The 4 Day A Week Beginner's Workout
If you're a beginner who is just looking to get started with your workout program plan, it's going to be important that you take some time to ensure that you are doing a workout that is going to help you successfully reach the goals that you have set.
A four day workout is a great start for a beginner as it will still provide ample time off during the week for rest and allow you to specialize more on specific muscle groups compared to a full body workout set-up.
Let's look at what this four day a week beginners workout consists of.
The Split -
First, we'll be using an upper/lower body split for this workout, meaning you'll perform one upper body workout one day, one lower the next, take a rest day in between and then repeat the cycle before taking the week off for complete rest and recovery.
This split works great for both beginners and more advanced trainees, so you can in fact carry it forward as you progress along, making some adjustments for added difficulty.
The Exercise Selection -
The main focus of this workout will be around compound movements since as a beginner, focusing on increasing your overall strength foundation will be key to success.
Compound exercises allow you to do this while still keeping the total volume of the workout session at a reasonable level.
We will add a few isolation exercises towards the end of the workout to fully fatigue the smaller muscle groups, while keeping total volume still in check.
Rep/Set Ranges -
Finally, your reps will be kept in the strength building rep range so that you can focus on building that strong strength base before you advance your protocol.
The sets will be kept at a moderate level as well, using 2-3 sets per exercise to avoid overtraining from setting in. You need to move slowly at this point to allow your body time to adapt to the exercise demands being placed upon it.
If at any point as you go about this workout you start to feel like you aren't recovering between sessions, reduce back on the total set number of a few exercises. Never reduce back on the weight level however as that's where your primary gains are made.
Let's look at your workout approach:
Monday
Exercise Reps Sets Rest
Squats 8 2 60 seconds
Deadlifts 8 2 60 seconds
Lunges 10 2 60 seconds
Seated Calf Raise 12 2 30 seconds
Standing Calf Raise 12 2 30 seconds
Plank Hold 30 second hold 2 30 seconds
Tuesday
Exercise Reps Sets Rest
Chest Press 8 2 60 seconds
Bent Over Rows 8 2 60 seconds
Shoulder Press 10 2 60 seconds
Bicep Curl 12 2 30 seconds
Tricep Extension 12 2 30 seconds
Wednesday Off
Thursday Reps Sets Rest
Leg Press 8 2 60 seconds
Deadlift 8 2 60 seconds
Lunges 10 2 60 seconds
Hamstring Curl 12 2 30 seconds
Bicycle 15 2 30 seconds
Supermans 15 2 30 seconds
Friday
Exercise Reps Sets Rest
Incline Chest Press 8 2 60 seconds
Pull-up 8 2 60 seconds
Shoulder Press 10 2 60 seconds
Bent Over Rows 10 2 60 seconds
Lateral Raise 12 2 30 seconds
Rear Delt Fly 12 2 30 seconds
Saturday/Sunday
Off or light cardio
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