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The Bull Build

C.B. Robertson

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

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:

Day 2:

4 x sets

Day 3:

4 x Sets

Day 4:

4 x Sets:

Day 5:

3 x Sets:

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.

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:

Day 7:

4 x sets

Day 8:

4 x Sets

Day 9:

4 x Sets:

Day 10:

4 x Sets:

Day 11: 

5 x Sets:

Day 12:

6 x Sets:

5 x sets

Day 13:

5 x Sets

Day 14:

5 x Sets:

Day 15:

5 x Sets:

Day 16: 

6 x Sets:

Day 17:

6 x sets

Day 18:

6 x Sets

Day 19:

6 x Sets:

Day 20:

Day 21: 

7 x Sets:

Day 22:

7 x sets

Day 23:

7 x Sets

Day 24:

7 x Sets:

Day 25:

7 x Sets:

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.

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