Will this workout do me any good?

**eddiet** · Posted On: 7/17/2011 5:10pm

Hey guys just started strength training last week,i been training bjj for two years and wanted add a bit of strength training.
Anyway this is what i am doing on a monday and thursday
bench 3 sets of 5 reps
deadlift 3 sets of 3 reps
squats 3 sets of 5 reps
20 mins of pull ups 4 reps every min
Is this anyway decent or not?
By the way i train bjj every day bar sunday and do circuits tues and wed.
thanks.

**1point2** · Posted On: 7/17/2011 5:21pm

Not bad. I would make a few changes, but I'm no expert.

1) Deadlifts are generally 1 set of 5 instead of 3 sets of 3. Why did you choose 3x3? I would imagine that could be harder to recover from, but if you have a good reason then more power to you. How much are you lifting?
2) I personally do 3 sets to failure for the pull-ups, and alternate them with chin-ups on each workout. (Even better would be a rope or gi to grab onto.) Is there a particular reason to do the 20 minutes x 4 reps?
3) Rippetoe forms my fundamentals, so I would alternate the bench press with an overhead press (still 3x5). See the wiki.

It sounds like a lot of volume: 6 days/week BJJ plus 2 consecutive days of circuits plus 2 days of strength. The guys at Rippetoe's starting strength forum will be fairly consistent in telling you that progress is much slower in the strength department when recovery is compromised like that.

I'll repeat: I'm no expert.

***TaeBo_Master*** · Posted On: 7/17/2011 5:34pm

Originally Posted by 1point2

Not bad. I would make a few changes, but I'm no expert.

1) Deadlifts are generally 1 set of 5 instead of 3 sets of 3. Why did you choose 3x3? I would imagine that could be harder to recover from, but if you have a good reason then more power to you. How much are you lifting?
2) I personally do 3 sets to failure for the pull-ups, and alternate them with chin-ups on each workout. (Even better would be a rope or gi to grab onto.) Is there a particular reason to do the 20 minutes x 4 reps?
3) Rippetoe forms my fundamentals, so I would alternate the bench press with an overhead press (still 3x5). See the wiki.

It sounds like a lot of volume: 6 days/week BJJ plus 2 consecutive days of circuits plus 2 days of strength. The guys at Rippetoe's starting strength forum will be fairly consistent in telling you that progress is much slower in the strength department when recovery is compromised like that.

I'll repeat: I'm no expert.

This would be why you're weak.

**eddiet** · Posted On: 7/17/2011 6:28pm

Honestly with the deadlifts i just added weight till i felt i was nearing my max,so got to 120kg done it three times felt it was enough and repeated twice more no other reason.
With the pull ups my max is only 7 maybe 8,a guy at the gym suggested the 20 min thing to improve my max which i was able to complete bar the last two minutes being a struggle so figured getting in 80 would be better than maxing
I really just threw this together and ran with it

**Sarwan** · Posted On: 7/19/2011 2:39am

All these exercises are in vain if you are not having a pro[per diet with them.And are not eating good.

**Azatdawn** · Posted On: 7/19/2011 3:50am

Originally Posted by Sarwan

All these exercises are in vain if you are not having a pro[per diet with them.And are not eating good.

To some extent, this could be said about pretty much every workout. Doesn't mean it has to be said every time someone asks about a workout.

Also, not having the best diet doesn't mean a workout is done "in vain". It may show some results, but not the optimum of what's possible.

**Matt Phillips** · Posted On: 7/19/2011 7:08am

Are you doing these lifts alone or in a gym?

**eddiet** · Posted On: 7/19/2011 9:39am

Just little private gym,i only lift when there are guys there cause we dont have a squat rack plus im not very experienced,I wouldnt say i eat good but not really bad,porridge or peanut butter sandwich for brekkie,couple potatoes,meat,veg for dinner,soup and sandwich for evening meal,one protein shake.

**risingphoenix73** · Posted On: 7/19/2011 10:04am

Another thing to consider (especially for bjj, although you might do something similar in classes) is neck strengthening. If you do start doing this always remember to stretch your neck out thoroughly beforehand, as it's probably one of the worst bodyparts to injure.

video:

And also as 1point2 suggested militay press would probably be beneficial as well.
I generally recomend grip exercises to people who grapple as well, but deadlifts help grip strength tremendously from my experience, just as long as you're not using straps.

Anyway good luck to you.

**chiangmaiwolf** · Posted On: 7/20/2011 11:28pm

I think any program with heavy weights and low reps will make you stronger, but perhaps it would be better if you did at least 4 reps of deadlift. Only problem here in my opinion is that you are doing a great deal of aerobic exercise, which maybe will affect how much your strength increases, but if your main goal is martial arts then the number 1 priority for your training should be martial arts, so I would not neglect the BJJ workouts just to get stronger if I were you.