Taking
Measurements, Tracking Progress & Body Fat Caliper
At the start of your program, take measurements.
Otherwise, how will you measure your progress week by week?
Don't be lazy! A weight scale is not the only way to measure
your progress. It's best used together with a measuring
tape, body fat caliper, and the mirror. I took measurements
at the start of each week, and then one last measurement
on the friday of the last week. Also remember to take weekly
pictures! You will not find better motivation than to look
at old photos of yourself, and comparing to what you've
achieved.
I'm not really sure if there is a "standard"
way to take measurements, and it really doesn't matter!
As long as you make sure to take your measurements in a
consistent manner every week, it'll be fine. All measurements
should be done cold - meaning that you should not be pumped
while taking measurements This helps keep consistency in
your measurements For example, for some, bicep sizes can
vary by as much as an inch between cold and pumped measurements,
and if you take it one week pumped, and the next week cold,
you'll be wondering why you lost an inch on your arms. ;-)
Or vice versa.
Body fat should also be measured along
with all the other measurements. I used an Accumeasure
Body Fat Caliper to take weekly body fat measurements.
The Workout - 5 Day Split
I follow a 5 day split - a 5 on, 2 off,
weekly schedule. I work one muscle group per day, with the
exception of arm days, where biceps and triceps are worked
in the same day. Large muscle groups are always done at
the start of the week, and the smallest muscle groups are
done at the end of the week. After all, you are "freshest"
at the start of the week, and that's when you want to focus
your energy on the larger muscles. Right?
Here's what my 5 day split looks like:
- Monday: Legs
- Tuesday: Chest
- Wednesday: Back
- Thursday: Shoulders
- Friday: Arms (Biceps and Triceps)
See how the large muscle groups are done
in the start of the week like legs, chest and back, and
smaller muscles are done near the end of the week.
Gee, where the heck are your ab workouts
Jim? Well, truthfully, on my bulking cycles, I never do
abs. Remember this, having great abs is not dependant on
how heavy or how often your work it, but it depends on your
body fat! No matter how great your abs are, if you have
thick layer of fat covering it, you'll still not see it.
As the name suggests, bulking means you're
bulking up - gaining size overall. By doing abs during bulking
cycles, you'll also be bulking up your mid section, which
isn't what you want. To get that nice looking V-shape, you
need a small waist and a big chest and back.
So, why do I follow a 5 day split? When I work just one
muscle group per workout, I can devote all my energy to
performing the exercises just for that muscle group. With
this, my workouts are quite short, usually around 40 to
45 minutes, depending on what I'm working on.
With a 5 day split, there's no rush in each workout to
get on to the next body part, and there's no need to "conserve"
some energy to work the other body parts - all you need
to do, is give 100% on each exercise that's designed to
train that specific body part.
Generally, my workouts consist of 6 to 10 sets per body
part. What? That's it? Yeah, that's it. There's no need
to do an insane number of sets and reps to stimulate muscle
growth - that'll just likely lead to over training. I find
that lower number of sets and reps allows the use of very
heavy weights to stimulate the most muscle growth for me.
Here's how many sets I generally do on a day-by-day basis:
- Monday: Legs (Quads - 5 to 6 sets, Hams - 4 sets, Calves
- 6 sets)
- Tuesday: Chest (8 to 9 sets)
- Wednesday: Back (9 to 11 sets)
- Thursday: Shoulders (10 to 12 sets)
- Friday: Arms (Biceps - 8 sets, Triceps - 8 sets)
Two to three different exercises are used to workout each
muscle group. Mondays are usually my longest days, lasting
about 50 to 60 minutes. Mainly because the entire lower
body is worked that day, but if you look at it, each muscle
group in the lower body is worked on only 5 to 6 sets.
Tuesdays are usually my shortest days, lasting about 35
to 40 minutes. Not a lot needs to done, and I can completely
work my chest within that time with just 8 to 9 sets total.
Friday is the other day where more than one muscle group
is worked - biceps and triceps. About 8 sets are done for
each, and the arm exercises are done alternately. ie. one
biceps exercise, then one tricep exercise. This is not super
setting, although it sounds like it. I take plenty of rest
in between each set. However, once awhile, I do perform
supersets. More on this later.
Part 3 will be coming soon...
>>
Click here for Accumeasure Body Fat Caliper
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