The Ultimate Muscle Building Split Reference Guide

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Training splits can be a mystery. With so many available options and possibilities, it's easy to be confused about which splits are effective, and which are poorly structured. If you've ever wondered just why and how training splits are designed, and just what some of the best training split options are, you've come to the right place. So grab a protein shake, sit down and start reading.

Before we dig in, I want to explain a few simple rules. These rules will help you to understand the reasoning behind many popular workouts on Muscle & Strength. Keep in mind that rules are meant to be bent, and in some cases broken.

Some individuals recover more quickly than others or have learned from experience that they can break a few of the rules and make great progress. For this reason, some of the splits you see used by experienced natural bodybuilders might break the rules.

In general, it's best to stay within the boundaries of the routines presented in this reference guide. Many trainees mistakenly believe that adding volume or additional workouts is the secret key to rapid growth.

Recommended: Need help building muscle? Take our Free Muscle Building Course

This is far from true. Muscle building isn't simply add more sets, make greater gains. There are more factors involved with progress than the number of sets you perform.

Trust in the process. Believe in the conventional wisdom used by the muscle building community. The workout splits in this reference guide are effective choices. Use them, learn your body in the process, evolve your training, and smash your goals!

Quick jump to the sub-sections on this page:

1. Training Split Rules
2. A Look At Weekly Training Volume
3. Sets Per Body Part
4. 2 Day Muscle Building Splits
5. 3 Day Muscle Building Splits
6. 4 Day Muscle Building Splits
7. 5 Day Muscle Building Splits
8. Notes

Training Split Rules​

1. Chest and Triceps: Don't train chest the day after triceps, or vice versa. The triceps are heavily involved with pressing movements used to hit the chest. If you work triceps the day before chest, your triceps will be fatigued and could limit your chest workout productivity. If you work chest the day before triceps, your triceps will be fatigued and will receive a pounding two days in a row.
2. Back and Biceps: Don't train back the day after biceps. The biceps are heavily involved with pulling/rowing movements used to blast the back. If you work biceps the day before back, your biceps will be fatigued and could limit your back workout productivity.
3. Squats and Deadlifts: Don't train squats and deadlifts on back to back days. Both squats and deadlifts utilize many of the same muscle groups. These lifts are considered posterior chain movements, meaning they both target the lower back, spinae erectors, glutes, hamstrings, etc. It's best to have a few rest days in between these lifts.
4. Traps: Don't obsess about direct trap work. The traps are worked hard when deadlifting, and also during overhead pressing and other shoulder exercises such as laterals. Do not assume that you need an excessive amount of direct traps work to build big traps. In fact, if you are deadlifting and using a form of the military press, you may not need much direct trap work at all.
5. Forearms: Don't obsess about direct forearm work. As with traps, the forearms are worked hard by numerous other lifts. The mere act of gripping barbells and dumbbells day in and day out is often enough to stimulate quality forearm growth. Do not assume you need an excessive amount of direct forearm stimulation.
6. Rear Delts: Don't overwork the rear delts. The rear delts are hit hard on back day, and during some shoulder exercises for front and side delts. If you look at the rowing/pulling motion of most back exercises, you will notice that they are in the same family tree as rear laterals (bent over reverse flys). Some rear delt work is good, but you do not need an abundance of rear delt exercises to have great looking rear delts.
7. Front Delts: Don't overwork the front delts. The front delts are aggressively hammered when using pressing motions for chest and shoulders. These pressing movements should be the core of your front delt work. While it is a good idea to add in an additional isolation exercise (such as front raises) for your front delts, you do not need an abundance of front delt exercises to have great looking front delts.
8. Abs: Incorporate some form of a heavy ab exercise. Far too often the abs are worked the same way day in and day out, with no added resistance. Make sure you incorporate some form of progressive resistance into your ab routine to help build a thick, amazing looking six-pack. These exercise include, but are not limited to: weighted sit-ups, crunches and leg lifts, and cable crunches.
9. Arm Work: Stop obsessing about direct arm work. Working your arms hard each week is good. Believing that you need to work your arms with 30 sets, three times per week is obsessive compulsive. Big arms are built with heavy rowing and pressing movements. Direct bicep and tricep work helps to build big arms (obviously), but you do not need to overkill the amount of sets you perform.
10. Legs: Work your legs! Don't be a chicken-legged gym rat who avoids hard leg exercises. Not only do muscular legs look impressive, but strong legs will also improve athletic performance, helping you to jump higher, run faster, and explode out of the gate on sprints.
11. Isolation Movements: Don't overuse isolation exercises. Isolation movements have their place in weight training. But with that said, it makes no sense to perform 5 sets of dumbbell flyes or tricep kickbacks if you are not working your chest and triceps hard with a battery of heavy pressing movements.
12. Dips and Pull-Ups: Don't discount the power of dips and pull-ups. Though these exercises are bodyweight exercises, the dip is known as the upper body squat for it's overall muscle-building effectiveness, and pull-ups are an amazing back blaster. If these exercises get easy, use a weight belt, and add resistance.
13. Lower Back: Don't overwork the lower back with too much direct work. The lower back is taxed hard enough as it is. A few additional sets for the lower back are good, but overworking your lower back can often result in muscle fatigue, and strains which can lead to further injuries. Do enough lower back work to stay strong, but not so much that you aren't able to function for several days.

Related: 20 Must-Read Tips For Building Muscle & Burning Fat

A Look At Weekly Training Volume​

Training a body part twice, or even three times a week is a viable option for many. Small muscle groups can often be trained more frequently. In fact, large muscle groups can be training twice or even three times a week if the daily volume of sets is kept in check.

One of the mistakes that many trainees make when exercising a muscle group multiple times per week is that they try to keep the volume high on each day. This is a misguided approach.

Regardless of how often you train a muscle group, a good guideline is to use the same weekly amount of sets. Let's look at a few examples:

• Twice a Week Training: If you are currently working your chest once a week for 12 sets and want to work your chest twice a week for extra stimulation, do not perform 2 weekly workouts of 12 sets each (a total of 24 sets). Instead, work your chest with only 6 sets per workout, for the same weekly total of 12 sets.
• Training Three Times Per Week: If you are currently working your biceps once a week for 9 sets and want to instead work them three times a week for extra stimulation, do not perform 3 weekly workouts of 9 sets each (a total of 27 sets). Instead, work your biceps with only 3 sets per workout, for the same weekly total of 9 sets.

A Note About Hard-Gainers​

For many hard-gainers, training a muscle group more frequently, but a lower daily set volume will be more effective. If you are having a difficult time building muscle on a training split, and believe yourself to be a hard-gainer or ectomorph, it is well worth your time to experiment with more frequent training.

Training each muscle group twice, or even three times per week with a limited volume might be the key to building more muscle.

Related: How to Increase Muscle Size With German Volume Training

Factors That Impact Training Frequency​

Muscle soreness, and a muscle's ability to recover, are not the only factors involved when trying to decide how often you should train a muscle group. You also have to consider the strain that frequent training places on your joints, connective tissue (ligaments and tendons), CNS (central nervous system), etc.

If you've never trained a muscle group more than once a week, and want to try a more frequent approach, don't rush into this approach with heavy weight. Take a few weeks to allow your body to adapt to the demands of this new training style.

Keep in mind that the heavier weight you lift, the less likely you are to benefit from high-frequency training. Heavy weight taxes the CNS, joints and connective tissue to a much greater degree.

It's not that a higher training frequency won't work, but more so that it may take a much longer period for your body to condition itself to this style of training.

Also, many advanced lifters that do utilize a more frequent training approach often cycle their workout intensity. Some workouts may focus on heavy weight for low reps, and some on moderate or a relatively lighter weight for 10-15 (or more) reps.

Sets Per Bodypart​

Bodypart Training Once A Week​

As a general rule, stick with the following weekly sets per muscle group. When uncertain, always start with the lowest amount of sets, and only add sets if this approach is ineffective.

• 9 to 15 weekly sets - Large Muscle Groups: These groups include chest, back, shoulders, and quads.
• 6 to 9 weekly sets - Small Muscle Groups: These groups include biceps, triceps, calves, abs, and hamstrings.
• 0 to 3 weekly sets - Minor Muscle Groups: These groups include lower back, forearms, rear delts, and traps.

Bodypart Training Twice A Week​

When training a bodypart twice a week, use the following number of sets per workout:

• 4 to 8 working sets - Large Muscle Groups: These groups include chest, back, shoulders, and quads.
• 3 to 5 working sets - Small Muscle Groups: These groups include biceps, triceps, calves, abs, and hamstrings.
• 0 to 3 working sets - Minor Muscle Groups: These groups include lower back, forearms, rear delts, and traps.

Bodypart Training Three Times A Week​

When training a bodypart three times a week, use the following number of sets per workout:

• 3 to 5 working sets - Large Muscle Groups: These groups include chest, back, shoulders, and quads.
• 0 to 3 working sets - Small Muscle Groups: These groups include biceps, triceps, calves, abs, and hamstrings.
• 0 to 3 working sets - Minor Muscle Groups: These groups include lower back, forearms, rear delts, and traps.

Note: When using a three times per week training system, you may choose to avoid working smaller and minor muscle groups each day. Because of the weekly set volume restrictions, it might be more convenient to train biceps and calves 1-2 times per week.

You certainly can train these muscle groups three times a week. Minor muscle groups should be worked only once a week unless they are a weak bodypart in need of extra work.

Important note: Certain splits will have unique limitations, such as a 2-day split, and therefore will deviate slightly from set per day recommendations.

The following muscle building fullbody workouts and splits are provided for example purposes. Feel free to alter them to fit your individual needs. Exercise selection is based upon the most effective lifts for each muscle group.

2 Day Muscle Building Splits​

While 2-day splits are rarely used, they are a very viable option for adding muscle and strength. In fact, natural strength trainer and author John Christy used them successfully on thousands of clients.

Consider using a 2-day split if you live a busy life, or need more recovery days per week. Make sure to stick with compound lifts for each major muscle group. Here are some recommended compound exercise choices:

• Quads: Squats, Leg Press, Front Squats, Hack Squats.
• Chest: Bench Press, Dips, Dumbbell Bench Press, Incline Bench Press, Close Grip Bench Press.
• Back: Deadlift, Barbell Rows, Pull-Ups, Dumbbell Rows, T-bar Rows, Seated Cable Rows.
• Shoulders: Push Press, Military Presses, Seated Behind The neck Press, Seated Dumbbell Press, Seated Arnold Press.

Note: If you plan on using both deadlifts and squats on a 2-day split, it may be beneficial to use squats on day 1, and deadlifts on day 2, instead of performing both exercises on the same workout day.

Related: 10 Delicious Homemade Weight Gainer Shake Recipes With 800+ Calories

2 Day Full Body Workout​

You may choose to add in traps, forearms, direct hamstring, lower back, and rear delt work if needed.

Day 1: Monday​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Squat	3-5	5-12
Bench Press	3-5	5-12
Barbell Row	3-5	5-12
Military Press	3-5	5-12
Barbell Curl	3	8-12
Abs Exercise of Choice	3	10-25

Day 2: Thursday​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Deadlift	3-5	5-8
Dips or Dumbbell Bench Press	3-5	5-12
Leg Press	3-5	5-20
Upright Row	3-5	5-12
Close Grip Bench Press	3	5-12
Seated Calf Raise	3	10-25

2 Day Upper Lower Split​

You may choose to add in traps, forearms, and rear delt work if needed. Triceps are worked hard on the upper body day and do not require much direct (isolation) work. Try to limit working sets to 24 or fewer. You may need to drop an exercise or two, or lower sets per exercise, to accommodate additional work.

Day 1: Upper Body​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Bench Press	3	5-12
Dips or Dumbbell Bench Press	3	5-12
Barbell Row	3	5-12
Pull-Ups	3	5-12
Military Press	3	5-12
Side Laterals	3	8-15
Skullcrushers or Seated Dumbbell Extension	3	5-12
Barbell Curl	3	8-12

Day 2: Lower Body​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Squat	3	3-6
Leg Press or Leg Extension	3	5-20
Hack Squat or Barbell Lunge	3	5-12
Romanian Deadlift	3	5-12
Leg Curl	3	5-20
Seated Calf Raise	3	10-25
Abs Exercise of Choice	3	3-6
Hyperextension	3	8-12

3 Day Muscle Building Splits​

3 day splits are an excellent choice for natural muscle building. They offer a quality mix of time in the gym, and off days for recovery. 3 day per week full-body workouts have a long and illustrious track record.

Before the modern era, full-body workouts were the norm. Many bodybuilders of the early '70s utilized full-body workouts early in their careers, including Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Related: Forget Steroids: 5 Full Body Workouts For Serious Gains

The 3 day push, pull, legs split is also a very effective option. It allows you to concentrate on a similar group of muscles each training day and provides a week of rest before working them again.

3 Day Full Body Workout​

For major body parts, it can be beneficial to use a different exercise on each training day. This can keep the program fresh, and provide maximum muscle stimulation. You could also use the same major exercises on Monday and Friday, such as squats, bench press, etc.

If you are performing both squats and deadlifts, it is recommended that you perform squats on Monday and Friday, and deadlifts on Wednesday.

As with 2 day workouts, it is best to focus on compound exercises for each major muscle group. You may choose to make Wednesday a slightly lighter training day, in which case it's completely acceptable to focus more on isolation exercises.

You may choose to add in traps, forearms, lower back, direct hamstring work, and rear delts if needed.

Day 1: Monday​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Squat	3-5	5-12
Bench Press	3-5	5-12
Barbell Row	3-5	5-12
Seated Dumbbell Press	3-5	5-12
Barbell or Dumbbell Curl	3	8-12
Skullcrushers or Seated Dumbbell Extension	3	5-12

Day 2: Wednesday​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Deadlift	3-5	5-8
Dips	3-5	5-12
Pull-Ups	3-5	5-12
Military Press	3-5	5-12
Seated Calf Raise	3	10-25
Abs Exercise of Choice	3	10-25

Day 3: Friday​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Leg Press	3-5	5-20
Dumbbell Bench Press or Incline Bench Press	3-5	5-12
Dumbbell Row or Seated Cable Row	3-5	5-12
Upright Row	3-5	5-12
Barbell or Dumbbell Curl	3	8-12
Skullcrushers or Seated Dumbbell Extension	3	5-12

3 Day Push Pull Legs Split​

This 3 day split allows you to incorporate a wider selection of exercises per body part. Muscle soreness (DOMs) will generally be greater than when on a full-body workout, but you will have plenty of recovery time. You may choose to add in forearms, lower back, or more ab work if needed.

Day 1: Push​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Bench Press	3	5-12
Military Press	3	5-12
Dips or Dumbbell Bench Press	3	5-12
Upright Row, Arnold Press or Side Laterals	3	5-12
Dumbbell Fly or Pec Dec	3	8-15
Skullcrusher or Seated Dumbbell Extension	3	5-12
Cable Tricep Extension or French Press	3	5-12

Day 2: Legs​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Squat	3	5-12
Leg Press	3	5-20
Leg Extension or Hack Squat	3	5-20
Romanian Deadlift	3	5-12
Leg Curl	3	5-20
Seated Calf Raise	3	10-25
Abs Exercise of Choice	3	10-25

Day 3: Pull​

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Deadlift	3	5-8
Barbell Row	3	5-12
Pull-Up	3	5-12
Barbell Curl or Dumbbell Curl	3	8-12
Concentration Curl or Preacher Curl	3	8-12
Barbell Shrug or Dumbbell Shrug	3	8-15
Bent Over Reverse Dumbbell Fly	3	8-15

4 Day Muscle Building Splits​

4 and 5 day muscle building workouts are much more complicated than 2 and 3 day workouts. There are far more possibilities, and combined with the complexities of exercise selection, you are left with a substantial number of training variations.

Because of the numerous amount of variations, these sections will not list sample workouts. Instead, you will be provided with popular split variations.

A commonly asked question is: "which split or workout is the most effective?" Many natural lifters will respond best to working out only 3-4 days per week.

Never try a 5 or 6 day split before you have put in some time with a 3 or 4 day split, and have gained an understanding as to how your body responds to that amount of training volume. But to answer the original question, there is no magic split.

Pick a workout that motivates you to train, and stick with it. Never jump around from workout to workout. It takes time to learn your body and its limits. Jumping around each week will limit your progress.

4 Day Split Examples​

The following are examples of 4 day splits from the Muscle & Strength workouts database. When designing your own 4 day split, please keep your total workout set volume inline with the guidelines presented above.

• Pyramid Volume Training
• 4 Day Barbell Only Workout (No Rack Required)
• Scrutiny's 4 Day Muscle Building Split
• 4 Day Power Muscle Burn Workout Split
• Sean Sullivan's Power Base Workout
• Steve's Density And Strength 4 Day Split
• Shaun's 4 Day Progressive Overload Split
• Doug's Mass Building Routine For Ectomorphs
• 4 Day Bodybuilding Split By Shaun
• Dave's Upper/Lower Split (DULS)
• Shaun's 4 Day Muscle Building Split Routine
• 4 Day Split Bodybuilding Split Routine
• Doug's 4 Day Split Workout
• Dave's V.I.F. Mass Building Workout
• 10 Week mass Building Program
• Intermediate 4 Day Split Workout

4 Day Split #1 - Chest and Triceps, Back and Biceps​

• Monday: Chest, Triceps, and Abs
• Tuesday: Back and Biceps (Forearms may also be added)
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Shoulders, Traps, and Abs
• Friday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #2 - Chest and Biceps, Back and Triceps​

• Monday: Chest, Biceps, and Abs
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Shoulders, Traps, and Abs
• Friday: Back and Triceps (Forearms may also be added)
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #3 - Shoulders and Biceps​

• Monday: Chest, Triceps, and Abs
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Back, Traps, and Abs
• Friday: Shoulders, Biceps, and Forearms
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #4 - Chest and Back​

• Monday: Chest, Back, and Abs
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Shoulders, Traps, and Abs
• Friday: Triceps and Biceps (Forearms may also be added)
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #5 - Leg Focus​

• Monday: Quads, Calves, and Abs
• Tuesday: Chest and Triceps
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Back, Biceps, and Traps
• Friday: Hamstrings, Shoulders, and Abs
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #6 - Arm Focus​

• Monday: Chest, Triceps, and Biceps
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Shoulders, Traps, and Abs
• Friday: Back, Triceps, and Biceps
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #7 - Chest Focus​

• Monday: Chest, Triceps, and Abs
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Chest, Shoulders, and Abs
• Friday: Back and Biceps (Forearms may also be added)
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

4 Day Split #8 - Upper Lower​

• Monday: Chest, Back, Shoulders, and Arms
• Tuesday: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, and Abs
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Chest, Back, Shoulders, and Arms
• Friday: Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, and Abs
• Saturday: REST
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Muscle Building Splits​

5 day splits are very popular, especially in the realm of mainstream bodybuilding magazines. It is quite common to see a novice trainee jump right into a 5 day split used by their bodybuilding hero, only to find out that they are not gaining muscle as fast as expected.

Related: 3 Reasons Why Body Part Training Splits Are Still Worthwhile

5 day muscle-building splits are generally best used by intermediate and advanced lifters who know their body's limits. Beginners need to not only learn how to build muscle on a basic program but also need to dial in their muscle building diets before they add in additional training volume.

5 Day Split Examples​

The following are examples of 5 day splits from the Muscle & Strength workouts database. When designing your own 5 day split, please keep your total workout set volume inline with the guidelines presented above.

• Power Muscle Burn 5 Day Powerbuilding Split
• Shaun's 30 Minute Workout Split Routine
• Muscle Size, Shape and Definition Workout
• Intermediate Muscle Building Workout
• Advanced Bodybuilder Workout
• Dumbbell & Barbell Mass Workout

5 Day Split #1 - Arm Day​

• Monday: Chest and Abs
• Tuesday: Back and Traps
• Wednesday: Quads and Hamstrings
• Thursday: REST
• Friday: Shoulders and Calves
• Saturday: Triceps and Biceps
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Split #2 - Chest and Back​

• Monday: Chest and Back
• Tuesday: Quads, Calves, and Abs
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Triceps and Biceps
• Friday: Hamstrings, Calves, and Abs
• Saturday: Shoulders and Traps
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Split #3 - Abs Focus​

• Monday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Abs
• Tuesday: Chest and Forearms
• Wednesday: Back, Traps, and Abs
• Thursday: REST
• Friday: Shoulders and Abs
• Saturday: Triceps and Biceps
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Split #4 - Arm Focus​

• Monday: Chest and Triceps
• Tuesday: Back, Biceps and Abs
• Wednesday: Quads, Hamstrings, and Calves
• Thursday: REST
• Friday: Shoulders and Triceps
• Saturday: Biceps, Forearms, Traps, and Abs
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Split #5 - Chest Focus​

• Monday: Chest and Shoulders
• Tuesday: Back, Traps and Abs
• Wednesday: Quads and Hamstrings
• Thursday: REST
• Friday: Chest and Triceps
• Saturday: Biceps, Forearms, Calves, and Abs
• Sunday: REST

5 Day Split #6 - Squat and Deadlift Focus​

• Monday: Quads (with squats) and Calves
• Tuesday: Chest, Triceps, and Abs
• Wednesday: REST
• Thursday: Deadlifts and Hamstrings
• Friday: Shoulders, Traps, and Abs
• Saturday: Back and Biceps
• Sunday: REST

Notes​

As stated earlier in this reference guide, the rules for designing muscle building workouts can be broken. Nothing on this page is presented as a hard and fast rule. But, that does not mean ignoring all the rules, and designing a counterintuitive program is a smart way to go.

There are many camps when it comes to training - HIIT, volume, full-body, those that fear overtraining, and those that think overtraining is a joke. One consistent theme that runs through all of these camps is that at the end of the day everything works.

Related: Volume Vs. High Intensity: Which Style Of Training Is Best For Muscle Growth

While this sounds impossible, it's true. The most important aspects when it comes to muscle building are:

1. Training consistency: Don't miss too many workouts. Muscle building takes years. Are you willing to pay this price?
2. Evolution: Start slow and evolve your training. Begin with a simple approach, and add pieces as needed.
3. Know your body: A training split is no good if it pushes your body in ways that put you at risk for strains, overtraining, and injury. Just because someone is making gains by training to failure, or performing rest-pause training, doesn't mean you should do it too - regardless of the cost.

When performing any split it's ok to bend the rules, don't smash the rules! Bodybuilding splits, including training volume and exercise selection therein, is the cumulation of decades of anecdotal and scientific evidence. Simply put, workout splits are structured the way they are for a reason! They are not a result of some random toss of the dice.

You do not see pro natural bodybuilders working biceps 4 times per week with heavy volume. You do not see pro natural bodybuilders avoiding difficult exercises. You do not see pro natural bodybuilders lifting weights seven days a week. More is not better. Make sure you focus on quality workouts and a quality eating plan. Stay humble, keep your mind open, and trust in the process.