58 reviews for Novice Bodybuilding Program (by Eric Helms)
The Novice Bodybuilding Program is a four-day a week program based on the principles from the Muscle and Strength Pyramid: Training book by Dr. Eric Helms, Andy Morgan, and Andrea Valdez. We highly recommend reading the book to learn evidence-based training and nutrition.
This beginner bodybuilding program has exercises to ensure all muscle groups are adequately trained to help you build a well rounded physique. There are two ‘strength’ days and two ‘volume’ days. Strength development complements the accumulation of training volume and aids hypertrophy.
Read below for full program guidelines.
Edmund L.
Man, 465 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
Less than expected muscle gains
Not halfway through the program yet, so still premature to determine effectiveness for me.
Jannis M.
Man, 313 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Great introduction to weight training. More substitute exercises would be great to see as a beginner, but hey, its good to get used to the classic exercises.
Man, 26
3 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Excellent beginner program. Dr Eric helms is an expert in the field of natural bodybuilding and strength training. Highly recommend this for a beginner or intermediate lifter.
Garret Q.
Man, 275 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Solid program. I'm normally a runner but am doing more strength training. Because the program prescribed increasing weight each week, I have made some obvious strength improvements (not to mention always being sore). I occasionally added more leg and back exercises, some other random accessory exercises, plus some drop sets.
Rachel N.
Woman, 415 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
I’ve been able to increase my strength pretty well and it’s easy to follow. I swapped cable row for barbell row and swapped one of the pull ups for lat pull downs
Bailey Sorrow
Man3 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Good starting point to build your own programs to. That is what Dr. Helms intended when he wrote these.
Ashley S.
Non-binary, 193 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Beginner-friendly, inclusive, easy to add in alternative exercises, and easy to follow instructions
The S.
Man, 443 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Keep reps low and use as strength block
Jose M.
Man, 445 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
3dmj rocks
Виктор семенов
Man, 2711 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Added some lateral raises and biceps triceps