The GCP Fitness 'Replica' workout is tough, uncompromising, but thankfully, short!
There's a Lower Body Push movement, an Upper Body Pull movement and a Cardio/Strongman exercise to ensure that you are incorporating compound, large muscle groups in a short amount of time, which will increase metabolic output.
The Exercises
1. BB Back Squat
2. Pull Up (Strict)
3. Sled Push x 30m
For the Replica to be most effective, all 3 exercises involved should 'replicate' your bodyweight. For example, I weigh in at 80kg, meaning my Squat needs be loaded up with 80kg, I perform strict Pull Ups with my own bodyweight and I'll have to fight against the Sled with an additional 80kg on top!
How many reps do I perform?
The circuit requires you to perform a 10-1 scenario on both the Squats and Pull Ups, whereas the sled remains at a 30m distance the entire time. This means that you perform 10 reps on the Squats, 10 reps on the Pull Ups and 30m on the sled, immediately followed by 9 reps on the squats, 9 reps on the Pull ups and 30m on the Sled....continue this pattern until you've complete 1 rep on both the Squat/Pull Up and finish the circuit on the final 30m sled Push!
It should look like this:
| Set # |
BB Back Squat (Reps) |
Pull Up (Reps) |
Sled Push (Distance) |
| 1 |
10 |
10 |
30m |
| 2 |
9 |
9 |
30m |
| 3 |
8 |
8 |
30m |
| 4 |
7 |
7 |
30m |
| 5 |
6 |
6 |
30m |
| 6 |
5 |
5 |
30m |
| 7 |
4 |
4 |
30m |
| 8 |
3 |
3 |
30m |
| 9 |
2 |
2 |
30m |
| 10 |
1 |
1 |
30m |
What if I can't lift this amount of weight?
If squatting or performing pull ups at your body weight is out of the question, then give the Replica50 or Replica75 a go! As the name suggests, this is the same circuit as previously described, but performed at 50% or 75% of your body weight.
To work out your new required load, perform the following calculation:
Body Weight (BW) x .75= ________(75%)
-or-
Body Weight (BW) x .50=________(50%)
This should still give you a chance to develop strength and aerobic capacity, but to also ensure you are raising your metabolic rate to 'burn' body fat and improve lean muscle.
What should I aim for?
Definitely make sure that you time this workout, as you always want to be challenging yourself to be better than yesterday! Try to aim for under 25 minutes the first time, and then progress from there. Eventually, your aim is to complete the circuit with a greater load, meaning if you started off doing the Replica50, your next goal would be to challenge yourself on the Replica75.
If this jump seems too much, then progress at a slower rate and simply increase the weight you load up on the sled to the 75% weight, but leave the Squats and Pull Ups at 50%.
There is no need to perform this workout more than 1-2 x per fortnight. It's an intense session which needs 100% of your effort, so trying to perform this more often is not aiding in your performance, only increasing your risk of burn out. Mix it up with 3-4 strength and conditioning sessions per week and some base cardiovascular fitness (Aerobic or interval work) to get the best fat loss and lean muscle gain results.
Any further questions? Hit me up at gav@gcpfitness.com
Have fun!!
Yours in Health,
Gav Pratt.