Can YOU spot what's wrong with this workout???

Published: Sat, 06/29/13

A member of the SWOLEdier Nation 
just sent me his workout and asked if
I would critique it...
 
He told me his goals were to increase his 
maximal strength and lean muscle mass 
while getting ripped up for summer.
 
Here was one of his Upper Body days:
 
=============================
*Warm Up Jog (5 Minutes)
 
1) Bench Press (3 warm up sets) 
    [1 Rep Max]
 
2) Chest Press Machine [3 sets : 8 reps]
s/s
     Cable Crosover [3 sets : 10-12 reps]
 
3) Pull Downs [2 sets : 15 reps]
s/s
    Dumbbell Curls [2 sets : 15 reps]
 
4) 3 Mile Run
==============================
 
Ok here we go...
 
First things first it's good you established 
a concrete goal with a reasonable timeline
to achieve it. That's where EVERYTHING
starts....
 
Now to the workout.
 
I like that you warmed up before your 
1 Rep Max, I just wished you would've
done a dynamic warm up and some
bench specific plyos instead of a jog...
 
After your main lift (bench in this case),
you did a pretty good job of addressing
weak points. But I'd switch a few things...
 
You're trying to burn fat while building 
muscle, so you doing supersets is good...
 
But replace the single joint movements
like crossovers with either multi-joint 
dumbbell or bodyweight exercises...
 
As for the curls...not really a weak point
for the bench, but chick dig biceps, so keep
them but ditch pull downs for pull ups...
 
And as for the 3 Mile Run.
 
Scrap it unless you want to burn muscle 
and lose strength!
 
Instead, do a metabolism stoking Finisher
so you can maintain size and strength 
while burning fat faster than cardio...
 
I see these mistakes all too often.
 
They are SO EASY to fix and when you
do like these guys did, you are going to 
flip out about how fast you turn things 
around!
 
===> "If they can...YOU CAN!!!"
 
DBAP,
 
MANdler
C.S.C.S. / CPT
 
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