Weight and Resistance Training - Can you critique my circuit? Multiple suggestions wanted.....

I recently upped my weights after being on my plan for 2 months and dropping 20 pounds. That got me to thinking I should check in with this great forum and make sure I'm on track.

OK, so disclaimer first, I set up this routine myself by consulting my Weider wall chart, focusing on my major muscle groups, and trying to pick an hour's worth of exercises. I do complete body 3 nites a week, and because of time limitations, I really don't want to get into upper / lower body splits of doing ubody on two days and lower on other days (unless that is, you can convince me of the need to!) I do this on a home gym of the stack weights.

OK, so in about 45 minutes, I do 3 sets of 12 reps each of these:

Leg Adduction, 12 lbs

Leg Abduction, 12 lbs (even tho my inner thighs are much stronger than my outers, I try to keep this balanced, but I could probably do more with my inner. Is balancing a myth or something I'm right to be doing?)

Front Kick with cable around ankle: 20 lbs

Rear Kick with cable around ankle: 20 lbs

Tricep extension: 32 lbs

Bicep curl: 10 lbs (tried 15 on my first set today, but went back to 10 on last 2 sets)

Leg extension: 22 lbs (sitting with ankles tucked under pulley atchd to cable)

Military press: 22 lbs (I vary my hand position on the machine so it's really military press, chest press, mp)

Then I do 100 variations of sit-ups between 20 each of:
Stability ball situps
Frogleg situps on floor while holding stability ball and bringing it up over head to legs
Bicycles, 40 of these
Lower ab leg lift

I try to do 30 min treadmill walking cardio (3.5/3.8/3.5) 4 times a week.

So, am I on the way to seeing great results if I eat clean and get enough protein, or am I missing any big components?

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!

Oh, wanted to add too, that I was also trying to work my hamstrings too to balance the quad work, but when I try to do the hamstring curl and lean against the machine, it rocks. So then I tried lying on the floor and doing it with dumbbells. Well, the weight I could balance felt like it wasn't even hard enough work for me, and trying to do a heavier one in that position that felt heavy enough made me really nervous about one day dropping the weight on my lower back, so I stopped doing that. Is there another good way to work the hamstring? I may just wait til I drop more weight and go back to the machine hamstring curl and hope that being lighter, I won't rock the machine so much.

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but I really don't see any quad exercises in there, or back or chest. Those are your major muscle groups :?:

You can do hamstring curls with the cable attachment. If you have some dumbbells, I'd add some dumbbell squats and deadlifts and skip the adductor and abductor work for a while. You'll hit those muscles with some good heavy, deep squats or lunges anyway.

Not only do you need to up the weights, but you need to change the exercises every 4-6 weeks to keep progressing :)

Mel

Ankle weights are also really good for hamstring work.

Thanks Mel. OK, clearly I am not on the right track if I can't even identify my major muscle groups.:rolleyes: I do believe the leg extension works the quads. I will add in some squats and deadlifts, bc you are right, I am not doing any glutes work other than the back leg kick with cable. I have trouble with my knees on lunges though, I feel like my knees are going to break at any point, so I'll wait on those until I lighten my load I think. I will also use a bench that I have to do the hamstring curls; I saw that in a mag last nite and that would help I think.

True, I'm not working back, and chest is only what I'm getting on the presses. I didn't realize back was a major muscle. See, I think this is called knowing just enough to be dangerous. :o

Thanks for the suggestions!

Ah, I didn't read carefully. You're right, the leg extensions do work your quads. However, most trainers and physiotherapists agree that leg extensions, unless done with a limited range of motion for your particular knee, cause a lot of knee problems. If you have problems with lunges, I would be hesitant about doing extensions. How about doing weighted step-ups onto the bench?

I'd add some more chest exercises- flys, flat presses, pushups or modified pushups. Add some back exercises: do you have a lat pull down on the gym? if you have a cable you can do one arm rows with the cable (kind of like starting a lawnmower.) Do them standing in a squat position and you get some quad and glute work there too. Or do them standing on one leg and you get some balance work.

Mel

I have trouble with my knees on lunges though, I feel like my knees are going to break at any point, so I'll wait on those until I lighten my load I think.

I agree about the lunges. I do them, but I don't go down very far, and I'm very very careful not to twist my leg while I'm down (i.e. I come back to standing before assuming another position). Squats and deadlifts on the other hand are really helping my knees! :)