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The Best TRX Workout Routine for Beginners (free PDF)
Start your fitness journey with our 3-day TRX beginner workout! Full-body exercises, easy-to-follow plan, and a free PDF to download. Get fit anywhere, anytime
If you’re new to exercise, new to resistance exercise, or just new to suspension training, we’ve got a workout for you.
I’ve created a 3-day per week TRX workout routine for beginners, designed to work your entire body over the course of the week.
The routine includes a mix of exercises targeting your upper body, lower body, and core. The TRX Beginner workout includes exercises I’ve used myself, during my functional training days and during COVID when the commercial gyms were shut down. I’ve experimented with all the exercises you’ll find here.
Remember to start slowly and focus on proper form rather than the number of repetitions. As you get more comfortable with the exercises and your strength improves, you can gradually increase the number of reps and sets.
Jump to the workout routine now!
Alternatively, you can download the free PDF version of the routine using the link below:
TRX Workout Routine In a Nutshell
| Program style | Suspension Training |
| Workout duration | 1-2 hours |
| Scheduling | 3 days a week |
| Goal | General fitness |
| Level | Beginners |
| Target Gender | Male and Female |
Pros and Cons of TRX
Like every piece of exercise equipment, TRX has its upsides and downsides, features and applications where it shines, and where it doesn’t.
Let’s go through those first before we get knee deep into the routine so you know exactly what you’re in for.
Pros
Core.
The core is involved in almost every TRX movement, mostly in an isometric fashion. The core muscles must stabilize the entire body to make the other TRX exercises possible. Due to its design, the dynamic core exercises, like the TRX Pike, are challenging.
Travel.
For the busy traveling professional who wants to stay in shape while maintaining a pressing schedule, TRX can be a lifesaver. Very portable. Comes with its own pouch and a pad that can be secured over any inward closing door, and weighs only a couple of pounds (1 kilo).
Progressing from Calisthenics to Resistance Training.
For people who do calisthenics as part of their exercise routines, TRX offers a bridge to the more traditional resistance tools like barbells, dumbbells, and selectable machines.
Functional Training.
Related strongly to core, TRX requires the exerciser to stabilize their body and also requires a degree of balance.
General Fitness.
TRX qualifies as resistance training if you’re following a general exercise program that includes both cardio and resistance. Some like to take their TRX with them on outdoor runs and use it for interval training along their routes.
TRX Triceps Extensions.
TRX Triceps Extensions are a solid alternative to cable machine or dumbbell triceps extensions, again, up to the point where weight needs to be added. But you’ve got to be jack strong for that.
The TRX Triceps Extension when done properly loads the triceps ferociously, and the resistance profile is right (hardest when elbows are bent and the movement is beginning). They are very difficult to do well and work the triceps in a way that will develop that sought-after horseshoe shape.
Sissy Squats.
If you’re a veteran of the gym, you may have tried sissy squats. There’s hardly an exercise that works the quads as directly as sissy squats do; they are tough to do correctly.
TRX provides a nifty way to stabilize the upper body while your legs do their thing during the Sissy Squat. Better still, you can use TRX to warm them up by supporting more of your weight with your arms.
As you move into your more challenging “working sets”, release the tension on TRX’s handles so that your legs are doing all the work and your hands are used only for balance.
Upper Back Exercises.
In particular TRX Face Pulls and “Y” or “T” Reverse Flyes. Like TRX Triceps Extensions, their resistance profile is good.
Cons
Chest exercises.
The pecs and anterior deltoids contract best when the upper arms move from the sides toward the middle.
The exception to this are the TRX Push-up and Chest Fly, especially if using blocks or other implement for the hands that allow a deeper stretch. The Chest Fly puts productive stress on the pecs during most of the motion but the straps interfere with the final part of the movement.
Still either of these is superior to the TRX Chest Press, where the arms move in the wrong direction for chest work.
Hypertrophy Training.
TRX is not for aspiring bodybuilders and not great for shaping next-level physiques. If size and optimized muscle shape is your goal, meh.
Why?
Limited ability to apply progressive overload. PO is essential for building and shaping muscle, and for working with resistance that stimulates the high threshold motor units. You can run out of that degree of resistance pretty fast with TRX.
Sure, you can increase the weight by adjusting your body’s position in relation to the TRX’s anchor point, and even more by adding weighted clothing.
But there comes a point when you’re just going to have to start doing more reps to stress the muscles as they need to be for muscle development.
Today’s exercise science literature is pretty clear these days: 4 to 8 reps with 0 Reps in Reserve are the sweet spot for muscle growth.
There are for sure people running around with enviable physiques who use TRX. But they’d have even better physiques if they concentrated on body part training using equipment specifically designed to do so.
TRX is fine if the training goal is general fitness, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The finer points of hypertrophy training aren’t as central for progress. You can add reps or sets… or more frequent workouts.
It’s important to remember that TRX is just an exercise tool and that’s it. It’s one of many you can use in a more comprehensive resistance or functional training routine.
Workout Routine Structure
This TRX program is designed in an Upper-Lower Split format.
Upper-Lower Splits are easy to apply. They’re terrific for people with busy schedules who need flexibility. Upper-Lower splits can be performed on every other day, or 2 days to 3 days in a row with a couple of rest days before working out again.
Rest days should default to a day or two between workouts. You could use the classic Monday-Wednesday-Friday workout schedule. Or Monday-Tuesday-Thursday. Here’s an example of the former:
| Day of Week | Split |
|---|---|
| Monday | TRX Upper 1 |
| Tuesday | Rest |
| Wednesday | TRX Lower |
| Thursday | Rest |
| Friday | TRX Upper 2 |
| Saturday | Rest |
| Sunday | Rest |
NOTE: There’s no problem working out two days in a row if your schedule and body dictates. You can do more than 3 workouts in a week.
TRX really shines for busy professionals who travel. The apparatus weighs less than 3 lbs and packs easily in even the smaller suitcases.
With the door pillow attachment, it can attach to a hotel room door. The hang strap loops easily over a tree limb for outdoor workouts.
The TRX Workout Routine for Beginners
Here’s a balanced plan written in an Upper-Lower Split that targets all major muscle groups using the example scheduling mentioned above:
Day 1: TRX Upper 1
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TRX Low Row | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX “Y” Flyes | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Push-Ups | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Triceps Extensions | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Biceps Curls | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Pikes | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
Day 2: REST
Day 3: TRX Lower
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TRX Hamstring Curls | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Sissy Squats | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Rear Foot Elevated Squat | 10-12 each leg | 8-10 each leg | 8-10 each leg | 8-10 each leg |
| TRX Squats | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
Day 4: REST
Day 5: TRX Upper 2
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TRX Chest Flyes | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX “T” Flyes | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Face Pulls | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Pull-ups | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Biceps Curls | 10-12 | 8-10 | 8-10 | 8-10 |
| TRX Triceps Extensions |
Day 6: REST
Day 7: REST
Program Guidelines
- Warm up each exercise with a higher-rep set of 15 to 20 reps using lighter resistance.
- Rest days: default to a day or two between workouts. You could use the classic Monday-Wednesday-Friday workout schedule. Or Monday-Tuesday-Thursday. No problem working out two days in a row if your schedule and body dictates. You can do more than 3 workouts in a week.
- Always use proper form.
- Progressive overload always applies. As an exercise gets easier, increase the resistance by moving your body nearer to the TRX anchor point.
- Wear weighted clothing, like a weighted vest, to increase resistance beyond body weight alone.
History of TRX (Some light reading for you!)
TRX was invented by US Navy SEAL Randy Hetrick during deployment. Hetrick was looking for a way to stay in shape when traditional exercise equipment wasn’t available.
The story goes that Randy got the bright idea to use parachute webbing to create an apparatus that he could secure to something above him and use his own body weight as resistance for pushing, pulling, and even twisting motions.
Add a loaded rucksack and you’ve got more resistance. Think advanced calisthenics.
TRX is great for people who are on the go and need a quick workout, whether that includes shooting a weapon or not.
That original TRX suspension trainer gained popularity and Hetrick started a company that’s been very successful. They’ve expanded into other types of functional training tools.
Download our TRX Workout Routine for Beginners PDF below:
We write custom programs. If you have specific physique goals–such as “I’d like wider shoulders”, or “I’d like more ‘V’ in my back”–we can write one for you. Reply in the Comments or simply contact us and we’ll get back in touch. First come, first served.
