12 Week Workout Program

12 Week Workout Program

Want to step up your game but not sure how? If you’re feeling like you’ve hit a plateau and can’t make the gains you’d like at the gym, this 12 week workout program may be just what you need.

12 Week Workout Program – Staying Motivated

Getting fit and staying fit take a lot of motivation. So before we get to the workout program, it’s important to think about motivation. Coming up with a detailed plan like this one is a big part of sticking it through, but you should also have back up plans in place for days when you may not make it to the gym, or for times when your mood isn’t quite right.

To help you through it, I recommend taking a look at my Workout Motivation Tips here. There are some easy ways to avoid boredom and frustration.

12 Week Workout Program – The Right Diet

When it comes to getting in killer shape, you also need to think about a diet that supports your workout goals.

Since this 12 week workout program is pretty geared towards strength training and building muscle, I’m going to recommend my recent Muscle Building Diet Plan. It offers a really great starting point for workout nutrition, and will totally support the goals of the current program.

If you’re looking for more general healthy eating tips, you might also want to consider The Paleo Diet here. It’s also a good choice when it comes to building lean muscle and boosting your fat burning potential.

Now let’s get to the program…

12 Week Workout Program – The Plan

This 12 week workout program is focused on building strength and developing your lean muscle mass. I’ve also incorporated a lot of flexibility into the program, so that you can use it to meet your own workout needs and goals. Here’s a rough guide for number of sets and reps, which I’m going to leave up to you:

• Toning Up and Burning Fat – 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps each, per exercise
• Building Strength and Lean Muscle – 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps each, per exercise
• Building Mass and Getting Ripped – 3-5 sets of 6-10 reps each, per exercise

I’m breaking the program into three 4-week periods. The goal is to continue challenging your body at the end of every block.

Weeks 1 to 4

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The first 4 weeks are going to get you to the gym 4 days a week. You’re going to alternate between upper and lower body to really ensure that you have a strong foundation for the rest of the program. I recommend hitting the gym on Monday/Tuesday/Thursday/Friday, making sure you keep Wednesday as a rest and recovery day.

Days 1 and 3: Upper Body

• Cardio Warm-Up: 15 minutes on machine of choice
• Dumbbell Chest Press (view exercise)
• Cable Lat Row (view exercise)
• Barbell Bicep Curl (view exercise)
• Tricep Rope Extension (view exercise)
• Seated Shoulder Press (view exercise)
• Back Extension (view exercise)

Days 2 and 4: Lower Body

• Cardio Warm-Up: 15 minutes on machine of choice
• Front Dumbbell Squat (view exercise)
• Lateral Lunge (view exercise)
• Seated Leg Curl (view exercise)
• Standing Calf Press (view exercise)
• Ab Crunch on Stability Ball (view exercise)
• Oblique Crunch on Stability Ball (both sides) (view exercise)

Weeks 5 to 8

The second part of this program is all about increasing focus. You’re still going to hit the gym 4 days a week, but each day is going to be focused on a particular group of muscles. This will help develop your training and challenge your muscles in a new way. For this period, any 4 days of the week will work.

Day 1: Back and Biceps

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• One-Arm Dumbbell Row (view exercise)
• Barbell Bicep Curl (view exercise)
• Lat Pulldown (view exercise)
• Cable Lat Row (view exercise)
• Seated Bicep Curl on Incline Bench (view exercise)
• Back Extension (view exercise)

Day 2: Chest and Triceps

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Dumbbell Chest Press (view exercise)
• Incline Dumbbell Chest Press (view exercise)
• Dumbbell Chest Flyes (view exercise)
• Seated Tricep Dumbbell Extension (view exercise)
• Tricep Rope Extension (view exercise)
• Incline Dumbbell Flyes (view exercise)

Day 3: Abs and Core

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Ab Crunch on Stability Ball (view exercise)
• Bosu Ball Knee Tucks (view exercise)
• Bicycle Crunch (view exercise)
• Oblique Crunch on Stability Ball (both sides) (view exercise)
• 30-second Plank on Stability Ball (view exercise)
• One-Legged Ab Crunch on Bosu Ball (view exercise)

Day 4: Legs and Shoulders

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Front Dumbbell Squat (view exercise)
• Lateral Lunge (view exercise)
• Seated Leg Curl (view exercise)
• Standing Calf Press (view exercise)
• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press (view exercise)
• Lateral Dumbbell Raise (view exercise)

Weeks 9 to 12

The last part of this program is about getting more intense and increasing not only focus, but also frequency of lifting weights. You’re going to get to the gym 5 days a week, ideally Monday-Friday, leaving the weekend for rest and recovery.

Day 1: Back and Biceps

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• One-Arm Dumbbell Row (view exercise)
• Barbell Bicep Curl (view exercise)
• Lat Pulldown (view exercise)
• Cable Lat Row (view exercise)
• Seated Bicep Curl on Incline Bench (view exercise)
• Reverse Bicep Curl on Bench (view exercise)
• Bent Over Lateral Dumbbell Raise (view exercise)
• Back Extension (view exercise)

Day 2: Legs

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Front Dumbbell Squat (view exercise)
• Lateral Lunge (view exercise)
• Seated Leg Curl (view exercise)
• Standing Calf Press (view exercise)
• Leg Extension (view exercise)
• Barbell Deadlift (view exercise)
• Stability Ball Squats (view exercise)
• One-Legged Hip Lift (view exercise)

Day 3: Chest & Triceps

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Dumbbell Chest Press (view exercise)
• Incline Dumbbell Chest Press (view exercise)
• Dumbbell Chest Flyes (view exercise)
• Seated Tricep Dumbbell Extension (view exercise)
• Tricep Rope Extension (view exercise)
• Incline Dumbbell Flyes (view exercise)
• Single Arm Chest Press with Pulley (view exercise)
• Tricep Dumbbell Extension on Bench (view exercise)

Day 4: Abs & Core

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Ab Crunch on Stability Ball (view exercise)
• Bosu Ball Knee Tucks (view exercise)
• Bicycle Crunch (view exercise)
• Oblique Crunch on Stability Ball (both sides) (view exercise)
• 30-second Plank on Stability Ball (view exercise)
• Stability Ball Rollout (view exercise)
• Lower Ab Bicycle Crunch (view exercise)
• One-Legged Ab Crunch on Bosu Ball (view exercise)

Day 5: Shoulders

• Cardio Warm-Up: 20 minutes on machine of choice
• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press (view exercise)
• Lateral Dumbbell Raise (view exercise)
• Standing Barbell Press(view exercise)
• Shoulder Press on Incline Bench (view exercise)
• Lateral Deltoid Raise with Pulley (view exercise)

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