How to Sequence Weight Training Exercises

There are many schools of thought when it comes to how to sequence exercises during a workout for maximum productivity. Some people like to do a full body workout and sequence their workout based on opposing muscles. That is to say that if they do a bicep exercise which involves flexing the bicep muscles by bending the elbow and bringing the wrist towards the shoulder until the biceps are completely contracted--they follow it immediately with an exercise that moves in the opposite direction and works the muscle that opposes your biceps--the triceps. In simple terms--if you bend your arms to flex your biceps, then the next exercise in your sequence will have you extending your arms to flex your triceps. This is an effective technique and allows you to rest your biceps and subtly stretch them while you work your triceps--and vice versa. However, if you are dividing up the body into sections to work over the course of a few days until you've worked every muscle group in the body--here is good way to sequence it.

Things You'll Need

  • Common sense
  • Workout clothes
  • A training partner preferably
  • Strong will and focus
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Instructions

    • 1

      Day 1 Pushing
      (chest, shoulders, triceps)

      This is a good grouping of muscles since they mostly involve pushing. Start with a general warmup exercise that involves all three of these muscles--your basic push up should do the trick.

      Then work from the biggest group to the smaller. Example (chest: bench press, shoulders: side laterals, triceps: cable extensions)

      This is just one example of a sequence--be creative and experiment with sequences that feel good on your body, but also challenge you. Do each sequence two to three times and use at least two to four sequences during each workout.

    • 2

      Day 2 Legs
      (quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings

      Hitting legs in between pushing and pulling days is a great way to give your upper body a day of rest. Start with a basic movement that hits most of your legs. Example: squats or lunges. Then start isolating with movements like extensions (for your quads), leg curls (for your hamstrings) and The butt-blaster machine (for your glutes).

      Again, this is just an example of one of the many sequences that can be utilized to effectively train your legs. This can also be the day that you train your calves.

      Do each sequence two to three times and use at least two to four sequences during each workout.

    • 3

      Day 3 Pulls
      (back and biceps)

      Start with a general warmup that uses all of these muscles--a set or two of pull-ups or assisted pull-ups should do the trick to get your lats and biceps warmed up.

      Begin with the bigger muscles and work your way to the smaller. Example: a lat pull-down followed by hyper extensions, and then finish with a straight bar bicep curl.

      Do each sequence two to three times and use at least two to four sequences during each workout.

    • 4

      Day 4 (Repeat Day 1)
      Day 5 (Repeat Day 2)
      Day 6 (Repeat Day 3)
      Day 7 (Your day off!)