The aim is simple: build muscle, burn fat and come out the other end both leaner and bigger. Let’s make it even more appealing by adding that you also want to end up fitter than you were beforehand – faster and more conditioned.
As you can imagine, chasing three entirely different – and even contradictory – goals takes time, effort and energy. It also requires a lot more than just ‘training hard’ and hoping for the best.
That’s why the Men’s Health SQUAD has enlisted top coach Kori Sampson to create an exclusive programme specifically engineered to help you chase down all three of these goals concurrently – and actually nail them.
Meet Your New Coach
Sampson, a coach for online training platform iFit, has spent the past decade refining a tough-love approach to hybrid training, balancing the disparate demands of running, lifting, high-output conditioning and looking good while doing it.
Chasing three goals takes time, effort and energy
What Sampson posseses isn’t a theoretical understanding of performance. He’s put himself through the wringer to find his own edges – and to get a greater appreciation of how to craft the perfect strategy for helping others to achieve their goals. He ran 800km across the UK for men’s mental health charities, ran 100 miles in a single effort and won iFit’s televised series, Trainer Games, a competition built around intense physical challenges.
Bigger, Leaner, Faster
The full plan, available exclusively to Men’s Health SQUAD members, combines gym-based strength work, an interval running session and a mixed-modal conditioning session. Alongside this, you’ll find a comprehensive nutrition guide that answers every question you’ve ever had around fuelling for more muscle, less fat and better performance.
The workouts below will give you a taste of the action. Put them to the test, then check out the full plan via the MH app.
If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.
Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men’s Health app.
Workout 1: Upper-Body Push
This gym session is designed to help you gain muscle and strength through the ‘pushing’ muscles of your chest, shoulders and triceps. Follow Sampson’s coaching notes for the full experience.
A. Chest Press (barbell or dumbbells) – 4 sets x 12,10,8,6 reps
B. Incline Press (machine or dumbbells) – 3 sets x 10 reps
C. Dumbbell Fly – 3 sets x 10 reps
D. Shoulder Press (barbell or dumbbells) – 4 sets x 12,10,8,6 reps
E. Dead Hang – 3 sets x 1 minCoach’s NotesMake sure you warm up your shoulders thoroughly.Perform a warm-up set on each exercise before starting your working sets.On the 12/10/8/6 sets, increase the weight as the reps reduce. Choose weights that take you close to failure on the final rep.Rest for 90 secs between sets and even longer as the weights get heavier.Try to keep some momentum in the session.Workout 2: Running Intervals
This track, treadmill or outdoor run session is designed to do one thing: boost your running performance to steer you into PB territory.
After a 1k warm-up, complete 5 rounds of the following:
1k below race pace (15 secs slower)1k at threshold Rest for 60 secsCoach’s NotesTreadmill running can be great for maintaining split times and work rate. You could also do this session on a running track or a flat, unbroken surface outside.Begin with full-body mobility, including cat cows, walk-outs, leg swings in front and leg swings to the side for hamstrings and hips.Start off at zone 2 (a conversational pace).Race pace equals desired pace for the goal of your specific distance. For example, a 20-min 5k is 4min/km race pace.Threshold should be a pace you can keep up for 1km. It should feel difficult at the end of each rep and should be above race pace.