Cleric Workout and Diet [Dungeons and Dragons Inspired]

Last updated on September 25th, 2024 at 04:50 pm

The next class joining our Dungeons and Dragons Inspired Workouts are our Clerics!

This one is going to be a bit different like we just saw Warlock, but this time it’ll be done by hitting a very specific build.

I’ll be talking about it more below, but for now I’m just excited we’re easily getting through all of our top classes that have been requested so far.

And, obviously I’m going to keep them coming.

Our Workout Database has improved significantly with the addition of our Dungeons and Dragons classes coming in every week considering it was being dominated so heavily by our Anime Workouts most recently (and still will continue to be).

In our articles I have mentioned the fact that I’ve been a big MMO gamer for years (especially WoW, but I’ve hopped around to a ton), so this new endeavor into D&D is a perfect fit.

Another side note for this new character creation is that will be skipping the stat section we normally include, and switching up some of the other sections (like the nutrition section, which I’ll have a bunch more added to in order to make it a bit more fun).

Cleric Information:

Inspired By: Dungeons and Dragons

Goal: Dwarven Tank Build

Introduction to the Cleric Class (from RPG Bot):

Clerics are among the most diverse and interesting classes in 5e DnD. Because your choice of Divine Domain so greatly affects your capabilities, Clerics can fit a variety of roles and play styles. More generally, Clerics are the best healers in the game, and have among the best support, utility, and divination options in the game. However, they are by no means limited to healing and support roles. Clerics have abundant offensive options, and can even be effective with weapons.

Extra Notes (from Ability Scores):

Cleric’s abilities all center around Wisdom, but depending on your build you may need to shuffle your other abilities around to accomodate whatever type of armor you’re using and your role in the party. Martial clerics will want more Dexterity and Constitution, but caster clerics might make some room for Intelligence or Charisma in order to expand into skill-based roles within the party.

We are going for a very specific build here, and while I’m including very broad topic Cleric information above I’ll be putting much more specific information below in our research section.

I mentioned that the build we’re looking for is the Dwarven Tank Build, AKA Hill Dwarf Forge Tank.

That’ll make it easier to actually dive into this workout with specific goals and build in mind.

But, I’ll break that down more below.

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Cleric D&D Diet and Nutrition

For our new Dungeons and Dragons themed section of our Workout Database I’m going to be adding a bit of flair to the diet and nutrition section of each class to make it a bit more fun.

While I do usually add the same section for each hero to give you guys some articles and resources to utilize throughout the site, for this one I will add that secondary.

As you may have noticed, if you’re a member of The SHJ Army and using our workouts a lot (if you’re not, we have over 1,000 workouts, welcome); we also skipped the stats section being that this one is going to be very customizable, but the goal is to gain mass and become a strong, durable tank!

There will be more on this below, in the workout research section, but the important thing to note here is that we’re going to want to be in a caloric surplus due to our goals.

So let’s talk about that…

Cleric Inspired Diet and Nutrition [For Fun]

For our Clerics we’re going to be doing some fun [optional] background information about how they would eat in history, and then I’ll also be breaking down the main pillars of how I personally recommend eating for our goals.

Here’s how one site, English Heritage, breaks it [the diet of clergy in the Middle Ages] down for us:

Their diet was mainly vegetarian, although fish (and, by the late Middle Ages, also meat) was allowed on special occasions.

This is going to make our overall goals difficult, as we would actually like to put on as much mass as possible, but we have more to discuss.

The majority of sources talking about Clergy diets in the Middle Ages are discussing that of monks and not specifically the Clergy – AND for this specific build we’re looking to be Dwarven – which means we have to account for how that might switch things up.

So, we’re going to be taking that “and, by the late Middle Ages, also meat” and really pushing it into our diets.

For that reason you’re going to want to:

1. Eat in a Caloric Surplus to gain mass, strength and constitution.
2. Consider eating with a Mediterranean Diet to be most like the Clergy would eat in the Middle Ages, especially that of a Dwarf.
3. Adopt the 4-Tier Nutrition System we use here at SHJ to have the most effective and efficient diet planning (without sacrificing your life).

I also go much more in depth with calories and their relationship to gaining or losing weight here: SHJ Complete Guide to Calorie Counting and Macronutrients.

And if you’d like to read more about the Mediterranean diet you can do so here: SHJ Guide on The Mediterranean Diet.

And you can find the full 4-Tier-Nutrition System right in our Nutrition Pillars.

But to leave you off with some more resources now that we had some fun with the nutrition, I’m also going to add in some information we always share within our character workouts..

Hero Diet and Nutrition Resources and Subsection

**Keep in mind: this section will be nearly identical for each hero.**

Every hero needs to still have a good diet.

Unfortunately we can train like them, but I don’t think any of us are suddenly getting their powers, or the ability to magically stop caring about nutrition.

You can’t out train your diet, so I want to still give some pillars for nutrition.

You can start by checking out The Nutrition Pillars on the site, but I’ll break down some more information for you guys as well.

Guys like Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart incorporate 80/20 dieting with big weekly cheat meals, Hugh Jackman, Tom Hopper, Benedict Cumberbatch and Terry Crews utilize intermittent fasting (something I use daily as well), Ariana Grande, Mustafa Shakir and Madelaine Petsch are vegans, Brandon Routh and Frank Grillo opt for paleo, and tons of others utilize their own variations as well.

It’s all about sustainability.

AND, there are a thousand different ways to reach your goals, so finding the most sustainable way is what’s important.

Which is why our Academy utilizes multiple different Nutrition Classes (Greek Gods, Vikings, Spartans, Hunter Gatherers, Monks, Samurais, Minimalists, SuperHumans) to allow people to choose what is right for YOU!

Curious where over a hundred celebs fall in their dietary choices ranging from High Protein and Keto to Vegetarian, Vegan and Intermittent Fasting? Want exclusive celeb meal plans? Check this out.

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Cleric D&D Workout Routine Research

We’ve made it to “the fun part”.

And, if you don’t know by now, I say that every single time we get to the workout routine research section for character workouts.

The goal of this one is specifically to be building our Cleric Class around the Dwarven Tank Build AKA Hill Dwarf Forge Tank.

War Gamer breaks that down for us as follows:

The tank build to end all Cleric tank builds; the Dwarven Forge Cleric is the go-to for any players who enjoy defensive playstyles and absorbing damage for the party.

With all the bonuses to your AC, paired with the solid support, utility, and healing spells, here is one of the best thematic and optimized Cleric powerhouses you can play as.

But, even through we’re building around that specific build, I still want to pull in some additional background information like we normally do about our classes, this time specifically for our Clerics from Forgotten Realms Wiki and RPGBot, starting with the former:

A cleric was a divine servant of one or more gods, serving them with martial might and divine magic fueled by their own strength of faith. As agents of a divine authority, clerics were empowered both by ritual training and their god’s particular favor. Relatively rare, clerics inspired both reverence and terror, depending on their aims and who they served.

If we then move onto RPGBot we can lean more about their abilities and where we’ll want to be spending points:

Cleric’s abilities all center around Wisdom, but depending on your build you may need to shuffle your other abilities around to accomodate whatever type of armor you’re using and your role in the party. Martial clerics will want more Dexterity and Constitution, but caster clerics might make some room for Intelligence or Charisma in order to expand into skill-based roles within the party.

Strength is marked as a secondary stat, along with Dexterity and Charisma – all behind Wisdom.

Being that we’re building around our tank build, we’ll want to be making the choice to prioritize strength and constitution, or in this case strength and mass gain.

BUT, we still need to put that behind the fact that we’re dealing with an overall prioritization of Wisdom, because after all, we’re still Clerics.

For that reason we’re going to be using a 3 Day Weightlifting Split built around mass and powerlifting for become BIG and strong – and leaving the other 4 days a week devoted entirely to our studies and practice.

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Cleric D&D Workout Routine

Training Volume:

3 days per week

Explanation:

For this one we’re using a 3 day powerlifting split prioritizing mass gain and strength in the least amount of overall work being spent towards weight training, to leave room for our main priority with our Wisdom stat and spell-casting.

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Cleric D&D Workout Routine: Sample Schedule

Monday: Dwarven Tank Bench Press

Tuesday: Wisdom Off Day

Wednesday: Dwarven Tank Deadlifts

Thursday: Spell Casting and Wisdom

Friday: Dwarven Tank Back Squats

Saturday: Active Rest Day

Sunday: Rest Day

Cleric D&D Workout Routine: Bench Press and Accessory

Barbell Bench Press

4×4 (after warm up)

Incline Dumbbell Bench

5×10

Standing Military Press

4 sets of 4 reps (after warm up)

Overhead Triceps Extensions

4×15

Seated Arnold Presses

5×10

Cleric D&D Workout Routine: Deadlifts and Accessory

Deadlifts

5×5 (after warm up)

Barbell Shrugs

3×20

Bent Over Barbell Rows

5×10

Wide Grip Pulldowns

5×10

Dumbbell Hammer Curls

3×12 each arm

Seated Alternating DB Curls

3×12 each arm

Cleric D&D Workout Routine: Back Squat and Accessory

Back Squats

5×5 (after warm up)

Leg Press

4×20

Straight Leg Deadlifts

4×10

Quad Extensions

4×10

Hamstring Curls

5×10

Cleric D&D Workout Routine: Optional Additional Training Resources

Endurance Work Resources:

• Constance Wu Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Ewan McGregor Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Kid Flash Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Grant Gustin Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• How To Continue Training After Your First 5K (Workout Included)

HIIT Training Resources:

• The Best HIIT Workouts
• Jump Rope Workout Database

Parkour Training Resources:

• The Nightrunner Parkour Workout Routine
• The Assassin’s Creed Parkour Workout Routine
• The Robbie Amell Parkour Workout Routine

Main MMA Training Resources

• Anna Diop Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Ryan Potter Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Frank Grillo Boxing Workout

Other MMA Training Resources:

• Deathstroke Workout Routine
• Daredevil Workout Routine
• Moon Knight Workout Routine
• Sagat Workout Routine

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