Proven program, faithfully implemented
Starting Out
Starting Out is a beginner, dumbbell-only programme — the gentlest on-ramp the app offers. No barbell, no Training Max, no 1RM estimate: just a fixed 4-day split you can run at home with a pair of adjustable dumbbells. It exists so a complete newcomer can start training today and build the strength and numbers to graduate to the percentage-based programmes later.
Who it's for
- Best for: Getting started — building the movement skill, work capacity, and consistency that the other programmes assume.
- Experience: Absolute beginner. No barbell, no maxes, and minimal equipment (a pair of dumbbells). When the weights start feeling easy and you want a barbell programme, graduate to BLS or 5/3/1.
- Time: 8-week block, 4 short sessions per week.
How it's built
The shape of the program — sessions, sets and rep scheme. Iron Forge fills in the exact weights for you from your maxes.
8-week on-ramp
Chest
- Dumbbell Bench Press — 2×8-12, 1×8-12+
- + 3 more exercises
Back
- One-Arm Dumbbell Row — 2×8-12, 1×8-12+
- + 3 more exercises
Shoulders
- Dumbbell Shoulder Press — 2×8-12, 1×8-12+
- + 3 more exercises
Legs
- Goblet Squat — 2×8-12, 1×8-12+
- + 3 more exercises
How Iron Forge runs it
How it works
A fixed 4-day split, the same exercises every week (no rotation, no phases). Each day is 4 exercises — one primary movement plus three accessories — and every exercise is 3 sets of 8-12 reps. The primary's last set is an AMRAP so the app can spot when you've cleared the top of the range.
You start light on purpose: 2.5 kg per dumbbell on week 1, across every exercise. The point is to learn the movements and build the habit, not to test your limits.
Periodization structure
| Term | In Starting Out | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Microcycle | One week of training (4 days) | 1 week |
| Mesocycle | The whole 8-week block — same workouts throughout | 8 weeks |
Double progression
Weight goes up by 5 lb2.5 kg on an exercise whenever you clear 12 reps on its top (AMRAP) set — the same double-progression engine as BLS, just simpler. Stay in 8-11 and the weight holds; clear 12 and it bumps. Slow and steady is the whole idea.
Starting Out in Iron Forge
FAQ
- What equipment do I need?
Just dumbbells (ideally adjustable, so you can make small jumps). The whole programme is designed around dumbbell-only training.
- How do I progress?
Double progression: hit 12 reps at the top of the range → add 2.5 kg per dumbbell next time and build back up from 8 reps. No training maxes or percentages.
- How long is the programme and how often do I train?
An 8-week block, 4 days a week, with one primary lift and three accessories per day (3×8–12, primary top set as an AMRAP).
- What weight should I start with?
Start light — as low as 2.5 kg per dumbbell — and let the double progression carry you up. Beginning easy builds form and confidence and still progresses quickly.
- What comes after Starting Out?
Once you've built the base and movement competence, step onto a barbell beginner programme such as Starting Strength or StrongLifts 5×5.
- Is this enough to build muscle and strength?
For a beginner, yes — consistent progressive overload in the 8–12 range on dumbbell compounds and accessories drives real early gains while you learn the ropes.
- What is the + on the last set?
It is a rep-out on the first exercise of each day, and it is what decides your next weight. Take that set as far as you can with good form: clear twelve and the dumbbells go up next time. The three exercises after it are straight sets — stop at the reps prescribed.
- What if I cannot get eight reps?
Then the weight is too heavy for now and it comes back a step so you can build through the range again. Nothing is lost by that. Eight to twelve is where the work happens, and the point is to spend as many sessions in it as possible.
- My dumbbells only come in big jumps. What do I do?
Stay at the top of the range for an extra session or two before making the jump. The progression assumes 2.5 kg per dumbbell, and if your next pair is 4 kg heavier that is a much bigger step than it looks — earning it twice over first is the way to make it stick.
Start Starting Out for free today.
Real programs, done right. Log your lifts — Iron Forge handles the maths.