Build Lean Muscle by Summer with Four-Week Fast Track: Torched
Lift, sweat, burn…and then go live your best life this summer. This four-week program is designed to build lean muscle and torch fat.
Summer is right around the corner, so Four-Week Fast Track is back with a new challenge: Torched. The program kicks off May 6, 2024.
While summer bodies come in all shapes and sizes, we all want to feel confident and have the energy to get out and get active. That means putting in the work now, so we can fully embrace those sunshine vibes later.
Getting lean and building muscle are often positioned in opposition—you can’t do one while focusing on the other—but Tonal’s spicy summer challenge Four-Week Fast Track: Torched serves up the best of both worlds. Over the course of a month, you’ll sculpt lean muscle with proven strength training protocols while spiking your heart rate to burn calories in fast-paced sessions. The best part: You’ll get the work done efficiently so you can get in, get out, and enjoy the best summer has to offer.
The challenge features four weeks of workouts designed for body recomposition, along with nutritionist-approved, coach-inspired recipes to help dial in your diet, and the opportunity to get support from Tonal’s coaches and fellow members in the Official Tonal Community on Facebook.
Read on for more about what’s in store for you in this brand-new program.
Four Weeks to Get Fired Up
“We’ll be using different body recomposition approaches within our programming to help people see aesthetic changes while still building muscle,” says Jenna Moore, a certified strength and conditioning coach and Programming Specialist at Tonal.
There are two tracks, Level I and Level II, to choose from within the challenge, and while “they share DNA, they are by no means twins,” says Moore. Both are based on moving weight at a faster pace than in a more traditional strength training program. “That, in and of itself, is going to stimulate a higher metabolic response and lead to body recomposition,” Moore explains.
Level I Breakdown
Level I is beginner-friendly and features duration-based sets three times a week in fast-paced, 30-minute sessions led by coaches Ash Wilking, Ackeem Emmons, and Kristina Centenari. The workouts focus on high-intensity interval training.
Each week features these three workouts:
- A twist on German Body Composition training that drives hypertrophy while burning fat
- Tonal’s R.E.P.S. protocol, which builds fitness in four separate areas (resistance, endurance, power, and stamina)
- Metabolic resistance training, which maximizes your energy output during and after your workout
- Two supplemental mobility and recovery sessions
“We really want to maximize calorie burn to decrease body fat,” says Wilking. “We use resistance training for that, but the goal is to get your heart rate up.”
Since every workout targets the entire body, the cadence of one day on/one day off helps “maximize your time working while avoiding too much fatigue,” says Wilking. And with no set rep counts or ranges, your effort is driven by intensity. “You can really work at your own pace, whatever that seven to nine [rate of perceived exertion] looks like to you,” says Moore—which can make this a challenging option no matter your experience level.
Level II Breakdown
In Level II, intermediate and advanced lifters will focus more on rep-driven strength training in slightly longer workouts, says Tim Landicho. Each week features four workouts led by Tim and Tanysha Renee, Joe Rodonis, and Kendall Wood:
- A full-body German Body Composition workout
- Two upper-body strength sessions
- A full-body metabolic resistance training workout
- Two supplemental mobility and recovery sessions
Advanced training techniques like drop sets, myo-reps, and pre-exhaustion training are a way to manipulate the overall volume you’ll accumulate in each session.
“The purpose of this programming is to recruit as many muscle fibers as possible to provide the stimulus of progressive overload without necessarily making you go heavier in weight,” Landicho explains.
While the workouts might look more straightforward on the screen, don’t be fooled into thinking you’re coasting. “Level II is designed in a way that is going to really maximize time efficiency,” Landicho says. “We’re really getting that metabolism up while providing lots of tension to specific muscle groups.”
The suggested cadence for Level II includes back-to-back workouts on Monday and Tuesday, a rest day on Wednesday, and then back-to-back workouts on Thursday and Friday.
Both tracks include specific suggestions—including stretching, foam rolling, and mobility—for your off days. “These types of workouts are very taxing on the body, so they require recovery,” says Moore. “But you can do any type of recovery that feels good to you,” she adds, so don’t be afraid to swap those supplemental sessions for an ocean swim or sunset walk.
Easy Summer Recipes
Workouts are only part of the equation in leveling up your fitness. Dialing in your nutrition to ensure you’re getting the right macronutrients to support gaining muscle, burning fat, and recovering from your training is also essential.
For a nutrition plan to stick, it has to include all the foods you love so you don’t feel deprived, and recipes that are easy to use so you don’t get discouraged. You’ll get protein-packed recipes each week in your inbox that are nutritionist-approved, inspired by coaches favorite summer dishes, and take advantage of summer seafood and fresh produce, along with some easy shortcuts to eat well without spending hours in the kitchen.
Ongoing Support
When you sign up for Four-Week Fast Track: Torched, you’re also joining a community of members who will be there to support you and motivate you along the way. Check out the Official Tonal Community on Facebook to find an accountability partner or share your progress. Join Tonal coaches in these Facebook Live events to ask questions about the program and get tips on how to keep crushing your workouts. Check back in for more events!
- April 24 FB Live Challenge Info Session at 7 p.m. ET
- May 9 FB Live Q&A at 7 p.m. ET with coaches Ackeem and Tim
- May 16 FB Live Q&A at 7 p.m. ET with coaches Kristina and Tanysha Renee
- May 23 FB Live Q&A at 7 p.m. ET with coaches Ash and Joe
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