Arnold Schwarzenegger was a devotee of fitness expert and body builder Reg Park, who created the classic 5X5 workout, requiring five repetitions of an exercise with five sets of each. If you are new to weight training, you'll want a program that offers you a consistent routine and balance. Using variations of the 5X5 routine, you can create workouts that will have you building muscle in no time.
The Workout Pattern
You will perform five repetitions of each exercise, doing five sets. The first set will be done using 60 percent of the maximum weight you can lift. The next set will be done with 80 percent and the final three sets with 100 percent of your maximum weight. Rest two minutes following each set. Perform three workouts per week, resting 24 to 48 hours between each workout.
Body Weight Workout
Body weight exercises are exercises you do with only your body's weight, such as pushups and pull-ups. Perform each of the following exercises, with a two-minute break following each set: squats, in which you lower yourself from a standing position, move your buttocks backward and keep your torso straight, then stand back up; lunges, in which you step forward, then lower and raise yourself, keeping your torso straight; chair dips, which are done by lowering and raising yourself between two chairs using only your arms; pull-ups, done with your palms facing you; chin-ups, done with your palms facing away from you; pushups; and sit-ups or crunches.
Alternate exercises each set: squats, lunges and pushups versus squats, squats and squats.
Dumbbells or Resistance Bands Workout
Perform the following exercises: biceps curls; triceps extensions, with weights behind your head, then lift them straight up; flyes, done with weights out from the side, then bend them in toward your chest; chest presses, in which you are lying down and pushing weights toward the ceiling; leg presses done with resistance bands; weighted lunges; and squats.
Free Weights or Machines Workout
Perform each of the following exercises, with a two-minute break following each set: bench presses, leg presses, weighted squats with barbell on your shoulders, biceps curls and deadlifts, in which you lift weight on barbells from the floor to your knees as you stand straight up, using your legs to lift.
For deadlifts, perform four warm-up sets, which is two sets at 60 percent of your maximum weight and two sets at 80 percent, with the fifth set done at 100 percent.
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