A workout missed here and there will not affect your progress too much as long as it doesn’t happen to often. In fact it can, in many cases help your recovery by allowing the joints, ligaments and of course the muscles to repair themselves. This happens all too often when we try to pack too much into a workout, in the hope that we are not missing muscle groups that we feel may need the work.

Basically we are hoping that a balanced physique can be achieved. What invariably happens is that many will indeed skip the exercise that they hate doing in favor of the ones that they prefer. The classic example is; squats out and barbell curls or bench press in! This is indeed a bad move, a mistake that we all can be guilty of some time. But once done it most definitely will happen again, and form the basis of many an unbalanced session.It would be far better missing the WHOLE workout for the sake of balance, a form of penalization if you like.

The fact that you have missed is your fault and you should move on to what would be the next days workout. It is impossible for you to make up for a lost session, again packing too much into that next days work out will only lead to over training. Ever wondered why you have so many lost training days under your belt? Most people give out the excuse that they haven’t the time, could not fit it in.

But surely you knew what you were getting into in the first place. Hundreds of people write to me wondering why their
particular training schedules are not working, and when it has been analyzed, it is for the simple fact that they could not be bothered! Finding the time and planning out the training is the whole key to the success of any schedule. We will look at this in more detail a little further on.

Picture this situation, and ask yourself if you have ever been in the same predicament, be honest with yourself: The day is Saturday, after much thought and discussion with your better half you have decided to embark on yet another venture into the world of the elite, you are going to follow the way of the champions, and there will be no one who will stand in your way. After searching through hundreds of books and magazines that house the workouts of your dreams, you come across the one that will do the job.

The ‘baby’ that just maybe make you so wide, so wedge shaped that if you fell over you would glide 50 yards. You then decide to add a little more to the routine in the hope that nothing will be missed. Sod the hard work and sod the expense, this is indeed the ‘dog’s bollocks’. But you still have not figured out the time it will take, and the load that it may put on you.

Saturday afternoon, grabbing the missus you head for the herbalist. Buy every ounce of protein, every ‘tinned’ carbohydrate that is not nailed down. Months and months of vitamin supplies adorn the fridge top, you have got it made. Isn’t it amazing how helpful and complimentary these friendly herbalist/chemist types can be when they see the cheque book flashed under their noses. TWATS! They somehow find uses for vitamins that have not yet been invented, I love winding these guys up. My favorite one is, “Can I have some of that new type of plain cake, the one with the currents in please.” That really confuses them. You have to larf agree?

Monday arrives, off to work, then back home after telling everyone in the whole place to get ready for the new YOU! Then to your first workout, after 3½ hours you start to get tired, but have completed the first one. Starting to think now, eh?

The next session is planned for the day after next. After another hard days graft, home you come. Wife not in a good mood, but you still climb up the stairs, or pop off to the gym. This time it takes a little longer to do, and in fact a little more has been taken off the session, in the hope that it can be made up on Friday.

When Friday arrives it has become even harder to think about the fact that you have to train, and then you remember the fact that if a 3½ hour training session is to take place, how can you fit in the night out with the lads. So all these things have to be taken into consideration, but the end result will always be good workouts gone bad through the lack of planning due to the time factor.

This is in no way a dig at the three day training system, as my regular readers will know I am a firm believer in it that’s for sure. The point of the matter is that all types of training scheduling can suffer as can attitudes.

They must at all times be designed to suit our present way of life, because if it is done the other way around, then it is doomed to failure in most cases. There are very few which can actually work. If work suffers, then the home will also suffer, and if that happens then all I can say is you are a hard bastard. The main driving force behind all my success, is that of my family. They are the backbone to all that I do.

They push me on when I feel like lying down. They give me the honest criticism that is much needed. If we drive ourselves to such a point as they suffer, or for that matter anyone who is closely associated with you, then we can expect nothing but failure. We actually deserve to fail if that is our aim. There are many who will disagree with my next statement but I firmly believe that it is so.

Arnold said that anything and everything must be put aside in order to achieve victory, what a load of bullSHIT! If I thought that my family were to be passed off with second place then I do not deserve first. If so, fuck bodybuilding!

If anyone who has competed out there and has truly considered what they go through in order to look your best, then you know exactly what I am saying. It is and can be an all round effort to be enjoyed by all. Sorry Arnold that is my opinion and I am staying with it, solidly. (Anyway, your guys wouldn’t let us cover your bodybuilding show so bollocks!). If I thought that I was going to let myself and everyone else down, then that in itself is enough to spur me on. The whole point of the article is to make you think, and any money it will.

Missing workouts will not get you to the top, but neither will moaning and groaning about workouts that are not good enough. Every session will produce results if given the chance. We have not long on this earth so get to it now. How many of you have been to the pub on a Saturday night, looked over the other side of the bar and seen some guy or girl, who obviously is in training, and thought that he/she looks well eh? Come on admit it! And how many have pulled that person to pieces when their backs are turned, loads of you I can tell you.

The usual remark is that the guy/girl is either very lucky or they are on massive amounts of gear. They may not be neither, they may just have the right combination, the right formula. They may have taken into account everything that should be, did YOU before the workouts stopped? If you totally disagree with me okay, but which bracket do you put yourself in?

Not all the successful bodybuilders are so lucky that they do not need to work, no way hose’, (did I spell that right ). Many that I know drive lorries, work the pits, cut down trees, all manner of jobs for all types of people. There are more that have not got jobs, and that in my opinion is even harder for the points mentioned earlier with regard to families. But whoever they are and whatever they do, they have found the right combination, of fitting their training sessions around their lives.

That is the key! There is no need to train for 3-4 hours every evening. If training each night is what you require then ¾ - hour is ample in most cases. I present for you a training routine that can be adjusted to suit every ones own particular needs, it can be called a stage further step into advancement.

It will mean training 6 days per week, each day to follow concurrently. Preferably Monday thro’ Saturday. Instead of trying to cram too many body parts into so little time we can ease the pressure by spreading the load over the week and giving the body parts time to recover, at the same time working them enough to encourage growth. It means that each muscle group will be trained twice per week, but in smaller doses. The end result being a shorter time in the gym and more time to get on with the rest of your life, and enjoy the benefits that bodybuilding can bring. The workout is as follows:

Monday: Workout 1. Legs Shoulders & Abs
After warm up/stretching.
Squats, ( to parallel ): 4 x 15, 12, 12, 10.
Leg curls: 3 x 12
Thigh extensions: 4 x 15
Single leg calf raises: 4 x 15-20
Seated press behind neck: 4 x 12.
D/bell lateral raises: 3 x 12
Vertical/upright rows: 4 x 10
Abdominals
Crunches: 3 x maximum reps.
Flat leg raises: 3 x maximum reps.

Tuesday: Workout 2 - Chest/Back/Obliques
Flat bench press: 4 x 10-12
Inclined d/bell press: 3 x 12
Flat flyes: 4 x 12-15
Stiff legged dead lift: 4 x 10
Single arm rows: 4 x 12
Trunk forward bends: 3 x 15
Obliques/hip sides.
Standing barbell twists: 1 x 3-4 mins.
Light d/bell side bends: 3 x 15-20 each side.
Seated barbell twists: 1 x 2 minutes.

Wednesday: Workout 3 - Triceps/ Biceps/Calves
Close grip bench press (18″): 4 x 12
Flat triceps stretch: 4 x 10
D/Bell French press: 3 x 12
Seated alternate d/bell curl: 4 x 12
Barbell preacher curl ( if no preacher use
standard bar curl ): 4 x 8
D/bell concentration curl: 3 x 15
Reverse wrist curl, ( stand with loaded bar
behind back and roll down fingers, curling back
into fist, repeat ): 3 x 12-15
Toe raises: 4 x 15-20

Repeat Thursdays workouts as Monday.
Repeat Fridays workout as Tuesday.
Repeat Saturdays workout as Wednesday.
Rest period between sets, approximately 30 seconds tops, or until you feel recovered enough to continue. NEVER train if feeling dizzy or light headed

You will find there may be some weight loss, only slightly. This is okay if you need to lose a little fat. If that is not the case then increase your carbohydrates considerably, this will give the energy much needed in this type of work out. The point being covered again is that you will be much more eager to attack a training session in the full knowledge that you do not need to be training for great lengths of time.

And yet you will be very happy at the end result, that I am absolutely sure of. There will be no danger of over training if the sessions are built up gradually and you are completely resting after training. Keep the weights at a medium level, do not go crackers, take your time. After a few short weeks you will see changes that will drive you on to higher levels, results are what we are after.

I would not allow any student of mine to alter or change any of the exercises that are put before them, that is fact. But I can obviously appreciate that different home gyms have many pieces of equipment, or they feel the need for alternatives, reasons that I cannot witness. If that is the case then please contact me here where I will gladly give them to you. Also the full supplement list and this particular routine can be obtained through the same channels.

Train Hard and be strong.
Mick Hart.

“For anyone considering steroid use” This is a MUST READ…
Layman’s Guides to Steroids I and II

WARNING: Do not read this unless you are ready to gain some serious lean muscle…
Layman’s Guides to Steroids III (new)

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