supawierd, yea, by totally recovered, as in u rid urself of DOMS (the soreness).

u split your training into compound excercises that do the same muscle group. when u do chest/shoulders, u push the weight, hence your doing triceps too... so might aswell add that in the same day.. when u do back, youre like pulling the weight, so your using your biceps more, so you combine them in the same day.

also compound movements give you more bulk than isolating the muscle.

different people have different techniques.. some like to do chest, shoulders, arms, back, legs on different days, others combine them, but in my experience, combining them is more effective at least for begginers.

i would recommend subscribing to these muscle mags, like mens fitness, they give you some real good tips. thats where u learn these things in a tabloidish way.

Also just wondering you guys mentioned biceps / triceps being done separately (with back/chest), is there any particular reason for that.

I've so far been dividing my routine into upper / lower body with cardio n abs thrown in regularly and intend on actually getting a real routine now :)

wasimm you mentioned until u feel recovered. what exactly do you mean by that? dont feel sore anymore or something else (totally new to this :))

I dont do cardio right now... and I dont do too much cardio when I bulk up..... But when Iam trying to lean down I usually do cardio on an empty stomach early in the morning!.... for about 45 mins. I run on the treadmill, stair climber, and mountain climber machine.... mix and match...

btw, what y'all do for cardio??

bro wasimm, thanks alot for the corrective pointers, and ur absolutely right about countin rest as being just as important (and probably more important) than training..all the training really does is stimulate the brain to increase muscle production in the stimulated areas..the rest is all diet and sleep..like u said.

in split routines, u dont train chest and back at the same time, nor shoulders and bi's.

you can combine chest+shoulders+triceps. and back+biceps.

Get a training routine made from a PT, he can obviously take your diet, phyique and goals into consideration.

My routine is usually like:

1. chest/shoulders/triceps
2. rest
3. rest
4. back/biceps
5. rest
6. legs
7. rest

but its not set in stone, and if i feel recovered, I hit the same body part again in the week lightly. but i count rest more important training.

thanks for all the tips malik! i like the schedule, but let me show you what i had so far:

Day1: chest/tri's/back (or chest/tri's/*bi's), 5 sets each/12 reps (*biceps last: 3s/15r)

Day2: cardio (25-40min)

Day3: shoulders/traps/bi's (or shoulders/back/traps), 3-5s/12r

Day4: rest

Day5: quads/calves, 3-5s/12r

Day6: rest

Day7: cardio (25-40min)


the schedule itself doesn't seem that bad, but maintaining consistency is all it takes.. i wanna try it inshaAllah for a few wks, maybe with some minor adjustments here & there..

i don't have whey protein, so by lean animal protein do u mean white meat and eggs? last time after my workout i had some eggs with grape juice (as i remember reading bro Aragorn's comment on grape juice's post-workout charm) btw, what's the deal with yams??

desifob - sorry bro but i can't read ur comments cuz we're not connected :o

iamadesifob: Aaap jaan te hai ;)

malik is a superbeing desifob!

wow malik ur so smart

oh by the way thats 2 many muscles your training in a day, your probably not going to get results doing that... And training at night will make you hungry and eating a big meal followed by sleep will get u fat! Train in the afternoon time for mass gain and morning for getting ripped! Remember you cant do both at once... Gain the weight first and then rip!

Day 1: Chest/Triceps
Day 2: Rest Day
Day 3:Back/Biceps
Day 4:Rest
Day 5 Sholders/traps/calves
Day 6 Rest
Day7: Legs

This workout is not set in stone... change it around the way you like it... some people prefer chest with biceps...
Switch them around and shock your muscles.
Dont keep the same routine for more then 2 months!

eat a low glycemic carb before working out... post workout meal should be low fat... high carb... simple sugars with whey protein... or if you dont have that then lean animal protein will do.

ur right bro wasimm, thanks for the advice! i'm trying to eat & sleep better now..i just lifted last night too..i think i need more organization tho cuz i probably worked alotta the same muscle groups..yesterday was mainly chest, tri's, shoulders, & lowerback so i feel good ( i mean sore ) which btw, is DOMS an indicator that ur pushing urself in ur workout or does that just happen all the time? Any tips to reduce it?

also, wht kinda pre & post-workout nutrients should i be lookin out for?? Thanks for the tips guys!

Youre probably frustrated because you havent made any major gains, but 1 year of training is hardly anything. The bottom line is.. you cant just eat 2 rotis 3 times a day, frontloaded with vitamin C, lift a few weights and expect to have a good physique. More important than the working out itself is the diet. And then ofcourse the workout. You need to eat like a dog and work out heavy. People change their whole lives for their body, their sleep pattern, their diet, their social life.. you can atleat change your diet!

Eat 6 meals a day, lift heavy, and when you start seeing results, you will naturally start going to the gym more regularly.

PS: also ask a PT to write a training routine & a diet plan. Also reconfirm your technique on the machines.

thanks bro! :D

yeah bodybuilding.com is a very good form! Check out jeanpaul.com
You will figure out how to do your calorie requirements from there also... Factors include... weight, height, body type, and activity level!

btw, i forgot to ask if u know any good websites with info on good form & techniques, or overall knowledge on diet/supplementation, etc..

i like www.bodybuilding.com

thanks for the advice bro! but now i have more questions for you..like how do i figure out my daily caloric requirements, since i should be having 5-800 calories above that range?

second, you're absolutely right..i know my diet sucks, and that in order for me to gain muscle, i will also have to deal w/ fat..so i guess my real problems lie more with scheduling cuz that too sucks..i think my biggest problem is that i need to be more consistent and systematic..back when i was in school, i had the consistency but ironically it's been harder to find that for me while being at home..

i need a program that incorporates moderate lifting & cardio..i read some stuff on here that i should split cardio in the morning & lift later on.. or do light cardio b/f lifts if need be..honestly tho bro, i try to just do whatever, whenever i can..due to some issues, it's been rather difficult for me to remain consistent with a schedule.. previously i was thinking cardio 3x/week, lift 2x/week, but in my case do u think i should do the opposite? If i should be focusing on mass building, how do i figure my cardio?

honestly, my goal is not to become a bodybuilder nor do i want to use heavy supplements..(no drugs for me) but i wouldn't mind some light natural ones.. I just want to have more strength, maybe a bit bigger in size and alittle more lean, and i think ur advice is works really well with my goals, thanks alot bro!

This might come strange to you... But the best way to get in shape for you might be:.... Gain about 20 pounds, you will gain both muscle and fat.. There is no way around gaining pure 20 pounds of muscle and no fat without the use of large amounts of steroids and other drugs! Once you have gained that weight, then start cutting down and loosing the fat, more then likely your going to loose half of your strength that you gained and half of your muscle that you gained... There is no way around loosing fat without some muscle. You have to get this in your head...... When I was younger I wasted about 3-4 years trying to get big and lean at the same time...... Forget it, its not going to happen! Second your meal plan sucks.. Focus on eating 5-6 small meals in a day. Remember if your natural your body cant really handle more then 30 grams of protein in one sitting....

Stick to basic food and animal protein.

Increase meals (about 500-800 calories above your daily requirements.... The more spread out, the more quality weight your going to gain..... Diet is the number one key bro!

Dont overtrain: Do not train each muscle more then twice a week... Some people give a week rest on each body part. (That has worked for me)

Get your rest: Sleep and grow

Hit the weights hard: Focus on proper movement and stress the muscle to max without injuring yourself!

Remember you will gain Muscle if you do the above and you will gain fat also... Keep this in your head as a given.. I promise you Ronnie coleman and all these pro builders look like S hit before they go on their cutting cycle. If people like that gain fat on their mass phase imagine a normal Joe like you and I would have to go thru. Dont stress when u see that extra pinch on your stomach, Just dont go crazy like I did and gain 60 pounds in 8 months!