manishbodybuilderindia
05-25-2011, 04:30 PM
Now that you know what weightlifting frequency will work best for you, you need to pick a weekly split and schedule that allows that ideal frequency to be reached. At the same time, it also needs to allow for optimal recovery and fit your own personal schedule. Here are some recommendations…
The 3 Day Full Body Split
Monday: Full Body Workout
Tuesday: off
Wednesday: Full Body Workout
Thursday: off
Friday: Full Body Workout
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
Literally all of the most highly proven and often recommended weightlifting workout routines for beginners with ANY goal use this 3 day full body split. It allows each muscle group (or key exercise) to be trained 3 times per week, which allows beginners to build muscle and increase strength at the fastest rate possible. For this same reason, it’s also ideal for people past the beginners stage whose #1 goal is increasing strength.
The 4 Day Upper/Lower Split
Monday: Upper Body
Tuesday: Lower Body
Wednesday: off
Thursday: Upper Body
Friday: Lower Body
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
And here is the workout schedule that I personally use and most often recommend to pretty much EVERYONE besides beginners. It allows for each muscle group to be trained twice per week, which is what has been proven to work best for intermediate and advanced trainees. Many of the most effective workout routines on the planet use this split.
A 3 day version of this upper/lower split is also possible and equally effective, which is ideal for people who can only manage to work out 3 days per week or would just prefer a slightly reduced weightlifting frequency. You’d just do upper, lower, upper one week, and then lower, upper, lower the next and keep alternating like that (with 1 day off between workouts and 2 days off at the end).
The Push/Pull/Legs Split
Monday: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps
Tuesday: Back, Biceps
Wednesday: off
Thursday: Legs
Friday: off
Saturday: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps
Sunday: Back, Biceps
Monday: off
Tuesday: Legs
Wednesday: off
And here is one of the only true “body part splits” that I actually like. Most body part splits used in typical bodybuilding programs train each muscle group once per week. As I explained earlier, this is the least effective weightlifting frequency. However, this split avoids that. It’s slightly less frequent than the 4 day upper/lower split above, but still more frequent than once per week.
The only problem with workout routines using this schedule is that the days the workouts fall on will vary from week to week, which could be a problem for people whose personal schedules aren’t that flexible (which is a big part of why I usually recommend upper/lower). Still, while there are a few other ways to make the push/pull/legs split work, this is probably the best of them all.
My Recommendations
For beginners with any goal, the full body split is definitely my only recommendation. For everyone else, the 3 or 4 day upper/lower split is what I recommend most, with the push/pull/legs split being another great option if your schedule can make it work. For additional details on these splits as well as a few other variations, check out my article about workout plans and weight training splits.
As for the typical once-per-week body part splits, leave them for the bodybuilders on every drug known to man. Us regular people with average genetics do best with these.
The Best Intensity
As far as weightlifting workout routines go, intensity can have a few different meanings. In most cases (including this one), we’re talking about how heavy or light the weight you are lifting is. The heavier it is, the higher your intensity is and the less reps you’ll be able to do. The lighter it is, the lower your intensity is and the more reps you’ll be able to do. The question is…
How many reps should you do per set?
Honestly, anywhere between 1-20 reps per set can serve some type of purpose in weightlifting. However, this could definitely be narrowed down quite a bit based on your specific goal:
Doing 1-6 reps per set is best for increasing strength.
Doing 5-12 reps per set is best for building muscle.
Doing 10-20 reps per set is best for improving muscular endurance.
Which means, for the majority of the people reading this, you’re most likely going to want to do between 5-12 reps per set. This is the rep range used in nearly all of the workout routines aimed at building muscle or improving the way your body looks.
And for anyone wondering why I didn’t mention that higher reps were best for getting toned, it’s because they’re not. As I explain in my article about How To Get Toned & Defined, it’s pure bullshit.
The Best Volume
Volume refers to the amount of work being done (sets, reps, exercises) in your workouts. This could mean total volume per workout, or per week, or per exercise, or per muscle group. Each is important, but the one we need to care about the most is total volume per muscle group. Why? Because this is a crucial part of ensuring we’re doing enough to get results, but not too much to hurt recovery. So…
The 3 Day Full Body Split
Monday: Full Body Workout
Tuesday: off
Wednesday: Full Body Workout
Thursday: off
Friday: Full Body Workout
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
Literally all of the most highly proven and often recommended weightlifting workout routines for beginners with ANY goal use this 3 day full body split. It allows each muscle group (or key exercise) to be trained 3 times per week, which allows beginners to build muscle and increase strength at the fastest rate possible. For this same reason, it’s also ideal for people past the beginners stage whose #1 goal is increasing strength.
The 4 Day Upper/Lower Split
Monday: Upper Body
Tuesday: Lower Body
Wednesday: off
Thursday: Upper Body
Friday: Lower Body
Saturday: off
Sunday: off
And here is the workout schedule that I personally use and most often recommend to pretty much EVERYONE besides beginners. It allows for each muscle group to be trained twice per week, which is what has been proven to work best for intermediate and advanced trainees. Many of the most effective workout routines on the planet use this split.
A 3 day version of this upper/lower split is also possible and equally effective, which is ideal for people who can only manage to work out 3 days per week or would just prefer a slightly reduced weightlifting frequency. You’d just do upper, lower, upper one week, and then lower, upper, lower the next and keep alternating like that (with 1 day off between workouts and 2 days off at the end).
The Push/Pull/Legs Split
Monday: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps
Tuesday: Back, Biceps
Wednesday: off
Thursday: Legs
Friday: off
Saturday: Chest, Shoulders and Triceps
Sunday: Back, Biceps
Monday: off
Tuesday: Legs
Wednesday: off
And here is one of the only true “body part splits” that I actually like. Most body part splits used in typical bodybuilding programs train each muscle group once per week. As I explained earlier, this is the least effective weightlifting frequency. However, this split avoids that. It’s slightly less frequent than the 4 day upper/lower split above, but still more frequent than once per week.
The only problem with workout routines using this schedule is that the days the workouts fall on will vary from week to week, which could be a problem for people whose personal schedules aren’t that flexible (which is a big part of why I usually recommend upper/lower). Still, while there are a few other ways to make the push/pull/legs split work, this is probably the best of them all.
My Recommendations
For beginners with any goal, the full body split is definitely my only recommendation. For everyone else, the 3 or 4 day upper/lower split is what I recommend most, with the push/pull/legs split being another great option if your schedule can make it work. For additional details on these splits as well as a few other variations, check out my article about workout plans and weight training splits.
As for the typical once-per-week body part splits, leave them for the bodybuilders on every drug known to man. Us regular people with average genetics do best with these.
The Best Intensity
As far as weightlifting workout routines go, intensity can have a few different meanings. In most cases (including this one), we’re talking about how heavy or light the weight you are lifting is. The heavier it is, the higher your intensity is and the less reps you’ll be able to do. The lighter it is, the lower your intensity is and the more reps you’ll be able to do. The question is…
How many reps should you do per set?
Honestly, anywhere between 1-20 reps per set can serve some type of purpose in weightlifting. However, this could definitely be narrowed down quite a bit based on your specific goal:
Doing 1-6 reps per set is best for increasing strength.
Doing 5-12 reps per set is best for building muscle.
Doing 10-20 reps per set is best for improving muscular endurance.
Which means, for the majority of the people reading this, you’re most likely going to want to do between 5-12 reps per set. This is the rep range used in nearly all of the workout routines aimed at building muscle or improving the way your body looks.
And for anyone wondering why I didn’t mention that higher reps were best for getting toned, it’s because they’re not. As I explain in my article about How To Get Toned & Defined, it’s pure bullshit.
The Best Volume
Volume refers to the amount of work being done (sets, reps, exercises) in your workouts. This could mean total volume per workout, or per week, or per exercise, or per muscle group. Each is important, but the one we need to care about the most is total volume per muscle group. Why? Because this is a crucial part of ensuring we’re doing enough to get results, but not too much to hurt recovery. So…