need advice on teenage workout

my 15 year old son would like to put some muscle on for school sports,i think what he needs is strenght training. we have toyed around the past couple of years but now he wants to get serious.he is 15, 135lbs 5' 8" 8%bf  max bench  125,max squat 250,max dead 190,max preacher curl 100.Do these sound like good numbers? he would like to see better results in his bench,but we are not having much luck. His bench routine goes like this:his max is 125, so he does 80% of max to failure(5 reps),rest,and other lifts,then he does 60% of max to failure (14 reps), rest,then 40% of max to failure (25reps). do this sound right?any suggestions ?

sorry,i wasnt done ,i just didnt want to miss my show, anyway,he does this same routine for deads ,squats, and curl,with a bunch of other lifts that we havent gotten to serious with yet.Is this 80-60-40-thing a good idea for strenght training? After five workouts,each time increasing reps,we check to see if max has increased and set new wts and reps.If this routine sounds reasonable,we will implement it to all exercises and get serious,i just need to know if he is headed in right direction. thanx 

well im 15 as well and i lift 3 days a week and do cardio anywhere from 3-6 times a week and im pretty much in the same position as your son...i am 135 lb and 5'8......i would suggest Whey protein if not on it already im going to start taking it this week....but i would suggest anthing like creatine or anything i think thats a bad idea for someone our age......and make sure he isnt overtraining....there is absolutley no use at all if you are overtraining does no good

yeah he takes whey,only on workout days,at lest until wrestling season is over.What kinda cardio do you do?

I just turned 16, and i have been in competitional weightlifting for years; i can get you a specific workout from one of my coaches if you like. 

that would be great,what more do you need from me??

I also have a pure bench workout that you can throw in to add with anything else. There are 7 workouts to it, so it takes about 3 and a half weeks to take.
(It starts off with high repetitions, assuming the fact that your son isn't quite used to heavy, constant lifting yet)

Workout 1

10x60
10x70
10x80
10x90
10x95

Workout 2

10x60
8x70
8x80
8x90
8x95
8x100

Workout 3

10x60
8x75
6x85
6x95
6x100
6x105

Workout 4

10x60
8x80
6x95
4x100
4x105
4x115

Workout 5

10x60
8x90
6x95
4x105
2x115
2x120

Workout 6

10x60
8x105
6x100
4x115
2x120
1x125

Workout 7 (FINAL IN THE SET)

10x65
5x110
3x115
1x120
1x125
1x130-135 ( APPROX NEW MAX)


You can adjust this depending upon how hard it is; but generally, if i fail a set i just redo that workout the next one. For example, sometimes i wont get workout 4 the first time, so ill do it again before moving on to 5.

Once he's done with this, just tell me his nex max and i can setup the next one, although it basically consists of adding around 5 pounds to each one of these workouts; for example workout 7 would then consist of...

10x70
5x115
3x120
1x125
1x130
1x135-145 (Approx New Max)

Often though, one of these workouts will jump someone just starting off weightlifting about 15-20 pounds on their bench after workout 7, so your son could fairly easily be maxing out at 140-145 by around March 17 or so.

looks good ,can the same be done with the other exercises? If so ,i think i can do the math to save you the time.

Also to strengthen your son's legs you could do a workout similar to the following.

3 Sets of Back Squats (6-8 Repetitions per Set)
3 Sets of Leg Press (6-8 Repetitions per Set)
3 Sets of Donkeyraises/Calfraises (6-8 Repetitions per Set)
3 Sets of Hack Squats (6-8 Repetitions per Set)
3 Sets of Dumbell Jumps (Grab Dumbells go into a squat position and jump while your feet go back to kick your butt.) (8-10 Repetitions Per Set)

I've never tried to use the cycle method on anything other then bench although theoretically it could be done, however i would keep it to compound lifts only; compound lifts being lifts such as bench press that work multiple muscles at once (Chest, triceps, deltoids, lats for bench). What you can do for sure is to apply the pyramid method shown in this to other lifts such as starting off with high repetitions when working your biceps and going up in weight but down in reps for a few sets and then going back again.

For example for preacher curls:

10 Repetitions of 25 Pounds
8 Repetitions of 30 Pounds
6 Repetitions of 35 Pounds
8 Repetitions of 30 Pounds
10 Repetitions of 25 Pounds
(these weights here weren't actualy representations of your son)

I have seen people do this with results although i personally don't do it myself.

thanks,could you give me some wts for these ,based on his max's.Also whats the difference between hack squats and back squats? I,m sure he will like the jump squats with dumbells,i alwys made him do them with barbell, he will be going from wrestling into v-ball so we will deff. start these!

how did the 80-60-40 routine sound for the rest of the exercises?  this was how i trained twenty years ago,but would like to get a better workout.

Being as i am a powerlifter, and i work on strength, i don't believe in doing repetitions higher than 10 for anything. If your son wants strength, stick to ten or less, if he wants endurance and conditioning then yours is fine. If he wants a slight between the two, i would lower the repetitions in between both of those, around 12-15 reps on most things other than bench. If he is looking for a higher max, lower reps are the answer, because otherwise those heavier weights will feel extremely awkward to him when he is used to repping in the 15-25 range.

Back squats are most likely the regular max squat you had your son do. Hack squats are like deadlifts but you stand in front of the bar and raise it up behind you instead.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/BBHackSquat.html

The website above shows an example of a hack squat, and also shows several other efficient workouts as well on the homepage.

thanx again ,very helpful!!

No problem, i'll get back to you upon more information about different workouts later, but i have competition tomorrow so i need to get some sleep, sorry. :(

what cardio do i do......i usually try to do intense intervals.......usually warm up walking for about 2 min or so then sprint for 1 min then walk for 30 sec sprint again then walk and i do this usually anywhere from 15-20 min........also it may sound corny but jump roping is very good for cardio i hear alot of people do it 

How are the workouts going?

i would say a 3 day split would work well

day 1
flat bench 3X6-8 reps(rep variation recommended every 2-3 weeks)
incline bench 3X3-5
Skull crushers 3X6-8
Lat pull down 3X6-10
Dumbell shoulder press 3X8,6,6


next day rest

day 2
Power clean 3X 5,3,1 (rep variation is recommended every 2-3 weeks)
dead lift 3X8,5,5
close grip ez-bar curl 2X6-8
wide grip ez-bar curl 2X 6-8
Barbell back rows 3X 6-10

next day rest

day 3

Squat 3X10,8,6(rep variation recommended every 2-3 weeks)
BB calf raises 2X 12
Weighted sit ups 2X 15
Lunges 3X 8,6,6
Military press/ OH press 3X 8, 6,6

theres a basic strength routine that will help your son pack on mass and gain strength. you can adjust according to what makes you and your son happy, just make sure he is getting enough nutrients, rest, and a balanced workout and he should be seeing progress.
you might want to throw in some polymetrics !

first day with no buds, 11/17, need a new job. 1 down 13 to go.

im 15 "5,7" 128 pounds and i also wrestle. his numbers are pretty damn good for just toying around for a couple of years. but anyway if he keeps taking some whey and gets in the gym 3-5 times a week in about 2-3 monthes he should start seeing some good results. but keep him on a good diet. eat big to get big.

Puma kreig,thanks for asking, workout are going good.Hey could you make me a bench workout like the last one ,only for 140 max and also for 150 max? two of my sons classmates would like to start this. thanks!

140


#1
10x70
10x75
10x85
10x95
10x100

#2
10x70
8x75
8x85
8x95
8x100
8x110

#3
10x70
8x85
6x95
6x100
6x105
6x115

#4
10x70
8x95
6x100
4x110
4x120
4x125

#5
10x70
8x100
6x110
4x120
2x125
2x135

#6
10x70
8x105
6x115
4x125
2x130
1x140

#7
10x70
5x90
3x105
1x120
1x130
1x145-155 (NEW MAX)

150

#1
10x75
10x85
10x90
10x100
10x110

#2
10x75
8x85
8x90
8x100
8x110
8x120

#3
10x75
8x90
6x100
6x110
6x120
6x130

#4
10xx75
8x100
6x110
4x120
4x130
4x135

#5
10x75
8x110
6x120
4x130
2x135
2x145

#6
10x75
8x115
8x125
4x130
2x140
1x150

#7
10x75
5x95
3x115
1x130
1x140
1x155-165 (NEW MAX)

thanks puma!  jr hurt his back last week at tourny,so we've taken it easy  the past couple w-outs.other than that e-thing going good. could you figure me up one for 105 max?

Sorry, haven't been on recently. Do you want the 105 max for your son, because if he's hurt i would just wait a while and do less strenuous exercises until he's healed.

actually its for my younger son, he is starting to get interested!

Sorry didn't get to you yesterday, fell asleep as soon as i got home at eight.


105 Workout

#1
10x45
10x55
10x60
10x70
10x75


#2
10x45
8x55
8x60
8x70
8x75
8x80

#3
10x45
8x60
6x70
6x75
6x80
6x90

#4
10x45
8x70
6x80
4x85
4x90
4x95

#5
10x45
8x80
6x85
4x90
2x95
2x100

#6
10x45
8x80
8x85
4x90
2x95
1x105

#7
10x45
5x75
3x85
1x95
1x100
1x110-120 (NEW MAX)

Tell me if that one works out okay.