Random workouts
A different routine every session, usually whatever the feed served that morning. Monday's effort never compounds into Friday's, so a year of sweat buys about 10 lb.
12-week strength program for founders
Add 100 lb to your total in 12 weeks.
Your total is your squat, bench, and deadlift added together. Forge moves it up 100 lb or more in one quarter: three 45-minute sessions a week, a fixed progression, and a coach who reads your training log every Sunday.
Hit your week-12 standards or a full refund. 92% hit them.
214
Founders coached
+118 lb
Avg total gain
92%
Hit week-12 standards
27 hrs
Total gym time, all 12 weeks
Why you lift the same weight as last year
Training hard is not the same as getting stronger.
Most founders train plenty. The strength never shows up, and it comes down to three habits:
No log
You cannot progress a number you never wrote down. Without a record, every session starts from a guess, and guesses default to comfortable.
Nobody watching
Skip Friday and nothing happens. Skip six Fridays and the quarter is gone. Accountability you never pay for is accountability you learn to ignore.
The method
One bar. Three lifts. A coach on your log every Sunday.
Week 1
Assessment
You test conservative openers on squat, bench, and deadlift. Those numbers set your personal week-12 standards. Never trained? Standards scale to zero experience.
Mon / Wed / Fri
45 minutes flat
One main lift, two accessories, fixed rest timers. In the rack by 7:00, at your desk before the 9:30. No session in the program runs longer.
Every session
Log every set
Load and reps go into a shared sheet. Twenty seconds per session. The log is the product: it is what your coach reads, and what the guarantee runs on.
Sunday
Coach review
A named coach reads every line, flags stalls two weeks before you would feel them, and writes Monday's numbers. You never decide what to lift. You just lift it.
Mon
Squat
+ press accessories
Wed
Bench
+ row accessories
Fri
Deadlift
+ hinge accessories
Sun
Review
Coach writes next week
The standards
Numbers or it didn't happen.
A typical first-barbell client at 180 lb bodyweight. Your own standards get set from your week-1 assessment.
| Lift | Week 1 | Week 6 | Week 12 | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back squat | 135 | 185 | 225 | +90 |
| Bench press | 95 | 125 | 155 | +60 |
| Deadlift | 165 | 235 | 295 | +130 |
| Total | 395 | 545 | 675 | +280 |
Loads in lb. Standards are personal: they scale to bodyweight, sex, and training age, so a 130-lb founder and a 210-lb founder never share a bar. Detrained and intermediate lifters progress on smaller jumps.
Outcomes
What you walk away with.
A
A total you can say out loud
By week 12 you state your strength in one tested number, not an estimate. Squat, bench, deadlift, added up, on film.
B
A slot that survives your calendar
45 minutes, three mornings. 27 gym hours across the whole quarter. Your weekly standups burn more than that.
C
A log a human actually reads
Not an app streak, not a badge. A named coach writes your next week from your last one, every Sunday, all 12 weeks.
D
Protein math done for you
A protein and calorie target recalculated every 4 weeks. Two rules to follow, zero meal plans to cook, dinner meetings survivable.
Client logs
Before and after, in pounds.
Back squat
155 → 245
"The sheet says 5x185, so I lift 5x185 and go to standup. I stopped renegotiating my training every morning. That alone was worth the fee."
Deadlift
135 → 225
"First pull over bodyweight in week 8. My coach caught a bench stall three weeks before I would have noticed it myself."
Bench press
135 → 180
"Two kids and a Series A, and I still logged 34 of 36 sessions. Knowing a human reads the sheet on Sunday is most of why."
Do the math
A trainer costs $3,240 a quarter. This is $499.
A personal trainer
$3,240
36 sessions × $90, one quarter
- Programming decided on the gym floor, by feel
- Progress tracked in their head, if anywhere
- Cancel twice and the plan quietly resets
- No standards, no guarantee, no refund
Forge
$499
$13.86 per session, all 12 weeks
- Fixed progression written before the quarter starts
- Every set logged, every log read on Sunday
- Miss a week and the plan recalculates around it
- Week-12 standards backed by a full refund
What $499 buys.
The 12-week progression, personalized from your week-1 assessment
$400
Weekly coach review of every logged set, 12 Sundays
$1,080
Unlimited video form checks, 24-hour turnaround
$350
Protein and calorie targets, recalculated every 4 weeks
$200
The travel-week protocol: hotel-gym substitutions for every session
$99
Total value
$2,129
You pay
$499
Claim a spot · Aug 3 cohort
One payment. 40 spots per cohort. No subscription.
The standards guarantee
Train 30 of 36 sessions, keep your log current, and hit your week-12 standards, or we refund every dollar. Not a credit. Not a partial. A refund.
We can afford this because 92% of clients hit their standards. Most of the 8% who miss stopped logging around week 5. Don't stop logging.
Straight answers
FAQ.
I have never touched a barbell. Can I start?
Yes. Week 1 is assessment and technique work at light loads, and your standards scale to zero experience. Roughly a third of every cohort starts with an empty bar.
45-minute sessions. Really?
Really. One main lift, two accessories, fixed rest timers. Founders do not have 90-minute training blocks, so we do not write them.
I travel two weeks a month.
Every session ships with a hotel-gym substitution built on dumbbells and a bench. The log does not care about the zip code, and your coach adjusts loads whenever the equipment changes.
What happens if I miss a week?
Tell your coach and the progression recalculates around it. The guarantee stays live as long as you complete 30 of 36 sessions by week 12.
What equipment do I need?
A barbell, a rack, a bench, and plates. Any commercial gym has all four. No machines required, no home gym assumed.
When does the next cohort start?
The first Monday of every month. Cohorts cap at 40 so each coach reviews fewer than 15 logs on a Sunday. Next start: Monday, August 3.
Strong is a number. Get yours.
Claim a spot
Aug 3 cohort · 40 spots · $499 · Standards guarantee