More Time Efficient Routine

Hello,

Do you have any suggestions on how to make my current routine more time
efficient?

I am looking to make my current weight training routine more time
efficient. The routine I am following takes me an hour including changing
clothes, warm-up, stretching, moving equipment into place, exercising, and a
final stretch. It also includes the time I spend changing plates. I
realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend three times a
week but my worklife and social obligations are really beginning to
conflict with my weight training.

I workout at home. I use dumbbells as opposed to a barbell for safety
reasons except for curls. I am only doing one set of 8-12 repetitions
except for the crunches where I am currently at 43 repetitions. I found
that multiple sets, while useful, were only causing me to spend even
more time. I rest a nominal one minute between sets but I find that plate
changing causes this to take a little longer.

Here is my current routine:

Squat (really a side or suitcase squat)
Lunge
Bench Press
Chest Fly
One-Arm Bent Over Row (alternating every four weeks with Pull-ups)
Seated Press
Lateral Raise
Barbell Curl
Standing Overhead Tricep Extension (alternating every four weeks with Single
Chair Dips)
Crunches

I wonder if any of these exercises are redundant in that they work
virtually the same muscle groups that I may as well alternate between the
exercises for a change of pace like I am doing with Rows and Pull-ups.

Thanks.

"Baron" <pfisNGh@voNGicenet.com> wrote in message
news:36e73$45e101dc$cf672faa$6616@allthenewsgroups .com...
> Hello,
>
> Do you have any suggestions on how to make my current routine more time
> efficient?
>
> I am looking to make my current weight training routine more time
> efficient. The routine I am following takes me an hour including changing
> clothes, warm-up, stretching, moving equipment into place, exercising, and
> a
> final stretch. It also includes the time I spend changing plates. I
> realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend three times
> a
> week but my worklife and social obligations are really beginning to
> conflict with my weight training.
>
> I workout at home. I use dumbbells as opposed to a barbell for safety
> reasons except for curls. I am only doing one set of 8-12 repetitions
> except for the crunches where I am currently at 43 repetitions. I found
> that multiple sets, while useful, were only causing me to spend even
> more time. I rest a nominal one minute between sets but I find that plate
> changing causes this to take a little longer.
>
> Here is my current routine:
>
> Squat (really a side or suitcase squat)
> Lunge
> Bench Press
> Chest Fly
> One-Arm Bent Over Row (alternating every four weeks with Pull-ups)
> Seated Press
> Lateral Raise
> Barbell Curl
> Standing Overhead Tricep Extension (alternating every four weeks with
> Single
> Chair Dips)
> Crunches
>
> I wonder if any of these exercises are redundant in that they work
> virtually the same muscle groups that I may as well alternate between the
> exercises for a change of pace like I am doing with Rows and Pull-ups.
>
> Thanks.
>
Forgive me Baron - but you sound like a doorknob to me. At what time of day
do you do your routine? Do you do a warm up set? What's with all the
stretching?? What's with this safety thing? You use dumbells because they
are safer than a barbell? You do 43 reps of crunches? Why is that? Are your
abs not a muscle like all the others?
Did you get your bodybuilding info from a comic book?

Dnia 2007-02-25 Baron napisa³(a):
> Hello,
>
> Do you have any suggestions on how to make my current routine more time
> efficient?
>
> I am looking to make my current weight training routine more time
> efficient. The routine I am following takes me an hour including changing
> clothes, warm-up, stretching, moving equipment into place, exercising, and a
> final stretch. It also includes the time I spend changing plates. I
> realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend three times a
> week but my worklife and social obligations are really beginning to
> conflict with my weight training.

Skip pre-workout stretch and "warm-up". You don't need that. Warm-up
to your first exercises by doing several warm-up sets. This actually
works, and is more time efficient.

> I workout at home. I use dumbbells as opposed to a barbell for safety
> reasons except for curls. I am only doing one set of 8-12 repetitions
> except for the crunches where I am currently at 43 repetitions. I found
> that multiple sets, while useful, were only causing me to spend even
> more time.

Do supersets.

> I rest a nominal one minute between sets but I find that plate
> changing causes this to take a little longer.

Limit the amount of exercises you do, and do more sets with the same
weight. This way you can save time on adjusting weights and if you use
supersets most of the time, you will be as time efficient as it goes.

> Here is my current routine:
>
> Squat (really a side or suitcase squat)

I wouldn't do that. Use Bulgarian split squats if you like.

> Lunge
> Bench Press
> Chest Fly

I wouldn't do flyies.

> One-Arm Bent Over Row (alternating every four weeks with Pull-ups)
> Seated Press
> Lateral Raise

Lateral raise is redundant too, if you already do presses.

> Barbell Curl
> Standing Overhead Tricep Extension (alternating every four weeks with Single
> Chair Dips)
> Crunches
>
> I wonder if any of these exercises are redundant in that they work
> virtually the same muscle groups that I may as well alternate between the
> exercises for a change of pace like I am doing with Rows and Pull-ups.

Sure. Do that.

Anyway, if you want to save time, do multiple sets of fewer exercises
in a superset fashion. You may have two or three workouts with
different exercises each, but alternate between them instead of doing
them all on the same day. For example.

Lunges supersetted with standing overhead press.
Benches supersetted with rows.
Crunches supersetted with one-armed swings.
Curls supersetted with triceps work.

If you workout at home, I also recommend training daily. There is no
need for all that fluffy pre-workout work. Simply change your clothes
and start working out. To workout more often, you need some sort of a
split routine, of course.

--
Andrzej Rosa 1127R

On Feb 24, 7:27 pm, "Baron" <pfis...@voNGicenet.com> wrote:
> I realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend
> three times a week but my worklife and social obligations are really
> beginning to conflict with my weight training.


I just dont get this when people use this excuse. And it is an excuse.
Its all about priorities and making daily exercise a part of it. Think
about it, in one week you have 168 hours available, then say you sleep
away 8 hrs a night leaving you with 112hrs, then you work 40 hrs for
the week leaving you 72 hours. Thats about 10 hours a DAY you have to
do personal stuff and you cant fit in working out more than three
times a week? Time to scrutinize your lifestyle I'd say and decide
whats important to you.


joanne

"joanne" <jgrrl2@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1172435579.701324.324000@v33g2000cwv.googlegr oups.com...
> On Feb 24, 7:27 pm, "Baron" <pfis...@voNGicenet.com> wrote:
>> I realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend
>> three times a week but my worklife and social obligations are really
>> beginning to conflict with my weight training.
>
>
> I just dont get this when people use this excuse. And it is an excuse.
> Its all about priorities and making daily exercise a part of it. Think
> about it, in one week you have 168 hours available, then say you sleep
> away 8 hrs a night leaving you with 112hrs, then you work 40 hrs for
> the week leaving you 72 hours. Thats about 10 hours a DAY you have to
> do personal stuff and you cant fit in working out more than three
> times a week? Time to scrutinize your lifestyle I'd say and decide
> whats important to you.
>

He is a BUSY man - plus he has social obligations! (probably playing around
on his wife is my guess)

>
> joanne
>

"Baron" <pfisNGh@voNGicenet.com> wrote in message
news:36e73$45e101dc$cf672faa$6616@allthenewsgroups .com...
> Hello,
>
> Do you have any suggestions on how to make my current routine more
> time
> efficient?
>
> I am looking to make my current weight training routine more time
> efficient. The routine I am following takes me an hour including
> changing
> clothes, warm-up, stretching, moving equipment into place, exercising,
> and a
> final stretch. It also includes the time I spend changing plates. I
> realize that one hour may not seem like a lot of time to spend three
> times a
> week but my worklife and social obligations are really beginning to
> conflict with my weight training.
>
> I workout at home. I use dumbbells as opposed to a barbell for
> safety
> reasons except for curls. I am only doing one set of 8-12 repetitions
> except for the crunches where I am currently at 43 repetitions. I
> found
> that multiple sets, while useful, were only causing me to spend even
> more time. I rest a nominal one minute between sets but I find that
> plate
> changing causes this to take a little longer.
>
> Here is my current routine:
>
> Squat (really a side or suitcase squat)
> Lunge
> Bench Press
> Chest Fly
> One-Arm Bent Over Row (alternating every four weeks with Pull-ups)
> Seated Press
> Lateral Raise
> Barbell Curl
> Standing Overhead Tricep Extension (alternating every four weeks with
> Single
> Chair Dips)
> Crunches
>
> I wonder if any of these exercises are redundant in that they work
> virtually the same muscle groups that I may as well alternate between
> the
> exercises for a change of pace like I am doing with Rows and Pull-ups.
>
> Thanks.

What are you hoping to accomplish with your current routine? Without
knowing that, it's impossible to suggest other things you might do.

-S-
http://www.kbnj.com

>
> What are you hoping to accomplish with your current routine? Without
> knowing that, it's impossible to suggest other things you might do.
>
> -S-
> http://www.kbnj.com
>
>

Simple fitness. I started lifting only recently when I damaged my
foreleg running. I could no longer run and I wanted to do something that
was load bearing instead of the body weight exercises I had been doing. I
found that weight training made a marked improvement for me over body weight
exercises and I am only using relatively light weight. I am on the thin
side so perhaps body weight exercises are not the challenge I need. I even
found that I gained a few pounds after a month or so of lifting. I had not
given serious thought to a split routine and lifting more frequently than
three days a week until Andrzej suggested it. That sounds like the best way
for me to go.

TIA.

"Baron" <pfisNGh@voNGicenet.com> wrote in message
news:f0513$45eb3c13$cf673045$30463@allthenewsgroup s.com...
> >
>> What are you hoping to accomplish with your current routine? Without
>> knowing that, it's impossible to suggest other things you might do.
>>
>> -S-
>> http://www.kbnj.com
>>
>>
>
> Simple fitness. I started lifting only recently when I damaged my
> foreleg running. I could no longer run and I wanted to do something
> that
> was load bearing instead of the body weight exercises I had been
> doing. I
> found that weight training made a marked improvement for me over body
> weight
> exercises and I am only using relatively light weight. I am on the
> thin
> side so perhaps body weight exercises are not the challenge I need. I
> even
> found that I gained a few pounds after a month or so of lifting. I had
> not
> given serious thought to a split routine and lifting more frequently
> than
> three days a week until Andrzej suggested it. That sounds like the
> best way
> for me to go.
>
> TIA.

There are many ways to work towards what you want. I would read a lot
on the Internet and elsewhere about weight training to see what you
think makes the most sense for you. I train purely for strength and
strength/endurance, others train to gain both size and strength, yet
others train primarily to increase muscle size.

Your best bet would be to purchase an Olympic barbell set and begin
deadlifting. Add a power rack to that and you can also squat. You will
always do best with access to heavy iron. Personally, I have no taste
for split routines or other things that treat the body as a collection
of parts - pick big, compound exercises like the squat, eat hearty, and
you will become both bigger and stronger. Don't eat as much if you
don't want to get much bigger.

Don't forget that bodyweight exercises can be tweaked by changing the
leverage to be quite challenging - just look at the gymnasts. A
one-legged squat and a one-armed pushup are worthy goals. A pullup is a
tremendous exercise for your upper body and weight can easily be added
to make it more challenging.

In short, you've got many choices.

Hope that's of some help to you, and best of luck.

-S-
http://www.kbnj.com