I tried creating my routine, is it bad?

[juda1986]

25 M (165cm / 5' 5" I guess, 61Kg / 134 lbs), I started going to the gym around a year ago, at first I really just focused on actually getting to the gym (it was a problem for me, shyness / social anxiety but I'm working on it), I had ten lessons with a PT that gave me a routine to follow and showed me how to do the exercises. I also started seeing a nutritionist and things are going better, but in the last few months I have been feeling stuck. I should be around 18% body-fat and I would like to get around 14/15%. I have some lipomastia (I checked and it's not gyno) which is the main thing I'm trying to fix.

I usually go to the gym at 6:15 AM, basically I wake up, drink a glass of water and a cup of coffee (espresso) and then immediately go the gym. I eat breakfast after and then go to work.

Two months ago I saw my PT again that gave me another routine, and I followed it for 5 weeks until I finished. I tried starting again but I have been actually trying to make it fit the exercise that I feel I can do better because I am self conscious about doing exercises wrong.

I now tried to write down a sort of routine that I would like to follow, but I have no idea if its passable or not, so I wanted to ask you guys.

Routine A (Thursday)

Exercises:

Bench Press Machine (Chest Press)

1 set, 10 reps, 45kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 8 reps, 47.5kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 6 reps, 50kg, 120 sec (rest)

Bench Press

3 sets, 10 reps, 30kg, 120 sec (rest)

Cable Lat Pulldown with Reverse Grip

3 sets, 15 reps, 35kg, 120 sec (rest)

Seated Cable Row with Narrow Grip

3 sets, 10 reps, 35kg, 120 sec (rest)

Push Up

3 sets, 25 reps, 60 sec (rest)

Crunch (Sit Up)

3 sets, 30 reps, 45 sec (rest)

Routine B (Friday)

Exercises:

Leg Press

3 sets, 10 reps, 70kg, 90 sec (rest)

Leg Extension Machine

1 set, 10 reps, 40kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 8 reps, 45kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 6 reps, 50kg, 120 sec (rest)

Seated Leg Curl

1 set, 10 reps, 30kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 8 reps, 35kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 6 reps, 40kg, 120 sec (rest)

Calf Press on the Leg Press Machine

3 sets, 20 reps, 50kg, 40 sec (rest)

Forward Lunge

3 sets, 20 reps, 45 sec (rest)

Walking

20 min

Crunch (Sit Up)

3 sets, 30 reps, 45 sec (rest)



Routine C (Sunday)

Exercises:

Clean Deadlift

3 sets, 10 reps, 20kg, 90 sec (rest)

Bike Crunch

5 sets, 20 reps, 45 sec (rest)

Plank

3 sets, 60 sec (duration), 45 sec (rest)

Cable Lat Pulldown

3 sets, 10 reps, 35kg, 120 sec (rest)

Chest Fly Machine

1 set, 10 reps, 40kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 8 reps, 42.5kg, 120 sec (rest)

1 set, 6 reps, 45kg, 120 sec (rest)

Abduction Machine

3 sets, 10 reps, 25kg, 90 sec (rest)

Hammer Curl

3 sets, 10 reps, 16kg, 90 sec (rest)

Around the World Superman

3 sets, 20 reps, 60 sec (rest)

 

[limetree5]

@juda1986 Your A is overkill. You're hitting (basically) the same muscles 3 different ways. Chest press, bench press, push-ups. I'd say start with the bench, then finish out on chest press. If you want to do some push-ups, go ahead, but you should be fried from these two exercises.

You're also almost entirely ignoring your shoulders (outside of some front delt work and a bit of rear delt), nothing is targeted anyway.

I'd throw one of the chest exercises away in place of a standing overhead press. I'd also add in lateral raises somewhere.

Leg day looks totally fine. I will always be a mouthpiece for barbell/dumbbell squats, though. Any variation, back, front, Bulgarian, whatever. I also like hack squats.

Your C routine looks okay. I guess it depends if this is once a week, or twice a week? Twice a week, I'd take out the chest fly, and I'd add in face pulls or rear delt flys.

If once a week you do this, I'd revisit a few things.

One thing I like to mention for new lifters is don't worry about weight. It doesn't matter. There's no need to put it in the program because it's so variable.

Also, pick a rep scheme, not just a specific amount of reps. You'll find a lot of lifters on youtube saying things like "I think I can get 12 of this?" This isn't for show. They're trying to find a weight that brings them to failure in a given rep range.

As a new lifter, a nice rep scheme is perfect. Something like 6-10 or 8-12 is great. What this means is that you will start with 3 sets of 8, for example. Then the next time you do it, it's 3 sets of 9, all the way up to 3 sets of 12. If you can do 3 sets of 12, you up the weight and go back to 8 reps the next time you do that exercise.

This will help you dial in what weight you need to use quickly without hurting yourself. It also provides progressive overload, which is fundamental to building muscle.

So, long story short, I'd limit the chest work on that first day to 2 exercises. I'd add in overhead press in its place, preferably barbell, but that might be too heavy to start with.

If this is once a week, I'd find a way to squeeze in more squats. If this is twice a week, I'd get rid of the chest fly. I'd also add in lateral raises regardless of how many days per week you go. I'd do these at least two days a week, probably 3 or 4.

 

[carolvdmerwe]

@limetree5 I second what this person said.

I really like that you are doing weight training and not just cardio.

When I am trying to lose some excess weight, after the weight training session finishes, I like to throw in 20 minutes of light cardio. Not too much, or it can cut into your muscle gains. If you do it when your glycogen levels are lowest, you can try to force your body to break down fat for energy. Then go and have a protein shake with very low carbs.

I haven't kept up with my reading though, I don't know if that is still what is recommended scientifically. That used to be the way, and its still what I do.

 

[juda1986]

@limetree5 Thank you so much! Yes, I go to the gym three days a week, and try to take walks the other days since I am a software engineer and I don't move much / at all while working. I'll try to add all your suggestions to my routine

 

[limetree5]

@juda1986 General rule of thumb you can follow is hitting a muscle group twice a week. Which is why 3x per week is often full body, because it's hard to hit every muscle twice a week otherwise.

Also, 10-20 sets per week per muscle group is a good amount to make good gains vs fatigue as well.