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Workout Talk | Is my workout effective?

Hey guys,

So I just finished purchasing a gym membership with my close friend. We made our own workouts by using research from other websites and seeing what the best exercises for each body part was. So, my workout goes like this:
Day 1 (Chest and Biceps)- Barbell curls, Dumbbell curls, Hammer curls, bench press, incline dumbbell press, and finally pec deck.
Day 2 (Back and Triceps)- Lat Pulldown, Seated Row, Reverse Dumbbell flys, Dips, Tricep pull downs, close grip bench press.
Day 3 (Legs and Shoulders)- Leg extensions, Leg press, calf raises, Arnold Press, Shoulder Raises, Shoulder Press
Day 4 Cardio and Abs

So, the main goal is to be bulking up right now. From research majority of the sources I've read say 3 sets and 8 reps is really good to acheive this. So my questions are, is this workout effective? Are there ways I can improve it? How often should I be increasing weight? And what is the best possible diet for this workout for bulking? Any help would be appreciated because I really want to get into shape the best way possible.

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Personal Trainer
Moderator

5/26/2015 8:15:40 AM

So the big thing that I'm noticing is
that you don't have the big compound
exercises like:

Squats, Deadlifts, Bench Press

Also, I see that you are doing your
biceps before your chest. Always
train your biggest muscles first.

You said that 3 sets of 8 is correct
which is the traditional definition of
hypertrophy but more research suggests
that it's variability, progressive
overload and time under tension that
are the most important.

Ie. Each set should be between 40-70
seconds. If it takes you 30 seconds
to get 8 reps then you can slow down
your eccentric contraction and also
apply a drop set with another
exercise.

Your exercises should vary every 2-3
weeks. That way you can stress your
muscles at all different angles.

Not everyone responds best to one
bodypart a week either. You could aim
for 2 times per week and see how it
goes. The goal is to record your
progress and see what's working.

Obviously, this is only the exercise
discussion. There is a whole other
world in the nutrition side of things.

PT

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