04 DAY 01 LOWER BODY “A” DAY 01 - LOWER BODY “A” EXERCISE SETS REPS NOTES Squat 4 6-8 Feet shoulder-width apart. Toes slightly pointed out. Drive knees out. Keep a neutral head/neck. Push through heels. Grip bar tightly Leg Press 5 8-10 - Romanian Deadlift 3 6-8 Barbell or dumbbells Bulgarian Split Squat 3 8-10 As deep as possible Glute Kickbacks 4 12-15 Squeeze at top of rep Pulse Squat 3 10-15 - Standing Calf Raise 3 6-8 - Seated Calf Raise 3 20-30 - DAY 1 DAY 02 UPPER BODY “A” DAY 02 - UPPER BODY “A” EXERCISE SETS REPS NOTES Incline Dumbbell Press 4 8-10 - Cable Fly 3 10-15 Or dumbbell fly Lat Pulldown 4 8-12 - One-Arm Dumbbell Press 3 10-15 - Seated Dumbbell Press 3 8-10 - Dumbbell Lateral Raise 3 10-15 - Cable Pushdown 3 8-12 - Barbell Curl 4 8-12 - DAY 2 DAY 03 LOWER BODY “B” DAY 03 - LOWER BODY “B” EXERCISE SETS REPS NOTES Sumo Deadlift 4 6-8 Shoulder-width grip. Shins touch the bar, keep chest up. Squeeze glutes at top Hip Thrust 4 8-10 Barbell or Smith machine Walking Lunges 3 12-15 Larger strides for more glute/hamstring emphasis; shorter for more quad emphasis Lying Hamstring Curl 3 12-15 Or seated hamstring curl Close Stance Leg Press 3 10-15 Or leg extension Smith Machine Lunge 3 10-15 Elevated front foot Standing Calf Raise 3 6-8 - Seated Calf Raise 3 20-30 - DAY 3 DAY 04 TOTAL BODY DAY 04 - TOTAL BODY EXERCISE SETS REPS NOTES Bench Press 3 10 Feet shoulder-width apart. Toes slightly pointed out. Drive knees out. Keep a neutral head/neck. Push through heels. Grip bar tightly Squat 3 10-15 As deep as possible Chin-ups 3 10-15 - T-Bar Row 3 10-12 - Kettlebell Lateral Raises 3 8-12 - Reverse EZ Curl 3 8-12 - Cable Pushdowns 3 10-15 Or dumbbell fly Walking Lunges 3 12-15 Choice of kettlebells, dumbbells, or cables; can do single-arm or both together Cable Pushdowns 3 12-15 - Walking Lunges 3 8-12 - DAY 4 ABS “A” | “B” | “C” ABS - “A” “B” “C” EXERCISE SETS REPS Rope Crunch 3 15 Hanging Knee Raise 3 RPE 10 Plate Twist 3 20 -30 EXERCISE SETS REPS Crunch Machine 3 15 Hanging Leg Raise 3 RPE 10 Cable Twist 3 10 -20 EXERCISE SETS REPS Weighted Hanging Knee Raise 3 10-15 Decline Crunch 3 15-20 Decline Plate Twist 3 20-30 ABS FAQ HOW SHOULD I TRACK PROGRESSION DURING THIS PROGRAM? During this time, the goal is to lose as much body fat as possible, while retaining your existing muscle mass. This means you should be in a caloric deficit. While it’s natural to see some loss in strength during a fat loss phase, you still want to prioritize lifting as heavy as possible throughout the coming weeks. Progression can be seen in the following ways: - Lifting more weight. - Lifting the same weight, but completing more reps. - Improving your form/technique with a certain weight. It is important to remember that you will not set personal records each workout, and again, it is natural (and expected) to lose some strength while you get deeper into a cut. HOW SHOULD I ORGANIZE MY REST DAYS? CAN I REORGANIZE MY TRAINING DAYS? Definitely! The organization of these sessions is not set in stone. You have a fair bit of autonomy with how you can organize your training. Feel free to arrange your workouts so that you’re prioritizing weaker muscles first. Personally, I feel my back needs the most attention, and that’s why I have my Pull workouts at the beginning of each rotation. As far as rest days go, I typically choose to auto-regulate mine, meaning I take a rest day when I feel I need one. I do not recommend this approach for most people, especially beginners and intermediate lifters. I highly recommend taking at least one complete rest day per week meaning a day with no lifting or cardio. FAQ I FEEL LIKE I CAN HANDLE MORE VOLUME. CAN I ADD IN EXTRA SETS? As long as doing so doesn’t impede your ability to recover or drastically harm the strength in your lifts, you can absolutely increase the volume. With that said, keep in mind that there is a limit to how much volume is beneficial - if you’re consistently completing more than 20 sets weekly on a muscle you’re training twice per week, you may want to consider lowering the volume and increasing the frequency (training the muscle more frequently). Gauge how you personally feel. You’ll find sets ranging from as low as 2, and as high as 5 in this program. I have days where, if a particular exercise is feeling great, I may end up completing an extra 1 or 2 sets than I originally allotted - when this happens, I’ll take away sets from another exercise for the same muscle. Again, feel free to adjust the volume of these workouts to your particular liking. HOW LONG SHOULD I REST IN BETWEEN SETS? Generally speaking, I recommend taking 3-5 minutes rest between compound movements, and 1-2 minutes rest between isolation movements. With that said, ideal rest time will vary from person to person, from workout to workout (especially the further you are into your deficit). I recommend performing your set when you feel adequately recovered, and confident that you’ll be able to lift the most amount of weight with proper form for your designated rep range. Remember, these are not concrete rules, but rather suggestions. SHOULD I TRAIN UNTIL FAILURE? For the most part, I highly recommend avoiding training to complete muscular failure. When performing compound movements, and most accessory work, I recommend aiming for the designated rep range, but racking the weight when you feel you have roughly one rep left in the tank - that is, an RPE (rate of perceived exertion) 9. By doing this, you’ll avoid overtaxing your central nervous system and allow yourself to create a greater total workload during your training sessions. With that said, training to failure on an isolation lift at the end of your workout is okay in moderation, since it will not be as taxing on your body. WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO, OR WANT TO SWAP AN EXERCISE IN THIS PROGRAM? I recommend adhering to the protocols written for compound movements as best you’re able. With that said, feel free to swap out isolation lifts with alternatives that hit the same muscle group — just be sure to keep the exercises as similar as possible to the program I’ve written. On several exercises, I’ll include a few suggestions for alternative exercises you can choose to perform instead if you’d prefer. (For example, if you’d rather perform an incline dumbbell fly rather than an incline cable fly, that’s totally fine.) Proper form should always be priority one, so I’ve included a few basic tips on the compound movements in this program too. By no means are they exhaustive, though, so if you’re looking to improve your form, continue researching online — there is no shortage of tutorials, walkthroughs, and checklists you can use to make sure you’re executing these movements correctly. FAQ WHAT IF I MISS A WORKOUT? If you’re unable to work out for one day, do not stress. Simply pick up from where you left off and resume the program from there. I want to emphasize that these workouts are by no means assigned to specific days of the week — rather, they are a continuous rotation. SHOULD I INCORPORATE DELOAD WEEKS? HOW OFTEN SHOULD I TRAIN ABS? When you’ve been consistently training heavy, eventually, you will encounter a few consecutive days where you feel weak, exhausted, unmotivated, etc. When this happens, you can take a deload week, or take a few days off from the gym. I recommend training abs 2-3 times per week. With the abs workouts I’ve given you, complete 3 sets of each exercise and then move on to the following movement — or, complete each exercise for one set, take a small break, and repeat in a circuit fashion. A deload will help your central nervous system recover, reduce your risk of injury, and allow you to recover both mentally and physically. To perform a deload, you’ll follow the same workout routine, but cut your sets in half and decrease the working weight you were last using by 50-60%. If you’d rather take a few days off from the gym instead, I’d recommend 3-4. You can take a bit longer if you’d like, but I recommend no more than 5-6. I recommend training abs on the days that you have the most energy at the end of your workout. Abs training doesn’t have to be complicated — you can choose to alternate the routines I’ve included, or follow one indefinitely. Typically, deloads are needed more frequently when in a caloric deficit, so be sure to monitor the way you’re feeling after 4-5 weeks, and don’t push yourself too hard if you’re starting to feel really fatigued. FAQ HOW LONG SHOULD I FOLLOW THIS PROGRAM? This program does not have a set time limit. You can follow this program for as long as you’re in your deficit — as long as you’re enjoying your split, and find that you’re progressing, I recommend sticking with it. HOW MUCH CARDIO SHOULD I BE DOING? Cardio is a tool that I recommend using to further your caloric deficit, but it should not be the emphasis of your fat loss phase. Your top priorities should still be on nutrition (eating in a deficit) and resistance training. With that said, I would recommend starting with one low-intensity steady state (LISS) session of around 250-300 calories, and one high intensity interval training (HIIT) session. More cardio can be added as needed, although I recommend experimenting to find the balance between food and cardio that works best for you. For example, if you prefer to keep your food intake maximized, you can add in an extra 1-2 sessions over the coming weeks as necessary. However, if you’d rather keep cardio to a minimum, I would recommend gradually reducing your food intake to further your caloric deficit. Again, work towards finding the sweet spot that works best for you and your lifestyle. Here’s an example of a LISS session: Choose a machine (StairMaster, incline treadmill, stationary bike, or elliptical), and adjust the intensity to get your heart rate to around 128-140 BPM. Once you’ve achieved your target heart rate, continue until you’ve burned the amount of calories desired. Here’s an example of a HIIT session: - Warm up for 5 minutes Sprint for 20 seconds Power walk for 40 seconds Repeat this 20/40 split 10 times Cool down jog for 2-3 minutes Again, this is an example — you are not obligated to do sprints. You can use any cardio machine you’d like, or any high intensity activity like battle ropes, sled runs, or tire flips. The goal is to make sure you perform a movement that allows you to reach “max” intensity, followed by a cool-down period. FAQ SHOULD I WARM UP BEFORE TRAINING? Absolutely. I highly recommend taking a few minutes to warm up before each session. This should not be intense work that drains you of energy before your workout - rather, simple movements that aid in getting your blood flowing and muscle fibers primed and ready to work. Essentially, I want you making sure that your heart rate is up and your muscles aren’t going into your workout cold. If you want to spend a few minutes on an incline treadmill, elliptical, StairMaster, or even play some basketball, feel free to do so. I also recommend performing dynamic stretches pertaining to the muscles you’ll be training that day. If you have access to a foam roller, a softball, or lacrosse ball, I recommend spending time releasing any muscles or areas that are feeling tight or sore beforehand. A simple example to follow could be 5 minutes on a treadmill, followed by 2-3 light sets of the first exercise you’re going to perform that day. After completing these, I recommend performing another 2-3 acclimation sets - these are sets that ready your muscle fibers for the heavy working sets that are about to follow. Gradually increase the weight with each set, stopping short of the weight you’ll use for your first working set. Again, these are not your working sets, and should not be heavy enough to drain you of energy or undermine your working sets that follow. Here’s a protocol you can use to determine the weight you should use on your acclimation sets: SET PERCENTAGE AND REPS 1 JUST THE BAR FOR 15-20 REPS 2 50 % FOR 10 REPS 3 70 % FOR 4 REPS 4 90 % FOR 2 REPS HOW DO I KNOW IF I’M MAKING PROGRESS? Remember, since you’re in a caloric deficit, strength gains are unlikely. As a fat loss phase, progress is going to be visual, so gauge what you see in the mirror and on the scale. When in a fat loss phase, I weigh myself each morning. When tracking my progress for a week, I like to take the average of my week’s weight and compare it to the week prior. For men, I recommend aiming for a roughly 1-2 pound loss per week. For women, 05.-1 pound is ideal. FAQ WHAT SHOULD MY NUTRITION LOOK LIKE DURING THIS PROGRAM? I’ve been an advocate of flexible dieting for years, and it’s the approach I continue to take to my nutrition to this day. As a rule of thumb, I recommend aiming to get 80-90% of your macros from whole foods, leaving yourself some room for foods that may be considered less “macro-friendly” — essentially, the more indulgent foods you may crave most often. Finding ways to keep yourself satiated and satisfy your cravings will help you stay consistent throughout your cut. As far as supplements go, all I recommend is fish oil, a multivitamin, and creatine monohydrate (5 grams per day for men, 3-4 grams per day for women). I also recommend drinking a gallon of water daily. An extremely common mistake made with beginners and intermediates is starting a fat loss phase too aggressively — that is, overdoing cardio and starting with their macros too low. This will put you at a higher risk for losing some lean body mass along the way. Taking this process slowly is a far more effective route — the results may take longer, but it will help preserve your muscle, and lower your chance of burning out. To begin, I recommend starting with a 250-300 calorie deficit. Gauge your progress, and when the scale starts to stall for 2 weeks or more, subtract another 100 calories. WHEN SHOULD I HAVE A REFEED DAY? The frequency for refeed days can vary from person to person, but a refeed every 10 days or so is a useful technique to boost your energy and help continue progress in a fat loss phase. The deeper into your cut you are, a weekly refeed may be best. On a refeed day, I like to drop my protein intake to 1 gram per pound of bodyweight, lower fat by around 5 grams, and increase carbs by 150-200 grams. FAQ
