Evolution Training Program: Part 1

By Jared Malvin

This is a great program that I love to introduce to first time lifters, people interested in getting in better shape or just getting back into lifting. It features a 6-day/week lifting program with 3-day splits. (A 3-day split is a training block covering all the muscles in 3 days and then working them again the next 3 days.) I generally follow that training protocol for almost all my styles of training and credit to Ron Mathews for creating this. I have done this exact training block in the past and am planning on this exact training below as gyms reopen.

These workouts also feature supersets (conducting 2 different exercises one immediately after the other with no rest) tri-sets (conducting 3 different exercises in a row) and giant sets (conducting more than 3 exercises in a row) all with minimal rest time between sets. This design really pushes the body to work hard, keep the heart rate up and produce great results. The amount of reps and sets also ensure the weight used is somewhat minimal to achieve all the reps with proper form. It is of vital importance that all reps are conducted slow and controlled with a squeeze on the muscle being worked.

Week 1

Day 1 Chest/Back

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Barbell Bench Press 7 sets/20, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

2) Lat Pulldown 7 sets/20, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Incline Dumbbell Chest Press 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) One-arm Dumbbell Row 4 sets/10-12 reps each arm

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Chest Fly Machine 4 sets/10 reps

2) Close Grip Cable Row 4 sets/10 reps

Day 2 Legs/Triceps

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Barbell Squat 7 sets/10, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

2) Triceps Cable Extension: V-Bar 7 sets/20, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Lying Leg Curl 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) One-arm Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension 4 sets/10-12 reps

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Goblet Squat 4 sets/10 reps

2) Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension 4 sets/15 reps

Day 3 Deltoids/Biceps

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 7 sets/20, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

2) Seated Dumbbell Two-arm Curl 7 sets/10, 15, 12, 10, 5, 8, 16 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Plate Front Raise 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) Standing Barbell Curl 4 sets/10-12 reps each arm

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Lateral Raise 4 sets/12 reps

2) Dumbbell Hammer Curl 4 sets/12 reps

Day 4 Chest/Back

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Fly 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps

2) Bent-over Two-arm Dumbbell Row 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Close-grip Bench Press 4 sets/10-12 reps

2) Lat Pulldown Narrow Reverse Grip 4 sets/10-12 reps

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Chest Dips 4 sets/AMRAP

2) Cable Row Narrow Underhand Grip 4 sets/10-12 reps

Day 5 Legs/Triceps

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Reverse Lunge 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps

2) Triceps Cable Extension: Straight Bar 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Leg Extension 4 sets/10-12 reps

2) French Press 4 sets/10-12 reps

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Barbell Front Squat 4 sets/10 reps

2) Triceps Cable Extension: Rope Front 4 sets/15 reps

Day 6 Deltoids/Biceps

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Barbell Upright Row 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps

2) Triple Dumbbell Curl 5 sets/15, 12, 10, 10, 10 reps (all reps alternating curl top half only, then all reps both arms from resting position, then all reps both arms on incline bench)

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 4 sets/10-12 reps

2) Cable Curl: Straight Bar 4 sets/10-12 reps

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Rotating Lateral Raise 4 sets/12 reps

2) Dumbbell Alternating Curl 4 sets/10 reps each arm

Day 7 Rest

Week 2

Day 8 Chest/Back

Repeat Day 1 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes (heart rate between 120-130)

Day 9 Legs/Triceps

Repeat Day 2 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Day 10 Deltoids/Biceps/Abs

Giant set 1: rest 1 minute between giant sets

1) Hanging Leg Raise 3 sets/15 reps

2) Hip-ups 3 sets/20 reps

3) Bicycles 3 sets/25 reps

4) Crunches 3 sets/30 reps

Repeat Day 3 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Day 11 Chest/Back

Repeat Day 4 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 12 Legs/Triceps

Repeat Day 5 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Day 13 Deltoids/Biceps/Abs

Giant set 1: rest 1 minute between giant sets

1) Toes to Bar 3 sets/15 reps

2) Reverse Bicycles 3 sets/25 reps

3) Mountain Climbers 3 sets/20 reps each side

4) Crunches 3 sets/30 reps

Repeat Day 6 workout

Reduce rest time after supersets to 50 seconds

Day 14 Rest

Week 3

Day 15 Chest/Back

Triset 1: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Barbell Incline Chest Press 4 sets/15 reps

2) Pull-up: Wide Grip 4 sets/4-10 reps

3) Lat Pulldown 4 sets 12-15 reps

Triset 2: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Cable Chest Fly 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) Push-up 4 sets/15 reps

3) Close Grip Cable Row 4 sets/12-15 reps

Superset 3: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Bench Press 4 sets/12 reps

2) Bent-over Barbell Row: Wide Grip 4 sets/10 reps

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 16 Legs/Triceps/Abs

Giant set 1: rest 1 minute between giant sets

1) Hanging Leg Raise 3 sets/15 reps

2) Hip-ups 3 sets/20 reps

3) Bicycles 3 sets/25 reps

4) Crunches 3 sets/30 reps

Triset 2: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Barbell Squat 4 sets/15 reps

2) EZ Bar Skullcrusher 4 sets/12 reps

3) EZ Bar Triceps Press: Narrow Grip 4 sets/12 reps

Triset 3: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Bulgarian Split Squat 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) Triceps Cable Extension: Rope Overhead 4 sets/12 reps

3) Triceps Cable Extension: Rope Front 4 sets/12 reps

Superset 4: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Dumbbell Bench Step-up 4 sets/10 reps each leg

2) Bench Dip 4 sets/20 reps

Day 17 Shoulders/Biceps

Triset 1: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Standing Military Press 4 sets/10 reps

2) Light Standing Military Press (40% of previous) 4 sets/12 reps

3) Standing Barbell Curl 4 sets/10-12 reps

Superset 2: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Cable Lateral Raise 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) Dumbbell Alternating Curl with Twist 4 sets/10 reps each arm

Triset 3: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Dumbbell Front Raise 4 sets/10 reps

2) Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise 4 sets/10 reps same weight

3) Rope Hammer Curl (drop set) 4 sets/10 reps/10 more reps on drop set

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 18 Chest/Back/Abs

Giant set 1: rest 1 minute between giant sets

1) Toes to Bar 3 sets/15 reps

2) Reverse Bicycles 3 sets/25 reps

3) Mountain Climbers 3 sets/20 reps each side

4) Crunches 3 sets/30 reps

Triset 2: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Barbell Bench Press 4 sets/15 reps

2) Chin-up: Narrow Reverse Grip 4 sets/4-10 reps

3) Lat Pulldown: Narrow Neutral Grip 4 sets/12-15 reps

Triset 3: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Chest Fly Machine 4 sets/12-15 reps

2) Chest Dips 4 sets/15 reps

3) One-arm Dumbbell Row: Reverse Grip 4 sets/12 reps each arm

Triset 4: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Bench Plyo Pushup 4 sets/10 reps

2) Bench Pushup 4 sets/10 reps

3) Cable Row: Wide Overhand Grip 4 sets/10 reps

Day 19 Legs/Triceps

Superset 1: rest 1 minute between supersets

1) Barbell Deadlift 4 sets/15 reps

2) Lying J Press 4 sets/12 reps

Triset 2: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Dumbbell Walking Lunge 4 sets/15 steps each leg

2) Triceps Extension: V Bar (HEAVY) 4 sets/10 reps

3) Triceps Extension: V Bar 4 sets/10 reps

Triset 3: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Leg Extension 4 sets/12 reps

2) Lying Leg Curl 4 sets/12 reps

3) One-arm Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension 4 sets/12 reps

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 20 Shoulders/Biceps/Abs

Giant set 1: rest 1 minute between giant sets

1) Hanging Leg Raise 3 sets/15 reps

2) Hip-ups 3 sets/20 reps

3) Bicycles 3 sets/25 reps

4) Crunches 3 sets/30 reps

Triset 2: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Shoulder Press Machine: Neutral Grip 4 sets/12 reps

2) Dumbbell Alternating Curl 4 sets/10 reps

3) Dumbbell Alternating Curl (Light) 4 sets/10 reps

Triset 3: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Dumbbell Lateral Raise 4 sets/12 reps

2) Seated Arnold Press 4 sets/12 reps (same weight)

3) EZ Bar Curl: Wide Grip 4 sets/15 reps

Triset 4: rest 1 minute between trisets

1) Cable One-arm Bent-over Rear Delt Raise 4 sets/10 reps each arm

2) Preacher Curl 4 sets/10 reps

3) Preacher Curl Pulse 4 sets/10 reps (squeeze biceps at the top in a pulsing manner)

Day 21 Rest

Week 4

Day 22 Chest/Back

Repeat Day 15 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 23 Legs/Triceps/Abs

Repeat Day 16 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 24 Deltoids/Biceps

Repeat Day 17 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 25 Chest/Back/Abs

Repeat Day 18 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 26 Legs/Triceps

Repeat Day 19 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 27 Deltoids/Biceps/Abs

Repeat Day 20 workout

Reduce rest time between sets to 50 seconds

Conduct steady state cardio post workout for 20 minutes

Day 28 Rest