Start the year out right...

[mstott25]

I have a few questions about my workout routine...

2011 Goals:
Squat - 315 for reps
Deadlift - 405 for reps
Press - 155 for reps
Bench Press - 225 for reps

I also want to look good at the beach/pool this summer!

Having said that...I want to see how realistic these goals are from you guys.

Quick background: Spent 7 years in the military with a spotty weightlifting history, after being out for a year and sick of becoming a disgusting fat body, I decided to hit the gym. Went through several different routines and plans and switched goals a couple of times. Right now I'm basically right where I was in July of 2010, I just happened to get sidetracked by Crossfit for three months and which turned me into a leaner/weaker/lighter version of where I am today, so I won't be doing Crossfit ever again.

I'm 6'2 ~210 with 7" wrists and 9" ankles and 31 years old. I'm married with 3 kids so every now and again things are going to come up but I don't miss workouts.

My latest lifts (this past week):
Squat - 280x3x5
Deadlift - 315x3x5
Press - 120x3x5
Bench - 190x3x5
Power Clean - 150x5x3

I don't have rubber plates so I think Power Cleans are out for now. I liked doing them but I'm not really comfortable at my gym going much heavier with the iron plates.

I've been experimenting these past two weeks with what exercises I do on which days. I'm really wanting to find a program I can follow this year that will let me reach my goals and stay around the 15% bodyfat range. I don't want to go above that - is this possible? I think I'm about 20% bodyfat right now.

I'm really considering following Casey Butt's beginner routine. BUT I ordered Stuart McRobert's "Lose Fat Build Muscle" and I really like everything I've read by McRobert and heard he has a 12 month routine in that book so I want to get it and decide which program I do.

So here's my MAIN questions:

1). I really love the following exercises and would like to incorporate all of them into my routine: Squat, Deadlift, Bench Press, Press, Pullups, Dips, Shrugs...

Can I come up with a program myself using these exercises that will be enough to help me reach my goals?

2). I enjoy running/sprinting. This week I tried to sprint workouts 2x a week in between workout days and I noticed a heck of a time recovering from everything. Not sure if it was the change of my workout or the sprints...would sprints be a good addition to a strength program to help keep bodyfat manageable and build some strength/size?

3). Should I shutup, quit analyzing everything and just follow Casey Butt's program (or any other program)?


Here's some pictures so you guys can see where I'm at. The first picture in the gray shorts is before I started working out. The picture in the cargo shorts is after a month of working out (I was following some men's health program) and the green shorts are from last night.

[mstott25]

might as well include these from last night as well...

I know I should probably include some direct calf-work to my goals this year

[gaspers04]

Good luck and welcome to MAB.

Southern AZ, Ill be there in about 5 weeks. Cant wait!

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by mstott25

I'm really wanting to find a program I can follow this year that will let me reach my goals and stay around the 15% bodyfat range. I don't want to go above that - is this possible? I think I'm about 20% bodyfat right now.

I think so. Most natural bodybuilders don't go above that. You will need to keep your diet as tight as a drum but it can be done.

Originally Posted by mstott25

So here's my MAIN questions:

1). I really love the following exercises and would like to incorporate all of them into my routine: Squat, Deadlift, Bench Press, Press, Pullups, Dips, Shrugs...

Can I come up with a program myself using these exercises that will be enough to help me reach my goals?

Absolutely! Those are really the cornerstone lifts and many great programs can be made using them. many of us are on fullbody workouts right now that use them as a cornerstone, including myself.

Originally Posted by mstott25

2). I enjoy running/sprinting. This week I tried to sprint workouts 2x a week in between workout days and I noticed a heck of a time recovering from everything. Not sure if it was the change of my workout or the sprints...would sprints be a good addition to a strength program to help keep bodyfat manageable and build some strength/size?

Sprints in a HIIT/interval fashion would be great for overall health, and can definitely be run while adding muscle and strength. Diet is the real key to body composition, so you just need to monitor your eating and make adjustments around what the scale and mirror say.

Originally Posted by mstott25

3). Should I shutup, quit analyzing everything and just follow Casey Butt's program (or any other program)?

Not at all! We want you to succeed.

Post up Casey's beginner workout in this thread and we'll see if any tweaks need to be made to accommodate your goals and the lifts you want to use. (It's been several months since I looked at Casey's beginner routine so I forgot it's structure).

With your lifting background you might be able to join us in the fullbody challenge and use a little more advanced routine.

[Rich Knapp]

Originally Posted by gaspers04

Good luck and welcome to MAB.

Southern AZ, Ill be there in about 5 weeks. Cant wait!

Wish I could go with ya.

ms were at? I lived in Tucson, north side by the old horse track.

[nighttrain]

Welcome aboard, glad to have ya here at MaB

[mstott25]

Originally Posted by gaspers04

Good luck and welcome to MAB.

Southern AZ, Ill be there in about 5 weeks. Cant wait!

Hey right on, do you have a meet/contest here? I checked out your blog/training log - incredible.

Originally Posted by BendtheBar

I think so. Most natural bodybuilders don't go above that. You will need to keep your diet as tight as a drum but it can be done.



Absolutely! Those are really the cornerstone lifts and many great programs can be made using them. many of us are on fullbody workouts right now that use them as a cornerstone, including myself.



Sprints in a HIIT/interval fashion would be great for overall health, and can definitely be run while adding muscle and strength. Diet is the real key to body composition, so you just need to monitor your eating and make adjustments around what the scale and mirror say.



Not at all! We want you to succeed.

Post up Casey's beginner workout in this thread and we'll see if any tweaks need to be made to accommodate your goals and the lifts you want to use. (It's been several months since I looked at Casey's beginner routine so I forgot it's structure).

With your lifting background you might be able to join us in the fullbody challenge and use a little more advanced routine.

Awesome, that's all very helpful and encouraging! I'll post Casey's program right after this for discussion.

Originally Posted by Rich Knapp

Wish I could go with ya.

ms were at? I lived in Tucson, north side by the old horse track.

Hey Rich, I'm in Sierra Vista, south of Tucson.

Originally Posted by nighttrain

Welcome aboard, glad to have ya here at MaB

Thanks nighttrain!

[mstott25]

This is abbreviated from the Weight Trainer website. Casey uses charts that were not so easy to copy and paste but I tried to give you the gist of his workout

Originally Posted by Casey Butt Beginner Routine

Program #1 - Your First 2 Weeks Of Weight Training

This is what I want you to do. Each time you go to the gym do the following routine (3x a week, these are supposed to be easy sets):

The Basic Routine
Squats 2 x 10
Bench Presses 2 x 10
Bent-Over Rows 2 x 10
Overhead Barbell Presses 2 x 10
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 2 x 10
Barbell Curls 2 x 10
Donkey Calf Raises 2 x 10
Reverse Crunches 2 x 10

Program #2 - The Next 2 Weeks Of Weight Training

3 days per week Set #1 Set #2
Squats easy add weight
Bench Presses easy add weight
Bent-Over Rows easy add weight
Overhead Presses easy add weight
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts easy add weight
Barbell Curls easy add weight
Donkey Calf Raises easy add weight
Reverse Crunches easy moderately hard

Program #3 - The Next 2 Weeks Of Weight Training 3 days per week

Set #1 Set #2 Set #3
Squats easy add weight add more weight
Bench Presses easy add weight add more weight
Bent-Over Rows easy add weight add more weight
Overhead Presses easy add weight add more weight
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts easy add weight add more weight
Barbell Curls easy add weight add more weight
Donkey Calf Raises easy add weight add more weight
Reverse Crunches easy hard no third set

Program #4 - The Next 2 Weeks Of Weight Training

Remember, only use a difficult weight on your third sets on the second training day of each week. Your routine now looks like this:

The Basic Routine
Squats 3 x 10
Bench Presses 3 x 8
Bent-Over Rows 3 x 8
Overhead Barbell Presses 3 x 8
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 3 x 10
Barbell Curls 3 x 8
Donkey Calf Raises 3 x 10
Reverse Crunches 1 x 10, 1 x ~
And as an example of your "heavy" day, let's say you train on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Wednesday would be your "heavy" day

Program #5 - The Next 2 Weeks Of Weight Training

I want you to now perform two "heavy" days per week. So, instead of performing one "heavy" and two "light" days per week, like you did for the previous two weeks, now you're going to do the opposite - perform two "heavy" days and one "light". The "light" day goes in between the two "heavy" days. So, if you work out on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule, Monday and Friday would be your "heavy" days and Wednesday your "light" day.

Program #6

The 10 week mark - some more changes are in order. We're going to take our three weekly training days and bump them into two. What I mean by this is that now we're going to do 4 sets per exercise on training Days 1 and 3 and do something a little different on Day 2. Now, instead of doing two progressively heavier warm-up sets and then one "heavy" set on our "heavy" days (Days 1 & 3), we're going to do two progressively heavier warm-up sets and then two "heavy" sets (both with the same weight). Both of these days are "heavy" days - don't hold back, go for it on both days. As you've been doing for the past several weeks, perform 8 reps per set of Bench Presses, Bent-Over Rows, Overhead Barbell Presses and Barbell Curls, and 10 reps per set of everything else.

Basically you start out pretty easy, gradually including harder sets as the weeks progress and then by the time you get to program 6 you keep up the linear progression as long as you can.

I like the premise of this workout but I was wondering if I could add pullups/dips/shrugs and substitute deadlifts for the stiff legged deadlifts. I was also curious if I could/should add some cardio in the off days.

The reason I like dips/pullups/shrugs is because I'm pretty weak in these areas and my body responds well to them, I've noticed a lot of strength improvement in them and would like to keep that up.

[gaspers04]

Hey right on, do you have a meet/contest here? I checked out your blog/training log - incredible.

Thanks Buddy.

I save one week of my vacation time for the winter months and go and visit a buddy that lives South of you in Rio Rico. Ill probably start taking three weeks in the summer as well down there...lol

A meet would be another great reason to leave this deep freeze and head for the desert...lol

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by mstott25

I like the premise of this workout but I was wondering if I could add pullups/dips/shrugs and substitute deadlifts for the stiff legged deadlifts. I was also curious if I could/should add some cardio in the off days.

The reason I like dips/pullups/shrugs is because I'm pretty weak in these areas and my body responds well to them, I've noticed a lot of strength improvement in them and would like to keep that up.

Those are great exercises to use, and with your lifting experience t I see no issue using them. I would run at minimum something like an A/B split, alternating every other workout:

Workout A
Squats 2 x 10
Bench Presses 2 x 10
Bent-Over Rows 2 x 10
Overhead Barbell Presses 2 x 10
SLDL or Leg Curl 2 x 10
Barbell Curls 2 x 10
Donkey Calf Raises 2 x 10
Reverse Crunches 2 x 10

Workout B
Deadlifts 2 x 10
Dips 2 x 10
Pullups 2 x 10
Overhead Barbell Presses 2 x 10
Shrugs 2 x 10
Barbell Curls 2 x 10
Donkey Calf Raises 2 x 10
Reverse Crunches 2 x 10

Or you could just do this:

Squats 2 x 10
Dips 2 x 10
Deadlifts 2 x 10
Pullups 2 x 10
Overhead Barbell Presses 2 x 10
Shrugs 2 x 10
Barbell Curls 2 x 10
Donkey Calf Raises 2 x 10
Reverse Crunches 2 x 10

...Maybe even alternating calves and abs each workout to save some time.

I'm not a big fan on doing deadlifts every day though, so I would recommend either doing them every other workout, or on Wednesday's only. I also wasn't sure if alternating between exercises like rows and pullups was an option...