sort of new need help with a routine/system
 

ok so the details iam nineteen years old 6'2" 215lbs right now. i have been working out for a couple years now but i would say only this last year has been serious with holding a routine and making gains.
i have been doing my own system made up of what i have read and THINK I KNOW for the most part it has been a basic 5 day split working each body part only once a week and running each work out for each muscle group in a low rep/high weight to start then ending with a high rep/ more volume way so say on chest day starting with bench would be 3 sets of 3 reps then the excersises toward the end of my work out would be more like 3 sets or 10 reps with most sets going to failure. i realize every one has there own views so iam expecting people to be like :wtf: but based of what i thought i knew it seemed like a good plan. so now as to why i am here i have been reading about all the different systems for power lifting you guys write about it's alot to take in and i would like to know what system would be best for me, my experience, and my goals which goals would be obviosly strenght,deffinatly size and appeal size being the biggest. i know with strength comes size and i can always cut down later to increase the appeal. thanks for the help in advance.

6' 2" and 215 lbs.; do you know a bf%?

First off, 5 day splits are kind of a hard rut to get out of. With your experience there's no reason why you can't train a particular muscle more than once a week. Split routines are also detrimental because they make it hard to fit in the major compound lifts.

We'd really be able to give you better advice if you posted a real and full routine - not just "chest on monday 3x3" but like this:

MONDAY - Bench Press 3x5; JS Rows 3x5; etc.

Also: what you're talking about here is like a high-intensity regimen that turns INTO a high-volume routine. If you say most sets on the high-volume section are going to failure, you're probably doing too much volume. You don't want to trash the muscle to the point where you're not recovering in time for your next workout. You also probably have a lot more waste products than the average because of that (lactic acid etc.).

I would recommend dropping the volume, as high-intensity (low-rep work) is proven to be better at producing size gains, and moving into a full-body, 3-day-a-week routine if size is your aim. Something like Rippetoe's Starting Strength could be really beneficial here.

Just a few thoughts, hope it helps. Good luck.

-Cradler

I noticed you put this in the powerlifting forum and that you mentioned people's views on powerlifting. Is that what you are interested in or are you just wanting to be strong and big? There is a difference in that powerlifting is SOLELY concerned with how much you can squat (parallel), deadlift, and bench. People can argue with me on this but if they think powerlifter's really care about being strong versus benching a lot, for example, then they are being naive.

That is not to say that bringing up the "big three" won't be part of gaining mass and strength only that powerlifting isn't as much a way of training as it is a competition or at least a specific goal concerning those big three. Powerlifing is a sport and it is more concerned with relative strength (unless you are in the heaviest weight range). So I am detecting different goals here. Which is it you are interested in?

i dont know an accurate bf% i dont think iam fat but i dont have defined abs either so i would guesse mid-upper teens. now to say that power lifting is not so much a way of training i think is false powerlifting is a for lack of a better word a style that is based around the idea of lifting the heaviest wieghts you can, now this style revolves around a certain type of training, a certain type of diet and a certain type of competition( the big three) it's the same as bodybuilding is a style that has a certain type of training and diet and competition( on stage) but i get what your saying asking if my goal is being the best i can the at the big three. i would say first of my primary goal is the way my body looks hands down now to me a male with the size of a powerlifter for the most part then a little bit of definition like a body builder is bad a** and my goal. now the strength would be next because lets face when are guys ever not competing so iam always trying to be the strongest so with those goals i think powerlifting is more my style and hell i just think its cool to watch these guys bench a 1000lbs:weights:
oh ya here is a basic sample of my work out
MON: flat bench 1x3, 1x5, 1x5
incline dumbell press 3x6
flat dumbell press 3x10
dumbell flyes 3x12
skull crushers 3x8
then misc cable stuff for triceps
then the same style for tues which is shoulders and biceps
and so on, pretty much every set to failure. over the past year throwing some little twists in but nothing major. and there are so many power lifting routines its alot to sort through and determine what to try at my age,experience,and goals

oh crap just realized who i kind of diagreed with eric3237:hail: my apologies just a thought

70 views and no ones got anything. iam not asking for a routine written up for me just info like if you taken back to when you started training but you have the knowledge you have now how would you do it defferntly?

go read starting strength by rippetoe...and then....do it :)

you could also look at the write up on the texas method thread. it has some great information and a several program variations so you can put together a program that works best for you.

Personally for mass/strength gains I rely on a 5x5 (starr or ripptoe will work fine). Plan your progression accordingly, and there will be no stopping you.

link for texas method?