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Muscle Gain Workout Plans

Muscle is built with progressive tension, enough volume, and food — in that order. These free hypertrophy plans handle the training variables; every set, rep and rest period is prescribed.

8 free plansEvery set & rep listedTrack free in the app

Muscle Gain Bodyweight – 3-Day Full Body

A beginner muscle-gain program using only bodyweight. Three full-body sessions per week build t…

Beginner3 days/wkBodyweight8 wks

Muscle Gain Dumbbells – 3-Day Full Body

A beginner dumbbell muscle-gain program. Three full-body sessions teach the key patterns — squa…

Beginner3 days/wkDumbbells8 wks

Muscle Gain Dumbbells – 4-Day Upper/Lower

An intermediate 4-day upper/lower dumbbell muscle-gain program. Dedicated push, quad, pull, and…

Intermediate4 days/wkDumbbells8 wks

Muscle Gain Gym – 5-Day Upper/Lower/Push/Pull/Legs

An advanced 5-day gym muscle-gain program. High frequency, high volume, and strategic exercise …

Advanced5 days/wkBarbell +8 wks

Muscle Gain Gym – 3-Day Full Body

A beginner full-gym muscle-gain program. Three full-body sessions introduce barbell, cable, and…

Beginner3 days/wkBarbell +8 wks

Muscle Gain Gym – 4-Day Upper/Lower

An intermediate 4-day upper/lower gym muscle-gain program combining barbells, cables, and machi…

Intermediate4 days/wkBarbell +8 wks

Muscle Gain Over 50 Gym – 3-Day Full Body

A beginner muscle-gain program designed for adults over 50. Machine and dumbbell movements prot…

Beginner3 days/wkBarbell +8 wks

Muscle Gain Over 50 Gym – 3-Day Intermediate

An intermediate muscle-gain program for adults over 50. Higher volume and load across machine, …

Intermediate3 days/wkBarbell +8 wks

What drives muscle growth

Mechanical tension is the primary signal: challenging sets taken close to failure, repeated across enough weekly volume per muscle, progressively overloaded over weeks. The plans below program exactly that — mostly in the 6–15 rep range where tension and volume are easiest to accumulate — across full-body and split structures.

The half you do in the kitchen

Training creates the stimulus; eating creates the material. A modest calorie surplus (200–400 kcal) and roughly 1.6–2.2 g of protein per kg of bodyweight per day turn the stimulus into tissue. Without the food, the best program only maintains.

Frequently asked questions

What rep range builds the most muscle?

Muscle grows across a wide range (roughly 5–30 reps) when sets approach failure, but the 6–15 rep zone is the practical sweet spot — heavy enough for tension, light enough to accumulate volume. The plans below live mostly in that zone.

How fast can I realistically gain muscle?

Beginners: roughly 0.5–1 kg of muscle per month with consistent training and eating. Intermediates: about half that. Anything promising dramatically faster results is selling something.

Can I build muscle at home?

Yes — the bodyweight and dumbbell plans below are written specifically for home training, using leverage and unilateral progressions to reach the required intensity.

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