Bodybuilding for the Beginner!

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Mistake me if I'm wrong, but the examples you have given (especially sunday) would seem like you'd be in the gym for 1 hour or more!

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I basically run the same kind of workout as cashmans one, based on a 4 day split.
As long as you dont need to hang around for benches, or weights too long, limit your breaks between sets to max 1 min, 2 mins between exercises, you should easily do it in 40 mins.
Dont forget, if you have to wait 5 minutes to get your right weights
or machine after every exercise you could easily loose 30 mins, and that dont count.

Stickman, Pete's right. These days you can be milling around weighting for benches and plates, etc that eat up time. The general rule is to try and not lift for more than 1 hour as your body tends to produce cortisol if put under too much stress for too long (this is highly catabolic which means it will eat muscle). TBH at the level you are lifting the current duration of this routine is just fine.

Just added a couple of tweaks to my beginners guide for anyone interested.

i am returning to bodybuilding after a 2 year lay off, but was only training for 4 years previously to that, i just wondered if to start me off and get me back into the swing of things, should i avoid a split routine and just go for an all over body workout for the first month?

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Originally posted by luvvbuzz

i am returning to bodybuilding after a 2 year lay off, but was only training for 4 years previously to that, i just wondered if to start me off and get me back into the swing of things, should i avoid a split routine and just go for an all over body workout for the first month?

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Nah, Just start off light IMO. Get a feel for the weight again and where your strength boundaries are over the first few weeks and get the feel of correct form all over again. Good luck bro.

I'm starting this routine soon and can't wait but I've Just got a quick noob question thats been bugging me..

When people talk about "Last set to failure" and "3 sets 6-8 reps", what exactly does it mean? It sounds simple enough but what i'm finding confusing is this -

When you start a set you'd use a weight that you can perform 6-8 reps with good form but find it a struggle toward the end of the rep range, yes?
But if its a struggle toward the end of the set wouldn't you have to lower the weight for the next set in order to keep within your rep range of 6-8 if your muscles were weaker? Soooo, if your last set was performed with a weight you can only do 6-8 reps of then where does the "Last set to failure come in to it?

This is a long question for a simple answer I bet but its one I need to know anyhow.

Cheers.

Glebitz, no problem.

Basically you'll find when I say 6-8 reps that means that in the first set you will be training with a weight you can get to 8 reps with perfect form. Set 2x you might get 7 reps, set 3 6 reps, etc, etc. Yes.... it would be a weight you struggle with at the end of the rep range. What you'll find is on certain lifts where I have said run to failure then failure could be 3-4 reps (deadlift for example is likely to do this to you) or 12-15 reps (calf raise especially known for this). What this does is really get you push where your limits are and give you a greater knowledge of your body under pressure as well as giving the muscles a shock. Failure training shouldn't be done too much otherwise your cortisol levels will rocket and that's not good for muscle mass development as it's highly catabolic.

I'd say using the 6-8 rep as a guideline is probably the best bet but if you find you are only able to do 5 reps on your last set then better that than lowering the weight IMO at that point. If you are struggling to get 2x reps out on your last set then you might want to drop the weight a little. It's very much a judgement call. :-)

Great! Exactly what I wanted to know.

Thanks for clearing that up.

Glebitz

cashman, great guide, its really helped me understand a few things that i was unsure about. Just a few questions tho if you dont mind. Could i change dumbell flat bench to barbell flat bench on the monday and wot other exercise could i do to replace the cable presses with?

Thanks alot for any extra help.

Martin

If you are working chest then you can comfortably replace dumbell bench with Barbell bench. Personally I prefer dumbell bench as it hits my chest harder than Barbell. Forget cable presses. The best chest routine I can advise is

Flat Bench (barbell or dumbell)
Weighted Dips for chest (using parallel dip bars)
Heavy incline dumbell flyes

you can replace cable presses with - skullcrushers (French Press), close grip bench press. These two are probably the best mass building exercises for triceps you can do if you are combining them with Dips on Chest day IMO.

aright cool thanks alot

Martin

Thanks for the article Cashman, just one question. What do you reckon about using creatine early doors?

First, I want to thank everyone for the great advice on this board. It is really invaluable to a beginner in this sport/hobby.

I have one question. I've been doing Cashman's routine for about 2 weeks now. But instead of a rest day in between each workout I've been doing all 4 days in a row than taking a day off and starting again. Since you are working seperate parts of the body each day, is this okay? Or am I going to eventually get into overtraining problems?

New to the site but fantastic. I have looked over a few sites and this is the best by far. I am returning to training after a few years, fortunately I have plenty of bulk to play with.

I have taken to using Cashmans Beg routine, very good, find it is just perfect at the moment and I have seen some pretty good results.

Along with my supplements I have gone from 16st 8lbs to 15st 12lbs in 6 weeks. Atop of this, pleanty of definition is starting to appear. I will post some before and afters shortly. Thanks guys.

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Originally posted by Rags

Thanks for the article Cashman, just one question. What do you reckon about using creatine early doors?

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Personally I'd say there is little point as your body will grow nicely when you start out with the right routine & diet. Save Creatine for when your natural potential draws nearer. The only supp you really need is protein and food.

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Originally posted by jnapier

First, I want to thank everyone for the great advice on this board. It is really invaluable to a beginner in this sport/hobby.

I have one question. I've been doing Cashman's routine for about 2 weeks now. But instead of a rest day in between each workout I've been doing all 4 days in a row than taking a day off and starting again. Since you are working seperate parts of the body each day, is this okay? Or am I going to eventually get into overtraining problems?

You should really put a rest day in the middle IMO. The reason being is that weight training is very hard on the CNS (Central Nervous System) which is responsible for releasing growth hormone for muscle development and increasing muscle efficiency making you stronger. If you overdo it and put too much stress on the CNS for too long then you risk burnout and your gains will come to a stop. Try working two then resting one. Your body will thank you for it in the long run.

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Great Work Neowarrior!!!!! Keep it up.

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Originally posted by Cashman

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Originally posted by Rags

Thanks for the article Cashman, just one question. What do you reckon about using creatine early doors?

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Personally I'd say there is little point as your body will grow nicely when you start out with the right routine & diet. Save Creatine for when your natural potential draws nearer. The only supp you really need is protein and food.

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Oops, didn't mean to do the last one. Wouldn't creatine be beneficial for growth and recovery. I would think it is an ideal supplement being an amino acid compound? After all, aminos do make up proteins. Also I wondered about glutamine too for recovery and muscle growth. Sorry if I sound like I'm trying to be a smart arse, I assure you I'm not but creatine and glutamine have seem to be ideal for my needs (hardgainer), with the right food intake. I think its healthy to question things to help me understand and achieve the body I dream of. Your advice is appreciated. Rag monster.

Nice 1 Cashman, great programme. Have found it very helpful. unfourtunatley though, the gym that i will be training at (the only one near by) doesnt have any free weights apart from dumbells, it only has Cable machines though they are very good. Given this i have had to modify your programme a little to meet my needs. I have included it in this message for you to check out and i would really value your opinion. Also, I plan on increasing the reps to 10-12 and using lower weights for the 4-5 weeks of training then lowering the reps and increasing weight later on, do you think thats a good idea or bad idea?

heres the modified version:-

SATURDAY - Chest/Tri
5 Min warm-up
Dumbell Flat Bench - 3 sets 10-12 reps
Weighted Dips For Chest - 3 sets 10-12 reps (last set to failure)
Incline Dumbell Fly- 3 sets 10-12 reps (last set to failure)
EZ Bar Pull Downs - 3 sets 8-10 reps (or close grip bench press)
Overhead cable presses 3 sets 8-10 reps (last set to fail)


SUNDAY - Back/Bi
5 min warm-up
Close-Grip Lat Pull Downs 3 sets 10-12 reps (last set to failure)
Bent Over One Arm Dumbell Rows 3 sets 10-12 reps
Lat pulldowns 3 sets 10-12 reps (last set to fail)
Cable Bicep curl 3 sets 10-12 reps
One arm Dumbell Hammer curls 3 sets 10-12 reps

MONDAY
REST & Cardio 30 mins swimming

TUESDAY - Delts/traps
5 min warm-up
Seated Dumbell military press 3 sets 10-12 reps
Lateral dumbell raises (side) 3 sets 10-12 reps (last to fail)
Trap Raises 4 sets 10-12 reps

WEDNESDAY
REST & Cardio Cross-country run

THURSDAY - Legs & Abs
5 min warm-up
Machine Leg Press 3 sets 10-12 reps
Lying Ham String Curl Lifts 3 sets 10-12 reps
Calf Raises 4 sets 8-10 reps (last set to fail)
Weighted Swiss Ball crunches 4x sets 6-8 reps
hanging leg raises 4x sets 6-8 reps
Dumbell side bends 3x sets 6-8 reps

FRIDAY
REST & Cardio 20-30min 30mins swimming