FOUNDATION: The 3-Day Full Body Workout
Full gym, three days a week, full body. For the man starting from zero, coming back after time off, or who only has three days.
Who it's for
Three men. The one who has never lifted consistently. The one coming back after months or years off. The one who only has three days. In the app, you land here if you train in a full gym and you're under a year in or coming back, or if you have a year or more but three days a week.
The week
Two sessions, Day A and Day B, both full body, about 45 minutes each. They alternate on three non-consecutive days: A B A one week, B A B the next. The days between are rest.
- Day A: full body, built on the squat.
- Day B: full body, a different lift in every slot.
Weeks 1 and 2: find your numbers
Stop a set the moment the form changes. That weight is your starting point. Not your old best, not the number you think you should be lifting. Getting back in the gym, step by step.
Day A in full
Warm up: Stair Master, 5 minutes, then Hanging Leg Raises, 3 sets of 15.
| Exercise | Warm-up | Working | Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back Squat | 2 | 3 | 6-8 | 3:00 |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 2 | 3 | 8 | 3:00 |
| Lat Pull Downs | 1 | 3 | 8 | 3:00 |
| Lying Leg Curl | 1 | 3 | 10 | 1:30 |
| Face Pulls | 1 | 3 | 15 | 1:30 |
| Seated Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1 | 2 | 10 | 1:30 |
The top set of every lift: RPE 7. First time under a bar? Two swaps from the alternatives: Back Squat becomes Goblet Squat, Bench Press (Day B) becomes Dumbbell Bench Press.
The top set
Every lift climbs to one top set at RPE 7: three reps left in the tank. Every set before it is a step up in weight. The last set you log is the top set, and it is the one the app reads. You finish it clean, not crawling. What RPE 7 means, and how to tell one.
Rest
Rest is timed to the lift. Big compound lifts (squats, deadlifts, presses, rows, pull-ups, dips): 3 to 5 minutes, and the timer starts at 3:00. Single-muscle lifts (curls, raises, extensions, flys, calves, core): 1 to 2 minutes, and the timer starts at 1:30. The timer reads the lift, not its place in the list, so a swap brings its own rest. Why the lift decides the rest.
Progression
Reps first, then weight: 185 × 8, then 9, then 10, then 190 × 8. In The Shift the log reads your top set and tells you what to load next time. The rule, in full.
Deload every 4 to 6 weeks: same program, half the volume.
Alternatives
No exercise is mandatory. The movement pattern is what matters. No equipment for it, a joint that doesn't agree, or a lift that doesn't connect: swap it for one that trains the same movement. In the log, tap the lift's name and pick from its alternatives. The swap keeps its own history.
Day A's lifts and some of their swaps:
- Back Squat: Hack Squat, Leg Press, Goblet Squat
- Incline Dumbbell Press: Incline Barbell Press, Landmine Press, Incline Machine Press
- Lat Pull Downs: Pull-Ups (assisted/weighted), Straight-Arm Pulldown, Machine Pulldown
- Lying Leg Curl: Seated Leg Curl, Nordic Curl, Swiss Ball Leg Curl
- Face Pulls: Band Pull-Aparts, Reverse Fly Machine, Rear Delt Dumbbell Fly
- Seated Incline Dumbbell Curl: Bayesian Cable Curls, Lying Dumbbell Curl, Incline Cable Curl
Inside The Shift
Day B, the log with last session's numbers next to every set, the next-weight call, the rest timer and the swaps. FOUNDATION is one of four programs. The Shift is $6 a week ($26 USD billed monthly, founding price).
Emil Pasini