Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut (Full Review)

If the Golden Age of Bodybuilding taught us anything, classic old-school methods still work (not where you thought that one was going). Blueprint to Cut remains one of the most popular ways to strip away body fat and uncover aesthetic muscle definition in the 2020s.

Bulking season is officially over (*audience boos wildly*).

Learn more about seven-time Mr. Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut for sculpting a stage-ready physique in just eight weeks.

About the Creator – Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger walked so future bodybuilding legends like Ronnie Coleman and Lee Haney could run.

The youngest Mr. Olympia in history (aged 23), the Austrian Oak captivated audiences in the 1975 docu-film, Pumping Iron, which followed Schwarzenegger on his trek to ousting — spoiler alert — Lou Ferrigno to win his sixth consecutive Mr. Olympia title.

Schwarzenegger is the namesake of the legendary exercise, the Arnold press. But it’s his incredible feats — like his seven Mr. Olympia titles, 683 lb. squat, 22” arms, and family-friendly roles in flicks like Jingle All the Way — that make him an eternal bodybuilding legend.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut Overview

Blueprint to Cut is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2020 follow-up to the ever-popular Blueprint to Mass, designed to “undo” the fat gained while bulking and uncover God-like definition for a modern physique.

This eight-week routine combines Arnold’s classic (and out-of-the-ordinary) training techniques with a low-calorie diet and cardio to turn a bulky physique into a stage-ready one.

It’s one week less than James Grage’s Rewired Program, but I’m sure it’s still plenty effective *wink*

Here’s a sneak peek at this old-school “cutting up” program:

• Fitness level: Intermediate
• Duration: 8 weeks
• Workouts per week: 6
• Average workout duration: 90 minutes
• Equipment needed: Full gym
• Goal: Reveal definition & strip away body fat

Blueprint to Cut Schedule & Details

Getting absolutely shredded with Blueprint to Cut means trimming away your body fat through two, four-week phases, including 3–5 weekly cardio sessions and high-volume training.

That includes near-daily 1–2-mile runs, six 90-minute weight training sessions per week, no required ab work in phase one, and a twice-a-week frequency in phase two.

It’s a pretty big contrast to BodyFit’s most popular cutting program, Shortcut to Shred.

Check out week one of Blueprint to Cut below!

Blueprint to Cut Training Techniques

The further you venture into Blueprint to Cut, the more variety you’ll experience. Here’s a closer look at the not-so-typical training styles you’ll come toe-to-toe with in the next eight weeks:

1. Supersets: Pairing two exercises back-to-back with no rest in-between.
2. Tri-sets: Adding a third exercise to a superset with no rest.
3. 1–10 method: Lifting for one rep at maximum intensity, dropping the weight, lifting for two reps, and so on until you hit ten reps.
4. Strip sets: Finishing the required sets, removing weight, performing 5–10 additional reps, and repeating until it’s just you and the bar.
5. 1 ¼-rep method: Completing the entire rep, raising the weight about a quarter of the way, and lowering it back down to finish the rep.
6. Run the rack: Ending a set, picking up the next lightest dumbbell available, and repeating until you’re out of energy.
7. 5-count method: Lifting and lowering the weight for five seconds in each phase.
8. 28-method: The 21-method with a few extra steps — 7 reps, 7 very slow reps, 7 top-half reps, and 7 bottom-half reps.

Now that we’ve completely over-complicated weightlifting, we’ll talk more about the workouts of Blueprint to Cut’s week one.

Blueprint to Cut: Week One Workouts

Blueprint to Cut is just as “out of left field” as its brother program, Blueprint to Mass, except there are three times as much training variety.

This is week one of the Blueprint to Cut routine:

Day 1 – Chest & Back Day

• Superset Warm-Up
  • Barbell Bench Press – 1 set x 30 reps (no rest)
  • Pull-Up – 1 set x 10 reps (no rest)
• Superset
  • Barbell Incline Press – 5 sets x 8 reps (no rest)
  • Lying T-Bar Row (1 ¼ rep) – 5 sets x 8 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Dumbbell Fly – 5 sets x 12 reps + run the rack (no rest)
  • Seated Row – 5 sets x 8 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Chest Dip – 4 sets x 10 reps (no rest)
  • Chin-Up – 4 set x 10 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Bent-Arm Dumbbell Pullover – 3 sets x 12 reps + run the rack (no rest)
  • Cable Crossover – 3 sets x 12 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Running – 1 mile as fast as possible

Day 2 & 5 – Leg Day

• (Warm-Up) – Barbell Back Squat – 2 sets x 5–10 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Barbell Back Squat – 8 sets x 12 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Leg Extension – 10 sets x 10 reps + strip set (no rest)
  • Seated Leg Curl – 10 sets x 10 reps + strip set (60 seconds rest)
• Standing Calf Raise – 10 sets x 10 reps (60 seconds rest)

Day 3 – Arm Day

• Superset Warm-Up
  • Barbell Curl – 2 sets x 10–15 reps (no rest)
  • EZ Bar Skullcrusher – 2 sets x 10–15 reps (no rest)
• Superset
  • Barbell Curl – 5 sets x 12 reps + 5-count method for last six reps (no rest)
  • EZ Bar Skullcrusher – 5 sets x 15 reps (45 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Hammer Curl – 5 sets x 12 reps + strip set (no rest)
  • Triceps Extension (1 ¼ reps) – 5 sets x 20 reps (45 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Alternating Incline Dumbbell Biceps Curl – 3 sets x 12 reps + 5-count method for all sets and reps (no rest)
  • Cable Overhead Triceps Extension – 3 sets x 15 reps (45 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Concentration Curl (Right Side) – 3 sets x 10–12 reps (no rest)
  • Concentration Curl (Left Side) – 3 sets x 10–12 reps (no rest)
  • Double-Arm Triceps Kickback – 3 sets x 10–12 reps (45 seconds rest)
• Running – 1 mile as fast as possible

Day 4 – Chest & Back Day

• Superset Warm-Up
  • Barbell Bench Press – 1 set x 30 reps (no rest)
  • Pull-Up – 1 set x 10 reps (no rest)
• Superset
  • Barbell Bench Press – 5 sets x 10, 10, 10, 10, 5 reps (no rest)
  • Pull-Up – 5 sets x 10 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Barbell Incline Press – 5 sets x 8 reps (no rest)
  • Lying T-Bar Row (1 ¼ rep) – 5 sets x 8 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Dumbbell Fly – 5 sets x 12 reps (no rest)
  • Seated Row – 5 sets x 12 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Chest Dip – 4 sets x 10 reps (no rest)
  • Chin-Up – 4 sets x 10 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Bent-Arm Dumbbell Pullover – 3 sets x 12 reps + run the rack (no rest)
  • Cable Crossover – 3 sets x 12 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Running – 1 mile as fast as possible

Day 6 – Shoulder Day

• (Warm-Up) – Seated Barbell Shoulder Press – 2 sets x 5–10 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Seated Barbell Shoulder Press – 4 sets x 5–6 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Arnold Press – 5 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6, 8 reps (no rest)
  • Barbell Upright Row – 5 sets x 10, 8, 6, 6, 8 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Superset
  • Dumbbell Lateral Raise – 3 sets x 10–12 reps (no rest)
  • Seated Rear Delt Fly – 3 sets x 10–12 reps (60 seconds rest)
• Running – 1 mile as fast as possible

Phase 2

Four weeks into the routine (which changes slightly from week to week), your schedule will change to:

1. Chest & Back
2. Legs
3. Shoulders & Arms
4. Chest & Back
5. Legs
6. Shoulders & Arms
7. Rest

Nope, there’s no escaping the twice-a-week leg day. But at least halfway through the program, you’re targeting your chest, back, shoulders, and arms as much as your lower body.

Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut Diet

Blueprint to Cut’s diet plan is unexpectedly naked. The nutritional plan is quite vague aside from recommending 0.8+ grams of protein per pound of body weight, fish oil supplements, getting 20% of your daily calories from fat, and a 300–500-calorie-per-day dietary deficit.

Avoid sugar, alcohol, processed food, and fast food as much as possible (that’s literally it). Schwarzenegger — or whoever actually wrote this program — leaves the rest to you, suggesting that cutting success depends on creating a personalized plan that works for you.

Recommend Supplements

While the nutritional plan is about as useless as TikTok, Schwarzenegger (or whoever’s writing this) included six must-try supplements during your eight-week cut:

• Whey protein powder to rebuild and repair muscles after exercise
• Creatine to maximize training intensity, recovery, strength, and size
• Pre-workout to power through these long-ass workouts mentally and physically
• BCAAs to reduce protein breakdown
• Test-booster because all the cool kids are doing it to apparently increase your body’s ability to survive workouts and rebuild muscles larger
• Sleep support to maximize the muscle repair that occurs while resting

Schwarzenegger doesn’t recommend any particular brand, but if you follow the version on the BodyFit platform, they’ll suggest Bodybuilding.com Signature products (as they always do).

7 Blueprint to Cut Program Pros

1. Running a mile 3–5 times per week can burn about 300–500 extra calories, rounding out your weekly caloric deficit to up to 6,000 calories — or 1.71 pounds of fat.
2. The emphasis on supersets will make the Blueprint to Cut workouts last half as long (according to a 2017 study comparing traditional, super, and tri-sets), and the fast-paced resistance workouts will burn a few extra calories per session.
3. Blueprint to Cut’s various training styles is the opposite of boring. The change in pace between phases one and two and the slight day-to-day changes are exciting.
4. By phase two (weeks 4–8), you’ll be training all body parts twice per week, making the twice-a-week leg days less torturous in phase one.
5. It’s a cutting routine that doesn’t require insane cardio, minimal lifting, and an insanely fatiguing calorie cut.
6. If you were a fan of Blueprint to Mass, Blueprint to Cut won’t feel too crazy.
7. Most of the recommended supplements can and do work. Studies show that creatine can improve 1RM, strength, and performance, although only a quarter of T-boosters on the market actually have some credibility.

6 Blueprint to Cut Cons

1. It doesn’t read like Arnold Schwarzenegger is the one “spilling the tea,” there’s hardly any mention of the G.O.A.T., and “Ben Creicos” published the guide.
2. The “Nutrition” section is 95% useless. Why bother adding a meal plan that basically tells you to figure it out yourself?
3. It’s miles away from a beginner routine. The volume is too damn high.
4. The calorie cut plus Arnold’s typical high-volume routines are a death sentence for newbies and intermediates (not literally, but motivation-wise).
5. The common complaint is that it’s nowhere close to reality unless you’re on steroids.
6. There’s no direct core work in phase one.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut Program Conclusion

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Cut is a solid cutting routine for intermediate or advanced lifters looking to maintain their mass and reveal Godly muscle definition. 1–2 pounds of weight loss per week is realistic, and the weightlifting workouts will hypnotize you from day one.

But Blueprint to Cut is batshit crazy. The cardio and nutritional requirements are tame compared to the 90-ish minutes of gym training per day, and the included nutrition plan (if you dare call it that) and insanely high-volume sessions are downright wild.

Can Blueprint to Cutwork? Hell yeah.

Is it a good choice for the average guy looking to cut? If you’re trying to express your self-hatred and internal angst, yes.

Otherwise, you’re better off with a more cardio-heavy routine, attempting a less dramatic cut, or even experimenting with micro-bulks and cuts to avoid the risk of overtraining.