Train with FITENIUM app! – PHAT 5 DAYS routine
If you don’t want a specific strength or hypertrophy routine and prefer a mixed strength routine that mixes the best of both worlds, you should try the 5-Day PHAT Workout.
The PHAT is a routine frequency 2 5 days. The idea is to build our base with exercises worked in ranges of strength, and hypertrophy accessories, it is also a routine with a frequency of two, so we must work all parts of our body 2 times a week.
This routine was created by legendary powerlifter and professional bodybuilder Layne Norton as well as a nutrition doctor. According to Layne, each work of a specific quality involves the use of a certain number of muscle fibers, so when strength and hypertrophy work together, this number of muscle fibers subjected to effort and fatigue is greater.
Guidelines:
1. Weekly Division of the Routine:
Monday: Torso Strength
Tuesday: Leg Strength
Wednesday: Active Rest
Thursday: Shoulders and Back Hypertrophy
Friday: Legs Hypertrophy
Saturday: Chest and Arms Hypertrophy
Although in general this routine is designed to go to the gym five days, if for some reason one week you can only go three days, you can do four days of this routine and start the following week with the training that was missing.
What is active rest? It consists of resting from our PHAT routine, but continuing to be active by doing some moderate activity with a moderate pace and duration. Examples of active rest: yoga or stretching session, 45-60 minute walk, foam roller routine, riding a bike… there are options for all tastes.
2. Rest between sets:
This routine has a great weight of multi-joint exercises to lower repetitions, so in order to maintain performance you have to have long rests between series. The rests are variable according to our sensations or you are afraid to rest 4 minutes if you feel fatigued before your last series of Deadlift, but if you feel fresh go for the next concentrated series.
3. Effort:
Given the predominance of multi-joint exercises, we do not recommend training near failure if we want to maintain performance and technique throughout our sets. As a general rule in compound exercises we recommend training with a weight that allows us to do 2 or 3 more repetitions. In the more analytical exercises we recommend training with a weight that allows us to do 1 or 2 more repetitions.
If we are beginners we can apply a linear weight progression and almost every week we will be able to lift more weight than the previous one, but if we are already intermediate we recommend other types of more complex progressions that we will talk about later.
4. Warm up and stretch:
The warm-up will be the same every day, it is VERY IMPORTANT to never skip the warm-up and stretching before doing the dumbbell plank at home if we want to continue progressing without injury.
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Grades |
Low Intensity Cardio | 1 | 5-10 min | 100-135 PPM |
Front leg swing | 2 | 12 | watch video |
Side leg swing | 2 | 12 | watch video |
activate gluteus | 2 | 15 cover | watch video |
Trapeze Raise | 2 | 12 | Watch Video |
Elbow Internal Rotation | 2 | 12 | Watch Video |
External Rotation Elbow | 1 | 12 | Watch Video |
5. When should I change the PHAT routine?
Many people wonder how long we can do this PHAT routine and still get results, the answer is simple until you drop! If you like training this way, it fits your lifestyle and you keep making progress, there is no reason to change this routine for another. If our objectives change or we want another distribution of days, we can opt for another type of routine such as torso-leg (4 days), divided routine (5 days) or fullbody (6 days).
Our recommendation is that if you are a beginner you stay with this table exercises with dumbbells at home for at least 12 weeks.
6. And the diet?
To make truly significant progress in the gym, diet is just as important as training if not more. Avoid processed foods, eat a reasonable amount of protein for your weight and training level, and calculate a caloric deficit/surplus based on your goals. Read our article if you want to have a Perfect Body.
The PHat routine 5 days
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Rest |
bench press | 4 | 5-5-5-3 | 2-3 min |
Weighted Pull Ups | 4 | 5-5-5-3 | 2-3 min |
Barbell Military Press | 3 | 6-6-6 | 2-3 min |
Row pendlay | 3 | 6-6-6 | 2-3 min |
Openings in Pulleys | 3 | 6-6-6 | 1-2 min |
T Bar Row | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Rest |
Barbell Squat | 4 | 5-5-5-3 | 2-3 min |
Romanian Deadlift | 3 | 6-6-6 | 2-3 min |
Leg Press | 3 | 6-6-6 | 2-3 min |
Leg curl | 3 | 10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Quadriceps Extension | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Calf Extension in Press | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Rest |
Barbell Bench Press | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Barbell Military Press | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Incline Barbell Band Press | 4 | 10-10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Weighted Funds | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Machine Openings | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Cable French Press | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Rest |
Barbell Squat | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Romanian Deadlift | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Leg Press | 4 | 10-10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Hip Thrust with Bar | 3 | 10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Quadriceps Extension | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Calf Extension Seated | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Exercise | Sets | repetitions | Rest |
Weighted Pull Ups | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Unilateral Dumbbell Row | 4 | 8-8-8-8 | 2-3 min |
Dumbbell Shrugs | 3 | 10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Barbell Curl | 4 | 10-10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Seated Cable Row | 3 | 10-10-10 | 2-3 min |
Facepull | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
Curl Martillo Mancuerna | 3 | 10-10-10 | 1-2 min |
With our PHAT routine and the complementary information you can already get fit at home forgetting about the complications of a gym routine with dumbbells. Don’t forget to record your progress and upload it to Fitenium!