Workout schedule?

[kcuber]

Is there an optimal way to exercise with weights? Is there an order to do certain parts of your body? If I wanted to do the major body parts such as abs, legs, arms, back, chest, and shoulders... what is the best way to group them so I do two everyday? Also, is it true that you do 3 days on and one off?

Any tips or help would be appreciated.

[tim_mcf]

There is no one best way. There are a whole lot of good ways, but the chief benefit of any program comes when you give it up and start a new one. The body responds best to variety.

3 on, 1 off is the way they do it at crossfit.com and it works pretty well. So does 5 on, 2 off; or 3 on, 1 off, 2 on, 1 off. Again, there is no single "best" way.

If you're doing a traditional "bodybuilding" style workout, it works well to group back with biceps, chest with triceps, and legs with abs. Your question makes me think you're looking for a simple program to start with, so try this:

3 days on, 1 off.
Day 1 - deadlifts, pullups, curls. 5 sets of 5 reps of each, with a weight that is very hard to complete the last set with. Preferably 8 hours later, run 5k.
Day 2 - bench, military press, skullcrushers. 5x5 again. Preferably 8 hours later, do hill sprints for 30 minutes - find a nice hill, sprint up it, walk down, repeat for 30 minutes.
Day 3 - squats, lunges, decline situps. 5x5 again. If you feel like you need some cardio, try swimming laps for 20 minutes or go for a bike ride. If you have done the workout correctly, you will be happy to not do cardio for a day.

Eat meat, eggs, fresh fruit and veggies, nuts...period. To drink, you get water, and lots of it. The diet is by far the hardest part of this whole thing to accomplish, but a clean diet will pay off with huge dividends - far far FAR more than lifting hard without a clean diet.

[ebon00]

Originally Posted by tim_mcf

There is no one best way.

Actually, logic dictates that there must be one best way (optimal) for any particular individual at any particular point in time. The problem is obviously finding that "perfect" routine. And even if one should happen to find it, it won't be perfect for long since the routine will alter the circumstances that allowed it to be perfect. So, optimal is theoretically possible but realistically improbable.

So, kcuber, in essence this is a question only you can answer and it will answer itself (somewhat) with experience. Other people can give you advice and examples, like tim_mcf did, but in the end it's all up to you. Any give routine needs to be altered to the specific needs of the individual. And frankly, your question isn't specific enough. You ask if there's "an optimal way to exercise with weights" but you fail to specify what your intended goal is. Strength? Power? Speed? Lean mass gains? A little bit of everything? Decide that first, then look into training variations for your goal and then you're ready to ask the question again.