I have questions

[sooner_ed]

I have a few questions. I appreciate any help in this area.
Let me preface my questions be establishing my guidelines and parameters please.

1. I am not looking to "maximize" what I am going to ask about. I am currently in-between careers and have some extra time on my hands. Thought I would shake things up a bit and take advantage of the extra time I have.

2. I am currently taking whey and creatine. I do not want to add any other supplements.

3. My current stats are 5'6", 168 pounds. You can see my progress pics and I do not look any different now than then, with the exception of maybe 1/2 inch more around my waist. I have been able to fit into a 32 original fit jean but now I fit into a 32 relaxed fit.

4. I am a runner and will not give up the running. I understand that I will not maximize my muscle gains (see #1). I will continue to run 3-5 miles a day six days a week. Starting February 21, I will begin training for my half-marathon in April.

5. My training equipment is limited (see pic in my progress pics). I also use a Frank Zane workout book so my workouts are already planned.



My questions are as follows:

1. I have a cheap workout bench. It has been very effective for the last eight months. However, the bar maxes out at 160 pounds. That means I can bench and squat only 160 pounds. My leg extensions are maxed at 60 pounds. Given the poundage maximations, when you can no longer add weight to your bar (or whatever you're using), can you compensate by doing more reps and sets? For instance, instead of one set of 10, do one set of 30? Or instead of three sets of 15, do fours sets of 30?

2. With this extra time, I'm thinking of lifting twice a day now. When a person works out twice a day, do they do the same set of exercises both times or do they work different muscle groups?

3. During the course of a week, should you lift at 110% each session, or is it kind of like running, where you mix up your mileage from day to day? In other words, are there days when you keep the workout light and other days you max out with it?



Since I have this extra time, I thought I would put it to good use. Hopefully, I will not have this extra time long, so this will most likely be a short-term thing. But perhaps it will give me a good jump-start for the new year.
Any suggestions and advice are greatly appreciated.

[Lady C]

You say "I am not looking to "maximize"" but what is your goal? Lose more bodyfat, gain muscle, increase strength, what is the goal? Working out more frequently doing what weights or running or both?

[abarlament]

Originally Posted by sooner_ed

4. I am a runner and will not give up the running. I understand that I will not maximize my muscle gains (see #1). I will continue to run 3-5 miles a day six days a week. Starting February 21, I will begin training for my half-marathon in April.

It's ok, you will have to compensate by eating more, but you should still be able to put on some lean muscle.

1. I have a cheap workout bench. It has been very effective for the last eight months. However, the bar maxes out at 160 pounds. That means I can bench and squat only 160 pounds. My leg extensions are maxed at 60 pounds. Given the poundage maximations, when you can no longer add weight to your bar (or whatever you're using), can you compensate by doing more reps and sets? For instance, instead of one set of 10, do one set of 30? Or instead of three sets of 15, do fours sets of 30?

What are your current maxes? If you are maxing 100 lbs on bench it will be fine, but if you can max over 200 maybe you should look into buying better equipment.

2. With this extra time, I'm thinking of lifting twice a day now. When a person works out twice a day, do they do the same set of exercises both times or do they work different muscle groups?

Whichever you choose. Olympic lifters squat, clean, and snatch twice a day. You will have to pay close attention to managing your volume, and watch for signs of overtraining. Do as much as you can manage.

3. During the course of a week, should you lift at 110% each session, or is it kind of like running, where you mix up your mileage from day to day? In other words, are there days when you keep the workout light and other days you max out with it?

See above.

[sooner_ed]

Originally Posted by Lady C

You say "I am not looking to "maximize"" but what is your goal? Lose more bodyfat, gain muscle, increase strength, what is the goal? Working out more frequently doing what weights or running or both?

Because this will be a short-term thing, I am not attaching any goals to utilizing my extra time in this way. Being that I am still a novice bodybuilder, I think it will just be interesting to see what benefits can be obtained by doing a second workout during the day. If I lose more bodyfat...great. If I gain muscle and increase my strength...great.
For most on this website, if they are trying to maximize muscle gains, they would restrict the cardio, which I am not willing to do.
Anything I attach a goal to would be a long-term thing until I achieved that goal. Being that this is short-term thing, I just want to do it and see what happens. Then I can draw from the experience in setting new and different goals at a later time.

[sooner_ed]

abarlament, your answers have made it very clear to me. Thank you for your answers.