My time in Iraq, as a member of the US Army, taught me the importance of a healthy body and mind. I developed a routine that helped me cut undesired fat, while increasing my muscle endurance and strength. This routine is not for the faint of heart. It requires mental fortitude and a certain level of self-motivation. This routine is designed for fat-loss and building your desired ripped up body. In addition, there is focus on maintaining your current mass with minimum lean muscle loss. The work-out time commitment, including cardio, is 60-90 minutes. It is a Monday/Wednesday/Friday training split with each day of the week split between upper and lower body exercises. You should choose a weight that allows you to perform the desired number of reps for each set. As you gain additional strength and conditioning, you should increase the weight performed. The last rep of each set should bring you to near muscle failure. Remember, No Pain, No Gain! When you start the routine you will start on Week 1 - Upper Body on Monday and continue with Week 1- Lower Body, etc. As you finish Week 2, you will return to the Week 1 routine. You will continue to alternate this routine each week until you have reached your desired results. *The Ab portion of this workout is performed twice a week on any day during the routine. If you are performing cardio on that day, do ab exercises before cardio. You may also perform abs in lieu of cardio on leg days due to the time commitment required on those days. **Diet is as important to help in the cutting process. For best result, it is necessary to eat a clean and healthy diet to enhance results. Whey protein shakes are recommended post-workout. Whey protein has been shown to reduce hunger, thereby helping those individuals that lack in self-control. Although Creatine can promote strength gain, Creatine has a side effect of water retention. The water retention can/will visibly reduce the ripped up look you may desire. I have also found that pre-workout supplements enhance the intensity of the routine. For safety reasons, it is not advisable that you ingest more than the recommended dose of pre-workout on any given day. ***Cardio should be performed at the end of your work-outs. Performing cardio at the end of your workout will enhance fat loss due to the glycogen stores being depleted during strength training. Cardio performed prior to your workout will deplete your glycogen stores, thereby reducing the amount of weight and reps you will be able to perform. On days you aren't working out you can also perform about 30 to 60 minutes worth of cardio to continue the fat-burning process and keep your body's metabolism stimulated. **** Note : Many individuals find that logging calorie intake helps promote a healthier diet. Pro Tip: My time in the military taught me many things about diet, training, and overall healthy living. One the most beneficial lesson was pertaining to cardio. If your schedule permits, the best time to perform cardio and stimulate fat loss is to perform your cardio workout during the morning, prior to your breakfast. This is not a necessity by any means, just another way to promote fat loss.