All of my clients are professionals in once sense or another. They are CEOs, senior executives, business owners, lawyers, doctors, and the like. These are my kind of people, and I enjoy working with most of them.

One of my current clients, Marc S, is one of my easiest clients with which to work. He understands the importance of goals, the value of the plans I put in place, that progress is not linear, that his progress depends on him, and he communicates well with me. These are all attributes of a good client, and I appreciate clients like Marc.

The Workout Program

As with any client, the workout program for Marc changes over time, so this is the current iteration. The basics of the program are as follows:

Four days per week
Flexible schedule for many sessions can be completed
Basic human function exercises—hip hinge, press, squat, run
High value compound accessory exercises—pull-up, chin-up, push-up
Variation exercises of lines three and four
Conditioning work in the form of circuits, metcons, etc.

That might seem like a lot for four days, but we have a very straightforward approach for it that makes implementation relatively easy.

The Daily Workouts

Day 1

Barbell Back Squat: 8 sets x 8 reps

Pull Up 8 sets x 1 rep

Day 2

Barbell Bench Press: 8 sets x 8 reps

Chin Up 8 sets x 2 reps

Day 3

Run 3 miles

Deadlift: 5 sets x 8 reps

5 rounds of: Dumbbell Thruster 10 reps, Burpee 10 reps

Day 4

Dumbbell Front Squat: 4 sets x 12 reps

Dumbbell Bench Press: 4 sets x 12 reps

Dumbbell Deadlift: 4 sets x 12 reps

Push Up: 4 sets x 12 reps

How the Program is Progressive

The program is progressive in two ways. One, the reps for the bench press, deadlift, and squat reduce week over week as the load increases. Two, I look at how and where to make weekly changes that are progressive.

Increasing Intensity (load) Over Time

Right now, I operate Marc’s program on a repeating four week cycle. The daily workouts listed above are from week one, and the details change through week four, and then we cycle back to the start. Ideally, with each cycle, Marc is increasing load used from week to week.

For example, in the second iteration of this program, which would be weeks 5-8, Marc ideally uses more load for each week. So, for example, in Day 1 above Marc has the Barbell Back Squat: 8 sets x 8 reps. If he use 100 pounds for all sets in Week 1, ideally he would go to 105 or better for all eight in Week 5.

That is a simplistic example, and we typically do not use the same weight for each set, but the same logic of increase every cycle remains.

Cycling Exercises Over Time

Also on Day 1 is the pull-up. This a relatively new skill for Marc, which we are still building. We used a lot of band work and assistance exercises leaving up to this. We still use these some now.

We vary from pull-up to chin-up, as well as variations of both, to allow Marc to push more in each session over time. How we do this depends on a few factors. One we can adjust from sessions to session is the use of bands.

Marc start without bands to see how the sets go. If he can complete all sets with out bands, then he does. If he needs bands, the goal is to use the lowest resistance level needed. One week this may be more or less compared to another week. This matters only in the sense of if it allows Marc to hit the numbers in good form without issue, such as pain.

Again, pretty simplistic explanation, and we may make other adjustments as needed.

The Importance of Flexibility and Simplicity

Marc travels on an almost weekly basis. He is also a senior director in a tech business, and his work demands can be high and vary over time. To help Marc regularly work in the program, we look to flexibility and simplicity.

The simplicity lies in the layout. The entire program can be completed in a very basic gym. A day pass at any gym in just about any city will allow Marc to complete the weekly program. Marc also has the flexibility to change the workout order and the days they are completed.

If Marc only has access to dumbbells on the day he would normally complete Day 1, he might complete Day 4 instead. If he needs to backload or front load all his workouts for the week, we do that.

Regardless of what Marc has going on for the week, we work together to make any adjustments necessary to help him fit sessions in.

How Nutrition Plays a Role

Nutrition is vitally important to Marc’s goals, as is the case with any physical goal. His travel patterns make following a strict meal plan difficult. Also, time with clients and family mean flexibility in eating leads to greater enjoyment of life.

These things matter.

Marc follows set calorie and macro targets that change over time based on progress. The maroc split is generally 30/40/30, which is 30 percent protein, 40 percent carbohydrates, and 30 percent fat. Marc has a 20% variance for each target, meaning he does not have to be exactly on the macro grams, but instead within a range, such as 80-100.

Calories are generally in the 2000s and have the same tolerance range. This is one area where Marc can struggle—going over calories. One thing we do not do is make this a big deal. If he has an off week, we run with it. As long as Marc is clearly working to reach the targets, is doing so on a regular basis, and is seeing progress, there is no need to make a big deal out of missed nutrition targets, or missed workouts for that matter.

Progress Seen with This Program

As of this writing, Marc has worked with me for nine months. He has seen significant progress, even in the wake of weekly travel, summer social life, and responsibilities, such as work and family. Marc’s starting body stats are as follows:

Body weight: 224
Body Fat Percent: 34.4
Lean Mass: 145.89
Fat Mass: 76.51

Over the past nine months, all numbers have dropped. There has been some back and forth—since progress is not linear—but the overall trend is positive. Marc’s current body stats are as follows:

Body weight: 202
Body Fat Percent: 29.8
Lean Mass: 142.01
Fat Mass: 60.29

This is a very good rate of progress in general. Even more so with the travel and business demands Marc has present in his life. The progress is not “monumental,” so to speak, but is a very acceptable and sustainable way for a working professional to meet his goal.

At the same time, he has improved every performance, fitness, and health metric. His blood work has improved, he is running faster, he is more conditioned, and he has improved his lifting in terms of form and load used. For example, he increased his bench by about 35 pounds, deadlift by about 100 pounds, and his back squat by about 55 pounds.

His hard work and my coaching have enabled him to see progress. You can too with a program like this. Take what I wrote as a framework to use.

A better idea would be to hire me. I have helped Marc and many other clients with a personalized and client focused approach that can be completed online, in person, or a combination of both.

And that is it. Have questions? Let me know on social media. You can click the links here, or just look up Nathan DeMetz Personal Training on Facebook and Instagram.

Nathan DeMetz holds degrees in Exercise Science, Business Administration, and Information Technology as well as certifications in strength and conditioning, sports nutrition, run coaching, and other areas. His credentials come from organizations such as Indiana Wesleyan University, Ivy Tech College, Utah State University, and the ISSA College of Exercise Science.

Nathan has 20 years of personal and professional experience in the health and fitness world. He works with people from across the globe, including locations such as Kuwait, Australia, and the USA.

To work with Nathan directly on your personal training goals, contact him today!

A Workout Program for Busy Middle-age Professional Men