The Best Aesthetic Workout Routine (For The Perfect Physique)

Looking great with your shirt off is one of the top reasons people hit the gym—and for good reason. A lean, proportionate physique radiates confidence, health, and power. But aesthetics isn’t just about getting jacked. It’s about symmetry, balance, and sculpting a body that looks as good as it performs.

This guide breaks down what it really means to build an aesthetic physique—and gives you the workout plan and strategy to make it happen.

Take Your Fitness To The Next Level

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In this article, you’ll learn:

• What aesthetics means (beyond biceps and abs)

• The Grecian Ideal and Classic Physique benchmarks

• How to calculate your ideal proportions

• The best aesthetic training principles and exercises

• A 5-day workout plan designed to build the perfect physique

Let’s sculpt your masterpiece.

 

What is Aesthetics?

In fitness, “aesthetics” typically brings to mind:

• Broad shoulders

• Narrow waist

• Defined arms

• Chiseled abs

But aesthetics originates from philosophy. It refers to what we find beautiful—and why. Whether it’s a sunset or a sculpture, aesthetics seeks to explain what makes things visually appealing.

When it comes to the body, symmetry and proportion are the key elements of beauty.

Symmetry vs. Proportion

• Symmetry: Balanced left and right sides of the body

• Proportion: Size of body parts in relation to one another

Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man illustrates the ideal human proportions. Inspired by Roman architect Vitruvius, the drawing shows a man whose limbs fit both a square and a circle—symbolizing harmony between geometry, nature, and the human form.

The Grecian Ideal Vs. The Classic Physique

So, what is the perfect ratio and size?

We can say there's a "perfect”, but the adage "beauty lies in the eye of the beholder" still carries weight. With that in mind, for the majority of people, we can assume that the "perfect ratio" lies somewhere between two ideals; The Grecian Ideal and the modern "Classic Physique."

The Grecian Ideal

Ancient Greek statues reflected ideal male proportions rooted in function and symmetry. Measurements were based on wrist and knee size, scaled to the individual’s bone structure.

Here are their target ratios:

• Arm: 2.5× wrist size

• Calf: Equal to arm size

• Shoulders: 1.618× waist (the “Golden Ratio”)

• Chest: 6.5× wrist

• Upper leg: 1.75× knee

This ratio-based approach ensured the body stayed athletic, not bulky, and prioritized the coveted V-taper.

The Classic Physique

Popularized by bodybuilders like Steve Reeves and Frank Zane, the classic look builds on the Grecian ideal but allows slightly more muscle.

Steve Reeves even created muscle-to-bone ratios to guide aesthetics:

• Thigh = 175% of knee

• Arm = 252% of wrist

• Calf = 192% of ankle

• Chest = 148% of pelvis

• Waist = 86% of pelvis

• Neck = 79% of head

To estimate ideal body weight:

• 5’6” = 165 lbs

• Add 5 lbs per inch up to 5’11”

• Add 10 lbs per inch above 6’0”

This approach emphasizes balanced proportions, not sheer mass, making it sustainable for natural lifters.

Determine The Measurements Of Your Perfect Aesthetic Bodybuilding Physique

Above we gave you two guidelines to use in determining your perfect measurements. Everyone will be a little different, but your ideal numbers should be somewhere close to the above.

Regardless of what they are, here's what you need to do before you start pumping iron.

BE AT A LOW BODY FAT %:

If you're above 15% body fat, cut first. Excess fat skews measurements and masks symmetry. Aim for 10–12% body fat—lean enough to reveal muscle without being unsustainably shredded.

TAKE YOUR CURRENT MEASUREMENTS:

The next phase is more straightforward and simply has you take your measurements. This is what you may need:

• Chest
• Neck
• Bicep
• Forearm
• Wrist
• Waist
• Hip
• Thigh
• Calf

WRITE OUT YOUR IDEAL MEASUREMENTS:

Another easy step.

Right out your ideal measurements which will be your goal to work towards.  Remember to use the guidelines from above.

This may also include losing weight for aesthetics as well. In order to build an aesthetic body, you need to know what you want to look like.

COMPARE YOUR CURRENT IDEAL MEASUREMENTS:

Step 4 is where you compare where you're at and where you want to be. Plus, it will allow you to make notes of body parts you don't like working out and vice versa. Here is what to make a note of.

1. The muscles that need the most help (if any)
2. The muscles that require the least help (if any)
3. Make mental notes of muscles you like and dislike to train or feel are problematic

Once these general numbers are established, you can then make a game plan of how you are going to hit the muscles.

Most Important Variables Of The Perfect Aesthetic Workout Plan: Muscle Hypertrophy And Prioritizing

Training for aesthetics requires special considerations. Here are some things to focus on.

Prioritize Hypertrophy (But Don’t Forget Strength)

Use moderate-to-high volume with a mix of compound and isolation exercises. Strength work still matters (3–6 reps), but the bulk of training should be in the 8–15 rep range.

Dumbbells And Pulleys For Muscle Growth

Dumbbells and cable machines allow a greater range of motion and more constant tension, ideal for hypertrophy and symmetry.

Benefits of dumbbells:

• Greater range of motion

• Joint-friendly

• Correct muscle imbalances

Benefits of cable machines:

• Target muscles from different angles

• Constant tension

• Easy to adjust and vary movements

Prioritization

Training for muscle hypertrophy is easy enough to follow BUT you will need to also learn how to prioritize.

1) Prioritize muscle growth over strength. You aren't able to train optimally for aesthetics while setting new PRs at the same time. The physiological adaptations and training variables for hypertrophy and strength are vastly different so when one has a higher priority, you need to favor it (But check out this article to see how to train for both!)

2) Prioritize lagging muscles. We all like training what we’re good at. However, aesthetics requires every muscle to be optimized. You probably have at least one body part that needs either extra work compared to others. To build the perfect physique, your training needs to revolve around fixing these problems. This means giving those lagging muscles some extra work.

3) Stick to your measurements. Your goal is not putting on the most amount of mass. You need to focus on building the body parts to the desired measurements. Stick with this plan and don’t overbuild a muscle chasing mass.

4) Prioritize 1-2 muscles at a time. If you have a muscle to build, concentrate on it for periods of 4 weeks. This doesn't mean you're not going to train the other body parts; it just means that one body part at a time will get some extra love. You can then focus on another muscle of full body training. However, many trained bodybuilders find this is true regardless, simply as their muscles require extra volume to grow. As they can’t give all their muscles more volume, they rotate through periods of prioritizing one over the other.

Yes, creating the body of Hercules and Ares takes a while but it'll be worth it when you arrive at the gates of perfection.

The Best Aesthetic Exercises For Every Muscle Group

Now, let's briefly go over what training for each muscle group will look like as well as what exercises you're going to use.

TRAINING THE LEGS FOR AESTHETICS:

Your legs should match your upper body—not overpower it. Calves deserve special attention, as small calves can undermine your entire physique.

• Bulgarian Split Squats

• Leg Curls & Extensions

• Barbell Good Mornings

• Seated Calf Raises

TRAINING THE BACK FOR AESTHETICS:

Your back is going to play a large part in your look, especially your upper back and lats.

The upper back will play with the shoulders to form that classic broad shape you're looking for.

Developing the lats will shape the V's side as they run down to the waist. Without lats, your body will look more like a T which isn't what we want.

• Rack Pull
• Chin-up/Pull-up
• Lat Pull-down
• Dumbbell Row
• Swimmer
• Face Pulls
• Reverse Flyes

TRAINING THE CHEST FOR AESTHETICS:

Developing the chest is vital as this is what people see when they look at you. As people come toward you, you want them to see two mounds of muscle mass sitting on your chest, not a sternum. This includes having a well-developed upper AND lower chest. Leaving one out ruins the appeal.

For the chest, you're going to stay away from the bench press. Instead, you're going to use these dumbbell chest exercises (and one bodyweight exercise):

• Incline Dumbbell Press
• Dips
• Close Grip Pushups
• Chest Flys
• Dumbbell Pullover

TRAINING THE SHOULDERS FOR AESTHETICS:

Boulder shoulders.

This is what is going to cap off the upper torso. Having small delts that evenly run into your arm does not look strong. Instead, you want a well-defined ball to sit on the top of your arms. 

The best aesthetic exercises for the shoulder are first going to be some overhead pressing for strength and overall size. You'll then add some isolation work as well such as lateral and front raises to really aid in sculpting them.

• Standing Neutral Grip Dumbbell Press
• Arnold Press
• Lateral Raises
• Front Raises

Of all shoulder exercises, your lateral delts generally get the least work but provide the best pay back in aesthetics. Therefore, we love using plenty of lateral raises in our program.

TRAINING THE ARMS FOR AESTHETICS:

Having full arms is the last component of a solid upper body.

However, your job isn't to make your arms explode with 20" + pythons as big as possible. You want the biceps and triceps to compliment each other and work together as a whole.  In fact, this is one of the reasons why the size of the arm is based on the size of your joints. 

A nice size arm will look huge when paired with the correct joints and a developed set of shoulders on top with the proper proportions. 

Much of the arm will be trained with the other movements. For example, the rows and chin-ups will hit the biceps while the triceps will be heavily trained with the dips and close grip push-ups.

However, you're still going to use some classic isolations as well:

• Preacher curls
• Rope Hammer curls
• Bicep 21s
• Skull crushers
• Triceps kickback

TRAINING THE CORE FOR AESTHETICS:

Last but not least, the core. If you don't have a well-defined 6-pack, you can't call yourself aesthetic.

The #1 exercise for the core is the ab rollout, without a doubt.  Studies have shown that this single exercise causes greater activation in every area of the core than any other exercise.  Therefore, they will be your primary core exercise.  Still, here are some others to play around with as well.

• Incline Reverse Crunch
• Wood Chopper
• V-Ups

You’ll train the rollout at least twice a week.  There’s also a 3rd session but you could swap out for one of the above exercises.  Also, if you find you have time after the other sessions, you could also add some core.  However, DO NOT skip one of the other exercises to make time.

For the rollout, you will first work on being able to go all the way out. You’ll then work on doing reps. You can also use knee rollouts or bosu ball rollouts before moving to barbell rollouts.

The Perfect Aesthetic Workout Plan

As mentioned numerous times, developing aesthetics requires muscle hypertrophy to be the primary tenet of the entire plan. Because volume is the main driver of hypertrophy, your aesthetic workout schedule will consist of training 5x a week.² This will allow you to build maximal volume with adequate rest.

To address while you will train a muscle group two times a week, studies like this one from Brad Schoenfeld, have found this to be the optimal training frequency to maximize your growth potential.³ This will be for all the muscles that need improvement to reach your optimal measurements. However, not all your muscles fit into this category. 

Session 1: Lower Body

Rack Pulls	3 sets	5 reps	2 min rest
Bulgarian Split Squat	3 sets	8 reps	1 min rest between legs
Barbell Good Mornings	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Leg Extensions	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Leg Curls	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Seated Calf Raises	3 sets	15-20 reps	1 min rest
Ab Rollouts	3 sets

Session 2: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps

Dips (weighted if you can for this rep range)	3 sets	6 reps	2 min rest
Standing Neutral Grip DB Shoulder Press	3 sets	6-8 reps	2 min rest
Close Grip Push-Ups	3 sets	2 sets at RPE 7, 1 set Failure
Dumbbell Pullover	3 sets	6-8 reps (slow reps w/ squeeze)	2 min rest
Lateral Raises	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Superset (Rope Overhead Tricep Extensions x DB Kickbacks)	4 sets	8-12 reps	30 sec rest

Session 3: Back + Lower Body

Front Squats	3 sets	6 reps	2 min rest
Chin Ups (use band if you can't do 5)	3 sets	2 sets at RPE 7, 1 set Failure
Barbell Hip Thrusts	4 sets	8 reps	1.5 min rest
Compound Set (Face Pulls x Reverse Cable Flies)	4 sets	8-12 reps	30 sec rest
Superset (Leg Curls x Leg Extensions)	3 sets	8-12 reps	30 sec rest
Preacher Curls	3 sets	8-12 reps	1 min rest
Bicep 21s	1 round
Rollouts (or alternative)

Session 4: Chest+Shoulder+Triceps

Incline DB Chest Press	3 sets	6-8 reps	2 min rest
Arnold Press	3 sets	6-8 reps	2 min rest
Compound Set (Neutral Cable Fly x Low Cable Pulley Fly)	3 sets	8-12 reps	45 sec rest
Compound Set (Forward Cable Raise x Lateral Cable Raise)	3 sets	8-12 reps	45 sec rest
Compound Set (Skull Crushers x Overhead Triceps Extension)	3 sets	8-12 reps	45 second rest
Push Ups	1 set	Failure (3 second drop)

Session 5: Back+Biceps + Lagging part

DB Rows	3 sets	6-8 reps	1 min rest between arms
Lat Pulldowns	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Swimmers	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Reverse Curls	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Rope Hammer Curls	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Plate Pinches	3 sets	30 second hold	30-60 second rest
Lagging Muscle (Isolation)	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Lagging Muscle (Isolation)	3 sets	8-12 reps	1.5 min rest
Rollouts	3 sets

 

Progressive Overload For Aesthetics Training

This plan is only effective if you remember to apply progressive overload. To do this, you're going to add weight and reps over time. However, this will vary slightly depending on the exercise.

1. Exercises with a specific rep number (ie. 3x6) For these, you'll add weight. 

2. Exercises with rep range (i.e. 3x12-15). For these, you will start at the lower end (12) and then increase reps until you can do top end (15). You will then add weight and repeat the process.

Swapping Exercises

After some time training, you’re likely going to stall. Or, perhaps you just want to maintain variety.

An easy fix to this is to swap exercises 4-6 weeks or so. This will keep a steady state of new exercises without needing to completely rewrite your plan.

All you need to do is swap exercises for those with similar movement patterns. For example;

• Incline Dumbbell Press → Flat Dumbbell Press
• Dumbbell Row → Chest-Supported Row
• Front Squats → Back Squat

This is the easiest way to continue without needing to completely change your program.

Last: Remember To Track Your Measurements!

As the main goal is striving for the number you set for yourself, you will need to take routine measurements to track your progress. Not only will this let you know how you're doing, but it could also uncover issues you need to address.

Perhaps one muscle has responded very well while another has fallen behind. If you notice this, you're going to need to make any adjustments necessary. 

The best time to take measurements would be when you are ready to switch your prioritized muscle or every 4 weeks. If you happen to find a muscle in need, this will obviously become your new prioritized muscle.

Welcome To Aesthetics Bodybuilding

With its ability to be customized, this aesthetic workout plan will be all you need to sculpt the body of your dreams. Remember to push it in the gym, eat the right food at home, and get plenty of sleep in bed (muscles can't grow without rest!). Other than that, I think we answered the purpose of aesthetics...to look sexy as hell!! (Were you expecting something deeper?)

References

1. Escamilla RF, Lewis C, Bell D, Bramblet G, Daffron J, Lambert S, Pecson A, Imamura R, Paulos L, Andrews JR. Core muscle activation during Swiss ball and traditional abdominal exercises. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2010 May;40(5):265-76. doi: 10.2519/jospt.2010.3073. PMID: 20436242.
   
2. Schoenfeld BJ, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sports Sci. 2017 Jun;35(11):1073-1082. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2016.1210197. Epub 2016 Jul 19. PMID: 27433992.
3. Schoenfeld, B.J., Ogborn, D. & Krieger, J.W. Effects of Resistance Training Frequency on Measures of Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Med 46, 1689–1697 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-016-0543-8