Starting next week I will be transitioning into an upper/lower body split routine.
Upper
Two presses, two rows and a few extra sets for the arms and the shoulders.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Chins | 3-4 | 3-10? | 3 min |
| 2. | DB Bench | 3-4 | 6-8 | 2 min |
| 3. | DB Bent Over Row | 3-4 | 6-8 | 2 min |
| 4. | DB Seated Press | 2-3 | 10-12 | 2 min |
| 5. | Cable Curl | 1-2 | 10-12 | 1 min |
| 6. | Cable Pushdown | 1-2 | 10-12 | 1 min |
| 7. | Machine Lat.Raise | 1-2 | 10-12 | 1 min |
Lower
The focus is on the quads, glutes, hamstrings and the lower back with a few sets for the calfs and abs thrown in.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | BB Squat | 3-4 | 6-8 | 3 min |
| 2. | BB RDL | 3-4 | 6-8 | 3 min |
| 3. | BB Split Squat | 2-3 | 10-12 | 2 min |
| 4. | Lying Leg Curl | 2-3 | 10-12 | 2 min |
| 5. | Calf Raise | 2-3 | 10-12 | 2 min |
| 6. | Back Extension | 1-2 | 10-12 | 1 min |
| 7. | Crunch | 1-2 | 10-12 | 1 min |
This is essentially “Lyle’s Generic Bulk”. It is an intermediate routine that hits every body part twice per week (similar to a 2x/week full body routine but with a considerably higher volume). When it comes to exercise selection, I am not including anything new this time. These are the exercises I feel the most comfortable with and the once I feel that I can progress with safely and with good form.
The chins are supposed to be my “high rep row” (ideally every body part is hit with both high and low reps in this routine) but I need to gain more strength in my lats before that is possible. Until I can comfortably do 10 chins I will simply do as many as I can. My PR so far is 6 chins in one set but depending on my weight fluctuations my daily performance in this exercise varies quite a bit.
I’m not sure how this will work out with “real life” getting in the way of things but I’ll start out with the schedule outlined below. Alternatively I might try the less optimal Mon/Tue+Thu/Fri setup.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower | Upper | Lower | Upper |
Since I’ll be doubling the number of strength training sessions I obviously need to reduce the amount of time devoted to cardio and endurance. I’ve already reduced the amount of cardio from five to three sessions per week in the past year and I will now drop another hour of cardio.