Routine for 2 hours

Well, basically, I signed up for weight training in college (for phys. ed.), and the class lasts 2 hours! And my routine that I do at home usually lasts from 45 min to an hour, and if I did that in class I will be wasting 1 hour and probably lose marks. So I was wondering if you guys could give me a routine that lasts for about one hour and thirty minutes to 2 hours? I will be doing the two hours on mondays at school and I am planning to do 1 hour at home on fridays, so could you guys please help me with this and give me a routine for monday anmd friday (I would rather do squats and bench press at home).And how many minutes should I rest between sets? I'm looking to gain mass (I'm switiching for strength in December. Thanks in advance!

There is no way that a 2 hour weights routine is going to be anything less than counterproductive. After 45-60 mins of intense weight training, continuing beyond that becomes a downright hinderance to positive adaption.

If your phys ed teachers have not read any research on effective resistance training since 1968, that is there problem, but I am not going to give you a 2 hour routine that will lead to overtraining and injury.

The best advice I can give is to Pad out the time with a prolongued warm up, stretching, and a long cooldown and developmental stretching.

Alright thanks Cord. I guess I will have to talk with my phys. ed. teacher about how more than one hour training is bad for you. I hope he doesn't get mad lol

Telling your teacher they are wrong is seldom productive, i would not advise it. does the gym session include cardio machinery? if so, you could do 5 mins low intensity cardio between bodyparts as 'active recovery' (bit dull, but valid), this would pad out your 45 mins strength routine just fine, and avoid a showdown you are just not going to win.
if there is no cardio machinery, then inbetween bodyparts, do some ab work and deep stretching of the area you have just worked.

Pad it out and keep the peace

Good suggestion Cord and I agree it would not be best to question your teacher. When I first started working out I had built myself up to doing stomach crunches in between my benches. Then at the end of my workout I would do a circuit of 4 of upper, lower, butt and obliques. My workouts ended up being 2 hours. Just be creative and you will be able to fill in the gaps with something. I agree, some type of cardio machine would be best though but do what you can.

The active recovery sounds good, but do I have to do it between each set? Right now I'm aiming to gain mass, so my breaks between sets are 2 min. One more thing, active recovery is basically just jogging in a treadmill, right?

You would be working too hard if you were jogging. Better to slow cycle or brisk walk for 4 mins between sets, the theory being that it helps clear lactic acid and allows full repayment of oxygen debt whilst preventing cooldown between sets.

Makes 5 sets of 5 on bench, squat and deads take around 1 hour 15 mins. Add some stretches and abs as warm up/cooldown and you will be up to an hour 40 mins easily.

Would this still work for gaining mass( right now i'm doing the 5*8 routine), doing the 4 min slow cycling between each set? This is beside the question I just asked, but in my routine I do 5*8 reps for my smaller muscles, but for my squats and deadlifts I do 5*5 reps, so is this good for gaining mass while gaining strength?

My bad, for mass 6-12 reps is preferable, and your rest period should be shorter.

For your active recovery do 8 mins low intensity cardio between bodyparts.

Going heavier on core compound movements is fine if you enjoy it, but by adding volume on top of a pure 5x5 system, you will not get the strength increase you could expect from doing it exclusively.

A good middle ground for mass and strength is 'pyramid training'.

Your first set of each exercise should be 12 reps with a weight you could do 15 reps all out with.

Over the next 3 sets you increase weight in moderate increments so that you final set is with the greatest weight (these 3 sets are all to failure)

It would be something like this:

1x12
1x8-10
1x6-8
1x4-6

If you keep good form this is a truly brutal way to train, and will give splendid increase in both size and strength when applied to compound lifts.

Cord's suggestion is not bad, although I wouldn't recommend stretching between sets as it weakens the muscle.

Another way of doing it longer could be supersetting with a twist.

Example:
Benchpress
some ab work in between or what they called active recovery
Rows
and so on so forth...

Well, my physio having got me to do loads of stretching, I think you can easily pad out to 2 hours just by adding stretching. It's just pretty dull, but far more productive. I do roughly 45 min weight sesions, but my stretching takes an extra 45 mins to an hour. Here's how I structure my workout:

Dynamic Joint Mobility exercises - we're talking about light dynamic stretching; leg raises, arm circling, trunk twists, etc. 10-15 repetitions of each.

Lifting session - the usual hardcore shizzle!

Snack - don't forget your PWO snack; get it in before stretching so you can refuel your starving body.

Stretching - we're talking about relatively light static stretching. If 1 is no pain and 10 is horrific, think about 5. Hold each position for 40 seconds and do sets on them. For instance, this is what I'm currently doing (sets are for each leg where applicable):

(sets*seconds)
3*40 Standing Quad Stretch
3*40 Sitting Ham Stretch
3*40 Hip Strech
3*40 Glute Strech
3*40 Standing back stretch
3*40 arm/upper back stretch
4*40 step calf stretch
3*40 chest stretch

That takes about 25-30 mins, often more because of changing position.
Then, if you don't walk home, get 5 minutes at a very light pace on a cross-trainer for a full-body cool down.

I know it's not comprehensive, but hope it helps

Quote:

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Cord's suggestion is not bad, although I wouldn't recommend stretching between sets as it weakens the muscle.

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thats a new one on me, but i am old and things move on

Deep Stretching is an old bodybuilding trick to develop the fascia of the muscle in the hope of aiding overall development. The guys in the 60's and 70's used to use gymnastic stretches like 'skin the cat' inbetween sets of chest work to increase the 'pump' and 'broaden' the chest. in hindsight, all it did was prevent tightness in the shoulders and promote good posture, but either way, it helped.
Try getting a bodybuilder to do a 'proper' cooldown or stetching for 'wellbeing'- not going to happen.

put a spin on it, add the magic words 'mass' and 'increase' and voila, deep fascia stretching all over the place.