Last updated on March 4th, 2021 at 09:45 am

This one has been a long time coming.

There’s literally multiple books about this man’s routine!

But, the show must go on. He deserves his spot at SHJ, and we’re going to give it to him.

Before I start, though, I want to make it very clear that there is an overwhelming amount of information out there about Arnold’s workout routine and diet plan.

That being said, I’m going to do my best to give you information that is needed to form a great routine, without giving you an absolute surplus.

I guess you’re going to have to trust me on this one.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Stats:

Height: 6’2

Weight: (approximate) 250 lbs.

Age: 70 years old

Arnold Schwarzenegger is actually right around the average height we see for male celebs at SHJ.

The average height is anywhere from 6’1-6’3 with celebs like Chris Pratt, Chris Hemsworth, Hugh Jackman, Chris Evans, Adam Driver, Stephen Amell, Clive Standen and so many more.

And, even taller than them are guys like The Mountain, Dwayne Johnson, Joe Manganiello, Ben Affleck, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Winston Duke, Alexander Skarsgard and a few others.

Don’t forget about the short range though.  We also have Zac Efron, KJ Apa, Mark Wahlberg, Daniel Radcliffe, Tom Holland and more falling in that range.

But, don’t worry either way.

I write these routines to be utilized by any shape and size.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Diet and Nutrition

Be prepared to eat a lot of protein.

Arnold LOVES his protein.

No, seriously…

For this section I’m going to be using a great article from Bodybuilding.com because they’ve talked to Arnold a bunch and give us some awesome info.

First and foremost they give us “ARNOLD’S RULE”:

I always lived off the rule that for every pound of bodyweight, I needed one gram of protein.

That means, I’m around 175 lbs right now, so I’d be taking in 175 grams of protein per day.

If you missed that part.

They continue by telling us:

As a 250-pound mass monster, the challenge for Arnold was eating nearly 250 grams of protein daily and making sure that his body could use it all. “I felt like it worked best when I had five meals per day. There are some people who can work with three meals. For me, five meals was the answer because I never was a big eater. I always felt comfortable with a regular-sized steak. If you gave me a 10-ounce steak, even in my heyday, I was happy.”

So intermittent fasting is out for this one.

I normally love suggesting it, but it’s likely you’re going to be bulking if you want to look like Arnold (I’m not sure we have any people in the SHJ Army who compare to his size already…) – so you’re going to be taking in a ton of food.

And, while I promised I wouldn’t overload you with info, I want to give you a big chunk of the article to guide you through the rest of Arnold’s day and nutrition.

In the morning, Arnold would often eat a few scrambled eggs, some bacon or sausage, and some tomatoes and onions. “I was fine with that,” he says. “The only thing is, two hours after that breakfast I was hungry.” To supplement his whole food meals and get the protein he needed for substantial growth, Arnold never went far without a protein shake.

“As I was sitting there at Santa Monica City College or doing construction, I would pull out of my bag a little plastic container full of milk and protein powder. That was the additional 30 grams of protein that I needed at that time.”

An hour after his protein shake, Arnold would be at the gym doing what he did best—lifting big weight. After the gym was a late lunch of steak and vegetables. Two hours after lunch, Arnold would have another protein shake. “So, two times per day, I would have protein drinks in order to get up to the 250 grams that I needed,” he says.

Aside from protein, Arnold also knew the value of supplementing his meals for the overall health of his body. “We have to recognize that we do not get all of the nutrients—the vitamins, the minerals, the protein—through regular meals,” says Arnold. “That’s why we have supplements. No matter how healthy we eat, we won’t get enough [essential nutrients] from regular meals.”

Now, if that’s not some awesome freakin’ information, I don’t know what is.

Thank you Bodybuilding.com.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Research

Now this section is where it gets even more intense.

And how could it not?!

I hope you’re ready.

We’ve seen other pretty intense and high volume routines from guys like Dwayne Johnson, Tom Hardy, and Henry Cavill, but we’re talking about Arnold Freakin’ Schwarzenegger now.

I’m not going to source each and every movement I prescribe, BUT, I will tell you that the split and movements are mostly coming from Bodybuilding.com, Muscle and Fitness, and Muscle and Strength.

So one thing I’m not doing is making this a full, insane 16 week program. This is going to be a weekly program that will follow the same structure, but will be made so that you can continue progressing by increasing the weight like any other routine on SHJ.

That being said, I won’t sit here and say that other sources DON’T have long weekly changing programs, because they do – but this one is going to be built to be just as effective if done properly.

I promise.

One thing I’m going to change that you guys may not be used to is the rest you take between sets.

I never program that portion, because personally I don’t time it and don’t think it is necessary, BUT we’ve see it on The Rock’s routine, and will see it again here.

Let’s do this!

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine

Training Volume:

6 days per week

Explanation:

You’ll rest one day per week.  That’s generally Sundays.  It’ll be a 3-day split that runs twice per week and switches some movements up.  Enjoy and get BIG!

Rest Between Sets:

All workouts should have a 45 second rest between set and should be performed in pyramid fashion.

Supersets:

Supersets are performed one movement after another without rest.  The rest will come between each SET, so you will perform your two movements, and then rest, and rinse and repeat.

Cheat Sheet:

After Days 1-3, Days 4-6 look identical with the exception of “Good Mornings” only being performed once per week, falling on Day 3 in this case.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day One: Chest and Back

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Barbell Bench Press

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Incline Bench Press

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset:

Dumbbell Flys and Dumbbell Pullovers

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Chin Up (Wide Grip)

4×10-20 (or failure)

Superset 2:

Bent Over Barbell Row and Bent Over Double Dumbbell Row

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Hanging Leg Raises

5×25

Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day Two: Shoulders and Arms

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Clean and Press

5×25

Superset:

Standing Dumbbell Press and Front Dumbbell Raise

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 2:

Side Lateral Raise and Upright Barbell Row

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Chin Up (Wide Grip)

4×10-20 (or failure)

Barbell or Preacher Curls

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 3:

Incline Dumbbell Curl and Concentration Curls

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Close Grip Barbell Bench

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 4:

Skull Crushers and Tricep Overhead Extensions

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Wrist Curls over Bench w/ Barbell

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Decline Crunches

5×25

Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day Three: Legs

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Barbell Back Squats

5×8-12

Straight Leg Barbell Deadlift

5×8-12

Good Mornings

5×8-12

Barbell Lunges

5×8-12 each leg

Superset:

Leg Extensions and Seated Leg Curls

5×8-12

Superset 2:

Standing Calf Raises and Seated Calf Raises

5×8-12

Cable Crunches

5×8-12

Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day Four: Chest and Back

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Barbell Bench Press

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Incline Bench Press

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset:

Dumbbell Flys and Dumbbell Pullovers

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Chin Up (Wide Grip)

4×10-20 (or failure)

Superset 2:

Bent Over Barbell Row and Bent Over Double Dumbbell Row

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Hanging Leg Raises

5×25

Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day Five: Shoulders and Arms

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Clean and Press

5×25

Superset:

Standing Dumbbell Press and Front Dumbbell Raise

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 2:

Side Lateral Raise and Upright Barbell Row

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Chin Up (Wide Grip)

4×10-20 (or failure)

Barbell or Preacher Curls

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 3:

Incline Dumbbell Curl and Concentration Curls

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Close Grip Barbell Bench

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Superset 4:

Skull Crushers and Tricep Overhead Extensions

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Wrist Curls over Bench w/ Barbell

5×30, 12, 10, 8, 6

Decline Crunches

5×25

Arnold Schwarzenegger Workout Routine Day Six: Legs

Warm Up:

Stretch/Foam Roll

Workout:

Barbell Back Squats

5×8-12

Straight Leg Barbell Deadlift

5×8-12

Barbell Lunges

5×8-12 each leg

Superset:

Leg Extensions and Seated Leg Curls

5×8-12

Superset 2:

Standing Calf Raises and Seated Calf Raises

5×8-12

Cable Crunches

5×8-12

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