{365} Days A Path towards Elite Powerlifting

Starting Strength Workouts for Beginners

In the last few days I got a few phone calls from friends asking for some simple workout advice. I decided it was time to put up some good pieces of information that I've gathered through the years. What I am about to post are templates that millions of people have used over the years and thus are time tested and proven. It is always good to start with something that isn't overly complicated with a focus on compound movements. This will start building your strength by recruiting as many muscle fibers as possible. Over time, you will find weak points or bodyparts you want to improve and your workouts will evolve accordingly. This is when you start manipulating these templates and add more isolations into the routine.

Introduction

Here are some things you want to avoid just starting out.

• Too much volume (Volume is great later on for select workouts, but starting out, it's nice to work on a simple 5 sets by 5 rep routine that will increase your endurance as well as your strength)
• Too many exercises (You are just going to be burnt out in the end, the only time I add more than 4-5 exercises per workout is when I know exactly what my weaknesses are and I can pinpoint the work I need to do. If you think your arms are too small or your chest is too big, compounds WILL even this out since lagging body parts will have to catch up to stronger ones. Trust in the compound movement)
• Too heavy too fast (There is no reason to go heavy super fast, research each exercise, watch them on youtube and LEARN the correct form. If you are deadlifting with an arched back or popping quarter squats, you are placing undue stress on your body and will hurt yourself. Leave the ego at the door and train smart. Stretch out before each workout, ramp up the weights slowly, and know your limit. If you have correct form in the beginning, this will translate into stronger lifts in the future. Bad form will only limit your progress in the long run. Examples include injury and improperly developed support muscles)
• Copying advanced workout plans (Taking my workout plan straight from my website will not be that beneficial since it is very specific to my goals, only after lifting with me for 2-3 weeks can you truly understand all the little details and changes that go into my everyday workout. My workouts are dynamic and I never have the same workout the next day)

You may think your current program works... it probably does, but going to the gym and lifting weights like a monkey in a playground will give you some marginal gains. Like all things in life, a strong strategy and realistic workout plan will take you much further than what you think you have now. Why waste a few weeks on something that only gives marginal gains, when you can do a bit of research and see even better gains?

Finally, make sure your workout plan is flexible. Find one that suits your goals and fits your schedule. I'll talk more about why my workout plan works later on.

Workout Plans

Some of the best workout plans on the market focus on heavy compound movements. Here are the best I think ANYONE can benefit from trying out. Start with one of these for a few months and then fine tune it to fit your goals. All the links I post are very good at explaining the rationale behind the program and gives incredible detail on how to fix the obstacles along the way. I suggest reading these to get a good understanding about what lifts to use.

• Rippetoe's Starting Strength Routine (Recommended): http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=998224
  • I have discussed Rippetoe in the past (http://yanyanxu.com/2009/08/07/starting-strength-basic-barbell-training-2nd-edition-by-mark-rippetoe-lon-kilgore/) and he is one of my favorite experts on the subject of correct form and body mechanics on how to perform certain basic compound movements. The thread itself does a great job explaining the program and how to do some of the basic movements. I highly recommend trying this out. Building size and strength through these basic movements will be a great way to assess where you are now and where you want to be in the future.
• Madcow’s 5x5 Program (Give you an idea on how programs are designed and how proportional time/strength can be): http://www.wackyhq.com/madcow5x5/geocities/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm
  • Another very popular program, Madcow is focused on strength. It gives a very linear schedule on what weights you should be lifting today and what lifts you should be lifting at the end of the program. A program is different than a routine. You have a start day and an end day. So depending on your goals, Madcows can be used early on to build some initial strength and muscle memory for those heavy compound movements.
• Miscellaneous Programs: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=113707701
  • Lots of good information in this thread on different type of routines. I’d focus on Rippetoe’s and Madcows. The other programs are fairly advanced and won’t come into play until you hit a huge plateau. I don’t even think I want to attempt German Volume Training or Smolov until I have a few more years under my belt.
• My Current Routine: http://yanyanxu.com/2009/08/11/2010-strengthmass-routine/
  • I have been using this program for over a year now, and it has YET to get old. I have manipulated it so much but in the end it falls under the basic premise of two upper body days, one back day, and one leg day during the week for cardio during rest days. The magic of the program is the flexibility in the workouts and when I choose to do the workouts. If there are 2-3 days I can not workout, I can jump right back into my program to where I left off. For example, if my next day is a chest day and work forces me to skip 2-3 days, I will just continue the chest workout on the next available day. This program is not pigeon hold me into a MWF workout routine that traditional programs have you follow. The exercises within each workout are dynamic. I add and delete exercises depending on my lagging body parts. In the beginning of the program's evolution I had more shoulder exercises to bring up this bodypart, now the program leans more towards my triceps, which have seen great results.
    
  • A few simple changes to my program really chiseled out my triceps. Now my goal is to put on more mass back on my shoulders, and the program evolves with a more shoulder centric exercises. Each workout is different and the rep scheme changes depending on my mood. Some days I do volume, some days I follow strict powerlifting protocol of one rep per set. My compound movements always remain the same though. I alway start with either a bench, deadlift or squat. The actual details of the compound changes. I could do a DB Bench, BB Bench, or Incline Bench. I could do a deficit deadlift or a rack pull. The fact is, everything is dynamic and evolves depending on my goals in the short run but my long run goals are achieved since the exercises are very similar. Another benefit of the flexible workouts is if I'm running low on time, I can shorten my workouts and when I have more time I can do a little more. Also, since my workouts are always changing, my body never gets used to the exercises and I rarely hit a "long" plateau. My strength and size gains have been unreal in the past year and I have found my perfect routine. Finally, if I decided it was time to lose weight or work on a 6-pack, I would increase my cardio and restrict my calories using the same routine.
• My Past Routines (Some of my earlier routines, fun to take a look at since these were pretty standard and basic. The only routine I would not suggest is the 5 day split. I actually still like the other two, and think they would be a good routine for a beginner/intermediate lifter)
  • http://yanyanxu.com/2008/05/15/revamping-exercises/
  • http://yanyanxu.com/2008/07/22/new-routine/
  • http://yanyanxu.com/2009/01/23/the-2009-alpha-beast-man-routine/

Feel free to look at these workouts and customize your own routine. I would love to help you critique and personalize it to your goals.

PS: Make sure your diet is well, this is a great read on all the myths and traps people fall into: http://yanyanxu.com/2009/07/21/interesting-read-on-dieting/ And here are some sample meal plans: http://yanyanxu.com/2009/08/11/daily-nutrition-breakdown/ As long as you get in the right amount of calories and macro-nutrients, the frequency of th meals do not matter, so don't pay attention to that. Use more frequent meals when you are losing weight to prevent yourself from binging.