Any enthusiastic young bodybuilder who looks through the current muscle building mags with an idea of organizing a good, sensible program of all-round training for himself is bound to flip! He won’t flip with delight either, for a very good reason. Almost without exception, the weight trainee is deluged with advice on a multitude of subjects, some relevant, some irrelevant, and unfortunately, some that is much too oriented for advanced specialization or Mr. Universe contenders. The problem of setting up a good general training schedule that will enable the trainee to acquire strength, muscular size and shape without neglecting overall fitness and condition is left to the bodybuilder’s imagination. So if you’re confused, you’ve got a right to be – and we’re going to solve this problem of basic physical training with weights once and for all. Just in case you happen to feel that advice of this kind is for “mere beginners” only, remember: Unless you are a super-advanced (eight to ten years training) barbell man who is polishing up his physique for competition, you cannot afford to neglect overall body development. This writer has seen fellows wasting hours at a time in working their arms, shoulders, and chests to the exclusion of every other important body part. These misdirected bodybuilders use countless sets in an attempt to become super I-don’t-know-whats. They never make it. Anyone who approaches his barbell training in this manner will fail. You simply must train your whole body adequately for worthwhile results. Specialization is fine once in a while, but even then, specialization should mean additional work for those particular areas that are lacking behind in development – not heavy concentration on these areas for the duration of your entire work-out!
A “basic work-out” does not mean an easy or limited work-out by any means. It simply refers to a program that utilizes a variety of good exercises for the primary muscle groups, and a program that calls for hard work on over-all physique development. Such a program should include a minimum of about nine, and a maximum of a dozen movements that are basic to weight training. This excludes all of the “little” exercises that are intended to shape and define already heavily developed muscles (i.e. concentration curls). If you work hard on basic training you’ll get size, shape, and solid power.
In organizing a basic program there are ten main body areas that require attention. They are:
1. Biceps
2. Triceps
3. Shoulders
4. Upper back
5. Lower back
6. Chest
7. Thighs
8. Calves
9. Mid-section
10. Forearms
A well-organized course will include exercises to develop every one of these major muscles. You must work in sets to thoroughly congest each working muscle, and for goodness sake, you will have to work hard. Every movement must be performed strictly, and with maximum concentration. Here is a sample arrangement of exercises that have been found most effective by this writer for over-all physical development:
1. Alternate Dumbbell Curl (perform while seated, preferably on an incline bench)…use three or four sets of from six to eight repetitions.
2. Lying Triceps Extension (perform with a barbell, on a flat bench)…use three to four sets of from six to eight repetitions.
3. Regular Barbell Squat (keep a block under the heels for balance, and use a heavy weight)…do four sets of ten to twelve repetitions.
4. Dumbbell Pull-Over (breathe deeply and use light dumbbells only–on flat bench)…do one set of eight repetitions after every set of barbell squats.
5. Bench Press with Barbell (work into heavy weights) use three to four sets of from six to eight repetitions per set.
6. Seated Press Behind the Neck…do four sets of six to eight repetitions.
7. Seated Calf Raise (keep the toes on a thick block for added work, and keep a thick towel over the upper legs to support the barbell)…use four sets of from fifteen to twenty repetitions.
8. Leg Raise (use either an abdominal board or iron boots for added resistance)…do four sets of fifteen to twenty repetitions.
9. Stiff Legged Deadlift (don’t use a weight that is too heavy, but be sure that you work the lower back thoroughly)…do three or four sets of six repetitions.
10. Bent Forward, Barbell Row (pull the weight up to the chest, not the stomach)…use three or four sets of from six to eight repetitions.
This work out schedule is representative. There are dozens of good result-producing exercises that could replace any individual one listed – for example: Exercise 1, the “Seated Alternate Dumbbell Curl could be replaced with the Regular Barbell Curl, the simultaneous Dumbbell “Zottman Curls,” and so forth. The idea is to select a good exercise for each muscle group and work hard on it. Follow every schedule of exercises for six to eight weeks before altering it. You can’t give your body maximum benefit from each schedule if you change it every week or so. Good things take time. Work into real poundages with your exercises and you can expect more results in seven months with this system than you’d get by following all of the “Super-Duper” routines in five years.
The time element is an important factor, of course, and the question of how long to train can be answered simply and realistically: you should devote not less than one hour and not more than two hours to each work out. If you will work out on three alternate days per week (i.e. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) or every other day (three to four days per week), you are working long enough! The three hour work-outs that are done six days a week by the supermen are fine-for the supermen. The “Mister” title contenders are in this group, and these people must keep “psyched up” all of the time. When you leave the gym, you don’t have to talk “lats,” “delts,” and “pecs.” Neglect every aspect of your life except the “sacred weights” and you may find that big muscles are all that you’ve got in the long run. If, after ten or twelve years of combining bodybuilding with a well-balanced life you want to spend all day in the gym, well, that’s your privilege. But until you reach that level, stay with a good, sensible, all-around program that will let you keep bodybuilding in proper perspective. By the same token, don’t forget that when you’re in the gym (home or commercial), you’re there for a work-out, not a rest-out! When you come to grips with the weights, mean it! Put everything you’ve got into every session and progress will be yours.
To summarize the basic principles of sound weight training, remember:
1. Perform every repetition of every set in strictest form.
2. Work hard by using maximum weight in all exercises, and by concentrating like you never did before.
3. Add weight whenever your strength increases.
4. Work out on alternate days – never more than three or four times per week.
Well, there are the fundamentals. Adhere to them and you’ll have a physique that’s powerful and really built. Now get started, and GOOD LUCK!
This article originally appeared in Iron Man magazine
For more information about weight training by Bradley J. Steiner click on the following link:
