4 - 6 exercice per muscle by workout ?

@solokwa I’ve cut down to 3 different exercises per body part and it’s been great.

Ex: Bench press, incline dumbell bench, flys.

As long as you’re pushing your sets, you’ll see gains. I see so many people do like 5-7 back workouts and that’s 100 percent junk volume.
 
@kennycool It’s not sexy to say progressing a flat press, incline press, and chest fly as far as you possibly can over time is all you ever need to do. Same could really be said of most muscle groups so long as you don’t get bored
 
@greatbuss I’m not super disciplined but I can break down my most recent lift.

So for bench I did:
  • the bar for 20 ish reps
  • 25 on each side for 12 reps
    -135 ( 45 on each side) for 12
    -185 for 8
    -225 for 8
    -245 for 8
    -245 for 7
So by the end of this I felt that the last set was pretty damn close to failure, and the second set was also not to far from failure mayeb 1-3 reps.

Then I jumped into heavy dumbell press
  • 100 lb dumbbells for 8 reps
  • 100 lb dumbbells for 7 reps
    -90 lb dumbbells for 6 ish reps
My thought process is no warmup needed and I wanted to go straight to heavy presses. However I probably should have done 80 lbs for 10 , 90 pounds for 8, and then 100 lbs for 6 but idk.

Then I did fly machines until failure in the 8-10 rep range.

Overall, I’d say 9 working sets. Probably could work on doing a few more working sets but I’m not training as consistently as I use to so just working on getting my ass in the gym.

Edit: sorry for the formatting. I tried to list things but it just didn’t work.
 
@kennycool You are a hell of a lot stronger than 95% of the population. And pretty humble, to boot.

Warmup and stretches are a must. Looks like your pyramid more or less addresses that. You can optimize that by trimming the 1st and 2nd sets of bench. Let the 135x12 or 15 be your warmup. Add a few sets of crossovers or cable flyes at the end.
 
@chalk2 This is very kind thanks for the kind words!

So in your opinion, I should be going from 135 straight to 225? I always thought that was a big jump.
 
@kennycool I’m not positive but I think they mean you probably don’t need to warm up so much with the bar at all or be doing so many reps at each weight.

But, in my opinion, and since you didn’t specify on if you warm up your rotator cuffs and shoulders, and you are happy doing as many sets and reps as you do, I would stick to what you’re doing now.

Better to be more warm than risk any injury and I think the way you do your bench sets will prevent injury.
 
@chalk2 I have the same 3 exercises for chest and have had consistent gains for the past few years.

I stopped stretching after my training session a while ago, but I admit this was a big mistake. I've lost so much mobility within 7 months, it's almost comical. Gotta get back to it.

I completely stopped warming up as unless I'm preparing for a PR... But regarding that, I've never noticed a difference!

I just straight go to my sets and get to it, to failure.

I'm asking genuinely, have you seen a difference in performance or in injury prevention from warming up prior to lifting?
 
@hollycavanaugh Nice! The science is definitely much simpler than people in this sub make it out to be. Just a matter of progressive overload and sufficient calories.

It is impossible to determine, just based upon my own experience, a correlation between warming up and injury prevention. I can say that they are quite rare... a mild tear or strain maybe once every six months. Typically a shoulder -- the result of either overdoing lat raises or going too heavy on bench with poor technique.

I warm up with a veeerrrryy slow single set of lower weight when doing compound exercises to summon the mind-muscle connection and to get the blood moving. After doing so, I just feel stronger and more confident in the lift. Benefits my form, too.
 
@kennycool What blew my back up is doing 3 exercises for back. One pulling down(lat pulldowns), pulling horizontally(cable rows), pulling up(barbell rows).
 
@solokwa This is more of a guideline than a rule, though I agree with the sentiment that most people are doing way too much shit volume with no intensity.

People have different volume tolerances. Assuming intensity is on point (very close to or to failure), you may be able to get away with more, you may be able to do less.

Feel it out for yourself and be honest about the results. Don’t go based on “that seems like so much/too little”. Take regular progress photos and log your gym sessions so you actually know what produces results.
 
@kvolm Really good advice but I hoped that by copying jacked people routines, I would be jacked myself.
I thought it would be more efficient than just try and change what I do to see what works best.

Guess there is no shortcuts huh. Well thank you anyway :)
 
@solokwa Unfortunately that’s not how it works, though at your level of experience, you definitely need to be following a routine made by someone who knows what they’re doing. Off the shelf programs like this won’t work perfectly for everyone, but will work reasonably well for most.

As you get more experience, start to play around with different variables using off the shelf programs as a template to find what does and doesn’t work for you.
 
@solokwa i wouldn't say that is much of a shortcut. like ronnie coleman said, everybody wants to be a bodybuilder but nobody wants to pick up this heavy-ass weight.

intensity, consistency, and time will get you there
 
@kvolm I think junk volume is a misnomer. I think we should call them junk sets. High volume is key, but volume includes intensity. Volume is sets X reps X weight. If you’re not lifting enough weight or stopping short on reps, your volume isn’t going to be there.
 
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