There was a point in my life back in 2012-2017 where fitness was my life.

I worked at a gym.

I worked out at that same gym.

I trained people at that gym.

I created fitness content.

I sold custom programs and coaching online.

I had no other responsibilities living at home with no car since I lived so close.

And so I would be in that gym 6-7 days per week and hitting the weights at least 4 of them.

Combined with eating a ton of food, I got myself up to a solid 200lbs while retaining the faintest hint of abs which was pretty cool.

It made sense though, because that’s pretty much all I did.

Hyper Speed Fast Forward To Today…

In 2019, I met my wife, moved out of my home state, had kids, moved to the midwest, and now here we are in 2025.

From 2019 to today, my priorities have definitely shifted towards family and finding my career (more on that another time), but fitness is still a consistent part of my life.

Admittedly, I don’t track my calories as rigidly as I used to.

But I also have zero issues with weight management having followed my own fitness system for coming up on 13 years now.

Here’s My Updated ‘Low-Effort’ Fitness Plan

All I’m going to do are 3 simple things:

1. Eat around 2,400 calories, at least 120g protein, at least 40g fat, and whatever remaining calories are carbs
2. Lift weights 3 times per week
3. Walk an average of 5,000 steps per day

I was shooting for 2,100 calories per day to get a fair bit leaner for summer, but I realized it’s not a good time for that right now.

The reason will remain undisclosed for the time being…

As for lifting, I’ve historically trained 3 days per week for years because I don’t recover super well from workouts and the new job has been more demanding than previous jobs.

I am getting stronger bit by bit despite my lower energy lately, so that’s good at least.

Here’s the actual workout routine:

Monday: Upper Body A
Bench Press — 2 sets of 3–8 reps
Barbell Rows — 2 sets of 6–12 reps
Dumbbell Curls — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Skullcrushers — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Lateral Raises — 2 sets of 8–12 reps

Wednesday: Lower Body
Squats — 2 sets of 3–8 reps
Deadlifts — 1 set of 3–5 reps
Dumbbell Curls — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Skullcrushers — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Lateral Raises — 2 sets of 8–12 reps

Friday: Upper Body B
Barbell Shoulder Press — 2 sets of 3–8 reps
Bodyweight Pull-ups x 2 sets of 6–12 reps
Dumbbell Curls — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Skullcrushers — 2 sets of 8–12 reps
Lateral Raises — 2 sets of 8–12 reps

Finally, the steps are just a minimum baseline, although I do have to… step it up (ha, get it?) because my 2025 average so far is 4,768 per day.

Fortunately the new job has me on my feet for at least 6 hours per day, so that should be no problem at all.

And that’s really it.

What’s Your Fitness Plan?

Mine is relatively simple, and of course there are more fine details like what I typically eat, the exact weights I use and all that…

But those are always subject to change.

What won’t change is the fundamental principles I follow of calorie control and progressive overload which have worked regardless of what diet or program I follow.

That said, what is your plan?

Let me know.

Talk soon,
-Gabe