The best free 3-day workout programs, compared
20 3-day programs, every one free and shown in full on its own page. Pick by level, then by what you have to train with.
- Beginner: 20-Rep Squat, 5/3/1 For Beginners, 5×5 Linear Progression + Accessories, Basic Beginner Routine, Dumbbell + Bench Full Body, Fierce 5, Ivysaur 4-4-8, Kettlebell Full Body, Leangains RPT, Novice 5×5 Linear Progression, Phrak's Greyskull LP, r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine, Reg Park 5×5, Strong Curves (Beginner)
- Intermediate: German Volume Training (GVT), Madcow 5×5, Olympic Lifter, Texas Method, Vince Gironda 8×8
- Advanced: DoggCrapp (DC Training)
All 20, line by line
| Program | Days | Session | Length | Level | Equipment | By |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20-Rep Squat | 3 | 40–50 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | Traditional |
| 5/3/1 For Beginners | 3 | 60–80 min | 4-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | Jim Wendler |
| 5×5 Linear Progression + Accessories | 3 | 65–90 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Full gym | Traditional |
| Basic Beginner Routine | 3 | 35–45 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | r/Fitness |
| Dumbbell + Bench Full Body | 3 | 40–55 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Dumbbells only | Traditional |
| Fierce 5 | 3 | 45–65 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Full gym | r/Fitness |
| Ivysaur 4-4-8 | 3 | 40–50 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | r/Fitness |
| Kettlebell Full Body | 3 | 55–70 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Kettlebells | Traditional |
| Leangains RPT | 3 | 35–50 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Full gym | Martin Berkhan |
| Novice 5×5 Linear Progression | 3 | 40–50 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | Traditional |
| Phrak's Greyskull LP | 3 | 25–35 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | Phrak & John Sheaffer |
| r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine | 3 | 30–45 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Bodyweight | r/bodyweightfitness |
| Reg Park 5×5 | 3 | 45–60 min | Ongoing | Beginner | Barbell + a rack | Reg Park |
| Strong Curves (Beginner) | 3 | 40–50 min | 12 weeks | Beginner | Full gym | Bret Contreras & Glen Cordoza |
| German Volume Training (GVT) | 3 | 40–55 min | Ongoing | Intermediate | Full gym | Charles Poliquin |
| Madcow 5×5 | 3 | 55–75 min | Ongoing | Intermediate | Barbell + a rack | Traditional |
| Olympic Lifter | 3 | 45–65 min | Ongoing | Intermediate | Barbell + a rack | Durata |
| Texas Method | 3 | 40–50 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Intermediate | Barbell + a rack | Mark Rippetoe & Glenn Pendlay |
| Vince Gironda 8×8 | 3 | 30–40 min | Ongoing | Intermediate | Full gym | Vince Gironda |
| DoggCrapp (DC Training) | 3 | 20–30 min | 2-week cycle, repeats | Advanced | Full gym | Dante Trudel |
Session times are worked out from each program's sets, reps and rests: the same estimate the app shows.
Who each one suits
20-Rep Squat
Best forRun it if you want size fast and already squat competently — the set only works if your technique holds up while your lungs and will are failing.
ProgressionThe squat adds 2.5 kg every single session you complete all twenty reps — no weekly waves, no percentages, just 7.5 kg a week onto a set of twenty.
5/3/1 For Beginners
Best forRun this as your first structured program, or straight after a stalled linear progression like StrongLifts.
ProgressionEverything keys off a training max set at about 90% of your best single — Durata can seed it from the estimated 1RM of any recent hard set.
5×5 Linear Progression + Accessories
Best forRun this when you want linear-progression strength but refuse to wait a year for arms.
ProgressionThe mains progress exactly as the base program: 2.5 kg per completed session on squat, bench, press and row, 5 kg on the deadlift, with a 10% deload after three straight misses.
Basic Beginner Routine
Best forThis is for the person who has never trained with a barbell and wants the shortest path to basic competence.
ProgressionSquats and deadlifts go up 5 kg every session you complete all your reps; bench, press and rows go up 2.5 kg.
Dumbbell + Bench Full Body
Best forThis is the right pick if your home gym is dumbbells plus a bench and you want a plan that uses both properly rather than a barbell program with awkward substitutions.
ProgressionEverything runs on wide-range double progression, the sane way to progress when your weights only exist in fixed jumps.
Fierce 5
Best forChoose Fierce 5 as the balanced take on novice lifting: arms, rear delts and calves grow from week one alongside the squat, without adding a fourth training day.
ProgressionSquats and deadlifts climb 5 kg per successful session; bench, press and Pendlay rows climb 2.5 kg.
Ivysaur 4-4-8
Best forThis suits the novice who finds grinding sets of five joyless and would rather chase a rep number.
ProgressionThe weight goes up every week on every lift — that is the whole point of the program.
Kettlebell Full Body
Best forMade for anyone whose gym is a bell or two in the living room, a garage, or a park — minimal equipment, no barbell, no machines.
ProgressionEvery weighted movement runs double progression inside its rep range — swings work 12–20, goblet squats, rows and high pulls 8–12, cleans and presses 5–8.
Leangains RPT
Best forReverse pyramid training suits intermediate lifters who prefer intensity to volume and want maximum return from three short sessions — which is exactly why it's the standard recommendation for training through a cut, where recovery is scarce and every set has to count.
ProgressionEach lift progresses off its top set alone.
Novice 5×5 Linear Progression
Best forThis is a true novice program — for someone whose lifts still go up simply because they trained.
ProgressionSquat, bench, press and row add 2.5 kg every completed workout; the deadlift adds 5 kg.
Phrak's Greyskull LP
Best forPick this over a fixed-set routine if you want feedback, not just weight on the bar.
ProgressionEvery successful session adds 2.5 kg to the bar.
r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine
Best forFor anyone who wants real strength training with no weights — students, travellers, home trainees with a doorway pull-up bar and not much else.
ProgressionThe rule is simple and unforgiving: work each movement from 3×5 up to 3×8 with strict, controlled reps — no kipping, no half range.
Reg Park 5×5
Best forThis is a beginner routine in the classical mould: if you can only remember one workout, this full body 5x5 is it.
ProgressionProgress is session-to-session, the way Park ran it: complete all 25 reps on a lift and it goes up next workout — 5 kg on squat and deadlift, 2.5 kg on bench, press and row.
Strong Curves (Beginner)
Best forAnyone whose first goal is building the glutes and lower body — the book was written for women, but the programming is just good lower-body hypertrophy training and works for anyone.
ProgressionProgression works on two levels, exactly as the book writes it.
German Volume Training (GVT)
Best forGVT is for intermediate lifters who want size and are prepared to eat for it — running a 10×10 routine in a calorie deficit is a fast route to burnout.
ProgressionThe load stays fixed until you've earned the increase: complete all ten sets of ten — the full hundred reps — with the same weight and clean form, then add a small jump (2.5 kg is plenty) next session and rebuild.
Madcow 5×5
Best forPick the madcow 5x5 program when session-to-session jumps have stopped sticking but week-to-week ones still can — typically after several months of a novice barbell routine.
ProgressionEach lift runs off a single training max — Monday's top-set weight — and every set all week is a percentage of it.
Olympic Lifter
Best forThis is for lifters who already know the movements and want a structured week to build them — you've had some coaching or put in serious technique work, and you can snatch and clean & jerk safely, even if lightly.
ProgressionThe fast lifts micro-load: make all five doubles on the snatch or clean & jerk and the bar goes up 1 kg next session; miss twice at a weight and it drops 10% so you can rebuild speed and timing.
Texas Method
Best forThis is a program for early intermediates who still want a PR on the bar every week and can pay for it in food and sleep.
ProgressionFriday decides everything.
Vince Gironda 8×8
Best forThe vince gironda 8x8 program suits experienced lifters chasing a dense, classic-physique look — especially as a deliberate change of stimulus after months of heavy low-rep work, or during a cut when joints appreciate lighter loads.
ProgressionLoad progression is earned, not scheduled.
DoggCrapp (DC Training)
Best forThis is an advanced program with no apologies.
ProgressionThe rule is beating the logbook.
Common questions
Which of these has the shortest sessions?
DoggCrapp (DC Training), at about 20–30 minutes a session. Session times are worked out from each program's sets, reps and rests, the same estimate the app shows.
Which ones suit a beginner?
20-Rep Squat, 5/3/1 For Beginners, 5×5 Linear Progression + Accessories, Basic Beginner Routine, Dumbbell + Bench Full Body, Fierce 5, Ivysaur 4-4-8, Kettlebell Full Body, Leangains RPT, Novice 5×5 Linear Progression, Phrak's Greyskull LP, r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine, Reg Park 5×5 and Strong Curves (Beginner). They are written for lifters in their first year or so of training.
Can I run any of them without a gym?
Yes: Dumbbell + Bench Full Body (dumbbells only), Kettlebell Full Body (kettlebells) and r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine (bodyweight). The rest need a barbell or a full gym.
Are these programs free?
Yes. All 20 are free to run in Durata, and every set of every session is shown on each program's own page.
Run any of them in Durata
Every program here is free in Durata, with each one's own progression worked out for you as you log.