GZCL: General Gainz - Burrito But Big

By Cody Lefever

Burrito But Big is a weightlifting program created by the Reddit user u/benjaminbk , based on the GZCL principle from Cody Lefever. This program is a hypertrophy adaptation of the General Gainz program , presented as a 12-week program. There're several fun progression schemes, you can mix and match in your program, and generally the program is fun and efficient to run.

GZCL principle

Before diving in, here's some basic terminology:

  • Rep Max: This refers to the maximum weight you can lift for a given number of reps. For instance, if you can do 5 reps (and no more) with 100 kg, then your 5 rep max is 100 kg. When measuring this, you should not go to full failure, but stop when you can't maintain good form for another rep.

Now, let's talk about exercises. Exercises in GZCL programs are split into 3 tiers:

  • T1: These are main compound exercises (e.g., Squat, Deadlift, Bench Press, Overhead Press ). These exercises involve the highest intensity (i.e., the largest weights, about 85-100% of your 2-3 rep max), but with lower volume (fewer reps and sets). Typically, you will perform 10-15 total reps, usually within 1-3 reps per set.
  • T2: These are secondary compound exercises (e.g., Front Squat, Romanian Deadlift, Incline Bench Press, etc). These exercises have lower intensity (lower weights), but higher volume (more reps and sets). You should pick exercises that will assist with your T1 exercises. For example, if you want to improve your Squat, you could do Front Squats as a T2 exercise. These exercises are performed with 65-85% of your 2-3 rep max, usually within 5-8 reps per set.
  • T3: These are isolation exercises (e.g., Leg Press, Leg Curl, Triceps Extension, Lateral Raise). These exercises have the lowest intensity (lightest weights), but highest volume (most reps and sets). The goal is to choose exercises that will assist with your T1 and T2 exercises. These are performed with less than 65% of your 2-3 rep max, usually with 8 or more reps per set.

A useful rule of thumb is the 1:2:3 rule - for every rep you perform in T1, do 2 reps in T2, and 3 in T3.

This is a very short description of the GZCL principle. For more information, and more details, I REALLY recommend to read Cody's blogpost.

Application of the GZCL Principle to the Burrito But Big program

I highly recommend to read the Reddit post describing the program and all the progressions and details.

Check the interactive playground below to see how the program works, and what the weights/sets/reps look like for each week. You can edit the 2RM, 5RM, etc weights for each exercise, and see how the weight changes.

You can run GZCL: General Gainz - Burrito But Big program in the Liftosaur app. You only would need to set initial RM weights for each exercise, and the app will automatically calculate the weights, change the sets, autobalance the T3 weights, and do all the math for you.

Muscle Balance

Muscles used, relatively to each other
Glutes
100%
Hamstrings
74%
Shoulders
74%
Back
68%
Chest
55%
Quadriceps
54%
Triceps
41%
Calves
28%
Abs
22%
Forearms
8%

Try it out in interactive playground!

Tap on squares to finish sets. Tap multiple times to reduce completed reps. Finish workout and see what the next time the workout would look like (with possibly updated weights, reps and sets).

For convenience, you can finish all the sets of an exercise by clicking on the icon. And you can adjust the exercise variables (weight, reps, TM, RIR, etc) by clicking on the icon.

Week 1 - Day 1

Squat
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup

T1 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Romanian Deadlift
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup

T2 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Bicep Curl
EZ Bar
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Reverse Fly
Dumbbell
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Week 1 - Day 2

Bench Press
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup

T1 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Overhead Press
Barbell
Warmup

T2 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Pendlay Row
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Lateral Raise
Dumbbell
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Week 1 - Day 3

Deadlift
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup
Warmup

T1 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Front Squat
Barbell
Warmup

T2 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Hanging Leg Raise
Bodyweight

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Skullcrusher
EZ Bar
Warmup
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Week 1 - Day 4

Overhead Press
Barbell
Warmup

T1 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Bench Press Close Grip
Barbell
Warmup
Warmup

T2 Leader Classic. Work up to the RM of the first set, then record the weight. Then do 4-6 "half" sets (same weight, half of the reps).

Pullover
EZ Bar
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

Bicep Curl
EZ Bar
Warmup

T3. Do Max Reps Sets, going close to failure, but in the rep range >= 10 reps.

You can use this program on Liftosaur - a weightlifting tracker app!
  • Log your workouts there, and have a history of all your workouts on your phone
  • It will automatically update weights, reps and sets for you from workout to workout - according to the program logic
  • And you can customize the programs in any way, change exercises, the exercise logic, sets/reps/weights, etc.
Download on the App Store
Get it on Google Play