The Budget Bro’s Beginner Guide to Building Your Body
(…for the ladies)
There are a million different ways you can design a workout program. This program is just one. It is not the “best” program, because the “best” program is always going to be something personalized, that accounts for specific goals, genetics, injuries, and other specific factors.
A generalized program cannot do that.
But it can give you a baseline and a framework, a starting point, toward one of many fitness goals.
There are many reasons to get fit, and those reasons should affect how you go about getting fit.
The reason for this program is simple: ladies.
What women find attractive in men is often not what men find inspiring and intimidating in other men. Men tend to look to large pecs and developed delts. Women, however, look in different places: the traps (neck), forearms, and glutes/posterior chain (the legs in general). The appearance of development here is often subtle, and to men there may be very little visible difference between an “average” looking guy and an otherwise equivalent man with broad forearms, built traps, and powerful hamstrings. It’s more like cologne; a little bit changes how you are perceived subconsciously.
To achieve this, we don’t need to achieve body-builder gains. We just need a begin building some mass and a little definition.
The aim of a fitness program designed to please women, therefore, will focus on these three areas, in addition to a general aim at losing fat.
This goal does not require a fortune to accomplish. Men spend thousands of dollars on expensive equipment and gym memberships without a clear vision of what they are trying to accomplish. With precision in our goals, we can cut out cost on stuff we don’t need.
Everything in this plan can be done with a kettlebell, a dumbbell, and a sandbag.
You can use nicer equipment if you have access. But it isn’t necessary for the results.
This is the goal of the program: a cheap, simple, DIY program for men, for the purpose of attracting women based on developing your traps, forearms, and posterior chain. Mass is achieved using moderate to low weight in the higher repetition range.
It’s that simple.
To be effective, this program has to be implemented with consistency, and supplemented with an appropriate diet. Healthy eating is not rocket science. Everyone knows that soda and excessive sugar is not good for you, while animal proteins and vegetables are nutritious. You don’t need to eliminate all happiness from your meals, but you should make it an aim to begin to replace some of the sugary and processed foods with more protein-dense calories.
Chicken and rice is a classic body-builder’s bulking combination. Yogurt is a great source of protein. I once lived off turkey meatballs and grilled peppers with Sriracha for months, and enjoyed every meal. There’s no reason healthy food can’t be cheap, quick, and tasty if you don’t mind repetition.
Finally, be sure to take before and after pictures.
The secret to maintaining fitness is in maintaining a self-concept as a strong and healthy person. Pictures give self-reinforcing evidence of who you are, and of who you choose to no longer be. What we’re after is not a change in muscles, but a change in identity, which brings with it changes in diet, exercise, and sleep that are congruent with this identity. Muscles and a bullish physique follow from this shift in identity and self-concept ion.
Without further ado… the Bull Build.
Equipment
- 1 x 35lb – 45lb Kettlebell
- 1 x 15lb – 20lb Dumbbell
- 1 x 60lb – 80lb Sandbag
Exercises
Posterior
1. Romanian deadlift/Good-morning
(with kettlebell)
(with sandbag)
Focus on keeping your legs relatively straight. When done right, you should feel your glutes and hamstrings tightening, and “pull” yourself upright with that posterior chain.
2. Lunges
3. Squats
Traps
4. Bent-over rows
5. Behind the back (BTB) KB shrugs
6. 1-Arm KB side shrugs
Forearms
7. Reverse curls
8. Hammer curls
Synthesis
9. “Kyle flow” (named after Canadian kettlebell and gymnastics rings enthusiast Kyle Raymond)
Auxiliary Exercises (for balance)
10. Push-ups
11. Sprints
12. Sand-bag bear-hug carry
The Workout
Progress through each day over the course of a 40 day period (1 month is not usually long enough to establish a habit, but 40 days usually is). Rest days are not included, so only perform 1-3 days in a row, and take breaks as necessary to space all 25 exercise days over the 40 day period. Try to keep at least one specific week day (i.e., a Tuesday or a Saturday) consistent as an exercise day.
The days are broken into sets. It is best to complete the day’s exercises with only a minute or two of rest between sets, but breaking it up (i.e., one set in the morning, two sets in the evening) will still make progress and complete the day. Just complete the sets and don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Day 1:
4 x Sets:
- 6x KB Romanian deadlifts
- 6x Bent-over rows
Day 2:
4 x sets
- 8x BTB KB shrugs
- 6x Reverse curls
Day 3:
4 x Sets
- 8x KB lunges
- 8x Hammer curls
Day 4:
4 x Sets:
- 10x Squats (bodyweight)
- 7x Single-arm KB side shrugs
Day 5:
3 x Sets:
- 4x Kyle Flow
Take your time figuring out the movement until it’s smooth. It may take a little while to coordinate your hands and “get it,” but once you get the feeling of it, this becomes one of the more fun exercises.
If you’re working out inside or on concrete, it may be worth investing in a rubber mat in order to avoid a dropped kettlebell damaging the floor.
- 100y sprint
The subsequent 20 days are going to be repetitions of the first 5 with higher rep and set counts. It’s that simple. Just consistency and progressive overload.
Day 6:
4 x Sets:
- 8x KB Romanian deadlifts
- 8x Bent-over rows
Day 7:
4 x sets
- 10x BTB KB shrugs
- 8x Reverse curls
Day 8:
4 x Sets
- 10x KB lunges
- 10x Hammer curls
Day 9:
4 x Sets:
- 10x Squats (bodyweight)
- 10x Push-ups
Day 10:
4 x Sets:
- 5x Kyle Flow
- 100y Sandbag bear-hug carry
Day 11:
5 x Sets:
- 10x KB Romanian deadlifts
- 10x Bent-over rows
Day 12:
6 x Sets:
5 x sets
- 10x BTB KB shrugs
- 10x Reverse curls
Day 13:
5 x Sets
- 10x KB lunges
- 10x Hammer curls
Day 14:
5 x Sets:
- 8x Squats (KB)
- 8x Single-arm KB side shrugs
Day 15:
5 x Sets:
- 6x Kyle Flow
- 100y sprint
Day 16:
6 x Sets:
- 9x KB Romanian deadlifts
- 9x Bent-over rows
Day 17:
6 x sets
- 9x BTB KB shrugs
- 9x Reverse curls
Day 18:
6 x Sets
- 9x Sandbag lunges
- 9x Hammer curls
Day 19:
6 x Sets:
- 9x Squats (KB)
- 15x Push-ups
Day 20:
- 6x Kyle Flow
- 100y Sandbag bear-hug carry
Day 21:
7 x Sets:
- 8x KB Romanian deadlifts
- 8x Bent-over rows
Day 22:
7 x sets
- 8x BTB KB shrugs
- 8x Reverse curls
Day 23:
7 x Sets
- 10x Sandbag lunges
- 10x Hammer curls
Day 24:
7 x Sets:
- 8x Squats (sandbag)
- 8x Single-arm KB side shrugs
Day 25:
7 x Sets:
- 5x Kyle Flow
- 100y sprint
Congratulations!
Take some time to notice the difference between your current physique and your picture from 40 days ago. It’s not just an accomplishment; what you have become is a facet of who you are, a part of you that you now know how to uncover.
While attracting women is a compelling reason for many guys to get into lifting, we’d encourage you to find other reasons to stay fit. General aesthetics, cardiovascular and cognitive health, physical strength, athletic competition, and the sheer challenge are all good reasons to exercise that may introduce you to different exercises and dimensions of strength and performance trapped in your body, waiting to be released.
You may have already noticed a positive difference in feeling and energy. That will continue to grow with more training.
If you want to take your progress to the next level, you might consider contacting a personal trainer near you, or an online trainer like Ethan Buck or Josh Wood.
Or you can just keep going with this, adding your own exercises to your liking — especially simple things like dips, pull-ups, and flutter kicks.
Stay strong,
Chris.
Special thanks for the expertise and input from Jaime.
