Gaining muscle is hard, especially if you are stepping into the gym for the first time. It usually takes 8 to 12 weeks for your body to respond to workouts effectively. With that being said, you don’t have to spend several months in the gym to start seeing results. You can expect to see results after four weeks.
Well, you won’t get ripped like Chris Hemsworth in just four weeks. But it will be enough to get your feet wet in the gym. Getting through our comprehensive 4-week beginner’s workout program will be a perfect start to your journey of muscle gain.
Let it begin!
Week 1: Full-Body Training
The program begins with one week of full body training. This means you have to work on all major body parts in every workout. In the first three days, focus on performing one exercise targeting one body part per session.
With that being said, make sure that you rest for one day after each session, so your body gets some time to recover. Assigning training days can help you organize your workout effectively. For instance, you can dedicate Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday to training. So, you can rest on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
The exercises you perform in the first week are basic. You will only be doing machine exercises along with a few free-weight exercises. These basic exercises provide you with a strong long-term foundation.
As you continue, they will help you gain muscular strength in the future. However, we advise you to carefully read the descriptions before attempting them yourself.
In the first week, you must perform 3 sets of every exercise. Ultimately, this will add up to 9 sets for every body part, providing you with an excellent foundation.
Aside from crunches for abs, all of the following exercises will require 8 to 12 reps for every set. Dividing these exercises into 3 sets of reps is ideal for maximizing the benefits of your workout. So don’t exhaust yourself trying to do 24 reps in a single set.
| Week 1 | Full Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1, 3, 5 | Dumbbell Bench Press | Bench, Dumbbells | 3 | 8,10,12 | — |
| Lat Pulldown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Lat Pulldown Bar | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Overhead Dumbbell Press | Dumbbells | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Leg Press | — | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Lying Leg Curl | — | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Rope Pressdown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Rope Attachment | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Barbell Biceps Curl | Barbell | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Box | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Crunch | — | 3 | 15 | — | |
| 2,4,6,7 | REST |
Do you see that all these exercises start with 8 reps, then increase to 10 reps, and end with 12reps for the last set? This technique is known as the reverse pyramid. For beginners, it’s ideal to begin with a higher weight and then decrease the weight as you target higher reps.
Week 2: Upper Body/Lower Body
Once you have spent a week, your body becomes a little familiar with weights. So, it’s ideal to start training for different body parts on different days. It would be best if you observe a two-day training split. In other words, you will target a different segment of the body each day, unlike what you did in the first week.
In the second week, you start working out for four days. This means you will dedicate two days to your upper body and two days to the lower body. Take one day of rest once you complete a full-body exercise cycle.
For instance, if you performed upper body exercises on Monday, then Tuesday will be reserved for the lower body, and Wednesday will be your resting day. Likewise, for the second cycle, you will perform upper body exercises on Thursday and lower body exercises on Friday, whereas Saturday and Sunday will be reserved for rest.
Don’t forget the reverse pyramid scheme in your second week. However, this time, make sure you increase the number of reps in the 3rd set of each exercise. Although 15 reps are a little higher than the ideal range, they will help improve endurance, giving you a great platform to build muscle in the future.
| Week 1 | Upper Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1, 4 | Barbell Bench Press | Bar Bell, Bench | 3 | 10,12,15 | — |
| Dumbbell Flye | Bench, Dumbbells | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | Barbell | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Lat Pulldown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Lat Pulldown Bar | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Overhead Dumbbell Press | Dumbbells | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | Dumbbells | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Barbell Biceps Curl | Barbell | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Preacher Curl With Cable | Adjustable Cable Machine, Ez-Bar, Preacher Bench | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Lying Ez-Bar Triceps Extension | Bench, Ez-Bar | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Rope Pressdown | Rope Attachment | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Crunch | — | 3 | 15-20 | — | |
| Week 2 | Lower Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 2,5 | Leg Press | — | 3 | 10,12,15 | — |
| Seated Leg Curl | — | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Lying Leg Curl | — | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Bench | 3 | 15-20 | — | |
| Crunch | Box | 3 | 15-20 | — | |
| 3,6,7 | REST |
Week 3: Push/Pull/Legs
In Week 3, we will divide the training exercises between pushing body parts, pulling body parts, and your lower body. Pushing body parts are shoulders, triceps, and chest, whereas pulling body parts are biceps and back. However, you can also work on your abs on the same day.
- On Day 1, perform all exercises related to your pushing parts.
- On Day 2, perform pulling exercises.
- On Day 3, work on your lower body (hamstrings, calves, quads, glutes).
| Week 3 | Pushing Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1,4 | Incline Barbell Bench Press | Barbell, Bench | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — |
| Dumbbell Flye | Bench, Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Overhead Dumbbell Press | Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Smith Machine Upright Row | Smith Machine | 4 | 8, 8, 10, 12 | — | |
| Lying Ez-Bar Triceps Extension | Bench, Ez-Bar | 3 | 10,12,15 | — | |
| Dumbbell Kickback | Dumbbells | 3 | 10,12,15 | — |
| Week 3 | Pulling Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 2,5 | Barbell Upright Row | Barbell | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — |
| Single-Arm Neutral-Grip Dumbbell Row | Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Incline Dumbbell Biceps Curl | Bench, Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Preacher Curl With Cable | Adjustable Cable Machine, Ez-Bar, Preacher BenchIncline | 4 | 8, 8, 10, 12 | — | |
| Barbell Bench Press Overhead | Dumbbell Press | 4 | 8, 8, 10, 12 | — | |
| Reverse Crunch | — | 3 | 15-20 | — | |
| Crunch | — | 3 | 15-20 | — |
| Week 3 | Lower Body Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 3,6 | Back Squat | Barbell, Squat Rack | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — |
| Leg Press | — | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Seated Leg Curl | — | 4 | 10,10,12,15 | — | |
| Romanian Deadlift | Barbell | 4 | 8, 8, 10, 12 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 3 | 25 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Box | 3 | 25 | — | |
| 7 | REST |
Week 4: Full Body
In Week 4, you will train four days a week, targeting every body part one by one. You need to pair your chest and triceps. Likewise, muscles such as quads are paired with hamstring, and your biceps are paired with your back.
| Week 4 | Chest, Triceps, Calves Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1 | Incline Barbell Bench Press | Barbell, Bench | 5 | 10,10,10,10,10 | — |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Flye | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Rope Pressdown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Rope Attachment | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Kickback | Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Lying Ez-Bar Triceps Extension | Bench, Ez-Bar | 4 | 10,10,10,10 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Box | 3 | 25 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 25 | — | ||
| Week 4 | Chest, Triceps, Calves Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1 | Incline Barbell Bench Press | Barbell, Bench | 5 | 10,10,10,10,10 | — |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Flye | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Rope Pressdown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Rope Attachment | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Kickback | Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Lying Ez-Bar Triceps Extension | Bench, Ez-Bar | 4 | 10,10,10,10 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Box | 3 | 25 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 25 | — |
| Week 4 | Chest, Triceps, Calves Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 1 | Incline Barbell Bench Press | Barbell, Bench | 5 | 10,10,10,10,10 | — |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Flye | Bench, Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Rope Pressdown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Rope Attachment | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Kickback | Dumbbells | 4 | 10,10,12,12 | — | |
| Lying Ez-Bar Triceps Extension | Bench, Ez-Bar | 4 | 10,10,10,10 | — | |
| Standing Calf Raise | Box | 3 | 25 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 25 | — | ||
| Week 4 | Legs and Abs Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 2 | Back Squat | Barbell, Squat Rack | 5 | 10,10,10,10,10 | — |
| Leg Press | — | 5 | 8,8,10,10,12 | — | |
| Lying Leg Curl | — | 3 | 8,10,12 | — | |
| Romanian Deadlift | Barbell | 3 | 8,10,10 | — | |
| Reverse Crunch | — | 2 | 20 | — | |
| Crunch | Bench, Ez-Bar | 2 | 20 | — |
| Week 4 | Chest, Triceps, Calves Exercise | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 4 | Overhead Dumbbell Press | Dumbbells | 4 | 12 | — |
| Smith Machine Upright Row | Smith Machine | 3 | 8, 10,12 | — | |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | Dumbbells | 3 | 10 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 10 | 10 | — |
| Week 4 | Back, Bicep, Abs | ||||
| Day | Exercise | Equipment | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| 5 | Barbell Bent-Over Row | Barbell | 5 | 12 | — |
| Lat Pulldown | Adjustable Cable Machine, Lat Pulldown Bar | 5 | 8, 8, 10,12 | — | |
| Single-Arm Neutral-Grip Dumbbell Row | Dumbbells | 5 | 8,8,8,10,10 | — | |
| Seated Calf Raise | Bench | 10 | 10 | — | |
| Barbell Biceps Curl | Barbell | 4 | 10,10,12 | — | |
| Incline Dumbbell Biceps Curl | Bench, Dumbbells | 3 | 10 | — | |
| Preacher Curl With Cable | Adjustable Cable Machine, Ez-Bar, Preacher Bench | 3 | 10 | — | |
| 6,7 | REST |
