When creating an exercise program, you always have to consider what you are trying to achieve. This may be something sport specific, weight loss or a certain goal you want to achieve, such as mastering a chin up. Having an idea of your goal will determine how to order your program.
The start of a program should consist of exercises that are explosive or most taxing to perform, as well as exercises that are more important to your training goals. This should be done no matter if the exercise if for a large or small muscle group.
From there, large muscle groups should always be considered before smaller muscle groups in a workout. The large muscle groups take more energy to perform so doing them first lets you get the most out of those muscles. The smaller muscles usually help assist when training the larger muscles which makes sense to focus on those muscles after.
Major Muscle Groups:
- Quadriceps
- Glutes
- Hamstrings
- Chest
- Back
Small Muscle Groups:
- Shoulders
- Triceps
- Biceps
- Calves
When it comes to weight loss, full body exercises are very ideal. So, you would consider working two explosive/barbell exercises, before going to superset exercises, and finishing off with core exercises. Core is always good to leave to last, as you are using your core muscles throughout all of your exercises. This ensures that you don’t burn them out at the start of the program, as you won’t be able to work to your optimum ability with core fatigue.
An example of a full body exercise program:
A) Chin Ups
B) Barbell Back Squat
C) Dumbbell Hex Press
C) Kettlebell Arabesque
D) Dumbbell Prone Row
D) Single leg Calf Raise
E) Sit Ups
E) Russian Twists
Once you have chosen your exercises, you must decide what the optimum sets and reps are. The ideal range to exercise is 3-5 sets with 5-15 reps for a standard program. The higher the reps the more fat burning the exercise and the lower the reps the heavier you can lift and the more muscle and strength you build.
Once you have covered all of the above, you can start to put together your weekly programs. Making sure you train each major muscle 2-3 times a week and getting in the recommended 3-5 days of exercise. To ensure improvement in your workouts remember to gradually increase the load as your body gets used to any given workout; you can do this by increasing the volume, intensity, and difficulty of the exercise and by reducing rest between intervals.
Andrew Mangani
Exercise Scientist, Evado Studios Point Cook