Topic guide
Workout program templates you can adapt to a real client
Each template comes with the rules that make it work: who it suits, how it progresses, and what to change when readiness drops or something hurts.
6 guidesUpdated
Share one client's training context and RaiNGE emails you a session draft to review. Get a sample workout
Where to start, by situation
- 2-3 reliable days, new to liftingA 12-week beginner strength program in three phasesFull-body sessions in three 4-week phases, with a sample week for each
- 3 days, some lifting experienceA 3-day full body workout program for busy intermediate clientsHeavy, light, and medium days, with a plan for the missed one
- 4 reliable days, 6+ months liftingA 4-day upper lower split for strength, with the rules to run itRepeatable strength work with clear progression rules
- Dumbbells only, at home or travelingA dumbbell only workout program for home, travel, and small gymsProgressions that keep working when the weights stay light
- Starting a new personal training clientPersonal training program template: a blank card plus the rules to fill itA blank program card and the intake questions that fill it
- Writing your own program from scratchHow to write a training program for clients, from intake to the week-4 reviewThe process from intake to the week-four review
How to choose and adapt a template
- 01
Start from the days the client will actually train
Plan for the sessions they complete in a bad week, not the ones they hope to complete. Two or three reliable days call for full-body sessions. Four reliable days support an upper/lower split.
Go deeper: A 3-day full body workout program for busy intermediate clients - 02
Match the equipment before the exercises
A template written for a full gym breaks in a garage. If the client trains with a few dumbbells, start from a plan built for that.
Go deeper: A dumbbell only workout program for home, travel, and small gyms - 03
Set the progression rule before week one
Decide how the client earns more load. Double progression inside a rep range is the default here: add reps to the top of the range, then add load. Decide when a week repeats instead.
Go deeper: A 12-week beginner strength program in three phases - 04
Write the rules for bad days
Readiness of 60-69% drops a set or cuts load 5-10%. Pain of 3-5/10 means reduce load or range first. At 6-7/10, stop the movement that provokes it and choose a conservative alternative. Above 7/10, or with sharp, worsening, radiating, or unfamiliar pain, stop loading and refer out. Missing equipment uses a planned substitution.
Go deeper: The pain scale for exercise, and what to change at each score - 05
Review after two weeks, one change at a time
Look at completion, effort ratings, and pain reports before changing the plan. Adjust one variable at a time so you can read the response.
Go deeper: Personal training program template: a blank card plus the rules to fill it
Every guide on program templates
6 articles. Each answers one question.
Strength programs
Structured blocks for clients who can train consistently.
Updated 8 min read
A 12-week beginner strength program in three phases
Beginners progress fastest on a plan simple enough to repeat. This one changes exercises only at phase boundaries and progresses one variable at a time.
Updated 8 min read
A 3-day full body workout program for busy intermediate clients
A 3-day full body workout program trains squat, hinge, push, and pull every session, with a different job each day: heavy on Monday (4×4-6), light on Wednesday (3×10-12), medium on Friday (3×6-8).
Updated 7 min read
A 4-day upper lower split for strength, with the rules to run it
A 4-day upper lower split trains each half of the body twice a week: Upper A and Lower A early in the week, Upper B and Lower B later. Main lifts run 4×5-8 at RPE 7-8, accessories 3×8-15.
Programs for real-world constraints
When equipment or a new client's history shapes the plan.
Updated 8 min read
Personal training program template: a blank card plus the rules to fill it
A personal training program template is a blank card: three full-body days, each with a squat, hinge, push, pull, carry, and trunk slot, and columns for sets, reps, load, RPE, and notes.
Updated 7 min read
A dumbbell only workout program for home, travel, and small gyms
A dumbbell only workout program can cover every pattern in three full-body sessions a week: goblet squat, floor press, one-arm row, RDL, split squat, hip thrust, overhead press, and carries at 3×8-12, RPE 6-7.
Writing your own program
When no template fits the client in front of you.
Updated 8 min read
How to write a training program for clients, from intake to the week-4 review
Templates hand you exercises. This is the process underneath them: eight decisions in order, each one fed by the last, with one client walked through every step.
Common questions
Can I use these templates with my clients?
Yes. They are educational starting points for qualified coaches. Adapt load, volume, and exercise choice to the person in front of you, and keep the adjustment rules that come with each template.
How many days a week should a client train?
As many as they can complete consistently. For most general-fitness clients, three reliable full-body sessions produce more progress than a five-day plan they finish half the time. Add a day when completion stays high and recovery holds.
How do I adapt a template for a client with an injury?
Keep the training goal and change the exposure: less range, less load, or a pattern the client tolerates. The exercise substitution guides cover the swaps. Pain that is severe, worsening, or unfamiliar needs a qualified professional before loading.
Can software adapt these templates for each client?
RaiNGE drafts programs from a client's goals, equipment, schedule, and readiness check-ins, and a coach reviews and approves the draft before it reaches the client. See how coach-reviewed AI drafting works.
Other topics
Browse all articles- Exercise substitutionsThis exercise does not fit today. What do I swap in?
- Workout safetyThe client is sore, tired, or hurting. What changes today, and who decides?
- AI for coachesCan AI help me program without taking over my coaching?
- Choosing softwareWhich software should run our programming?
- Software comparisonsWe already have a way to program. Is something else worth switching to?
Next step
Share one client's training context and RaiNGE emails you a session draft to review.