Irrespective of your experience level, fitness challenges are a great tool for leveling up. Beginners can use challenges to kickstart their fitness journey and build healthy habits, whereas more advanced athletes can use them to break through plateaus.
However, there are a few common problems with most fitness challenges. Some challenges are so overly ambitious that people detect a hint of deception and refrain from embracing them; ‘Build six-pack abs in seven days’ is one example of such a fitness challenge. On the other hand, some fitness challenges are so excessively fixated on results that they repel exercisers; for instance, no beginner (in their right mind) will ever sign up for a “Learn to squat 315 pounds in 30 days” challenge.
Process goals should be the way to go for most people, especially beginners. Process goals are milestones that comprise smaller, controlled accomplishments that help you achieve a larger objective. “Hit the gym six days a week for 28 days” is a process goal. Most beginners will be more receptive to this objective as there are no overwhelming expectations here. We will focus on a process goal in this program.
The 28 day workout challenge will help you kickstart your transformation journey and get fitter, faster, and healthier. This training program includes a balance of strength, hypertrophy, and conditioning exercises to help you get in the best shape of your life and improve your overall functioning.
The following 28-day workout regime is broken into four weeks. The programming for each week will change to help you build a well-rounded physique. You will require a pair of light dumbbells and an iron grit for this program.
Although this is a challenge, the objective here is not to bench 225 pounds or run 5K at the end of these 28 days. The test is to stick to the workout regimen for 28 days and do your best. The results will follow. I promise.
Prerequisites For The 28 Day Workout Challenge
The benefits of an exercise program go far beyond improved aesthetics. Following a training regime can boost your overall health and mental well-being, enhance your daily functioning and heighten your productivity. [1]
Since this is a beginner-friendly workout challenge, the barriers to entry are shallow. Here are a few requirements of the 28 day workout challenge:
Experience
You don’t need to know every exercise in the Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding to start this exercise program. That said, it would make a world of difference if you knew how to perform some of the most basic compound movements correctly.
If you are a rookie, I recommend turning this four-week program into a five-week program and using the first week to learn the exercises in this program. I will link each exercise to a detailed guide. Please feel free to explore those guides to drill the movements. Learning the correct exercise technique improves your exercise form and significantly reduces your risk of injury.
Basic Equipment
Don’t worry; I won’t ask you to drop a bundle on a squat rack or a treadmill. This 28 day workout challenge requires minimum training equipment, such as a pair of dumbbells and a resistance band. You can also switch the dumbbells with kettlebells if you have a few lying around your house.
People that lack the budget to buy new training equipment can use water jugs, backpacks, and suitcases. Think outside the box and use anything in your home to challenge yourself.
Diet and Recovery
Although training is a crucial aspect of building muscle and losing fat, it is not the be-all and end-all of a transformation program. You must focus on your nutrition and recovery program to make the needle budge in the right direction.
Begin by determining your daily calorie goal and using an appropriate macro intake target to help you move toward your body recomposition objective. Further, you must sleep seven to eight hours each night to allow your body enough time to rest and recuperate from your workouts.
Remember, you cannot outwork a bad diet, and you break muscle tissue while training. Your muscles grow back bigger and stronger when you are resting.
28 Day Workout Challenge Program Outline
Burning workouts are one of the most common reasons why people give up on their transformation journey without achieving their objective.
This 28-day workout program is different. This training regimen is programmed to ensure the exercises deliver enough stimulus to build strength and muscle mass and boost fat loss and will keep you on your toes with consistent volume and intensity changes over the four weeks.
Outline of the 28 Days Workout Program
Although the exercises will remain the same in this four-week workout challenge, you will perform a different number of reps and sets and use different weights (if possible) to boost muscle fiber stimulation. It will help you drill the form of these exercises, which will set you up for better performance down the line.
If you are a rookie, you should spend the first week, let’s call it “Week 0,” learning the correct exercise form and building a foundation. Although one week will probably not be enough to drill the movements, it will be enough to make you feel comfortable. Since you’ll not be using heavy weights in this 28 day workout challenge, these four weeks will also help you master the exercises without putting you at risk of injury.
Without any further ado, here is a brief outline of this four-week workout challenge:
Week 1: Build a Foundation
We will use the first week to ease into the 28 day workout challenge. Week one is not the time to go pedal to the metal. You want to keep muscle soreness to a minimum, as you don’t want to sit out of a workout because of restricted joint and muscle range of motion due to stiffness. Avoid lifting heavy and focus on familiarizing yourself with the exercises.
Week 2: Increase the Reps
You will increase the intensity slightly in the second week by ramping up the number of reps you perform in each exercise. Limit the rest time between sets and exercises to 60 seconds to keep your heart rate up. Doing more sets with the same weights as week one should result in better muscle pumps.
You will remain in the 8-12 rep range in the first, third, and fourth weeks. However, you must bump up your reps to 15-20 in the second week. You might have to use lighter weights to achieve the new rep goal.
Week 3: Lift Heavier
Two weeks of training will improve your form and develop muscle memory, making it the right time to go heavier. If you train at home and want to purchase dumbbells, I recommend getting adjustable ones, as they are more versatile and take up less space. Folks that do not have heavier weights can get creative with resistance bands to make the exercises more challenging.
Beginners can go up to 20% heavier in the third week. Ensure you don’t compromise your form while chasing bigger weights. Use a weight that allows you to complete eight reps with perfect form. Feel free to reduce the reps to six as fatigue starts to set in.
Week 4: Boost the Volume
Three weeks of training will condition your muscles enough to handle more volume. For the fourth week, you will increase the training volume by doing an additional set of each exercise. Plus, we will be adding one exercise to each workout. Following the same training program for too long can lead you to a plateau. Programming progressive overload into your training regimen ensures you are making consistent gains.
28 Day Workout Challenge: Weekly Split
Here is the weekly split of this training challenge:
- Day 1: Upper Body Strength
- Day 2: Full-Body HIIT
- Day 3: Lower Body Strength
- Day 4: Rest
- Day 5: Full-Body Strength
- Day 6: Cardio and Core
- Day 7: Mobility and Skill / Rest
This 28 day workout challenge involves training six days a week. Although the seventh day of the week is reserved for mobility and working on developing new skills, you can also use it as a rest day if you feel sore.
Workout Plan
Although the exercises will remain the same week-over-week, keep an eye on the sets and reps and adapt your workouts according to the weekly outline described above.
Day 1: Upper Body Strength
You can swap the dumbbells with resistance bands in each exercise in this workout. Furthermore, if you don’t have access to a flat bench, you can swap the first exercise of this workout with the dumbbell or resistance band floor press.
Day 2: Full-Body HIIT
After the upper body strength workout, you will perform a full-body HIIT workout focusing on increasing your heart rate and burning calories. This will be a 14-minute bodyweight workout. Complete three circuits of these seven exercises. You are allowed a 15-second rest between exercises and a 60-second rest after completing each circuit.
Feel free to break up your sets if you cannot perform an exercise for the stipulated time. For example, take a five-second breather if you cannot perform pull-ups continuously for 30 seconds.
Perform four circuits of this full-body HIIT workout in the fourth week.
Day 3: Lower Body Strength
Spend 5-10 minutes warming up before each workout. It will get your blood flowing, improve your range of motion, and significantly reduce your risk of injury. Your warm-up routine should include a combination of static and dynamic stretches.
Day 4: Rest
Rest days on this 28 day workout challenge are not a free pass to becoming a couch potato. You must keep your body moving on your rest days as well. Go for a 20-30 minute walk, bike ride, or hike on your off days.
Day 5: Full-Body Strength
Most exercises in this workout program are compound movements, which demand greater energy input than single-joint exercises. However, you must limit your rest duration between sets to 60 seconds to maintain a high intensity.
Day 6: Cardio and Core
You’ll be doing a 15-minute HIIT cardio session and five core exercises on day six of this training program. Training your core will help develop a six-pack, improve your overall functionality, and reduce your risk of lower back pain and injury.
Day 7: Mobility and Skill / Rest
The seventh day of each week is reserved for mobility drills. Working on your flexibility will improve your range of motion, leading to greater muscle stimulation. You can also use this day to drill exercises you have difficulty performing. CrossFitters can work on their Olympic lifts or gymnastics techniques on day seven. Feel free to take this day off if you feel sore and tired.
Tracking Progress
Twenty-eight days is a relatively short time to see any significant improvement in your physique. However, you must track your progress weekly to ensure you are on the correct path. Recording body weight, anthropometric measurements, workout performance (sets, reps, and weights used), and taking physique photos are the most popular ways of tracking your progress. Seeing the needle budge in the right direction can boost your motivation and push you to work harder.
Common Obstacles
These are the most common problems faced by people on a transformation program:
Diminishing Motivation
Many people lose their motivation to train and eat healthy when they do not see progress within a few weeks. To avoid this, set measurable short-term objectives. For example, you can set a new goal to do 20 sit-ups in a set by the end of two weeks if you can only do 15 right now. Routinely ticking off goals will keep you excited about your workouts.
Lack of Support
The importance of a support system is often overlooked in a training program. A support system can keep you accountable and motivated. A support group consisting of individuals who share common goals can be invaluable. Your friends and family can also be a part of your support group.
Unplanned Events
Major life events, emergencies, and other unplanned events can disrupt your workout program. Some of these events are unavoidable. However, you must ensure that you return to your transformation program after dealing with the situation at hand.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to lose weight?
Losing weight boils down to calories in vs. calories out. You must be in a calorie deficit to lose weight, meaning you must burn more calories daily than you consume. According to the CDC, you can lose 1-2 pounds weekly by cutting 500-1,000 calories from your daily diet. [2]
Can I build a six-pack in 28 days?
Technically, yes, you can. If you have a low body fat percentage, you can improve the definition of your six-pack by performing ab exercises. However, folks with a body fat percentage of 20% or more usually require more than a month to build washboard abs, as they must first lose the excess fat by running a calorie deficit.
Is it possible to spot-reduce belly fat?
No. You cannot spot-reduce fat from your abdomen. Most people lose fat in a generalized manner across their entire body while in a calorie deficit. Genetics can also play a role in your fat loss pattern.
Note: The content on Fitness Volt is for informative purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice to diagnose, prevent, or treat health problems. If you’re suffering from a health issue, are pregnant, or are under 18 years old, you should consult your physician before starting any new supplement, nutrition, or fitness routine.
Wrapping Up
Congratulations on seeking a challenge. Following a 28 day workout program requires you to leave your comfort zone, try new things, and test your limits. You should be proud of yourself for making this decision to explore your potential and work toward your best self.
Remember, the challenge here is not to build a six-pack in record time or maximize your VO2 performance. This 28 workout challenge has just one goal — hit the gym for four weeks and complete your workouts. Give yourself a pat on the back after you complete this challenge. On the other hand, don’t hang your head low if you can’t achieve this objective for some reason. Shake off the unpleasant emotions and try again. Best of luck!
References
- Ruegsegger GN, Booth FW. Health Benefits of Exercise. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018 Jul 2;8(7):a029694. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a029694. PMID: 28507196; PMCID: PMC6027933.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). Losing Weight. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html