Hey, guys. I just want to say how impressed with this forum i am, the way everyone is so positive and friendly is fantastic. I'm so glad i stumbled across traineo.

Well, I've been going to the gym on and off for two years now. I havent had much time (or discipline!) to set down time for weight training so far, but i'm determined to do it now. I have a month's worth of holidays ahead of me, and in between studying i am going to hit the gym on a regular basis.

I'm not too sure what i should and shouldnt be doing. I'm 17, so i (hopefully!) still have a little bit of growth left in me. I'm relatively small-sized - 160 cm and around 53 kgs. What i want to do is bulk up my small shoulders and arms and back, not only to look better but also in preparation for my two years of army that'll start next year. I have been told by some not to do any weight lifting that'll involve lifting the weight above my head, so I've been doing concentrated bicep curls, tricep extensions and rear lateral raises. When i'm in school i do about 8 pull-ups every day. Excuse my terminology, i'm not too sure what each excercise is called!

What i have been doing for the past month or so is going to the gym about thrice a week. My routine consists of

____________________________________
1 km run
8 reps 8kg seated bicep curls
8 reps 5kg seated tricep extensions
8 reps 5kg seated rear lateral raises

0.8 km run
10 reps 7kg seated bicep curls
10 reps 5kg seated tricep extensions
10 reps 5kg seated rear lateral raises

0.8 km run
12 reps 6kg seated bicep curls
12 reps 4kg seated tricep extensions
12 reps 4kg seated rear lateral raises

.8 km run
_____________________________________

The areas i want to focus on building up are my shoulders and by arms. I have shoulders that slope down quite a lot and they only add to the smallness of my small frame. I have no problem with body fat as far as i can see, but i dont know if i need to do anything about that to progress.

I've also read in the beginner weight training post that i should hit the gym 4 times a week, doing
- Chest/Triceps/Abs
- Back/Biceps
- Shoulders/Traps
- Legs/Calves
each time i go, giving a week's worth of rest in between each muscle group.

The thing is what i really want to focus on is my back shoulders and arms, to build up my physique. I'd also like to go back to school in July more buffed up than when i left, and i dont know if working this muscle group only once a week will yield as strong results as working it thrice a week as i'm currently doing now will.

Can anyone give me advice on my routine, and what i should incorporate into it to yield the most effective results? And if you could post a link showing how to do the excercise i'd really appreciate it. Thanks a lot, guys!

Specific spot training is rarely successful. I think to achieve the maximum benefit, you should look into a program like www.stronglifts.com 5x5 program. They have videos and instructions on all the exercises

Generally, you should do your cardio AFTER you weight train.

Good Luck

I dont know about benchpressing and squats, i dont want to put any excessive strain on my back because i want to squeeze out whatever few centimeters i might have left within me! And one thing i forgot to mention is that my left leg is shorter than my right by a few centimeters and this causes imbalance in my back, which means i get very stiff very easy.

What's the reasoning behind doing cardio after doing weights? And do you think maybe focusing on pull-ups instead of weight training for my biceps and shoulders will work better?

Cheers guys

multiply everything times three.

Neither of these exercises cause spinal compression, so you shouldn't have to worry about losing any height .




Doing weights first lets you get the most out of your weight lifting session, without being tired out from cardio. Also, you can do cardio when tired and not worry about dropping weights on yourself .



No, don't replace for pull-ups. Pull-ups make a good addition to any program though.

Like Bionic Samm, I recommend you try out the Stronglifts program. Almost every one of the Stronglifts exercises involves back and shoulders. I don't recommend only doing exercises that *only* target specific areas, as this can lead to muscle imbalances, which in turn can lead to injuries.

If you decide not to follow the stronglifts program, do as Bean says and multiply everything by three. Do three sets of each exercises. Increase the weight whenever you can and do 8-12 reps for each set. If you can do more than 12 reps easily enough then increase the weight. If you're unable to do 8, decrease the weight.

Also, get a wider variety of exercises.



You should be targeting all those areas. Cram it into 3 days if you want. Stronglifts does this. The stronglifts exercises are well-chosen to target as much muscle groups as possible.

Yep, 5x5 or Rippetoe's Starting Strength are the way to go. Compound movements FTW.

I am bulking now myself, and remember, you have to eat! Make sure you get enough calories, Here is a link to a good article about protein with a calculator for determining how much protein you might want to get every day as well URL , a men's multi-vitamin is a good thing too.

I recommend HIIT if you want to do cardio, so you don't burn up all those calories you need to eat.

Good luck!

5x5 is one of the better programs. The reason being it works.

Eat right and take in the right amount of protein and you should start seeing some good gains in a few weeks to a month.

I put on 19lbs of muscle in 6 months while loosing fat so it is possible!

Just work hard @ it