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o, that's not me in the picture
above (Duh!), that's Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn, who in addition
to being a Heisman Trophy contender, could probably get work as a cover
model for Men's Health
magazine. Long ago, I used to follow the bodybuilding rags pretty
faithfully for training information and motivation (and, truth be told, the
gossip from the bodybuilding world). In time, I lost interest and let the
subscriptions lapse. A few years back I started reading Men's Health. I
think their models have more realistic and emulable physiques, and I find
the overall mix of articles more to my liking (except for the relationship
advice, which is either juvenile or immoral). The best part is that there
are way fewer supplement ads!
o I use steroids? No. Never have;
never will. And that's all I have to say about that. If you'd like more information on recreation and fitness for women, check out my wife Lisa's page on
fitness.
| Training routines
| Diet
| Bodybuilding links
|
nd now for something completely
different. Here's what my training routines have looked like from the time I
started lifting weights regularly up to the present...
| Beginner routine
| Intermediate routine
| Advanced routine
|
|
When I started training regularly at Princeton, I followed a one-on,
one-off (essentially MWF) total body workout:
|
 Chest
- Bench press: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Incline bench: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- or
- Dumbbell flyes: 3 sets of 8 reps
|
- Arms
- Preacher curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- "Skull crushers": 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Back
- Pull-ups: 3 sets of 10-15 reps
- Dumbbell rows: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- or
- Barbell rows: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Shoulders
- Seated, behind-the-neck press: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Lateral dumbbell raises: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Legs
- Squats: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
- Lying leg curls: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
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As you can see, I hadn't yet discovered that I had calf muscles, and was barely
aware that I had legs! [Actually, at the time I was commuting from my apartment
to campus to the Plasma Physics Lab every day by bicycle, probably about
25 miles (40 km) a day. I found I couldn't do that and train legs].
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Once I returned to California, my friend and then-training-partner
Rob Falgout and I came up with a 5-on, 2-off split:
|
- Monday: Chest & Triceps
- Bench press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Incline bench: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Dumbbell flyes: 3 sets of 8 reps
- plus
- "Skull crushers": 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Bar dips (w/weight): 3 sets of 12-15 reps
- Cable extensions: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
|
- Tuesday: Legs & Biceps
- Squats: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Leg extensions: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Leg curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Stiff-legged deadlifts: 3 sets of 10-15 reps
- plus
- Standing EZ-bar curls: 3 sets of 8 reps
- Preacher curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Incline dumbbell curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Wednesday: Shoulders & Back
- Seated, behind-the-neck press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Lateral dumbbell raises: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Bent-over dumbbell raises
 (for rear delts): 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- plus
- Pull-ups (with weight): 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Chin-ups (close, underhand grip;
- w/weight): 2 sets of 6-8 reps
- Lat pull-downs: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Seated rows: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Thursday: Chest & Arms
- Bench press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Incline bench: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- plus
- "Skull crushers": 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Bar dips (w/weight): 3 sets of 12-15 reps
- plus
- Standing EZ-bar curls: 3 sets of 8 reps
- Preacher curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Friday: Legs, Shoulders, & Back
- Squats: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
- Stiff-legged deadlifts: 3 sets of 10-15 reps
- plus
- Seated, behind-the-neck press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Lateral dumbbell raises: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- plus
- Pull-ups (with weight): 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Seated rows: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
In retrospect, I think I spent a large portion of this time either
under-intense during my workouts, or over-trained by the weekend.
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Eventually, I switched to a one-bodypart-per-day, once per week workout.
I usually try to train on a 3-on, 1-off split:
|
- Day 1: Chest & Calves
- Bench press: 5 sets of 8-12 reps
- Dumbbell press: 4 sets of 8-10 reps
- Incline bench: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- or
- Incline dumbbell press: 4 sets of 8-10 reps
- plus
- Peck deck: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
- or
- Cable work: 3 sets of 10-15 reps
- and
- Seated calf raises: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
|
- Day 2: Back
- Pull-ups: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- and
- Barbell rows: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- T-bar pull-downs: 4 sets of 12 reps
- or
- Incline rows: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Seated rows: 4 sets of 81-12 reps
|
- Day 3: Delts & Traps
- Seated, behind-the-neck press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Lateral dumbbell raises: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- and
- "Arnold" presses: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- or
- Bent-over dumbbell raises
- (for rear delts): 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- and
- Dumbbell shrugs: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
|
- Day 4: Rest
|
- Day 5: Hamstrings & Calves
- Stiff-legged deadlifts: 4 sets of 10-15 reps
- Seated leg curls: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
- and
- Incline leg press; toe raises: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
|
- Day 6: Biceps and Triceps
- Barbell rows: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Preacher curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Seated, hammer curls: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- and
- Close-grip bench: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- "Skull crushers": 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- Rope extensions: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
- or
- Dips (bar or bench): 3 sets of 8-12 reps
|
- Day 7: Quads
- Squats: 5 sets of 12-15 reps
- Hack squats: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
- or
- Leg press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps
- and
- Leg extensions: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
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- Day 8: Rest
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y diet
is probably the weakest part of my program right now. The simple fact is: I don't eat enough. And eating more when I
do east isn't the solution. That just gets you fat. I ought to be adding at least one (probably two) meals
a day. I've made a little progress on this score, thanks to Costco's decision to carry Met-Rx bars and shake mix. Anyway, here's what I usually eat:
- Breakfast (Post-workout)
- Met-Rx Protein shake.
- Breakfast (Non-workout days)
- Cereal, toast, juice and coffee or tea.
- Lunch
- Sandwich (turkey or turkey "ham") w/mustard (no mayonaisse),
fruit, iced tea.
- Snack
- Met-Rx bar. Java Chip and Graham Cracker are my favorites.
- Dinner
- Fairly carb-heavy dishes: rice, pasta, macaroni & cheese
- or
- grilled chicken & potatoes, pork chops, or other more protein-rich, (pain-in-the-neck-to-prepare) foods.
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here's a tremendous variety of bodybuilding-related material on the
net. Here are some of links that are worth checking out:
- GymTicket.com
- Looking for a gym in your area? Would you like to "try before you buy?" GymTicket.com allows you to book a free trial membership at participating gyms and health clubs.
- ExRx.Net
- An excellent resource of suggested workouts, exercise descriptions, and targeted muscles for each exercise.
- Men's Health Online
- Check out the Men's Health website for exercise and diet tips. They'll even help get your wardrobe squared away!
- Here's a series from 2005 that includes suggested workouts and includes video demonstrations for many of the exercises.
- Better BODY Online
- Check out bodybuilder Mark Mill's site. He even includes
QuickTime clips of various exercises and competition poses.
- The TRULY HUGE Web Page
- Paul Becker has put together an excellent resource for the drug-free trainee who wants to put on major mass.
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