Favorite training split thread

[Flex500]

After tinkering with a twice-per-week legs split for a few weeks and realizing I was just being neurotic about extra leg training, I'm back to more of a PPL split. I've been refining my technique and rep ranges a bit to the point that every set feels more productive, too, and too many movements crammed into one session for one body part feels like a waste of time on the back half. So, now it's

Push - chest focus - 2 press, 1 fly, 1 side raise, 1 rear delt, 1 tricep, 1 bicep
Pull (back + hams / glutes) - 4 back, 1 leg curl, 1 RDL + calves & abs
Off
Push - delts and arms focus - 2 press, 1 side raise, 2 tricep, 2 bicep
Pull (back) - 5 back, 1 rear delt + calves & abs
Legs - 1 leg curl, 1 adductor, 1 extension, 1 press, 1 squat, 1 lunge
Off

Those numbers are movements, not sets. Most movements are two working sets, but single-joint movements and some back movements get 3.

Straightforward and effective. PPL with a two on and one off cadence also works really well. In four weeks you'd hit everything like 7 times so little shy of 2x weekly frequency.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs push
Fri off
Sat pull
Sun legs
Mon off
Tues push
Wed pull
Thurs off
Fri legs
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed push
Thurs off
Fri pull
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri push
Sat off


Another good one to give a little more rest around legs and not push pull against legs is the below...push, pull, off, legs, off, repeat...you get like 6x fequency and works pretty darn well.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs off
Fri push
Sat pull
Sun off
Mon legs
Tues off
Wed push
Thurs pull
Fri off
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri off
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed off
Thurs push
Fri pull
Sat off

 

[d4ve]

Straightforward and effective. PPL with a two on and one off cadence also works really well. In four weeks you'd hit everything like 7 times so little shy of 2x weekly frequency.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs push
Fri off
Sat pull
Sun legs
Mon off
Tues push
Wed pull
Thurs off
Fri legs
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed push
Thurs off
Fri pull
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri push
Sat off


Another good one to give a little more rest around legs and not push pull against legs is the below...push, pull, off, legs, off, repeat...you get like 6x fequency and works pretty darn well.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs off
Fri push
Sat pull
Sun off
Mon legs
Tues off
Wed push
Thurs pull
Fri off
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri off
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed off
Thurs push
Fri pull
Sat off

Tbh I don't know how anyone with a normal job and a spouse and / or kids does a split that's purposefully out of sync with a 7-day week. It just seems like such a disruptive PITA to not have a typical weekly cadence of off days and training days, as well as known quantities as to when I'll be doing the easier vs. harder training days.

More power to you if you make it work, but that's one hard and fast rule for myself, at least at a point in my life when I'm still working a W2 job. Maybe it would / will be different a point when my wife and I are both self-employed.

 

[massephase]

Tbh I don't know how anyone with a normal job and a spouse and / or kids does a split that's purposefully out of sync with a 7-day week. It just seems like such a disruptive PITA to not have a typical weekly cadence of off days and training days, as well as known quantities as to when I'll be doing the easier vs. harder training days.

More power to you if you make it work, but that's one hard and fast rule for myself, at least at a point in my life when I'm still working a W2 job. Maybe it would / will be different a point when my wife and I are both self-employed.

I did it for the longest time and it wasn't an issue at all, but have also come around after being put on a 7-day schedule for a while. I have to say that I don't have any extracurricular stuff like taking kids to soccer practice or anything like that in my life

 

[Flocci]

More along the lines of if I was doing a program based on a 7 day week it may get stretched up to 12 days depending on workload. In the 12 day weeks there are some days that are absolutel write offs where i may not train.

if you are into upper/lower training splits, you could rotate that 2 days on/1-2off or every other day for example.

 

[Flex500]

Tbh I don't know how anyone with a normal job and a spouse and / or kids does a split that's purposefully out of sync with a 7-day week. It just seems like such a disruptive PITA to not have a typical weekly cadence of off days and training days, as well as known quantities as to when I'll be doing the easier vs. harder training days.

More power to you if you make it work, but that's one hard and fast rule for myself, at least at a point in my life when I'm still working a W2 job. Maybe it would / will be different a point when my wife and I are both self-employed.

I 100% get that. I always felt that way too. My issue the past decade or so is I need it more flexible because I travel a lot for work like last week was traveling tues-Thurs, this week Thursday and Fri so absolute set days don't work but rigid rotational doesn't work either. I think for people like me a 2 day or 3 day split that you rotate on a flexible schedule is best. Sometimes I have a week where I need to train three days in a row and other times it's more spread out. Essentially a rigid schedule with set days or a rigid rotation don't work for me at all.

 

[fisther69]

Lately it’s been

day 1: upper body heavy/powerlifting
Day 2: lower body heavy/powerlifting
Day 3: whole body pump and isolation
Day 4: upper body heavy high reps
Day 5: lower body heavy high reps
Day 6: whole body pump and isolation
Day 7: repeat cycle

I usually run a few miles everyday..do a bunch (around 200) pushups in my office with all kinds of grips daily and also swim a shit load almost daily.

This has been my jam for a few months..have done this many times in the past..probably will just do this the rest of my life

 

[monsterzombie666]

I 100% get that. I always felt that way too. My issue the past decade or so is I need it more flexible because I travel a lot for work like last week was traveling tues-Thurs, this week Thursday and Fri so absolute set days don't work but rigid rotational doesn't work either. I think for people like me a 2 day or 3 day split that you rotate on a flexible schedule is best. Sometimes I have a week where I need to train three days in a row and other times it's more spread out. Essentially a rigid schedule with set days or a rigid rotation don't work for me at all.

I can certainly relate to that too, between a demanding job and kids. As I have gotten older, I have also become much more comfortable having more days off than weight-training days in a given week. As a general split, I have almost always followed a push/pull/legs regimen because, over the years, I have found it to be the most effective approach for my body, recovery, and long-term consistency. I do a good amount of hiking for cardio and overall endurance as well.

 

[comedycentral]

Tbh I don't know how anyone with a normal job and a spouse and / or kids does a split that's purposefully out of sync with a 7-day week. It just seems like such a disruptive PITA to not have a typical weekly cadence of off days and training days, as well as known quantities as to when I'll be doing the easier vs. harder training days.

More power to you if you make it work, but that's one hard and fast rule for myself, at least at a point in my life when I'm still working a W2 job. Maybe it would / will be different a point when my wife and I are both self-employed.

If you have any space a very basic home gym can be your friend for situations like this. Even as simple as a bench, few bands an adjustable dumbell set and door frame chin up bar and you could easily bang out a decent workout

 

[primobolan]

I log in to Instagram and scroll for 10 minutes then head to gym and to the complete opposite of every thread about training that came up.

 

[qbkilla]

Straightforward and effective. PPL with a two on and one off cadence also works really well. In four weeks you'd hit everything like 7 times so little shy of 2x weekly frequency.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs push
Fri off
Sat pull
Sun legs
Mon off
Tues push
Wed pull
Thurs off
Fri legs
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed push
Thurs off
Fri pull
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri push
Sat off


Another good one to give a little more rest around legs and not push pull against legs is the below...push, pull, off, legs, off, repeat...you get like 6x fequency and works pretty darn well.

Sun push
Mon pull
Tues off
Wed legs
Thurs off
Fri push
Sat pull
Sun off
Mon legs
Tues off
Wed push
Thurs pull
Fri off
Sat legs
Sun off
Mon push
Tues pull
Wed off
Thurs legs
Fri off
Sat push
Sun pull
Mon off
Tues legs
Wed off
Thurs push
Fri pull
Sat off

My current thinking is this is about perfect. I'm actually doing ppl2x with 1 off day and love it, but insert an extra whenever needed. I'm also in my 40s and no longer do heavy (for me lol).squats, deads, or rows. If I did, I highly doubt I would be able to sustain ppl2x.

 

[control]

I just rediscovered upper/lower after not doing it in a long time; so far I love it.
I'm doing this in conjunction with weak part prioritization, so it's even easier because I don't care if I skip something that isn't a priority right now

 

[AllOkJumpmaster]

I log in to Instagram and scroll for 10 minutes then head to gym and to the complete opposite of every thread about training that came up.

lol, remember when full body 5 days a week was a thing in like 2018?

 

[monsterzombie666]

If you have any space a very basic home gym can be your friend for situations like this. Even as simple as a bench, few bands an adjustable dumbell set and door frame chin up bar and you could easily bang out a decent workout

That is essentially the arrangement at my property: a garage with an adjustable bench, a few bars and plates, a moderate series of dumbbell sets, and the will to get an excellent workout wherever I am. Reminds me of times decades ago, of killer workouts in little hole-in-the-wall bare bones gyms. Good times.

 

[grammo13]

If you have any space a very basic home gym can be your friend for situations like this. Even as simple as a bench, few bands an adjustable dumbell set and door frame chin up bar and you could easily bang out a decent workout

This is not true if you are @d4ve lol

 

[megroo]

I’ve recently had the urge to go back to some powerlifting basics just for a bit of fun.
I’ve been following jim wendlers 531 routine.
I have the app and I really like the progression built in plus the different rep ranges each week.

I’ve got it laid out as so…..

Day 1 (Sunday) OHP
(Accessories sh,chest, tri)

Day 2 (Tuesday) DEADLIFT
(Accessories back, hams,1 quad, bicep)

Day 3 (Thursday). BENCH PRESS
(Accessories chest, shoulder, tri)

Day 4 (Friday). SQUAT
(Accessories quads, hams, back/bi)

Really liking it so far. Managed to program every body part in twice per week without any overlap.
Still gauging my volume capacity though, as all the heavy compounds certainly take their toll.

The main lifts are obviously the focus, and are recorded, the accessories are treated like a bit of fun. I’ll mix up which machines/excersises each time. It’s nice having that freedom.
Generally 2 sets to failure for each, depending on recovery.

On the 531 week I’ve found I’ll keep the volume lower as that heavy single has been wiping me out.

I was running a fsl (first set last) template on the main lifts but I’ve since dropped that for the dead’s and squats.

 

[comedycentral]

I’ve recently had the urge to go back to some powerlifting basics just for a bit of fun.
I’ve been following jim wendlers 531 routine.
I have the app and I really like the progression built in plus the different rep ranges each week.

I’ve got it laid out as so…..

Day 1 (Sunday) OHP
(Accessories sh,chest, tri)

Day 2 (Tuesday) DEADLIFT
(Accessories back, hams,1 quad, bicep)

Day 3 (Thursday). BENCH PRESS
(Accessories chest, shoulder, tri)

Day 4 (Friday). SQUAT
(Accessories quads, hams, back/bi)

Really liking it so far. Managed to program every body part in twice per week without any overlap.
Still gauging my volume capacity though, as all the heavy compounds certainly take their toll.

The main lifts are obviously the focus, and are recorded, the accessories are treated like a bit of fun. I’ll mix up which machines/excersises each time. It’s nice having that freedom.
Generally 2 sets to failure for each, depending on recovery.

On the 531 week I’ve found I’ll keep the volume lower as that heavy single has been wiping me out.

I was running a fsl (first set last) template on the main lifts but I’ve since dropped that for the dead’s and squats.

I still toy with the idea of Jim’s monolith routine. I like his simplicity with stuff.

 

[traininsane11]

Still rocking

Legs quad focus
Pull
Push
Legs ham focus
Upper
Off
Off

Honestly unless you’re about 1 of 5 people in the world who don’t need to get bigger or you have a genetically overly gifted body part I think this is the best split you can do

Hit everything twice per week with as much volume as you can recover from

Repeat till death

 

[d4ve]

Still rocking

Legs quad focus
Pull
Push
Legs ham focus
Upper
Off
Off

Honestly unless you’re about 1 of 5 people in the world who don’t need to get bigger or you have a genetically overly gifted body part I think this is the best split you can do

Hit everything twice per week with as much volume as you can recover from

Repeat till death

I like it, but damn, 5 days in a row...does your schedule just demand that?

I think two leg days is good in some cases, iffy in others. Kind of depends on needs and even orthopedic health.

Although with the right exercise selection and technique, the extra lower work can actually leave you feeling better.

 

[traininsane11]

I like it, but damn, 5 days in a row...does your schedule just demand that?

I think two leg days is good in some cases, iffy in others. Kind of depends on needs and even orthopedic health.

Although with the right exercise selection and technique, the extra lower work can actually leave you feeling better.

Yeah unfortunately so I’d much rather take a Thursday off and have it 3 on 2 off but if I do that then maybe 1-2 times per month I’d miss the upper session so I’ve just had to adjust the volume accordingly it’s not been to bad but come the weekend I’m more than ready for a rest day

Originally I was doing both leg days with a fairly 50/50 split of big quad compounds which eventually just wrecked me but now with that the 2nd leg day just has a leg press movement in for quad stimulus and it’s made such a difference

By the time the 2nd leg day comes around I’m ready for it as legs have just about recovered and upper body is feeling taxed and with it being mostly hamstrings it’s not overly taxing , not systemically at least

Then the upper day which splits the volume fairly evenly across everything about 2 exercises for everything I think

I’ve no idea how (if they even do) guys can progress long term doing 6 days per week of PPL I tried it and didn’t last too long

 

[bigzzz]

Still rocking

Legs quad focus
Pull
Push
Legs ham focus
Upper
Off
Off

Honestly unless you’re about 1 of 5 people in the world who don’t need to get bigger or you have a genetically overly gifted body part I think this is the best split you can do

Hit everything twice per week with as much volume as you can recover from

Repeat till death

Maybe on paper for sure, if your tendons etc. can keep up. Full upper days are just so f'ing boring to me.

Currently running the yates split. 2 or 3 on, 1 off depending on how much time/how i'm feeling.

Chest/biceps
Legs
Shoulders/triceps
Back