Workout A1
Monday- T1Back squat85 kg4 × 3, 1 × 3+
- T2Barbell bench press40 kg3 × 10
- T3Lat pulldown55 kg2 × 15, 1 × 15+
GZCLP
Heavy, medium and light work for the four main lifts, with simple rules for progress and plateaus.
Not sure it’s for you? See programs like it, ranked for you →Your numbers
Worked out for an example lifter who squats 100 kg × 5, benches 75 kg × 5, deadlifts 130 kg × 5 and presses 50 kg × 5. Change any number to see your own.
Main lifts
Start with a weight you could lift for 5 clean reps. The program adds weight every session.
kg
5-rep max × 85%kg
5-rep max × 85%kg
5-rep max × 85%kg
5-rep max × 85%T2 lifts
Prefilled at about 65% of each main lift. The program adds weight every session.
kg
kg
kg
kg
Accessories
Weight goes up once your last set reaches 25 reps.
kg
kg
Weight of one dumbbell.Details
The program’s usual settings
Week by week
Every workout, as Catalyst would give it to you from the example numbers.
Workout B1
Wednesday- T1Barbell overhead press42.5 kg4 × 3, 1 × 3+
- T2Conventional deadlift70 kg3 × 10
- T3Two-arm dumbbell row25 kg2 × 15, 1 × 15+ · per dumbbell
Workout A2
Friday- T1Barbell bench press62.5 kg4 × 3, 1 × 3+
- T2Back squat55 kg3 × 10
- T3Lat pulldown55 kg2 × 15, 1 × 15+
Where it takes you
Each lift’s heaviest set, workout by workout, over the first 12 weeks, if every set is done as written.
A forecast, not a promise: it assumes every set is done as written. In the app, what you actually lift decides what comes next, by the program’s own rules.
What it trains
Working sets in the first week for each muscle, counted once for each muscle an exercise trains.
| Muscle | Main mover | Helping |
|---|---|---|
| Gluteals | 11 | 0 |
| Latissimus dorsi | 9 | 0 |
| Pectorals | 8 | 0 |
| Quadriceps | 8 | 0 |
| Triceps | 5 | 8 |
| Deltoids | 5 | 0 |
| Scapular retractors | 3 | 6 |
| Hamstrings | 3 | 0 |
| Serratus anterior | 0 | 13 |
| Spinal erectors | 0 | 11 |
| Biceps | 0 | 9 |
| Adductors | 0 | 8 |
| Anterior deltoids | 0 | 8 |
| Forearms | 0 | 6 |
| Upper trapezius | 0 | 5 |
| Posterior deltoids | 0 | 3 |
The schedule
3 workouts a week, on Mon, Wed, Fri.
| Week | Mon | Wed | Fri |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A1 | B1 | A2 |
| 2 | B2 | A1 | B1 |
| 3 | A2 | B2 | A1 |
| 4 | B1 | A2 | B2 |
Then it starts again from week 1, carrying on from the weights you reached.
How it works
The program’s own rules, as Catalyst runs them.
Train three days a week, repeating the four-week calendar and rotating A1, B1, A2 and B2 without restarting the rotation each week. Your main lifts (T1) and their lighter, higher-rep work (T2) keep separate weights, even on the same lift. Main work starts at five sets of three, with the last set as many reps as possible (AMRAP). After a miss, keep the weight and move to six sets of two, then ten singles. After a miss at ten singles, find a new five-rep maximum and restart at eighty-five percent of it. Higher-rep work moves from three sets of ten to eight to six; after a miss at six, restart with a heavier weight. Accessories are three sets of fifteen: add a little weight once your last set reaches twenty-five reps. Add any other exercises you like.
What you need
Everything its exercises call for. Missing something? The app suggests swaps that train the same thing.
- Barbell
- Dumbbells
- Flat bench
- Lat pulldown machine
- Squat rack
Not sure it’s the one?
See every program like it ranked for what you want, how often you train and what you have, each with why it fits and what doesn’t. Compare any three side by side.
Run GZCLP in Catalyst
Every set ready. Every weight right.
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