167 reviews for Guts Training Program
Boostcamp is proud to partner with Natural Hypertrophy to bring this free program to our selection of workouts.
Introducing the Guts Training Program, inspired by the legendary character Guts from the Golden Age Arc. Tailored for those already with a solid strength foundation, the Guts program is designed to help you mimic Guts' robust upper body and lean legs.
The program is 4 days a week, with an emphasis on arms, chest, shoulders, and abs. It requires dedication, consistent effort, and recovery periods between sessions.
Recommended workout days:
Monday: Upper 1
Wednesday: Lower 1
Friday: Upper 2
Saturday: Lower 2.
Variation 1: Black Swordman
You should pick this template if you enjoy low reps on heavy compounds such as bench, chin-ups or deadlifts. Otherwise, both programs put a similar emphasis on rowing motions and time-tested arm isolation exercises, as well as a strong focus on neck and posterior chain.
Variation 2: Berserker Armor
You should pick this template if you enjoy heavy weighted calisthenics, exotic lower body movements and dynamic core training. Otherwise, both programs put a similar emphasis on rowing motions and time-tested arm isolation exercises, as well as a strong focus on neck and posterior chain.
Variation 3: Alternate Variation 1 & 2 Weekly
Week A: Black Swordsman
Week B: Berserker Armor
There are 3 ways for you to run this Guts program:
1st : You begin by picking ONE of the two templates (so either Black Swordsman or Berserker Armor) and run hit for a period of at least a year, or until progress stalls dramatically. At this point, you add the second template, and you alternate between the two in a mirror week fashion.
2nd : You pick only ONE of the templates and you run it forever.
3rd : You run one template until progress stalls, at which point you switch to the other one. If you select that option, make sure you track weights used for every lift in the template (which you should do anyways) to make sure that your strength is growing and that you’re not just yoyo progressing.
I do not recommend using the mirror week system if you are new to the program. At the beginning, it is wise to stick to the same roster of exercises, as progression will be fast regardless. Keeping the novelty aspect of the Week A / Week B rotation for when you plateau is a better long-term option.
When you see an “or”, this does NOT mean that you rotate this specific exercise every single week. Rather, you are to pick the lift that you enjoy the most for that specific day and stick to it. Later on (when you’ve become acclimated to the program and AFTER you’ve added the mirror week) you can start rotating some of these lifts, keeping in mind that excessive rotations could hinder progression.
K F
Man, 355 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
I have consistently been lifting for 15 years and this program is my current favorite go to. I have completed 12 weeks on the Black Swordsman, 12 weeks on Berserker Armor, and now am halfway through doing alternating weeks. I split up each cycle of this program with other programs. Each time I am running this program I have seen the best results in my physique in a long time. This program is excellent and very efficient time wise.
Brooks Applegate
Man, 337 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Great Program and different enough from your cookie cutter BB plan :)
Sun Maki
Man, 293 weeks complete
4 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Great program if your goal is to get a massive upper body with some good looking legs
Spencer R.
Man, 327 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Overall solid program, you get out what you put into it. Only gripe is that there is zero variance week-to-week in both exercises and rep/set scheme. I slightly modified to scale volume up or down and saw good results.
Jason C
Man, 295 weeks complete
5 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Great program, really pushes you out of your comfort zone volume-wise with great intensity
Pascal Legate
Man, 285 weeks complete
3 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Really solid program, interesting movements, great structure. The super sets are intense and will gas you out. My triceps blew up due to the dips and close grip bench press. Very happy with this program.
Adam G.
Man, 223 weeks complete
3 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Been off and on in the gym since 16 years old and I gotta say I’m loving it. In the past it was always PPL but with my current job I’m never able to make it 6 days a week in the gym so progress hit a brick wall. This split is awesome, the variety keeps me engaged as well. Most of the changes I make are due to the equipment present at my halfway gym. The lower 1 day is a bit of a slog to get through, especially with 3 way circuits + a busy gym. But overall my bench has already shot up about 20-30 pounds as well as my deadlift. I have subbed Kroc rows for pendlay rows to get some more anterior delt/lat love. All in all I highly recommend fellas and felletes.
Connor B.
Man, 223 weeks complete
8 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Loved it, just added in extra auxillaries
Josh Lecordier
Man, 235 weeks complete
3 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Amazing program for getting big and building good general strength, I highly recommend if those are your goals.
Giga F.
Man, 453 weeks complete
7 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Berserker Armor version Very well thought out program. Interesting movements that don’t get dull. I like the ring workouts. Only a 4 weeks in or so but plan on running it for a year or so then switching to the Black Swordsman version. Like most people say day 2 is a chore and you kind of have to plan your week around it. It’s hard to superset almost anything the first 2 days so the workouts last longer than I’d like. If you superset the compound movements you tend to drop your intensity which isn’t great for hypertrophy. Some workouts I add an extra set in for more volume. All in all great program, I already see gains in my shoulders, arms and upper back especially. Thanks for the program, NH