Home Gym Program v2
Legs, body composition, daily mobility. Equipment: dumbbell rack, adjustable bench, NOHRD SlimBeam cable (ankle strap, rope, stirrup, bar), NOHRD WallBars + TRX, Technogym treadmill, road bike on Tacx, yoga mat.
1 · Priority hierarchy
- Progressive resistance training (legs first)
- Protein 1.6–2.2 g/kg/day
- Modest energy deficit (~400 kcal/day; back off to 250–300 only if lifts stall two weeks running)
- 8–10k steps/day
- Sleep 7+ hours — a bigger lever than anything below this line
- Zone 2 cardio, scheduled away from leg days
- Mobility breaks between meetings
You cannot spot-reduce belly fat. Waist down + strength up is the success criterion; the scale is secondary.
2 · Training cycle (rolling, not tied to weekdays — rewritten by Juan, Aug 2026)
| Day | Session | Evening |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Legs 1 — hack squat day | 15–25 min walk |
| 2 | Push — chest, shoulders, triceps | 30 min Zone 2 on the Tacx |
| 3 | Light cardio — 35–45 min Zone 2 + mobility | Recovery |
| 4 | Legs 2 — leg press day | 15–25 min walk |
| 5 | Pull — back, biceps | 30 min Zone 2 on the Tacx |
| 6 | Zone 2 (45–75 min easy) or full rest | Evening mobility only |
Then the cycle repeats. Legs always follow an easy day — you start every leg day fresh. The app tracks where you are in the cycle from what you log as done. Mobility micro-blocks run every weekday.
3 · Session status — decide before every session
GREEN — no dizziness, balance normal → train as written.
AMBER — ear feels off, mildly unsteady → seated overhead press; hand on WallBars for every unilateral exercise; pulldown instead of pull-ups; no hanging; no fast floor-to-standing; head moves slowly.
RED — active vertigo or clear disequilibrium → no strength session, no moving treadmill, no unsupported single-leg work. Walk if steady, otherwise rest. Recovery is the training that day.
Every lift: inhale → brace → rep → controlled exhale. No prolonged breath-holding. If straining creates ear pressure or dizziness, end the set and drop the load.
4 · Strength rules
Effort: most sets end at 1–2 reps in reserve (RIR). Big lifts (squats, RDLs, split squats) never to true failure. Last set of calves, curls, lateral raises, hamstring curls may go to 0–1 RIR.
Tempo: 2–3 s lowering, brief controlled transition, strong lift. Deepest range you can control.
Progression (double progression): hit the top of the rep range on every set with clean form → next session add one dumbbell step or one cable plate. Reps drop, rebuild. Never add weight because a week passed.
Rest: 2–3 min on the first two exercises, 60–90 s on the rest. Warm-up: 5 min easy bike/treadmill, then the wake-up sequence, then 1–2 lighter sets of exercise 1.
Legs 1 — Hack squat day (rewritten by Juan, Aug 2026)
| # | Exercise | Sets × reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lying hamstring curl on bench, both ankle straps, low pulley | 4 × 10–12 |
| 2 | Heel-elevated DB squat — the hack-squat version (two-DB front squat once goblet caps) | 6 × 10–12 |
| 3 | Bulgarian split squat, rear foot on bench, hand on WallBars | 3 × 10–12 / leg |
| 4 | Cable leg extension, seated on bench, ankle strap | 3 × 10–12 / leg |
| 5 | Standing DB calf raise, toes on plate, hand on WallBars | 3 × 10–15 |
Legs 2 — Leg press day (rewritten by Juan, Aug 2026)
| # | Exercise | Sets × reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lying hamstring curl on bench, both ankle straps, low pulley | 4 × 10–12 |
| 2 | SlimBeam belt-style squat — the leg-press version (bar, low pulley, sit back) | 6 × 10–12 |
| 3 | Bulgarian split squat, rear foot on bench, hand on WallBars | 3 × 10–12 / leg |
| 4 | Cable leg extension, seated on bench, ankle strap | 3 × 10–12 / leg |
| 5 | Single-leg calf raise on bench edge, hand on WallBars | 3 × 12–15 / leg |
Every training day ends with: 3 × 8–12 ab-wheel rollouts from the knees, then ~5 min of cool-down stretches (hip flexors, hamstrings, calves, chest, lats, slow breathing).
Original v2 lower days (RDLs, hip thrusts, step-ups, lunges, calves, core) were replaced at Juan's request with a simpler 4-exercise structure. Calves, glutes and core moves remain available as occasional swaps if wanted.
Push — Chest · Shoulders · Triceps (rewritten by Juan, Aug 2026)
| # | Exercise | Sets × reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | DB flat bench press | 3 × 8–12 |
| 2 | Incline DB press (30°) | 3 × 8–12 |
| 3 | DB chest fly on bench | 2 × 10–15 |
| 4 | Seated DB overhead press, bench 80–85°, head neutral | 3 × 8–12 |
| 5 | DB lateral raise | 3 × 12–15 |
| 6 | Cable rear-delt fly | 2 × 12–15 |
| 7 | Cable triceps pushdown | 3 × 10–12 |
| 8 | Overhead cable triceps extension, rope | 3 × 10–12 |
| 9 | Dips on the WallBars attachment (GREEN; AMBER → DB skull crushers) | 2 × 6–10 |
Pull — Back · Biceps (rewritten by Juan, Aug 2026)
| # | Exercise | Sets × reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Banded pull-up on WallBars (GREEN; AMBER → seated row) | 2 × 6–10 |
| 2 | SlimBeam single-arm cable row | 3 × 8–12 / side |
| 3 | SlimBeam lat pulldown | 3 × 10–12 |
| 4 | Single-arm supinated pulldown | 2 × 10–12 / side |
| 5 | DB pullover on bench | 2 × 10–15 |
| 6 | Incline DB curl | 3 × 10–12 |
| 7 | Spider curl, chest on incline bench | 3 × 10–12 |
| 8 | DB hammer curl | 3 × 10–15 |
5 · Daily mobility blocks
Universal rules: no inversions, no fast head rotation, no rolling straight from lying to standing (roll to side → sit 20–30 s → stand). Exhale through every stretch. The five blocks — wake, mid-morning, midday, mid-afternoon, evening — are in the Mobility tab as guided sequences.
Neck/jaw items are a 30-day test: some tinnitus changes with jaw and neck load, most doesn't. Keep them if you notice a difference; drop them if not. They are not a treatment.
6 · Cardio
- Zone 2 = full sentences possible, singing not. Cap at ~70% max HR if wearing a strap. Tacx in erg mode at a steady power; no Zwift racing on these days.
- Treadmill: 10–12% incline, 5–6 km/h, no hands on rails, GREEN days only.
- No HIIT required for fat loss. Optional 4 × 4 min bike intervals on Saturdays from week 5 if you want them.
- Target 150–300 min/week moderate activity across walking, bike, treadmill.
7 · Nutrition
- Protein 1.6–2.2 g/kg, 30–40 g per meal across 3–4 meals.
- Deficit ~400 kcal/day. Rate of loss 0.3–0.5 kg/week on the weekly average.
- Carbs (20–40 g) before strength sessions. Zone 2 fasted is optional.
- Creatine monohydrate 3–5 g daily.
- Two-week tests: no caffeine after 12:00; no alcohol. Both affect sleep and, for some people, tinnitus.
- Sleep 7+ hours, consistent wake time.
8 · Weekly measurement (same day, same conditions)
- Waist at navel
- Weekly-average body weight
- Four benchmarks: goblet squat, Bulgarian split squat, RDL, DB bench press (load × best set)
- Photos front + side every 4 weeks
Waist ↓, strength ↑, legs visibly ↑ = working, regardless of the scale.
9 · 8-week block
- Weeks 1–2: technique, find loads, 2–3 RIR, build the mobility habit.
- Weeks 3–5: double progression in force, 1–2 RIR.
- Weeks 6–7: strongest weeks, beat previous reps or load.
- Week 8: deload — half the sets, 3–4 RIR. Restart the block slightly heavier.
10 · Do not add
Six lifting days, daily HIIT, endless ab work, 45-minute stretch sessions, failure on every set, burpees, jumping circuits, BOSU/instability work, aggressive head movements, hanging or inversions when symptomatic.
11 · Open item
Heaviest dumbbell pair on the rack? Once Bulgarian split squats and RDLs outgrow it, those lifts migrate to the SlimBeam (bar on low pulley). Vestibular physio referral if vertigo is positional — this program supports it, doesn't treat it.