THE DADZILLA PROGRAMS
Six workout programs. One year. Built for dads 40–55 who want strength, durability, and enough energy left for the people who matter most.
52-Week Roadmap — select a phase
AI Program Matching
CoachZilla picks
your program.
Tell CoachZilla what you've got and how much time you have. It'll match you to the right program and build your week. No guesswork.
CoachZilla
Select your muscle groups, available equipment, and weekly time commitment. CoachZilla does the rest.
All Programs
Six phases.
One year built.
Each program builds on the last. Run them in sequence for the full 52-week transformation, or jump into the phase that matches where you are right now.
DADZILLA REBOOT
Reboot is where every dad starts — or restarts. If you haven't trained in months (or years), your body needs to learn to move again before it learns to be strong. This 6-week phase rebuilds joint mobility, puts a sleep and recovery routine back in place, and builds the training habit without burning you out. No ego. No grinders. Just reset and rebuild from the floor up.
What You'll Do
- Mobility protocol (hip, thoracic, ankle) — daily 10 min
- Zone 2 cardio 2x/week — brisk walk, bike, or light row at conversational pace
- Light kettlebell circuits — goblet squat, Romanian deadlift, press, carries
- Intro push-up and hang progressions
- Simple high-protein nutrition framework (~2,000 kcal)
- Sleep protocol — target 7+ hrs average
End of Week 6 Targets
CHASSIS PROTOCOL
Chassis is where you build the frame. After Reboot restored your movement and got you training again, Chassis loads it intelligently — prioritizing structural integrity over raw weight. You'll learn to brace, carry, and stabilize before you're asked to move heavy loads through full ranges. Think of it as engineering the chassis of a truck before you drop in the engine.
Core Movements
- Trap bar or goblet squat — 3×8, progressive load
- Single-leg Romanian deadlift — 3×10 each side
- Farmer's carries — 3×40m, heavy
- Pallof press (anti-rotation core) — 3×12
- Dumbbell row — 3×10, controlled eccentric
- Push-up progressions into dumbbell press — 3×10
- Dead bug / hollow hold (core stability) — 3×30 sec
Why It Works for Dads
- Functional carries transfer directly to daily life — groceries, kids, gear
- Anti-rotation work builds trunk control — the quality a dad's lower back leans on most
- Single-leg work corrects imbalances built from years of sitting
- 4-day structure fits a work week with weekends open
- No maximal effort — sustainable week over week
- Continues Zone 2 cardio on off days to preserve aerobic base
FORGE
Forge is the engine room. This is the longest and hardest phase in the Dadzilla ecosystem — 14 weeks of progressive barbell strength work built around the big lifts. The goal isn't bodybuilder volume; it's the kind of strength that makes you feel capable, durable, and dangerous well into your 50s. Low reps, heavy weight, enough accessory work to keep the supporting structures in the deal. Where Winter Warrior lives at its core.
Core Lifts
| Lift | Sets × Reps | Load Target |
|---|---|---|
| Back Squat | 4×4 | 75–85% 1RM |
| Deadlift | 3×3 | 80–90% 1RM |
| Bench Press | 4×5 | 70–80% 1RM |
| Hang Clean | 4×3 | 70–75% 1RM |
| Power Clean | 3×3 | 75–80% 1RM |
Why It Works for Dads
- 4-day lifting fits a Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri structure — weekends clear
- Low-rep strength builds neural efficiency without destroying recovery
- Hang and power cleans keep you training fast, not just heavy — speed fades earlier than strength does
- Deload weeks programmed every 4 weeks — not optional
- Mental toughness component: weekly "grinder" set tests fortitude, not just fitness
- Zone 2 maintained on off days — no loss of cardiovascular base
REBUILD
After 28 weeks of progressive loading, your body needs a strategic reset before the final push. Rebuild drops volume by 50–60% and shifts focus to aerobic capacity, joint health, and nervous system recovery. This is not a vacation — it's maintenance at a lower frequency. Dads who skip it tend to arrive at the back half of the year flat, or nursing something. The ones who run it arrive at Fit Fall and Winter Warrior fresher and stronger.
Weekly Structure
- 2× Mobility-focused days — full-body flow, 30 min
- 2× Zone 2 sessions — 40 min walk, easy bike, or swim
- 1× Light KB circuit — swings, goblet squat, carries, press
- No maximal lifts — nothing above 60% of your Forge weights
- Sleep and nutrition dial-in week — track 7 days
Why It Works for Dads
- Lower CNS demand means more energy for family — this phase is by design
- Aerobic base maintenance keeps you out of the "detrain then retrain" cycle
- Lower joint load gives the tissues that take the most from heavy lifting a chance to catch up
- No grinders — you feel better every week, not worse
- Sets you up to attack Fit Fall and Winter Warrior without burning out
FIT FALL
Fit Fall bridges Rebuild and Winter Warrior with a conditioning-first approach. Two strength sessions per week maintain your hard-won muscle while three interchangeable Zone 2 options — ruck, bike, row, or incline walk — keep the engine running. The goal is simple: arrive at the winter holidays lean, mobile, and ready to attack the final strength phase of the year. Fit Fall exists to keep training and nutrition structured through the season, instead of letting four busy months erase eight months of work.
Weekly Structure
- 2× Strength days — KB full-body circuits, 4 sets, 35–45 min
- 3× Zone 2 cardio — 40–50 min, your choice each week:
- → Ruck (20–30 lb vest, 3–4 miles)
- → Bike (easy pace, conversational)
- → Row (steady state, 500m splits)
- → Incline walk (10–15% grade, 30 min)
- Nutrition tightens — prep for holiday season caloric surplus
Why It Works for Dads
- Cardio variety kills monotony — pick what fits the day
- Rucking is one of the most practical low-skill conditioning tools for a dad — low impact, loads the posterior chain, and doesn't cost you another gym session
- 2 strength days is maintainable through the fall schedule crunch
- Sets caloric baseline before Thanksgiving — buffer built in
- 5-week length means you're in Winter Warrior by Week 41, right on schedule
WINTER WARRIOR
Winter Warrior is the final phase of the Dadzilla year and the hardest. 12 weeks of maximum strength focus built around five foundational barbell lifts — squat, deadlift, bench, hang clean, and power clean. No fluff. No filler. Low rep, high intensity, structured progression. You entered January as a dad who wanted to get back in shape. You leave December as the strongest version of yourself in years. That's Winter Warrior.
The 5 Core Lifts
| Lift | Sets × Reps | Load Target |
|---|---|---|
| Back Squat | 5×3 | 82–92% 1RM |
| Deadlift | 4×3 | 85–95% 1RM |
| Bench Press | 5×3 | 78–88% 1RM |
| Hang Clean | 4×3 | 75–82% 1RM |
| Power Clean | 4×2 | 80–85% 1RM |
Why It Works for Dads
- 5 lifts only — no confusion, no wasted sessions
- Power cleans and hang cleans keep speed and power in the program — the qualities that fade first after 40
- Norwegian 4×4 cardio protocol on off days — one of the most time-efficient options for VO2 max
- Low rep ranges mean you're not destroyed — you still have energy for your family
- 12-week block ends exactly at the new year — perfect for a reset and repeat
- After Winter Warrior, you do Reboot again — but from a much higher floor
Complementary Protocol · Not a Phase
DADZILLA FLEXIBILITY
A 4-week mobility and joint-durability protocol — Power Yoga, controlled range, 15–30 minute sessions. Run it alone, or stack it with any phase above.
Training Standards
The Dadzilla
non-negotiables.
Every program in the ecosystem is built on these three training standards. Non-negotiable, regardless of which phase you're in.
Zone 2 Cardio
Conversational-pace aerobic work 2–3× per week. If you can't hold a sentence, you're going too hard. Zone 2 is the base layer of the whole system — aerobic capacity, and the recovery that rides on it.
- Target: 130–145 bpm (age-dependent)
- Duration: 30–50 minutes per session
- Options: Walk, bike, row, ruck, swim
- Minimum: 2× per week in every phase
Norwegian 4×4
A high-intensity interval protocol that, in studies, has raised VO2 max more than moderate steady-state cardio of the same duration. One session per week replaces a Zone 2 day in Forge and Winter Warrior phases.
- 4 rounds of 4 min at 85–95% max effort
- 3 min active recovery between rounds
- Total session: ~28 min working time
- Options: Bike, treadmill incline, rower, track
Nutrition Framework
~2,000 kcal high-protein baseline. Adjust up or down by 200–400 kcal based on bodyweight, activity level, and phase. No tracking required — just hit the protein number and eat real food.
- Protein: 0.8–1.0g per lb bodyweight
- Priority foods: eggs, meat, fish, legumes, rice
- Caloric surplus in Forge and Winter Warrior
- Caloric maintenance in Rebuild and Fit Fall