10 Steps to Making Your Own Weight Program

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If I had to choose one question I get asked the most it would be, “could you make me a weight program.” The interesting thing about weights is that most athletes really have the knowledge to make themselves a program but they just do not trust themselves and would rather do what someone else says.

I am going to give you a check list of steps to go through to ensure that you can make yourself a program or at least have a better idea of what you need to do.  The weight room is a place that really can be a game changer in how a season goes. It will keep you healthy, and increase your performance if done right. It will make you worse if not done right so pay attention.

Step 1: Know the Reason Why You Are Lifting

• To get stronger for a new season
• To Gain Weight
• Maintenance for the season

Step 2: How many Days will you lift

• 2 days- Not ideal for gaining weight, or the offseason, better for maintenance
• 3-4 days- This the ideal amount of days to lift to gain strength
• 5-6 days- Works well for putting on mass

Step 3: What Will Be Your Split (really based off of preference)

• Whole body every work out- Good when you can only lift twice a week
• Upper Body/ Lower Body
• Shoulders –Arms, Back and Chest,  Legs
• Anything that works for you

Step 4: Choose the Main Muscles

• Depending on your sport you must know the main muscles used
• For example as a track athlete I would say the main muscles are the Quads, Glutes, Hamstrings and Shouders
• Use these as the building blocks of your program

Step 5: Choose the Minor Muscles

• The minor muscles are just as important and are the second step in building the exercises
• The minor muscles can be ones you have previously injured
• The minor muscles can be ones that don’t get a lot of attention but you know you use like the groin
• For example my minor muscles could be the groin, calves, lower back and triceps

Step 6: Cycle Length

• 4 week-On the low end but it is excellent for keeping things fresh and fun
• 5 week- The ideal length to have a cycle last
• 6 week- This is the most amounts of weeks that I would spend on one program. This can be good for off season programs

Step 7: Choose exercises to match major and minor muscles

• Most athlete know plenty of exercises they can choose from
• If not do some research online to find choices of exercises for each body part

Step 8: Balance out the program

• Once finished step 7 review all the exercises
• Make sure program has balance
• Exercises pushing away from the body and pulling towards the body
• Upper body + Lower Body training necessary for your sport
• No body part is being trained to much or too little
• Plenty of exercises for the posterior chain and not just the mirror muscles

Step 9: Decide the Sets

• 2 sets- Good for very small muscles or for maintenance programs really close to post season
• 3 sets- What most people like to do but it is always good to change things
• 5 sets- The toughest of the 3 and the weight must be chosen wisely
• 6 sets and up- Is good for gaining strength but it must be kept to very low reps

Step 10: Decide the Reps

• 1-3 reps- Pure Strength and very little size
• 3-5 reps-  Strength based but provides more volume and safer weights than 1-3 reps
• 5-8 reps- Excellent range for preventing soreness which is good for starting an off season program.  Also good for combining strength and size
• 8-15 reps- Training to put on mass and little size
• 15+ reps- Endurance

Bonus Step:  Mix It Up

• Don’t be scared to try new things in the weight
• Always be ready and willing to make changes
• Use bands  and chains if you have them
• Use different grips
• Always be looking for variation

(original image by simplesketch)

Tagged as: Program, Weight Lifting