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30-Minute Workout

This routine consists of a traditional push/pull routine along with a "High Intensity Interval Cardio"  warm-up ranging between 10 to 15 minutes. 

For day 1 you will do the push routine, which consists of exercises that recruit the muscle groups that pull. These muscle groups are mainly located in the front of your arms and in your back. Hence, common exercises in the pull routine, include curls, bicep concentrated pull, lateral pull down, and chin ups. 

For day 2 you will do the push routine, which consists of exercises that recruit muscle groups that push. These muscle groups are mainly located in the read of your arms and on your chest. Hence, common exercises in the push routine, include tricep extension, bench press, and the dip. 

On day 3 you should perform a complete leg workout targeting all muscles there. 

On day 4 you can repeat the routine with a different set of exercises that target push or pull. However, I prefer to target shoulders and abs. 

Day 5 of the 30-Minute Workout is not an option, and you should repeat the workout of that are highly important to you. We have generalized it here, by suggesting for men to focus on upper body exercises, and women to focus on lower body exercises. Other options include focusing on abs, focusing on arms, or chest, etc.

Here is a sample of how the Metal Workout should be scheduled, broken down by approximate time:

Day 1 - Pull  Day 2 - Push 
Minute / Exercise  Minute / Exercise 
01-10 / Run (Cardio Metal Playlist) 01-10 / Run (Cardio Metal Playlist)
10-13 / Bicep Curls  10-13 / Tricep Kickback 
13-16 / Cable Curls or Smith Curls  13-16 / Assisted Dip 
16-19 / Dead Lift  16-19 / Dumbbell Incline Press
19-21 / Assisted Chin Up  19-21 / Military Press 
21-24 / Lateral Pull Down  21-24 / Machine Bench Press 
24-27 / Abs  24-27/ Heavy Bag
27-30 / Heavy Bag  27-30 / Abs
Day 3 - Legs Day 4 - Shoulders & Abs
Minute / Exercise  Minute / Exercise 
01-10 / Run with the weekly Metal Tracks  01-10 / Run with the weekly Metal Tracks 
10-13 / Calf Raise  10-13 / Shrug 
13-16 / Dumbbell Lunge  13-16 / Dumbbell Front Raise 
16-19 / Squat  16-19 / Dumbbell Lateral Raise 
19-21 / Machine Leg Extension  19-21 / Machine Shoulder Press 
21-24 / Machine Leg Curl  21-24 / Cable Side Lateral Raise 
24-27/ Swiss-ball Wall Squat  24-27 / Hanging Leg Raise Abs 
27-30 / Hanging Bicycle Kick Abs  27-30 / Hanging Bicycle Kick Abs 
WOMEN's Day 5 - "Weekend Legs" MEN's Day 5 - "Weekend "Push/Pull"
Minute / Exercise  Minute / Exercise 
01-10 / Run with the weekly Metal Tracks  01-10 / Run (Cardio Metal Playlist)
10-13 / Calf Raise  10-13 / Bicep Curls 
13-16 / Dumbbell Lunge  13-16 / Cable Curls or Smith Curls 
16-19 / Squat  16-19 / Dead Lift 
19-21 / Machine Leg Extension  19-21 / Assisted Chin Up 
21-24 / Machine Leg Curl  21-24 / Lateral Pull Down 
24-27/ Swiss-ball Wall Squat  24-27 / Abs 
27-30 / Hanging Bicycle Kick Abs  27-30 / Heavy Bag 

NOTE: After each workout it is very important that you stretch, either at the gym or at home.  

EXPLANATIONS: 

The Metal Workout is designed to engage you in a fully intense workout - which not only builds muscle and definition, but also carries a large portion of cardio throughout the routine. For that reason, the most important part of the workout is the beginning, running! The running portion receives the most attention, because depending on how successful you are there, your workout will develop accordingly, and hopefully, with the same intensity. 

The weight portion of the workout requires the traditional 3 set, 8-10 repetition for each exercise. To achieve great muscle build it is utterly important to ensure that each set is intense and challenging. Hence, the proper weight must be chosen. If you are a pro at math and have enough time to figure it out - go ahead and pick 80% of your max rep. In my case, I chose the simple trial and error method, as follows. During the first set of each exercise, pick a weight which you think you can do just 8 repetitions, nothing more and nothing less. If you are near muscle failure* by repetition 8, then you are on the money, this is your ideal weight for that exercise. Continue with that weight until you can do 10 repetitions with that weight. At that point, you must increase the weight again so you can only do just 8 repetitions. 

Depending on multiple factors, the time of weight increase will vary greatly, and at sometimes, there may be a time when you can't find the proper weight to challenge yourself. Don't worry! That is why there are other exercises, and you can swap them out to find the exercises that truly challenge you. *muscle failure is when you try to lift a weight and you find that you can't go past half the proper range of motion. Once muscle failure is reached, only by cheating will you get the weight to complete the full range of motion. Since the world isn't perfect, it is quite possible that for some exercises you may be cheating during your 8th repetition. If that is the case, you may want to stop at repetition 7 until you can actually do 8 without cheating. Sometimes you may be OK cheating, however, cheating usually leads to injuries of the neck and back, which will totally disrupt your routine for a week or two. 


KEY ADVICE: 

There are some exercises which are a must! These are exercises that target a maximum amount of muscles in a desired area, and are traditional exercises, thus, will lead to rapid muscle growth if used the most. From my experience, these exercises are the Bicep Curl, Tricep Extension, Bench Press, Military Press, Chin Up and the Squat. The key advice when it comes to these great exercises, is that if you find the "ideal weight", then you can actually go ahead and do 2 sets of these exercises, instead of just one. However, it is important to monitor your repetitions, to ensure that you aren't cheating on sets 4, 5 and 6. And sometimes it is good enough to just go to set 4, due to muscle exhaustion. Additionally, if sets 4, 5, and 6 become a real problem, just make sure you don't skip these key exercises during the repeat of the routine on days 5, 6 and 7.

 
Any questions? Please follow us & ask via Twitter @TheMetalWorkout