Muscular planning - My core workout routine

I think there are a lot of tweaks to be done when trying to shape your body. There are definitely enough prophets out there to fill half of Sweden with people who all claim to know "the secrets to gaining killer abs" or whatever the catch phrase might be. I'm not going to dispute any of these self-proclaimed muscle gurus, because quite frankly I don't usually read them thoroughly enough to give my opinion. I am, however, going to talk about how I personally train right now and what I believe in, and then I'll leave it up to you to call bullshit or not.

Let's start with the facts. Currently, I'm doing a 5-split and it looks like this (1 day of rest is added after 2-3 workout days):



My plan is simple: Work harder with the parts I need to grow bigger and/or tend to usually neglect. What I did is that I put the muscles that needed to be in focus first each day in order to have them prioritized and not just ending up with a few sets just because I felt I had to.

Another reasoning for the order they're in would also be that some muscle groups are more tearing for your body to train than others. For example, I used to train hamstrings straight after quads for a long period of time. The result of that would be that I would be completely smashed after quads were done, leaving very little strength left for hamstrings. I've found that by putting a less straining - as well as a less involved - muscle after quads, such as abs, I can get the most out of each muscle group rather than just prioritizing heavily on one.

Finally, in order to let the muscles get as much rest as possible in-between each workout, I've put supporting muscle groups as far away from the primary one as I possibly could. For example: I've put triceps as far away from pecs as possible as they're usually involved in a lot of pressing exercises.


I'm a firm believe in having a plan, and each and every workout I do involves one. It can definitely change during the workout but there's always a core I stick to. Usually my core idea is this:

• STEP1: Start with a multi-joint exercise, keep the repetitions low and build my way up to a heavy set - I do this because it's a good way to "start the system". It prepares the body for some heavy lifting and gets the joints warm, and at the same time, conserves power that'll be more effectively used further into the workout.
  - For example: If I train chest I would start with a multi-joint exercise such as bench pressing and build my way up - like this:
  Set1: 5*20kg (44 lbs)
  Set2: 5*20kg (44 lbs)
  Set3: 5*60kg (132lbs)
  Set4: 5*70kg (154lbs)
  Set5: 5*80 (176lbs)
  5 repetitions is usually what I set as max, and it should be arranged so that 5 is exactly what I would manage.
  
  
• STEP2: Progress to a slightly higher number of reps - I do this because I've found that the real heavy sets have a tendency to let me involve the wrong muscles within the exercise. A typical exercise here (if I'm still doing chest) would be a dumbbell chest press. Also, here I like to find my way up. I usually start lower than I can manage and I'm not going to failure. Basically, I do this because I like to find where I'm at shape-wise during this particular workout. I'd rather stop at 8 reps on my first set and make a perfect 8 in the last set than stop at 5 because I took on more weight than I could handle right at the beginning.
  - For example: It might look a little something like this:
  Set1: 8*20kg (44 lbs)
  Set2: 8*24kg (53lbs)
  Set3: 8*26kg (57lbs)
  Set4: 8*28kg (62lbs) this being my max for that exercise.
  
  
  
• STEP3: Increase the number of reps, isolating the muscle and focus on feeling it work - The last 4 sets I'd usually go for a more isolating exercise. If chest would be the target, I'd go for something like standing chest flys and keep the reps up to around 12. Reason for this is that I want to squeeze every little bit of power out of my muscle. Lower weight lets me focus more on the muscle and getting the right movement.
  - For example:
  Set1: 12*10kg (22lbs)
  Set2: 12*10kg (22lbs)
  Set3: 12*12kg (26lbs)
  Set4: 12*15kg (33lbs)
  Quite often the last one might end up a drop-set where I'd do 12*15kg (33lbs) and then instantly dropping down to 8*8kg(17lbs) or something like that. All to squeeze that last ounce of power out of the muscle.

I tend to keep fairly high intensity throughout my workout. As soon as I'm good to go I start hitting those muscles again. I'm not to keen on timing the intervals; I much more prefer just getting a feel for it and go when ready.

This was a brief summary on my core routine when working out. My advice to you would be to find your own core workout, or core belief if you will. When you've found it, stick with it and let it evolve from there. The core may change drastically throughout the years, but it'll always be there for each and every workout, and it enables you to have a plan once you hit the gym.