Is it kosher to do Chest one day and Biceps the next?

[Matlm]

Topic.


Is it too much strain on the Upper Body to do chest one day, and then do biceps the next?

 

[true|hockey]

The only reason I don't do biceps after chest day is becasue my bi's and tris together. Obviously chest hits tris, so no use blasting those twice in two days.

 

[Templeton]

I don't like to see the genetically average, chemically unassisted guy train 2 days straight no matter what bodyparts are involved. It is SO easy to overtrain.

 

[Reto]

Originally posted by Templeton
I don't like to see the genetically average, chemically unassisted guy train 2 days straight no matter what bodyparts are involved. It is SO easy to overtrain.

So, you train only 3 days a week? LOL...

As long as you give the same muscle group enough time to recouperate, you're ok.

If I have a serious heavy workout, I may not train that group for a whole week. If I half @ss a work out, I may do it over the next day (depending on how I feel).

It's your body. Learn what it can take. What it can't take. What it responds to. Etc...

 

[madgame]

I work out my chest/shoulders/triceps on one day and my legs/back/biceps/abs the next one, then I rest for one or two days (I work out 4 times a week, so I once have one day of rest for my full body and the next time I have 2). Has worked great for me. I guess I am a mesomorph, but I dont have superior genetics either...

I think theres nothing wrong with working out your chest on one day and your biceps the next day. I think its smart to work out your triceps and shoulders (if u do military presses or something for them) on the same day and biceps/back (cause a lot of back exercises use the biceps too) on the same day as well.

So, you train only 3 days a week? LOL...

Im pretty sure you can get very good results by working out that way (fullbody work out probably), but I dont think its a bad thing to work out 2 (or even 3) days in a row if you dont work out the same muscle groups during both workouts and still have 2 or 3 days a week on which you dont work out at all.

 

[Reto]

You're right. I know people who do upper body one day, lower the next. And it works for them. Personally, I don't have the energy or time to spend to do half my body in a day.

So, I do one muscle group. Legs one day (which, come to think of it is lower body), chest, shoulders, back, then arms... Basically a 5 day routine. Abs every other day, stretching on alternate days.

Of course it's not written in stone. If the gym is busy, I might skip calves and do them on chest day...etc...

 

[Templeton]

Originally posted by Reto
So, you train only 3 days a week? LOL...

Damn right I do. EOD at the most which is slightly more than 3 days per week. If you can't make gains on 3 days per week then you aren't training hard and/or intelligently enough.

I have trained for 15 yrs, both myself and numerous guys in the gym, including national caliber bodybuilders, guys who WERE assisted so I have seen what works for them and the average guy. I also heard Dorian Yates discuss this same issue with regard to the genetically average trainee at a seminar once and his view was that the regular drug free guy trained too often. About the only pro I have heard to tell the truth and blow away all the muscle mag myths. So who am I to listen to? A 6 time Mr Olympia generally considered one of the most knowledgable pros ever or...? Mmm that's a tough one.

I'm not saying 4 days a week won't work, it often will, but you skirt the boundaries of overtraining far more regularly, especially if for extended preriods of time.

You need to give your whole body a chance to recover, not just individual muscle groups and as there is often an overlap how can this be done effectively when training two days? Training upper body one day and lower the next is not practical in my view as the latter half of the upper body workout really suffers when employing the usual amount of exercises.

Tell you what guys, here is something novel, how about just 2 days per week with just 2-3 basic exercises per workout? Don't think it will work? Got an 18 yr old guy doing just that right now who needed to put some bulk on, getting stronger and growing by the day and such training has worked for countless bros over the last 40-50 years.

 

[Ian19]

I completely agree with Templeton's good advice. I learned the hard way that less is often more. I used to do all sorts of stupid things in my quest for physical enhancement. I lifted weights 5-6 times per week while on insane diets like rice and salads. I finally started listening to knowlegeable people and started working out intensely 3 times per week and getting on a good nutrition plan with the right amount of protein, carbs, and fats. It made all the difference. I finally started to put on muscle and lose fat at the same time. And the results came rather quickly when I started doing things the right way.

 

[Nightwing]

Originally posted by Templeton
Damn right I do. EOD at the most which is slightly more than 3 days per week. If you can't make gains on 3 days per week then you aren't training hard and/or intelligently enough.

I have trained for 15 yrs, both myself and numerous guys in the gym, including national caliber bodybuilders, guys who WERE assisted so I have seen what works for them and the average guy. I also heard Dorian Yates discuss this same issue with regard to the genetically average trainee at a seminar once and his view was that the regular drug free guy trained too often. About the only pro I have heard to tell the truth and blow away all the muscle mag myths. So who am I to listen to? A 6 time Mr Olympia generally considered one of the most knowledgable pros ever or...? Mmm that's a tough one.

I'm not saying 4 days a week won't work, it often will, but you skirt the boundaries of overtraining far more regularly, especially if for extended preriods of time.



Finally, someone's giving good advice on working out!!!! Right on Temp!!!
You need to give your whole body a chance to recover, not just individual muscle groups and as there is often an overlap how can this be done effectively when training two days? Training upper body one day and lower the next is not practical in my view as the latter half of the upper body workout really suffers when employing the usual amount of exercises.

Tell you what guys, here is something novel, how about just 2 days per week with just 2-3 basic exercises per workout? Don't think it will work? Got an 18 yr old guy doing just that right now who needed to put some bulk on, getting stronger and growing by the day and such training has worked for countless bros over the last 40-50 years.

 

[livin large]

Maybe a professional bodybuilder risks overtraining by working out each muscle group 1x per week, but most people do not. Working out just 3x per week causes problems. If you're working out every muscle group every week, that means you're working multiple muscle groups in each workout. We all know that the longer a workout lasts, the harder it is to get an adequate workout, especially for the last groups worked. Or, if you're only working 1 group per workout, that means you're just doing each group every 12-14 days. The average person is going to have difficulty making gains with this routine. Just as a novice can work out more often than those who have been lifting for a few years, those who have been lifting for a few years can lift more often than a bodybuilder. If you're a bodybuilder, that may explain the different perception. If you're not a bodybuilder, you may be taking the wrong advice, costing yourself gains.

 

[Templeton]

Originally posted by livin large
Working out just 3x per week causes problems. If you're working out every muscle group every week, that means you're working multiple muscle groups in each workout.

That's the point - If you perform a 'conventional' amount of sets then the workout is prone to last too long, so do less sets! I am not talking Mike Mentzer style, that's too extreme in my view, but less than you are conditioned (through the BS in the mags) to perform.

Last week I did back and shoulders in 45 mins and it was one of the best workouts I have done in ages plus I was fried at the end!

Pull-ups, rows, db pullovers, standing power press and bent raises. Think it was about 15 total sets.

 

[livin large]

wow. a lot of people do shoulder and back together. Me included. So what do you do the other 2 days? You can still have good workouts doing 3 days a week, it's just not as efficient or beneficial. I lift to increase stregth and size, and 3 days is not enough. Maybe it is for you, but if so, it's because you've already gone through years of 4-5 workouts per week. Most of us haven't gone through those years, so we can benefit from working out more often.

 

[Templeton]

Originally posted by livin large
wow. a lot of people do shoulder and back together. Me included. So what do you do the other 2 days? You can still have good workouts doing 3 days a week, it's just not as efficient or beneficial. I lift to increase stregth and size, and 3 days is not enough. Maybe it is for you, but if so, it's because you've already gone through years of 4-5 workouts per week. Most of us haven't gone through those years, so we can benefit from working out more often.

Who gave you the idea it's not as efficient or beneficial? If I were to train 3 days per week and you 4, and our progress was the same, then which would be more efficient? I would wager I make MORE progess on 3 days per week or EOD at most than you do on 4 or 5. Why do I thihk this? I have tried varying regimes over many years and my initial training was 3 days per week.

Strength of all things will improve most on 3 days per week. Four can be good too, don't get me wrong, but you have to back off now and then as it necessitates training 2 days straight. If you are going to train 4 days per week I would suggest only 2 days straight at one point in the training week.

So a routine of Mon, Wed, Fri and Sat would be better than Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri for example.

Five days a week is a definite no-no for me and other genetically average guys and even many more gifted or assisted trainers. I have tried 5 days per week and given the intensity I am used to I am burnt out after the first week of this.

It's not a question of having to play catch up or getting ahead by paying your dues on 4-5 days per week, with respect, that's utter horsehyt. If that were the case, wouldn't I stick with 4-5 workouts a week, surely if it were that effective the last thing I would do is revert to 3 days per week and sacrifice gains?

Anyways! I like to do chest and arms together, shoulders and back as described before and have a dedicated leg day. Notice the overlap in the two upper body workout? Another reason to have a full day off in between sessions.

 

[madgame]

I like to do chest and arms together, shoulders and back as described before and have a dedicated leg day. Notice the overlap in the two upper body workout? Another reason to have a full day off in between sessions.

I like to do chest, shoulders and triceps together on one day and legs/back/biceps/abs on another one. That way theres no(/hardly an) overlap, but dont get me wrong I think your posts were good ;-)

 

[livin large]

Templeton, I'm sure you're happy with your workout, but doing chest, bicep, and tricep on the same day would wear the hell out of me. If I'm a little tired going into a workout, I have a hard enough time getting through my tricep/bicep workout. I can't imagine adding chest on the same day. I don't see why you think dividing this workout into 2 or 3 days would increase the wear on your body. doing that doesn't mean you're spending more time in the gym, it means you're working harder while you're there.

Based on what you're telling me, I don't see why you don't just do 1 superworkout every week and hit every single muscle group in the same workout. Wouldn't that be optimal, according to your theories???

Don't talk to me like I'm some newbie who doesn't know what the hell is going on. I don't remember reading anything of value from you in this forum before, so don't come in here pretending you know everything, or anything for that matter.

 

[Templeton]

Originally posted by livin large
Templeton, I'm sure you're happy with your workout, but doing chest, bicep, and tricep on the same day would wear the hell out of me. If I'm a little tired going into a workout, I have a hard enough time getting through my tricep/bicep workout. I can't imagine adding chest on the same day. I don't see why you think dividing this workout into 2 or 3 days would increase the wear on your body. doing that doesn't mean you're spending more time in the gym, it means you're working harder while you're there.

Based on what you're telling me, I don't see why you don't just do 1 superworkout every week and hit every single muscle group in the same workout. Wouldn't that be optimal, according to your theories???

Don't talk to me like I'm some newbie who doesn't know what the hell is going on. I don't remember reading anything of value from you in this forum before, so don't come in here pretending you know everything, or anything for that matter.

There we all are having a good discussion about our training ideas and you have to take it down a level.

I am not pretending I know this or that (I certainly know more than you but then that's not saying much), what I write here stems from my many years of training and I hope someone may benefit from it and possibly avoid any mistakes I may have made. If you don't like it then don't do it. Pretty simple really.

The first four lines of you last post confirm that you
clearly cannot grasp the training concepts I am talking about and frankly you do come across as a newbie who knows little about effective training. If you can't engage in a good debate about concepts without taking offence when someone challenges what you believe then perhaps you shouldn't get involved with such discussion at all.

 

[Reto]

I usually stay out of BS discussions like this. What works for Templeton, works for Templeton. What works for me, works for me.

You have to find what ever work out works for you to attain your goals.

Just because you've worked out for 15 years or went to a seminar or got a BS Personal Trainer certificate doesn't mean you know what the hell your doing...Grow up...

If that were the case, I'd be an F'g expert. I'm not. I'm 41 years old and been lifting since I was 16. Competed in BB in the 80's and was a member at Lee Haneys gym for 5 years. Yeah, I'm the GREATEST! Everyone else sucks! LOL...

Today, I'm into extreme sports. And I'm actually too big for that. My training is pretty light with tons of cardio. That's what I do to attain my goals... My work out works for me.

 

[Templeton]

Fair point Reto. Furthermore, if you have all that experience then I'm sure you have a certain level of expertise that we could all benefit from, not least from the years of training at Lee Haney's gym. I am assuming you are referring the The Animal Kingdom in Atlanta Georgia. Does he still run that? I heard he was now a preacher.

 

[Reto]

I'm not sure if it's still open or not. My sister works close to where it was. I'll ask her...

Yeah, I think he is doing the relgion thing...