Andre91 from fasterleanerstronger.com asks:
In general, should I change workouts every few months or should I stay with the same workout plan until I improve in the amount of weights lifted in good form?
Could I do an improvised workout on each training day and reach a goal like gaining muscle mass? For example, I would do a full body workout. I would do a leg, back, chest compound exercise that I would choose that day. Day 1 could be back squat, BB Row, and Inc. BB press. Day 2 could be Deadlifts, DB Row, and DB bench press.
Answer from Ray Burton
Author of Fat To Fit:
You are asking one of the most common questions of all time Andre! Over the years I have found that you change the routine when further weight increases are impossible or you are totally bored of workout and can’t stand to step into the gym. The other reason is if your goals change.
In your case you ask if you should change your workout routine every few months or stay with it until your weights go up. My clients and I do just the opposite. Every workout our weights or our reps increase and when they stop, that is when we look at shifting the routine around.
Now for the next part. The idea of doing full body workouts with compounds exercises and having different routines for different days is one that I love. I frequently use this type of system when I was to get bigger and stronger. It’s so simple and it works. In your above example I would do day 1 on Monday’s and Fridays with the day 2 on Wednesday. The next week Day 2 would get hit twice on Monday and Friday. It will always flip flop back and forth.
Great idea Andre.
I have a 3 day routine where I focus on different Mucsle catigories. Now week one routines are always different from week two routines. Is this worth while or should I focus on one routine to build quicker? Its been a long time since I have worked out and I like the virety of the schedule but the main thing for me is to reach my ideal shape and achieve my goals.
Thank you
Blayne
They’ll both work Blayne so use the one that gets you fired up the most and then keep soaking it until your results start to slow down.
I have been going to a local popular franchise for the last month and I even hired one of their personal trainers – I think I have been duped. I wasn’t introduced to stretching until the third week and I had been going every day and doing these fit fix machines plus 30 minutes of cardio. I was energized in week 2 but in the 5th week I am exhausted and sore every day. I am sure I am not doing something right and everyone here at my office thinks my trainer is whacked because apparently i should do weights every other day but the cardio is fine every day? Is this true?
thanks
Well, duped is a strong word..but,
I think your trainer might not quite have a set procedure for how he/she deals with clients needs. Or more likely applies the same routine for everyone.
You really can only workout every day if the intensity is really low and you can easily recover from it. But with that low of an intensity…what is the stimulus for your body to change?
In the beginning, because you are getting in shape, your body doesnt have the ability to work at full capacity and so you can recover. As you get in better shape, you’ll need more time to recover from the increased intensity. It’s very person specific also. Bottom line though is that if you’re exhausted, your doing too much or not resting/feeding yourself right. More likely that you are just doing too much exercise and not enough time off to rest.
As far as the stretching goes, your training should have asked you if you knew what you needed to know about stretching. If you did, then you would just be taught the training stuff. If you didnt, then you really should have been shown how to stretch, warmup and all the other basic stuff so that you could start off your journey in the gym the right way.