Day 3: Back & Biceps

Back:

Pull-Ups: 20 reps (However many sets it takes to complete)

Barbell Rows: 2 sets – 6 reps

Lat Pull-downs: 1 set – 6 reps

“V”-Bar Pull-downs: 1 set – 6 reps

Biceps:

Curl Bar Curls: 2 sets – 6 reps

Alternating Dumbbell Curls: 2 sets – 6 reps

Day 4: Shoulders & Traps

Shoulders:

Seated Dumbbell Press: 2 sets – 6 reps

Standing Side Lateral Dumbbell Raises: 2 sets – 6 reps

Standing Bent-over Rear Lateral Raises: 2 sets – 6 reps

Traps:

Barbell Shrugs: 2 sets – 6 reps

Day 5: Calves, Forearms & Abs

Calves:

Standing Machine Calf Raises: 2 sets – 6 reps

Seated Calf Raises: 2 sets – 6 reps

Forearms:

Barbell Wrist Curls: 2 sets – 6 reps

Reverse Wrist Curls: 2 sets – 6 reps

Abs:

Cable Rope Crunches: 2 sets – 12 reps

Leg Raises: 2 sets – 12 reps

After you complete these 5 workouts, take two days off.

Cardiovascular Training

The frequency of your cardio sessions is going to depend upon your personal goals. If you are really focused on getting lean, you may want to add more cardio. Think of cardio as a tool to help you expend more calories. This will help your fat burning equation: expend more energy (calories) than you consume. I would suggest doing 3 to 5 intense cardio sessions per week. Keep the duration of each session between 16- 20 minutes. I feel that some cardio is important not only for its fat burning effects but for your overall health as well. Again, you can vary your cardio schedule depending on your goals. The intensity of your cardiovascular sessions is very important. Shorter, more intense sessions are more efficient and effective for burning fat than moderate intensity, long duration (30 + minutes) sessions. As you graduate to Max-OT training I also recommend you graduate into Max-OT Cardio. You can read Paul Delia’s article for a detailed explanation on this highly effective cardiovascular training method.

Nutritional/Supplementation Planning

Nutritional/supplementation planning will continue to be a huge factor in your overall success. Your habits outside the gym will dictate the degree and speed of your results. Over the last 3 weeks, you worked on following a more structured eating schedule and increasing your daily protein intake. Continue to organize your eating habits and keep focused on quality protein consumption. Protein should be the backbone to your nutritional plan, especially if you are trying to gain muscle. No matter what your goal is it is important to supply yourself with quality nutrients. Your overall health is affected greatly by the choices you make when you eat. This doesn’t mean that you can never treat yourself to your favorite foods, just eat healthy and smart. Follow a good eating schedule for six days and then take one day a week and treat yourself, you deserve it. If you are trying to maximize your strength and development it is to your benefit to take advantage of the awesome advancements in supplementation. A smart supplementation plan can greatly enhance your results.

We discussed the benefits of Raptor-HP and VP2 Whey Isolate. I would continue to put an emphasis on these products. You will not find better protein sources anywhere. They are convenient, taste great and are unmatched in quality. Some other important products I suggest are Micronized Creatine, GL3 L-Glutamine, and MultiPro 32X (Multiple Vitamin/Mineral). All of these products give you energy to train, will help you to recover from the stimulus of training and keep you healthy and strong. I feel they are the building blocks to a sound supplementation program. As you ask more from your body by increasing training intensity, it is important that you are supplying yourself with the nutrients necessary to maximize your recovery. An intelligent supplementation program will help meet your body’s needs.

Conclusion

We have been discussing the 3 main components of a successful exercise program: weight training, cardiovascular training, and nutritional/supplementation planning. How you combine these elements is now up to you and will depend on your own personal goals. After you finish these 3 weeks of more intense workouts you will have an awesome foundation and be ready for all out Max-OT training. Max-OT is the best way to stimulate maximum strength and development. If your physique goals fall somewhere in between maximum muscle gains and getting fit, you can apply the information you have learned to best suit your needs. One important thing to remember is no matter where you aspire to take your physique, consistency in and out of the gym over a span of time will yield results. You have done a great job and have made some very positive steps in making exercise part of your lifestyle. Keep up the good work!

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Getting Started in Weight Training – Part 3

by Jeff Willet time to read: 8 min