A simple week in a big gym: strength, cardio and the Cake Factory

A gym with 10,000+ square feet and a dozen training zones can make programming feel harder than it is. The room is not the program. The program is a small number of repeatable sessions you can actually get to, built around the equipment you like using.

This is one simple week: three strength days, two easy cardio days, one shorter lower-body day and one rest day. It is a template, not a rule. Move the days around, swap the movements and keep the parts that make you want to come back.

Build the week around three strength days

Three full-body or upper/lower sessions are enough to make progress for most people who are also doing cardio and living a life outside the gym. The weight room has free weights and machines, so you can choose barbell, dumbbell or machine variations for the same movement patterns.

Leave at least one day between the two hardest sessions. If your legs are still wrecked from day one, day three becomes a lighter full-body day rather than another heavy lower-body session.

Day 1 — lower body, with a Cake Factory finish

Start with a squat pattern, add a hinge, then a single-leg movement and a calf or core finish. Keep the main work in the weight room, then use the Cake Factory for glute and lower-body accessory work. The dedicated area is useful because it keeps the finish focused instead of turning into another tour of the gym.

Squat or leg press — 3 sets of 6–10 reps.
Romanian deadlift or hip hinge — 3 sets of 8–10 reps.
Split squat or step-up — 2–3 sets of 8–12 reps per leg.
Cake Factory glute accessory — 2–3 sets of 12–15 reps.

Day 2 — upper body and easy cardio

Pair one push and one pull, then add a second push or pull and a set of arms or shoulders. Finish with 20–30 minutes of easy cardio in the dedicated cardio room. Easy means you can hold a conversation, not that you have to stay on the same machine for the whole session.

Bench press or chest press — 3 sets of 6–10 reps.
Row or pulldown — 3 sets of 8–12 reps.
Overhead press or lateral raise — 2–3 sets of 10–15 reps.
Easy cardio — 20–30 minutes on a treadmill or stair climber.

Day 3 — full body and a short conditioning block

Use the CrossFit area for a short mixed-modal finish: a row, a carry, a bodyweight movement and a squat or hinge. Keep the block to 10–15 minutes. The goal is a little conditioning, not a second workout hidden inside the first.

Goblet squat or leg press — 3 sets of 8–12 reps.
Push-up or overhead press — 3 sets of 8–12 reps.
Cable or dumbbell row — 3 sets of 10–12 reps.
Conditioning — 4 rounds of a 250m row, 10 kettlebell swings and 20 seconds of carries.

Where the other days go

Add two easy cardio sessions on non-lifting days, or after an upper-body day if that fits your schedule. Keep one full rest day. If you want a class, ask at the front desk what is running — classes are run by independent trainers and fees may apply, and the timetable is not published on this site.

How to progress without a spreadsheet

Pick a rep range, start lighter than you think you need, and add a small amount of weight when every set stays clean. If form breaks, the weight is too heavy for that day. A one-rep-max estimate can help you set a starting load, but it is an estimate, not a test you have to pass.

Add 5 lb to a lower-body lift when all sets hit the top of the rep range.
Add 2.5–5 lb to an upper-body lift the same way.
Take an easier week every six to eight weeks instead of pushing through a wall.
Write the session down so next week is a decision, not a guess.

The best week is the one you repeat. Three strength days, two easy cardio days and one focused lower-body session is enough structure to make progress and enough slack to keep it going when life gets busy.