Matt Ogus, aka Flex for All, is an American YouTube celebrity, bodybuilder, and fitness guru. Having started his fitness channel in 2010, he’s now amassed over half a million subscribers and uploaded 1,300+ videos.
As a fitness coach, I watched Ogus’ video, reviewed his progress over the years, and observed impressive growth in his strength and physique, meaning his routine actually works.
So, I spent a few weeks piecing together his workout routine and diet plan based on his content.
Let’s check it out.
Matt Ogus Stats
- Date of birth: March 21, 1991 (32 years)
- Height: 5’7” (170 cm)
- Weight: 175–185 lbs 79–844 kg)
- Chest: Undisclosed
- Waist: Undisclosed
- Arms: Undisclosed
- Legs: Undisclosed
Matt Ogus Workout Routine
Ogus has two lifting routines: one during the off-season and another for competition prep.
Let’s explore both of them.
Off-Season: Wendler’s 5/3/1
When working out off-season, Ogus does Jim Wendler’s 5/3/1 powerlifting program.
This four-day-a-week program is centered around four core lifts: squat, bench press, deadlift, and overhead press.
Every week for a month, you lift three sets of each exercise using progressively higher percentages of your one-rep max for the first three weeks. The fourth is a de-load week.
In the most popular version of 5/3/1, each core workout is supplemented by two or three hypertrophy-focused assistance exercises.
Here’s how Ogus did this routine:
Monday: Back, legs, and abs
- Core lift: Deadlift (5/3/1 style)
- Leg work: Front squats, hack squats, lunges, or variations of the deadlift for 5 sets of 5–10 reps
- Calf work: Standing calf raises, donkey raises, or leg press machine calf raises for 5 sets of 8–10 reps
- Ab work: Hanging leg raises, dragon flags, windshield wipers, or cable crunches for 5 sets x 10 reps
Wednesday: Chest, triceps, back, and biceps
- Core lift: Bench press (5/3/1 style)
- Pull work: T-bar row, barbell row, dumbbell row, chin-ups, or pullups for 5 sets of 5–10 reps
- Push work: Incline/flat bench press, seated or standing military press, or dips for 5 sets x 5–10 reps
- Bicep work: Barbell curls, dumbbell curls, or any bicep exercise for 5 sets of 8–10 reps
Friday: Legs and abs
- Core lift: Squat (5/3/1 style)
- Leg work: Front squats, hack squats, lunges, or variations of the deadlift for 5 sets of 5–10 reps
- Calf work: Standing calf raises, donkey raises, or leg press machine calf raises for 5 sets x 8–10 reps
- Ab work: Hanging leg raises, dragon flags, windshield wipers, or cable crunches for 5 sets x 10 reps
Saturday: Shoulders, back, chest, and triceps
- Core lift: Military Press (5/3/1 style)
- Pull work: T-bar row, barbell row, dumbbell row, chin-ups, or pullups for 5 sets x 5–10 reps
- Push work: Incline/flat bench press or dumbbell press, seated or standing military dumbbell press, dips, etc., for 5 sets of 5–10 reps
- Tricep work: Any tricep isolation exercise for 5 sets x 8–10
“During my current bodybuilding offseason, I’m training with the Jim Wendler 5/3/1 program. I like this program because it keeps my workouts structured.”
- Matt Ogus
On-Season: Bodybuilding Workout
Matt follows a six-day push-pull-leg routine for his on-season training: two push workouts, two pull workouts, and two leg workouts.
Brace yourself because you’re about to witness Matt’s killer hypertrophy workout:
Monday: Push Workout I
- Incline press: 3 sets x 8–10 reps
- Flat dumbbell press: 2 sets x 8–10 reps
- Machine dips: 2 sets x 12–15 reps
- Upright rows: 2 sets x 10–15 reps
- Machine chest flyes: 2 sets x 10–15 reps
Thursday: Push Workout II
- Supinating dumbbell curl: 2 sets x 8–12 reps
- Triceps pushdown: 2 sets x 10–15 reps
- Cable side lateral raises: 2 sets x 12–15 reps
- Cable curls: 2–3 sets x 10–15 reps
- Overhead cable triceps extensions: 2 sets x 10–20 reps
Tuesday: Pull Workout I
- Overhand pulldown: 4 sets x 8–12 reps
- Bent-over row: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Dumbbell row: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Barbell curl: 5 sets x 8–12 reps
- Pin-wheel curl: 5 sets x 8–12 reps
- Face pulls: 5 sets x 8–15 reps
Friday: Pull Workout II
- Underhand grip lat pull: 4 sets x 8–12 reps
- T-bar row: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Machine row: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- DB curl: 5 sets x 8–12 reps
- Reverse EZ bar curl: 5 sets x 8–12 reps
- Face pulls: 5 sets x 8–15 reps
Wednesday: Leg Workout I
- Barbell squat: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Romanian deadlift: 4 sets x 10–12 reps
- Walking dumbbell lunges: 4 sets x 15 yards
- Lying leg curls: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
Saturday: Leg Workout II
- Front barbell squat: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Romanian deadlift: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
- Walking dumbbell lunges: 4 sets x 15 yards
- Lying leg curl: 5 sets x 10–12 reps
His Workout Principles
Based on his training routines, we’ve pulled three of Ogus’ major workout principles:
- Hypertrophy training: When on-season, Matt trains by lifting weights in the 8–15 rep range for most of his exercises to achieve optimal hypertrophy [1].
- Train like a powerlifter: He focuses on lifting very heavy weights for pure strength using the 5/3/1 powerlifting program in the off-season.
- Training till failure: Matt’s on-season program was designed to work your muscles till failure, allowing him to add lean muscle mass for competitions.
Matt Ogus Diet
Bulking Diet
Ogus followed this meal plan for his bulking phase:
- Meal #1: Protein shake with two bananas and 50 g of whey protein mixed with water, a bowl of oatmeal with almonds, and two cans of tuna
- Meal #2: Brown rice with chicken and broccoli
- Meal #3: Chicken burrito bowl with extra chicken breast meat
- Meal #4: Beef or chicken with brown rice and broccoli (or another vegetable)
- Meal #5: Protein drink with two scoops of whey protein and water
Cutting Diet
Regarding his cutting diet, Ogus was very detail-oriented in counting his macros. His daily intake comprised 50f/250c/225p (fat, carbs, and protein).
Here’s the cutting-phase meal plan he followed:
- Meal #1: Breakfast shake with one-and-a-half scoops of protein, 30 g oats, one serving of frozen berries, one serving of apple cider vinegar, and 100 g kale
- Meal #2: 4 rice cakes and a shake with two scoops of protein
- Meal #3: Chipotle burrito bowl and a large salad (with 120 g spinach, 80 g baby spring mix, 125 g baby carrots, 5 oz. mushrooms, 100 g tomatoes, and 20 ml balsamic vinegar)
- Meal #4: 6 oz. regular Greek yogurt, 6 oz. honey Greek yogurt, 14 oz., and a handful of almonds
His Diet Principles
Here are two of Matt’s dieting principles based on his eating habits:
- Protein-heavy meals: Matt ate protein-heavy meals to fuel his grueling workouts for maximum muscle recovery [2].
- Counting macros carefully: Every calorie counts for Matt. He carefully weighed every meal to get in all his macros.
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His Supplement Stack
Ogus takes the following to supplement his diet:
- Creatine
- Multivitamins
- Fish oil
- Whey protein
References:
About The Author
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