The 15-Minute “Wake Up Yoked” Morning Workout Routine

Get your mind right and primed to dominate life with this ultimate pump morning routine

Mornings suck. And if you’re like most people, you’re headed to a job you hate with people you despise and, you’ve got to wage through nightmarish traffic. Yeah, good morning to you, too.

It also doesn’t help that amid this state and frame of mind, we oftentimes end up making poor nutritional and lifestyle choices to get through our hellish morns - a frosted scone here, a sugary iced coffee drink there, topped off with donut holes graciously donated by that ever so peppy morning person co-worker, of course.

Or - in your frantic state, you “fast” (because intermittent fasting is all the rage these days) only to crash and/or binge later in the day. Sound familiar?

Well, here’s a morning routine I’ve developed and refined over the years (the very same one that I use) that may turn the tide for you, get you fired up for the day, and feeling straight up alpha.

There have been tons of studies and research on morning routines and how implemented right and with regularity, they can have tremendous impact on daily productivity, outlook, and overall well-being and success.

A quick Google search will yield tons of morning routines many of which include meditation, reading, and a host of “productivity” activities (like making lists or journaling). Tony Robbins yells as part of his morning routine.

Now I don’t know about you, but many of these activities seem painful (who really wants to make lists upon opening their eyes) or would serve to put me back to sleep.

No, I want something to look forward to, that’s fairly minimal effort, and will get my mind and body feeling superhuman.

Enter “The Pump.”

If you don’t know by now, exercise, getting your body moving, blood flow circulating, breaking a sweat all serve to increase dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine in the brain.

These are chemicals, neurotransmitters, that are responsible for reward, pleasure, and motivation. Hence Arnie’s famous quote from Pumping Iron.  

The release and effects of these chemicals are powerful - one joint study from Michigan State and University of Vermont found that exercise first thing in the morn (vs. sedentary activities) reduced ADHD symptoms for an entire day.

Sure, you could wake up hours earlier (yikes) and hit the gym, but for most people that’s a lot to ask and more of a complete lifestyle and schedule change rather than an instant benefit morning routine.

And sure, you could go for a morning run, too, but if you’re like me, the thought of cardio first thing in the morning would keep me firmly in bed.

So I built the following morning routine to address the dislikes above and geared it towards getting you moving right from bed and progressing from there.

And yeah, it’s pretty much a straight up abs, arms and chest protocol - so sue me. After all, I am the CMO, chief meathead officer ;) and who wouldn’t feel that much better rolling into work with an out of control chest and arms pump complete with rippling, rock hard abs?

I’ll go through it and explain each part in its entirety first and then just list it out at the end. Ready?

Upon wake, the first thing I do (restroom aside) is an abdominal vacuum circuit. I don’t perform these every morning, just 2-3 times per week.

Even with fairly low body fat percentages, I always had (whether for genetics or perhaps a lot of heavy deadlifts and squatting in my younger days) a blocky, protruding midsection. Vacuums were the only thing that drastically changed how my midsection looked - far more streamlined and concave.

There are three primary ways to do vacuums - lying down, seated, and standing. I typically only do lying and standing as part of my morning routine.

Upon wake, yup you guessed it - I start with the lying down version of vacuums in bed. Super convenient. I’ll do one minute on (you can start with less and build up from there) alternating with one minute rest for three times.

I find this to be the most zen thing to do upon waking up while also starting to exercise my brain (mind-muscle control) and also working on my breathing - as one must do to properly execute vacuums.

I use the timer on my phone and will put on some feel good hype music, too, to amp up. Music is big for improving/shifting mood and getting you into the right frame of mind.

During the one minute on portion, I refrain from checking my phone and instead really concentrate on developing a strong, deep vacuum, controlled breathing (though in the minute off I am probably catching up on The ‘Gram.)

Next, same one minute on, one minute off, three times total with standing vacuums.

With these, I like to perform them in front of a mirror (not only because we’re vain) but visually, I find it helps enforce the depth and contraction of the vacuums. And, if you’re not in shape (or not where you know you should be), then it serves as a good reminder to start making some life changes!  

By now, you should be somewhat awake if not super awake and it’s time to kick it into high gear. With caffeine, nootropics, and/or hydration - whatever your morning concoction is.

At this point (after vacuums and before we head into the pump portion of our morning routine), I’ll make a protein shake, too, take all my pills, and sip on it throughout the remainder of the workout . Gotta fuel those gains, baby!

Now for the really good stuff. And keep in mind that on days you don’t do the vacuum circuit, you’ll be starting your “wake up yoked” morning workout routine here:

Three to four rounds of:

• 25 sit-ups or knee tucks
• 100 (total) push-ups + tricep extensions
• 100 bicep curls

Usually I’ll opt for knee tucks (a bit more leg/hip/lower abdominal activation) and I’ll do these off the side of my bed - again, super convenient, but I also find that the bed surface with a bit of give is easier on my lower back than doing it off a hard floor.

Push-ups - you can ease into them by doing them at an incline off the side of your bed or jump straight to them.

Both tricep extensions and bicep curls are performed with a light resistance band (emphasis on light as you won't make it through the high volume reps with a heavier gauge). Mine’s un-looped without handles, but they all work.

For the push-up and tricep extension combo, I’ll strive for 40 to 50 continuous push-ups and then finish out the rest of the reps with either overhead standing tricep extensions or tricep kick-backs.

For bicep curls, I’ll cycle through all different variations - hammer, reverse, cross-body, ultra-wide supinated, drag, you name it.

And there you have it! Repeat 3-4 times and flex. STRAIGHT FIRE.

It’s super hard not to feel great when you’ve got a solid chest and arm pump first thing in the morn and these higher rep resistance band sets will do it.

Watch as your midsection improves, too, with the addition of vacuums and daily abdominal work (don’t eat like sh*t though).  

"The Wake Up Yoked Morning Workout Routine"

1. Wake
2. Vacuum circuit*
3. Caffeine and/or nootropic(s)
4. Make shake - sip and hydrate throughout remainder of workout
5. 3-4 rounds of:

• 25 Sit-ups or knee tucks
• Push-ups + tricep extensions
• Bicep curl variations  

Now, you’re literally pumped for the day and boy oh boy, is it a good feeling when those sleeves fit a bit more snug!

Flex on’ em!

A former marketing exec turned "chief meathead officer," Jeremy Shih gets busy execs into cover model shape through nutrition and fitness coaching. Message The Executive Meathead today for a 13-page initial assessment and questionnaire.