There are about 956,586 workout routines that you can try. One of the most effective types of routines I have found in my first 14 years of training is total body training.
The Principles of Total Body Training
- Work every muscle group 3 times per week.
- Select one exercise per muscle group, per day.
- Hit each muscle group from a different angle or intensity in each workout.
- Never go to absolute failure on any exercise; leave one rep in the bank.
- Keep workouts under one hour, not counting warm ups and stretching.
- Change everything up after two months.
Why Might This Be the Most Effective Form of Training?
- High frequency (how often you train any given muscle) means more chances to recover and grow stronger/bigger.
- Low daily stimulus (# of exercises and sets per day for any given muscle) lowers your chances of overtraining.
- Avoiding training to failure also lowers chances of overtraining.
- Hitting muscles from all angles each week strengthens stabilizers and is proactive injury prevention.
- Avoid muscle adaptation by changing up the whole routine after 2 months.
So What is the Routine Already?
I will outline a basic routine to follow in a 7 day period, but it can also be shortened to a 6 day period just as long as you see no signs of overtraining.
Your warm-up strategy: Please spend 5-10 minutes warming up your body with some cardio and some light weight lifting. This is your opportunity to do some shoulder rotations and non-hyperextending back extensions to warm up those areas that are prone to injury. For any given compound exercise, you decide if you want to include an initial warm-up set. I recommend it, but for a sissy exercise like bicep curls for example, you don’t really need to do a warm-up set.
Your weight/rep strategy: The first set should be a warm-up if necessary. Middle sets should increase by 10-20% depending on how you feel. Fourth set should be 100% of the max for the given rep range. For example if I can bench 100 lbs x 5 reps, I would do sets of 50 x 5, 80 x 5, 90 x 5, and 100 x 5. Once I set a new 5 rep personal record (PR) I would add the smallest amount of weight possible the next time I did that exercise. Most gyms have 2.5 lb plates, so next week I would use 105 lbs as my finishing weight on that exercise. This is called linear progression. Again, if the rep range is 5, you should be finishing with a weight you can get for 5, but not a weight that causes you to struggle to get 4.
Your exercise selection strategy: Given three workouts a week for each muscle, you must choose three exercises for each muscle group. You should choose one compound exercise and two assistance exercises. The assistance exercises should focus on bringing up weak points, fixing muscle imbalances, or breaking through a sticking point. This strategy was inspired by a training philosophy called the conjugate method.
Your exercise execution strategy: The first exercise of the workout should be done solo, as it is the most important exercise of the day. Rest for a minute or two between sets. All subsequent exercises should be done in groups of two. This is sometimes called a superset. Rest for a minute or two after each superset.
Ladies should do 4 sets of 7 where this program calls for 5 sets of 5.
Day 1:
a) Quads - Barbell back squats
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
b1) Chest - Incline dumbbell press
reps: 7/7/7/7
b2) Calves - Standing calf press
reps: 7/7/7/7
c1) Hamstrings - Stiff leg deadlifts
reps: 7/7/7
c2) Abs - (Weighted) decline sit ups
reps: 7/7/7
d1) Back - (Weighted) wide grip pull-ups
reps: 10/10/10
d2) Shoulders - Seated dumbbell shoulder press
reps: 10/10/10
e1) Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
e2) If you are still within your 60 minute workout and have gas left in the tank, do a tricep extension of your choice for 2 sets of 5 reps, or as many diamond push-ups as you can do.
Day 2:
Off or light cardio.
Day 3:
a) Chest - Flat bench press
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
b1) Quads - Step ups onto a bench or box holding dumbbells
reps: 7/7/7/7
b2) Abs - Lying leg raises, get your lower back and butt off the floor, try to touch the ceiling with your toes
reps: 20/20/20/20
c1) Back/Hamstrings – Standing bent over dumbbell rows
reps: 7/7/7
c2) Calves - Seated calf raises
reps: 7/7/7
d1) Shoulders - Standing dumbbell raises to the side
reps: 10/10/10
d2) Biceps - Standing alternating dumbbell curls
reps: 10/10/10
e1) Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
e2) If you are still within your 60 minute workout and have gas left in the tank, do a hamstring curl machine for 2 sets of 5 reps;or lock your heels under something with the instep of your foot facing down and, starting with your thighs perpendicular to the floor, lower your upper body forward and down a couple degrees then use your hamstrings to pull it back up. I’ll have to see if I can find a picture of this somewhere.
Day 4:
Off or light cardio.
Day 5:
a) Hamstrings - Deadlifts
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
b1) Shoulders - Standing overhead shoulder press
reps: 7/7/7/7
b2) Abs - Standing side bends holding dumbbells
reps: 7/7/7/7
c1) Quads - Alternating barbell lunges
reps: 7/7/7
c2) Triceps/Chest – Decline close grip bench
reps: 7/7/7
d1) Back/Biceps – (Weighted) close grip chin-ups
reps: 10/10/10
d2) Calves – One leg standing calf raise on a 2 inch block or plate holding a dumbbell
reps: 10/10/10
e1) Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
e2) If you are still within your 60 minute workout and have gas left in the tank, do two sets of clapping pushups.
Day 6 and Day 7:
Off or light cardio.
So that’s it! Please take this full body workout routine with a grain of salt. At times you might need to skip the e) exercises and maybe even one of the second exercises in the d) superset. This will not kill you. Feel free to change up the exercises if you think you know what appropriate replacements would be. This is just a guide for those that have never experiences total body training before.
This workout should only be done for 2 months max before you either try a different workout, specialize for a certain muscle group, or completely overhaul the exercises and reps.
If I have helped or inspired you, please leave me a message so that I can tell that someone is actually reading this blog. Good luck!
Related posts:
- Critique My Full Body Workout Routine
- Werewolf Training: A Weightlifting Routine to Gain Muscle
- The Twilight Workout Routine – Taylor Lautner Gains 30 Pounds of Muscle in One Year
- Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine Workout for X-Men Origins
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Tags: full body, weightlifting, workout routine
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Steve,
Seriously, thanks for taking the time out of your day to reply to our posts, I am not just saying that to sound grateful, I really mean it. I have been up and down on the scale from 220lbs to as much as 295lbs. I know this is not healthy but I’ve always had the problem with taking one too many days off from the gym, compounding it with eating junk in excess then just not going in for a week and it snowballs. Reading your reply on my post inspires me because the “werewolf” workout is awesome and it seems right on to what I was looking for. I was not going to go to the gym tonight because I had a 10 hour work day but of course I’m pumped now. I tend to do 30 minutes of cardio 3 times a week on workout days so should I decrease that to 25 or maybe 20 max and increase the intensity? I weigh in around 295 and want to get down to 185 in about a year but my goal is to first get that first 10 lbs off and I’m not in that much of a rush where i’ll set myself back by doing an hour of cardio everyday like i see some people doing, i understand its a lifestyle and a process. I also use gncs amplified wheybolic protein which is 20 grams of protein per scoop but it seems when i take in too much protein (1gram per lb) i get bloated and feel like ive gained a lot of body fat. any other suggestions?
Hello Steve..I am following your this full body routine..but i am not able to develop lattes and increase my waist.
1 please tell me excercises to increase size of lattes and waist.
2My weight is 61kg and height is 5′10″.My gym coach is instructing me to do excercise 5 days a week and only one body part in one work out..I am confused please suggest what is right according to height and weight.
please suggest me some very good plan so that i can gain weight fast and effectively please
Thanks Steve
cafee: When you say you want to increase the size of your lattes, are you talking lats (back muscles)? If so, you can build them up with rows, pull ups, and chin ups, but you gotta go heavy. Try some 5-8 rep sets once in a while.
You can either listen to your gym coach or follow the full body routine that everyone on Project Swole seems to love. Either way if you train smart you will make gains. I just don’t see a 5 day split being anywhere near as effective as 3 full body workouts a week with a HIIT routine thrown in.
Steve,
For the bench press of 5/5/5/5/5, do you recommend going up in weight for each new set? Or do an amount of weight you can do 5 times and attempt to do that on all the sets?
Thanks,
Rob
Rob: Pick a weight slightly less than you can normally do 5 times, and try to complete 5×5 with that weight. The first 2 sets will seem easy but by sets 4 and 5 you will understand why 5×5 is tough.
This looks really interesting, i am looking forward to trying this, starting tomorrow, will give you an update in a months time as to how it goes.
In regards to 5×5 – bench press, how much of a delay would you recommend between each set?
Thank you heaps for your helpful workout tips!
Aryano: Rest for 90 seconds between sets.
hi quick question. when you say D1) D2) or c1) c2) do you mean that i should those 2 exercises as a superset or just regular?
timmy: Those would be exercises in a superset.
Steve,
Just wanted to let you know how much your routine has helped me. Before, I was doing just 4 – 5 days of cardio w/ diet to lose weight, which is my main goal. But once the gains from that slowed down, I started your weight lifting routine and it has kick-started my weight loss once again. I do the workouts now M/W/F, with light cardio on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and have now lost more than 20 pounds in a few months. So thanks for this, it’s really really fun, and it was a great way to get back into the gym to hit the iron.
Patrick: I am so glad the generic full body routine is working for you. Hopefully when you get sick of that, you will have some other great workout routine options here at Project Swole.
This workout looks great! I may try this one. I do have one question about this workout versus the one I am currently doing. Currently, I work one muscle group each day (Chest/Monday, Back/Tuesday, Abs/Wednesday, Shoulders/Thursday, Arms/Friday) In addition, I run 2-4 miles after each workout, and take Sundays off. My question is, which is the better workout for building a little muscle and cutting fat? I want to be sure I am on the right track here. Great article, and I appreciate any help you can give me!
Steve, I am training for a marathon so need to run 3 days a week but want to integrate weight training to build muscle to increase my metabolism to help lose weight. So I need to lose about 50 lbs and train for a marathon so how would you work your weight training into that. I currently lift twice a week and run the other days.
Shawn: Your best bet would be to focus on integrating HIRT workouts into your endurance cardio training, along with one heavy strength training routine each week. It might look something like:
day 1: marathon training
day 2: 45 minutes of HIRT training
day 3: marathon training
day 4: off
day 5: 45 minutes of heavy strength training
day 6: marathon training
day 7: off
Steve,
you asked me to remind you about posting your own version of a complete warm-up/cool-down program for before and after lifting. It would be great to see.
Hope you’re having a fun holiday.
Hey Steve
I think its brill how you write back to people!
Anyway, am 150 pound, 5′6, female, aged 18.
I currently go the gym 3 times a week but i mainly do cardio such as 15min on cycle machines 10 mins on treadmill climber and 5 mins on the step machine.
My main aim is to loose weight another stone (14lb) is it worth me doing this routine to tone up, or should i wait for the extra 14 pounds to be shed?
thanks! charl
Charl: You will probably lose the fat you want to lose sooner if you start weight training. However, you might not lose the ‘weight‘ you want to lose. Why? Because you haven’t been lifting, so if you start lifting you are bound to gain 5 pounds of muscle mass within your first 2-4 months of training. No, you won’t get bulky, so please put that excuse out of your head. You will only get harder, denser, and more ‘toned’ if you start lifting. Besides, the added muscle mass will accelerate your overall metabolism, which means you will burn fat faster even if you are sleeping or sitting around. Weight training is a vital fat loss tool.
Steve, I have been going to the gym and doing somewhat regular PT (army) for about 5 years now. I recently broke my foot and had a shoulder injury, and have recovered 90% (probably the most that I will). I am looking for muscle endurance, fat burning and true overall fitness. I just started reading this page and wondered what you would suggest. I go to the gym with my wife M/W/F and still do PT with the unit 3-5 days a week. Thanks for your time. Jim
Jim: I recommend 2-3 days a week of full body strength training, 1-2 days of HIRT, and 1-2 HIIT workouts each week. Almost any combination of those (3 strength, 2 HIRT, and 2 HIIT is overkill) would be great for you.
Hey Steve,
Thanks much,.. I am an absolute beginner and haven’t used gym equipment before. However I warm up a bit and then follow your routines.. They seem very helpful, I am unsure of any breathing techniques. In general.. I tend to breathe in while exertion and breathe out while relaxing, for each cycle.. that works!
I was just wondering, after i finished my workout plans and i get the amount of muscle I want, what can i do to keep my muscle at that size and just get more cut? whats it called when you want to just get more cut and skinnier with more muscle definition
Jeff: You would switch to strength training with a focus on weight loss, rather than training to gain muscle.
Hi Steve,
I’m a beginner at weight training and I’ve started to get real serious about getting fit. I used to live a very sedentary(sic?) lifestyle. For the past couple of months i’ve been consistently going to the gym. I’ve normally focused on using the machines since I didn’t know any better, but when I found this, it has helped me a lot! (Thanks BTW)
Anyway, I’m currently at around 20% body fat, and hoping to drop it a couple more percentage. I don’t have a lot of muscle mass, so I’m using this routine to gain those muscles. But since I also do have a lot of fat, I’m doing cardio after this routine. Normally, the cycling class at the gym I work out on. Do you think that’s advisable? should I just focus on doing this routine instead?
My schedule only permits me to go to the gym every other day, so the lifting this day, cardio the next wouldn’t work out for me.
steve, i am a senior in high school trying to get in shape for sprinting on my high school track and field team. i have been looking online for a full body lifting program to start on. i would love to run in college and i focus most of my energy and talent on the hurdles. i have had some experience lifting weights over my high school carreer but not enough to know what to do for all of my muscle groups. would your workout be right for me?
Steve-
Hope you are doing well; I just wanted to check in real quick… I can complete the routine in under 30 minutes [not including the 10 minutes of stretching afterward]. Is this okay? I have a tendency to be a little extreme and hope I am not compromising my workout. I work out regularly and have good form so I am just wondering if the rest in the routine is necessary [I have found that without rest, obviously I get my heart-rate going pretty well, thus getting a better workout]?
Hello Steve,
This information is a great help. I was wondering if there was a catalouge I can buy or any suggestions on where I should buy one; Which basically explains the name of the exercises along with pictures as examples of the different exercises you gave above on your website. Thank you.
Richard: You can find examples of most of these exercises on YouTube. I realize I need to upload examples of every exercise I talk about. Just another task that I have to make time for.
Steve: I stumbled onto this website a little over a month ago. I decided to try the full body workout for the first time. I’ve seen more gains (especially in my chest & back) in the past month that I’ve seen in 15 yrs of lifting. I love the 5 best exercise articles also. This is the best weighttraing website that I’ve seen. Long live Project Swole!
Hey sweet! Thanks JohnF! Glad you gained some muscle.
Steve: Love the website. I added some cardio and HIIT to the full body workout to maximize weight loss, whatcha think?
Day 1: Monday
Cardio
Quads – Barbell back squats
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
Chest – Incline dumbbell press
reps: 7/7/7/7
Calves – Standing calf press
reps: 7/7/7/7
Hamstrings – Stiff leg deadlifts
reps: 7/7/7
Abs – (Weighted) decline sit ups
reps: 7/7/7
Back – (Weighted) wide grip pull-ups
reps: 10/10/10
Shoulders – Seated dumbbell shoulder press
reps: 10/10/10
Day 2: Tuesday
Cardio HIIT
Day 3: Wednesday
Cardio
Chest – Flat bench press
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
Quads – Step ups onto a bench or box holding dumbbells
reps: 7/7/7/7
Abs – Lying leg raises
reps: 20/20/20/20
Back/Hamstrings – Standing bent over dumbbell rows
reps: 7/7/7
Calves – Seated calf raises
reps: 7/7/7
Shoulders – Standing dumbbell raises to the side
reps: 10/10/10
Biceps – Standing alternating dumbbell curls
reps: 10/10/10
Day 4: Thursday
Cardio HIIT
Day 5:
Friday
Cardio
Hamstrings – Deadlifts
reps: 5/5/5/5/5
Shoulders – Standing overhead shoulder press
reps: 7/7/7/7
Abs – Standing side bends holding dumbbells
reps: 7/7/7/7
Quads – Alternating barbell lunges
reps: 7/7/7
Triceps/Chest – Decline close grip bench
reps: 7/7/7
Back/Biceps – (Weighted) close grip chin-ups
reps: 10/10/10
Calves – One leg standing calf raise
reps: 10/10/10
Day 6: Saturday
Cardio HIIT
Day 7: Sunday
Light Cardio
(formatting got a little screwy when i pasted it sorry) I realize this is alot of cardio and HIIT but im on a plateu and im trying to get the last 15lb’s off
Cameron: I would like to see Day 7 say “no training” or “completely off”, but otherwise I guess I don’t see a problem with that. Hopefully your HIIT workouts don’t go longer than 20-30 minutes, because I could see the possibility of overtraining here. I think you might consider refining your diet rather than increasing your workout, if you want to lose more fat. This workout is definitely the upper limit in terms of volume, in my opinion, so if it doesn’t work the way you want, I say focus on decreasing calories and carbs, targeting those carbs around workouts, and increasing protein to 1 gram per lb of bodyweight.
Also, I am going to post this routine as a separate post for others to use when they want a full body routine that also burns fat with HIIT cardio.
Do you have any charts available to show positioning for the exercises? I love the workout and want to begin tomorrow, but there are some excersises i’m not sure how to position my body for. Also, if it helps, I’m 31 out of shape, not fat, 6′1″ and 208 lbs. I have a little gut but nothing that cant be worked with with cycling situps or a little light cardio
Steve: After a week of my version of this routine I have begun to agree with you about having sunday off lol but I can honestly say that this version will blast through a plateu
and I am watching calories and trying to get good protein, also (and this is no big deal) but on non weight days I am doing cardio AND HIIT 
the formatting changed and made it look as if im saying HIIT is my cardio. Thank you so much for reviewing my changes to the routine, I am new to the fitness world, but your website has taught me so very much.
Chris: Search YouTube for proper exercise demos, or check to see if the exercise is listed on one of my Top 5 Best Exercises posts.
Cameron: HIIT is cardio. Are you also doing endurance cardio in addition to HIIT? I guess that’s fine if you want to waste your time. Instead, try a double HIIT session or toss in a short HIRT routine. In all cases except when you are training for marathons or triathlons, HIIT is always better than endurance cardio to accomplish your cardiovascular or fat loss goals.
Hey Steve. I’m not sure if this is the right place to put this, but I’ve been trying to find the right workout for me. I’m 5 11′ and only weigh about 135lbs. I’m trying to gain mass. I’ve checked out the werewolf workout and did one cycle of it and it actually helped a lot. I really saw results from it, but right now I have knee injury so on some leg exercises, I would skip and if my knees were really bad on a certain day, I would just skip the leg workout for that day. But now I’m planning to hit the gym, but it’s a small one, packed, and very limited on the equipments so I won’t be able to do things related with barbells much except for bench presses, but they do have a variety of machines. So I came across this workout routine since I believe I can replace the hamstring and quads with curl machines. So I was wondering if I should try this routine or continue with the werewolf. And if you have any other advice that can help on my workout, it will be greatly appreciated =]
hi i do heavy lifting my light and midweight routine is 6 sets of 15 or sometimes as many sets as needed to reach 90 reps in all on every body part excercise. i lift 203 but im trying to gain some mass and look ripped any ideas?
Hey Steve,
Let me start off by saying I enjoy reading all of your insightful work out information. It has definitely helped my workout routines.
I had a question as to whether I am completing an effective routine or not. I feel as though it I am, considering I see gains. I do switch it up as well.
My most common routine is
Day 1 – Chest and Tris
Day 2 – Back and Bis
Day 3 – Cardio
Day 4 – Shoulders / Legs
Day 5 – Cardio
Day 6 – OFF or Cardio
Day 7 – Start all over
I find hitting muscle groups really hard once a week or so and letting them rest the rest of the week with good food and nutrition gets me stronger and desired results. I have read your full body routine and I have never tried working each muscle group three times a week. If I am happy with my routine, should I change it up? Thanks!
Christos: If you are happy with your routine and you are making progress, still with your program. When you plateau or get bored, change it up.
Hi Steve, in your Workout Routine you cycle through different exercises for the same muscle groups, yet sometimes the rep & set numbers vary. For example, you list quad “step-ups” at 7/7/7/7, but quad “barbell lunges” at 7/7/7. Now, I know that more reps with less weight is better for toning while fewer reps with more weight is better for mass, but I was wondering, what reasoning do you use to determine the rep & set count for any given exercise? How do I make the distinction between doing 3, 4, or 5 sets – or is it truly just arbitrary?
Mike: I want you to go heavier on the initial focus exercises and prefer 5 sets for optimal stimulation with the heavier weights. For the rest of the workout I want you to decrease the weight and the number of sets, but increase the number of reps, so as to hit different muscle groups with different rep/set protocols on different days. Lighter weights don’t need as many sets to achieve the desired effect, plus you are typically training smaller muscle groups as the workout progress, and the additional volume of doing 5 sets of everything would be too much for your body long term. It is not arbitrary at all – I base my exercises, sets, reps, everything on past experience with my own personal growth, achievements my friends and clients have made, and thousands of hours of reading.
Thanks for the reply Steve, I think I understand your thinking a little better now concerning the reps, sets, and rotation of exercises. I had another question for you: how many max’s should you attempt to find in one sitting? I would assume that all your muscle groups would gradually start fatiguing leading to inaccurate (lower) max’s compared to what you could have actually achieved from the beginning? Also, if you have 3 different exercises for the same muscle group should each of those exercise’s max be tested on completely separate days? Thank You!
Mike: It’s OK to occasionally attempt to set 1 rm PRs on multiple exercises in a day. In powerlifting competitions they sometimes attempt squat, bench, and deadlift all on the same day. You will perform better if you split them up though.
Steve-
A one quick question. My main goal is to have a lean body and flat stomach. I do not have a belly but my stomach is not flat either.I have been doing gym for quite sometime now, but its those last inches around my stomach that refuse to go. My question is will this plan help me get a flat stomach and possibly 4/6 packs. Any diet restrictions etc that i should consider?
Suneil: To lose fat either increase cardio or decrease calories, or both. It’s that easy.
Hi Steve,
I’m an 18 year old male. 150 pounds and 5′11″
I am quite skinny and am looking to bulk up my upper body and strengthen my legs. I have never really done any proper weight work but am prepared to put the effort in!
What kind of plan should I do and how often? I’m a student so I can’t really afford the extra supplements is this a problem?
Would be great if you could let me know what I should be doing!
Cheers
Werewolf Training for Muscle Gains! Just don’t use the supplements if you can’t afford it.
Steve,
Absolutely love the routine.
I am a big proponent of TB workouts for many reasons and one is that they keep me from being bored like splits do.
I built my own TB routine and I’m happy to say that many of your exercises are already in my routine .
I decided to add the decline close grip bench, but I found it extremely awkward. Could I do dumbbell flys as a replacement or would you recommend another exercise such as close grip pushups with feet elevated. I really want to hit the chest hard all three days.
Also, is it okay if I use the 12 10 8 6 rep range for each exercise?
Thanks so much.
Switch to the close grip push ups. 12/10/8/6 is fine if that’s what works for you, but it seems like you’d be tired by the time you reach 8 and 6, so you will be sacrificing strength gains if you do this.
steve,
i am a 24 yr old 6′2″ 225lbs male. i have been lifting for a few years on and off. about 6 months ago i started lifting again 5-6 days a week fairly hard. i did 8 weeks of combo lifting (chest/tris one day, bi/back another, and shoulders/legs another) after that i am in my current routine of each muscle group a different day. i have tried only one supplement and currently use it frequently (dark matter) i am really trying to get more definition and tone up a bit. i have a large frame, and am just trying to firm it all up. i try to eat 3-4 times a day with a lot of complex carbs, fruits, veggies etc. i seem to stay stuck in the same shape minus bulking up a little bit bc of the lifting. any suggestions?
The simple rule of losing fat is this: if you want to lose fat then you should eat less calories than you burn in a day and use fat burning cardio to help. Try including 2 HIIT and/or HIRT sessions each week. Set a goal weight and multiply that by 12 to figure out how many calories you need to eat in a day to get down to that weight.
Hi Steve,
I’m roughly 150 lbs at 5′5. I have I a lot of thighs and I’ve recently got a slight belly. I want to burn off might thighs and stomach still cut up everywhere else. What do you advise with my workouts and diet if possible?
Try the men’s full body routine plus HIIT for fat loss.
can you help me outline a HIIT/HIRT session? a little confused on what i should be doing during those routines. i read both articles, and understand their purpose, but just need help outlining what exactly I should be doing. Thanks again for taking the time to respond
HIIT is alternating short bursts of max effort with a longer interval of medium effort. Sprint or Row as hard as possible for 30 seconds, then Jog or Row at moderate intensity for 90 seconds. Do this 5 times. Take a 2 minute water break. Repeat the sprints/rows again. 2 minute water break. Repeat sprints/rows. 2 minute cool down. Stretch for 5 minutes. That is a 40 minute all-encompassing HIIT routine.
HIRT can be almost any resistance training session where you move from exercise to exercise without rest, trying to complete more reps or weight than you did previously, in a set amount of time. An example could be a total body circuit where you do 20 reps of each exercise for bench, squat, rows, military press, deadlift, pullups, and dips, all with a set weight, and see how many circuits you can complete in 10 minutes.
Hey steve, im 21 years old, 5 ‘8′ 176lbs. Its safe to say i have a decent upper body (muscle), but need to work on stubborn fat around the core. I also have average thighs and poor calve muscle. In addition to that I follow a diet plan (weight loss). My goal is to tone up the upper body and gain muscle in the necessary parts. I’m looking forward to weigh 150 lbs. Your workout plan seems very helpful, but is it the right plan to reach my goals? Your advice has been very helpful. Thanks
Replace the ab training in Full Body Fat Loss Training with additional quad and calf training.
Then replace the HIIT routines on days 2, 4, and 6, with this abdominal HIRT routine from Werewolf Training for Strength Gains:
thanks a bunch steve, your advice has been very helpfull.
Me so sad that Steve didn’t answer my question.
I didn’t? I see your question and I see my answer. Do you have a different question?
I’m an idiot. So sorry. Thanks.
Again, love, love, love your routine. Iso moves bore the heck out of me and this is why I like the compound movements. My overall goal is overall fitness and nice physique. The only problem area I have left is the dreaded stubborn lower belly.
No problem. The belly fat is an issue for everyone. It takes dedication to get ripped abs.
Steve,
I am in good shape, I workout regularly, I guess I am more of a fitness lifter, lifting more for balance and health. I run more than anything and play competitive team sports. My question is, I am trying to increase my vertical. I am having trouble sorting through the thousands of people that contradict thosands of other people. Your website is awesome and I agree with everything your posting, so I thought I would come here. I dont wanna do all plyos. So, I have been mixing max weight 2-3 reps max of leg excercises 1-2x a week. and doing plyos (air alert style) 1-2x a week. I am just not sure if I am approaching this well or not. I am not really seeing any results yet on my vertical but I have only been doing this workout routine for approx. 1.5 months. Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise. Again I dig the site. Thanks.
Hey Steve. Would you recommend heavy weights and lower reps or lighter weights and higher reps approach to fat loss?
I prefer a heavy weight / lower rep approach to fat loss, as this is the best way to maintain muscle mass and strength while prioritizing fat loss.