The Ultimate Workout Routine to Build Muscle: Tested and Free
Overview
Looking for a program that’ll help you reach your fitness goals, I’ve got you covered. In this article, I’ll be going through the training program that I’ve used over my nearly 2 year journey in fitness. This plan has helped me tremendously. It integrates an array of different exercises to enrich your gym experience, so that you can make progress in a fun and engaging way. Using this routine made me look forward to going to the gym, which was incredibly helpful in allowing me to progress faster. I hope that sharing this ultimate workout routine to build muscle can help you achieve similar results. Now let’s get into it.
My Workout Program
For the majority of my fitness journey, I’ve been using the push-pull-legs split, which I’ve thoroughly discussed in another article linked here. To get straight to the point, I’ll put the program directly under this paragraph, and then briefly discuss some considerations around the routine (why I think it’s good, how I structure workouts, and important fitness concepts) after that. So here it is, the ultimate workout routine to build muscle.
Weekly Structure
Monday: Push (Chest, triceps, and shoulders)
Tuesday: Pull (Back and biceps)
Wednesday: Legs (quads, hamstrings, calves, and glutes)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Push (Chest, triceps, and shoulders)
Saturday: Pull (Back and biceps)
Sunday: Rest
Push Workout
Incline Barbell Bench Press: 4 sets
12 reps (just the bar for warm up)
1.5 mins rest
Increase weight: 8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Increase weight: 6 reps (essentially 100% effort, best to get a spotter)
2 mins rest
Tricep Skull Crusher: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Lateral Raises: 3 sets (all sets to absolute failure)
Max reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Max reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Max reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Once you’re hitting 15 reps easily, increase the weight of the dumbbells you’re lifting
Dumbbell Bench Press: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Tricep Pushdown: 4 sets (last set to complete failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
NO REST
Decrease the weight by 50% and do max reps (this is called a drop-set)
2 mins rest
Overhead Press: 3 sets (last set to complete failure - I use a machine to make this safe)
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Max reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Chest Fly: 3 sets (last set to complete failure)
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Max reps (100% effort)
Finished! Well done
And that’s the end of the push workout! Now for the Tuesday/Saturday pull session
Pull Workout
Pull Ups: 4 sets (use assistance bands or a machine if you need to)
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Max reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Incline Dumbbell Bicep Curl: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be very close to failure)
10 reps (85-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (85-90% effort)
2 mins rest
10 reps (85-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Lat Pulldown: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Face Pull: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Rope Hammer Curls: 3 sets (all sets to complete failure)
8 reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (100% effort)
2 mins rest
Seated Cable Row: 4 sets (last set to complete failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
NO REST
Max reps (100% effort)
Preacher Curl: 3 sets (all sets should be very close to failure)
8 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (90-100% effort)
Finished!
And that’s the end of the pull workout! Well done
Leg Workout
Squats 4 sets
12 reps (just the bar for warm up)
1.5 mins rest
Increase weight: 8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Increase weight: 6 reps (essentially 100% effort, try and get a spotter)
2 mins rest
Leg Press: 3 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
Leg Extension: 4 sets (last set to complete failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
NO REST
Max reps (100% effort) m
Leg Curl: 4 sets (last set to complete failure)
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
12 reps (80-90% effort)
2 mins rest
8 reps (80-90% effort)
NO REST
Max reps (100% effort)
Calf Raise: 5 sets (last rep of each set should be close to failure)
20 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
20 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
20 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
20 reps (90-100% effort)
2 mins rest
20 reps (90-100% effort)
Finished!
You’ve just completed you leg workout for the week! Great effort!
How to maximise workout benefits
Getting in the gym and doing these workouts is the first step to reaching your fitness goals, however, there are a few concepts that you should understand before you embark on your fitness journey. Fortunately, they’re not at all difficult to wrap your head around, considering how effective they make your training. Now let’s get into the concepts relevant to this workout routine to build muscle.
Progressive Overload
This is without a doubt the most important concept around building muscle. It refers to the continual addition of weight to your exercises, helping you gradually lift heavier and become stronger. Let’s look at an example.
One week, a person might be able to lift 60kg for 2 sets of 8 reps, and then 65kg for 6 reps on the incline bench press, before failing (or coming within 1 rep of failure). In that person’s next workout, they should try to lift 65kg for either 7 or 8 reps in that last (1 or 2 reps more than the previous workout). Then in the workout after that, they could do 1 set at 60kg for 8 reps, then 2 sets at 65kg for 6 reps. This is a gradual process, but it’s crucial in helping you build muscle.
Rep Ranges
Rep ranges are far simpler. It’s the concept of how the length of your sets impacts the type of results you’re getting. To summarise in dot points:
4 - 8 reps improves strength and power
8 - 12 reps are optimal for muscle growth and hypertrophy (fancy word for growth)
More than 12 reps increases muscular endurance and stamina
My program integrates a variety of rep ranges into each workout for a well-rounded training experience, however you can change the program to suit your preferences.
Deload Weeks
Staying consistent in the gym is vital for steady progression, yet after 8 - 10 weeks of constant training at the intensity demanded in my workout program, your muscles will become seriously fatigued. You might be struggling to progressively overload, which is a good sign to take a deload week. Decrease the weight you’re lifting by 50%, or just take a week off the gym. After this, go back to what you were doing before the deload, and you’ll be able to progress more easily and efficiently.
Diet Plan
Dieting is an essential factor that influences the success of your muscle building efforts. As much as we hate to say it, there’s not much point in carefully crafting a workout routine to build muscle if your diet won’t complement it. We’ll provide you with a proposed daily diet, detailing a good daily calorie intake and a suitable macronutrient balance. Before quickly defining these terms, we’ll let you know that we have a more detailed article on this diet plan linked here. Consider checking it out if you want an in-depth breakdown. Here are the definitions.
Calorie intake: the number of calories you’re ingesting (in this article we’ll be portraying it in a daily context). For your information, 1g of protein is equal to 4 calories, 1g of carbs is also equal to 4 calories, and 1g of fat is equal to 9 calories.
Macronutrient balance: the quantity of carbohydrates, protein, and fat evident in your diet, ingesting foods with good macronutrients is essential for muscle building
Daily Diet Structure
When trying to build muscle, you’ll want to adopt a bulking diet. On this diet, you should be eating 3500 calories a day. Your macronutrient balance should be as follows:
~30% protein
~50% carbs
~20% fat
Here’s how I structure my meals each day. This isn’t exact, but an approximation depicting the size/volume of each meal:
Breakfast; 800 calories
Lunch: 800 calories
Afternoon snack: 700 calories
Dinner: 1000 calories
Dessert: 200 calories
Now for the plan. I felt that the best way to get my daily diet program across to you (the readers), was to take a day of eating from myFitnesspal, and write it down in this article, so here’s what a day of eating 3,500 calories could look like:
Meal Ideas - A day of eating
Breakfast: 912 calories, 60g protein, 97g carbs, 37g fat
My favourite protein shake (after my morning gym session)
1/2 cup rolled oats (pulsed for 15 seconds)
35g whey protein, I use vanilla
1 banana
1 and a half cups frozen fruit, I use raspberries and blueberries
A bit over 1 cup of milk
Dash of cinnamon
1 tablespoon honey
Heaps of peanut butter, 3 - 4 tablespoons
Lunch: 975 calories, 59g protein, 49g carbs, 52g fat (a bit heavy on the fat, but very tasty)
145 grams 80/20 ground beef
2 wheat tortillas
100g of three cheese mix
Afternoon Snack: 400 calories, 16g protein, 46g carbs, 14g fat
2 muesli bars (Uncle Toby’s)
2 Kit kats (chocolate bars)
Dinner: 1,032 calories, 49g protein, 109g carbs, 41g fat
150g rump cap steak
3 roasted potatoes
Dessert: 200 calories, 4g protein, 31g carbs, 9g fat
1 Apple
1 tablespoon peanut butter
TOTAL: 3,519 calories, 188g protein, 332g carbs, 153g fat
And there’s a good example of what you might eat in a day on a bulking diet. There’s a lot of room for variation here, feel free to implement foods you like, just try to ensure a macronutrient balance around the 30/50/20 protein/carbs/fat range.
To Conclude
The muscle building journey is one of the most difficult and confusing ones out there. Without an ideal balance between lifting in the gym and a good bulking diet, it’s hard to put on substantial size. In this article, I shared my workout program and a day of eating on a bulk. These plans have worked for me over the past 20 months, hence why I still use them to this day. I hope this article has provided you with the information and assistance you required to find your desired workout routine to build muscle. Best of luck in your future fitness endeavours!
Citations
Founders, M. (n.d.). BETTER BODY ACADEMY. [online] BETTER BODY ACADEMY. Available at: https://www.betterbodyacademy.com/.
US, I. (n.d.). Inspire US - Yes. You. Can. [online] Inspire US. Available at: https://www.inspireusafoundation.org/.
Venuto, B.T.F.I.C. com by T. (n.d.). Burn the Fat Inner Circle Blog. [online] www.burnthefatinnercircle.com. Available at: https://www.burnthefatinnercircle.com/public/department2.cfm [Accessed 28 Mar. 2024].