Arnold Schwarzenegger's Mass-Building Workout Routine - 'The Golden Six'

I have written many times about benefits of full-body workouts for building strength and muscle and 'The Golden Six' is the routine that got 'The Austrian Oak' started in bodybuilding. 

It is certainly one of the best workout routines for muscle growth that I recommend to all beginners and to lifters that are looking to change their routine that stopped producing new muscle gains.

Same as his idol and mentor Reg Park, Arnold Schwarzenegger also built his impressive foundation on full-body workouts. Many years later Arnold became famous as a fan of the high volume body part split routines, but honestly, I think that he gained most of his muscles by following  Reg Park's 5x5 Workout Program and his own full-body routine 'The Golden Six'. And he started favoring these high volume split routines in the time when he was experimenting with anabolic steroids.

This workout program was nicknamed 'The Golden Six' for its straightforward focus on six of the most basic exercises. This may not be a routine that you will use forever but it is great for beginning lifters and those who want to get back to basics with one of the simplest workouts. Also, one of the good things is that you only need to visit gym three times per week.

EXERCISE	SETS	REPS
Barbell Squat	4	10
Wide Grip Bench Press	3	10
Chin Up	3	Max
Behind The Neck Press	4	10
Barbell Curl	3	10
Bent Knee Sit Up	3-4	Max

Arnold Schwarzenegger recommended performing "The Golden Six" workout routine 3 times per week for a 3-month cycle. Once you become able to do 2 or more reps above the reps given in this workout plan increase the weight. It is very important to add more weight plates whenever possible to force your muscles to adapt and grow.

This classic full-body routine is ideal for beginners and hardgainers that are looking to gain muscle mass fast. It is simple and effective like most full-body workouts and doesn't leave any muscle group unattended.

Arnold's Workout Routine for Mass

Arnold Schwarzenegger's Training Program for Muscle Mass

Who knows how to gain lean muscle mass better than Bodybuilding King Arnold Schwarzenegger? Probably a few people or we can say almost no one. Arnold Schwarzenegger is Bodybuilding, he is Lean Muscle Mass and Strength. We can almost say that he popularized Bodybuilding and Fitness. One of the biggest icons of bodybuilding was never always big you must know, he was also skinny young kid, but that was before he was 15. 

Take a look how big and aesthetic was Arnold when he won Bodybuilding Tournament in Germany when he was 15:

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He was huge back then and he was huge all his life and he actually still is. So, do you know what program for muscle mass gain Arnold recommend?

Here it is:

Monday - Chest and Back:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Bench Press	8-12	3-4
Incline Dumbbell Press	8-12	3-4
Dumbbell Flies	10-12	3-4
Bent Over Row	8-12	3-4
Seated Back Row	10-12	3-4

Add 5 sets of 25 crunches at the end of workout.

Tuesday - Shoulders and Arms:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Military Press	8-12	3-4
Dumbbell Lateral Raise	8-12	3-4
Upright Row	10-12	3-4
Standing Barbell Curl	10-12	3-4
Seated Dumbbell Press	10-12	3-4
Close Grip Bench Press	8-12	3-4
Barbell Triceps Extension	8-12	3-4

Wednesday - Legs and Lower Back:

Exercises	Rep Range	Sets
Squat	8-12	3-4
Lunge	8-12	3-4
Leg Curl	10-12	3-4
Deadlift	8-10	3-4
Good Mornings	10-12	3-4
Standing Calf Raise	10-12	3-4
Crunches	20	5

Arnold used to shock his muscles every time to don't let them get used to his training, so he was changing his training routine or rep number often. He recommend doing 10 reps by starting with one rep of maximum weight then lowering the weight and adding more reps. So if you are doing bench press and let's say your maximum is 200 lbs then it should look like this for example:

200 lbs - 1 rep

180 lbs - 2 reps

150 lbs - 3 reps

140 lbs - 4 reps

120 lbs - 5 reps

100 lbs - 6 reps

Those numbers are just an example, you know your own maximum weight to lift in one rep or two rep. This workout is good because you don't rest between rep you just continue until you do 10 reps if you can. It is great for shocking your muscles and make them to grow.