Bodybuilder DB

For those of us who love to lift weights, cardio training is often an excruciatingly boring endeavor. Whether it be HIIT, steady state, or anything in between, when it is time to jump on the treadmill, stationary bike or elliptical the majority of us iron warriors cringe. 

But isn’t it this very type of mundane cardio that allows us to most efficiently burn off body fat and reveal the details of our hard earned muscles underneath? Not necessarily! Utilized correctly, the same BB’s, DB’s and machines we use to induce hypertrophy can also be extremely effective tools for melting fat.

The key lies in choosing the right exercises, incorporating the proper rep range, and arranging your workouts in a manner that encourages the body to tap into body fat for energy.

The Exercises

When utilizing weights to burn fat it is beneficial to perform mostly compound lifts, especially when it comes to larger muscle groups like back and quads. These movements will most effectively raise the heart rate, burn calories, increase natural growth hormone production (note: GH is a powerful fat burner), and enhance metabolic rate.

The Rep Range

Since we are focusing on burning body fat you want to keep reps in the medium to medium/high range, or about 10-12 for upper body exercises and 12-20 for the lower half. By doing so you will burn more calories, push out more lactic acid (which increases GH production), and stimulate the metabolism, while still giving your muscles a challenging enough workout to foster growth.

The Exercise Arrangement

Most of the time when concentrating our efforts into build pure muscle mass we utilize a “straight sets” approach, with 2-3 minutes rest in between. However, when looking to get “shredded” enough to display that wicked 6-pack and deep separations/cuts through every body part it is more effective to use specific types of supersets, circuits, and mega-fast paced training.

The following workouts are examples of the types of weight training routines you can begin using right now to “rip up” your physique without ever stepping foot on a treadmill, bike or stepper.

See the fat torching workouts on next page. 

Squat

Workout A: The Fast Paced Body Fat Burner 

Exercise

Sets

Reps        

Rest

Barbell Squats

4

12-15

60 sec

Alternating Barbell Lunges

3

12-15

60 sec

Stiff Leg Deadlift

4

12-15

60 sec.

Underhand Grip BB Bent Row

3         

10-12

45-60 sec

Narrow Grip Bench Press

3

10-12

45 sec

Standing Military Press

3

10-12

45-60 sec

Close Underhand Grip Pullup

2

Max Reps

45-60 sec

 

Massive Pecs with One Move

Workout B: The Upper/Lower Superset Scorcher

Exercise

Sets

Reps        

Hack Squats – Superset w/

3

12-15

Weighted Dips

3

10-12

Leg Press – Superset w/

3

12-15

Bodyweight Pullup

3         

Max Reps

Walking DB Lunge – Superset w/

2

12-15

Seated DB Press

2

10-12

DB Stiff Leg Deadlift – Superset w/

2

12-15

Standing Alternating DB Curl

2 10-12

Hanging Straight Leg Raise – Superset w/

2 Max Reps

Bench Dips

2 Max Reps

Rest between supersets should be no longer than 2 minutes

Deadlift

Workout C: The Circuit Incinerator

Exercise

Reps

Deadlift

12-15

Incline BB Press

10-12

Leg Press 

12-15

One Arm DB Row

10-12

Smith Alternating Reverse Lunge

12-15

WG BB Upright Row

10-12

Lying Leg Curl

12-15

Upright Torso Dips

10-12

Cable Crunch

12-15

CG Underhand Grip Pull-up

Max Reps

Move from one exercise to the next as rapidly as possible.

Do not go to failure on each movement, but perhaps 1-3 reps short.

If attempting to perform multiple circuits rest about 3-5 minutes in between each by slowly walking around the gym until ready.