How To Build Your Own Workout
The complete guide to building your own workout. Follow my simple 4 step formula to building the workout perfect for you
I want you to refer back to this time and time again, so I'm going to hop straight to it!
Step 1: Pick The Areas You Want To Work
As a rule of thumb if your goal is to lose weight, I'd recommend rooting for a full body workout as you leave taxing the whole body
It's simple maths; work more muscles - burn more calories
For strengthening and toning I'd go for an upper / lower split as this allows you to spend a bit more time stressing the muscle which in turn results in muscular change
But hey, those are just suggestions, we're here to build your workout not mine!
Muscles Groups
Legs
Back
Chest
Shoulders
Arms
Abs
Step 2: Pick Your Exercises
Exercises fall into two brackets: Isolation and compound movements
This just refers to how many joints are moving through the exercise
For example, a bicep curl is an isolation exercise as the only joint moving is the elbow
A squat on the other hand, is a compound exercise as the hips, knees and ankles are all moving
Compound movements burn more calories and stress the body much more effectively than isolation exercises
Think of this like baking a cake; the compound movements make the flour, sugar and eggs and the isolation exercises make the icing topping and pretty decoration on top
Take a pick from the list below or add in your own exercises
10 Body Weight Compound Exercises
Squats
Pressups
Lunges
Pullups (or Inverted rows)
Dips
Sumo Squats
Diamond Pressups
Step ups
Glute Bridge
Bicycle Crunch
8 Isolation Exercises
Bicep Curls
Skullcrushers
Lateral Raises
Calf Raises
Crunches
Tricep Pressdown
Hamstring Curl
Leg Extension
Step 3: Pick The Time or Reps For Each Exercise
For fat loss I tend to use time, as your main concern is getting your heart rate up and moving as much as possible. As you're against the clock you can always speed up or slow down to ensure you finish the set time
For strengthening and toning, reps tend to be a better option as your focus of the session is to stress the muscle as much as possible in a controlled manor
Also by setting reps you can clearly see if you're getting stronger. For example if week one you do 10 reps and week four you do 15, you know you've become stronger
Time / Reps
20-30 seconds: Best for short, intense cardio intervals
40 seconds: Good for tricky resistance movements like static lunges
60 seconds: Good for slow-steady cardio and to keep your heart rate up
6-8 reps: Good for strength movements like pressups
8-12 reps: Best for toning and shaping the muscle
12-15 reps: Good for muscle endurance and ab training
Conclusion: Putting It All Together
Start by picking the muscle groups you wish to work, if you just want to get sweaty and your main focus is loosing weight don't overthink this step
Next pick your exercises and duration / reps - this will come down to how long you've got and current fitness level
Example Fat Loss Workout
Squat jumps - 3 x 45 seconds - 20 second rest
Lunges - 2 x 40 seconds - 30 seconds rest
Dips - 2 x 40 seconds - 30 seconds rest
Star Jumps - 3 x 30 seconds - 20 second rest
Mountain Climbers - 2 x 40 seconds - 20 second rest
Crunches - 2 x 45 seconds - 20 second rest
Example Strength and Toning Workout
Squats - 4 x 15 reps - 45 second rest
Sumo Squats - 3 x 15 reps - 45 second rest
Static Lunges - 2 x 12 reps - 30 second rest
Weighted Glute Bridge - 3 x 15 reps - 30 second rest
Bicycle Crunches - 3 x 20 reps - 20 second rest
Plank - 2 x 40 seconds - 30 seconds rest
Comment below if you have any more questions about building your own workout!
Ben
If you're looking to get leaner, start feeling better about yourself and get into exercise I've put together a fat loss guide which is you can have for
