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Bare Bones Workout

The Bare Bones routine strips everything down to just the basics. There’s no hype, bullshit or anything else for that matter. Just good, hard exercises performed at maximum intensity.

Bob Whalen, who owns and operates Whelan Strength Training in Washington D.C. and had worked with numerous pro leagues and individuals, had this to say about training in general.

“It never ceases to amaze me how so many people can spend so much time and energy looking for shortcuts. If they spent half that energy on hard training, focusing on the basics, they would get the results they yearn for.

“The fitness industry is scandalous and makes this situation worse by offering all sorts of gimmicks and promises of great results for little or no effort. The megahype muscle magazines are the worst example. These magazines are replete with drug users and routines are written by (and for) drug users. The information found in them is not only fraudulent but may even be harmful to non-drug users. If you train naturally, there is no magic formula. You must build muscle the old-fashion way–you must earn it!

“There is only one absolute rule in strength training (and muscle building): Hard Progressive Training + Good Nutrition + adequate recovery = results! Period. Any results that anyone ever got had to follow that formula, not miracles or gimmicks, just hard work, nutritious food, and plenty of rest.”

I couldn’t have said it any better.

With that in mind, here is a nice routine that focuses on old-fashioned muscle and power building lifts. The program is bare bones, the essence of good solid, strength training. Follow it, don’t quit and train with maximum intensity and you’ll be ahead of 95 percent of everyone else who takes the shortcuts and the easy ways out.

This is a very demanding program. It’s not easy. In order to get the most recovery ability you should follow this program two days per week.

Bench Press
Curls
Pulldowns or Chins
Overhead Press
Rows
Squats or Deadlifts (alternate for each workout)

Notes: Train consistently and use whatever set and rep scheme you feel comfortable with. It could be one or two sets to failure, 5 x 5, singles, doubles, triples – anything you want, so long as you’re consistent and work hard. Add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of water.

Understand that to be successful in any weight training program – hard work is a must!Half-hearted effort does nothing for you. If you’re new to weight training or grossly out of shape, consult a physician first. End of disclaimer.

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Short But Sweet Workout

Another short but effective power-producing routine that will have you seeing huge jumps in strength in no time at all – provided you follow the basics and lift properly.

This is a great program for individuals who are pressed for time, but still want to strength train for health, muscle gain and power.

Only multi-joint compound movements are used with absolutely, positively no isolation exercises involved. You will workout two days per week with some active rest (basketball, walking etc.) or cardio performed on off days.

Two days is all that’s required because the program is tough because of the intense workload in the small amount of time. But it will raise your strength and endurance levels through the roof. These exercises are hard but they work. Stick with it and the results will astound you.

Day One:
Squats
Power Cleans
Overhead Press or Push Press

Day Two:
Deadlifts
Bench Press or Dips
Shrugs or Rows

Notes: Train consistently and use whatever set and rep scheme you feel comfortable with. It could be one or two sets to failure, 5 x 5, singles, doubles, triples – anything you want, so long as you’re consistent and work hard. Add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of water.

Understand that to be successful in any weight training program – hard work is a must!Half-hearted effort does nothing for you. If you’re new to weight training or grossly out of shape, consult a physician first. End of disclaimer.

Push/Pull Split Routine

The split system of training has been around almost as long as bodybuilding itself. The split routine was designed for bodybuilders who couldn’t maintain the intensity level that comes from getting bigger and stronger on a total body workout.

Thus the split training programs came into vogue. In the split system you work different bodyparts on different days allowing sufficient rest in-between workouts for each bodypart.

The benefits of a push/pull split are many. The first is minimal overlap between the workouts, providing more recovery time between them. Another advantage is if your pushing and pulling muscles recover at a different rate, splitting them up will eliminate going into the gym ready to bench but not ready to chin.

Day One:
Overhead Press
Bench Press
Dips
Calf Raises
Crunches or Situps

Day Two:
Chins or Pulldowns
Rows
Squats
Deadlifts
Curls

Notes: Train consistently 2-3 days per week and use whatever set and rep scheme you feel comfortable with. It could be one or two sets to failure, 5 x 5, singles, doubles, triples – anything you want, so long as you’re consistent and work hard. Add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of water.

Understand that to be successful in any weight training program – hard work is a must!Half-hearted effort does nothing for you. If you’re new to weight training or grossly out of shape, consult a physician first. End of disclaimer.

Beginner’s Basic Power Workout

This is a nice routine for beginners to start on that will develop mass, power and everything else in-between.

The program focuses on the basic power building exercises – squat, deadlift, rows etc. There are no assistance exercises involved (unless you want to do some ab work each workout) because they serve no purpose for a beginning trainee.

Assistance exercises waste time, needed energy and can lead to overtraining. Assistance or isolation movements are good for bodybuilders who are looking for more definition in a particular muscle.

In order to be a bodybuilder you have to have a body to build in the first place and the only way to build your body, to pack mass on it, is compound, multi-joint, power and muscle-producing exercises. Not isolation crap.

The routine below is perfect for any beginner interested in weight training. This is the one I give to people who ask me for advice just starting out. Follow it to the letter, don’t be changing it around every week or so because you read something in a magazine by super steroid guy.

You should be on this program for six months to a year before you think of changing up. Believe me, if you stick with this and sink your foundation into the solid fundamentals of the iron game, you’ll have plenty of people asking you for advice before too long.

Workout One:
Squat 2-3 x 5
Overhead Press 2-3 x 5
Rows 2-3 x 5
Chins or Pulldowns 2-3 x 5-8

Workout Two:
Power Cleans 2-3 x 5
Bench Press 2-3 x 5
Deadlifts 1 x 5
Dips 2-3 x 5-8 (add weight if you can do more than 10)

Notes: Train consistently 2-3 days per week. Add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of water. If you go three days, you’ll do workout one twice a week, followed by workout two, etc. If you want to ad some ab work both days, go ahead and do that. If you get all the sets and reps for each exercise in good form, add 5-10 pounds to the bar on your next workout. Lift as heavy a weight as possible so that five reps is all you can get.

Understand that to be successful in any weight training program – hard work is a must!Half-hearted effort does nothing for you. If you’re new to weight training or grossly out of shape, consult a physician first. End of disclaimer.

Squats and Milk Revisited V: The Deadlift

(This is the final of a five part series on one of the classic power and muscle building programs in the world – the squats and milk program)

This final version of the squats and milk routine is really different because there aren’t any squats in it!

Instead of squats the deadlift is substituted instead. All the principles of the squats and milk program still apply. You’ll do 20-rep deadlifts followed by a set of 20-rep pullovers done with light weight and in the same breathing style.

For the deadlifts, perform the three or more deep breaths before you lift the bar. After you’ve performed the rep and returned the bar to the floor – take your deep breaths again and continue until 20 reps are reached. Remember you want to take a weight that you can perform 10 or 15 reps with and do 20!

It’s hard work and not for the squeamish, but the results are undeniable. The program recommends a gallon of milk a day, but I think that’s a little over the top. Try for at least a quart a day and work up to a half gallon. You can use skim milk if you’re worried about fat gain.

Overhead Press 2 x 12
Deadlifts (Breathing) 1 x 20
Pullovers 1 x 20
Rows 2 x 15

Notes: Train consistently 2-3 days per week. Add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of milk and water. Concentrate on the deadlift, it’s the key. The pullovers should be done in breathing style, like the deadlift, with light weights and done immediately after squats with no rest in-between.

Understand that to be successful in any weight training program – hard work is a must!Half-hearted effort does nothing for you. If you’re new to weight training or grossly out of shape, consult a physician first. End of disclaimer.

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