Steve Cook Workout and Diet

Fitness Model
Born: 1984

Steven Cook grew up in Boise, Idaho as one of seven kids. His father was an athletic director and eventually became Steve’s coach. Always active, Cook started playing football when he was 7 and lifting weights at age 10. By high school he was setting records. Cook played football in high school and college at Dixie State, but an injury ended his professional football aspirations. After a brief and rocky marriage, he returned to the gym and soon won his first bodybuilding competition. Cook was scouted by Muscle & Fitness in Las Vegas during the 2010 Mr. Olympia competition and became a fitness model. Besides appearing on the covers of Iron Man, Muscle & Fitness, Cook is also a spokesperson for bodybuilding.com, an Optimum Nutrition athlete and has acted as a coach on the tv series The Biggest Loser. He currently lives in LA. Cook has millions of followers on social media. He is 6 feet tall and weighs 210 lbs.

Known For:

Steve Cook’s Diet

Summary

Cook definitely subscribes to the philosophy that abs are made in the kitchen. He sticks to lean protein, healthy fats, plenty of veggies and complex carbs. He says that quality protein needs to be part of everyone’s diet, and his general rule of thumb is 1 gram per pound of your ideal bodyweight. He says people shouldn’t be afraid of carbs as a category, but to stick to high-quality ingredients and steer clear of the junk. He eats 6 meals a day and tracks his macros. He also takes supplements such as creatine, BCAAs and casein protein.

Estimated Macros

  • Low-Medium Carb 20% 20%
  • Low-Medium Fat 20% 20%
  • High Protein 75% 75%

Diet Details

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Consistent Diet

Cook says he eats more or less the same things all through the year. He has egg whites, veggies and oatmeal for breakfast, and meat, veggies and carbs for 3 meals, and then protein supplements make up the rest.

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Counting Macros

Cook tracks all of his macros. He eats between 250-300 g of protein each day and keeps his fats around 50-70 g. Carbs will vary based on whether he is in training or not.

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Carb Cycling

Cook is a fan of carb-cycling, which means some days he eats very few carbs, and then he reloads at certain intervals to restore glycogen levels in his muscles.

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Clean Cheats

In his off-season, Cook will indulge in extra carbs, such as fruit and dairy products.

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Not Too Strict

Cook says while he makes an effort to eat clean most of the time, he has never been super-strict, and will sneak in some low-sugar jelly or other smalltime treat on a regular basis.

What to Eat

R

Egg Whites

R

Whole Eggs

R

Oatmeal

R

Oat Bran

R

Poultry

R

Fish

R

Red Meat

R

Low-fat Cheese

R

Sweet Potatoes

R

Vegetables

R

Salad

R

Olive Oil

R

Flax Oil

R

Apples

R

Brown Rice

R

Rice Cakes

R

Cinnamon

What to Avoid

Q

Refined Sugar

Q

Processed Foods

Q

Junk Food

Q

Fried Food

Q

Trans Fats

Q

Artificial Ingredients

Q

Chemical Additives

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Cook on His Diet

‘My diet stays fairly consistent year-round. I am always within 5 pounds of stage-ready.’

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Cook on His Cheats

‘I allow myself more carbs, and will enjoy fruit and dairy products in the off-season.’

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Cook on the Mental Side of Diet

‘It’s not just what you’re eating, but what’s eating you.’

Steve Cook’s Workout Routine

Weekly Routine

Early Influence

With his dad being a coach, Cook started working out as a kid and virtually never stopped.

Variety Is the Spice

As the saying goes, the only constant is change. Cook doesn’t subscribe to any particular routine but prefers to switch it up every couple of weeks.

Intense Workouts

Cook likes Dorian Yates’ HIIT routine, the Fascia Stretch Training 7 (FST-7) regimen and some Arnold-type workouts with lots of sets and reps.

Daily Dose

Cook hits the gym 6 days a week, doing 4 days of lifting and 2 days of cardio.

Mix It Up

Cook varies his routine by changing his rep tempo, rep range and volume so he always keeps his muscles guessing.

Targeted Workouts

With FST-7, you do a normal bodybuilding workout starting with heavy compound exercises and moving toward isolation exercises, finishing with 7 sets on a targeted exercise.

Get Dense

During his off-season, Cook lifts heavy to build up dense muscle tissue.

Exercise Style

Z

Pavel Tsatsouline Protocol

Day 1 – Legs
Do 1-2 sets of each of the following. Do 10-15 reps in the first set and the second set to failure with a 1 min rest between sets.
Leg extensions
Machine leg press
Hack squat on machine
Seated leg curl
Stiff-legged barbell deadlift
Calf press with leg press machine
Seated calf raise

Day 2 – Chest, Abs & Biceps
Do 1-2 sets of each of the following. Do 6-10 reps in the first set and the second set to failure with a 1 min rest between sets.
Decline barbell bench press
Incline dumbbell press
Dumbbell flys
Concentration curls
Hammer curls
Barbell curls

Super set 1
3 sets to failure
Knee raise on parallel bars
Superset 2
3 sets to failure
Cable crunch
Decline reverse crunch
Crunches

Day 3 – Cardio
Run on treadmill: to failure

Day 4 – Back, Triceps & Calves
Do 1-2 sets of each of the following. Do 8-10 reps in the first set and the second set to failure with a 1 min rest between sets.
Straight-arm dumbbell pullover: increase weight between sets
Close-grip front pulldown
One-arm dumbbell row
Seated cable row
Barbell deadlift
Triceps pushdown
Cable lying triceps extension
Seated triceps press
Calf press on leg press machine
Seated calf raise

Day 5 – Delts, Traps & Abs
Do 1-2 sets of each of the following. Do 6-10 reps in the first set and the second set to failure with a 1 min rest between sets.
Dumbbell should press
Side lateral raise
Low pulley row to neck
Reverse flys
Barbell shrug
Upright barbell row

Repeat supersets from day 2

Day 6 – Cardio
Run on treadmill to failure

Day 7 – Rest

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Cook on his Exercise Regimen

‘I don’t think just one workout works the best.’

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Cook on How to Get Ripped

‘Having a plan that lasts 2 weeks is ideal. Then it’s a good idea to change it up.’

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Cook on His Off-Season Routine

‘I try to focus on the basics and doing heavy compound movements to build that dense, hard muscle.’

Steve Cook’s Supplements

Protien Powder

Whey Protein

Cook supplements with whey protein which boosts the growth of lean muscle and supports recovery.

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Protein Powder

Casein

Cook also takes casein protein. Casein is slower-acting than whey protein, and is a popular for bodybuilders to take before bed to decrease muscle wasting and improve recovery.

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BCAA

BCAAs

Another one of Cook’s staples is branched-chain amino acids or BCAAs. BCAAs do everything a bodybuilder is looking for: grow muscle, improve endurance and speed recovery.

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Creatine

Creatine

Cook also takes creatine which increases muscle mass, boosts strength and supports cognitive function.

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Multivitamin

Multivitamin

Cook takes a multivitamin each day to cover his essential micronutrients.

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Steve Cook’s Lifestyle

Active Recovery

Cook is a fan of ice therapy. An ice bath causes the blood to retreat from the extremities to the core of the body, increasing circulation and reducing recovery time.

Tough Trials

A broken ankle ended Cook’s football career aspirations one semester before he graduated. He then got married, but his wife cheated on him. At 23, he was divorced and living at home with his parents while working as a waiter when he decided to try bodybuilding.

Biggest Winner

Cook found that helping people on a one-to-one basis on the show The Biggest Loser brought him a renewed sense of purpose.

Early Influences

Cook is an influencer himself these days, but when he was a kid, he idolized Arnold Schwarzenegger and other classics like Lee Haney, Frank Zane and Steve Reeves.

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Cook his Early Training

‘If I wanted to watch TV as a kid, I had to do push-ups during commercials.’

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Cook on Failure

‘I learned how to lose in college.’

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Cook on his Commitment to Bodybuilding

‘I had no social life but I had a sense of purpose.’

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Cook on Motivation

‘I make sure to surround myself with positive influences. I have great people I associate with at the gym. I also make sure I always read new things and watch motivational videos, like Pumping Iron.’

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Cook on Life

‘I live my life knowing that I can’t always control what happens to me, but I can control how I react to those things.’

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Cook on his Life Philosophy

‘I strive to stay positive and to treat people with respect.’

Recommended Products

Optimum Nutrition

Optimum Nutrition

The Biggest Loser
The Biggest Loser
Dumbbells
Dumbbells
Barbells
Barbells
Weightlifting belts
Weight belt
Fat Gripz
Fat Gripz
Foam roller
Foam roller
Stretching bands
Stretching bands