Is this an efficient workout routine?

[TexDad]

I wanted to try something different from my basic upper/lower split.

4 Sets of Bench press (6 reps)
3 Sets of Incline Dumbbell Bench press (8-10 reps)
3 Supersets of Dips and cable flies (12-15 reps)

3 Sets of Military Press (6 reps)
3 Sets of seated dumbbell shoulder press (8-10 reps)

3 Sets of French Press (6 reps)
3 Sets of Triceps rope pushdowns (8-10 reps)


4 Sets of Deadlifts (6 reps)
4 Sets of Pull Ups (max reps)
3 Sets of seated Cable rows (8-10 reps)
3 Sets of one arm dumbbell rows (8-10 reps)

4 Sets of Dumbbell shrugs (6 reps)

3 Sets of Barbell Curls (6 reps)
3 Sets of seated Hammer Curls (8-10 reps)


4 Sets of Squats (6 reps)
3 Sets of Leg Press (8-10 reps)
3 Supersets of Leg Curls and Leg Extensions (12-15 reps)
4 Sets of Calf Raises (6-8 reps)

3 Sets of Crunches (20 reps)
3 Sets of Leg Raises (20 reps)


I tried push today and my triceps were pretty wasted by the time I got to Rope Pushdowns. Anything I should cut out. Thanks all.

[davisj3537]

You are pulling the same or less than you're pushing. This is a recipe for disaster man.

I'd consider taking out two presses and adding in some type of external rotation exercise and/or face pull. There are face pull variations that have both.

[TexDad]

You are pulling the same or less than you're pushing. This is a recipe for disaster man.

I'd consider taking out two presses and adding in some type of external rotation exercise and/or face pull. There are face pull variations that have both.

Thank you Davis. Is there a better PPL program out there?

[davisj3537]

Thank you Davis. Is there a better PPL program out there?

Well if you were to ask 10 different people you'd get 10 different answers. lol

If you're interested in reading about doing your own balance this may be of interest to you http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...6216941&page=1


An example of such a routine is seen here, but it doesn't address external rotation. You've got to add that in. At this point though you should have a shoulder/hip prehab routine that you do daily or at least before exercising those bodyparts. A prehab routine will cover things like external rotation.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...post1267282851

[Fluoresce]

You are pulling the same or less than you're pushing. This is a recipe for disaster man.

Newbie question.

Please elaborate on that, Davis. :-D Should he be pulling more because more muscles are involved?

[davisj3537]

Newbie question.

Please elaborate on that, Davis. :-D Should he be pulling more because more muscles are involved?

Yes, think about how many back muscles there are and then compare that to the chest having two muscles. The back is very complex and needs more varied work, but at the same time it must balance.

So while a developed chest wants to pull your shoulders forward, the rhomboids and mid/lower traps have to fight to pull back and keep the shoulders in their sweet spot. So you can't just balance your chest to back, but balance chest to rhomboids and lower/mid traps. That's only 3 back muscles...there are a bunch left. Most back exercises work a bunch of muscles, but emphasize particular ones. Hence the need for varied directional pulling and exercises.


This is a super super basic explanation. It gets much more complicated since the scapulae moves up, down, forward and backward. You've got to train all 4 movements and balance those as well, while still balancing everything else...the list goes on and on. So bench works scapular retraction while at the same time developing muscles that cause scapular protraction. Then you do say face pulls to work mid/lower traps and rhomboids. So now you have two exercises for scap retraction so you have to get creative to work more lower/mid traps without training more retraction....again, the list goes on and on.


Little outdated on my opinions, but it gives a concise overview of the scaps-http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=163112471



Hope that makes sense.

[Fluoresce]

Yes, think about how many back muscles there are and then compare that to the chest having two muscles. The back is very complex and needs more varied work, but at the same time it must balance.

So while a developed chest wants to pull your shoulders forward, the rhomboids and mid/lower traps have to fight to pull back and keep the shoulders in their sweet spot. So you can't just balance your chest to back, but balance chest to rhomboids and lower/mid traps. That's only 3 back muscles...there are a bunch left. Most back exercises work a bunch of muscles, but emphasize particular ones. Hence the need for varied directional pulling and exercises.

This is a super super basic explanation. It gets much more complicated since the scapulae moves up, down, forward and backward. You've got to train all 4 movements and balance those as well, while still balancing everything else...the list goes on and on. So bench works scapular retraction while at the same time developing muscles that cause scapular protraction. So now you have two exercises for scap retraction so you have to get creative to work lower/mid traps without training more retraction....again, the list goes on and on.

Hope that makes sense.

Great stuff! Added to your rep.

[mdonnelly80]

My rule of thumb: 2:1 ratio of pulling to pressing volume. You don't need to add in a ton of extra rows or deadlifts: just do face pulls/pull aparts and light pull downs to get that extra volume in. I have followed this rule whether I was competing in bodybuilding, powerlifting, or the Highland Games and I've never had any shoulder issues caused by an imbalance.

Honestly, your lats can take a pretty thorough beating so I've always included a ton of pull ups/pull downs in my routines. But, as it's been pointed out, you need that balance throughout the rest of your back and face pulls/band pull-aparts and reverse flies are easy ways to get that extra volume without going nuts.

On a side note, many people don't understand how to properly recruit their back muscles when doing a pulling exercise. The focus should always be on retracting your scapula and drawing your elbows in/down and not actually PULLING the weight with your arms. Recruit your back musculature and let those muscles do the work.