow through my workout

I use BSN HyperFX, one scoop. I personally get zero beta-alanine tingles, I just get really focused and excited to work out. I get really euphoric when I get the heavy plates loaded up to squat and feel like I can barely feel the weight!

[MEK42]

I know everyone gets mad when people ask about swapping exercises but I read on the last page that some guy is doing T-Bar Rows instead of Bent Over Rows. I HATE BORs, is there another exercise that is acceptable to do?

[iDunGoof3d]

Hey everybody.

I'm starting this routine tomorrow. Has anyone upload progress pictures? I just wanted to see what kind of progress people have made using this routine. Thanks.

[krispradez]

Hey everybody.

I'm starting this routine tomorrow. Has anyone upload progress pictures? I just wanted to see what kind of progress people have made using this routine. Thanks.

there are a couple of before/after pics on page 1 :-)

[Grailer]

This is a curious routine

Are there any skinny/fat hardgainers out there that have had good results on this? I'm talking about the skinny brahs that have a hard time gaining muscle and tend to gain fat easier. (in before no such thing as hardgainer, only under eaters etc)

Just getting back into lifting after 8 years off and I feel l like my current program isn't really working, I'm doing:

Same structure as Starting strength:

Mon (workout A)
Wed (Workout B)
Friday (workout A)
Mon (workout B)
Etc

Workout A (chest, Tri's, shoulders):
2x8-10 DB Bench Press
2x8-10 Flies/pec deck (Need to hit chest again here, was doing superman dips w/weight, then I couldn't do shoulders which I really need to do desperately)
2x8-10 Smith Military press
Calves
Seated Leg press 3x10-12

Workout B:
SLDL 3x10-12 (just started due to back)
2x8-10 Cable Seated Row
2x8-10 Lat Pulldown
1x10-12 DB bicep curl
Abs

I should be able to start doing Squats soon. Due to back injury the chiro said no downard pressure on spine. I'm gonna check next week when I see him to see if it's OK yet. Only just started doing LIGHT SLDL last week, and I don't go all the way vertical, I stop just before vertical so there is no downward pressue, is this bad?

I've skimmed through the threads but I might have missed any (if there was anything posted about this)

Thanks fellas, need some mass!

I wouldnt worry too much about not being able to do squats leg press is pretty decent just doesnt work all the stabilisers . ( squat nazis will probably say otherwise of course )

I myself do dumbbell lunges / leg presses because I dont like the vertical pressure feeling on my spine it just doesnt feel safe for me .

[brake]

I wouldnt worry too much about not being able to do squats leg press is pretty decent just doesnt work all the stabilisers . ( squat nazis will probably say otherwise of course )

I myself do dumbbell lunges / leg presses because I dont like the vertical pressure feeling on my spine it just doesnt feel safe for me .

Hmmm... I might just ask my Chiro about squats though because I would love to do them, they would probably help my core too and other back muscles which are weak.

what about stiff leg deadlifts? I might replace those with rack pulls. What do people say about that?

[brodeisel]

I am just about ready to finish my third cycle. I am looking to add 2-3 extra lifts to help me out. So far my military press and bench are **** so any ideas on what I should add to help increase them? I was thinking pull ups and upright rows.

[steelmonkey]

I am just about ready to finish my third cycle. I am looking to add 2-3 extra lifts to help me out. So far my military press and bench are **** so any ideas on what I should add to help increase them? I was thinking pull ups and upright rows.

Im actually very interested in this as well!

[DMac88]

Ok I'm sure this question has probably been asked before but I'm not exactly sure what to 'search' for. So I finished week 5 last week and didnt get 12/12 on a few lifts. Do I repeat the whole cycle (12 reps) for the week or just increase weight/drops reps on the ones I passed and just keep trying to get 12 reps on the ones I failed?

[DeltaCharlie75]

Ok I'm sure this question has probably been asked before but I'm not exactly sure what to 'search' for. So I finished week 5 last week and didnt get 12/12 on a few lifts. Do I repeat the whole cycle (12 reps) for the week or just increase weight/drops reps on the ones I passed and just keep trying to get 12 reps on the ones I failed?

You start a new cycle for all exercises (week 1 -8 reps), you increase the weight for all exercises you passed by 10%, you keep the same weight from the cycle you just completed for all exercises you failed. Good luck

[DeltaCharlie75]

I am just about ready to finish my third cycle. I am looking to add 2-3 extra lifts to help me out. So far my military press and bench are **** so any ideas on what I should add to help increase them? I was thinking pull ups and upright rows.

The recommendation is to add one exercise per cycle if you feel the need after cycle 2. That way, if you start to have recovery problems you will have a good idea what is causing them. Both the exercises you have quoted are both compound lifts, pick one and see if it helps. If it causes recovery issues you could drop curls in place of one of them.

[Mezza345]

What if you don't get all the reps before the 5th week?

[DeltaCharlie75]

What if you don't get all the reps before the 5th week?

You carry on to the next week as normal. The only day that matters for pass/fail is week 5 heavy day. If you pass on this day you increase weight for the next cycle. If you fail you keep the same weight.

[krysix]

I am just about ready to finish my third cycle. I am looking to add 2-3 extra lifts to help me out. So far my military press and bench are **** so any ideas on what I should add to help increase them? I was thinking pull ups and upright rows.

I know All pro said that the best exercises to add are upright rows and hammer grip bench press.