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By Patrick Ward, MS, CSCS
Author
of Take Charge
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I am a huge fan of keeping things
simple. People are constantly asking what the best workout
for someone new to training is and, with all the information
out there (some good and some bad), it is easy to get confused.
Below is something I jotted
down really quickly for an guy who was just beginning his
training career and wondering what the best way to get started
was.
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Workout A
Squat
bench press
chin up
Workout B
deadlift
row
DB shoulder press
Alternate between between those two
workouts 3 times a week
Example:
Week 1
mon - A
wed - B
fri - A
Week 2
mon - B
wed - A
fri - B
repeat
Sets and Reps
On mondays and fridays perform 3 sets
x 5reps.
On wed perform 3 sets x 10 reps
Intensity
Since you are totally new to training
start with a low intensity and don’t worry about maxing out
or hitting faillure. Even though you are using 5 repetitions per
set, this is not 5 max repetitions. You shouldn’t be hitting
failure by rep 5. 70-75% intensity is generally a pretty good place
to start. Focus on technique and developing great form and movement
patterns. Form is paramount over everything else. Each workout you
can try and add 5-10lbs to each lift as long as your form is solid.
Do this until you reach a plateau.
When you start to hit a plateau and
find it difficult to make any further progress, simply drop the
intensity from your workout by about 15% for a week and the next
week start from there and work back up in intensity over a few weeks
to see if you can break your previous personal records.
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Other
things that you can add to this program
This is only the
lifting portion of the workout. Of course if you want things
to be well rounded (and you should want that!), you are going
to need to have a good warm up and, in my opinion, some foam
rolling to work on your soft tissue and some flexibility work.
In addition, you will want to work cardio into your program
(intervals work pretty well for that and they are time effective).
Other
“newbie questions” that you will probably have.
Below are some
answers to typical questions I get when I give someone a program
that is simple like this:
a) NO, you can
not do this workout 4 or 5 times a week.
b) YES, you must leave a day of rest inbetween each training
session. I don’t care if you feel like you can do more.
c) NO, you can not go in on saturdays and train biceps.
d) NO, you can not go in on saturdays and train chest and
arms
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CLICK HERE to learn more about Patrick's
new book "Take Charge: Design Your
Own Training Programs"
About
The Author
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Patrick Ward holds a Masters
Degree in Exercise Science. He is a Certified Strength and
Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength
and Conditioning Association (NSCA), a Certified Personal
Trainer (CPT) and Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES)
through National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), and a
USA Weightlifting-Certified Club Coach. In addition, Patrick
is a licensed massage therapist and specializes in Neuromuscular
Therapy (NMT) and is certified in Active Release Techniques
(ART). Patrick has worked with athletes and general population
clients of all ages and abilities on both exercise programs
and soft tissue therapy. He can be reached at Patrick@optimumsportsperformance.com
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