Days Per Week Each Body Part?

[perkins2290]

Quick question that you're all probably weary of answering :

My current workout schedule:

2x's/week = chest/arms (same workout)

1x/week = legs

2x's/week = shoulders/traps (same workout)

1x/week = back (1 day = same workout as shoulders/traps)

Rarely do cardio other than jump rope or stair master 1 or 2x's/week for about 5-10 min. (despise cardio).

I usually fit all of this into 4-5 days/week @ about 2 hours per workout. I'm 49 yrs. old, but still have much endurance as it relates to working out.

However, I am considering working everything once per week & spending less time in the gym each day. My dilemma is that I feel that 1x/week is just not enough for most body parts (except legs).

I still remember when the going thing for weight lifting was each body part 3x's/week - and, honestly, I do see much more muscularity/size when I workout more (also just started using Fat Gripz & have seen much improvement)...but I also get mentally/physically drained by going to the gym so much (I confess I'm virtually hooked on gym life).

I guess I'm asking if once per week for each body part is sufficient for growth? Your thoughts?

Thank you in advance!

[wowter]

Twice weekly minimum for ALL muscle groups if you're a natural lifter. That includes legs and back. Not sure why you would only want to train those once.

Also training chest/shoulders twice as much as back will lead to all kinds of issues long term. If you value your health get on a balanced program.

[perkins2290]

Twice weekly minimum for ALL muscle groups if you're a natural lifter. That includes legs and back. Not sure why you would only want to train those once.

Also training chest/shoulders twice as much as back will lead to all kinds of issues long term. If you value your health get on a balanced program.

This does not answer the question, nor does it take into consideration my age (which I was careful to point out). If I was still under 30 I wouldn't even be inquiring.

Train legs & back once/week because the older I get the less stress I want to place on my knees/back.

The question (for more experienced weight-lifters) is: I see & read where many weight lifters have gone to training each body part 1x/week to allow the muscles more time to rest & avoid injury/over training the body. I am trying to get a general consensus from most weight lifters today.

[Tedp]

General consensus is a bro split is less than idea. Much better with a upper/lower or ppl or even full body.

[SuffolkPunch]

I'm only a few years younger than you and train 6 days a week, hitting every bodypart 4x per week.

Frequency and number of training days per week are actually not the main issue - it's total training volume that matters. That is something you have to tune to your individual needs and recovery capacity.

Having said that, the maximum time I would recommend between training a bodypart is abotu 4-5 days for a novice, less for more experienced lifters.

[sooby]

This does not answer the question, nor does it take into consideration my age (which I was careful to point out). If I was still under 30 I wouldn't even be inquiring.

Train legs & back once/week because the older I get the less stress I want to place on my knees/back.

The question (for more experienced weight-lifters) is: I see & read where many weight lifters have gone to training each body part 1x/week to allow the muscles more time to rest & avoid injury/over training the body. I am trying to get a general consensus from most weight lifters today.

Trains legs and back once a week because you want to place less stress on knees/back; proceeds to train chest/shoulders 2x a week each. You do realize that this makes no sense at all. When you are training chest you are most likely training shoulders as well so it is as if you are training it 4x a week. You are going to have a lot more problems aside from being afraid of putting stress on the knees and back.

One of the most common overuse injuries that people who lift complain about is NOT the knees. A properly executed squat literally puts no stress on the knee. But one of the most common if NOT the most common overuse injuries is that of the shoulder. AND it is almost always because of doing dumb crap like pressing way more then you are pulling.

[perkins2290]

Trains legs and back once a week because you want to place less stress on knees/back; proceeds to train chest/shoulders 2x a week each. You do realize that this makes no sense at all. When you are training chest you are most likely training shoulders as well so it is as if you are training it 4x a week. You are going to have a lot more problems aside from being afraid of putting stress on the knees and back.

One of the most common overuse injuries that people who lift complain about is NOT the knees. A properly executed squat literally puts no stress on the knee. But one of the most common if NOT the most common overuse injuries is that of the shoulder. AND it is almost always because of doing dumb crap like pressing way more then you are pulling.

You said, "You do realize that this makes no sense at all." Ummm, listen closely youngster, what "makes no sense at all" is me asking the same question twice now & no response other than the type of scorn you present above. Here, let's try this again shall we?

Many bodybuilders have gone to working each body part 1x/week - esp. as they get older since it takes longer for muscles to recover. Is this a viable solution or the general consensus of weight lifters on here? See how easy the question is?

Jay Cutler (ever heard of him?) said that he doesn't even do back squats anymore because the older he gets the less pressure he wants to place on his spine/back. Others have stated the same thing.

BTW, my squat form is excellent (I actually have others tell me this all the time). Thanks for the "advice" young feller' - but no thanks.

[SuffolkPunch]

Jay Cutler is only 33. His reasons for backing down are probably more related to the massive stresses that training places on his body. Basically it's a meaningless comparison to make with an average natural lifter.

Comparing yourself to other older lifters might be a viable strategy but they may be less inclined to help you out if you take the same tone with them as you have above.

[pinesalmog]

just do SL 5x5 if you're trying to put on muscle. lower the set volume if you're cutting.

[pinesalmog]

Frequency and number of training days per week are actually not the main issue - it's total training volume that matters.

Definitely makes sense.

It's not like there's a magical number of days you should or shouldn't train. It's really the volume. I would assume at least once a week, if so, at a high volume, vice versa, and anything/everything in between.

[pinesalmog]

but still have much endurance as it relates to working out.

not really... unless you're following a program that requires endurance. some programs have you lifting heavy 3 times a week. not much endurance there. You'll need endurance for sports like football that require strength and endurance (well maybe not that much). If you want endurance, for whatever reason I cannot even fathom why anyone would unless they play sports or like to do endurance activities, boxing, or just for cardiovascular health, etc., probably should do endurance activities outside of lifting.

[wowter]

Hey "old fella", noone is going to want to answer your question if you keep talking to them like that.

Do what you want. Enjoy your shoulder surgery.

[Squid24]

Ok, I'll bite. I'm 52 and I train Upper/Lower and a fun Upper day focus is more on arms on Saturday. I squat twice a week, had shotty knees before I got back into fitness and they have improved. I deadlift on my second squat day too. My back gets a great workout twice a week and with no stress. So yes, you are not making any sense.

When you do less of something major, you are creating an imbalance. That's what these so called youngsters, who seem to know more about lifting than you do, are trying to tell you.

I have learned a long time ago, tis better to listen to those who know more than I do, no matter their age.

[CaptHoneyBadger]

Why are you training the fast twitch muscles more often than the slower twitch one. My rule is everything twice a week.
Monday- legs, Tuesday- chest and Tri, Wednesday- back and Bi(including deadlift), Thursday- Shoulders, Friday 5x5 heavy compound lifts (bench, squat,deadlift, over head press, and bent over rows)

[Squid24]

Why are you training the fast twitch muscles more often than the slower twitch one. My rule is everything twice a week.
Monday- legs, Tuesday- chest and Tri, Wednesday- back and Bi(including deadlift), Thursday- Shoulders, Friday 5x5 heavy compound lifts (bench, squat,deadlift, over head press, and bent over rows)

Why not just run a PPL, cause you have way to much shoulder work going on in your set up

[sooby]

You said, "You do realize that this makes no sense at all." Ummm, listen closely youngster, what "makes no sense at all" is me asking the same question twice now & no response other than the type of scorn you present above. Here, let's try this again shall we?

Many bodybuilders have gone to working each body part 1x/week - esp. as they get older since it takes longer for muscles to recover. Is this a viable solution or the general consensus of weight lifters on here? See how easy the question is?

Jay Cutler (ever heard of him?) said that he doesn't even do back squats anymore because the older he gets the less pressure he wants to place on his spine/back. Others have stated the same thing.

BTW, my squat form is excellent (I actually have others tell me this all the time). Thanks for the "advice" young feller' - but no thanks.

If what I posted above was "scorn" then I hate to picture what it would be like when somebody actually insults you. I never insulted you once in my post. I just said training chest/shoulders 2x a week makes no sense in the context that you are training legs once per week because you want to avoid "stress". And that your amount of pressing and pulling is dumb because it is going to create serious imbalances.

Listen. You posted a routine up. People have ALREADY answered your question in that 1 body part per week splits are not optimal growth AT ALL and have gave you advice on your routine. And all you've managed to do is be a "douchebag" to the people who are helping you. I'm not sure why you would even bother posting up a body part split when you lack a backbone when it comes to fair criticism.

Are you a bodybuilder? Or an advanced lifter for that matter? If not then why are you comparing your situation to that of Jay Cutler? He is a former Mr Olympia who's taken anabolics and has been training for decades not to mention working in the construction business in his youth. That isn't even close to what your situation is. If you are training that hard and if your body is holding that much mass for his height of course there are going to be problems. There are plenty of people on this board well into their 30s that have zero problems squatting and recovering. Hell Squid is 52 and he's still done squats 2-3x a week.

You can do squats or legs once a week if you want but what I am saying is your reasoning is contradictory based on you wanting to train chest and shoulders 2x a week without counteracting it with enough pulling. This is because you are going to create major imbalances which may cost you surgery down the line. Even having a very strong and muscular upper body is going to create serious issues if you have a lower body made of straw.

You also do realize that alot of lower back issues are not because of the back itself but it may be due to weak/tight hamstrings and glutes. And weak legs in general which causes the lower back to take most of the load which will lead to injury further down the line. Just because you train body parts once per week doesn't mean you are any less prone to injury. It would help if you actually posted the exercises you were doing on each day.

[blue9steel]

Many bodybuilders have gone to working each body part 1x/week - esp. as they get older since it takes longer for muscles to recover. Is this a viable solution or the general consensus of weight lifters on here?

A) No, it's not a viable solution
B) No, it's not the general consensus here
C) I question whether your initial statement is even true, there will always be exceptions of course but that is rarely something you can generalize

Frequency matters. Age doesn't significantly impact muscular recovery time, though it does impact total recovery capacity.

[CaptHoneyBadger]

Why not just run a PPL, cause you have way to much shoulder work going on in your set up

Because I like atleast 1 full day of overloading for each muscle group. I do agree I have too much should work going so the only I can compensate for that as is I don't try to over load too much on overhead press. I like the PPL concept thought, but as of right now my routine is working out for me. I've improved on strength and size so until I stop seeing results I'll stick with this for now.

[TheViking1992]

Why are you training the fast twitch muscles more often than the slower twitch one. My rule is everything twice a week.
Monday- legs, Tuesday- chest and Tri, Wednesday- back and Bi(including deadlift), Thursday- Shoulders, Friday 5x5 heavy compound lifts (bench, squat,deadlift, over head press, and bent over rows)

Besides doing a terrible routine, what does that even mean?

[GotYrSix]

Your muscle recovery is not the problem.

http://mindandmuscle.net/articles/re...ervous-system/

What I find that works best for me is an every other day format. Either done in a 3day fullbody heavy/light/medium format or an upper/lower done heavy/light fashion. I travel, get not enough sleep, and have a good bit of physical/mental stress. This keeps me from being completely beat down.

[perkins2290]

Hey "old fella", noone is going to want to answer your question if you keep talking to them like that.

Do what you want. Enjoy your shoulder surgery.

It's really simple - if they don't start none & there won't be none.

[perkins2290]

If what I posted above was "scorn" then I hate to picture what it would be like when somebody actually insults you. I never insulted you once in my post. I just said training chest/shoulders 2x a week makes no sense in the context that you are training legs once per week because you want to avoid "stress". And that your amount of pressing and pulling is dumb because it is going to create serious imbalances.

Listen. You posted a routine up. People have ALREADY answered your question in that 1 body part per week splits are not optimal growth AT ALL and have gave you advice on your routine. And all you've managed to do is be a "douchebag" to the people who are helping you. I'm not sure why you would even bother posting up a body part split when you lack a backbone when it comes to fair criticism.

Are you a bodybuilder? Or an advanced lifter for that matter? If not then why are you comparing your situation to that of Jay Cutler? He is a former Mr Olympia who's taken anabolics and has been training for decades not to mention working in the construction business in his youth. That isn't even close to what your situation is. If you are training that hard and if your body is holding that much mass for his height of course there are going to be problems. There are plenty of people on this board well into their 30s that have zero problems squatting and recovering. Hell Squid is 52 and he's still done squats 2-3x a week.

You can do squats or legs once a week if you want but what I am saying is your reasoning is contradictory based on you wanting to train chest and shoulders 2x a week without counteracting it with enough pulling. This is because you are going to create major imbalances which may cost you surgery down the line. Even having a very strong and muscular upper body is going to create serious issues if you have a lower body made of straw.

You also do realize that alot of lower back issues are not because of the back itself but it may be due to weak/tight hamstrings and glutes. And weak legs in general which causes the lower back to take most of the load which will lead to injury further down the line. Just because you train body parts once per week doesn't mean you are any less prone to injury. It would help if you actually posted the exercises you were doing on each day.

Yea', what was I thinking by taking offense to words like "dumb, etc." (& now even worse) from someone my son's age? Or, looking to a Mr. O. for weight-lifting advice?

I respectfully asked for guidance - not condescending remarks from a kid. Now, you're attempting to spin away from it by turning the tables? If you can dish it out be prepared to receive it...SMH.

Better yet, just put me on ignore - I'll take advice from far more experienced & respectful weight-lifters.

[perkins2290]

Jay Cutler is only 33. His reasons for backing down are probably more related to the massive stresses that training places on his body. Basically it's a meaningless comparison to make with an average natural lifter.

Comparing yourself to other older lifters might be a viable strategy but they may be less inclined to help you out if you take the same tone with them as you have above.

Gotcha! Good points.

[perkins2290]

Ok, I'll bite. I'm 52 and I train Upper/Lower and a fun Upper day focus is more on arms on Saturday. I squat twice a week, had shotty knees before I got back into fitness and they have improved. I deadlift on my second squat day too. My back gets a great workout twice a week and with no stress. So yes, you are not making any sense.

When you do less of something major, you are creating an imbalance. That's what these so called youngsters, who seem to know more about lifting than you do, are trying to tell you.

I have learned a long time ago, tis better to listen to those who know more than I do, no matter their age.

You said, "That's what these so called youngsters, who seem to know more about lifting than you do, are trying to tell you." Well, that would be the reason I asked the question now wouldn't it? Never mind - Carry on....SMH.

[perkins2290]

A) No, it's not a viable solution
B) No, it's not the general consensus here
C) I question whether your initial statement is even true, there will always be exceptions of course but that is rarely something you can generalize

Frequency matters. Age doesn't significantly impact muscular recovery time, though it does impact total recovery capacity.

Finally! Okay, this makes sense. I was good friends w. a BB back in the day who only worked each muscle 1x/week to allow maximum recovery time. He was adamant about it (since then I've encountered other trainers who teach the same thing) & his reasoning made sense to me. However, I just didn't see the growth like I did when working each body part 2x's/week....hence, my simple question on this forum.

Thank you for the info.

[WolfRose7]

LOL - oh brother - never mind. Carry on....SMH.

for someone putting such an emphasis on age you have a lot of growing up to do.
age does = intelligence/knowledge/experience in a given field.
it really doesn't equal anything other than you managed to survive a bit longer.
yes some people have decades of experience in something like lifting and show it.
others have less experience at 70 than some of the guys in their 20's on this forum.

which would you listen to, the novice in there 60/70s or a professional in their 20s?

[perkins2290]

Your muscle recovery is not the problem.

What I find that works best for me is an every other day format. Either done in a 3day fullbody heavy/light/medium format or an upper/lower done heavy/light fashion. I travel, get not enough sleep, and have a good bit of physical/mental stress. This keeps me from being completely beat down.

Got it - this is exactly the type of info. (& attitude) I was looking for.

Will look into this.

[perkins2290]

for someone putting such an emphasis on age you have a lot of growing up to do.
age does = intelligence/knowledge/experience in a given field.
it really doesn't equal anything other than you managed to survive a bit longer.
yes some people have decades of experience in something like lifting and show it.
others have less experience at 70 than some of the guys in their 20's on this forum.

which would you listen to, the novice in there 60/70s or a professional in their 20s?

Simply returned the favor. Why cry foul when I only responded to what others initiated w. comments like "dumb," name calling, etc....when I only respectfully asked for advice? Not hard to understand.

[Getup1982]

So, how are ya gonna change your routine, OP after the advice given in the thread?

[sooby]

Yea', what was I thinking by taking offense to words like "dumb, etc." (& now even worse) from someone my son's age? Or, looking to a Mr. O. for weight-lifting advice?

I respectfully asked for guidance - not condescending remarks from a kid. Now, you're attempting to spin away from it by turning the tables? If you can dish it out be prepared to receive it...SMH.

Better yet, just put me on ignore - I'll take advice from far more experienced & respectful weight-lifters.

I said verbatim "But one of the most common if NOT the most common overuse injuries is that of the shoulder. AND it is almost always because of doing dumb crap like pressing way more then you are pulling."

I did not call you dumb I just made a general statement. If you don't like people criticizing your routine for what it is then I don't know what to say anymore. If anything, you are the one being very condescending by calling me and other people "youngsters" and "kids". Just because you are a lot older then some people it doesn't mean you know any better about any particular subject.

I feel like I shouldn't even have to explain this to anybody for that matter.

You seem to be above and cant handle when people (especially younger people) give you advice and telling you what you are doing is not very good at all and could cause injury.