Bodybuilding Programs With 30 Minute Workouts?

[skid_ofshame]

Just started TRT and want to make the most of it. Struggling to find a good program that will work with my schedule. I'm constantly having to cut workouts short and remove exercises/sets/etc to rush out of the gym.

I can train during the following time:
Monday to Friday
7:15am - 7:45am

Looking for a decent 3, 4, or 5 day program (bodybuilding focused) that hits everything. Each individual workout must be 30 minutes or less. I've recently been doing a HIT style of thing, getting 3 or 4 good exercises in with only 1 set to failure (or one set to a 3-8 rep max, followed by a drop set of 8-20 reps.) Feels effective (based on the DOMS alone, I haven't done it for long enough to see any certain progress.) But it certainly isn't "fun" (if that matters.) I also don't have a training partner, which severely limits my exercise selection.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

EDIT (stats and history):
35yrs old
6'1
220lbs
21% BF

Former pathetic powerlifter. Partially torn ACL and meniscus (2014/left knee.) DJD & DDD in my lower spine. Before injuries, best lifts were:
385lbs Squat
405lbs Deadlift
295lbs Bench

Never touched gear before, despite people telling me to try. I tried off and on to get back to the big three, but ended up quitting lifting altogether in 2016. Never really recovered from the injuries and lost all motivation to keep trying.

Back at it in 2018, just started TRT. Want to make the most of a possible second chance.

[Ernst]

Check out the 'Various Training Techniques' sticky above, you may find one that suits you.

The following is Big A's from post #15 in the above mentioned thread (and there are more details in the post) and I think it can be pulled off in that time frame. I always liked this for a beginner split and I still use a variation of it today.


Mon - Chest, Shoulders, Triceps
* Incline press - warm-up sets, 1 work set
* Flat flyes - 1 work set
* Millitary press - 1 warm-up, 1 work set
* Lateral flyes - 1 work set
* Rear delt machine - 1 work set
* Tricep pushdowns - 1 warm-up, 1 work set
* Lying tricep extensions - 1 work-set

Wed - Quads, Hams, Calves
* Squats - warm-ups, 1 work set
* Leg press - work set
* Leg extension - work set
* Leg curl - warm-up, work set
* Stiff leg deadlift - work set
* Standing calf raise - work set

Fri - Abs, Back, Bis
* Rope crunches - warm up, work set
* Lat pull down - warm-ups, work set
* Deadlift - warm-up, work set
* Bent-over rows - work set
* Shrugs - work set
* Standing BB curls - warm up, work set
* Concentration curl - work set

The low number of sets will keep the time frame short. Also easy to adapt the concept to a four day split or whatever you prefer. It also leaves days open for cardio workouts seeing as you're so limited on days and times.

That said, I wonder if given your injuries that lower weight with more volume would be more beneficial. Nothing wrong with a 5-day split that breaks down muscle groups further to give you more time for volume... but then you don't have all the cardio time.

Oh well, You know you best. Take a look at all of it and see what looks good or can be easily adapted to your needs.

[EDCG19]

Just started TRT and want to make the most of it. Struggling to find a good program that will work with my schedule. I'm constantly having to cut workouts short and remove exercises/sets/etc to rush out of the gym.

I can train during the following time:
Monday to Friday
7:15am - 7:45am



Former pathetic powerlifter. Partially torn ACL and meniscus (2014/left knee.) DJD & DDD in my lower spine. Before injuries, best lifts were:
385lbs Squat
405lbs Deadlift
295lbs Bench

Why are you sticking to 30 minutes only? Its doable and not that hard if you keep the weights low enough and your resting periods shorter to get the workout in, the only thing you'll probably be gassed sooner if you continue with heavier and heavier weight it will take more out of you to finish in 30 minutes so maybe keep the weight not in the PR range and somewhere in the 75-80% range of your PR or what you can do with good form.. Lower the weight used if you need only 30 minutes to finish your sets/weight in that time period

Your PR numbers aren't that bad either so nothing to worry about there, start up lighter and see where you're at now
Your DL could use work but your BP is on point and I've only had my best bench at 275x3 before but would fail on 315

[GearHeaded]

there are 168 hours in a week, and you can only find 2 hours at most of that to train (about 1% of your weekly time) !?? can you get up 30 mins earlier a couple days per week?

just my opinion, but I'd definitely stay away from the gear until you can make a solid commitment to the actual training.

[HoldMyBeer]

... why can't you just go to bed/wake up 15 minutes earlier and get to the gym earlier?

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[skid_ofshame]

Why are you sticking to 30 minutes only?

I'm not choosing to stick to 30 minutes, that's the time that I have available to me. I have several other responsibilities that fill up the rest of my day. If I could, I'd prefer to have at least 90 minutes. Lord knows those old powerlifting training sessions could last 2 hours or more at times, but those days are definitely behind me.

Your PR numbers aren't that bad either so nothing to worry about there, start up lighter and see where you're at now
Your DL could use work but your BP is on point and I've only had my best bench at 275x3 before but would fail on 315

I knock my PRs because they are embarrassingly bad for a powerlifter. The guys I trained/competed with were doing 600+/400+/700+. I was pathetic and weak, and routinely treated as such. I guess the attitude rubbed off on me a bit.

there are 168 hours in a week, and you can only find 2 hours at most of that to train (about 1% of your weekly time) !?? can you get up 30 mins earlier a couple days per week?

No. I get up at 5am every day to take care of several family responsibilities. By the time that is done, I usually get to the gym just after 7am. By the time I am in and warmed up, it's usually about 7:15am. I start work at 8am, so I need to be walking out of the gym at 7:45am. That is my only window to train. The rest of my day is filled with other responsibilities up until about 9pm. Considering I get up at 5am every day (and often am forced awake in the middle of the night), I'd prefer to be in bed by 10pm at the latest so I can get some sleep.

Unless my responsibilities significantly change, weekends are never an option.

... why can't you just go to bed/wake up 15 minutes earlier and get to the gym earlier?

See above...

Congrats to you all if you have more time to train. I used to as well, and likely will again some day. For now, I don't. There will likely come a time in your lives when you won't either. Imagine that were the case for you right now, even if it were only for a few months. If you could only train 30 minutes a day, how would you structure your workouts? How would you optimize your time in the gym to make the most out of it?

I was thinking of continuing with my current HIT (Yates/Mentzer) style training, but was looking for other experienced input. Thanks!

[Quester]

-Two ways I can think of are alternate muscle groups with no rest period and circuits.
-Not everyone has the luxury of having unused time in their life nor time they waste doing things which are unimportant. Fortunately, 30 minutes is enough time for the goals you described in the first post of your thread.

[Quester]

Also, it isn't mandatory that your workout be completed in one daily visit to your gym. Maybe, if you have any equipment at home or office, you could squeeze in work?

[skid_ofshame]

Also, it isn't mandatory that your workout be completed in one daily visit to your gym. Maybe, if you have any equipment at home or office, you could squeeze in work?

I actually thought of doing that. Getting a pair of variable dumbbells and keeping them at work to do smaller muscle groups like biceps/triceps/side & rear delts/calves/etc. I could focus on the big barbell movements in the morning and the acillary stuff later that day. Problem is I can't guarantee that'll always have the time for it. They also don't go over 52.5 lbs (at least the ones I've seen.) Some stuff would get pretty high rep with that light of a weight.

[Couchlockd]

Well your priorities are with family activities, can't have your cake and eat it too

You gotta reprioritize, and put 90min of gym time before one of your family responsibilities.

[Chrisp83TRT]

I haven't done a 30 minute work out or less since high school and even than I have no idea what I was doing.

I can say this , if you want to make your muscles work, you got to put in the effort.

They're are 24 hour gyms popping yo everywhere.

Where there is a way there's a way.

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[skid_ofshame]

Well your priorities are with family activities, can't have your cake and eat it too

You gotta reprioritize, and put 90min of gym time before one of your family responsibilities.

I haven't done a 30 minute work out or less since high school and even than I have no idea what I was doing.

I can say this , if you want to make your muscles work, you got to put in the effort.

They're are 24 hour gyms popping yo everywhere.

Where there is a way there's a way.

I get that the majority of people who join these forums and start posting stretch the truth and the assumption is always that they aren't being fully truthful about their lives, discipline, etc. So, I get why I keep getting these answers. However, I can assure you that is not the case for me. I have 30 minutes and 30 minutes only.

Life's circumstances are sometimes beyond your control. For a variety of reasons, I cannot simply shirk my other responsibilities or magically add more time to my day. Please do not confuse "responsibility" with generic "family activities". There is a significant difference. Maybe you've never had to deal with these types of uncontrollable circumstances that necessitate your life significantly change in order to properly shoulder the responsibility necessary to deal with the situation at hand. Although temporary (a few months), the situation at hand requires my direct attention for most of the hours of the day that I'm not at work. I cannot simply walk away and go to the gym at any point, other than the 30 minute time period that I already mentioned.

The question, again, is: If you could only train 30 minutes a day (with no option to train longer), how would you optimize your time in the gym to make the most out of it? Thanks!

[GearHeaded]

I would implement drop sets, supersets, rest pause, and muscle rounds and train 1 body part each day (chest, back, legs, arms, shoulders).
using these intensity training techniques you can get a hell of a pump if your focused on that body part for 30 mins straight.

[Obs]

I would implement drop sets, supersets, rest pause, and muscle rounds and train 1 body part each day (chest, back, legs, arms, shoulders).
using these intensity training techniques you can get a hell of a pump if your focused on that body part for 30 mins straight.

When I was lifting in my apartment I did all my workouts in 30-45 min. Dropsets are key.
Many HIT routines are that short.

It only works for about six weeks and you plateau.
Shortening rest periods to break the plateau didn't work for me. Two weeks of deload with higher reps and longer rest periods were necessary for me.

I got great growth starting out this way. It takes a special mindset though.
I was beyond determined. I had so little room I was using the living room and packing the weights out and putting them away took longer than the workout.

I finally started using a rented storage shed and jogging to it for my bench and squat rack.

I do not miss it lol!

[Obs]

I get that the majority of people who join these forums and start posting stretch the truth and the assumption is always that they aren't being fully truthful about their lives, discipline, etc. So, I get why I keep getting these answers. However, I can assure you that is not the case for me. I have 30 minutes and 30 minutes only.

Life's circumstances are sometimes beyond your control. For a variety of reasons, I cannot simply shirk my other responsibilities or magically add more time to my day. Please do not confuse "responsibility" with generic "family activities". There is a significant difference. Maybe you've never had to deal with these types of uncontrollable circumstances that necessitate your life significantly change in order to properly shoulder the responsibility necessary to deal with the situation at hand. Although temporary (a few months), the situation at hand requires my direct attention for most of the hours of the day that I'm not at work. I cannot simply walk away and go to the gym at any point, other than the 30 minute time period that I already mentioned.

The question, again, is: If you could only train 30 minutes a day (with no option to train longer), how would you optimize your time in the gym to make the most out of it? Thanks!

I would advise looking into marcus's HIT dungeon thread.
Marcus only trained about 30 minutes at a time as did many guys that posted there.
You can youtube dorian yates blood and guts and get the basics. I realize that thread is long but there are many times he bumped the posts about his routines etc.

You will have to plow into your routine like a truck so dont hurt yourself. Always warm up.

[Obs]

Exercises look like this:

Set, 30-60 second rest, set#2, dropset.

X3-4 exercises per muscle group.

Again this will only take you along for six weeks and your switch will need to be in the full throttle position going to absolute failure and beyond.
Being extremely angry helps.

[Couchlockd]

I get that the majority of people who join these forums and start posting stretch the truth and the assumption is always that they aren't being fully truthful about their lives, discipline, etc. So, I get why I keep getting these answers. However, I can assure you that is not the case for me. I have 30 minutes and 30 minutes only.

Life's circumstances are sometimes beyond your control. For a variety of reasons, I cannot simply shirk my other responsibilities or magically add more time to my day. Please do not confuse "responsibility" with generic "family activities". There is a significant difference. Maybe you've never had to deal with these types of uncontrollable circumstances that necessitate your life significantly change in order to properly shoulder the responsibility necessary to deal with the situation at hand. Although temporary (a few months), the situation at hand requires my direct attention for most of the hours of the day that I'm not at work. I cannot simply walk away and go to the gym at any point, other than the 30 minute time period that I already mentioned.

The question, again, is: If you could only train 30 minutes a day (with no option to train longer), how would you optimize your time in the gym to make the most out of it? Thanks!

Build a home gym.

Basics

Flat bench Olympic width that can incline, and a lat pull machine.

[Narkissos]

One of the programs I teach at my studio is based on a hacked EDT (escalated density) METCON mash-up.

It is 21-30 minutes long... and very effective. Let me give you a couple examples of what a class might look like.

Day 1: legs
10 minute AMRAP: (add one rep per exercise until timer goes off)
1 double rack goblet squat
1 bodyweight only plyometric squat

7 minute AMRAP:
Zercher good mornings: 12 reps
dumbbell leg curl: 8 reps
American kettlebell swing: 8 reps (heavy)

7 minute AMRAP:
Box squat: 10 reps
Banded Glute bridge: 20 reps
Single-leg standing calf raise: 10 reps per leg

6 minute AMRAP:
widowmakers x 10 (i.e. weighted burpee, renegade row, into push-up, into clean and press)
jack-knife sit-up: 10 reps

Day 3: Upper Push
5 minute AMRAP:
push-ups: 20 reps
kneeling lateral raise: 15 reps

7 minute AMRAP:
overhead carry: 100 metres
Thruster: 21 reps

7 minute AMRAP:
glute bridge hold w/ floor press: 12 reps
handstand: 30 seconds

7 minute AMRAP:
Kettlebell squat high pull: 15 reps
Crawl: 50 metres
Sprint: 50 metres

4 minute AMRAP:
dumbbell french press: 8 reps (heavy)
kickbacks: 8 reps
plank: 20 seconds

etc

All of the classes are death. The weights get heavy fast. The intensity is stupid-high. No room for chatting or BS-ing

I participate in 3 of my classes per week. And may throw in a gym workout once per week otherwise, if time allows. And I bike to a client twice per week.