Build Muscle, Burn Fat, Get Ripped
Originally posted: 1/27/10
Updates:
2/1/10 updated routine, added Excel spreadsheet workout logs)
3/8/10 added example HIIT routines for days 2, 4, and 6.
 Fat Loss for Men |
Many of you are asking for a full body workout routine to burn fat, so here you go.
I have even customized the program for both men and women.
You can skip the details and go straight to the routines if you wish:
The Program
We are integrating 3 full body training sessions with 3 HIIT routines and taking the 7th day off. Since the goal is fat loss, we are striving to add some muscle mass, maintain strength, and burn as many calories as possible.
This is accomplished by staying in a slightly higher rep range than we would normally use for strictly strength training, while using super-sets for most of our exercises. We add an optional set to the end of each workout in case you are able to finish the workout early.
Major compound exercises are rotated to prioritize a different muscle group on each of the 3 training sessions each week.
Volume, Frequency, and Overtraining
HIIT sessions on off-days are designed to melt fat and stimulate muscle growth, but the sheer volume of work should not force you into overtraining. If you do feel the symptoms of overtraining, you should take either the 4th or 6th day completely off instead of performing a HIIT workout.
Some of the symptoms of overtraining:
- elevated pulse
- trouble sleeping
- nagging muscle soreness
- sore joints
- inability to recover from the previous workouts
- decreasing strength
- decreasing muscle mass
- increasing fat storage
This routine can be used for 6-10 weeks before switching your focus to a new set of goals. When progress stalls and you can determine that the plateau is not a result of overtraining, it is time to take an active recovery week and start a new routine.
Rest
You should rest 60-90 seconds between super-sets, and 180 seconds (3 minutes) at most between exercises.
Warm Up
Initial Warmup – small, light exercises possibly including dynamic stretches to warm up the muscles
Feeler Sets – use feeler sets only if necessary, with 40-50% of your 1 rep max for 3-5 reps to warm-up before each new exercise
Recovery
You should engage in some form of recovery on a daily basis.
Here are some of your recovery options:
- foam roller
- deep tissue massage
- ice massage
- alternating hot and cold showers
- dynamic stretching
Nutrition
You know the drill.
- Calories = 12 x your goal bodyweight, adjust weekly according to progress
- Protein = .8-1 gram per pound of bodyweight
- Carbs = 100-150 grams per day, more on weightlifting days, less on HIIT days, and even less on rest days
- Fat = the remainder of the calories once you’ve subtracted protein and carbs from total calories
The Routines
Click here to see this workout routine customized for women.
Full Body Routine For Men
Day 1:
5 minute initial warmup
a) Quads - Barbell back squats
reps: 5/5/5/5
b1) Chest - Incline dumbbell press
reps: 7/7/7
b2) Calves - Standing calf raise
reps: 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
d2) Shoulders - Seated dumbbell shoulder press
reps: 10/10
e1) Triceps - Dips
reps: 5/5
e2) Abs - Reverse crunches
reps: 2 x As Many As Possible (amap)
f) Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
Day 2:
25 minutes of full body HIIT (push, pull, calisthenics, jumps, sprints, kickboxing, etc…)
Example:
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of push ups as fast as possible, 90 seconds of moderate-speed jump rope (6 minutes)
- 60 seconds rest
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of rowing as fast as possible, 90 seconds of squat thrusters (6 minutes)
- 60 seconds rest
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of skipping lunges as fast as possible, 90 seconds of kickboxing drills (6 minutes)
- 5 minutes of stretching
Day 3:
5 minute initial warmup
a) Chest - Flat bench press
reps: 5/5/5/5
b1) Quads - Step ups onto a bench or box holding dumbbells
reps: 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: 10/10/10
c1) Back/Hamstrings – Standing bent over barbell 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
d2) Biceps - Standing alternating dumbbell curls
reps: 10/10
e1) Hamstrings - Glute-ham raise
reps: 10/10
e2) Abs - Fold ups
reps: 2 sets x amap
f)Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
Notes:
the glute-ham raise – lock your heels under something with the instep of your foot facing down and, starting upright with your thighs perpendicular to the floor, lower your upper body forward and down towards the floor then use your hamstrings to pull yourself back upright.
Day 4:
25 minutes of lower body HIIT (jumps, sprints, etc…)
Example:
- 5 sets – 30 seconds of sprinting, 90 seconds of jogging/walking (10 minutes)
- 60 seconds rest
- 2 sets – 30 seconds of rapid squat jumps, 90 seconds of moderate-speed bodyweight squats (4 minutes)
- 30 seconds rest
- 2 sets – 30 seconds of sprinting, 90 seconds of jogging/walking (4 minutes)
- 30 seconds rest
- 2 sets – 30 seconds of jumping rope as fast as possible, 90 seconds of jogging/walking (4 minutes)
- 5 minutes of stretching
Day 5:
5 minute initial warmup
a) Hamstrings - Deadlifts
reps: 5/5/5/5
b1) Shoulders - Standing overhead shoulder press
reps: 7/7/7
b2) Abs - Standing side bends holding dumbbells
reps: 7/7/7
c1) Quads - Alternating barbell lunges
reps: 7/7/7
c2) Chest/Triceps – Decline close grip bench
reps: 7/7/7
d1) Back/Biceps – (Weighted) close grip chin-ups
reps: 10/10
d2) Calves – One leg standing calf raise on a 2 inch block or plate holding a dumbbell
reps: 10/10
e1) Chest/Triceps - Clapping push ups
reps: 2 sets x amap
e2) Abs - Sit ups with straight punch
reps: 2 sets x amap
f) Stretch all your muscles for 10 minutes while sipping your post-workout drink.
Day 6:
25 minutes of full body HIIT (push, pull, calisthenics, jumps, sprints, kickboxing, etc…)
Example:
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of bodyweight rows as fast as possible, 90 seconds of jumping jacks (6 minutes)
- 60 seconds rest
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of bodyweight step-ups as fast as possible, 90 seconds of kickboxing drills (6 minutes)
- 60 seconds rest
- 3 sets – 30 seconds of explosive push ups (clapping, up onto a box, etc…), 90 seconds of moderate-speed walking lunges (6 minutes)
- 5 minutes of stretching
Day 7:
Completely off, no exercise at all.
Men’s Full Body Fat Loss Workout Log
Now you can print out your workout log using this Excel spreadsheet:
Men’s Full Body Fat Loss Workout Log
Step #1 Acai Berry Detox Get a Free Trial or Buy a Full Bottle
Step #2 Colon Cleanse Get a Free Trial or Buy a Full Bottle
Step #3 Fat Loss Routine: full body fat loss for men or full body fat loss for women
Step #1 Xtreme NO (Nitric Oxide) Get a Free Trial or Buy a Full Bottle
Step #2 HGH Energizer Get a Free Trial or Buy a Full Bottle
Step #3 Werewolf Training Routine: for building muscle or for building strength
Project Swole is managed and mostly written by Steve, a formerly IFPA and ISSA certified personal trainer and sport nutritionist, who has been studying, practicing, and experimenting with fitness and nutrition since 1992. Please use the content at Project Swole to supplement the advice of your doctor or physician. All medical questions should be directed towards a qualified medical professional, and the advice provided at Project Swole should be used at your own discretion.
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Related posts:
- Fat Loss for Women: A 7 Day Full Body Routine Plus HIIT
- A Generic Full Body Workout Routine
- Critique My Full Body Workout Routine
- HIIT Video: High Intensity Interval Training
- What is HIIT – High Intensity Interval Training – And How Should You Use It?
Tags: Conditioning, fat loss, full body, hiit, lose fat, lose weight, weight loss, Weight Training, weightlifting, workout routine, Workout Routines
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Hi! I have got a question!
The HIIT part is just the cardio day? (I mean, day 2, 4 and 6)? or I have to do the super-sets in an interval of time? (like the intermediate program that has to be done in 10 seconds and then you have to do 2 giant-sets)…
Thank you! The plan looks very good, and this site is the one who has helped me a lot!
Regards.
All the time constrains are on the page. Just do the 3 sets of each super-set with the prescribed rest, then move onto the next super-set.
Hi Steve
Do you think it is a good idea to do 20 mins of cardio the days of full body routine and the days of cardio to do tabata training for 16 minutes?
I want to loss weight as much as possible.
i’ve got last 20 pounds.
So, thank u!
what is a alternative for the HIIT for jump roping if you dont know how to jump rope, and what is an alternative to the kickboxing drills , because there isnt space at the gym for this
please help
Choose any cardio exercise. Sprints, tabata squats, or any other exercise that you can do really fast with a lighter weight. As an alternative to kickboxing drills, simple use explosive plyometric movements like clapping push ups, box jumps, squat thrusters, etc…
if you are 10 pounds under weight and have more fat than muscle, would you still reccomend this program
Depends on your percent body fat. If you have high bodyfat of more than 20% then you could stand to get down to 15% bodyfat if you want, but if your bodyfat is less than 20% now and you are under weight, then maybe you should work on adding some muscle first.
So is this the program for me if I want to loose fat and gain some muscle? I’m tempted to just do the werewolf for muscle and do some cardio on my own, what do you think?
Go for it. Either option should work.
jw why is it the one customized for women has more reps?
Women typically respond better to a slightly higher rep range, and they are more likely to adopt a routine that uses higher reps, only because they think they will get too big if they lift heavy weights. This is a myth, but many women refuse to believe that it is not true.
Thank you. And how many weeks would you say this should be done in a row? Because in the werewolf workout you say that every third day should be taken off so you aren’t overworked. this one is 6 days a week and i dont want to overwork myself too much to where it does more damage than good.
With this workout, you’re only doing half hour HIIT sessions every other day, which are not as taxing as the upper body and lower body workouts in Werewolf Training. That being said, you can probably use this routine for 6 weeks or so, then maybe do one week with only the resistance training workouts, or only the HIIT workouts, or just take a full active recovery week. Then repeat.
Hi, I want to lose body fat, im 5’11″ and weigh 13 stone, do you recommend this program, my main goal is muscle and definition ( like everyone i guess) but more than anything want that 6/8 pack.
Any Tips would be greatly appriciated
Regards,
Ant
Losing weight takes dedication to diet.
i am a beginner in lifting weights and cardio and i looked over all these exercises and i cant do a lot of them. should i just keep working out until i can or do something else?
I need some helpwhat would be the best time to eat carbs on each one of the days
Before and after a workout is the best time to eat carbs. If you are trying to lose fat, avoid carbs before bed and don’t overeat carbs for breakfast either, unless you workout in the morning. Also avoid carbs on non-workout days, keep it under 100 grams.
hi. i’m 6″ and 14 stone. i got some good mucels in my arms but i’m a little chubby round the stomach. i just want to lose some weight. would this do the trick?
This will do the trick, but you also need to eat healthy and train with intensity.
MY QUESTION IS WITH THE DIET!
WHEN YOU SAY SUBTRACT EVERYTHING TO GET THE QUANTITY OF FATS IS THAT THE AMOUNT WE INTAKE?
Hello! I’m just curious… 2 sets of 10 reps is enough for fat loss? I mean, I did like 6 sets of 12 reps before with supersets and I would like to switch on this routine but my question is that enough for fat loss. I have really strict diet and would like to get 150% from this routine, thank you Steve!
6 sets of 12 reps is overkill. You need to go heavy when losing weight, in order to maintain muscle mass and strength. It is the diet and HIIT that will contribute most to the fat loss.