You have arrived at this post because you want to know what workout splits are the best. Also how to use these splits for strength and mass training You may be asking yourself should i do it for 3 days? 5 days? 6 days?
Well today is your lucky day, I will be breaking down the most common workout splits and the pros and cons of each. Lets get into it!
The most common workout splits are:
Full body 2-3 days per week:
This is usually regarded as best for beginner to intermediate lifters. To set it up you pick 3-5 compound lifts that hit all major muscle groups and organize them into a day of lifting. Do this for 2 or more days and you have yourself a training week. Another method is to organize by movement patterns (push, pull, squat, hinge, single leg, rotation).
Generally, the higher the intensity (weight on the bar) the less exercises per day or else you will have very long and grueling sessions. For instance, in some powerlifting philosophies a person will only do at most squat, bench, and deadlift on a particular day. They may be working with a minimum of 300lb on each lift. When you are a beginner who hasn’t reached numbers of that magnitude or someone focused on general strength you can have more exercises per day with less volume per exercise (volume is defined in the next section).
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 |
| Back squat 3×5 | Deadlift 3×5 |
| Overhead press 3×5 | Bench press 3×5 |
| Rdl 4×8 | Split squat 4×8 |
| Pull up 4×8 | Bent row 4×8 |
Notice all movement patterns and muscle groups have been hit except for abs/rotation. This is where you may want to add some accessories. Some more minimalistic lifters will say that is unnecessary, its all up to your time restraints and personal choice. Either way keep them brief and purposeful. The goal of an accessory is to minimize chance of injury by hitting neglected or weak muscle groups.
This can be done by adding a couple at the end of each day.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 |
| Back squat 3×5 | Deadlift 3×5 |
| Overhead press 3×5 | Bench press 3×5 |
| Rdl 4×8 | Split squat 4×8 |
| Pull up 4×8 | Bent row 4×8 |
| Planks 3x30s | Abdominal cable rotations 3×15 |
| Rear delt flys 3×15 | Hamstring curls 3×15 |
Or if your strapped for time or just want to workout another day of the week adding a “weak-link” day can be a great choice.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Weak-links |
| Back squat 3×5 | Deadlift 3×5 | Planks 3x30s |
| Overhead press 3×5 | Bench press 3×5 | Abdominal cable rotations 3×15 |
| Rdl 4×8 | Split squat 4×8 | Rear delt fly’s 3×15 |
| Pull up 4×8 | Bent row 4×8 | Hamstring curls 3×15 |
Full body training can be done 2-6 days a week. 3 days a week is standard for most beginners and intermediate lifters. More advanced lifters can train up to 6 days a week. To do this volume and recovery must be tightly regulated to avoid, burnout and/or overtraining. In my personal experience my clients who saw the most success was training 3x per week. 2 is ok, but I rarely see any significant gains in strength this way.
Pros
- Time efficient
- Hit all muscle groups
- Maximizes hormonal response to exercise
- flexible
Cons
- once significant strength is gained workouts become long
- may lead to muscle imbalance if not carefully planned
- not easy to modify for aesthetics
Push-pull workout split:
This workout split is perfect for intermediates that want to gain strength and size. With this split you work all of the muscles on the posterior chain of the body (hamstrings, glutes, back, biceps) one day, and all the muscles on the front of the body (quads, chest, shoulders, triceps) on another day. This a favorite for powerbuilding as typically you start with a main lift first then punish all of the accessory lifts into oblivion for radical size and strength gains. It is generally broken up into 4-6 days per week.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 |
| front squat 5×5 | Deadlift 5×5 |
| Bench press 5×5 | Pull up 5×5 |
| Walking lunges 3×15 | Barbell hip thrust 4×8 |
| Overhead press 3×10 | Bent row 4×10 |
Again, accessories can be added for any muscles that need extra attention.
You can make it a 4-day program by resting on day 3 and doing another pair of push pull workouts on days 4 and 5. Typically I will make the first two days heavier with less volume and the second two days lighter with higher volume.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 4 | Day 5 |
| front squat 3×5 | Deadlift 3×5 | Back squat 3×8 | Rdl 3×8 |
| Bench press 3×5 | Pull up 3×5 | Dumbbell chest press 3×8 | Pull downs 3×10 |
| Walking lunges 3×8 | Barbell hip thrust 3×8 | Split squat 3×15 | Hamstring curls 3×15 |
| Overhead press 3×8 | Bent row 3×8 | Dumbbell shoulder press 3×15 | Single arm row 3×15 |
For more advanced lifters you can skip the rest day and alternate push pull for 6 days straight. This again must be planned carefully to account for total volume as to avoid over training. I would break the days down like this for the ultimate power-building split. Days 1 & 2 ultra-heavy with low volume, days 3&4 medium intensity and volume, days 5&6 low intensity high volume (pump day).
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 |
| front squat 3×3, drop weight by 30% for 1 set to failure | Deadlift 3×3 | Back squat 3×8 | Rdl 3×8 | Hack squat 15,10, 8, 15 | Hamstring curls 3×20 |
| Bench press 3×3, drop weight by 30% for 1 set to failure | Pendlay row 3×5 | Dumbbell chest press 3×8 | Pull downs 3×10 | Dips 3xfailure | Pull ups 3xfailure |
| Optional accessory | Optional accessory | Split squat 3×10 | Hip thrust 3×10 | Split squat 3×20 | Back extensions 3×15 |
| Optional accessory | Optional accessory | Dumbbell shoulder press 3×10 | Close grip row 3×10 | Push ups 3x failure | Single arm row 3×15 |
If you try to under take a program like this, it is very very very important you do everything in your power to maximize recovery. Eating in surplus, sleeping a lot, and having active and passive recovery interspersed through out the week. Check out my article on how to maximize recovery for more insights.
Also always start with a push day. Pulling muscle tend to stabilize pushing muscles. Pulling exercises also tend to elicit a lot of DOMS (muscle soreness). Doing a pull day first may carry over into the next day and hinder your push day.
Pros
- easy to get in a lot of volume
- can be modified for any goal
- can be very time efficient
Cons
- requires atleast 4 days to see significant progress
- exercise selection need to be monitored tightly
- overtraining is easy
Upper-lower workout split:
Similar to push pull, but instead you alternate upper and lower. This can be used for any goal and at any level. This is good for intermediates and advanced lifters because as the weights get heavy full body workouts take too long due to recovery needs. With this split you have more time to dedicate to each lift. With this split it is best to train 4-6 days per week to get the most from the split. 2 days will not offer enough stimulation for any significant gains.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 |
| front squat 5×5 | Bench press 5×5 | Back squat 3×8 | Dumbbell shoulder press 3×8 |
| Deadlift 5×5 | Pull up 5×5 | Rdl 3×8 | Pull downs 3×10 |
| Walking lunges 3×8 | Military press 3×8 | Split squat 3×15 | Weighted dips 3×10 |
| Barbell hip thrust 3×8 | Bent row 3×8 | Hamstring curls 3×15 | Single arm row 3×15 |
Pros
- great for people who work with large weights
- can focus each day on the muscles worked
- modifiable for most goals
Cons
- requires at least 4 days to see results
- can be a little under stimulating mentally (IMO)
- more volume means working out 6 days a week (not a con for everyone)
Push pull legs workout split:
This split is great for gaining strength, size, or both. To design a program using this method is simple. Have one day dedicated to upper body pushing, one day dedicated to upper body pulling, and one day dedicated to lower body.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 |
| Bench press 5×5 | Bent row 5×5 | Back squat 5×5 |
| Overhead press 3×5 | Weighted pull ups 3×5 | Deadlift 3×8 |
| Weighted dips 3×8 | Cable row 4×8 | Walking lunges 3×10 |
| Push ups 3x failure | Lat pull down 3×15 | Hamstring curls 3×15 |
| Optional accessory (triceps extensions) | Optional accessory (biceps curls) | Optional accessory (calves) |
To increase volume you have 2 options
- Add one more push, pull, leg day taking into account total volume.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 |
| Bench press 5×5 | Bent row 5×5 | Back squat 5×5 | Dumbbell chest press 4×8 | Inverted row 3x failure | Front squat 3×8 |
| Overhead press 3×5 | Weighted pull ups 3×5 | Deadlift 3×8 | Dumbbell shoulder press 4×8 | Lat pull downs 3×10 | RDL 3×10 |
| Weighted dips 3×8 | Cable row 4×8 | Walking lunges 3×10 | Chest flys 3×15 | Single arm dumbbell row 3×12 | Bulgarian split squat 3×12 |
| Push ups 3x failure | Lat pull down 3×15 | Hamstring curls 3×15 | Floor press 3×15 | Pull overs 3×15 | Barbell hip thrust 3×15 |
| Optional accessory (triceps extensions) | Optional accessory (biceps curls) | Optional accessory (calves) | Optional accessories | Optional accessories | Optional accessories |
2. Add a upper and lower day, this is a great way to go about increasing volume. Gives you just enough stimulation for any goal.
I prefer to do a lower body strength day and a upper body strength day first, then do push pull legs for hypertrophy the following three days.
Example:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 |
| Back squat 3×5 | Bench press 3×5 | Front squat 3×8 | Dumbbell chest press 4×8 | Inverted row 3x failure |
| Deadlift 3×3 | Pull ups 3×5 | RDL 3×10 | Dumbbell shoulder press 4×8 | Lat pull downs 3×10 |
| Core | Shrugs 3×8 | Bulgarian split squat 3×12 | Chest flys 3×15 | Single arm dumbbell row 3×12 |
| Hip stability work | Rear delt flys 3×15 | Barbell hip thrust 3×15 | Floor press 3×15 | Pull overs 3×15 |
| Na | Optional accessory (calves) | Optional accessories | Optional accessories | Optional accessories |
Pros
- great for bodybuilding
- the most focused split discussed today
- easy recovery
Cons
- need at least 3 days a week
- there are better options for strength
If you want information on how to use these splits to make a full strength training program be sure to check out my article Guidelines For Making A Strength Training or Workout Program. I also laid out The Best Rep Schemes for Strength Training for help deciding what rep schemes to use for these workout splits.