Strength Training for Busy Professionals: My 3 Hour Per Week Plan

Working out when your time is limited: here’s what to focus on when you only have 2–3 hours a week

My schedule forced me to be working out with limited time. I thought my results would go out the window, but it was the opposite.

12 months ago, I cut my training time in half—and the craziest thing happened:

I dropped from 208 lbs to 191 lbs
My body fat plummeted from 17% to under 11%
And I barely lost a pound of muscle—if any

Which, if you know anything about cutting, is unheard of.

Even more surprising? My strength went up.

My lifts before the cut:

Deadlift: 385 x 5
Squat: 345 x 7
Bench: 205 x 6

My lifts six months into the cut:

Deadlift: 435 x 4
Squat: 365 x 7
Bench: 215 x 7

More weight. More reps. While eating in a consistent calorie deficit.

It made me rethink what I thought I knew about effective training—especially for busy professionals, dads, and anyone who doesn’t get paid to live in the gym.

So here’s the truth:

You can build serious strength, burn fat, and look better than ever… even if you only have 2–3 hours a week to train.

And based on my results and my clients’ results, I’m starting to think those short, focused sessions might be better—especially for high-stress, high-responsibility lifestyles.

Here’s what to focus on if your time is limited but your goals are big:

1: Strength > Conditioning

It’s tempting to default to high-intensity cardio. It’s fast, sweaty, and feels productive. But if time is tight, strength training gives you way more return on investment.

Strength improves metabolism, boosts longevity, and transforms your body composition (not just weight loss, but actually looking strong and lean).

2: Intensity > Volume

When you’re training 2–3 hours a week, every set has to count. You don’t need endless supersets—you need focused effort.

That means lifting heavy, pushing for progress week to week, and choosing weight that challenges you. Heavy, compound lifts done right beat high-rep fluff every time when it comes to muscle growth and body comp.

3: Compound > Isolation

You don’t need three kinds of curls when a heavy chin-up will do. Compound lifts hit multiple muscle groups at once, allow for more load, and stimulate more growth in less time.

Focus on the foundational lifts:

Squats
Deadlifts
Pull-ups/Chin-ups
Bench Press
Shoulder Press
Rows

Check out a great video from Dr. Mike Israetel for more ‘bang for your buck’ exercises too include in your program.

These movements build the base of a strong, muscular, and injury-resistant body.

4: Move More > Train More

You might not be able to train more, but you can move more.

Daily steps, quick walks, bodyweight squats between Zoom calls, parking farther away, using a pull-up bar at home—these all add up.

Movement throughout your day keeps your metabolism active and supports recovery and fat loss, especially when you’re not logging hours in the gym.

Final Thoughts

Most people think they need more time, more workouts, and more volume to get results.

But when you focus on the right principles—strength, intensity, compound lifts, and daily movement—you’ll be shocked at what 2–3 hours a week can do.

To download a proven 3 day workout template you can customize based on the equipment you have available, sign up for the Body [re]Building Playbook email course.

If you want to follow a proven system, that I’ve personally used and implemented with clients to see body transformation, click here to request more info about our coaching program.