Jay Cutler’s Living Large 8-Week Trainer (Review)
Four-time Mr. Olympia Jay Cutler is the definition of “Living Large.” With 22-inch biceps and nearly 280 pounds of pure lean mass, Cutler is the undisputed modern King of Bodybuilding.
His Living Large 8-Week Trainer teaches us how to train large, eat largely, and live largely.
Keep reading to see what we think about his workout program…
About the Creator – Jay Cutler
Aside from being built like a boulder, Jay Cutler is hailed as a bodybuilding hero.
He won his first-ever Mr. Olympia title after dethroning Ronnie “The King” Coleman in 2006. Cutler later doubled up on back-to-back Mr. Olympia victories, winning in ‘06, ‘07, ‘09, and ‘10.
The three-time repeat champion of the Arnold Classic (2002–04) retired from bodybuilding in 2013 to pursue other ventures, including his supplement line — Cutler Nutrition.
What Is Jay Cutler’s Living Large 8-Week Trainer?
Jay Cutler’s Living Large 8-Week Trainer is BodyFit’s version of a “candid documentary” with Hollywood-style shots of Cutler driving luxury cars, training at the gym, and jumping into a pool.
(Building Von Moger has a similar film style.)
But it’s also the closest we’ll ever get to Jay Cutler’s real routine.
This 8-week, five-day-a-week intermediate program is Cutler’s guide to building massive muscles through the star’s favorite workouts and nauseating 4,700+ calorie diet.
Keep in mind, this routine is designed to build someone into a mass monster, not sculpt a more modern physique like Steve Cook.
Keep reading to learn more about Living Large!
Living Large 8-Week Trainer Details & Features
Jay Cutler will be the first to admit that he owes much of his physique to blessed genetics. However, he insists that Living Large, like Kris Gethin’s DTP program, will deliver eight continuous weeks of mass growth.
Let’s take a look at the program’s details.
Schedule
Cutler’s 8-Week Trainer follows this schedule between phases 1 and 2:
* Living Large is inconsistent with when you’ll train each muscle group during phase 1. For example, Week 1’s Monday is chest and calves, while week three is shoulders and triceps.
Workouts
The Living Large workouts are all unique with a bit of a non-traditional twist (i.e., supersets, a few two-a-days, drop sets at 20%, partial reps, and forced reps for the final 2–4 reps).
There’s also no cardio in this routine whatsoever. Instead, Cutler encourages you to commit to heavy resistance training and even dials up the intensity with a bodybuilding split in week five.
Here’s what to expect with each workout:
- Hypertrophy rep ranges like 8–12, 10–12, and 12–15
- 3–4 sets per exercise, with a few — like cable crossovers — that require 6–7
- About a minute rest between sets
- As few as 20 sets per workout … but a few with 35, 40, or more
The bodybuilding legend will also have you wandering around the gym for 60–90 minutes at a time. While using nearly every piece of equipment in your fitness club, you’ll do exercises like:
- Machine chest press
- Dumbbell fly
- Standing calf raise
- Triceps dip
- Reverse-grip barbell curl
- Barbell row
- Back extension
- Barbell front raise
- Seated rear delt fly
- Lying leg curl
- Hack squat
For true newbies or intermediates, the Living Large 8-Week Trainer will leave you absolutely exhausted, and the sheer number of sets and intensity may force you to tap out early.
Nutrition
Jay Cutler spends a quarter of his day either eating or cooking in the kitchen.
The King of Bodybuilding eats every three hours (including midnight and 3 AM), but supposedly never struggles with cravings. (OK, maybe he isn’t the best one to be rattling off diet advice.)
However, he does provide a few tips:
- Pay equal attention to your diet.
- Start with protein powder and a multivitamin. But if you’re a more advanced athlete, BCAAs, fat-burners, and pre-workout work, too.
- Make time to eat five times per day or more.
- Learn as much as you can about nutrition.
- Don’t shun carbs.
Cutler also shares a link to his Living Large macronutrient calculator, which uses nothing but your body weight to recommend calories and macros (40/40/20).
But what does the legend himself eat on an average day?
If you wanted to “eat large” like the 280-pound former Mr. Olympia, you’d have to down 4,690 calories, 95g of fat, 497g of carbohydrates, and 469g of protein per day.
He also includes a sample of his daily meal plan, including four scoops of protein powder, 60 ounces of Gatorade (in one meal), 44 ounces of meat, and four cups of rice (plus more).
Supplement
The final third of Living Large is Cutler’s recommended supplements. His personal favorites are whey protein, creatine, pre-workout, BCAAs, and testosterone boosters.
Swolverine Kre-Alkalyn: Creatine Phospate
If you’re looking to get swole, look no further than Swolverine Kre-Alkalyn. Our buffered creatine phosphate increases your performance in the gym and adds muscular size without those pesky side effects like bloating, cramping, and water retention.
3 Solid Benefits of Living Large
- If you have a habit of quitting programs because they become too repetitive, Living Large’s unique workouts will keep you on the edge of your seat.
- The choice of supplements is suitable for both intermediate lifters and Mr. Universe contestants. In one 2017 trial, creatine boosted upper body lean tissue by 7.1% in well-trained men when paired with eight weeks of resistance training, while the placebo group saw just 1.6% lean growth.
- There’s tons of exercise variety. So once Living Large is complete, you’ve experimented with enough exercises to know which moves you like and maybe even DIY a routine.
2 Negatives of Jay Cutler’s 8-Week Trainer
- The official Living Large macro calculator will map out your daily caloric needs and macros. However, beyond that, there’s little advice for choosing foods or gorging yourself with upwards of 4,000 calories per day. Cutler’s personal meal plan is also unhelpful to the 99.99% of “everyone else” that isn’t a 280-pound former professional bodybuilder.
- Even as an “intermediate” program, the 8-Week Trainer may still be too intense. The Living Large workouts with 30–40 sets are a huge time commitment, and there’s no guarantee you’ll have the energy to power through from start to finish.
Wrapping Up This Living Large 8-Week Trainer Review
Jay Cutler’s Living Large 8-Week Trainer is an inspiring look at the day-to-day life of a former bodybuilding champion. It’s clear the methods in this program work … at least for Cutler.
The workouts are exciting (though long), the choice in supplements matches any skill level, and the exercise variety is reason enough to finish out the program.
But is it realistic?
For intermediates and newbies, Living Large may require a ton of modifications to match your energy, strength, and schedule. There’s also little written guidance for planning your diet.
We’d say try Living Large if your gains are slowing or you admire Cutler’s willpower. However, pay close attention to your calories, macros, and muscle soreness as you complete it.
Rating: 6.0/10