Life can be hectic. We all have issues we are dealing with. Whether it's jobs, family issues, or breakups, sometimes life slaps you. It can be easy to push your fitness to the side.
The good news is that you can still put together an effective program only lifting twice weekly. I'll provide a sample plan in a second but first, let's talk about the 2 things to absolutely not do.
Endless cardio and body part splits.
If you do a bicep day and then a tricep day during the week and finish it off with a 1-hour jog, I can assure you that it probably will get you looking and feeling like crap.
Since we only have 2 days, we need to be smart with our chosen exercises. This means focusing on compound movements and targeting the whole body.
Going the full-body route will give us the best hormonal response and burn the most calories. Squats, deadlifts, presses, rows, and loaded carries will be the foundation of our program. Since we are short on time, we'll use a tri-set approach to move faster through the session, which you'll see laid out in a second.
To get some cardio, we'll toss in a HIIT session at the end of each weight training session that'll take 5 to 10 minutes.
Without further ado, here's the 2-day routine:
DAY 1
1A) Bulgarian Split Squat 4 sets of 5 on each side
1B) One Arm Dumbbell Press 4 sets of 8 on each side
1C) One Arm Dumbbell Row 4 sets of 10 on each side
Rest 45 seconds to 1 minute between each exercise and 1:30 between rounds. Complete 4 total rounds.
2A) Romanian Deadlift 3 sets of 10
2B) Hanging Leg Raises 3 sets max reps
2C) Push Ups 3 sets max reps
Rest 45 seconds to 1 minute between each exercise and 1:30 between rounds. Complete 3 total rounds.
3A) Lateral Raises 3 sets of 8-12 reps
3B) Hammer Curls 3 sets of 10-12 reps
No rest between sets and rounds.
Finisher: Incline Treadmill sprints for 10 minutes
-Sprint for 10 seconds and rest for 50 seconds for 10 rounds.
DAY 2
1A) Deadlift Variation (Conventional, Sumo, Trap Bar) 4 sets of 5-8 reps
1B) Lat Pulldowns 4 sets of 8-12 reps
1C) Incline Bench Press 4 sets of 6-8 reps
Rest 45 seconds to 1 minute between each exercise and 1:30 between rounds. Complete 4 total rounds.
2A) Goblet Squats 3 sets of 10 reps
2B) Face Pulls 3 sets of 15-20 reps
2C) Ab wheel rollouts 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Rest 45 seconds to 1 minute between each exercise and 1:30 between rounds. Complete 3 total rounds.
3A) Tricep Pushdowns 3 sets of 15 reps
3B) Reverse Fly 3 sets of 12 reps
Finisher: Tabata Jump Rope (20 seconds of rope skip, 10 seconds of rest for 8 rounds)
Do 1-2 total sets of this Tabata.
That's it. Nothing fancy. But it will get the job done. Each workout should take you 45 minutes to an hour. Don't use your lack of time as an excuse.
You can find time to squeeze in 2 days of 45 minutes, especially with how much better it will aid your quality of life.
Also, try to get as much low-intensity movement as possible throughout the day. Now enjoy and get to work!
