The Best Full Body Workout Routine for Building Lean Muscle
Are you looking for that perfect workout routine that will both fat and building muscle at the same damn time?
Well, while this routine may not be perfect, it will get you to your fitness goal of being a lean, muscle machine. It won't happen overnight. You'll need to be consistent with your efforts and you'll need to make sure your diet is on point because without the proper diet, all the exercises in the world won't get you to where you want to go if you're always eating dirty.
This routine is filled with compound exercises for a reason. Working more than one muscle group at a time burns more calories. It also helps complimentary muscle groups to grow and get stronger together. You don't want to have abnormally large biceps paired with under developed triceps, do you?
Let's start from the top and work our way down.
Shoulders, Back, and Biceps - Lat Pulldown
The lat pulldown provides great muscle stimulation to both your shoulders, upper back, and biceps, the trifecta of the glamour muscles. Start with a warm-up set of around 15 to 18 reps and follow it up with 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps of moderate weight. Increase the weight 5 to 10 pounds every week to week and a half to build strength.
Chest and Triceps - Bench Press/Chest Press
To hit the chest and triceps, add the bench press or chest press to your routine. A staple in almost every workout routine imaginable, the free weight bench press will help you build strength much quicker than the machine guided chest press. However, if you don't have a workout partner to spot you, take advantage of the chest press. Four sets with one warm-up set and three sets with moderate weight. To give yourself routine a bit of variety, perform the incline or decline bench press instead.
Lower Back and Hamstrings - Good Morning
A strong lower back helps to reduce the risk of back injury and provides for greater stability when doing the simple things that make like grand, like walking or picking up stuff people drop. The Good Morning exercise not only strengthens those lower back muscles, but also helps to build your hamstrings as well. Not for the faint of heart, it's best to warm-up these muscles and start with moderately low weight if you're just beginning to perform this exercise.
The Entire Leg and Abs - Dumbbell Lunges
While the squat is the king of compound exercises and feel free to add them to your workout routine if you like, lunges run a close second to getting your legs in shape. They're exhausting because they not only activate the largest muscle group in the body, but they also require the use of your abs to maintain balance and control throughout the movement. Four sets of these beginning with the warm-up will get your legs primed and ready to go.
The Entire Body - Elliptical
Last, but certainly not least, is cardio and the elliptical is a beast when it comes to challenging the heart and lungs. Start and end your workout routine with cardio, high intensity at the beginning and low intensity for the cool down. By combining cardio with the weight training, you're encouraging your body to burn calories and fat at a higher rate. Try to get in 10 to 15 minutes on the elliptical prior to weight training and cool down for roughly 5 to 10 minutes after. Feel free to insert your favorite cardio exercise in here as well from time to time to add some variety.
Conclusion
And there you have it. A full body routine that will encourage muscle growth while burning off fat. You'll definitely be sweating after a few of these sessions, so make sure to bring a towel and plenty of water. Also, drink plenty of water prior to starting your routine to ensure proper hydration. Perform these three to four times a week, periodically raising the weight you train with and the duration of your cardio exercise, and you'll begin to see changes in no time. And remember to fuel your body with a proper diet in ensure you're getting the right nutrients for lean muscle growth. What you put into your body is just as important as what you do with your body.
