This full-body workout plan for beginners trains your whole body 3 times a week with 2 alternating sessions, A and B. Both are built on a few basic lifts: squat, deadlift, bench press, row and shoulder press. You make steady progress without living in the gym, and you get a simple rule for when to add weight.
Why beginners should train full body
A full-body plan trains every major muscle in each session, instead of giving each muscle its own day. For a beginner it is the most efficient setup. You practise the main lifts often, recover well between sessions and need only 3 sessions a week.
You alternate 2 workouts, A and B. Train 3 days a week with at least one rest day between sessions, for example Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Over 2 weeks you do each workout 3 times.
How the week looks
| Day | Focus |
|---|---|
| Monday | Workout A (squat focus) |
| Tuesday | Rest |
| Wednesday | Workout B (deadlift focus) |
| Thursday | Rest |
| Friday | Workout A (squat focus) |
| Saturday | Rest |
| Sunday | Rest |
The next week starts with Workout B on Monday, so A and B stay even over time.
The workouts
Workout A
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Barbell back squat | 3 | 5-8 |
| Barbell bench press | 3 | 5-8 |
| Barbell or dumbbell row | 3 | 8-10 |
| Dumbbell shoulder press | 2 | 10-12 |
| Plank | 3 | 30-45 sec |
Workout B
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Romanian or conventional deadlift | 3 | 5-8 |
| Goblet or front squat | 3 | 8-10 |
| Lat pulldown or assisted pull-up | 3 | 8-10 |
| Incline dumbbell press | 3 | 8-12 |
| Dumbbell curl | 2 | 10-12 |
Warm up for 5 to 10 minutes with light cardio, then do a few easy sets of your first lift. Rest about 2 minutes after the big lifts and 60 to 90 seconds after the lighter work.
How to add weight
As a beginner you can add weight often, because your body adapts fast. Use double progression. Stay in the rep range, and once you hit the top of it on every set with clean form, add a little weight next session.
A safe rule is about 2.5 kg on upper-body lifts and 2.5 to 5 kg on lower-body lifts, whenever you complete every rep. Squat 40 kg for 3 sets of 8 on Monday, and on Friday put 42.5 kg on the bar and aim for 5.
Form comes first. A slightly lighter lift done well beats a heavy one that falls apart.
What to do when you stall
If you miss your target reps 2 sessions in a row, keep the same weight until you hit them, then carry on adding. This slow, repeatable pattern is what builds real strength over the first 6 to 12 months.
When adding weight every session stops working, or you want to train 4 days a week, move to an upper/lower split. At 5 or 6 days a week, push pull legs spreads the extra work across more sessions.
Other plans for beginners
If this plan does not fit your week or your gym, one of these will:
- Only 2 days free: the 2-day full-body plan fits the same lifts into 2 longer sessions.
- Unsure about barbells: the machine workout plan for beginners uses only machines and cables.
- Shorter sessions: the 3-day push pull legs plan trains a different part of the body each day.
Run this plan in Trackist
Answer Trackist’s 14 questions about your goal, experience, equipment, joints, schedule, session length and age, and ask for 3 days a week. Trackist writes the plan: the sessions, the exercises, the sets and the rep targets. A plan of 6 weeks or more ends with a lighter week, called a deload, at about 60% of the sets.
At the gym you log weight and reps set by set. Last session’s numbers sit under the sets you did then, and from your second session of an exercise, a line above it suggests what to try today. Most of the time, that makes the double-progression decision for you. Each strength exercise has a page with short form cues and the muscles it works.
Turning up week after week is the hardest part of the first year. If the sessions feel too hard, say so. Trackist notes it the first time, and if you report it again in a later week, Trackist rewrites the day or rebuilds the rest of the plan. If your knee hurts on squats, Trackist swaps in another exercise, usually one that trains the same muscle. Body weight and each measurement have their own chart, so you see the change over the first few months.
See how Trackist works as a workout tracker for beginners, or read more about starting out on the Trackist blog.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
How many days a week should a beginner train?
Three days a week is enough for most beginners. Full-body sessions 3 times a week let you practise the main lifts often and still leave rest days. Your muscles recover and grow on those rest days.
Why full body instead of a body-part split?
Full body lets you practise each main lift 2 to 3 times a week, so skill and strength come faster. A body-part split often trains each muscle once a week, which works less well while you are still learning the movements.
How fast will I see results from this plan?
Most beginners feel stronger within 2 to 4 weeks. Visible change usually takes 2 to 3 months of steady training and food that suits your goal. Strength on the bar climbs faster than muscle shows, so watch your logged numbers first.
Can Trackist build this plan?
Yes. Tell Trackist you are a beginner, ask for 3 training days, and it writes the plan from beginner movements. You can edit every exercise in the plan editor, and the body weight and measurement charts show your results over time.
5.0 ON THE APP STORE · NO ADS
Let Trackist write your plan
Answer 14 questions and Trackist writes a plan around your gym and your week, ready for a first session today. Log your sets, and the next session suggests the weight to lift. On the App Store now. Android is coming.
