Last updated on July 20th, 2022 at 07:38 am
The next class joining our Dungeons and Dragons Inspired Workouts are our Monks!
We just recently saw our Clerics, so this will have some similarities, but we’ll definitely be staying true to our Monks, so don’t worry.
And that will be especially easier since we decided to go Dwarven Tank Build for our Clerics.
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).
Monk Information:
Inspired By: Dungeons and Dragons
Goal: Lean and Shredded Martial Artist with Massive Body Control
Introduction to the Monk Class (from RPG Bot):
The Monk is the iconic martial-artist, popular among those who prefer to punch things rather than stabbing them or setting them on fire (though stabbing things and setting them on fire is still a possibility for the Monk). Monks are excellent Defenders and Strikers, and typically fill a role in party as a Fighter-equivalent or Rogue-equivalent depending on your subclass and proficiencies. Certain subclasses also introduce healing and Support capabilities, allowing monks to thrive in new roles depending on your build.
Extra Notes (from Ability Scores):
The Monk is the most MAD class in the game. While Dexterity is their primary ability score, they also need both Constitution and Wisdom to function. Fortunately, you have very little use for Strength, Intelligence, or Charisma, so it’s easy to dump three scores.
Way of the Astral Self has a higher reliance on Wisdom due to Astral Arms, so if you’re building an astral self monk reverse Dexterity and Wisdom in the recommendations below.
We’re going to build our Monks similar to how we built our Rogues, but with speed and a solid foundation as a striker being even more of a priority, being that for our Rogues we wanted more stealth-like priority.
We still want strength, agility and body control for our martial arts and stealth-like nimbleness, but we will likely be going head-on more than we will as a Rogue, so we’ll need to be ready for that.
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Monk 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 strength, agility, body control and nimbleness to pair with unbelievable martial arts.
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…
Monk Inspired Diet and Nutrition [For Fun]
For our Monks we have some pretty simple dietary methods to add in if we really want to fit the lore:
- Vegetarianism
- Historic Environment Scotland tells us: “Benedictine monks were not quite vegetarian by modern standards, though. Eating meat from four-legged animals was prohibited, but they could eat meat from birds and fish.”
- This is something to keep in mind if you want to choose a different variation of modern Vegetarianism like Pescatarian, Vegan, Ovo-Vegetarian, Lacto-Vegetarian or others.
- Intermittent Fasting
- Monks were also known to fast. The Fasting in Buddhism Wiki tells us: “However, the Buddha did end up recommending that monastics not eat anything after noon. This practice could be considered a kind of intermittent fasting, which restricts eating to a specific time period. The Buddha recommended this kind of fasting after noon for health reasons, stating “I do not eat in the evening and thus am free from illness and affliction and enjoy health, strength and ease” – but also goes on to talk about how Mahāyāna Buddism can do upwards of full day fasts.
- We personally like 14-18 hour fasts here at SHJ to help with hunger control, but you can have your choice of how intense you want to make it (or if you want to do it at all).
On top of that we know the goals we want to be able to achieve in terms of body type as a Monk.
We’re going to want to be STRONG, lean, and have a ton of body control.
Think similar to Bruce Lee, an ATLA character, Lee Sin, or even Yang Fang Leiden from Final Fantasy.
For that reason you’re going to want to:
- Eat in a Caloric Deficit to shred fat and keep lean muscle (or a surplus or maintenance if muscle gain is the goal).
- Consider eating as a Vegetarian and/or Intermittent Fasting to adopt Monk-like dieting from the past.
- 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.
If you’d like to read more about the Vegetarian diet you can do so here: SHJ Guide on The Vegetarian Diet.
If you’d like to read more about Intermittent Fasting you can do that here: SHJ Guide to Intermittent Fasting.
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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Monk 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 our Monk Class is to become extremely lean, toned, strong, agile and pair it with mixed martial arts (that part will be on you).
I mentioned Bruce Lee, Avatar: The Last Airbender characters, Lee Sin from League of Legends, and even Yang Fang Leiden as a good goal to have in mind.
If we revisit what RPGBot tells us about Monks, and expand on it a bit more we learn exactly why and how we’re going to do this:
The Monk is the iconic martial-artist, popular among those who prefer to punch things rather than stabbing them or setting them on fire (though stabbing things and setting them on fire is still a possibility for the Monk). Monks are excellent Defenders and Strikers, and typically fill a role in party as a Fighter-equivalent or Rogue-equivalent depending on your subclass and proficiencies. Certain subclasses also introduce healing and Support capabilities, allowing monks to thrive in new roles depending on your build.
The Monk can be difficult to play compared to the Fighter or the Rogue. They are the most MAD class in DnD 5e, needing three high ability scores to function effectively with very little room to ignore any of them, and the Monk isn’t as durable as the Fighter nor as lethal as the Rogue. Monks also lean heavily into using Bonus Actions right from level 1, which can be briefly confusing for new players who are still acclimating to the game’s mechanics. Subclasses can introduce additional complexity to the class, but that complexity also brings a lot of diversity and a lot of fun options.
You see them make the comparison to Fighter and Rogues. They discuss how it can be difficult to play compared to both because it’s not as durable as a Fighter or Lethal as a Rogue.
The difference here is we’re going for a mixture of both.
We don’t want to be big and overwhelmingly powerful like a Fighter might have aimed for, and we don’t want to be completely in and out stealth like a Rogue, but we want a perfect in between.
And if we keep it coming from RPGBot, this is what they tell us about a Monk’s Dexterity Ability:
Dexterity rules the Monk. Almost all monks rely on Dexterity for attacks, so it sets your attacks, damage, and AC, and having good Dexterity will help avoid AOE damage which can quickly cut into your d8 hit points. Evasion helps, but it’s more effective you succeed on the save.
For those of you who don’t know what Dexterity is typically used for, here’s how Roll 20 explains it:
A Dexterity check can model any attempt to move nimbly, quickly, or quietly, or to keep from Falling on tricky footing. The Acrobatics, Sleight of Hand, and Stealth Skills reflect aptitude in certain kinds of Dexterity checks.
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Monk D&D Workout Routine
Training Volume:
4+ days per week
Explanation:
For this we’re going to be training with 4 days of calisthenics training per week, and they’re going to be high intensity workouts built with jump rope, toe taps or jumping jacks (your choice of which). On top of that I’ll also include some bonus resources and a Martial Artist Circuit Test that you try out weekly, biweekly or even monthly.
Jump Rope / Toe Taps / Jumping Jacks Explanation:
I’m going to be using JR/TT/JJ as an abbreviation below, and you can complete anywhere from 25-100 depending on which you choose (I generally do 50-100 jump rope, but you can scale accordingly).
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Monk D&D Workout Routine: Sample Workout Schedule
Monday: Martial Artist Calisthenics Alpha
Tuesday: Martial Artist Calisthenics Bravo
Wednesday: Active Rest, Endurance or Martial Artist Circuit Test
Thursday: Martial Artist Calisthenics Charlie
Friday: Martial Artist Calisthenics Delta
Saturday: Active Rest Day or Optional Bonus Training Resources
Sunday: Rest Day
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Martial Artist Calisthenics Alpha
Superset One:
A. Push Ups (or Knee/Pause Push Ups)
3×25
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Two:
A. Air Squats
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Three:
A. Chest Dips
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Four:
A. Sit Ups
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Five:
A. Chin Ups
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Bonus Hold:
A. Hollow Hold
3×30 seconds
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Martial Artist Calisthenics Bravo
Superset One:
A. Decline Push Ups (or Knee/Pause Push Ups)
3×25
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Two:
A. Glute Bridges
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Three:
A. Tricep Dips
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Four:
A. V-Ups
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Five:
A. Pull Ups
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Bonus Hold:
A. Plank Hold
3×60 seconds
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Martial Artist Circuit Test
In a perfect world our Academy members or 90 Day System members will use this day to work in our Benchmark Workouts to continue testing and improving scores and tracking them against other members; especially our SHJ Core Benchmarks (although our Hero Benchmarks are just as awesome).
If you are not an Academy member or you don’t have access to a 90 Day System, you can also sub in different circuits here from some of the HIIT resources I provide.
(Another note: You should continue coming back and re-trying to workout every so often to see how much you can improve your score!)
Martial Artist Circuit Test: Complete for Time
Run 1 Mile
Complete 4 Rounds:
30 Push Ups
25 Air Squats
20 Sit Ups
15 Dips
10 Pull Ups
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Martial Artist Calisthenics Charlie
Superset One:
A. Wide Push Ups (or Knee/Pause Push Ups)
3×25
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Two:
A. Lunges
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Three:
A. Skull Crushers
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Four:
A. Lying Leg Raises
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Five:
A. Wide Pull Ups
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Bonus Hold:
A. Superman Hold
3×30 seconds
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Martial Artist Calisthenics Delta
Superset One:
A. Close (or Diamond) Push Ups (or Knee/Pause Push Ups)
3×25
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Two:
A. Bulgarian Split Squats
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Three:
A. Plank to Push Ups
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Four:
A. Flutter Kicks
3×20
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Superset Five:
A. Handstand Push Ups
3×10
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Bonus Hold:
A. Planking Shoulder Taps
3×30 seconds
B. JR-TT-JJ
3×25-100
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Endurance Training
For your endurance, HIIT or MMA/Parkour days you have quite a few options.
You can utilize enforced endurance training that I will program for you based on your fitness level like we do with other workouts here at SHJ…OR you can do 45-60+ minutes of varied cardio (bike, treadmill, elliptical, stairs, row, swim, etc.)…OR you can even use the HIIT resources I’ll provide.
I’ll break it down in that order:
Option One – Run Based on Overall Fitness Level:
Beginner: 1-3 Miles
Intermediate: 3-5 Miles
Advanced: 5+ Miles
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)
Option Two – Varied Cardio for 45-60 Minutes:
Split your cardio up however you’d like but complete 45-60+ minutes using:
- Treadmill Walk/Run
- Rower Machine
- StairMaster
- Elliptical
- Swim
- Bike
Option Three – Complete HIIT Training Using SHJ Resources:
- The Best HIIT Workouts
- Jump Rope Workout Database
- Academy Members: Insert a Benchmark Hero Workout (Circuit) or SHJ Core Circuit Test
Monk D&D Workout Routine: Bonus Training Resources
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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Thanks for doing monk, dude. As a life long martial artist and exercise enthusiast, this one has a special place in my nerdy heart.
You’re welcome ! Glad you like it.
Hey man, I can’t find this on the workout download site. Is there anyway you could upload it please?
What do you mean by workout download site?
Sorry, I tried searching it on the academy app/site where I usually download your pdf’s. But for some reason this one isn’t showing up. Monk only shows monkey d.
Try now ! 🙂
Perfect. Thanks so much, man.