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Achieving your fitness goals requires time and dedication, but sometimes, life gets in the way. Whether illness or injury, business or personal, other commitments can occasionally result in an extended break from the gym. This period, called detraining, could mean weeks or months off from your regular lifting routine.
When you finally return to the weight room, the urge to jump right back to where you left off can be overwhelming. This can lead to overdoing it and suffering the consequences. Proper preparation and the right workout plan can retrain your muscles to help avoid these issues.
This 2-week workout plan starts with one week of full-body workouts before transitioning to an upper lower split. With workouts four days per week, you will have enough rest to prevent injury from overtraining. This routine will reacquaint your muscles with the gym and get you back on the path to success.
2-Week Workout Routine
This 2-week workout plan will get you back on track at the gym. Workouts are four days per week. For week one, you will alternate between two different full-body workouts:
Week 1:
- Day 1: Workout A.
- Day 2: Workout B.
- Day 3: Rest.
- Day 4: Workout A.
- Day 5: Workout B.
- Day 6: Rest.
- Day 7: Rest.
Week two will alternate between upper and lower body workouts:
Week 2:
- Day 1: Upper Body Workout.
- Day 2: Lower Body Workout.
- Day 3: Rest.
- Day 4: Upper Body Workout.
- Day 5: Lower Body Workout.
- Day 6: Rest.
- Day 7: Rest.
2-Week Workout Plan
Each week, two different workouts will be performed twice for four workout days total. Week 1 will alternate between two different full-body workouts. The full-body workout is a time-efficient way to train your whole body in one session.
Week 1:
- Day 1: Workout A.
- Day 2: Workout B.
- Day 3: Rest.
- Day 4: Workout A.
- Day 5: Workout B.
- Day 6: Rest.
- Day 7: Rest.
Week 2 uses an upper-lower split to structure workouts. Splitting the workouts by body region can increase exercise volume per muscle group while keeping the session length manageable. This is especially important for achieving hypertrophy goals.
Week 2:
- Day 1: Upper Body Workout.
- Day 2: Lower Body Workout.
- Day 3: Rest.
- Day 4: Upper Body Workout.
- Day 5: Lower Body Workout.
- Day 6: Rest.
- Day 7: Rest.
Incorporate 20–30 minutes of aerobic exercise first thing in the morning. This can be any cardio activity you choose, but keep the intensity moderate. As you readjust to working out, you can start to add high-intensity training intervals, or HIIT workouts, to your routine.
Add 10–20 minutes of cardio to the end of your workouts if possible. This will burn additional calories and keep your heart rate elevated for a little longer before you finish.
Week 1: Full Body Workouts
Full Body Workout A
Full Body Workout A targets your whole body, from the hamstrings and glutes to your shoulders, biceps, and triceps. The exercises are simple by design. This workout plan will reintroduce your body to the foundational movements for resistance training. Focus on actively contracting your muscles as you lift to reestablish a strong mind-muscle connection.
For weight, use 60%–80% of your one repetition maximum. Your one repetition maximum, or 1RM, is the maximum weight you can lift for one repetition with good form. The goal is to challenge your muscles without hitting failure and pushing too hard.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest (between sets) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barbell Deadlift | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Leg Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Leg Curl | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Wide Grip Lat Pulldown | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Straight Bar Tricep Extension | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Crunch | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Lying Leg Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
Full Body Workout B
Full Body Workout B also hits your whole body but starts with the chest and back and works its way down. Both full-body workouts hit your abdominals at the end to finish off strong.
If you’ve been away from the gym for longer, you may experience some muscle discomfort when you start working out again. This is called delayed onset muscle soreness and is normal when restarting your training. Try ice or light aerobic activity to decrease symptoms and improve recovery between workouts.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest (between sets) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dumbbell Bench Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Wide Grip Lat Pulldown | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Straight Bar Tricep Extension | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Dumbbell Deadlift | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Leg Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Leg Curl | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Crunch | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Lying Leg Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
Week 2: Upper And Lower Body Workouts
Upper Body Workout
This upper body workout focuses on the chest, back, shoulders, biceps, and triceps. These are essential to everyday activities like carrying shopping bags and reaching into a cupboard.
The upper body muscles are also responsible for head and shoulder posture. Research has shown that strengthening the muscles around the shoulder blades is an effective strategy for combating postural abnormality.
The middle trapezius is one of the muscles that control the shoulder blade. The cable row activates the middle trapezius at 64.5% of its maximum, indicating its effectiveness in strengthening this muscle. The bent-over barbell row utilizes a similar movement, suggesting a similar activation rate for the middle trapezius.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest (between sets) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Incline Barbell Bench Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Low Incline Dumbbell Fly | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Bent-Over Barbell Row | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Reverse Grip Lat Pulldown | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Arnold Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Single-Arm Lateral Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Concentration Curl | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Lying Tricep Extension | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Weighted Crunch | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
| Hanging Leg Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds |
Lower Body Workout
This lower body workout targets the hamstrings, glutes, quadriceps, and calves. The abdominals are also included in this workout. These muscles are responsible for standing, walking, climbing stairs, and running.
These workouts combine compound movements with isolation movements. Compound movements utilize multiple muscle groups simultaneously to maximize efficiency. Isolation movements focus on one muscle group to give it extra attention.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Duration | Rest (between sets) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbell Deadlift | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Walking Lunge | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Barbell Squat | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Single-Leg Press | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Seated Calf Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Standing Calf Raise | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Standing Side Bend | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| V-Up | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Reverse Crunch | 3 sets | 10–12 reps | 60–90 seconds | |
| Plank | 3 sets | 20–30 seconds | 60–90 seconds |
Benefits Of A 2-Week Workout Plan
This 2-week workout plan will get you reestablished at the gym. By gradually retraining your muscles, you can get back on the path to achieving your goals. Below, we outline three other benefits of this type of workout plan.
Improved Functional Capacity
Functional capacity refers to your ability to perform daily tasks at home, school, or work. Many factors can affect one’s functional capacity, including strength, endurance, and flexibility. Older adults may experience some decline in functional capacity due to losing strength as they age.
Resistance training can help to reverse some of those strength changes, improving functional capacity. Even if there is a break in training, resuming resistance training will facilitate strength improvements similar to the initial training.
Faster Strength Gains
Retraining is when a trained individual returns to resistance training after a hiatus. Research indicates that previously trained lifters gain muscle strength and size faster during retraining than untrained individuals.
The why is unclear. Muscle memory theory states specific cellular changes may persist after training stops. These changes could promote strength and hypertrophy changes more rapidly during retraining. More research is needed to investigate the precise mechanisms behind this phenomenon.
Schedule Flexibility
We all know consistency is essential to seeing results at the gym. However, there may be times when your life won’t allow for perfect gym attendance. Still, your gains won’t disappear overnight.
Research shows that taking a short break from resistance training won’t affect your strength improvements in the long term. Even breaks up to ten weeks haven’t significantly impacted strength compared to continuous training overall. The key is looking at the long-term results since most losses are regained quickly in the retraining period.
What To Do After 2 Weeks
Do your research before you embark on this 2-week workout plan to have a strategy when it ends. Here are a few suggestions depending on your fitness goals:
- Power — 80%–100% of your 1RM for explosive-type exercises.
- Strength — 80%–100% of your 1RM. Perform 1–5 reps per set.
- Hypertrophy 60%–80% of your 1RM. Perform 8–12 reps per set.
- Endurance — Less than 60% of your 1RM. Aim for higher rep ranges per set (15+).
A plan is essential to continue seeing results. So, use this transition wisely to maximize your efforts at the gym!
Conclusion
This 2-week workout plan is a great way to get yourself reacclimated to the gym after a break. The foundational exercises will prepare your body to take the next steps toward your fitness goals. Follow the guide above to implement this retraining plan and get to work!
Frequently Asked Questions
While you can noticeably improve your fitness level in two weeks, getting “in shape” will likely take longer than that. Significantly changing your body composition requires time and consistency.
Yes, your body uses rest days to repair the microscopic tears in the muscle caused by resistance training. These repairs rebuild the muscle, making it bigger and stronger.
There are many ways to tell if you are fitter. These include improved sleep, greater flexibility, and better endurance. You may also notice that your clothes fit better and that your mood is boosted.
Full-body movements burn more fat than isolation movements regarding resistance training. Aerobic activities like running, rowing, jumping rope, and HIIT workouts are also effective at fat-burning.
Resources
Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.
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About the Author
Tara Mitchell, DPT Doctor Of Physical Therapy
