100+ Strength Training Programs & Workouts

Here you will find all of our training programs and workouts.

All programs and workouts are available in our workout log app. The basic programs and workouts are free, but the more advanced ones require a premium subscription which you can try for 14 days for free.

Please note that organizing this many programs is challenging, and a small number of programs might be listed under more than one heading because that’s where you might look for them. Thank you!

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Table of Contents

Free Strength Training Programs

These are all our free strength training programs. Some have specific goals (like increasing your bench press strength), while others are general resistance training programs that will both increase your strength and build muscle.

Beginner

Beginner Barbell Workout Plan. 2–3x/week. Simple and effective, this training program gives you a perfect start in your training career. You will build muscle and strength swiftly by doing two to three barbell-based, whole-body workouts per week.
Beginner Dumbbell Program. 2–3x/week. Similar in structure to the Beginner Dumbbell Program, this is beginner program builds strength and muscle using only dumbbells (bench optional). You train two or three times a week, alternating between two different workouts.
Beginner Machine Program. 2x/week. Don’t want to head into the free weight section just yet? Check out this machine-based program. Machine training offers a safe start in the gym and time-effective workouts. Train two times per week, or up to three to increase the tempo.
Beginner Strength Training Program. 2–3x/week. A beginner strength training program with two or three full-body workouts, using a combination of free weights and machines.
StrengthLog’s Full-Body Workout. 2x/week. If you only have time for two short workouts per week, this is your program. The beginner can make good gains on this program, but it is more of a maintenance program for the intermediate and advanced lifter.
Bodybuilding for Beginners. 3x/week. Do you want to get started in bodybuilding? Begin your muscle-building journey with three full-body workouts per week!
Beginner Powerlifting Program. 3x/week. A simple but effective training program for the beginner who wants to get started with powerlifting, or for the intermediate lifter coming back after some time off.
Beginner Bench Press Program. 2x/week. A super simple yet effective beginner bench press program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your bench press career.
Beginner Squat Program. 2x/week. A super simple yet effective beginner squat program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your squat career.
Beginner Deadlift Program. 2x/week. A simple yet effective beginner deadlift program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your deadlift career.
Workout Plan for Women: Thicc Beginner Lower Body Specialization. 3x/week. Thicc: Beginner Lower Body Specialization is a free training program for women who want to build muscle and get lean and strong. Easy-to-understand descriptions of the exercises you need and step-by-step instructions on getting started with a perfect program for transforming your body and building strong muscles.

Intermediate & Advanced

StrengthLog’s Upper/Lower Body Split Program. 4x/week. One of our most popular programs. Four workouts per week, emphasizing getting stronger in the compound lifts. For both muscle growth and strength gain!
StrengthLog’s Upper/Lower Machine Program. 4x/Week. A machine-only version of an upper/lower split. Four weekly workouts for intermediate lifters who want to build muscle and get stronger using only machines (gym machines, cables, Smith machine).
Old School Squat Routine. 3x/week. A hard but effective training program aimed at increasing your strength in the squat (or any other lift you choose to use it for) in six weeks. Enter your 1RM into the calculator, and we’ll generate the program for you.
Old School Bench Press Program. 3x/week. The same set and rep scheme as the Old School Squat Routine, but for the bench press this time. Enter your 1RM into the calculator, and we’ll generate the program for you.
Old School Deadlift Program. 3x/week. The same set and rep scheme as the Old School Squat Routine, but for the deadlift. To make this program work for the deadlift, you should enter a very conservative 1RM.
German Volume Training. 3x/week. A minimalistic training program based around doing supersets of 10 sets x 10 reps in the big lifts. The primary aim of the program is to build muscle, but you can expect to gain strength as well.
StrengthLog’s Full-Body Hypertrophy. 3x/week. Maximize your hypertrophic potential with this free full-body training program. Three days per week to sweet gains!
PHAT Workout Routine. 5x/week. PHAT stands for Power Hypertrophy Adaptive Training and is an advanced high-intensity, high-volume program for experienced lifters who wants to train for both strength/power and muscle growth.
PHUL Workout Routine. 4x/week. PHUL stands for Power Hypertrophy Upper Lower and is a popular 4-day workout routine that combines training for strength and hypertrophy.
StrengthLog’s Minimalistic Routine. 3x/week. Another minimalistic routine with three quick (but hard) workouts per week. Each workout consists of two compound exercises, and your goal is to beat your performance last week.
StrengthLog’s Glute Training Program. 2x/week. If you like big butts and you cannot lie, then this is the training program for you. It consists of two hard workouts per week that cover all the muscle fibers of your glutes and that will rocket your booty to new heights of strength and size.
Emelie. 3x/week. In this training program, written for a friend by the name of the program, you will be training three hard but short workouts per week. Each workout consists of three compound lifts, which together train most of your major muscle groups. Suitable for both muscle growth and strength gains!
StrengthLog’s In a Hurry at the Gym. 3x/week. A short and sweet training program for when time is of the essence. Three days a week, compound movements and heavy weights make sure you keep your gains even when you only have minutes to spend in the gym
StrengthLog’s Push Pull Workout Routine for Muscle and Strength. 4x/week. A training program where you alternate between push and pull days. Four training sessions per week with strength- and hypertrophy-focused workouts.

For Children & Adolescents

StrengthLog’s Training Program for Children. 2x/week. It’s never too late to start exercising, and neither is it ever too early. This training program is an excellent way for your child to develop a strong and healthy body for a strong and healthy life.

For Seniors

StrengthLog’s Training Program for Seniors. 2x/week. This is our training program designed for seniors looking to benefit from all the positive effects strength training has to offer. From greater muscle strength to stronger bones and improved quality of life – if you are 60 or above, this program is for you!

Squat Programs

These are training programs for increasing your squat strength.

Beginner

Beginner Squat Program. 2x/week. A super simple yet effective beginner squat program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your squat career.

Intermediate & Advanced

Intermediate Squat Program. 2x/week. A squat program for the intermediate lifter who has left the beginner phase behind but is not yet ready for advanced squat training. The purpose of this program is to increase your squat strength and build bigger leg muscles.
Old School Squat Routine. 3x/week. A hard but effective training program aimed at increasing your strength in the squat (or any other lift you choose to use it for) in six weeks. Enter your 1RM into the calculator, and we’ll generate the program for you.
Advanced Squat Program. 2x/week. A squat program for the advanced lifter, who needs to do a lot of training in order to progress. Nine weeks long and ends in a short peaking phase and a max attempt.

Bench Press Programs

These are training programs for increasing your bench press strength.

Beginner

Beginner Bench Press Program. 2x/week. A super simple yet effective beginner bench press program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your bench press career.

Intermediate

Intermediate Bench Press Program. 2 or 3x/week. A bench press program for the intermediate lifter who has left the beginner phase behind, but is not yet ready for advanced bench press training.
Old School Bench Press Program. 3x/week. A hard but effective training program aimed at increasing your strength in the bench press in six weeks. Enter your 1RM into the calculator, and we’ll generate the program for you.
Bench Press Boogie. 2 or 3x/week. One of our most popular training programs, having helped thousands of lifters get stronger in the bench press. This is a six-week long bench press program intended to increase your bench press 1RM and build your upper body muscles. The two and three-day versions are suitable for the intermediate lifter.

Advanced

Advanced Bench Press Program. 3x/week. A bench press program for the advanced lifter, who needs to do a lot of training in order to progress. Nine weeks long, and ends in a short peaking phase and a max attempt.
Bench Press Boogie. 4 or 5x/week. One of our most popular training programs, having helped thousands of lifters get stronger in the bench press. This is a six-week long bench press program intended to increase your bench press 1RM and build your upper body muscles. The four and five-day versions are suitable for the advanced lifter who is already accustomed to a very high bench press training volume.

Deadlift Programs

These are training programs for increasing your deadlift strength.

Beginner

Beginner Deadlift Program. 2x/week. A simple yet effective beginner deadlift program that will give you quick gains and a great start to your deadlift career.

Intermediate & Advanced

Intermediate Deadlift Program. 2x/week. A deadlift program for the intermediate lifter who has left the beginner phase behind but is not yet ready for advanced deadlift training.
Deadlift Disco. 2x/week. Our deadlift program for powerlifting. Increase your deadlift 1RM and build bigger back muscles. Six weeks long, but possible to cycle through several times.
Deadlift Builder. 2x/week. To pull big weights, you need big muscles. This program aims to increase your strength potential by increasing the mass of your deadlift muscles. Six weeks long.
Lifting Fast and Slow. 2x/week. In this training program, you will be switching between contrasts: one session will have you lifting heavy and slow, and the other will have you lifting light and fast. The goal? Getting stronger, of course!

Overhead Press Programs

These are training programs for increasing your overhead press strength.

Intermediate & Advanced

Press Pasodoble. 3x/week. A six-week upper body program, focusing on increasing your overhead press strength and giving you boulders for shoulders.
Pressing Ladder. 3x/week. A five-week program for improving your overhead pressing strength. Originally intended for the kettlebell press, but works just as fine for the barbell overhead press or the bench press.

Powerlifting Programs

These are our training programs for increasing your powerlifting total.

Beginner

Beginner Powerlifting Program. 3x/week. A simple but effective training program for the beginner who wants to get started with powerlifting, or for the intermediate lifter coming back after some time off.

Intermediate & Advanced

Intermediate Powerlifting Program. 3x/week. This is a great next step after you’ve followed the beginner program for a few months. Instead of increasing the weights every workout like in the beginner program, the weights increase weekly, with light and medium workouts in between the heavy workouts.
Advanced Powerlifting Program. 3x/week. A training program for the advanced powerlifter who no longer gets stronger from week to week, and needs a high training volume to progress. Nine weeks long, and ends in a short peaking phase and max attempts.
Powerlifting Polka. 3, 4, or 6x/week. One of our most popular and effective powerlifting programs. It is six weeks long and comes in three versions: 3, 4, and 6 days per week. Powerlifting Polka is a mash-up of our most popular programs for the three big lifts: Squat Samba, Bench Press Boogie, and Deadlift Disco.
Powerlifting Pronto. 5x/week. A minimalized version of Powerlifting Polka, this program consists of five short workouts per week, each featuring one of the powerlifts: 2x squat, 2x bench press, and 1x deadlift. No accessory exercises, and medium/low training volume. This program was written for busy powerlifters who want to squeeze workouts in during the workday, for instance during lunch breaks.
Powerlifting ABC. 3 or 4x/week. Powerlifting ABC is an 11-week long powerlifting program, divided into four weeks of preparatory training, four weeks of specialization, and three weeks of peaking – which culminates in a competition (or max attempts).
Powerlifting DUP. 3x/week. A daily undulating periodization (DUP) program aimed at strength for the intermediate powerlifter. Choose between the one-lift variant or the one with all three powerlifts.
Madcow 5×5. 3x/week. This a classic workout routine for intermediate lifters looking to gain strength and muscle quickly. This is a great next program after you’ve exhausted your beginner gains on a linear progression program.

Bodybuilding Programs

These are our training programs for bodybuilding, where maximal and well-rounded muscle growth is the goal. The training volume and number of exercises per muscle group are both high, leaving no muscle unworked. Get your pump on!

Beginner

Bodybuilding for Beginners. 3x/week. Do you want to get started in bodybuilding? Begin your muscle-building journey with three full-body workouts per week!

Intermediate & Advanced

StrengthLog’s 3-Day Bodybuilding Split. 3x/week. A six-week training program for advanced beginners or intermediate bodybuilders looking to gain lean muscle mass and build a balanced physique.
StrengthLog’s 4-Day Bodybuilding Split. 4x/week. A six-week training program for intermediate to semi-advanced bodybuilders looking to gain lean muscle mass and build a balanced physique.
StrengthLog’s 6-Day Upper/Lower Workout Split. 6x/week. A nine-week training program for intermediate to advanced lifters and bodybuilders who want to build muscle and strength, training six days per week. It is a high-frequency hypertrophy program based on current exercise science.
StrengthLog’s 6 Day Workout Split: A Premium Bodybuilding Program. 6x/week. A six-week training program for bodybuilders looking to build muscle like a pro. It is designed for the upper intermediate to the advanced lifter and allows you to focus on one major muscle group per workout.
Bodybuilding Ballet. 4–6x/week. This is the program if you want tree-trunk quads, bulging biceps, and a massive back. This is an advanced bodybuilding program, and one of the most popular programs in our app.
Bodybuilding 313. 5–6x/week. A premium training program designed for gaining muscle. It’s a three-day training split, in which you train three days, rest one, train three, and so on. A classic type of training program, based on both scientific training principles and real-life experiences by many bodybuilders throughout the decades.
Bodybuilding Blitz. 5x/week. If you are short on time but still want to build muscle as efficiently as possible, check out this bodybuilding program for maximum gains in minumum time.
Bodybuilding for Hardgainers. 4x/week. A workout routine for the hardgainer struggling to build muscle. You train four times per week, focusing on compound exercises and heavy weights, allowing for maximum recovery and growth.
Push / Pull / Legs Advanced. 6x/week. An advanced push/pull/leg-split for building muscle. An optimal training volume and training frequency for terrific gains!
Push / Pull / Legs / Upper / Lower (PPLUL). 5x/week. A training program for intermediate-level lifters and above for gaining muscle and strength. It allows you to hit every muscle group twice a week with distinct stimuli: high-volume hypertrophy work early in the week and heavier, compound-focused strength work later in the week.
StrengthLog’s Strength & Size. 4x/week. This is a six-week premium program with four days of training per week. It is a training program tailored primarily for bodybuilding, although you will find it great for increasing your strength as well.
4 Day Pyramid Workout Routine. 4x/week. A four-week training program based on the pyramid training system. It’s intended for intermediate to advanced lifters, features a mix of ascending, reverse, and full pyramid workouts, and will pack muscle onto your frame while improving your strength.
Bodybuilding Machine Workout Routine. 5x/week. A 5-day progressive training program for intermediate-level bodybuilders and above, designed to build muscle with machines only.

For the Arms

Armageddon. 3x/week. A four-week program focusing solely on high-volume and high-intensity arm training, forcing your biceps and triceps to respond with muscle growth.

For the Legs

Thicc. 5x/week. An intermediate-level training program for building great legs and glutes. Six weeks of training with three lower body workouts per week for maximum gains plus two upper body maintenance sessions.

Bodybuilding Workouts

These are effective (and very popular!) stand-alone, bodybuilding-style workouts.

Read More About Bodybuilding:

Or browse all our articles on bodybuilding here.

General Strength Training Programs

These are training programs for a balance between muscle gains and strength, and in the case of Surviving Zombies, overall fitness and athleticism.

StrengthLog’s 5-Day Split. 5x/week. A premium program designed for the intermediate to advanced lifter who wants to build muscle like a bodybuilder and get stronger in the three powerlifting lifts.
Zero to Hero. 4x/week. A 10-week long upper / lower body workout program centered around classic compound lifts. Over the ten weeks, you move from training 10 reps per set, down to 1 rep – at 105% of your previous max. This is a hybrid program, aiming to develop both strength and muscle size.
Surviving Zombies. 3 or 4x/week. This workout routine was created by Herman Geijer, Sweden’s and one of the world’s leading zombie survival experts. Using his deep knowledge of what it takes to survive a zombie attack, he designed a training program that greatly will improve your chances of survival. Mmm, brains!
6-Week Workout Plan for Weight Loss. 5 or 6x/week. This program guides you through six weeks of training to lose fat and improve your body composition. You also get realistic, healthy tips on what and how much to eat to reach your weight-loss goal while keeping or adding to your lean muscle mass: a complete weight-loss package, the healthy and sustainable way. No calorie counting, and no prerequisite knowledge required.

General Strength Training Workouts

Olympic Weightlifting Programs

Looking for a training program for Olympic weightlifting? These are our programs designed to improve your snatch and clean & jerk performance.

Beginner Olympic Weightlifting Program. 3x/week. This beginner-friendly Olympic weightlifting program will help you master the snatch and clean & jerk and lay the foundation for long-term progress.
Intermediate Olympic Weightlifting Program. 4x/week. This 12-week program is designed to take your weightlifting to the next step once you are past the beginner stage and looking to kickstart your improvements in the snatch and clean & jerk, leading up to a competetion or PR attempt.
5 Day Intermediate Olympic Weightlifting Program. 5x/week. An intermediate-level weightlifting program if you want to train five times per week, progressing to a competition of PR attempt. Also works well for low-level advanced lifters.
Advanced Olympic Weigthlifting Program. 6x/week. A 12-week program leading up to a competition for the lifter who has transitioned from the intermediate level to advanced.
Snatch Focus: 4-Week Specialization Program. 4x/week. This is a 4-week weightlifting program dedicated to one thing: improving your personal best in the snatch. Intermediates and above.
Clean & Jerk Focus: : 4-Week Specialization Program. 4x/week. Four weeks of clean and jerk-focused training to improve your PR in this classic lift.

Calisthenics Training Programs

Calisthenics is using your body weight to build strength, flexibility, and coordination—without needing a gym full of machines or a ton of heavy bars and plates, and these are our calisthenics programs.

Beginner Calisthenics Workout Plan. 3x/week. This is a simple and beginner-friendly calisthenics workout plan designed to help you build strength, endurance, and confidence in foundational bodyweight movements.
Intermediate Calisthenics Workout Plan. 4x/week. This is a 4-week calisthenics workout plan with more workouts, more exercises, more advanced exercises, and built-in progression—in short, more of everything.

Sport-Specific Training Programs

These are our sport-specific strength training programs—specialized workout routines that include the unique movement patterns, muscular demands, and performance requirements of a sport to build functional strength, improve efficiency, and reduce injury risk.

Strength Training for American Football. 4x/week. Twelve weeks for football players to build a foundation of strength, muscle mass, and explosive power that translates to the field for any position, from quarterback to lineman. High school to college level.
Strength Training for Badminton. 3x/week. A 12-week off-season strength training program for badminton athletes, intermediate-level and up, designed with periodization to build strength, lean muscle, power, stability, and speed.
Strength Training for Basketball. 3x/week. An intermediate-level (and above) 14-week training program designed for off-season (into pre-season if desired) strength and power gains. Percentage-based progression and blocks transitioning into sport-specific performance qualities.
Strength Training for BJJ. 2x/week. This specialized strength program for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu focuses on big compound lifts, core stability, and enough recovery to allow you to gain strength and power without burning out or negatively impacting your time on the mats. With clear guidelines and flexible scheduling, you’ll build functional strength that translates directly to your grappling.
Strength Training for Boxing. 3x/week. This training plan helps you build explosive punches, boost your speed in the ring, and improve your muscular endurance—without sacrificing agility. By focusing on compound lifts, core stability, and a combination of efficient full-body and upper/lower-body sessions per week, you’ll stay fast on your feet while building punch power.
Strength Training for Climbers. 2x/week. This 14-week program is designed specifically for climbers, helping you build grip strength, explosive power, and endurance to conquer more challenging routes. With a mix of traditional strength and power movements, bodyweight exercises, and climbing-specific drills, you’ll level up your performance and stay injury-free on the wall.
Strength Training for Cross-Country Skiing. 2x/week. Our specialized strength training program for cross-country skiing focuses on lower body power, upper body endurance, and core stability to improve your work economy and boost performance on the trails.
Strength Training for Cyclists. 2x/week. This workout routine is designed to boost your cycling performance by increasing power and endurance and reducing injury risk with focused workouts that leave ample time for on-bike training and recovery. You’ll be able to ride longer, climb faster, and improve overall stability on the bike.
Weight Training Program for Equestrians. 3x/week. This training program is designed to improve your muscular strength and posture, boost your endurance, and make long rides feel smoother. With exercises focusing on movement patterns essential for equestrians, you’ll become a more confident and effective rider.
Bodyweight Strength Training Program for Equestrians. 3x/week. The same benefits as the Weight Training Program for Equestrians, but for those who prefer bodyweight training or don’t have access to a fully equipped gym. You can also switch a day from one to the other freely, as the programs are similarly structured.
Strength Training for Golf. 3x/week. Elevate your golf game with our specialized weight training program, designed to boost your swing power, give you more stability in your swings, and reduce injury risk. By focusing on core strength, leg power, and upper body conditioning, you’ll see greater distance and precision in your shots.
Strength Training for Handball. 3x/week. 12 weeks of building lean mass, strength, power, speed, and injury prevention to make you a better handball players.
Strength Training for Hockey. 4x/week. This is an 11-week training program to take your hockey performance to the next level and help you own the ice every time you lace up. Improve your skating speed, gain stability, shoot the puch harder, and prevent injuries.
Strength Training for Judo. 3x/week. A 14-week strength training program designed to boost your power, balance, and stability, giving you the upper hand on the mat. With three full-body workouts per week and a mix of basic compound lifts, accessory movements, and judo-specific considerations (grip strength, pulling power, and hip/leg strength), you’ll build the muscle and speed needed to execute throws more forcefully and fend off injuries.
Strength Training for Kickboxing. 3x/week. This 14-week strength training program will boost your kickboxing power without sacrificing agility or endurance. A combination of multi-joint exercises that strengthen your entire body and specific exercises that replicate movement patterns used in kickboxing improves your striking force and balance and reduces injury risk, ensuring you’re always a step ahead in the ring.
Strength Training for Lacrosse. 3–4x/week. A 12-week training program to give you the edge to hit harder, sprint faster, and last longer on the field in the dynamic, chaotic, and demanding sport of lacrosse.
Strength Training for Motorsports. 2x/week. This is program designed to build foundational strength, postural control, and muscular endurance, with a focus on key areas like the neck, core, shoulders, and grip—essential for motorsport performance. This is a free program and suitable for all experience levels, including beginners to strength training.
Strength Training for Muay Thai. 2x/week. This workout routine program is designed to boost your performance in the ring. You’ll build lean mass and increase the maximum force your muscles can produce, then translate your gains into power output and speed, transforming your strikes into knockout blows.
Strength Training for Rowing. 3x/week. Our 16-week strength training program incorporates exercises with movement patterns to improve your rowing performance and build the strength and stability you need to outpace the competition and reduce injury risk.
Strength Training for Runners. 2x/week. This strength training program for runners is designed to build power, stability, and endurance so you can log more miles with less fatigue and a lower risk of injury. With a focus on key muscle groups and compound movements, you’ll develop the strength to push past plateaus and hit new personal bests.
Strength Training for Skiing. 3x/week. This strength training program for alpine skiing boosts your power, stability, and endurance to carve the slopes like a pro. You’ll build the muscle, strength, and confidence needed for an exhilarating alpine adventure or a high-stakes competition.
Beginner Soccer Strength Training Program. 3x/week. This strength training program is for soccer players new to strength training (or who haven’t been lifting for a long time). It is designed to make you stronger, faster, explosive, and more resistant to injuries with short workouts that allow you to recover properly and focus on your soccer training.
Intermediate & Advanced Soccer Strength Training Program. 3x/week. This 12-week training program is for soccer players who have strength training experience. It is your ticket to more power and speed and focuses on building foundational strength and muscle mass, setting you up for peak in-season performance.
Strength Training for Sprinters. 3x/week. Two training programs (one for off-season and one for pre-season), each 12 weeks long and designed for sprinters who want to increase explosive power and force production for faster acceleration and top-end speed, improve neuromuscular coordination, and prevent injuries.
Strength Training for Swimmers. 3x/week. This strength training program focuses on developing your pulling power, stroke efficiency, and full-body explosiveness. It emphasizes big compound lifts to build the muscles most crucial for powerful strokes and fast turns. The result is a well-rounded, injury-resistant body primed to slice through the water.
Strength Training for Triathletes. 2x/week. This strength training program is built to make you more powerful in the water, stronger on the bike, and faster on the run—while keeping injuries at bay. With a mix of compound lifts and core-focused exercises, you’ll build the muscle and power to excel in every leg of your race.
Strength Training for Volleyball. 3x/week. An intermediate-level (and above) 14-week training program designed for off-season/pre-season strength (both general and volleyball-specific strength) and power gains. Jump higher, hit harder, and stay injury-free.
Strength Training for Wrestling. 4x/week. A 15-week off-season strength training program for wrestling designed to improve overall strength, explosiveness, neck stability, and grip conditioning while allowing for steady progression across the weeks and preparing you for pre- and in-season.

Sport-Specific Workouts

Training Guides for Every Muscle Group

These are our training guides for every major muscle group in the body. In these guides, you’ll learn about the muscles’ anatomy, effective exercises to train them, and a sample strength training workout.

Upper Body

Lower Body

Home Workout Programs

These training programs can be done at home with little or no equipment.

StrengthLog’s Home Workout Split. 5x/week. A six-week training program for building muscle and strength in the comfort of your home. All you need are dumbbells, a pull-up bar, and a resistance band.
StrengthLog’s 4-Week Home Workout Plan. 3x/week. A fitness plan for getting in shape and building muscle in the comfort of your home without expensive training equipment. All you need is a set of dumbbells.

Home Workouts

These workouts can be done at home with little or no equipment.

Which Program Should You Choose?

In a library of 80+ training programs and workouts, that is the million-dollar question.

A lot of factors go into choosing a training program. Here are some of the major ones:

Training status. Are you a beginner or an experienced gym rat? How much training are you currently used to doing?
Training goal. What is your goal with your weight training? Get healthier and feel better? Build muscle, lose fat, and look better naked? Get really strong and push your numbers in the barbell lifts?
Available time. How much time can or do you want to put in? We’ve got programs and workouts ranging from training 20–30 minutes two or three times per week, to training for several hours at a time five days a week.

Equipped with this insight, let’s look at what makes a good strength training program given your circumstances.

What Makes a Good Strength Training Program?

A training program is like a tool. And just like with tools, you need to pick the right program for the job.

When evaluating if a program is a good fit for you, consider these fundamental training principles.

Specificity. Training results are specific, so does the training program train what you want to improve?
Overload. If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you. Your body adapts and gets stronger in response to a new and stronger stimulus. If you only train well within your capacity, you don’t trigger new adaptations. Beginners need little training to improve; advanced lifters need a lot.
Progression. If nothing changes, nothing will change. Not only do you need to follow the principle of overload mentioned above and challenge your current capacity, but you must also continuously increase the challenge by progressing in your training. Beginners are far from their strength and muscle potential and adapt fast; advanced lifters are closer to their potential and adapt slower. Therefore, our beginner programs progress faster than our intermediate and advanced programs.
Recovery. Training and recovery are yin and yang. For the best results, both need to be in balance. Your aim should be to train neither more nor less than just the amount you need to improve.
Individualization. No program fits everyone. What works for your training buddy might not work for you. Get to know your body and what kind of training and exercises you like. Pay attention to what seems to work, and double down on that. Also, ensure your training program fits your life, schedule, and priorities.

The best strength training program for you is the one that you can do, enjoy (so that you stick with it), and brings you closer to your goal.

What’s the Difference between Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Strength Training Programs?

Several things!

Training volume. Beginners both need and tolerate less training than intermediate or advanced lifters. There’s no point in doing 18 sets per muscle and week when 6 sets will give you the same results for a fraction of the time or injury risk.
Progression rate. Beginners often get significantly stronger between every workout, while an advanced lifter might need a month or more of training for a significant increase in strength. The strength programs for different levels progress accordingly.
Complexity. Often, but not always, the more advanced programs are more complex: percentage-based training, more exercises, undulating loads, and periodization are some of the variables you might find in our more advanced programs.

How Do You Know if You Are a Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced Lifter?

Aside from the obvious: if you’ve never trained before, you’re a beginner!

There are many ways to classify training level, but we like these definitions from Practical Programming:

Beginner: Gets significantly stronger from workout to workout.
Intermediate: Gets significantly stronger from week to week, or bi-weekly.
Advanced: Gets significantly stronger from month to month, or longer.

By “significantly stronger,” we mean that you can add 2.5 kg (or 5 lb) and do the same number of reps or use the same weight but do more reps.

You could also take a look at the strength standards based on users of our workout tracker below, but really: what matters is what it takes for you to improve and how fast you can progress.

Strength standards:

Squat: Kilo | Pounds
Bench Press: Kilo | Pounds
Deadlift: Kilo | Pounds
Overhead Press: Kilo | Pounds

What’s the Difference between Bodybuilding and Powerlifting Programs?

Or training programs for muscle growth versus strength, for that matter.

All strength training will initially lead to an increase in both muscle mass and strength. It is, however, possible to adjust your strength training so that your results are skewed towards one direction or the other.

Training for increasing your strength will typically involve lots of practice at the lift or movement in which you want to get stronger. You will typically train with fewer reps and closer to your 1RM. Your focus is on doing the movement efficiently and with heavy weight, not on the specific muscles worked.
Training for muscle growth will typically involve a wider variety of exercises and ensuring you train every muscle group. You will typically train more in the medium-to-high rep range and farther away from your 1RM. Your focus is on working and stimulating the muscles, not on how much weight you use.

The primary goal of our powerlifting programs is to increase your strength in the squat, bench press, and deadlift. That means you will spend a lot of time practicing those lifts and doing assistance exercises that might help you increase your strength even further in those three. You will likely gain muscle mass too, but as a secondary effect to all the strength-oriented training you will be doing.

The primary goal of our bodybuilding programs is to effectively stimulate growth in all your major muscle groups. That usually means using more exercises to work each muscle group thoroughly and evenly. The priority is muscle hypertrophy, not practicing a particular movement or exercise. You will likely gain strength too, but as a secondary effect to all the hypertrophy-oriented training you will be doing.

How to Use Training Programs Based on Your One-Rep Max (1RM)

Some of our training programs, especially the strength-focused ones, prescribe training weights based on percentages of your 1RM.

1RM stands for one-repetition maximum and is the heaviest weight you can lift for a single repetition in a given exercise.

If you’re sure of what your one-rep max is? Use our 1RM calculator to get an estimate.

When you start a 1RM-based program or workout, you will get to enter your 1RM for those exercises.

Advanced Powerlifting Program 1RM — Here’s what it looks like when you start the first workout in our advanced powerlifting program. Enter your 1RMs and the training weights in the squat and bench press will be calculated for you.

3 Day Advanced Powerlifting Program — After you’ve entered your 1RMs, StrengthLog will automatically calculate your training weights for that workout.

Note that there is some individual variation in how many reps we can do at different percentages of our one-rep maxes. You might be able to do five reps at 80% of your 1RM, and your training partner might be able to do ten reps at his or her 1RM. If you feel that a training program is a little too light or too heavy, feel free to adjust your 1RM slightly up or down until it feels right.

Which Is the Best Strength Training Program for Weight Loss?

If you begin strength training but change nothing else, you will build muscle and lose body fat. Because of this simultaneous gain and loss, your body weight might remain more or less the same. (Although if you keep it up, you will soon look drastically different in the mirror.)

But what if you want to lose weight?

Which is the best training program for weight loss?

The answer is that no training program does much good for losing weight. You take care of that with your diet.

If you want to lose weight, you must be in a caloric deficit. Not eating enough means you will have less energy for both training and recovering from training. You should consider this when you plan your training or choose a training program for a fat loss phase.

What’s Most Important for Good Strength Training Results?

What’s the best way to get started in strength training and get good results?

Start following a beginner training program. Because you probably don’t know a whole lot about resistance training when you first start off, it’s a good idea not to design your first strength training program yourself. Click here to go way back up to the top and see all our different beginner programs. Choose one of them. They will give you a great start, and they are all free.
Learn proper form in the exercises. In addition to not knowing how to program your training, you will also have to learn how to do all the different strength exercises. A good instructor or a personal trainer can help you with proper technique, but it is also entirely possible to learn on your own if you prefer. Check out our library of strength training exercises, study the technique, and use your phone to record yourself when you’re training to evaluate your form. You can find all the exercise descriptions and instructions for free in our app StrengthLog. You won’t master all the exercises in your first training session, so see it as a learning process.
Start light. By far the greatest gift you can give yourself when you take up strength training is to start light. Begin with light weights so that you can focus on learning the exercises and doing them with correct form. Trust me, it will get heavy soon enough.
Track your weights. Slowly but surely, you should challenge yourself and your muscles by using progressively heavier weights. The key to doing this is to track your weights and reps. That means writing them down, so that the next time you are in the gym, you can look at your last workout and try to do slightly better. StrengthLog was built for this.
Rest and recover. While it is what you do in the weight room that triggers your growth, what you do the rest of the time is what enables it. Ensure you get proper nutrition, plenty of sleep, and enough rest days to make the most of your workouts.

Strength training exercises — Our workout app StrengthLog not only lets you track your workouts and design and follow programs, but it also has 300+ exercise demos that show muscles worked and step-by-step instructions.

How to Follow These Strength Training Programs

These training programs are all available in StrengthLog, our workout tracker app.

In addition to following our programs, you can create your own workout routines, log your workouts, keep track of your personal records, see statistics on your training, and much, much more.

Download StrengthLog for free with the buttons below:

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