There is no "one right way" to train while dieting. Sure, there are a few wrong ways.... but full body isn't better than splits. You have to put it into context too.
You've been hitting legs hard. 2 sessions of HIIT per week, some cardio, and training legs twice per week. That's a lot, especially while dieting.
That said, we will back off the legs a bit. Hit them only once per week with weights and once per week with HIIT. Let them compensate a bit. You can't continue driving something into the ground. It's all part of managing fatigue.
So as I said before, there is no right or wrong.
What I had in mind was something like this:
Oh, and I forget if we discussed tempo before.... but I want you to start thinking about it.
For example, if I say "at a 201" tempo, I mean a 2 second eccentric contraction right into a 1 second (or as fast as possible) concentric contraction.
Also, we are going to work in some supersets with rests. Do you understand this concept? If not, let me know and I will explain further.
Day 1 Upper
A1 - Flat Bench 3x5 at @ 201 tempo @ 90 seconds rest
A2 - Pendley Row 3x5 @ 211 tempo @ 90 seconds rest
B1 - Flat Bench 1x8 @ 201 tempo @ 90 seconds rest
B2 - Pendley Row 1x8 @ 201 tempo @ 90 seconds rest
C1 - Lat Pulldowns (underhand grip) 2x10 @ 301 tempo @ 60 seconds rest
C2 - Dumbell Lateral Raises 2x10 @ 301 tempo @ 60 seconds rest
D - Seated Calf Raises 2x15 @ 331 tempo @ 60 seconds rest
Day 2 Lower
A1 - Full Squats 3x5 @ 201 @ 90 seconds rest
A2 - Dumbell Romanian Deadlifts 3x5 @ 201 @ 90 seconds rest
B1 - Full Squats 1x8 @ 201 @ 90 seconds rest
B2 - Dumbell Romanian Deadlifts 1x8 @ 201 @ 90 seconds rest
C - Lying Leg Curls, Toes pointed 2x10 @ 301 @ 60 seconds rest
D - Reverse Lunges 2x12 @ 201 @ 60 seconds rest
Day 3 Upper
A1 - Push Press 3x5 @ 201 @ 90s rest
A2 - Assisted Pullups 3x5 @ 201 @ 90s rest
B1 - Push Press 1x8 @ 201 @ 90s rest
B2 - Assisted Pullups 1x8 @ 201 @ 90s rest
C - Cable Rows, Close Grip Handle 2x10 @ 2s contraction @ 60s rest
D - Pec Deck Fly Machine 2x12 @ 301 @ 60s rest
E - Kneeling Rope Crunches 3x8 @ 301 @ 60s rest
At the end of Days 1 and 3 I want you to finish off with some body weight calisthenics. These will not be easy. It will be done in "giant set" fashion.... meaning you move from one exercise to the next without rest. This will bump up a nice energy expenditure. It will look like this:
BW = Body weight
BW Squats x 12
Lunges x 12 (total, so 6 each leg)
Split Squats x 12 (total, so 6 each leg)
Jump Squats x 12
After your week off, I want you to come into this with ease. So:
1st week back: 3 out of 5 in terms of difficulty
2nd week back: 4/5
3rd week back: really go for it
Follow me?
With regards to the BW stuff, we are going to progress in that like this:
Week 1: 12 reps each
Week 2: 18 reps each
Week 3 and on: 24 reps each
You may not even be able to do this, but I want you to do it until you can't. These are fun and horrible at the same time.
I am sure you will need clarification on some of these things, but I wanted to lay it out there first.
ETA: People reading this, as I know a lot follow Tom's journal, should not take this program. It is customized to Tom, and his level of conditioning. It is merely one step in a much larger "staircase."
