Earlier today I presented a lecture on Designing an Exercise Program. For those of you who were unable to attend I will give a brief synopsis.

As you all know, the recipe for success usually involves the most basic tools, whether it be baking chocolate chip cookies or manicuring the lawn of your dreams!

When it comes to strength training, its never out of the question to bring back the basics. Whether you are a novice looking for a place to start, or a seasoned gym rat doing bicep curls with bands while standing on one foot atop a bosu, you need to make sure the fundamental lifts are still a part of your program.

Think of it this way, a doctor always uses a stethoscope to listen to your heart, an otoscope to look in your ears, and a reflex hammer to test your reflexes. Likewise, as a strength trainee, you need to squat, deadlift, chest press, and military press. Those are the "big 4" as I like to refer to them. These are not the only things you should do, but every other lift supports your four main lifts. Everything starts with big multijoint moves and none of these require fancy machines or specialized equipment.

Everything you do in the weightroom has a cummulative effect. You need enough stimulus to get stronger, yet you don't want to go overboard. It's like driving a car...if you push the pedal to the metal all day, everyday, the engine will burn up. This is likely what most people do in the gym and they get burned out quickly.

Today I suggested different split routines including 3-on, 1-off; 4-on, 1-off; full body workouts on Mon-Wed-Friday and 5 day splits that work one bodypart each day of the week Monday through Friday.

Your body adapts very quickly so I also suggest maintaining a split routine for only 4 weeks and then changing things up a bit. Keep with the four main lifts and then structure your other exercises to strengthen weak points. For instance, when you do movements such as dips and chin-ups, you are also hitting your chest, shoulders, tris, upper back, and biceps in just those two exercises. Knowing this will get you in and out of the weightroom in less time, but don't forget to do your cardio AFTER your weight training.