The End Of The Ultimate Weight Training Workout Routine

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If you’re reading this, then it appears you’ve made it all the way to the end of my guide to creating The Ultimate Weight Training Workout Routine. Nice!

At this point, I have just 5 things left to say.

1. Congrats!

First of all… congratulations are in order.

You’ve now learned more about weight training, program design, and how to get the results you want than the majority of the population will ever learn in their lifetime. So… congrats on that!

2. Put It To Use!

I hope you liked the guide and actually use what you’ve learned.

Because honestly, reading and learning and understanding are great and all, but the only way it’s truly going to work is if you actually put it into action. So… do that.

3. But Wait, There’s MORE!

Believe it or not, I still have a ton of information to share with you.

While this guide was pretty damn comprehensive, there’s actually plenty of stuff that I purposely left out, skipped over, or didn’t think fit right within this guide.

Stuff about weight training, cardio, diet and nutrition, supplements, building muscle, losing fat, increasing strength and performance, improving health, and much more.

And I’ll be sharing all of it right here on a regular basis. To make sure you never miss any of it, you can subscribe for free, and also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

4. More Workouts To Choose From!

Even though I just covered how to create your own workout routine, I’ve realized that many people want something more.

More what? More proven workouts to choose from that I designed myself and have been using with my coaching clients for years with amazing results.

They are now all included as part of my Superior Muscle Growth program.

Feel free to check it out.

5. Give Me Your Feedback!

And last but not least, I want to hear your feedback. In fact, I want 3 different kinds of feedback.

  1. First, I want to know what you thought of the guide.
    I want to know what you liked best, what section was most useful, what you wish I covered in more detail or explained better, what you felt was missing (if anything), and basically just your thoughts and opinions on the guide itself.
  2. Second, I want to answer your questions.
    If you had any questions about any aspect of weight training, creating your routine, reaching your specific goal (building muscle, increasing strength, losing fat, etc.), the sample workouts or anything else while reading any part of this guide, email me here and ask. I will answer. Also be sure to check out the nearly 3000 comments below this post. Most questions have already been asked/answered at this point.
  3. Third, I want to hear how well it’s working for you.
    Once you start using the information contained in this guide, guess what’s going to happen? You’re going to start getting the results you want. Sounds good, huh? Trust me… it is. And when that starts happening for you, I want to hear all about it. So, email me and let me know.

The End

Well, that’s about it.

I hope you liked the guide (and if you did, be sure to tell your friends about it) and I hope you actually use what you’ve learned from it.

I also hope you subscribe for free, because I plan on writing similarly awesome and useful guides in the future.

And again, if you have any questions, comments, feedback, or just want to tell me how well it’s working for you, email me here.

Enjoy your results.

(This article is part of a completely free guide to creating the best workout routine possible for your exact goal. It starts here: The Ultimate Weight Training Workout Routine)

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
About Jay
Jay is the science-based writer and researcher behind everything you've seen here. He has 15+ years of experience helping thousands of men and women lose fat, gain muscle, and build their "goal body." His work has been featured by the likes of Time, The Huffington Post, CNET, Business Week and more, referenced in studies, used in textbooks, quoted in publications, and adapted by coaches, trainers, and diet professionals at every level.

2,735 thoughts on “The End Of The Ultimate Weight Training Workout Routine”

2,735 Comments

  1. Say someone used steroids for a month and gained 10lbs of muscle with proper diet/training. Then they stopped training for 1 year due to injuries. If they came back to the gym with proper diet and training, this time without using steroids, would they be able to regain all that lost muscle while on steroids?

  2. I loved this. The way you broke everything down in easy to understand language. Some I have seem you either need to have been weight training for years or do so much research just to understand what the author is saying. The way you broke everything down makes me feel comfortable making my own program now. Due to various issues I am unable to do most pre-made programs. So thank you very much. I shall be making up my program and sticking to it and will report back in a while.

  3. Hi there! And many thanks for a great site with very useful information. I’ve been following your beginners program upper/lower to the point for almost 8 months with great results. Now I feel ready to take it up a notch with your muscle building program: https://www.aworkoutroutine.com/the-muscle-building-workout-routine/

    I noticed you do not have the original deadlift anywhere in this program, instead there is only the Romanian version. What’s the reason for excluding the normal deadlift and can I fit it in somewhere? (The reason I’m asking is because it has become my favourite exercise)

  4. Can’t say thank you enough for this! Between transitioning from the military lifestyle (beer, energy drinks, pizza, and excessive cardio) to the civilian life (very similar to the military lifestyle, just minus the cardio) in 2013 and having a daughter in 2014, I found about 50lbs that some moron misplaced. Have shelled out desperate and shameful amounts of time and money on gyms, diets, and workout plans that just left me cranky, hungry, and/or injured. I love how no-bs, customizable, and informative this entire program/site is and have been referring it to every sucker that complains about eating salad and running for hours a week on a treadmill. Keep up the fantastic work.

  5. Thank you so much and I am so happy that I’ve stumbled onto your website. I have been working out with dumbbells for about a year, but was not happy the results. I knew I was doing something wrong, but didn’t know what until I found this site!!! I am starting your program tomorrow, but I will do the cardio cause I really love doing it.

  6. Hi Jay
    40 yr old male, following your intermediate schedule (with outstanding arms) for a few months now.

    My routine is:

    Monday intermediate routine ‘A’ (minus biceps/triceps)
    Tuesday – rest with some cardio
    Wednesday intermediate routine (legs plus arms routine from “outstanding arms”)
    Tuesday – rest with some cardio
    Friday – intermediate routine ‘B’ (minus biceps/triceps)
    SAT– rest
    Sunday – rest

    The problem is my arms don’t seem to be growing. Do you think I am overtraining my arms given that they get worked Wednesday (as primary muscle) and Monday+Friday (as secondary muscles)?

    Thanks

  7. I was about to pay big money for a personal trainer at my gym when TODAY I came across your website. I am now convinced that this program is “by far” the most easy to understand and doable plan I have ever seen. I am starting Monday (headed out of town or I would start tomorrow.) A few questions about diet or food intake….do you limit or avoid sugar? I see that YOU eat white carbs….and that it’s because you have issues with digestion, do you have IBS or crohns? Just curious! I want to eat sensibly and to best promote muscle growth. I am almost 50!

    • Glad to hear it Ginger!

      Regarding sugar, I don’t eat tons of it on a regular basis, but I definitely do still eat moderate amounts of it on a moderate basis. It’s just kept to a small yet still enjoyable portion of my diet.

      And nope, no IBS or Crohns.

  8. Hi, what if I wanted to add dips somewhere in the workout?
    Should I add it ? And if yes, where ?

  9. Firstly, I love how straightforward you are. This guide was fantastically comprehensive and I learned answers to questions I didn’t even know I had. One question I’m left with is why is a barbell flat bench press recommended over dumbbells? Many times at my gym the racks are occupied and I’m left to use dumbbells.
    Thanks for all the information!

  10. Hello AWorkoutRoutine,

    Thanks for sharing all this stuff. The maim theme I seem to be taking away here is hit muscles 2x a week. So, would a Push/pull/legs/off (non-weekly 8 day) cycle work just as well, if not better?

      • Sure.

        So, a particular week would look like: M- Chest/shoulders/tris, Tues- Legs, Weds- back/bi, Thurs- off, Fri- chest/shoulder/tris, Sat- legs, Sun- back/bis… Then the following Monday would be off.

        Like a non-weekly cycle. Always doing push day, legs day, pull day, off day.

        So you’d essentially be training muscles 2x a week, only you could perhaps hit them with more intensity instead of having all upper muscles hit in one session.

        What do you think?

        • Weight training 6 days per week, with 3 consecutive workouts happening twice during each week, is more than a lot of people will be able to handle or at least optimally recover from. Some people can definitely do well with it though, but many people won’t which is why it’s not my preferred version of push/pull/legs and why this version is.

  11. Hello
    The guide is great and everything but it wasn’t very clear regarding:
    The pre-workout meal, if I wake up say at 6 and be at the gym at 8, should I eat a normal meal at about 7?

    How long should I abide by the simple beginner ABA schedule? Should I not add stuff to it as I progress?

  12. Great site – really loved how you explained it in an accessible way.

    I’ve been starting doing gym work for 2 months now. I’m looking to start a 5×5 / Starting Strength type routine – and the benefit of doing full body 3 times a week is appealing. My question is – would it be viable to do a routine where it’s always 2 days off between routines? Primarily as my legs seem to be better with 2 days off than 1. Would you still be seeing a benefit, or is it better to just keep the weight lower for the legs, and keep the 3 times a week Mon Wed Fri pattern?

    Wk 1 Mon, Thurs, Sun
    Wk 2 Wed, Sat,
    Wk 3 Tues, Fri

  13. Jay, just want to say great no BS, straight to the point site about getting “tone!” But really, great site on over all body improvement. I’ve done the gym thing for 6 months or so at a time 3-4 times over the last 10 years. I currently just finished the muscle and fitness 2016 6 week beginners guide that basically follows an upper, lower, cardio, upper, lower routine Mon-Fri with sat/sun off.

    My question is since I’m still in the beginner phase can I start with your version 1 beginner workout now? I, like most, feel like version 2 is a little more my thing but if version 1 will continue to get me gains then that’s what i’ll do. Also any cardio at all during the off days or are they truly off days, what about sauna?

    Great site and thanks!

      • Hey Jay,
        I understand that sauna usage just causes temporary water loss, however I was wondering whether or not my workout is affected by 10-15 min in the sauna BEFORE my beginner workout routine?

  14. Hey Jay,

    Can too much protein powder be bad for you… like cause damage to your kidneys/liver? I eat 250g of protein everyday, 125g from protein powder. I know too much protein isnt bad, but just wondering if the powder is.

  15. Hi Friend,
    Really very educating and practical guide.
    As a beginner, as per definition, i am going to follow the Second 3 day plan.
    Can you please guide me as under:
    1. I prefer to workout in night, after 9 pm. Is it ok?
    2. How do i keep my diet perfectly in plan as i sleep for 7 hrs after exercise, i.e. from 12-7 am?
    3. I understand my calorie requirement. And i feel my protein/carbs/fats must be near 40/40/20%. Can you advise me a near-perfect diet schedule especially considering my night time exercise routine?

    Would be glad if you reply. And honestly taking your program to action.

    Regards

    • 1. Makes no difference what time you workout.

      2. As long as your totals for the day are what they need to be, you can eat during whatever hours of the day that you prefer.

      3. Makes no difference. The recommendations for someone with a more “normal” schedule are the same as someone with a less normal schedule. The totals for the day are what matter most. The timing of the consumption of those totals doesn’t matter.

  16. Hi!
    First of all, I love your guide and I greatly appreciate the effort you’ve put in it(is it proper english?). Your guide made me want to change my routine and focus on things I haven’t noticed previously. It also provided me with some sick-ass knwoledge.
    I would consider myself intermediate to advanced when it comes to training. I have 2 questions concerning the guide:

    1. I’ve read about 80% of all the things you’ve posted and the whole Ultimate Guide (in about 2 days becouse it grasped my attention so heavily) and I haven’t found much about TUT, especially when it comes to ECCENTRIC training, by that I mean focusing on some sort of slowdowns. Could you say something about it? What do you think about it? Impacts strength or muscles more significantly?

    2. When it comes to my training I love to do chin-ups(I can’t give them up). In the same workout I also do bicep curls, becouse I think chin-ups will not overload bicep as much as they should. Knowing they both target bicep one way or another, how can I provide my bicep with enough of an overload in the same time not going over the 60 reps/bicep per week threshold?
    Currently I’m redesigning my routine, but before I used to do 34 reps of chin-ups with wieght belt and later 24 curls per arm in one workout. Any advice?

    I love how you sometimes get little salty and bust those stupid workout myths. 😀

    Best regards,
    SFSC

  17. Hi first of all thank you so much for the guide. It really opened my eyes. I’ve been doing weight training+cardio on my own and probably for fat loss. I’m not obese and my current goal is just to become a little bit leaner (well to lose some fat around belly & thighs yet I know there’s no partial fat loss). I usually do weight training 4 days a week and randomly add in cardio for 20 minutes or less. I’ve been doing it for the past three month and I lost 5 pounds, but starting from last month I increased the intensity of cardio as well as time, but my weight hasn’t decreased at all. I’ve been eating around 1300 calories per day. And I wonder if that’s a sign of cardio being counterproductive. Cuz you didn’t mention if being counterproductive will have effect on fat loss instead of not getting enough recovery for muscle, so I would like to know more about the connection between the two. Would you recommend cut of cardio completely for a week and just to see how my body react?

    • I’m not really sure I understand what you’re asking (and please correct me if I’m wrong)… but if it’s “can doing cardio prevent weight loss?” the answer is nope.

  18. Hey,

    You have saved me from doing the one muscle group per week routine. Great web site my man.

    I just have a quick question, I was told I could work on core/abs everyday. After reading your mind, this appears to not be true.

    What are your thoughts?

    Kirk

  19. quick q – for an intermediate routine follower, when “cutting” would you say the rate of weight loss should be the same as what was the rate of gain during “bulking”

    thanks

  20. Jay,

    What a great guide. I read this end to end last Friday – just couldn’t stop!. I liked the brutal honesty about not being able to ‘target’ where fat loss occurs and having to force the body to do something beyond the norm to stimulate a change.
    The guide was really well written and clear.

    Thanks.

  21. Brilliant! Exactly what I needed as a brand new beginner. I am currently at the end phase of rehab for tendonitis in my left rotator cuff though. So I’m trying to figure out how to work around that when I begin training, which will be 4th week, May 2016. The other thing I’m doing is researching proper form/technique for the beginner program exercises. If your books do this I will buy them.

    This guide is everything I needed, and thanks very much.

    Chris Maurer
    Detroit, MI

    • Awesome to hear it, Chris!

      Regarding proper form, my book touches on this subject (and gives some links to check out for videos of each exercise), but it doesn’t go in depth to actually explain form within the book itself.

  22. I have a few questions about progression ? In the guide you say to increase weight when you hit your rep goal of 6-8 reps so for example..3 sets would look like this

    set 1 – 8 reps
    set 2 – 7 reps
    set 3- 6 reps

    My first question is are we suppose to leave a rep in the tank on all 3 sets when following this example ?

    My next question is..what do you do when you reach the point where you can no longer add reps to any set of an exercise ?

      • Thank you..But I have few more ? for you now

        Is this the best way to do progression ?

        Is the Method of progression for beginners – Intermediates-or advanced trainers ?

        Do you teach other ways of progression in your book ?

        Thanks
        Phil

          • Thanks again..so this is a basic progression and your book will teach me a better way to progress as far as adding weight to the bar correct..I am about to buy and just want to make sure because this is a problem for me at the moment.

  23. If you need to do 30 to 60 reps per workout for a large body part group will doing 60 get you bigger than 30 reps? and thank you so much for all this info you gave us really its the best workout program I have ever seen very neat and orderly also.

    • It depends on the person. One person may benefit from the additional volume, while someone else with poorer recovery capabilities and volume tolerance will see worse results from additional volume. That’s why the routines I design tend to stay in the middle of the range.

  24. How long should I keep on the same workout routine? I’m doing the Upper/Lower Split: 4 Day Version for 3 months, and still increasing the weights progressively and seeing results.

    Should I change onto something new when I stop seeing results?

    Thank you.

    Rafael.

  25. Good evening Jay,
    Can I pick your brains reference one particular exercise namely dips?

    A number of reference points conclude that it is a superior exercise for the chest / triceps (if you forward lean or dip vertical). However, other studies conclude that taking into account the risk and reward factor this exercise is best omitted due to the high level of risk of shoulder injury. I understand that it may simply boil down to a persons individual disposition but I am looking for a scientific answer if indeed there is one!

    I would benefit (and hopefully countless others) if you could provide a definite answer. Apologies if this question is somewhat longwinded but I am English!!

    • There is no scientific answer. It’s a decent exercise just like an other similar exercise… no better or worse. It is, however, extremely problematic for a lot of people’s shoulders. If you’re one of those people, avoid it.

  26. I am an amateur basketball player so my primary goal is improving performance, specifically explosiveness, speed and jumping ability. But I have to admit that “looks” isn’t less of a priority to me.
    So here is my question:
    Considering that my performance-related goal is a matter of LOWER BODY (plus abs and lower back) strength and that, on the other hand, looks-related goals tend to emphasize on UPPER BODY muscles (chest, back, shoulders, biceps, triceps), is there a way to go for both of my goals?
    I was thinking that if i go for lower reps and higher intensity in the LOWER BODY workouts, but increase number of reps and decrease the intensity in UPPER BODY workouts I would be able to achieve both.

    Hopefully, my question won’t be very silly. Thanks in advance.

  27. Hey! I love your website. Just wondering, if I decide to do a 4 day upper/lower body split with only one set workout for upper body performed twice weekly and one set workout for lower body performed twice weekly ( rather than having A and B workouts), would it be just as effective ?

  28. Hi Jay,

    First off I’d like to say you have a very informative, accurate website and I tell everyone that “a workout routine” should be their go to resource for any training advise!

    I’ve trained off and on for 6 years but since following your full body beginner routine (for 9 months) I’ve seen my best results. In your routine you emphasise “don’t screw with it” – so I’m wondering what additional workout advice superior muscle growth contains that your beginner workout omits? Or is it only for intermediate / advanced trainees?

    P.s. I’m just about to purchase it anyway, because if your website is anything to go by, the book is going to be gold too!

    Thanks!

    • This easiest way to answer this question is to tell you to simply buy the book, spend a couple of weeks looking through it, and see for yourself. If you don’t feel it was worth buying, just send me an email and I’ll give you a full refund.

  29. First of all, congrats on writing the most comprehensive workout plan I’ve ever read in my life! I was oblivious to almost half of the things you said on this website. Now, I just can’t wait to put all my new knowledge to use at the gym. But I have one small question. So I picked your second workout plan (3 days a week) and I was wondering if I could add 1:30 to 2 hrs of swimming on tuesday, thursday, and saturday. I really want to get some swimming done because I’m going to be a junior on my swim team next year so I need to train hard. So would adding swimming be all right or would it hinder my overall muscle gaining results? The reason why I’m asking this is because I know that swimming is more than just cardio. It uses up a lot of muscles. If it was just cardio, then I know that I’ll be fine cuz I read your other site on off days.

    Thanks

  31. I have been thinking that it just might be best to use a certain weight for an exercise like say 200 pounds for the bench press and just keep using that weight until the the last rep of the last set is easy..example

    set 1 200 x 8 …the weight is easy last few reps
    set 2 200 x 8…the weight is still easy but not as easy as the first
    Set 3 200 x 8…the weight is starting to feel a little more difficult on the last few reps
    set 4 200 x 8 ..the weight was a challenge on the last few reps of the set
    set 5 200 x 8…the weight was a real challenge on the last 2 reps.

    Then add just enough weight to make the last few reps set of the last set tough again ..then just keep using that weight until it is easy to lift on the last set again.

    Let me know what you think about this approach please ?

  33. Jay, before my question, I want to echo the positive comments on this website! As an engineer/tech guy, having a clear set of criteria in which to judge the safety and efficacy of a workout program is Nirvana! You also have a great writing style! I only wish I would have stumbled on to this site 2 years ago!

    Now the question:

    I have been using free weights for the past few years. Recently, I have started experiencing severe attacks of vertigo. I became a little nervous about the risk of having twice my weight on my back when an attack would occur. In addition, as I pretty much fall to the ground on the attack, any weight above me is going to be dangerous. To help mitigate this, after some research, including consulting with my MDs, I purchase a functional trainer (cable machine).

    I’m looking for resources that will help me get the most from my FT. I was wondering if you have programs in your books that would help someone who wanted to stay primarily with a Functional Trainer or cable machine rather than free weights. This was part of the deal with my wife letting me get the machine, as we don’t have room for both at this point. 🙂

    Thanks in advance!

    • Glad to hear it!

      As for your question, your body doesn’t really know equipment. It just knows the progressive tension, fatigue and damage stimulus it is receiving, and that stimulus can be provided effectively with free weights, machines, cables, body weight and so on.

      • Thanks for the quick reply. I think the heart of my question is how easy is it to adapt a free weight program to a Functional Trainer? Do you have recommendations on making those kinds of modifications either in here or in your books?

        • It will basically be a matter of replacing a chest press with another chest press, a row with another row, etc. etc. etc. using whatever equipment you have available.

  34. Hey, thanks for the great info on this site. I’ve been doing the muscle building routine and have 2 questions:

    1.) Do you ever deload on this program? Say the set and rep scheme is 3×6-8 and you keep getting 5,5,5 or something like that. Do you ever deload or keep hammering at it and increasing reps/weight?

    2.) How long do people usually run the muscle building program?

  35. I am re-reading SMG and at the part where there is a link to pictures of body fat %, do you flex your abs or just stand there straight to compare your own body fat %? I have sort of a gut when I stand normally, but when I flex my abs (stomach goes in) I can see my 6 pack.

    Btw, what is your body fat %? 😀

  36. Forgive me if I sound stupid but what is the point of weight training for an overweight person if the #1 requirement for weight loss is a caloric deficit?

    Besides burning calories and using your muscles, what purpose does weight training have? Time and time again I hear people suggest to a person trying to lose weight to “just go to the gym” and no mention of a caloric deficit.

    • An overweight person beginning weight training for the first time to will capable of building muscle while losing weight (and, at the very least, weight training is playing a crucial role in maintaining muscle while losing fat).

  37. I’ve been following your intermediate routine for nearly 2 years now… but have maintained my weight at 140lbs. I was hardly ever in a caloric surplus but was getting stronger. Now I am focusing on building muscle. Would you categorize my “caloric partitioning” as a beginner or intermediate?

  38. First off let me say that I found all the information you provided to be SO HELPFUL! I thought I was done (doing my own research) & ready to get to work but I honestly learned a lot. One thing I notice though is that you haven’t really elaborated on cardio. On other websites, I got that cardio should be done on non-weight/strength training days and should be done three days out of the week. I am classified as a beginner and working out 6 days out of the week is possible for me. My questions are: is what I read true; that I should separate cardio & weight/strength training days & if so, how many days out the week should I do cardio?

    • Cardio can be done whenever you want, really. I find off days from weight training to be the ideal spot, though. I also find it to be overrated and completely optional in terms of body composition goals (fat loss, muscle growth, etc.).

      As for how much cardio to do, read this and this.

  39. Hi Jay,
    Male, 40 year old, have been following the intermediate routine for about 2 years now.

    Have seen very good gains on shoulders and back. Of course your intermediate routine focuses pretty heavily on back. As a result my shoulders are broad and in fact I don’t want them getting any broader else I will look short.

    Chest continues to lag though. So I am asking your opinion on one of the 2 below:

    1. I can follow the current routine — but not go any heavier weights on shoulders/back…meanwhile try and go heavier on chest.
    2. I can alter the routine to focus more on chest (include more sets and reps), and reduce the sets/reps on back/shoulders – while still going HEAVIER weights on all parts.

    Given my situation, which one would you prefer?

    Much thanks!!

    • If you’re happy with your back and shoulders and don’t want to progress any further, setting them at maintenance (not trying to progress, optionally reducing volume slightly but maintaining intensity/strength) and only progressing with chest (and whatever else) would be the way to do it. You can also switch the chest and shoulder exercise placement in Upper B so chest comes first and shoulders come later.

  40. Awesome site! I am loving all of the information and time and detail that you have put into this stuff! I just purchased “The Best Workout Routines”, and will definitely be going through it to maybe tweak my routine that was built for my by a personal trainer.

    One suggestion for you! I think it would be cool to have

    “The Ultimate Weight Training Workout Routine”

    available as a PDF file that can be downloaded and saved. I think it would be awesome to be able to save the entire guide in one spot, and not have to visit the site all the time, and find the individual links……

    Just a thought. And, since it has a lot of awesome information, I will say up front that I wouldn’t mind paying a small fee for a downloadable PDF version (although “FREE” would be nice).

    Thanks,
    SP

  41. What an awesome guide! I love the no BS approach and easy to understand approach you’ve adopted. I love how you explained the science behind everything and justify exactly what you’re saying. So many guides out there, it’s so difficult for a beginner to know what to listen to and where to start. This allowed me to make my own decisions based on fact and my own unique situation. Thank you sir!

    I’ve been working out for about 3 months now. Sure, I’m getting some results and I know I really need to give it 6 months before I see real results, but it is so frustrating when I don’t know if I’m wasting my time and energy on something that doesn’t work. Having read this, I feel a lot more confident I’ve put a routine together that will work and can’t wait to start it next week.

    So, now for my questions:

    1. Apologies if this is already on the site somewhere else, but in terms of what’s missing from the guide, I would like to see some mention around supplements. At the moment I’ve been on the whey protein, about 2 shakes a day which is about 48g of protein. Thing is, I don’t know if this is right. Should I have more? Less? What are the best brands? I’ve just introduced creatine into my diet, 5g a day except on training days when I have 5g pre and 5g post workout. I have no idea if any gains I’m getting are linked to supplements or would I have got them even without. Some personal thoughts and recommendations would be great!

    2. My new routine incorporates 8 exercises around the muscle groups, push/pull etc. It looks pretty good, but there was no mention in your guide about abs. I used to do situps with 10kg (I’m British, apologies if the measurements are confusing!) on my chest. Should I still do this or would that risk over training? I’m on a full body Mon/Wed/Fri so maybe do some situps on Tue/Thu? I haven’t missed the point of the guide, everyone’s unique, but this is the one area I’m not sure on.

    3. (and lastly you’ll be pleased to hear) What about those who want to put on muscle but still want to lose that last bit of belly fat. I’m currently around 3-500 calories under my maintain level. Does this mean I can’t hope to put on muscle? Or should I increase and expect the fat to naturally go as part of my workout?

    Thank you so much for writing this, amazingly helpful!

  42. Hey Jay,

    I actually wasn’t able to post a comment on the UWR main page which outlines the exercises, so I figured this is the next best spot. I will send you an e-mail later on today with more details but could you just let me know for now since my previous bro-routine of training each muscle group once per week contained dips and read delts for my shitty slouched form. I know you said to not tweak with this routine like an idiot so I am just curious if it is possible to add those 2 and where would be best. Quick FYI: I have noticed my body does not like doing barbell shoulder press and dips in the same workout, however it can handle doing many sets/forms of Barbell benching with dips in the same workout. I don’t know if that helps lol but thanks again in advance. Excited for your Fat Loss book coming out 🙂

      • Hi Jay,

        you said see category 3 for dips, but there is no link in your comment.

        I am indeed using the intermediate routine of the UWR. Speaking of which, I like the Monday/Tuesday/off/Thursday/Friday. In your other articles you have taught me that the week is an arbitrary form of measurement that does not really have to be the end-all-be-all for training. That got me thinking, as a young 23-year old, couldn’t I just have a constant 2-on/1-off/2-on schedule? That way I am training each body part on a constant once every 3 days, and I am not exceeding 5 days of training a week on the overlap weeks. With my bro-routine training each part once a week like you mentioned that only leaves 52 workouts a year. With the normal intermediate routing that bumps everything to 104 (twice a week). But with my reasoning I could be getting an extra 12 workouts per year since if my math is correct this approach grants one extra workout per month. I know you’re a guy that talks about efficiency and the optimal way to do things so I was wondering if this was a thing that I could do. Sorry for the wall of text and thanks in advance!

        • Sorry, I added in the link.

          As for your question, the answer is maybe. For some people, 2 on, 1 off repeated indefinitely can work. For many others, that extra day of rest at the end is beneficial from the standpoint of recovery (physical and mental), overuse injury prevention, life style/scheduling, and so on. I like to err on the side of “most people” in my guidelines, so I keep that extra rest day there.

  43. I’m planning to take a break from the gym and all forms of exercise for a week cause it’s been 2 years since I started weight training and my right shoulder has been starting to hurt me. When I go back to the gym, what % of my lifts should I be doing?

  44. Is there an alternative to the back squat that I could put in its place? I understand they’re a great exercise, I just prefer to avoid them. I do love split squats, however.

  45. Thanks for wonderful guide……….. i have a question what warmup should be done before beginner’s workout 3 day per week full body workout .

  46. Great site, was reading it and looks like I will be trying the upper body A lower body A etc… Want to get some protein powder for my intake, deployed at the moment but I do not want to get too big and slow down on my run for my Military Fitness Test, but I do want to get toned and get more strength, any suggestions?

  47. Hey Jay,

    I’m a 17 year old soccer player at 5’9″ 130 lbs. I have practice 3-4 times a week with up to 2 games on the weekends. Does this mean that I will have to eat even more to gain weight than for someone who is just doing your recommended beginner workout? Thank you

    • Someone burning more calories via activity like soccer will likely have to eat more calories to gain weight/build muscle than someone burning less calories through additional activity.

  48. Hey jay , what an awesome guide you have shared ,i read it all and learned a ton from it so thank you very much, anyway i’m kinda of a skinny 22 years old guy, i went to the gym for a year now ,on and off ,like i would take 10 days break from time to time sometimes i stayed a month without training and to be honest my body didn’t really improve and i’m blaming my diet firstly because i didn’t eat that well at all but i’m very familiar with exercises and all so where would you classify me, is it a beginner? so i can start one of your programs ,and what do u think about sugar intake in a diet ,should i keep it under 80 g or something daily? would it help me to gain more weight or would it go straight to fat, thank you very much again.

    • You are definitely still in the beginner category.

      Sugar in your diet is potentially okay as long as A) your total calorie, macronutrient and micronutrient intake is what it needs to be each day, and b) it’s kept to a very minor part of your diet.

  49. I know you’re not a big fish eater, but what are your thoughts on eating chunk light canned tuna? Should I be concerned with mercury poisoning? I’ve researched the internet about this and there are conflicting arguments from all kinds of different groups. One side argues limit yourself to 1-3 cans a week (yeah right, how will I get my cheap protein intake then?) and another study I found said the selenium in tuna is greater than the mercury, so it’s fine to consume.

    I seek your knowledge, Ol’ Wise One.

    • Yup, I hear ya. Potential issues with mercury is one of the reasons I barely eat tuna fish at all any more (10 years ago, I’d eat 1-2 cans per day, every single day). My guess is that it should definitely be limited to some degree, though I really couldn’t give you anything more specific than that (which is why I simply replaced it in my diet altogether).

  50. First, you’re a great guy: thanks for your effort. I’m a beginner and I’ll follow the schedule that you put ( full body in three dayes per week). But when I must workout the Abs because it isn’t mentioned in that schedule

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