Many people love to train. Because of this they would like to do it as often as possible. But how would you plan a training week that contained 6 training days and one rest day. The following plan shows you one possible way to do it.
Monday: Deadlift Day
There is no better way to start off the week than with a really hard lift like the deadlift.
The deadlift basically works the whole body but it really gives the hamstrings and glutes a great workout. Because of this it makes sense to finish the workout with some exercises for the hamstrings.
Example Monday workout:
Deadlift: work up to a hard set of 5 reps
Romanian deadlifts: 3 sets of 8-10 reps
Leg-curls: 3 sets of 12 reps
Tuesday: Vertical Pulling
After the treatment we gave our lower backs yesterday it would make sense to decompress it with some chins and/or pulldowns. These exercises also work the biceps to a large degree, so why not finish it off with a couple of sets of curls.
Example Tuesday workout:
Chins: Work up to a maximal set of 5 reps adding weight around your waist.
Wide grip pulldowns: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Pulldowns with a close parallel grip: 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Dumbbell curls: 5 sets of 10-12 reps
Wednesday: Vertical Pushing
On Wednesday it is time for our first pressing exercise of the week. The military press would be an excellent choice. After the presses would be a good opportunity to do some isolation exercises for the shoulders, and triceps
Example Wednesday workout:
Military press: Work up to a maximal set of 5 reps
Side Lateral raises: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Rear lateral raises: 3 sets of 15-20 reps
Triceps pushdown: 5 sets of 10-12 reps
Thursday: Squat Day
Finally the day you have been eagerly anticipating. It is time to squat. The choice of squats is up to you. You can do front squats, box squats, olympic squats, or regular low bar squats but you have to squat. And you have to squat deep! No quarter squats!
After the squats you should do some type of isolation exercise for the quads. This is also a nice time to hit the calf's.
Example Thursday workout:
Front Squat: work up to a maximal set of 5 reps
Back squat: Do three set of as many reps as possible with the same weight as your heaviest set on the front squats
Leg extensions: 3 sets of 20 reps
Standing calf raise: 2 sets of 20-30 reps
Seated Calf raise: 2 sets of 20-30 reps
Friday: Horizontal Pulling
The lats and upper back have had two days to rest after the Chins/pulldowns on Tuesday, and it is now time to hit them again with some rows. Bent over barbell rows would be a good choice, but make sure that you don't do so much volume on them that you can not recover in time for the Monday deadlift session. I would hit a power movement like bent over rows first in this session and then do a movement that allows for more of a peak contraction of the whole upper back, as being able to contract your upper back hard and hold the contraction is very important in other exercises like bench presses or squats. It makes sense to hit the biceps again on this day also.
Example Friday workout:
Bent over barbell rows: Work up to a maximal set of 5 reps
Inverted rows: 4 sets of 10-12 reps
Face pulls: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Hammer curls: 5 sets of 10-12 reps
Saturday: Bench Day
No better day to bench press than Saturday when you are well rested, and no one is occupying the benches. In addition the upper back tightness from Fridays session will make your benches feel really good. Finish off with some isolation work for the pecs. If you would like to take a rest day on Sunday you will also hit the triceps on this day.
Example Saturday workout
Bench press: Work up to a maximal set of 5 reps.
Incline dumbbell press: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Flyes: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Dumbbell pullover: 3 sets of 15-20 reps
French Presses: 5 sets of 10-12 reps
Sunday: Rest or Triceps Day
If your eagerness to train is such that you can not even take one day of rest go in and hit the triceps hard on Sunday. It will still have two days of rest until Wednesdays workout.
Example Sunday workout:
Rope triceps extensions: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Dumbbell triceps extensions: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
3-board press: 3 sets of 15-20 reps
