Gains with twice per week weightlifting

I have two simple programs right now.

One:

  1. Front squat
  2. Military press
  3. Reverse curl
  4. T-bar row
  5. Double clean

Two:

  1. Pistol
  2. Floor press
  3. Reverse curl
  4. Pull up
  5. Double clean

I have about 2-3 days rest between each session. Each session I do as a circuit, on average four times through. It gets pretty cardio, especially with the double cleans. And the pistols, to be honest, are pretty challenging. I do five reps per side and I find that with the pistol I really have to focus and so it takes more energy.

I’m creeping up to 170 pounds and feeling stronger. The big thing is recovery and figuring out the proper “dosage” of exercise. As the kids get older (relatively speaking, Ruby is 16 months) things stabilize a bit and I can train harder.

This two day per week program is very manageable from a time perspective and gives good results. Keeping around 5 sets of 5 reps is a great protocol and varying it depending on how I feel keeps me from over training or running myself down. I could probably manage three days per week for a while, but that would depend on getting really good sleep–still a luxury with Ruby, who still finds it amusing to wake up crying a few nights per week.