Beginners ... How to Start

I see this over and over in my gym. A person which did not do any sports for many years decides to join a gym and starts a "routine". Bad form, dangerous body movement patterns, wrong selection of exercises.

Sometimes there is a good coach to help out but most of the time not.

Our average Joe is about 30 years old, office rat, 10kg (22 lbs) overweight, rounded shoulders, soft belly, anterior pelvic tilt, terrible dorsi flexion, very low motor skills, horrible mobility, dysfunctional glutes. Joe's work capacity is shit, the days of weekend football are long gone.

And he starts squatting with terrible form, benching with terrible form, deadlifting with terrible form.

I strongly believe, before going on a "routine" your body should be prepared for it with minimizing apparent weaknesses, muscular imbalances, wrong posture. Our average Joe should also improve conditioning to be able to handle volume later on. All this is critical for learning proper form later on and handling volume.


Before Joe goes on a routine, let him do this (or something similar) for 6 weeks:
Note: (this is not a copy-paste recipe, rather a template tool how to handle total beginners)




Week 1

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
DB chest-supported rows: 2 sets of 8
hanging leg raises: 2 sets of 5

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
face pulls: 2 sets of 8
hypers: 2 sets of 8




Week 2

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
DB chest-supported rows: 3 sets of 8
push-ups: 3 sets of 8
hanging leg raises: 3 sets of 5

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
face pulls: 3 sets of 8
bodyweight squats: 3 sets of 8
hypers: 3 sets of 8




Week 3

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
DB chest-supported rows: 3 sets of 8
push-ups: 3 sets of 8
hanging leg raises: 3 sets of 8
hip thrust: 3 sets of 8

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
face pulls: 3 sets of 8
bodyweight squats: 3 sets of 8
hypers: 3 sets of 8
side planks: 3 sets of 8

Day 3:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
push-ups: 3 sets of 8
walking lunges: 3 sets of 8
prowler pushes: 5 trips




Week 4

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
low cable rows: 3 sets of 8
push-ups: 3 sets of 12
Russian twists: 3 sets of 12
hip thrust: 3 sets of 8

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
seated DB presses: 3 sets of 8
bodyweight squats: 3 sets of 15
hypers: 3 sets of 8
side planks: 3 sets of 8
rope: 400 jumps

Day 3:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
push-ups: 3 sets of 15
walking lunges: 3 sets of 12
prowler pushes: 8 trips




Week 5

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
low cable rows: 3 sets of 8
push-ups: 3 sets of 20
Russian twists: 3 sets of 12
hip thrust: 3 sets of 8

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
seated DB presses: 3 sets of 8
KB squats: 3 sets of 8
hypers: 3 sets of 8
side planks: 3 sets of 8
rope: 800 jumps

Day 3:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
push-ups: 3 sets of 20
pull-ups: 3 sets of 6
walking lunges: 3 sets of 20
prowler pushes: 10 trips




Week 6

Day 1:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
DB rows: 3 sets of 8
push-ups: 3 sets of 20
bench press: 3 sets of 5 (light and supervised with a full stop at chest)
leg raises: 3 sets of 20
hip thrust: 3 sets of 8

Day 2:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
seated DB presses: 3 sets of 8
squats: 3 sets of 5 (light and supervised, highbar)
hypers: 3 sets of 8
side planks: 3 sets of 8
rope: 1000 jumps

Day 3:
bike warm-up: 5 min
mobility drills: 3 min
push-ups: 3 sets of 20
deadlift: 3 sets of 5 (light and supervised, conventional)
pull-ups: 3 sets of 6
walking lunges: 3 sets of 20
prowler pushes: 15 trips



Adjust as necessary based on improving strengths, weaknesses, observations, progress, shorten by a week or two or extend the cycle by a couple of weeks if necessary.

Remember, if Joe's body is not prepared for proper bar paths, correct form and increasing volume, injuries will come, sooner or later.


Now get on a powerlifting program, motherfucker!