Looking for a beginner workout routine recommended by a pro bodybuilder

[aks2161989]

I am looking for a beginner workout routine for someone that wants to get into pro bodybuilding. I tried to search for routines of pro bodybuilders, but came across advanced routines which these guys were probably using when competing in the Olympia, not when they were beginners.

A few years back there were old articles written by Arnold Schwarzenegger where he gave out beginner routines. It seems these pages are no longer available. Now the only routines available are his Olympia workout routines which are too advanced for beginners.

Does anyone have some beginner routines recommended by pro bodybuilders? I would really appreciate it if you could share!

On a side note, I found a beginner routine shared by Markus Ruhl here https://www.muscleandfitness.com/flexonline/training/markusaurus/. Do you think this routine is good for beginners?
 

[IroNat]

Barbell squat - 8, add weight do 8, add weight do 6,6,6
Bench press - 8,8,6,6,6
Pullups - 5x10
Overhead press - 8,8,6,6,6
Barbell row - 8,8,6,6,6
Skullcrushers - 5x10
Barbell curls - 5x10
Standing calf raises - 5x15
Situps - 5x25

Do this routine 3 times a week for a year.

This is pretty much Arnold's mass gaining program.

[oldtimer1]

Iron Nat gave some good advice.  Use a basic routine like he suggested and concentrate on getting stronger. Truth is a basic routine could be used by an advanced guy too.

[Donny]

people have the misconception that full body is only for beginners but it´s hard if using decent weights.

I think an upper/lower split is good maybe 3 or 4 days a week  .
personally i trained arms with legs so it was

Day 1
Back, chest, shoulders 

Day 2 legs, biceps triceps

One thing i will say about full body is everything is trained & if you miss a workout it´s not so bad. Infact 2 workouts are probably better for recovery when using heavy weights as 3 hard full body workouts is very taxing

[dj181]

If you can recover from 3 full body workouts a week then you are incredibly gifted

[Donny]

If you can recover from 3 full body workouts a week then you are incredibly gifted

I think it depends on the individual but if heavy weights are used on mainly compound lifts which is typical for a full body workout then recovery & stress on joints & soft ligaments is hard.

you can of course rotate exercise in a 3 day routine to "hit more angles" or cause more "isolation" but i think myself a 3 day a week upper/lower split is better.
Just my experience

[dj181]

I think it depends on the individual but if heavy weights are used on mainly compound lifts which is typical for a full body workout then recovery & stress on joints & soft ligaments is hard.

you can of course rotate exercise in a 3 day routine to "hit more angles" or cause more "isolation" but i think myself a 3 day a week upper/lower split is better.
Just my experience

Yep I think that's bout right

Upper/lower eod is rather ideal

I tried the full body 3 times a week on my late teens to early 20's and it wreaked me, I never really improved or got stronger from it

I was influenced by AI and Darden and tried both, AJ was 12 exercises per workout and early Darden was 20 exercises per workout all to failure

Later Darden took it down to like 8 exercises per workout but that still crushed me

[Donny]

A beginner will grow on almost anything. Even a 3 day split such as...

Chest+Back
-----
Legs
-----
Shoulders+arms

weekend off

[IroNat]

Becoming a highly paid (not bodybuilding) professional in sports is easy.   

Next I will post:

1) My golf practice routine for a beginner who wants to be a PGA Tour golfer.

2) My baseball practice routine for a beginner who wants to be a MLB player.

3) My football practice routine for a beginner who wants to be an NFL player.

 

What is a "professional bodybuilder"?

Someone with a "pro card" which are a dime a dozen today?

The dime-a-dozen Pro Card bodybuilders pay their own money to "play" their pseudo-sport.

A sports professional is someone who is paid to perform their sport, like a MLB player.

Only the very top elite bodybuilders get paid.

To be one of today's pro card bodybuilders basically hit the gym 4-6 times a week doing a bro-split and hit the gas pedal a lot.
If you have a decent structure you can probably get a pro-card in a couple years of drugging, unless you are Bhanky, who has been juicing for 25 years and still looks like shit.

[IroNat]

Yep I think that's bout right

Upper/lower eod is rather ideal

I tried the full body 3 times a week on my late teens to early 20's and it wreaked me, I never really improved or got stronger from it

I was influenced by AI and Darden and tried both, AJ was 12 exercises per workout and early Darden was 20 exercises per workout all to failure

Later Darden took it down to like 8 exercises per workout but that still crushed me

Simple reasons for your lack of results:

You did not eat enough and you followed AJ and Darden's advices.

 

[IroNat]

I am looking for a beginner workout routine for someone that wants to get into pro bodybuilding. I tried to search for routines of pro bodybuilders, but came across advanced routines which these guys were probably using when competing in the Olympia, not when they were beginners.

A few years back there were old articles written by Arnold Schwarzenegger where he gave out beginner routines. It seems these pages are no longer available. Now the only routines available are his Olympia workout routines which are too advanced for beginners.

Does anyone have some beginner routines recommended by pro bodybuilders? I would really appreciate it if you could share!

On a side note, I found a beginner routine shared by Markus Ruhl here https://www.muscleandfitness.com/flexonline/training/markusaurus/. Do you think this routine is good for beginners?
 

Excerpt:

Don’t take drugs or do stupid things. Remember, you’re a bodybuilder. That deserves respect.

Funny coming from a massive drug user like Ruhl.  It's unlikely he wrote the article.

[IroNat]

Barbell squat - 8, add weight do 8, add weight do 6,6,6
Bench press - 8,8,6,6,6
Pullups - 5x10
Overhead press - 8,8,6,6,6
Barbell row - 8,8,6,6,6
Skullcrushers - 5x10
Barbell curls - 5x10
Standing calf raises - 5x15
Situps - 5x25

Do this routine 3 times a week for a year.

Find a local gym where steroid using bodybuilders train.

Join this gym and workout there for a couple months and make acquaintance with these drug users.

After you feel comfortable, ask them where you can get steroids

Meet their drug source and buy the appropriate steroids.

Take the drugs and workout a typical split routine and eat enough to add size.

Get muscles.  Then enter a local contest and get cut up.

If you place in the top 5 then keep taking drugs and training.

Enter another contest and see if you can win it.

If you win or place high keep taking drugs and train for another show.

If you keep improving you can possibly win a meaningless pro card.

If you can't improve give up because you don't have what it takes to get there.

[Donny]

Becoming a highly paid (not bodybuilding) professional in sports is easy.   

Next I will post:

1) My golf practice routine for a beginner who wants to be a PGA Tour golfer.

2) My baseball practice routine for a beginner who wants to be a MLB player.

3) My football practice routine for a beginner who wants to be an NFL player.

 

What is a "professional bodybuilder"?

Someone with a "pro card" which are a dime a dozen today?

The dime-a-dozen Pro Card bodybuilders pay their own money to "play" their pseudo-sport.

A sports professional is someone who is paid to perform their sport, like a MLB player.

Only the very top elite bodybuilders get paid.

To be one of today's pro card bodybuilders basically hit the gym 4-6 times a week doing a bro-split and hit the gas pedal a lot.
If you have a decent structure you can probably get a pro-card in a couple years of drugging, unless you are Bhanky, who has been juicing for 25 years and still looks like shit.

Bill Pearl wrote a good book back in `86  "Getting Stronger" which had a lot of sport related programmes

[oldtimer1]

Split routines work if you use them correctly for a natural. I think the majority of naturals would be well advised to use whole body routines.

[dj181]

Simple reasons for your lack of results:

You did not eat enough and you followed AJ and Darden's advices.

 

I tried to eat more some of the times I did thier routines

And guess what?

I just got fatter and didn't gain any muscle

It was hitting each body part way too frequently

3 times a week is/was huge overkill for me

My best leg gaining routine was leg press only every 6 days

I gained 5 pounds in 6 weeks and my body fat went down so I actually gained like 6-7 pounds of muscle in 6 weeks and all of it went to my legs I even had photos to prove it

And oh, my strength shot up from 5 plates total to 10 plates total

Proving that increased training loads make muscles bigger and also I was eating maybe a slight surplus or even maintaince

And I was full on natty at that time

My quads got decidedly bigger

[IroNat]

I tried to eat more some of the times I did thier routines

And guess what?

I just got fatter and didn't gain any muscle

It was hitting each body part way too frequently

3 times a week is/was huge overkill for me

My best leg gaining routine was leg press only every 6 days

I gained 5 pounds in 6 weeks and my body fat went down so I actually gained like 6-7 pounds of muscle in 6 weeks and all of it went to my legs I even had photos to prove it

And oh, my strength shot up from 5 plates total to 10 plates total

Proving that increased training loads make muscles bigger and also I was eating maybe a slight surplus or even maintaince

And I was full on natty at that time

My quads got decidedly bigger

The ONLY 5 Barbell Exercises You Need for Muscle Mass

[dj181]

The ONLY 5 Barbell Exercises You Need for Muscle Mass

These BB's train way too much, too often, too many exercises and too many work sets

I'm goona focus on increasing my chin up and my close grip decline press and see if it grows my arms bigger

Current pr's are bodyweight chins for 10 and close grips 175 for 10

I'm thinking that if I can get my chin up to bodyweight plus 45 pounds round my waist for 10 and close grips 220 from r 10 that my arm's will be bigger

Not sure if I can get there but if I can think my arms will have to be bigger

[IroNat]

These BB's train way too much, too often, too many exercises and too many work sets

I'm goona focus on increasing my chin up and my close grip decline press and see if it grows my arms bigger

Current pr's are bodyweight chins for 10 and close grips 175 for 10

I'm thinking that if I can get my chin up to bodyweight plus 45 pounds round my waist for 10 and close grips 220 from r 10 that my arm's will be bigger

Not sure if I can get there but if I can think my arms will have to be bigger

Your arms won't get much bigger unless you increase your bodyweight.

Is your leg healed up?

[dj181]

Your arms won't get much bigger unless you increase your bodyweight.

Is your leg healed up?

Mentzer said he'd get stronger and stronger without size increase and then literally overnight he'd added a few pounds of muscle its the same for me when I have experienced growth

First one is healed up second one is very close like 1 or 2 weeks

[IroNat]

Mentzer said he'd get stronger and stronger without size increase and then literally overnight he'd added a few pounds of muscle its the same for me when I have experienced growth

First one is healed up second one is very close like 1 or 2 weeks

Mentzer was full of sh*t.

Selling his HIT theories and Ayn Rand bs.

You want to gain?

Do this (when your legs are healed):

Squats
Bench press
Barbell rows
Overhead press
Barbell curls
Standing calf raises

Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps.  When you get 3x12 add 2.5 to 5 lbs.

Train 2-3 times a week. 

Every 6-8 weeks drop the weight down 10-15% and start again.

Eat a balanced diet till you're full.

No drugs.

[dj181]

Mentzer was full of sh*t.

Selling his HIT theories and Ayn Rand bs.

You want to gain?

Do this (when your legs are healed):

Squats
Bench press
Barbell rows
Overhead press
Barbell curls
Standing calf raises

Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps.  When you get 3x12 add 2.5 to 5 lbs.

Train 2-3 times a week. 

Every 6-8 weeks drop the weight down 10-15% and start again.

Eat a balanced diet till you're full.

No drugs.

If I trained that full body 3 times a week I'd be overtrained the first fucking week and yes on gear I would be

The most frequent I can train a muscle group is every 4-5 days and full body would wreak me too

The least I could spilt the body would be 2 ways but if I trained legs it would have to be a 3 way split

Zane's prescription of push/legs/off/pull/off is pretty ideal

The 5 way split some do is dumb I think, which is chest/back/legs/delts/arms hitting each muscle once a week

Many guys now have gone back to push pull legs interestingly enough and they train this 6 fucking days a week so they hit each muscle twice a week, again I'm not able to train each muscle twice a week

[Rmj11]

Dorian Yates beginner routine split in two workouts in a one on one off rotation.

Chest Back Delts Abs

Legs Biceps Triceps

Workout A

Bench press
Incline press
Flys

Chin ups or pulldowns
Bent rows
Cable rows
Deadlifts

Press behind neck
Side raises
Rear raises or shrugs

Crunches 3xmax
Reverse crunches 3xmax

Workout B

Squats
Leg press or hack squats
Leg curls
Standing Calf raises
Seated calf raises

Barbell curls
Preacher curls
Pressdowns
Lying extensions

Do a warm up set of 10 reps at 70% of main weight
Do a prep set of 8 to 10 reps at 90% of main weight
Then do main weight for 2 to 3 sets for 8 to 10 reps to technical failure (drop weight down if necessary to stay in the 8 to 10 rep range)
Rest 2 to 5 minutes between sets

[Rmj11]

Arnold Schwarzenegger's full body Workout for size and strength

Squats 5x8,8,6,6,6
Bench press 5x8,8,6,6,6
Incline press 5x 8,8,6,6,6
Chin ups (or pulldowns) 5x10,10,8,8,8
Barbell rows 5x8,8,6,6,6
Press behind neck 5x8,8,6,6,6
Barbell curls 5x8,8,6,6,6
Lying extensions 5x8,8,6,6,6
Deadlifts 5x3 to 5 (done once a week)
Calf raises 5x12,12,10,10,10
Crunches 2 to 3xmax

First set do 70% of what you will use on the main sets
Second set use 90% of main weight
Third, fourth and fifth set use main weight
Don't train to failure, just when form breaks down

Rest 2 to 3 mins between sets

[Rmj11]

Here's a good power building routine article featuring Winstone Williams with his early routine.