All programs

Strength & endurance

Hybrid

Combine focused lifting sessions with intervals and longer aerobic workouts.

4 days / about 60 min / gym / consistent / 4 week block

About this example plan
  • Hybrid develops strength and endurance through focused lifting sessions, intervals, and longer easy aerobic workouts. Short schedules combine lifting with finishers; schedules with more days give endurance work its own sessions. Leave room to recover between demanding sessions.
  • Two strength sessions, intervals, and a long easy session for aerobic base.
  • All four weeks fit a modeled 60-minute budget including preparation and rest. Real pace and equipment waits vary; adjust the session when needed.
  • Exercise choices assume a full gym: barbells, rack, dumbbells, cables, and machines.
  • You get moderate volume and a weekly wave in effort. Progress comes from adding reps, then weight.

Choose your days, time, equipment, and experience

MON / Squat, bench, row / ABOUT 59 MIN

Strength A

  • Back squatSwap for: Front squat, Pause squat, Hack squat5 x 8RPE 7 / rest 2 min
  • Flat barbell bench pressSwap for: Paused bench press, Incline barbell bench press, Flat DB press5 x 8RPE 7 / rest 2 min
  • Bent-over barbell rowSwap for: Pendlay row, Bent-over DB row, Underhand seated cable row2 x 8-12RPE 7 / rest 1 min 15 s
  • Lying leg curlSwap for: Seated leg curl2 x 12-15RPE 8 / rest 1 min
  • Dead bugSwap for: Hanging knee raise, Pallof press, Ab wheel rollout2 x 10-15rest 45 s

TUE / Hard and easy efforts / ABOUT 52 MIN

Intervals

  • Assault bike1 x 5-8 min
  • Assault bike6 x 2 minrest 2 min
  • Brisk walk1 x 5 min
  • Dead bug3 x 10-15rest 45 s
  • Bird dog3 x 10-15rest 45 s

THU / Deadlift, press, pull-up / ABOUT 59 MIN

Strength B

  • Conventional deadliftSwap for: Romanian deadlift, Trap bar deadlift, DB Romanian deadlift5 x 8RPE 7 / rest 2 min
  • Barbell overhead pressSwap for: Push press, Standing DB overhead press, Overhead DB press5 x 8RPE 7 / rest 2 min
  • Lat pulldownSwap for: Wide-grip pull-up, Chin-up, Close-grip neutral pull-up2 x 8-12RPE 7 / rest 1 min 15 s
  • Walking lungeSwap for: Reverse lunge, DB Bulgarian split squat, DB step-up2 x 12-15RPE 8 / rest 1 min
  • Pallof pressSwap for: Dead bug, Hanging knee raise, Ab wheel rollout2 x 10-15rest 45 s

FRI / Aerobic base / ABOUT 51 MIN

Long easy

  • Rower1 x 45-50 min
Build this plan for my schedule

Four-week block

  1. Week 1: Set your baseline. Find working weights you can control at the target effort. Record honest reps.
  2. Week 2: Build. Main lifts move to sets of 7. Conditioning progresses where time allows. Added work is capped by your session time; keep the prescribed rest.
  3. Week 3: Push. Main lifts move to sets of 6. Added sets and conditioning depend on the session budget. Extra sets or minutes are included only when they fit; progress can also come from controlled reps and load.
  4. Week 4: Deload and review. Fewer planned sets and lower effort targets. Review your completed sessions before deciding whether to repeat, adjust, or progress.

Progress and recovery

  • If your legs are still heavy after a hard session, make the next one easier or swap its order.
  • Keep easy days at a conversational pace.
  • Follow the week's lifting and conditioning targets; progress only when you recover well.
  • RPE is effort out of 10. RPE 8 means you could have done about 2 more reps with good form.
  • Log completed reps, sets, and weights. Your next session uses them as a starting point.
  • Use the lighter fourth week to recover and review your log before repeating or progressing.

What RPE means

RPE (rate of perceived exertion) is how hard a set feels, on a scale of 1 to 10. It tells you where to stop: at RPE 8, you finish the set with about 2 good reps left.

RPE 10
Maximum effort. No more reps possible.
RPE 9
Very hard. About 1 more good rep.
RPE 8
Hard. About 2 more good reps.
RPE 7
Challenging. About 3 more good reps; the weight still moves quickly.
RPE 6
Moderate. About 4 more good reps.
RPE 5 or less
Light. Warm-up or technique practice.
  • Choose a weight that lets you reach the rep range at the target RPE. A good rep keeps your normal form and speed.
  • If the last rep felt easier than the target, add a little weight next set or next session. If form slipped or you reached failure, use less.
  • Half points, such as 7.5, sit between the two numbers. RPE is your best estimate, not a test; it gets more accurate with practice.

Start with this plan, then adjust the exercises and weights to suit your training. You choose the weights you use and record the reps you complete.