# Training "Full body" every 4 days overtraining?



## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

Currently do a 4 day split. Got a bit stale to be honest.

Would this routine every 4 days hinder muscle/strength gains? Or would there be enough time in between to repair and build muscle?

*Workout A *

Wide Chins 5x5

Flat Bench 5x5

Military Press 5x5

Deads 3x8

*Workout B *

Underhand Pull up 5x5

Incline Bench 5x5

Dumbbell Shoulder Press 5x5

Squats 3x8

Would be alternating every 4 days.


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## rodrigo (Jun 29, 2009)

i done a full body 3 times a week and got good strength gains tho give it up after bout 6 weeks it was tuff goin ,good tho. that seems plenty of a break mate :thumb:


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## dixie normus (May 11, 2008)

No you certainly wont overtrain. Muscular recovery should be completed within 48 hours, and your CNS probably the same perhaps slightly longer.


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

joshnow said:


> not overtraining if ure diet is providing the right amount of fat/carbs/protein, sleep is right, training intensity is 100% you use a spotter on some to push much harder with a safety net.
> 
> *for a bodybuilder physique you aint gunna develop a proportionally developed body. *
> 
> ...


Don't get what you mean there, dude. You mean with this workout?


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

dixie normus said:


> No you certainly wont overtrain. Muscular recovery should be completed within 48 hours, and your CNS probably the same perhaps slightly longer.


But after recovery of the damage, don't you need more time to build muscle on top?


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## dixie normus (May 11, 2008)

Falcone said:


> But after recovery of the damage, don't you need more time to build muscle on top?


Resistance exercise increases protein synthesis for approx 48 hours. After that it returns to its normal level. Therefore any new tissue created to repair the damage caused by the workout will happen during this period.


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## big_jim_87 (Jul 9, 2009)

i would just take it down to a 3 day push pull legs work out?

maybe just take a week off and do your current work-out back to front?

full body work outs are for new trainers imo


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

big_jim_87 said:


> i would just take it down to a 3 day push pull legs work out?
> 
> maybe just take a week off and do your current work-out back to front?
> 
> full body work outs are for new trainers imo


I've been training under a year, but I just started getting everything together in the last couple of months. Also I feel it keeps my going hard when I only do one exercise per muscle group (tried it once or twice).


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

So this routine is okay then?...


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## Darylbethyname (Dec 2, 2008)

i do a similar workout. its 2 days a week

bench

military press

squat

standing calve raise

deadlift

row

pull up

curl

do a bit of cardio. make good strength gains and it doesn't get in the way of other stuff like school work.


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## iMORE_TEST (May 23, 2009)

im planning to drop to every 3 days training all bodyparts anyone know if thts ok?


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## iMORE_TEST (May 23, 2009)

im gna steal this workout for every 3 days  any1 wna add a workout c for me  , im thinking legg press decline barbell or dumbell but dont know whatelse


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## SK-XO (Aug 6, 2009)

Imo it looks good. Theres nothing wrong with change. For all we know you may gain good out of this, or you may not gain as well. Solid compound exercises, and quite decent recovery time. Imo it will be hard going doing that many compounds in a session, but whatever works for you. Good luck.


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## ParaManiac (Mar 20, 2007)

Falcone said:


> So this routine is okay then?...


I'm currently doing the same day on day off with 2 days off after the 3rd workout,seems to be going well 3 weeks in,bear in mind,my diet is nailed


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## Wee G1436114539 (Oct 6, 2007)

Looks about right to me mate


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

joshnow said:


> i mean if you want to achieve a big bodybuilder physique you wont be able to hit each muscle group hard enough using all the exercises you should e.g. chest needs a press/ a shaper-flyes/db pullover/ inner outer chest cable crossover. that's just chest. im saying if you wont develop other body parts to the same level.
> 
> if you want a very lean shape not bodybuilder size muscle bellies then a every 4 days workout is sufficient.


I'm basically just looking to gain mass mate. I don't ever plan to compete.

Just remember reading on here lots of times, that to gain real mass during your first year or two of training you are better sticking to compounds and lift hard, and you'll see good growth rather than messing about with hitting your muscles from lots of different angles/ isolating arms and so on.


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

joshnow said:


> i mean if you want to achieve a big bodybuilder physique you wont be able to hit each muscle group hard enough using all the exercises you should e.g. chest needs a press/ a shaper-flyes/db pullover/ inner outer chest cable crossover. that's just chest. im saying if you wont develop other body parts to the same level.
> 
> if you want a very lean shape not bodybuilder size muscle bellies then a every 4 days workout is sufficient.


you cant shape muscles. Their size and shape are gentically predetermined, and not subject to change,and yes one set of any movement is sufficent to create an adaptive response, if its worked hard enough.


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

Falcone said:


> I'm basically just looking to gain mass mate. I don't ever plan to compete.
> 
> Just remember reading on here lots of times, that to gain real mass during your first year or two of training you are better sticking to compounds and lift hard, and you'll see good growth rather than messing about with hitting your muscles from lots of different angles/ isolating arms and so on.


your right. get as strong as you can on squats, deads, chins dips.few sets of each to failure.Try every 4/5 days, if your not progressing insert more rest days.


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

Falcone said:


> Currently do a 4 day split. Got a bit stale to be honest.
> 
> Would this routine every 4 days hinder muscle/strength gains? Or would there be enough time in between to repair and build muscle?
> 
> ...


Absolutely fine. If you dropped the number of working sets on the upper body exercises by one or two and upped the reps slightly then you could easily manage three days a week with this.

My only criticism of the routine is 15 sets per workout for upper body per session, and only 3 sets for lower, - when lower body is at least a third of your musculature. I'd also do squats and deads first in the routine not last.


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## big (Sep 14, 2004)

That sort of training is nice. Glibly telling you that you will recover fine is pointless though - you need to try it for yourself and see. Everybody is different.

Focus it around the squat first, make the minor tweak of swapping out the workout b pullups for rows, and I would reduce volume a little to begin with:

Workout A

Wide Chins 3x5

Flat Bench 3x5

Military Press 3x5

Deads 3x5

Workout B

Squats 3x5

Incline Bench 3x5

Dumbbell Shoulder Press 3x5

Barbell Rows 3x5

That is looking pretty sweet. But eat sh1t-loads


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## Uriel (Oct 14, 2008)

It aint a bad work out for a beginner but I'm fairly certain to what level it will take a physique give or take.

Just remember BB'ers move to bodypart split training over 3 to 5 days for a good reason.

Try it for 6 months to a year tweaking the training and rest days to find your own profile but IMO don't stick with it too much longer if you desire continuing growth after that.

Will build a good strong core though


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## Uriel (Oct 14, 2008)

It's not to do with shaping anything directly really but the shape of a muscle will be affected by not being fully developed to it's potential.

I'll explain - you use a range of exercises on each part to ensure you fatigue all parts of the muscle, that may not be possible with one movement.

If you, say, only bench press - you'll hit (at a guess) 80% ish of the tissue sufficiently and enough to stimulate growth due to the potential mechanics of the movement....using and fatiging the other unrecruited fibres may require another movement or 2.

The big 3 compunds are core but IMO they won't ever produce a fully developed balanced body on their own


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

joshnow said:


> e.g if you hit your lower biceps hard in a lower half partial bicep curl you will only hit the bottom of the bicep, the upper part of the bicep will not develop and it size will remain small.
> 
> with the chest neglecting sides of chest and lower pec the pectoral as a whole will not have a good overall shape meaning asthetically uneven......


there is no "lower", "upper" or "middle" of a muscle.It contracts from its origin to its insertion.You cannot train the "side?" of a muscle.It will develop in accordance with genetic traits.Your training regime will have zero influence on this.With respect, your reply implies typical body building magazine "science" Please understand these publications dont exist to publish accurate information, but to sell products.


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## essexboy (Sep 7, 2008)

Uriel said:


> It's not to do with shaping anything directly really but the shape of a muscle will be affected by not being fully developed to it's potential.
> 
> I'll explain - you use a range of exercises on each part to ensure you fatigue all parts of the muscle, that may not be possible with one movement.
> 
> ...


Uriel mate.By employing a variety of movements over a period of time, it may be possible to highlight certain movements which offer advantages to individuals.Assume that your chest w/o consists of bench press( a really poor movement for most)decline press (much better) and dips.Over the course of six months, if you havent added significant weight to the bar,yet you have progressed greatly with dips,it may suggest that due to bio mechanical & leverage factors, that it might be prudent to focus on dips and not bench presses.Many however will blindy continue to use movements that are not suitable to their physical makeup, in the belief that "one day" it will be effective.If you study the way fibres are recruited, you will see that taking an exercise to failure, will recruit, all the available fibres, and yes, you only need one movement to do this.


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## Uriel (Oct 14, 2008)

essexboy said:


> Uriel mate.By employing a variety of movements over a period of time, it may be possible to highlight certain movements which offer advantages to individuals.Assume that your chest w/o consists of bench press( a really poor movement for most)decline press (much better) and dips.Over the course of six months, if you havent added significant weight to the bar,yet you have progressed greatly with dips,it may suggest that due to bio mechanical & leverage factors, that it might be prudent to focus on dips and not bench presses.Many however will blindy continue to use movements that are not suitable to their physical makeup, in the belief that "one day" it will be effective.If you study the way fibres are recruited, you will see that taking an exercise to failure, will recruit, all the available fibres, and yes, you only need one movement to do this.


Lets say I accept that. There is also the fact that different movements incorporate OTHER muscles other than the target group - you mention dips, this also uses lats, tri's fwd and rear delts a little bi etc.....

This, I believe is all a factor in linking muscle fatigue leading to strength/size in a realistic way. it is my belief that your 1 majic movement for a targeted muscle group would remove all these other interactions that lead to all over developement.

Can you tell me of one or 2 athletes with a measure of success that only use 1 movement per bodypart mate?

Take weaknesses in the chain into account too from a recent thread - I can leg press 24 plates plus sled now I cant squat worth **** due to a lower back weakness but even before that I couldn't squar 24 plates....were my quads being worked to their full potential by "The Daddy" movement?

Squatting IS an amazing all over building movement BUT it's weakness for quad developement, IMO, is it's strength for all over....You are using 200 muscles in that movement. How can it be fully exhausting your quad when it will be exhausting weaker links in the chain first and everyone I know can leg press after it


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## Uriel (Oct 14, 2008)

joshnow said:


> this isnt textbook or fitness bolloghney.


I agree, I'm not having a dig at anyone but there are some people on here that seem to read more about training than partaking


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

I agree that different movements work different fibres within a muscle - muscle fibres are recruited in groups, and different groups are 'selected' by the CNS when exercising according to a) load and B) biomechanics of the movement.

There are two ways to cover everything - a) high volume session with several exercises per bodypart/area, B) single movement per session but more frequent sessions and alternating exercises between sessions. Performing three different full body routines mon/wed/fri for low set volume is a great way to train.


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

I will go back to splitting at some point but I feel (my own fault) I haven't made as much progress as I could have since the start of the year when I began training. So hopefully I can add some real size and good core with this routine for 6months to a year then move onto a push pull legs. In this one I can even replace one session's benching with dips/flies every few weeks.


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## big_jim_87 (Jul 9, 2009)

i feel that an eod split is a good idea for you? if this is too much then an eod split with week end off? training every thing e4days is a bit pointless imo as you are hiting every thing 2xwk? why would you want to do this with any muscle group never minde all of the fukers! lol eod will make it that each muscle is hit e8d that is plenty of time imo to recover 2xwk in the gym? if you hate the gym that much go play chess? lol


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

big_jim_87 said:


> i feel that an eod split is a good idea for you? if this is too much then an eod split with week end off? training every thing e4days is a bit pointless imo as you are hiting every thing 2xwk? why would you want to do this with any muscle group never minde all of the fukers! lol eod will make it that each muscle is hit e8d that is plenty of time imo to recover 2xwk in the gym? if you hate the gym that much go play chess? lol


I dont hate the gym mate, just wanted to give a full body work a try. I would do it every 3 days or 3 times a week if people think that would give me sufficient rest.

Whats an EOD split anyway?


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

Made some strength gains today. I think im going to move it to every 3 days now instead of 4 and keep that for the next 6 months.


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## big_jim_87 (Jul 9, 2009)

an every other day my split is legs, day off, chest, day off, back, day off, delts, day off i throw in bi's and tri's at end of an upper body day when ever i feel like it so may do bi's on end of back or chest or even delts. just me tho buddy. this way you hit every muscle e8d. if you did an eod split with wk end off it would be every 10days or so, if you train every thing hard enough to grow 3xwk or 2xwk that is too much imo you will be better off hitting every thing 1xwk hard and spreading it out?


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

big_jim_87 said:


> an every other day my split is legs, day off, chest, day off, back, day off, delts, day off i throw in bi's and tri's at end of an upper body day when ever i feel like it so may do bi's on end of back or chest or even delts. just me tho buddy. this way you hit every muscle e8d. if you did an eod split with wk end off it would be every 10days or so, if you train every thing hard enough to grow 3xwk or 2xwk that is too much imo you will be better off hitting every thing 1xwk hard and spreading it out?


I see what your saying dude, but at the same time I really just want to get a good overall core rather than isolating....Ive been reading about and seen lots of similar full body workouts recommended twice a week (ABA BAB style) for beginners rather than splitting body parts. So was hoping every 3 sessions over 9 days rather than 3 in 7 would be just as good.

I still consider myself a beginner because I have been ar5eing about a bit and therefore not seen the gains I should have in 10 months.


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## big (Sep 14, 2004)

Falcone said:


> I see what your saying dude, but at the same time I really just want to get a good overall core rather than isolating....Ive been reading about and seen lots of similar full body workouts recommended twice a week (ABA BAB style) for beginners rather than splitting body parts. So was hoping every 3 sessions over 9 days rather than 3 in 7 would be just as good.


All you can do is give it a try and see mate. The great thing about trying a program is if it doesn't work well for you, you can change to something else. You don't have to marry your program


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## Falcone (Sep 14, 2008)

big said:


> All you can do is give it a try and see mate. The great thing about trying a program is if it doesn't work well for you, you can change to something else. You don't have to marry your program


Cheers dude. Im pretty optimistic about this one though. I'll give it at least a few months in its current form, then mix up a bit more, dips etc.


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## Bonzer (Nov 26, 2010)

I do a 3 day full body routine(compounds only) and its adding serious mass.. I was doing a 4 day upper lower split (again only compound movements) but it was physically draining me and I was tired and grumpy alot but not so with this routine.. Split added barely anything as i just wasn't giving each bodypart enough stimulus training it once a week. your not going to get the bodybuilder look from this routine no, but you are going to get good mass and strength after which you can do a split and start isolating.

Mate good look with the routine and stick with it!!


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