Fitness model, online coach, and Trifecta Nutrition athlete Michael Dean has spent years building his immaculate physique. He’s learned how to train, how to eat, and how to recover to build a body made of solid, lean muscle mass.

As COVID restrictions lessened and racers returned to Spartan courses in droves, Dean decided to take on his first Spartan race to put his physique to the ultimate test. To hear more about that story, check out our interview with him here. 

While training to race and training to sculpt a physique are very different paths, Dean has developed a way to balance the two goals well. And here, in partnership with Trifecta Nutrition and Michael Dean, we’ve got his exclusive Lean Muscle Training Program below.

How Michael Dean's Lean Muscle Training Program Works

Dean's training program consists of a mix between strength training, HIIT, and balance/coordination work, all of which are designed to build muscle, burn fat, and maintain cardiovascular endurance and race-simulation skills. 

Each day of the week has an entirely different focus on the body, he says. Dean likes to begin the week with an intense strength session to get the body stimulated to grow muscle. 

“Day two and three will put the final touches on the fatigue initiated in day one,” he adds.

Recovery comes into play on Thursdays to give the body a rest before subjecting it to his intense cardio and metabolic conditioning session on Friday, which includes a lot of core exercise at high intensities. This optimizes fat loss while keeping your race-day endurance up. 

Related: How to Eat to Build Lean Muscle While Maintaining Top Racing Speed

Toward the end of the week is when your central nervous system should be utterly fatigued, but this will initiate lots of growth, Dean says.

“I’ve also incorporated a few things that will challenge balance and coordination to keep racing and focus skills sharp,” he adds. 

Finally, active recovery comes at the end of the week, giving the body a chance to fully recover. 

Directions

Complete the following program as prescribed for four to six weeks. Work toward increasing the amount of resistance or weight you use week over week. Endurance is baked in throughout the program, but if you feel your endurance isn’t as strong as it once was, pull back the amount of sets you do on strength days and add in some additional running mileage. 

The Spartan Lean Muscle Training Schedule

Monday: Full-Body Strength
Tuesday: Upper-Body HIIT
Wednesday: Lower-Body HIIT
Thursday: Full Rest Day
Friday: Full-Body HIIT and Core
Saturday: Calisthenics and Balance
Sunday: Active Recovery

The Spartan Lean Muscle Training Program Workouts

MONDAY: STRENGTH (FULL BODY) 

90 seconds rest between exercises

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

1A. BODYWEIGHT SQUAT X20

1B. PUSH-UPS X10

1C. SIT-UPS X12

2. BARBELL BENCH PRESS 4X6

3. BARBELL SQUATS 4X8

4. STANDING MILITARY PRESS 4X10

5. BARBELL DEADLIFT 4X6-8

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

6A. JUMPING SPLIT SQUATS X20 (10 PER LEG)

6B. ELBOW PLANK X30 SEC

6C JACK KNIFE CRUNCH X10

TUESDAY: HIGH INTENSITY UPPER BODY

60 seconds rest between exercises

2-MILE JOG

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

1A. INCLINE DUMBBELL CHEST FLY X10

1B. INCLINE HEX PRESS (DUMBBELL TOGETHER) X10 

2. BURPEE 7X8

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

3A. TRIPOD ROW (SINGLE-ARM DUMBBELL ROW) X10 PER SIDE

3B. DUMBBELL SHRUG X15

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

4A. HAMMER CURL X12

4B. TRICEP KICKBACK X10 PER SIDE

5. MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS (4X30 SECONDS)

WEDNESDAY: HIGH-INTENSITY LOWER BODY

60 seconds rest between exercises

4 MILES ON STATIONARY BIKE

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

1A. GOBLET SQUAT (DUMBBELL) X15

1B. ROMANIAN DEADLIFT (DUMBBELL) X12

2. WALKING LUNGES 5X20 (10 PER LEG – 100 STEPS TOTAL)

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

3A. GLUTE BRIDGE (WITH BANDS) X12

3B. ALT. HEEL TOUCHERS X20

3C. BICYCLE CRUNCHES X30 (15 PER SIDE)

2 MILES ON STATIONARY BIKE

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

4A. JUMP SQUATS X10

4B. SIDE ELBOW PLANK X30 SEC (PER SIDE)

THURSDAY: FULL REST DAY

Use this day to focus on complete recovery. Do a series of stretches and foam rolling. If you have access to a Cold Plunge, use it. It will help reduce inflammation and speed up the recovery process. 

FRIDAY: HIIT TRAINING AND CORE

45 seconds rest between exercises

1-MILE JOG

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

1A. CHIN-UP X5

1B. KNEE-TO-ELBOW PLANK X30 SEC

1C. ARM CIRCLES X15 SEC (EACH SIDE)

0.5-MILE JOG

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

2A. BENCH DIPS X12

2B. BOX JUMPS X8

2C. HANGING KNEE RAISES X5-10

0.5-MILE JOG

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

3A. THRUSTERS (FRONT SQUAT TO PRESS) X10

3B. PLANK WALK-OUT X5

3C. CRUNCHES X10

1-MILE JOG

SATURDAY: CALISTHENICS AND BALANCE

60 seconds rest between exercises

5-MIN ROWING SESSION

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

1A. PUSH-UP PAUSE (PAUSE AT TOP) X10

1B. TRX PISTOL SQUAT X10 (PER LEG)

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

2A. KETTLEBELL SWINGS X30

2B. BIRD FEEDER DEADLIFT X10 (PER LEG)

3A. SQUATTED CRAB WALK (WITH BAND) 3X20 (10 STEPS PER DIRECTION)

4A. JUMP-ROPE 4X60 SEC

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

5A. BIRD DOG X10 (5 PER SIDE)

5B. TRX PIKE X10

SUPERSET (3 TIMES)

6A. BATTLE ROPES X25 SEC

6B. BENCH HOP OVER X25 SEC 

SUNDAY: ACTIVE REST DAY

Use this day to just get moving, but nothing overly taxing. Go for a 45-minute walk or participate in an activity or hobby you enjoy.