New Dad weight training
When my daughter was born I had two 60-minute windows per week to train. Sometimes 3, but I wanted to create something that was sound for 2 days of training.
I needed a baseline 2-day program for the gym amidst broken sleep and routine.
The Logic
There’s a camp of Bro ScienceMeaning the science of lifting weights and is by no means derogatory in this context. that states the last 5 reps before failure drive adaptation. Everything else accumulates fatigue. With 120 minutes per week, I couldn’t afford sets that didn’t count. See: Lyle McDonald on Muscular Tension and Muscular Fatigue https://bodyrecomposition.com/training/muscular-tension-and-muscle-growth#Effective_Reps
With 2-days per week and limited time, your weapon for effectiveness (and hopefully some semblence of progress) is intensity. This meant every set I did was to 0-1 reps from failure. One can add more volume if not used to or willing to [truly] push that hard. The corollary and trade-off is that more sets = more time in the gym, an anti-goal for New Dad Training.
The Split
Push-bias and pull-bias full-body. The bias was to limit too much systemic fatigue when you’re already wrecked. I don’t train for powerlifting meets and hold no lift as sacred. Meaning the “good old” Bench, squat, and deadlift need technical precision and warm-up time I didn’t have. This was maintenance plus whatever more I could eke out.
Swap exercises based on your gear, what you wnjoy and what you can do with good form. Just watch rest-pause and myo-reps on anything requiring stability. You’re going to actual failure, then pushing it again.
Session 1: Push Bias
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| DB Bench Press | 3 × 6-10 | 3 min | Superset with pull-ups |
| Pull-ups | 2 × 8-10 | — | Between bench sets |
| DB Split Squat | 3-4 × 6-10 | 2-3 min | |
| DB Chest Fly | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
| DB Skull Crushers | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
| DB Lateral Raises | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
| DB Incline Curls | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
Session 2: Pull Bias
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| DB Braced Row | 3 × 6-10 | 3 min | Superset with incline press |
| Incline DB Press | 2 × 8-10 | — | Between row sets |
| Pull-up / Lat Pulldown | 2 × 10-12 | 2-3 min | |
| DB Romanian Deadlift | 3-4 × 6-10 | 2-3 min | |
| DB Skull Crushers | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
| DB Lateral Raises | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
| DB Incline Curls | 1 myo-rep set | — | 10-12 reps then mini-sets to failure |
What Mattered
For my contexts and goals, lower body got straight maintenance work only. You could do more if you wanted. Everything is a tradeoff. Pick your character. For me, this held the line.
I aimed for Monday and Thursday. But, life with kids doesn’t follow schedules in the early days. As long as I got 2-4 days between a session, it worked.
With low volume, intensity isn’t optional if you want a half-decent benefit and/or results. You need to train hard. That means, 0-2 reps from failure every set. Chase progression obsessively. Track workouts and try to beat the log-book, even +1 rep counts. There’s no volume to hide behind.
You can maintain on a third of the volume it took to build. Before bub, I was hitting each muscle group twice per week for a total of 9-12 sets (excluding overlap). That means 4-6 sets once per week sustains me. When dieting or when life’s particularly tough, one [focused and hard] session per week beats zero every day of the week. On this program, in the span of 10 days, I was hitting everything at least three times. It’s more than it seems on paper.
Rest-pause and myo-reps saved me loads of time. First set hard, truly hard. Then, 10-15 second breaks, with mini-sets of 3-4 until I couldn’t hit reps anymore. This is auto-regulatory in a way, some days you’ll get 5 mini sets, others only 1-2. Listen to your body. I used this on all isolation movements. I would have done the whole routine like this with access to good machines.
A small home gym removed friction. Pull-up bar was the only thing I needed a gym for. Everything else I could do with an adjustable bench and adjustable dumbbells. I would substitute pull-ups for DB lat pullovers if I couldn’t make it to the gym on any given day.
Post newborn days: 3 Days
I’ve expanded to three 45-60 minute sessions. The extra day makes a big difference for legs. But if things get chaotic again (another kid, for example) I’ll drop back to the New Dad framework and maintain what matters.
Two hard sessions per week held my strength and some. Maintenance costs way less than building. Once you know that, you’ve got no excuse to stop entirely.