Plan
Mon · Wed · Fri at 06:15, alternating A and B: week 1 is A · B · A, week 2 is B · A · B.
Weeks 1–4 · bodyweight. Needs a mat, a sturdy chair, the kitchen counter and a broomstick.
How to progress
- Stop every set with 2–3 reps still in the tank. Form beats reps.
- When you reach the top of the rep range on all sets, make it harder: a lower push-up surface, a lower chair, or a slower 3-second lowering. The app tells you when you've earned it.
- Optional early purchase: a doorframe pull-up bar. Add 3 dead hangs of 20–30 s to both workouts, because bodyweight pulling is this stage's weak spot.
Move to Stage 2 when all of these are true
- At least 10 sessions done in the 4 weeks (History counts them)
- No flare-up caused by training
- Side plank from knees for 30 s per side, and bird dog without wobble
- Dumbbells, bench and bar bought (see Guide)
Week 5 onward · dumbbells, bench, bar. Same days and A/B rotation; this is where muscle gets built.
Double progression
- Each exercise has a rep range, e.g. 8–12. Pick a weight you can lift for the bottom of the range.
- Add reps session by session. When all sets reach the top of the range with clean form, the app suggests the next weight up.
- First two weeks of Stage 2: stop 3 reps short of failure. After that, 1–2 reps short.
- Pick dumbbells up from the bench or with a squat, never by rounding over to the floor.
Later: the gym
After about 3 pain-free months of steady progress, you'll outgrow home dumbbells. That's when a gym pays off: chest-supported row machine, lat pulldown, leg press with a controlled range, cable work. Same A/B structure, same three mornings.
History
Settings
Pain rules
Some discomfort while getting stronger is normal. What matters is where the pain goes and how you feel the next morning.
Leave out for now
- Sit-ups and crunches
- Russian twists and loaded twisting
- Toe-touch and forward-fold stretches
- Hanging leg raises
- Heavy barbell squats and deadlifts
- Jumping and running during a flare-up
Allowed, and useful
- Controlled back extension (prone press-ups), if it eases your symptoms
- A braced hip hinge with light load
- Carries and side planks
- Dead hangs from a bar
- Walking, every day
Flare-up protocol
- Stop the workouts. Keep walking in short, frequent bouts and get up every 20–30 minutes when sitting.
- Keep cat-camel if it doesn't make things worse. Try prone lying or prone press-ups; keep them only if they ease the pain or pull it back from the leg toward the spine.
- No knees-to-chest stretching during a flare.
- Once the pain has settled, restart with Stage 1 Workout A for one week, then return to where you were.
Get a physiotherapy assessment
A left-sided protrusion with right-leg locking doesn't line up neatly with the MRI. A physio can test which direction relieves you and check the right hip and SI joint. In Switzerland, physio is covered by basic insurance with a doctor's prescription (your deductible applies).
Morning routine
Discs absorb fluid overnight and are most pressurised in the first hour after waking. Training at 06:15 is fine once you've been upright for 30–45 minutes. Times follow your current stage.
Woke up later than 05:30?
- Start with a 10-minute brisk walk, then the warm-up.
- Drop the last exercise of the workout so you still finish on time.
- Stiff or sore? Do the warm-up only and decide after. A short session beats a skipped one.
Gear
Stage 1 uses what's already in the flat. Order the Stage 2 items during weeks 3–4 so they're ready on time.
Decathlon, Galaxus and SportXX all stock these.
Install
Add the app to your home screen so it opens full-screen and works offline.
iPhone (Safari)
- Tap the Share button.
- Choose "Add to Home Screen".
- Open it from the home screen icon from now on.
Android (Chrome)
- Tap the ⋮ menu.
- Choose "Install app" or "Add to Home screen".