Too much...?

I have a question. Is a full body work out done through Mon-Wed Thurs rest resume Fri-Sat Mon-Wed etc etc..too much?

Three days on, one day off and repeat? That's perfect. Exactly what I try to do. The body needs time to rest and repair. Also better way to gain mass vs. just toning up.

I usually do:

Arms
Chest and shoulders
Legs

Day off

Arms
Chest and shoulders
Legs

Dayoff

etc....

Then I may change the order on ocassion just to break it up. I change workouts regularly too so it doesn't get stale. Nothing I hate worse than going long lengths of time without seeing improvements.

I may change to Arms and Shoulders one day and Chest alone another, etc. When you do it this way, you are really only working each part of your body twice per week, so not really working too hard.

Be careful not to over exercise on the days you exercise. That is bad. Too many sets of too many exercises at one time. Some muscles can actually shrink when overworked and thus giving you negative results. It can happen more likely with the minor muscles groups vs. the major ones.

I also run 6 days per week as well.






[edit on 7-12-2008 by Excitable_Boy]

Originally posted by Excitable_Boy
Three days on, one day off and repeat?
[edit on 7-12-2008 by Excitable_Boy]

I think you misunderstood me.

Mon-Workout

Tue-Workout

Wed-Workout

Thurs-Rest

Fri-Workout

Sat-Workout

Sun-Workout

Repeat all over again till Thurs then resume on Fri etc etc

[edit on 7-12-2008 by The Scarecrow]

A full body three days in a row is a bad idea, you aren't giving your muscles enough time to recover.

Try working out Monday, Wednesday and Friday providing at least one day of rest between workouts. Remember muscles grow while at rest.

It's not so much a question of the particular protocol you are following. The question is are you over training? Are you getting plenty of sleep and are your nutritional habits enough to fuel your activities? If you are steadily making progress without overtraining then there is nothing wrong with what you are doing.

I will however add that a full body resistance training workout 5 days a week is probably unnecessary. More often than not better gains can be had through less frequent, but smarter training sessions. The old maxim "no pain no gain" is totally false. Train under the philsophy of "train smarter not harder"

Some signs of overtraining include:
fatigue and lack of energy
muscular pain or joint pain
insomnia
drops in performance levels
drastic mood changes
increased occurance of colds and such due to a compromised immune system

[edit on 7-12-2008 by Mav3rick]

Originally posted by Mav3rick
It's not so much a question of the particular protocol you are following. The question is are you over training? Are you getting plenty of sleep and are your nutritional habits enough to fuel your activities? If you are steadily making progress without overtraining then there is nothing wrong with what you are doing.

I will however add that a full body resistance training workout 5 days a week is probably unnecessary. More often than not better gains can be had through less frequent, but smarter training sessions. The old maxim "no pain no gain" is totally false. Train under the philsophy of "train smarter not harder"

Some signs of overtraining include:
fatigue and lack of energy
muscular pain or joint pain
insomnia
drops in performance levels
drastic mood changes
increased occurance of colds and such due to a compromised immune system

[edit on 7-12-2008 by Mav3rick]

Okey doke.

I think it would be. Quality over quantity i feel is always the best approach. Although i guess each person is different, maybe for you it isnt too much, maybe for someone else, its way too much.

That's a pretty bad idea. Always remember though, when asking for advice, we can't help you unless you give us an idea of what your goals are.

The answer to your original question, however, is no. So, if you want some advice on what you should be doing, just let us know what you want the end result to be.

-Dev

Originally posted by DevolutionEvolvd
That's a pretty bad idea. Always remember though, when asking for advice, we can't help you unless you give us an idea of what your goals are.

The answer to your original question, however, is no. So, if you want some advice on what you should be doing, just let us know what you want the end result to be.

-Dev

I have to disagree with you here. He didn't even say WHAT he was doing! If he's not doing high intensity resistance training then there isn't much harm.

Are you saying it's wrong for me to practice Jiu jitsu 3 days in a row? For all intents and purposes, it fits the same description he just gave.

I never accused anyone of being wrong here, I simply said it's not a good idea, it's too much. :shk: Now don't take things out of context here. I also followed up my original statement by saying that advice is pointless unless we know what his goal is.

Why do I think it's a bad idea? First, a full body workout, in the general sense, is a resistance workout and there is no reason why one should do the exact same full body workout 3 days on and 1 day off. Muscle recovery is very important, as you know. Secondly, I really don't care what kind of workout it is, 3 days on and 1 day off of the same workout is simply too much. Yes there are exceptions, but generally speaking, it is too much.

If you want an optimal, 3 day, full body workout, it should look as follows:

Mon-On
Tues-Off
Wed-On
Thurs-Off
Friday-On
Sat-Off
Sun-Off

Perform one-two exercises per movement, not body part. Example:

Warmup - Bodyweight Lunges
Explosive - Hang Clean or Deadlift
Knee Dominant - Squats or Lunges
Hip Dominant - Back Extensions or Romanian Deadlift
Vertical Push - Push Press or Millitary Press
Horizontal Push - Bench Press or Dumbbell flys
Horizontal Pull - Rows or Inverted pullup
Pull - Pullups or Lat Pulldowns
Twist - Wood chop
Bridging - Plank Variation

Do that with 4 sets of 6-10 Except Explosive and Bridging workouts. Explosive should be 4 sets of 2-5 and Bridges should be held for 30 seconds.

-Dev

[edit on 8-12-2008 by DevolutionEvolvd]

What if I change it from a full body work out to something like this:

Mon-Chest, Legs, Abs

Tue-Shoulders, Traps, Back, Abs

Wed-Biceps, Triceps, Abs

Thurs-Rest

Fri-Repeat of Mon.

Sat- Repeat of Tues

Sun-Repeat of Wed and all over again till Thurs, resume Fri etc etc

Originally posted by DevolutionEvolvd

If you want an optimal, 3 day, full body workout, it should look as follows:

Mon-On
Tues-Off
Wed-On
Thurs-Off
Friday-On
Sat-Off
Sun-Off

Perform one-two exercises per movement, not body part. Example:

Warmup - Bodyweight Lunges
Explosive - Hang Clean or Deadlift
Knee Dominant - Squats or Lunges
Hip Dominant - Back Extensions or Romanian Deadlift
Vertical Push - Push Press or Millitary Press
Horizontal Push - Bench Press or Dumbbell flys
Horizontal Pull - Rows or Inverted pullup
Pull - Pullups or Lat Pulldowns
Twist - Wood chop
Bridging - Plank Variation

Do that with 4 sets of 6-10 Except Explosive and Bridging workouts. Explosive should be 4 sets of 2-5 and Bridges should be held for 30 seconds.


[edit on 8-12-2008 by DevolutionEvolvd]

Oh, I do agree that this is a very good way of looking at things. However, for all we know is that he's doing 3 days of bodyweight squats and pushups and a few pullups That would hardly create a state of overtraining. We don't know anything about what he's doing or what he wants which is what you stated. That's why I said that overtraining is the best indicator if it's a good idea or a bad idea.

Also, suggesting hang cleans or deadlifts to someone who may not even be capable of doing them correctly is also not a good idea.

[edit on 8-12-2008 by Mav3rick]

There are just so many factors to consider when trying to help someone. Asking if a certain, but broad, workout schedule is good without considering the other factors is just retarded. Diet, nutrient timing, intensity of exercises, heavy or light loads, rep totals, total amount of work, number of workouts a week, amount of rest and more.....all these things have a huge impact and determine what results you get.

Hang cleans are tough and aren't really recommended for beginners without proper training. Deadlifts are basic. But really, every exercise has potential to be very dangerous without using the proper technique, including machines. All exercises require some amount of training to perform safely and efficiently. No one wants muscle imbalances.

-Dev

reply to post by DevolutionEvolvd


Many factors yes. Why the need to complicate this so much? What type of muscle inbalances are you speaking of?

Thanks!

Yes, deadlifts are basic, but try telling that to someone who has no concept of keeping a neutral spinal position. Trust me, I see it everyday. Even in people who consider themselves "in shape". They can't even pass basic movement screens without mind boggling compensatory patterns.

Yea, you're right. It's sad. Walking through my gym on a normal busy afternoon, I would say that 80%-90% of exercises being performed are either pointless or done with incorrect/dangerous form. And the worst part is that's including the other trainers on the floor. :shk:

It really amazes me to see what exercise program most trainers prescribe for their clients. And don't even get me started on Nutrition.

-Dev

Originally posted by DevolutionEvolvd
Yea, you're right. It's sad. Walking through my gym on a normal busy afternoon, I would say that 80%-90% of exercises being performed are either pointless or done with incorrect/dangerous form. And the worst part is that's including the other trainers on the floor. :shk:

It really amazes me to see what exercise program most trainers prescribe for their clients. And don't even get me started on Nutrition.

-Dev

AH!!! We finally agree!

Pointless? You mean to tell me the functional one legged rotational handstand wrist curl is pointless or dangerous??

I've worked in my fair share of gyms where 8-10 trainers don't know their head from their arse. Including the ones that are my bosses. That's why I'm self employed now.

[edit on 10-12-2008 by Mav3rick]

reply to post by DevolutionEvolvd

Yea, you're right. It's sad. Walking through my gym on a normal busy afternoon, I would say that 80%-90% of exercises being performed are either pointless or done with incorrect/dangerous form. And the worst part is that's including the other trainers on the floor.

If it's so sad, why don't you do something about it? If you do nothing, aren't you part of the problem? If you walk around and see this and are trained as to what is correct and incorrect, aren't you just as sad for letting it go on?

Complainers: I love them. I'll take some shlub that tries but may not know what they are doing over a guy that knows everything and does nothing to fix a problem any day of the week.

A friend of mine was so obsessed about getting a 'buff chest' that he ended up with a muscle imbalance between chest and back muscles.

As a result he had so much shoulder pain he had to quit.

I was always criticized for not doing enough chest work,instead concentrating on back,but as my sports depended on it,it worked well for me.

Windsurfing/waterskiing,climbing requires a lot of pulling actions obviously,so bench presses were a waste of time,building up xtra wight in muscle mass that were not utilized in the activity was a dumb idea.

It's horses for courses,if you want it for 'show' or building 'size',then working individual areas to failure on a rotation every few days is good.

If you want it for a sport,train using that sport.

For general fitness,work hard enough to sweat,but remember to give yourself rest when your body tells you to.

For boxing (years ago),we used to train to exhaustion a couple of times a week,then go through pure technique afterwards to give the actual 'ring feeling'

If you can get your concentration into gear when your body wants to quit,it prepares you mentally for hitting the wall during a bout,when all you want to do is go home,have a warm bath and a huge bar of fruit n nut. Mmmm.Choccy.

Huge amounts depend on the nutrition involved.

You can eat yourself fitter with minimal exercise.
But you can't train yourself thinner without eating healthier.

If it's so sad, why don't you do something about it? If you do nothing, aren't you part of the problem? If you walk around and see this and are trained as to what is correct and incorrect, aren't you just as sad for letting it go on?

Wow, really? You obviously have no idea how large most trainer's egos are. Besides, you can't just walk up to a trainer and say, "Hey, you're doing that all wrong buddy...?"

I help people that I feel will listen, but once you've dealt with the typical guy who thinks, just because he read a book and one of his buddies is a body builder, he doesn't need advice.

I also do independent work. Can't stand gyms.

What's up with the accusations? So, you want me to do something about it? Ok. You jog on a daily basis right? Well, unless you're doing it for fun only, I would stop.

, Now let's see you bounce back and attack me for not knowing what I'm talking about cause you've been running for years........Pfffftt.

-Dev