Building a Result Based Workout for Fat Loss, Gaining Strength, and Building Muscle.

Last week, I dropped an in-depth article on how to create a result-based training program for building muscle and fat loss. That article focused on the bigger picture of your training program to building sustainable progress for weeks and months at a time.

This week, I’m going to show you how to structure your workouts within the program. In fact, I’m going to gift you a workout from one of my programs and show you how to progress it over a 4 week period, so stick around.

Before doing that, let’s touch upon what happens within a subpar, less than an optimal workout

• Trying to sweat as much possible throughout the entire workout 

• Pairing deadlifts with burpees

• Jumping directly into a heavy first  set without warming up

• Starting every session with curls before moving  on to bench press (isolation prior to compound)

• Dedicating a body part to a specific day (back and bicep day, leg day)

I could go on and on, but you get the idea.

If you can relate to any of these, I’m not here to discourage you. Getting into the gym is a far better alternative than just sitting at home making excuses of why you cannot make progress. 

Instead, I want to help you get more from your efforts.  There are a few things you can adjust to make things more effective, which will help you make better, lasting results.

As the saying goes,” Anything worth doing is worth doing right.”

With that spirit, let’s get right into it.

Step 1: Warming up, Intelligently

First and foremost, you need to warm up. 

Sure, warming up is often seen as “boring”, yet it’s unbelievably crucial to maximizing your training performance, reducing injuries while staying healthy. I’ve found that performing a simple warm-up routine to be essential in restoring mobility, removing pain and dysfunction, and making pain-free progress within the gym.

The problem is “warming up” is massively misunderstood.  Some people don’t warm up at all or spending the majority of their time rolling and not actually training.  Your time is precious. You’ll need to prepare the body for performance, clean up weak and painful links, to reduce training injuries.

Here is the simple, highly effective system I use for my online clients:

1. Self-Myofascial Release (Foam Rolling)

2. Static Stretching (optional)

3. Muscle Activation

4. Priming the nervous system

For example, here is a warm-up sequence for squats

1. Foam Roll Quads 45 seconds/leg

2. Couch Stretch 30 seconds/leg

3. Goblet Squat w/ RDL 3x6 reps, rest 20 seconds

4. Box Jumps 3x2; rest 20 seconds

For example, here is a warm-up sequence for Bench Press

1. Foam Roll Upper Back 45 seconds

2. Lat Stretch 30 seconds/side

3. Rusin Tri-Set 3x10 reps ea.

4. MB Slams 3x3

Now your heart rate is elevated, the joints and muscles are warm, the training begins.

Step #2: Building Strength with your Key Performance Indicator

Your key performance indicator (KPI) will be your big compound movement of the day with the goal of improving on a weekly/monthly basis.

The goal with your KPI is to go as hard and heavy as possible with some variation of the squat, deadlift, bench press, and/or overhead press while emphasizing good technique and progressive overload. 

You want to start with a workout this your KPI as your body is fresh, and prime to lift the most amount of weight.  The main goal here is to progressively overload your muscles through more weight, more reps, more sets, or a combination of all to challenge your body from week to week. 

 Your KPI will typically be done for 2-10 rep range with 3-6 sets dependent upon your individual goal.

• 2-4 reps: Dominantly Strength

• 5-8 reps: Dominantly Strength and Muscle

• 7-10 reps: Dominantly Muscle

Step #3: Accessory Compound Movements

The accessory movement will be some form of compound exercise variation to help improve your main compound exercise.  Typically, this movement will be performed in a rep range slightly higher than your KPI movement.

The main focus of the accessory exercise is to compliment your main compound movement through a different angle, variation, and/or hitting an opposing set of muscle groups. 

Here are a few examples. 

Main Compound Movement: Barbell Overhead Press

Accessory Movements

• Wide Grip Lat pulldowns

• Db Bench Press

• Push-Ups

Main Compound Movement: Back Squat

Accessory Movements

• Barbell RDL’s

• Glute Ham Raises

• Reverse Lunges

Main Compound Movement: Chin Ups

Accessory Movements

• Wide Grip Lat pulldowns

• SA DB Rows

• Inverted Rows

Step #4: Isolation Work

The isolation work is reserved for the end of the lifting portion of the workout. Here we are focusing on a single muscle group aka single-joint exercises.  Generally speaking, isolation work will be done in a higher rep range of between 8-20+ reps.

The main focus here is to be laser-focused on bringing up a certain body part to maximize lean muscle growth. Isolation work is where the focus shifts more from “how much weight do you lift bruh?” to using a “mind-muscle connection” as the increasing weight will be harder to progress due to a lack of leverage and amount of muscles being used.

You should still be aiming to create progressive overload, yet look at alternative methods to overload your muscles.  A few different ways to achieve this is by changing the number of sets and reps performed, time under tension, and other higher intensity techniques that are performed closer to failure as they are most effective and more fun to do.

Examples:

Standing Tricep Cable PushDown Combo

• Week 1: 3 sets of 12 second + 12 reps; rest 30 seconds

• Week 2: 3 sets of 15 second + 15 reps; rest 30 seconds

• Week 3: 4 sets of 15 second + 20 reps; rest 30 seconds

Step #5: Metabolic Finisher

Finishers are fun, exciting twists at the end of your workouts that will challenge you while keeping things fresh, exciting, and fun.  Finishers are excellent options to burn additional calories while getting some cardio in.

It’s extremely important to understand that cardio isn’t necessary to lose fat.  The amount of calories and protein you’re eating will control that outcome far better than the workouts you’re doing. 

 However, if you want to eat a little bit more calories each day, or create a bigger deficit within your diet, adding some forms of metabolic circuits, HIIT or LISS is definitively helpful.

Don’t forget that progressive overload plays a role in ALL forms of training, including cardio.

Here are a few examples of Finishers I use with my online clients

Metabolic Circuits Examples

1) AMRAPS (As Many Rounds As Possible): The goal is to complete as many rounds as possible within a set time limit.

Example:

• Rower x 10 Calorie

• KB Swings x 10 reps

• Goblet Squat x 10 reps

2)  AFAP (As Fast As Possible):  The goal is to complete a specific number of reps (typically 50-100), or burn X amount of calories as fast as possible.

Examples:

• 100 Kettlebell Swings

• Burn 60 Calories on the Assault Bike 

3) EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute): Set a timer and perform an exercise at the start of every minute. Choose 1-2 exercises that should take you ~30 seconds to complete.

Example:

• Goblet Split Squats x 6 reps/leg

• Half Kneeling SA Press x 6 reps/arm

HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training): These are quick, yet brutal.  You’ll be doing 10-20  seconds of all-out effort, followed by a short rest period. 

• Week 1: 8 Rounds: 15 seconds all-out sprint followed by 45 seconds of rest

• Week 2: 9 Rounds: 15 seconds all-out sprint followed by 45 seconds of rest

• Week 3: 12 Rounds: 10 seconds all-out sprint followed by 50 seconds of rest

LISS (Low-Intensity Steady State):  These are typically done after a grueling workout.  You’ll use a spin bike, elliptical, or walk on a treadmill or outside.

• Week 1: 15 minutes steady pace

• Week 2: 20 minutes steady pace

• Week 3: 25 minutes steady pace

HIIT and LISS Days could also be done on “rest days” instead of after a workout for time’s sake if necessary.  Just make sure your HIIT workouts are kept brief (8-20 minutes) as they are very taxing on the body.

Wrapping it Together

Well, there you have it.  An exact breakdown of a workout to help you get stronger, build lean muscle, and lose fat all in one workout.

Don’t get it confused and think of this as the “only” way to set up a training day, yet from nearly a decade of coaching, I’ve found this to work best for getting results, sustainability, and overall enjoyment.  

If you would like a free 4-week training program that puts everything I discussed above into an intelligently designed program that creates strength, lean muscle, and fat loss using the exact methods outlined in this blog, click the link below.

These workouts will walk you through how to progress your workouts within those 4 weeks, provide notes when things need to be explained, and provide you with videos for each exercise so you know exactly what to do inside each workout.