Am I getting the right exercises?

Hamburger said:

Hi all,

Seven months ago I joined a gym and
started lifting weights.

good Job!

Quoted message said:

5min Warm Up
Lever Chest Press
Lever Pullover
Lever Peck Deck Fly
Lever Seated Rear Lateral Raise
Cable Curl
Cable Straight Back Seated Row
Seated Leg Curl
Cable Front Pulldown
Sled 45° Leg Press

Quoted message said:

Are there any exercises that I have missed out

After 7 months you are board with this workout. Who wouldn't be? I
think you should now move off of machines and to free weights. They are
much more interesting than machines.

Quoted message said:

and that I should include in my routine?

Barbell Squats
Barbell Bench
Pullups
Military Press
Rows
Dips
Dead Lifts

Quoted message said:

(For instance, I am not sure my triceps gets any work...)

More Pressing will solve this.

Quoted message said:

Is 3sets / 8reps OK for growth ?

That is ok for growth, as long as you are eating. Growing and shrinking
comes from how much you eat + how you are training + enough rest.

--Falooley

Agree with your move to 3 x 8 and 60 seconds. Those machines are
excellent. To push into new development, consider adding some extras to
the mix:
-Rest-pause or cheat reps on the last set to keep moving the reps up,
and eventually to increase the weight. Increasing the weight's the
bottom line. Sometimes try 1.5 minutes rest max. if it allows you to
increase reps and weight; whatever it takes.
-Consider adding protein powder mixed in liquid and consumed between
meals. Generally you want to gain some degree of "good" bodyweight
through additional protein to add size.
-Get a workout partner, someone who understands pushing the envelope.
-Where do you want to gain? Squats should be in there unless you're
uninterested in lower body development.

Agree with your move to 3 x 8 and 60 seconds. Those machines are
excellent. To push into new development, consider adding some extras
variables to
the mix:
-Push the number of reps up using any number of post-failure techniques
including rest-pause, cheats, etc. on the last set of each exercise, to
keep moving the reps up, and eventually to increase the weight, which
is the bottom line. If necessary, rest up to 1.5 minutes between sets
if it allows you to
increase reps and weight.
-Exercises: 6-7 sets done all-out per muscle-reduce the number of lat
and chest exercises to no more than this, add a triceps machine
exercise or do bench dips, to which you'll eventually add a dumbbell.
Add squats to the mix unless you're unconcerned about full lower-body
development.
-Mix protein powder and liquid and consume between
meals. Generally you want to gain some degree of "good" bodyweight
through additional protein consumption, to add size.
-Get a workout partner, someone who understands pushing the envelope.

3 x 8 and 60 seconds per exercise is good. Those machines are
excellent. To push new development, add some extra variables to the
mix:
-Push the number of reps up using any number of post-failure techniques
including rest-pause, cheats, etc. on the last set of each exercise, to

keep moving the reps up to 12/set, then move the weight up, which is
the bottom line. If necessary, rest up to 1.5 minutes between sets if
it allows you to
increase reps and weight.
-Exercises: 6-7 total sets done all-out per muscle, 2 exercises per
muscle-reduce the number of lat
and chest exercises to no more than this, add a triceps machine
exercise or do bench dips, to which you'll eventually add a dumbbell.
Add squats to the mix unless you're unconcerned about full lower-body
development.
-Mix protein powder and liquid and consume between
meals. Generally while training, you want to gain some degree of "good"
bodyweight through additional protein consumption, to add size.
-Try to find a serious workout partner, someone who understands pushing
the envelope.

"Hamburger" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:d43lsb$e3j$1
@online.de:

Quoted message said:

Hi all,

Seven months ago I joined a gym and
started lifting weights.

On my first day, a trainer drew up this full body workout
program for me:

5min Warm Up

Lever Chest Press
Lever Pullover
Lever Peck Deck Fly
Lever Seated Rear Lateral Raise
Cable Curl
Cable Straight Back Seated Row
Seated Leg Curl
Cable Front Pulldown
Sled 45° Leg Press

To be carried out in this order, 2 sets at 15 reps each with
60 secs of rest between sets and exercises.

Stupid, but not criminally so. Lots of isolation work in there which a
newbie doesn't need. Good for a month or two *maybe*, high time you did
something else.

Quoted message said:

I go to the gym on Mon Wed Fri. Yesterday was
my 88th training session.

Two weeks ago I got tired of my slow progress.
I read somewhere on the Internet that I should
"lift heavy", so I changed all exercises to
3 sets at 8 reps with 60 secs in between
and increased the weights as much as possible.

I have always worked to failure and have made some
improvement in the weights I take (e.g. on the
leg press I started with 70kg and now take 250 kg),
but cannot yet see any real muscle growth.

Are there any exercises that I have missed out
and that I should include in my routine?
(For instance, I am not sure my triceps gets any work...)

Is 3sets / 8reps OK for growth ?

It's ok. You can work different rep ranges and you need a different
routine. Bob's list is a good start or go to www.stumptuous.com/weights
and pick out a basic routine from there.

You should be seeing muscle growth unless you've got it covered up with
fat. If you want to look good on the beach, you might need to drop weight.

Hugh

--
Experience keeps a dear school, but fools will attend no other.

Isolation work on machines as you're doing is effective and often
better than compound motions from my experience. Depends on the person
and depends on the muscle in question.

Good luck. If you're 280 the weight issue's clearly a big problem re:
seeing the muscle. I'd suggest running 1 or 2 miles 6 days a week along
with a better diet if you're serious about getting in shape, or cardio
for 25-40 minutes daily if running's not viable. Especially with the
summer heat this will make a huge difference in conjunction with the
resistance training, if you're serious about making the effort.