HYPERTROPHY: FULL BODY COMPLEX

Ronan Murphy is a 15-year veteran of the fitness industry having trained in South Africa + Ireland in Strength + Conditioning, is an IRFU accredited S+C Coach and member of the National Strength + Conditioning Association, has his Weightlifting Coach L1 cert, owns and runs Toned Fit gym in Howth, and volunteers for the RNLI in his spare time. Phew. Busy man.

In this series, he's introduced us to hypertrophy, gains or in its simplest form: building muscle. Here's the final post from Ronan, with an all-body workout to get the guns you always knew you deserved:

Asses where you're at

You’re now lifting at home. You’ve got direction, motivation and focus. You’re visualising the perfect technique with controlled movement and with exact reps. You’re taking your time and realising that it’s a slow, but rewarding process, when done right. You’re realising it doesn’t require crazy heavy weights. Right? Right!

So, now it’s time to jack up the heart rate and get the whole body working with little rest, across a series of movements in an attempt to increase your metabolic rate, burn body fat and get you sweating like hell!

You’re now in ‘complex’ territory. A perfect supplementary workout to hypertrophy. 

Complex theory!

A complex is a series of movements done, in sequence, with little to no rest between them. They generally utilise one piece of equipment and the same floorspace – Ideal for a home workout!

Now, you’ve got a choice: how you build your complex.

Pick one exercise from each column and apply it to the format below the table.

Complete three rounds of the following, self-built, complex:

1. (Insert 1 x Lower Body Compound here) for 40 secs
2. 5 secs rest
3. (Insert 1 x Upper Body Compound here) for 40 secs
4. 5 secs rest
5. (Insert 1 x Core here) for 40 secs
6. 5 secs rest
7. (Insert 1 x Cardio here) for 40 secs
8. 5 secs rest

Finished your three rounds? Make up at least one more complex from the table and complete according to the fitness level guide below (you can repeat or avoid exercises according to you abilities + boundaries).

Beginners:

Aim to get 2-3 complexes done with no more than 3 mins rest between them (17-30 mins)

Intermediate:

Aim to get 3-4 complexes done with no more than 2 mins rest between them (25-36 mins)

Advanced:

Aim to get 4+ complexes done with no rest between them (28+ mins)

Remember to only push yourself to safe limits, and please feel free to reach out to me @tonedfit or @VKNGBuilt if you have any questions!