How to choose a workout split

Start from the days you can train

Count the days you can train in a normal week, not a perfect one. Then pick the split that trains every muscle at least twice in that many sessions, if it can.

What matters more than the split

Every split on this page can build muscle and strength. The differences between them are small next to three things:

• Enough hard sets per muscle each week. Most lifters do well on about 10 to 20. See how many sets per muscle per week.
• Doing a little more over time. More weight or more reps than last time. See progressive overload.
• Showing up. A 3-day plan you never miss beats a 6-day plan you do four days of.

One thing the split does change is how often each muscle is trained. For the same number of sets, training a muscle twice a week tends to work a little better than once, mostly because the sets are spread out and each one is done fresher.

The four splits, in short

Full body

Every session trains legs, a push and a pull. It is the best start for beginners, because you practise each lift often, and the best fit for anyone with two or three days a week. Missing a session costs little, since every muscle is in the next one.

Upper / Lower

Upper body one day, legs the next, four days a week. Each muscle gets two sessions, and each session has room for more sets per muscle than full body. The usual next step after full body.

Push Pull Legs

Pressing muscles, pulling muscles, then legs. Run twice a week, it trains every muscle twice in six shorter sessions. Great if you like being in the gym most days; hard to keep up if you often miss them.

Body-part split

One muscle group a day, five days a week. Lots of sets and variety for each muscle, but each one is trained only once a week, and a missed day means a muscle goes two weeks untrained.

When to switch

Give a split at least 8 to 12 weeks before judging it. Switch when your schedule changes, when you keep missing sessions, or when you want more sets per muscle than your current split fits. Don’t switch because a lift stalled for a week: that is a job for your progression, not your split.

Running a split in Musclist

In Musclist, a routine is a rotation, not a calendar. Add the workouts of your split, like Upper A, Lower A, Upper B and Lower B, and the app suggests the next one each time you train. Miss a day and nothing breaks: the next workout is still the next one. Each program page lists the exercises to add.