Takeaway Points:

The 80/20 principal states that in any field, you can get 80% of results with only 20% of effort, and the last 20% will take the last 80% of the effort. This is meant to be encouraging that you can a lot of good results without having to dedicate all of your time and energy.
When it comes to fitness, the 80/20 principle can be applied to build very straightforward routines that will work - if you’re able to stick with it long enough.
The challenge of any long term goal isn’t necessarily in figuring out what to do, it’s figuring out how to make your plan sustainable, rewarding, and motivating.

(This is an updated version of an article originally published on 4/6/15. It’s been updated slightly with its recommendations, expanded slightly, and updated for modern formatting standards.)

It’s honestly not terribly difficult to become a super crazy awesome exerciser.

The concept of the 80/20 principle states that you get 80% of your results from 20% of the effort in any domain, and the remaining 20% of your results from the remaining 80% of the effort. This general rule of thumb doesn’t always hold exactly - sometimes it’s more like 75/25, or 85/15.

The reality is that there are absolutely always cheat codes when it comes to getting the majority of the results with a minimal amount of effort. The problem, of course, is that beginners (and even to some extent, intermediates and experts) tend to focus their energy on the things that don’t matter, resulting in a lot of wasted time. The problem is that most people don’t have the knowledge and experience to know what to focus on.

So what’s the 80/20 of fitness?

At it’s simplest, a plan would look like this:

One heavy lower body lifting workout per week for 1-3 sets of 2-6 each:
- Squat
- Deadlift
One heavy upper body lifting workout per week for 1-3 sets of 2-6 each:
- Bench Press
- Row or Pullup variation
- Overhead Press
One lower body volume workout per week for 1-3 sets of 7-15 each:
- Squat or Leg Press
- RDL or Good Morning
- Leg Extension
- Leg Curl
- Calf Raise
One upper body volume workout per week for 1-3 sets of 7-15 each:
- Bench Press or Chest Press
- Row or Pullup variation
- Overhead Press or Overhead Press Machine
- Bicep Curl
- Tricep Extension
All sets should be taken to near failure, meaning that you couldn’t complete many more reps before failing a rep.
1-3 cardio workouts per week, alongside your other workouts.
- These should generally last no more than 30-45 minutes at a time, and should be balanced with the intensity of the lifting so that you aren’t doing high intensity running on the same day you’re doing high intensity lifting.
- Or alternately, maintain a high daily step count or equivalent low intensity cardio, 7500+/day.
Some amount of work on flexibility, mobility, fun unrelated exercises, etc.
Focus on increasing volume in a slow and sustainable way over time. This means more sets, more reps, more weight, and more challenge over time as you get stronger.

Want to lose weight? Eat more protein and eat less overall. Want to gain muscle? Eat more protein and eat more overall. Want to simply lean out? Eat more protein and eat roughly the same overall.

Now rinse and repeat every week for ten years.

Of course, it’s not as simple as that.

Adherence to any exercise program is about psychology, meaning that the hard part in this program doesn’t have anything to do with the programming itself, it has to do with the ten years part. The vast majority of people won’t stick it out. They’ll do it for a week or two and then they’ll drop off. Giving them this program won’t do anything for them.

Sometimes it’s not about the program. There are millions of free programs out there, and yet we aren’t all suddenly Arnold Schwarzenegger (at least last I checked, unless stuff has changed a lot recently). Every one of these programs can work, but nothing works if you don’t put the effort in.

Am I saying that everyone should either be all-in or all-out? No. But if you really want to do well for yourself as an exerciser, here’s what you need to do:

Build up slowly, and don’t jump into too much too quick.
Focus on sustainability. Don’t repeat anything that you find discouraging you from returning to the gym.
Build a set of habits around going to the gym, and reinforce them with small rewards.
Find a source of motivation. That can be competition, a trainer, a good gym, a workout buddy, or lots of mirror selfies shared to Instagram - whatever it takes to get you going.
Don’t give up.

The psychological factors are going to be a lot harder to reign in than your training, and is the biggest issue for most aspiring exercisers. If you really want to make it, you’re going to have to be honest with yourself, put in the mental effort, and work at it. Hell, you could ignore the above program entirely, and as long as you do anything for ten years straight, you’re probably gonna get pretty good at it. Will you turn into the next Mr. or Mrs. Universe? Probably not, but there's always a possibility. Just do something that’s not sitting around all day and you’re going to get in shape.

About Adam Fisher

Adam is an experienced fitness coach and blogger who's been blogging and coaching since 2012, and lifting since 2006. He's written for numerous major health publications, including Personal Trainer Development Center, T-Nation, Bodybuilding.com, Fitocracy, and Juggernaut Training Systems.

During that time he has coached thousands of individuals of all levels of fitness, including competitive powerlifters and older exercisers regaining the strength to walk up a flight of stairs. His own training revolves around bodybuilding and powerlifting, in which he’s competed.

Adam writes about fitness, health, science, philosophy, personal finance, self-improvement, productivity, the good life, and everything else that interests him. When he's not writing or lifting, he's usually hanging out with his cats or feeding his video game addiction.

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The Simplest Way To Get In Amazing Shape

Takeaway Points:

At it’s simplest, a plan would look like this:

Of course, it’s not as simple as that.

About Adam Fisher

Enjoy this post? Share the gains!

Further Reading:

The Simplest Way To Get In Amazing Shape

Takeaway Points:

At it’s simplest, a plan would look like this:

Of course, it’s not as simple as that.

About Adam Fisher

Enjoy this post? Share the gains!

Further Reading:

Detraining, Retraining, And Not Sitting Still

You Probably Care Too Much About Exercise Form