Weight Lifting, Workout Routine and Training Guide - Part 1

Jim's Weight Lifting and Workouts Routine Guide

Well, sorry for the delay on this weight lifting and workout training guides. I got caught up with some stuff, and had to take care of those first. ;-) But I am working on these guides now!

In our bodybuilding supplements guide, we pretty much covered all the details on which supplements to use, and how to setup a supplementation plan that will fit your schedule. So now, I'm going get into details about my workouts and weight lifting routines during my 6 week program.

It's actually very simple and basic. There's just one or two very basic rules:

• One muscle group per day (5 on, 2 off - 5 day split)
• Focus on heavy compound lifts
• Large muscle groups always worked before smaller muscle groups, and compound lifts always done before anything else
• Go heavy, or go home

That's about it. ;-) Well, ok, maybe it's more involved than just that, but just keep those points in mind.

Bodybuilding and Weight Lifting - So Many Different Philosophies!

Yeah, its mind boggling to think that there are so many schools of thought on what works and what doesn't when it comes to training styles and philosophies. There are so many people telling you different things, who should you listen to, and what type of training style should you follow? And all these different ways to train ranges from one extreme to another: HIT training method, Pete Sisco's SCT (static contraction training), Hypertrophy Specific Training (HST), MAX-OT training, etc... Well, the list can go on a lot longer, but I don't know of all the training methods out there. ;-)

So which one is right and which are wrong? Well, in bodybuilding, the answers are never clear cut like you want them to be, and there's really no exactly correct, or exactly wrong way to do things - since you will find people who achieve results using every type of training method available. And why shouldn't they achieve results? Just think: each and every one of these training methods put physical stress on your body, which stimulates adaptation, and muscle growth - so its only rightfully true that all these different training methods drives results.

So which one of these works best? Well, you can go try them all and find out! I haven't tried all of them, and I'm not about to either. ;-) To me, weight lifting, and working out is very, very simple and basic. Over the past 10, 11 years of weight training, I've tried, oh, so many types of work outs you see printed in bodybuilding magazines like Flex, Ironman, Muscle and Fitness etc... I'm sure many of you probably have done the same. All the "PRO" workouts that's gonna make me huge... Yeah right.

MAX-OT Training and Back to Basics

It was probably in 2001 (I think), when I first heard of the Max-OT training program on our chat boards from a few members, asking about how well it works etc... So then I decided to go for the free sign up, and printed out the 12 week workout program. I didn't notice a great increase in body weight, but I was very impressed with my strength gains after doing this program.

The Max-OT is a very basic and simple program. It focuses on doing basic compound lifts, with the goal of lifting heavy weights, low reps, and low number of total sets performed per muscle group. It ignores all the "advanced" and "fancy" stuff, but really focuses on the core of what really builds size and strength.

My Weight Lifting and Training Style

My workouts are very simple and quite basic. It doesn't involve a lot of the so called "advanced" training techniques or much isolation exercises. Rather, I focus on the most basic mass builders and compound lifts. Some basic points of my training:

• Focus on compound lifts - squats, deadlifts, and bench press
• Rarely doing any isolation type of exercises like concentration curls, flies, etc...
• Using heavy weights and low reps - using a weight that allows only 4 to 6 reps of strict form exercises
• Low volume workouts - approximately 8 to 10 sets per muscle group - usually done with 3 different exercises.
• Large muscle groups done before smaller muscle groups
• Compound lifts done before anything else - meaning exercises like squats, deadlifts, and bench presses are done before other exercises for the same muscle groups

See how simple that is? Bodybuilding doesn't have to be complicated, as long as you don't want it to be. Why do I choose to follow a low volume, but heavy load type of workout out? It's simple, really. Its all about providing the right amount of muscle stimulus and overload to stimulate more muscle growth, and believe me, this isn't achieved with doing 10 to 15 reps with lighter weights. Makes sense right? Heavy weights will induce more muscle growth, not lighter weights.

It's a common misconception that doing heavy weights will build size and strength, while doing light  weights will tone and shape the muscle. It doesn't work that way. Muscle definition and toning is NOT a function of doing lighter weights & higher reps, but rather, it's a function of diet, diet, and diet! That's right! Doing more reps will NOT make you more defined, you'll just be wasting time and energy in the gym. If you want muscle definition, first of all you need to have muscles there in the first place. How do you achieve this? Simple, lift heavy.

And to achieve tone and definition, you will have to adjust your diet and nutrition to achieve desired results - not simply by doing more reps and sets.

In the up and coming parts to this weight lifting and training guide, I'll get into some details of my workouts, exercises, and lifting.

>> Continue to part 2

Regular Supplements:

>> Click for Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey 5lb
>> Click here for Prolab Creatine, or Micronized Creatine
>> Click here for Optimum L-Glutamine
>> Click here for 100% Egg Protein
>> Click here for Pro Complex