ExRx.net

I'm looking for opinions on my current push/pull split. I'm in my mid-40's, ectomorophic, '6, 0", 170 lbs. I've been lifting for about 6 months, showing some gains but perhaps not as much as I'd like. My objective, besides obviously staying in good overall shape, is to gain lean muscle mass and to keep it where it needs to be.

MON./THURS.
Incline Press
Decline Press
Pec Deck
Military Press
Tricep Extension
Squat
Calf Raise

TUES./FRI.
Pull-ups
Chin-ups
Seated Cable Row
Stiff-legged Deadlift
Bicep Curls
Abs (crunches, Swiss ball, etc.)

Two sets of each of the above exercises, 8-12 reps, increasing the weight when I can comfortably accomplish two sets of 12. I use mostly dumbbells, but rotate equivalent barbell and cable (home gym) exercises into the program for variety, such as DB rows instead of the seated cable rows. Cardio twice per week, either recumbent bike or brisk walk for 20-30 minutes.

I'm on the 5 to 6 meals a day plan, and supplement with whey protein, multivitamins, and flax oil. Is creatine going to do me any good, or should I not even consider it?

Thanks everyone.

That's pretty good for the most part. I don't think you need the pec deck. Maybe do some shrugs on your pull day. Make your chin/pull ups weighted, unless your bodyweight challanges you. I think db and bb rows are better then cable myself. If you look at the muscle and excercise page on this site, you will see how some muscles are used in different excercises. So you might even want to do more of some things and less of others maybe. Going heavier with lower reps might help you. I don't think creatine is going to help unless you are going to compete. That's all I would change really. It looks pretty solid.

depends what results you want really. to me it looks rubbish as you'll end up with a toned top torso but puny legs.

at least put the leg exercises first - they will help the rest of you grow. having them towards the end of your routine doesn't make any sense - you won't be able to give them the dedication they need!

and unless you have amazing legs to start with, you might want to consider doing more than one exercise!

not trying to be funny - it just seems all backwards to me.

Well, I happen to disagree with Ragu on the upper lower thing. He's got the squats in with his push day, and IMHO that's fine, and he's got some ham dominant in with pull, and thats fine. I do agree with Ragu that you might want to cycle in with some lower reps (say maybe go heavier with 5-7 or so, it's ambiguous) for a 3 week block , then go back for another 3-4 weeks with the higher reps you're on right now. It will just provide a little different emphasis.

Personally I would take out the decline press and the tricep extensions. Your triceps will get plenty of work from the presses you are doing. I am also confused about why you would do chin-ups and pull-ups in the same workout.

I like doing pullups and chinups in the same workout. There are several variations which emphasize different muscles. Of course they all hit the lats, but close grip chins (for example) emphasize the biceps more than pullups with a wide grip do.

Does anyone do chinups and pullups on different days?

Chin ups and pull ups on different days would be a bad idea. Not all that has to be done on back, but it's not real excessive. Decline press is a million times better then pec deck for sternal pecs. I think an isolation set is a good idea for triceps. You don't really need 2, but 1 is a good idea. When you put a routine together, use a basic compound lift for each major group of muscles then sprinkle in a little isolation. don't use the same number of sets for everything. Instead, make every muscle do the same amount of work. Be mindful of the overlap. You can't get gains with mostly isolation, and you can't do compound and think of it as isolation.

Here is an extreme example. You all know this guy I'm sure. He does shoulders on Monday, chest and bis on Tuesday, back and tris on Wednesday and the rest on another day. Monday goes fine for him and his shoulders look great, But Tuesday his front delts are too worn for him to do his chest very well, he seems to loose gains with his curls. Then Wednesday his worn out biceps screw up his back workout and his worn out triceps can't do much either. He has a combination of over and under training. Then he wonders why his shoulders are nice and his chest, back and arms are scrawny. Then he gives ups and blames genetics or throws more sets at it.

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