Beginner’s 1 Hour Gym Workout Plan to Build Muscle W/ PDF

If you are a beginner and looking for a well-organized training plan for building strength and developing an aesthetic physique, you’ve come to the right place.

I’m Murshid Akram, a fitness instructor, who helps people achieve their best fitness through my workout programs.

In this article, I’ve shared a couple of 1-hour gym workout routines for strength and muscle development.

The first one involves training the upper and lower body in separate sessions and the other plan involves training the full body every time you hit the gym.

I’ve designed these training plans primarily for new lifters who want to bolster their fundamental strength and build lean mass.

These routines will allow you to train strategically and help you achieve your best physique over time.

They are suitable for both males and females. So, give it a try if you want to scale your fitness to the next level.

Program Summary

1 Hour Upper/Lower Split for Building Muscle

• Monday: Chest, Shoulder, and Arms
• Tuesday: Thighs and Calves
• Wednesday: OFF
• Thursday: Back, Shoulder, and Abs
• Friday: Thighs and Calves
• Saturday: OFF
• Sunday: OFF

Note: Warm up for 5 minutes before weight training. You can jog, lift light weights, or perform cardio to increase your heart rate and blood flow and get your muscles ready to lift weights.

1-Hour Upper Body Workout

This routine involves training your upper body twice a week, first on Monday and then on Thursday.

On Monday, you’ll train the chest, shoulders, and arms and on Thursday, you’ll work on your back, shoulder, and abs.

Monday – Chest, Shoulder, and Arms

Thursday: Back, Shoulder, and Abs

1-Hour Lower Body Workout

This program also involves hitting your lower body twice a week, first on Tuesday and then on Friday. On both days, you’ll train your quads, hamstrings, and calves and on Friday, you’ll also focus on strengthening your gluteal muscles.

Tuesday – Thigh and Calves

Friday – Thighs and Calves

Full Body 1 Hour Gym Workout Plan for Beginners

You can also do a one-hour total body workout three times a week to build muscle, strength, and endurance. It allows you to train almost every muscle group in one single session.

The full body split is a time-efficient way to work more muscle in less time and build strength, muscle mass, and endurance.¹ Bartolomei, Sandro et al. “A Comparison Between Total Body and Split Routine Resistance Training Programs in Trained Men.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research vol. 35,6 (2021): 1520-1526. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000003573

Here’s an example of the full-body 1-hour workout routine:

• Number of sets: 3-4
• Rep Ranges: 10-15
• SS means: Superset
• Rest between sets: 2-3 minutes

You can make some changes depending on your fitness level and goal.

Try one of the two routines I shared above. I hope it will help you build muscle and improve overall fitness.

Is 1 Hour Workout Enough to Build Muscle?

A study has shown that eight weeks of resistance training (45-60 minutes a day, three times a week) resulted in increases in lean mass and strength, indicating one-hour workout (3-4 times weekly) is enough for beginners to develop their overall fitness.² Seynnes OR, de Boer M, Narici MV. Early skeletal muscle hypertrophy and architectural changes in response to high-intensity resistance training. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2007;102(1):368-373. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00789.2006

1-hour workout a day is considerable time to achieve the best results if you take care of the following things:

1. Compound exercises
2. Progressive Overload
3. Nutrition
4. Recovery
5. Repetition

Compound Exercises

Compound exercises work on several muscles simultaneously, such as squats, bench presses, dips, and pull-ups.

Focusing mostly on compound movements allows you to train many muscles in a short time and helps you build strength faster.³ Paoli, Antonio et al. “Resistance Training with Single vs. Multi-joint Exercises at Equal Total Load Volume: Effects on Body Composition, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Muscle Strength.” Frontiers in Physiology vol. 8 1105. 22 Dec. 2017, doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.01105

However, it doesn’t mean you should completely avoid isolation exercises, you should also integrate muscle-specific exercises, such as biceps curls, triceps extension, and leg curls to strengthen specific areas of your body.

The above program is a good example of how to craft a well-designed 1 hour workout plan that combines both compound and isolation movements efficiently.

Progressive Overload

Progressive overload involves gradually increasing the load over time to stimulate hypertrophy.⁴ Peterson MD, Pistilli E, Haff GG, Hoffman EP, Gordon PM. Progression of volume load and muscular adaptation during resistance exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011;111(6):1063-1071. doi:10.1007/s00421-010-1735-9

You should try to increase the load as much as possible every week or two to challenge your muscles to work hard.

If you can’t increase the weight, try to perform more sets or decrease the rest time between sets.

Nutrition

Muscles grow outside the gym when you feed your muscles the required amount of protein, carbs, and fats.

Usually, 1.6–2.2 g/kg/day protein is recommended for a better physique ⁵Nutrition Recommendations for Bodybuilders in the Off-Season: A Narrative Review – National Institute of Health Database. For example, if you’re 60 kg, you’ll need to consume 120g of protein. You can take this quantity into different meals throughout the day (3–6 meals), including pre and post-workout meals. (See: high protein foods)

On the other hand, 3–5 g/kg/day of carbs and 0.5–1.5 g/kg/day of fats are recommended.

Recovery

Once you’ve trained your muscles and consumed essential nutrients, it’s time for recovery. Let your trained muscles recover for at least 48 hours. And get some quality sleep.

Repetition

Continue this routine for 3 months to see noticeable results. And after that, follow this five-day gym workout schedule.

References

• 1
  Bartolomei, Sandro et al. “A Comparison Between Total Body and Split Routine Resistance Training Programs in Trained Men.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research vol. 35,6 (2021): 1520-1526. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000003573
• 2
  Seynnes OR, de Boer M, Narici MV. Early skeletal muscle hypertrophy and architectural changes in response to high-intensity resistance training. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2007;102(1):368-373. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00789.2006
• 3
  Paoli, Antonio et al. “Resistance Training with Single vs. Multi-joint Exercises at Equal Total Load Volume: Effects on Body Composition, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Muscle Strength.” Frontiers in Physiology vol. 8 1105. 22 Dec. 2017, doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.01105
• 4
  Peterson MD, Pistilli E, Haff GG, Hoffman EP, Gordon PM. Progression of volume load and muscular adaptation during resistance exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011;111(6):1063-1071. doi:10.1007/s00421-010-1735-9
• 5
  Nutrition Recommendations for Bodybuilders in the Off-Season: A Narrative Review – National Institute of Health Database