The optimal training program for most fitness enthusiasts is. If you draw up a training plan correctly, then three visits to the gym per week will be enough for a natural bodybuilder. In his body, the restoration and development of muscle fibers occurs faster than with the use of sports pharmacology.
What is a 3 day split?
The training scheme assumes that a person works out in the gym 3 times a week. That is why it is becoming increasingly popular among professionals and beginners.
Classes using the 3-day split system involve dividing muscles into groups. At each training session, the athlete works only one of them. During the week, all muscles are used, and only once. So, one day is dedicated to the biceps and back, the second to the triceps and chest, the third to the shoulders and legs. The scheme is adjusted based on the individual characteristics of the person and the result he wants to get.
Previously, bodybuilders tried to pump up all their muscles in one workout. Such programs are imperfect. If an athlete performs many exercises and performs a large number of approaches, increased loads quickly lead to fatigue. The latest exercises no longer provide proper muscle pumping.
Therefore, exhausting and ineffective workouts were replaced by a 3-day split. It is based on separate pumping of individual muscle groups. The body has time to rest and recover between classes. Training becomes more effective and requires less time.
Pros of the program
Athletes are switching to a 3-day split because it allows them to work out their muscles better. Among its advantages are also:
- Reducing the duration of training. By working not all, but only some muscle groups, the duration of training is reduced. Previously, athletes had to spend 1.5-2 hours a day in the gym. You need to exercise for 30-45 minutes within a 3-day split.
- Increasing the intensity of training. It is easier to work a single muscle group than the whole body at once. Training in this case will be more effective and focused on the quality of training, and not on the number of approaches. The end result will appear faster.
- Reduced feelings of fatigue. Mood is one of the main factors influencing the effectiveness of training. If it lasts 2 hours, the athlete will feel very tired at the end, and no one will like that. As a result, the athlete's motivation decreases. A half-hour lesson within a 3-day split is another matter. After it, you only feel a slight tugging in the muscles, which does not cause severe discomfort. The results are also much better.
Video: Ivan Vodyanov - how to create a 3-day split
Drawing up an individual split
Trainers have developed a large number of effective split programs designed for 3 days a week. Some differ significantly from each other, but all are based on the same principle. It is assumed that in one workout the bodybuilder will work on the pulling muscles, on another on the pushing muscles, and on the third on the legs.
The following 3-day split options are effective:
- Back - biceps, chest - triceps, legs - shoulders.
- Back - biceps - rear deltoids, chest - triceps - front deltoids, legs.
- Back - triceps, chest - shoulders, legs - shoulders.
- Back - chest, arms - shoulders, legs.
Beginner athletes and those who have not exercised for a long time should start by working out all the muscles in one workout. They should do an exercise for each muscle group in 3 sets. During the first week you need to conduct 2-3 such trainings. It is recommended to do different exercises on each of them. This will ensure balanced and uniform muscle development. Another plus is that a variety of exercises will make the training interesting, it won’t get boring.
You can't train to the point of exhaustion. A 3-day split involves varying the intensity of exercise - the weight of the weights and the number of repetitions. It's worth doing a light, medium, and hard workout every week.
Gradually, strength and endurance will increase. You will realize that it is impossible to load your entire body in one workout. You will have to increase the number of exercises for each muscle group and the duration of training. There will only be 3 gym classes each week. There is a possibility that the athlete will overtrain. Progress in strength and mass will end, it will be replaced by stagnation.
To prevent this from happening, you should move to a new stage - the “top-bottom” split: one day to devote to working the muscles of the upper body, the other to the lower body. You can continue doing just 3 workouts per week. The lesson schedule should be as follows: the first week - top - bottom - top, the second - bottom - top - bottom.
Over time, this training scheme will also become insufficiently effective. From this moment on, they switch to a 3-day split. You can train according to the following scheme:
- Monday: working out the pectoral muscles, deltoids (middle and anterior fascicles), triceps.
- Wednesday: training the back, deltoids (posterior fascicles), trapezius and biceps.
- Friday: working out the quadriceps, hamstrings, calves and abs.
After training the leg muscles, take a two-day break. Such activities are the most energy-consuming. It takes longer for the nervous system to recover.
Within one lesson, a 3-day split combines synergistic muscles - working in pairs. Thus, when performing exercises to develop the pectoral muscles, the frontal heads of the deltoid muscles and triceps are actively involved. They warm up and are loaded to a certain extent. When starting to work through them, it will be enough to perform 1-2 exercises.
You can swap training for legs and back, rear deltoids, and biceps. In this case, after working out the leg muscles, you need to rest for a couple of days. Training is also allowed for two days in a row according to the following scheme:
- Monday - chest and synergistic muscles.
- Tuesday - legs.
- Wednesday and Thursday - rest.
- Friday - back and synergistic muscles.
Split to ground
Once your body adapts to the 3-day split, it's time to upgrade. Training will continue in a similar pattern, but with an increase in the number of exercises to 4 for large muscles and 2-3 for small ones. Another option is classes according to this scheme:
- Monday: chest muscles and biceps.
- Tuesday: quadriceps, hamstrings, calves and abdominal muscles.
- Friday: back, deltoids and triceps.
In this version of the 3-day split, the deltoid muscles are worked on the same days when the back and triceps are trained. Possible early fatigue of the triceps muscles of the shoulders. To prevent this, the deltoids are trained using dumbbell lifts, avoiding bench presses. Another option is to do dumbbell presses at the end of the deltoids. In this case, the weight will not be so large. Warm up your triceps before your workout.
Split on relief
During the drying period, the 3-day split remains the same as during weight gain. It is enough to increase the weight of the weights and reduce the number of repetitions to 6-8 in one approach. This will allow you to maintain muscle mass while following a reduced-calorie diet, which is necessary to get rid of fat deposits.
After weight training, you need to switch to cardio training. During this period, the body is tuned to burning fat - glycogen reserves are partially used up. You can do cardio in the morning on an empty stomach or follow this 3-day split program:
- Monday: chest and back muscles.
- Tuesday: quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, abdominal muscles.
- Friday: arms and shoulders.
To increase the energy intensity of weight training, you need to do supersets, triples and giant sets. When working your back and chest, you can combine exercises: do a set of exercises for the back, and after a couple of minutes - for the chest. Working weights need to be reduced slightly.
An effective set of exercises for the quadriceps, which specifically works different areas of the front surface of the thighs:
- Sissy squats.
- Leg extensions on the machine.
Within each approach, you need to do 10-12 repetitions of the exercise without breaks. After 5 minutes, you should do another 3-5 repetitions.
Supersets for working out the hamstrings:
- Deadlift on straight legs.
- Bend your knees while lying on a machine.
1. Bend your knees while lying on the machine.
2. The same, standing on the simulator.
3. Step-up (stepping onto the bench with each foot in turn).
Giant set for working deltoid muscles:
- Swing your arms across the sides with dumbbells, bending over.
- The same in a sitting position.
- Swing your arms with dumbbells in front of you while sitting.
- Seated dumbbell press.
Supersets are suitable for working out biceps and triceps.
Special training program for girls
Fitness experts recommend that girls load all their muscles in one session, training 2-3 times a week. Then you should switch to the “top-bottom” split according to the same scheme. It is better for girls to start training according to the 3-day split system after a couple of years of regular training. The standard scheme is as follows:
- Monday: back, buttocks and hamstrings.
- Wednesday: chest, arms and shoulders.
- Friday: front and back thighs, calves and abdominal muscles.
A 3-day split assumes that exercises are performed in at least 3 sets of 10-15 sets.
1 workout
- Pull-ups.
- Belt rows while sitting on a machine.
- Bent-over dumbbell rows, leaning on a bench.
Hips and buttocks:
- Deadlift on straight or slightly bent legs.
- Reverse hyperextension in a superset with a regular one.
- Breeding legs on the simulator.
2 training
- Raising your arms with dumbbells to the sides while lying on an inclined bench.
Deltoids:
- Swing dumbbells from side to side, bending over.
- Swing with dumbbells in front of you.
- Seated dumbbell press.
Triceps and biceps:
1. Bend your elbows with dumbbells while lying on an inclined bench plus extensions on the upper block.
2. Curling the arms with a barbell plus extension of the arms from behind the head on the lower block.
3 workout
Anterior and posterior thighs:
- Leg extensions at the knees on a machine in a superset with bends.
- Squats with a barbell on your shoulders.
- Leg presses, placing your feet high on the platform of the machine.
- Back lunges with dumbbells.
- Calf raises while standing on the machine.
1. Leg raises from a hanging position in a superset with twists.
2. Lumberjack exercise.
Before we move on to studying the basic split-system training schemes, I recommend that you decide how many times a week and on what days you will go to the gym. And after that, you can look at split training under a microscope and try it on in your training regime.
The basic principles of separate training were formulated at the dawn of bodybuilding. However, even today many beginners work, or at least think that they work, all muscle groups in one workout, and so on three times a week - on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. This strategy makes sense when you're learning exercises and reaching a basic level of functional readiness, but it only throws a spanner in the works if your goal is to gain muscle mass. Why is that?
I'll explain now. You become more experienced and your body gets used to standard loads. To effectively work one muscle group, you have to progressively increase the load, and training on the all-inclusive principle puts an enormous burden on your shoulders. In other words, it is no longer possible for you to work out all muscle groups efficiently and effectively and perform a sufficient number of approaches in one lesson. No matter how hard you try, at the end of the training session there is simply no fuel left in your tanks.
And it is at this moment that split training comes to the rescue. However, if you choose the wrong program, you will have the feeling that the system is too complex, ineffective and not suitable for your rhythm of life. Moreover, at the initial stage it may seem that you have to neglect the postulates of what is right for the sake of some newfangled six-day complex published in a glossy magazine. So, now I’ll tell you how to avoid such mistakes!
Food for thought
1. What about the schedule?
Before we move on to studying standard split-system training schemes (and there are many of them), I recommend deciding how many times a week and on what days you will visit the gym. This will be the deciding factor when choosing a program, especially if, like me, you work 12 hours a day, have a lot of obligations and a tiny window of free time.
Agree, in such a situation it is difficult to train more than two or three times a week. However, if you are young and have a lot of free time and a small cart, train at least every day. That is why I recommend choosing a split system, first of all, based on your life circumstances.
2. Is there time left for recovery?
Don't forget about rest and recovery, be sure to include these points in your training program. Remember, we grow not during training, but in the pauses between them, so never neglect the recovery period or shorten its duration.
Read the previous paragraph 5 times. You can even read it 10 times, it won’t hurt. I've been in bodybuilding for 25 years, and I constantly meet people who have never realized the importance of the recovery phase.
3. Are you sure you have recovered?
The schedule of training sessions depends on how the body’s internal resources are replenished, because different muscle groups recover in different ways. By visiting the gym two or three days in a row, you may be giving certain muscle groups a well-deserved rest, however, the body is still subject to an unbearable tax, which makes a huge hole in the budget for recovery processes.
How do you know if you have fully recovered from your previous workout? I offer two options:
- If the muscles still hurt, and it’s time to load this target group again, it means you haven’t had time to recover.
- If in the morning of the training day you feel overwhelmed and tired, and the day before you did not make any fundamental changes to the training process, it means that the stage of overtraining has arrived, and your body chronically does not have enough time to rest.
4. What factors influence recovery processes?
Recovery is a complex process that depends on the individual characteristics of the body and other factors, namely:
- Age
- Heredity
- Use of sports pharmacology
- Features of the diet
- Professional activity
- Training intensity
- Total number of approaches
Each of these factors affects the rate of recovery, so you should learn to adjust the training program to your rhythm of life and the characteristics of your body.
Frankly, if weightlifters paid more attention to these simple things, namely training until they worked up a sweat, but with a reasonable number of sets, and were more careful about their nutrition, their level of progress would skyrocket!
Main types of split training
After a lengthy introduction, we move on to the training. Since the number of split training options tends to be infinite, we will study only the basic types of split.
1. Two-day split
Basic concept: top-bottom. We divide the body in half, on the first day we work the legs, on the second - the arms, back and chest.
My opinion: it’s far from the most successful split, although it’s very common. Its main drawback is that on the first day we train only the legs, but on the second we will work on the pectoral muscles, biceps, deltoids, back muscles and triceps.
And don't forget about your trapezius, forearms and abdominals! Now tell me, can you perform this endless series of exercises with maximum impact, which is so necessary for muscle growth? You can't! Of course, unless you first adjust the program in such a way as to reduce the number of target groups and approaches on the second day. Then you will definitely achieve the desired effect!
For example:
- The first day: legs, back, biceps, forearm and abs
- Second day: chest, deltoids, triceps, abs.
A program like this typically revolves around basic exercises. Most often, it is designed for a 4-day period: Monday or Tuesday is allocated for the first block of exercises, Thursday or Friday for the second, and you have three days in your pocket for recovery. Another advantage of this split is that you can change the “location” of rest days within the cycle in a way that suits you. Anyone who has been following my publications for a long time knows that I am not an ardent supporter of the 7-day training week. If necessary, I switch to an 8 or even 9 day training period.
Please note that in this split, each exercise is performed only once a week, and many consider this a real godsend for hardgainers, because the muscles get enough time to recover. I also recommend limiting the number of approaches and not loading the arm muscles with isolating exercises - exclude them from the complex given above, and you will feel how much easier this split will be. Or reduce the total number of approaches to biceps and triceps and concentrate on working with large muscle groups (back, chest).
2. Three-day split
Basic Concept: Push-Pull
- The first day: legs, abs
- Second day: pectoral muscles, deltoids, triceps, abs
- Day three: back, biceps, forearm, abs.
Another common split training that has a number of undeniable advantages.
- The first day: We pay maximum attention to the legs, which is quite justified. If you squat (and you should squat) according to all the rules, the load on the body is enormous, and you will be exhausted from this exercise.
- Second day: dedicated to the “pushing” muscles. This makes sense because both the triceps and deltoids are involved in basic exercises for the chest muscles, and the triceps is connected to all movements aimed at training the deltoids.
- Day three: dedicated to “pulling” muscles. And this approach is quite justified, since both the biceps and forearm muscles are indirectly involved in exercises for the back muscles.
Some athletes do this split twice in one week (3 training days/rest day), although for most of us one cycle will last 7-9 days. You can use the principle of rotation and visit the gym strictly once every three days, or you can train on certain days of the week - for example, on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. But even then, you risk finding yourself in a predicament where fatigue prevents you from targeting your triceps, biceps, deltoids, or forearm muscles.
3. Four-day split
Basic concept: further division of muscle groups according to the push-pull principle.
- The first day: legs, abs
- Second day: chest, triceps, abs
- Day three: back, biceps, forearm
- Day four: deltoid muscles, abs
We combine large muscle groups with small ones or limit ourselves to working with one muscle mass. Thanks to this approach, you can give your muscles a very intense load. Professionals repeat this cycle every five days (one day of rest per 5-day cycle), but I advise you to distribute rest days arbitrarily, focusing primarily on the characteristics of your body. If you haven't already guessed, I highly recommend including as many rest days as possible in this split!
4. One workout - one muscle group
Rest days can be arranged as you wish, although many consider this split training as an “every day program” and visit the gym 6-7 days in a row. Muscles can be divided into groups arbitrarily, you can even use additional divisions within large muscle groups: the upper and lower sections of the latissimus muscles, the anterior, middle and posterior deltoids, and so on.
I note that this is not the most popular split, but it is perfect for preparing for competitions and/or for those who have more than enough free time.
5. Six-day split
This program was used by Arnold, who completed a three-day split twice in a week and allowed himself only one day of rest.
6. Double split
And Arnold switched to this split before the competition: training twice a day, six days a week.
7. Triple split
Perhaps the most difficult program for preparing for competitions is that we train three times a day. We work out large areas, such as legs, in the morning, cardio in the afternoon, and in the evening we leave small muscle groups (abs) and polish our posing.
Conclusion
As you can see, the choice is really great: some complexes are suitable only for those who have a lot of free time, but a three-day push-pull split will satisfy the needs of the majority. Personally, I prefer this particular program, although I am used to the four-day system (above in the text) with a separate workout for the deltoid muscles.
I allocated 8-9 days for one cycle to give the body time to recover. Also, this approach made it possible to pay attention to lagging muscle groups and achieve truly harmonious development. True, now I no longer use this split, since my schedule has changed a lot and the program does not fit it.
Most importantly, remember: any split, any training program should leave time for full recovery. Train as hard as you can, but limit the total number of sets and remember to eat right. And then you will definitely achieve success.
For people who lead an active lifestyle and take care of themselves, a new training system has been developed, thanks to which it is possible to pay attention to each muscle group and achieve the desired results in a short time.
Three day split- the latest development of training techniques, thanks to it, it turns out to arrange all muscle groups so that the athlete manages to use every muscle of his body in one set of exercises. Thanks to this, they are grouped in time and begin to work. The main thing is the right approach in this matter, and then the work of each muscle group will be built in the right way. To achieve this kind of results, you need to work hard and fulfill two simple conditions: pay attention throughout the training to small and large muscle groups, and learn to combine these muscle groups so that these same muscles become antagonists. The most reliable methods of training would be to combine such muscle groups as: chest and biceps, back and triceps, and legs and shoulders.
The result of such a properly organized training day will not take long to arrive! After all, first of all, the basic conditions of such training (which are described above) will be fulfilled. During the first training day, the athlete pays attention to the chest and biceps, in which case the chest acts as a large muscle group, which makes it follow it, and the biceps is a small group that follows the superior one. The largest muscle group of muscles goes to the human legs, and the shoulders remain to perform their main function only when walking or when the athlete does push-ups from the floor on his hands or while standing on the horizontal bar. And no matter how strange it may sound, in this case the shoulders are a large small muscle group, and thanks to training the legs, special hormones are released into the human body, which is why many recommend training the shoulders and legs together. You need to pay attention to the fact that you should always start training a large muscle group at the very beginning of the workout, and a small one at the end.
Plenty of time for rest and recovery – such a significant advantage is that the gap between training large muscle groups is quite large. It lasts approximately about a week, it helps not only beginner athletes, but also professionals gain strength and get in shape. More experienced athletes can independently distribute the level of load and divide training into several levels: light, medium and heavy. This helps the athlete strengthen absolutely all large muscle groups and bring the moment of their super compensation closer before each start of a new training day. You should not then think that the chest can be trained on the same principle as the legs. It will be necessary to divide the exercises with the legs into light, medium and heavy, and for the chest, choose only light and heavy levels of load. To achieve supercompensation of all muscle groups, you need to be very careful during exercise, and the athlete will also need to keep his own training diary, in which he can note all the techniques that are used during exercise and which muscle groups are trained on a given day. Keeping a diary will help you monitor the gradual achievement of results, and, if necessary, make corrections to the training process.
The training day schedule is suitable for any athlete - this advantage was described above. Now the emphasis is on what exactly this kind of difference is connected with. The whole point is that during training, muscle mass increases, and naturally, it will need a significantly longer time to recover. The principle is that if a muscle becomes large, then it needs more time to recover! The recovery process for the muscle is necessary because with each training the athlete plans to increase the load on his muscles; this is the only correct solution to force the human body to hypertrophy muscle mass. If there is no constant increase in loads, then the body will consider it necessary not to increase the volume of muscle tissue, and the process will stand still. In order to be able to increase the weight on the bar each time, the athlete needs to train precisely at the moment of supercompensation. note If the athlete’s attempts to increase the load are successful, then this scheme works great. There are no special schemes that would not work, you just need to use them wisely at a certain time, and you should only think about changing the training process if the previous training option does not allow the athlete to grow further.
Training small muscle groups should occur twice a day.– this distribution is obtained as a result of a special grouping of muscle tissue during the split (it was written about above). There is no doubt that when an athlete trains the chest muscles, then the entire load will be applied to the triceps, and if the back receives the load, then the biceps will also be trained. After all, it is as a result of training large muscle groups that the triceps and biceps are rewarded with surface load, this helps create the conditions for their micro-periodization. It is best to train all large muscle groups only once a week; this is very suitable for those athletes who are just starting training, since they do not yet know how to correctly distribute the load on all muscle groups, but only change the degree of load. As a result, the training schedule gets confused, results are achieved slowly and the athlete remains dissatisfied and puzzled.
Significant disadvantages of this type of training.
Does not provide the necessary specialization– this disadvantage is associated with a reduced number of classes, as a result of which it is difficult for an athlete to allocate time for training a certain muscle group. There is no doubt that the muscles will react and work better if the athlete focuses only on certain muscle groups throughout the entire session. This is closely related to the limited capabilities of the human body, which concerns the direct supply of all necessary elements and the endocrine system. Most likely, the human body will restore large muscle groups first, which is why it is best to train the shoulders together with the legs, since they are the largest and smallest muscle group at the same time. Well, if you decide to train your legs along with your biceps, it may happen that your strength simply runs out. When an athlete has a lot of experience, it may also happen that there may not be enough resources to train small muscle groups, then it is best to postpone this activity until the next day or week.
Not enough room for deadlifts– such awkwardness lies in the fact that training the back muscles is divided into two main parts – training the long muscles and training the broad muscles of the back. If you start working on both back muscles at once, you will not see any results. The right way out in such a situation would be to organize a joint workout, at the end of which it would be advisable to do the main deadlift. The deadlift is the hardest and most effective exercise for joints, but often there is no longer enough strength for it. If you start developing long muscles at the very beginning of training, then during exercise the broad muscles of the spine they will receive a very large load, since tired long muscles will not be able to withstand the entire load on themselves. Therefore, for such an intense and difficult workout, it is necessary to carve out a separate day.
What can replace this kind of load?
First way– during this type of training, the athlete needs to do a joint workout of the chest and triceps, back muscles and biceps, leaving only the load on the legs and shoulders from the previous proposed method. The basis of such training is targeted work only with large muscle groups, and small muscle groups are taken on only at the end of the session with special isolating exercises. The advantage is that he devotes the bulk of his energy only to the development and training of large muscle groups, which will make it possible to better develop and increase the total muscle mass. One disadvantage is that with such training, little attention is paid to the hands.
Second way– the proposed type of training places the main emphasis on arm training. During such classes, the athlete does a joint workout of the legs and chest, back and shoulders, and is left with one free training day, which is completely devoted to arm exercises. The advantage of such training is that all exercises are aimed at strengthening the athlete’s upper body, since during classes for the legs and chest, all the loads performed are performed only to improve the functioning of the endocrine system. As a result, this type of training will help you develop without problems and progress only for the better. This happens because the athlete devotes a very large amount of time to arm exercises. As a result, after some time the arms gain good muscle mass. This workout is suitable for those who have already gained a lot of muscle mass and are ready for further development. The only drawback is that now practically no attention will be paid to the legs.
Third way is a joint exercise of the following muscle groups: chest and shoulders, legs and biceps, back and triceps. The best results from such training can be achieved while lying down. In this case, the shoulders are sacrificed, and if you focus on the legs, the biceps are immobilized. But, despite this, such training makes it possible to devote a lot of time to the legs and at the same time maintain the tone of the biceps. So this helps restore the delta for each subsequent workout, which will be aimed at the chest. But when the lesson comes to the legs and shoulders, the front deltoid can slightly hinder the athlete’s development in the bench press. It was not possible to discover the most striking benefits from such training. But, despite this, this scheme can be used by those who want to pump up their legs and strengthen their chest muscles.
Three day split aims to increase muscle mass during intense physical activity. The greatest results can be achieved if you use this scheme systematically and follow all the necessary rules. Such training will help the athlete gain a fairly large amount of muscle mass, but in order not to lose it, you need to train hard, otherwise the body itself may decide to burn muscle fibers that are very necessary for it. For better and faster muscle mass gain, it would be better to adhere to a special diet - a bodybuilding diet. It contributes to the creation of an excess of calories, which is the main source of the anabolism process. The main thing is to understand the fact that taking proteins, vitamins and regular nutrition will not help achieve the desired result. To gain muscle mass, you need an excess of nutrients that are actively involved in the formation of new muscle tissue, as well as regular training and physical activity.
The main thing in successful training is a properly organized training system, correct load modes, as well as long rest to recuperate. That is why it is often recommended to use the most basic split exercises during the training process, and only later begin to include isolating exercises in the training process. This happens when the basic ones are not enough to gain muscle mass. The minimum rest between sets is about a minute. This pace of exercise will better stimulate hypertrophy of muscle tissue. You also need to know that all bodybuilder training is very long and voluminous. On average, a lesson can last from forty to fifty minutes. Therefore, it turns out that the athlete does not have much time left for rest.
Three-day split training scheme
Standard approach– chest and biceps, back and triceps, legs and shoulders.
Chest and biceps
– the exercise is performed four times for ten repetitions
– four times twelve repetitions
– four times and twelve repetitions of the exercise.
Back and triceps
- three times as much as you can
– four times twelve repetitions
French press standing
Legs and shoulders
– the exercise is performed four times for twelve repetitions
– three times fifteen repetitions
- three times twenty repetitions
– three times twelve repetitions
- three times fifteen repetitions.
Alternative for the first method of training replacement: chest and triceps, back and biceps, legs and shoulders
Chest and triceps
– perform the exercise four times, ten repetitions each
– four times twelve repetitions
- three times twenty repetitions
– four times twelve repetitions.
Back and biceps
– perform the exercise four times for twelve repetitions
- three times maximum
- three times twenty repetitions
- five times twelve repetitions.
Leg and shoulder workout remains similar.
The second alternative way to perform exercises is legs and chest, back and shoulders, arms.
Legs and chest
– perform the exercise four times for fifteen repetitions
– four times eight repetitions
– four times twelve repetitions
– four times fifteen repetitions.
Back and shoulders
– perform the exercise four times, twelve repetitions each
- three times
– four times fifteen repetitions
- three times twenty repetitions.
Hands
Bicep curls and close grip presses– perform four super sets of 12 repetitions per exercise
Dips and– three sets of 12 repetitions
French press and hammers– three sets of 15 repetitions per exercise.
REVIEW OF THE BEST TRAINING PROGRAMS
A training split is a breakdown of the training of different muscle groups by day of the week. There are different types - 2x, 3x, 5 and even 7 day splits. In this section you will find many options and you can choose a training split to suit your capabilities.
When working out in the gym, people are faced with the problem of choosing a training program. There are a huge variety of training programs that are aimed at achieving various kinds of results: gaining weight, cutting, developing strength and endurance. The most popular are split workouts.
Three-day split for mass
If you are looking for the perfect muscle building program, then you have come to the right place. Find out the best way to split your split into muscle groups. Look at examples of training sessions based on classes three times a week. Get advice on nutrition, daily routine and organization of the training process when working on weight.
How to create your first training split? Where to begin? By what principle are muscles “divided” into groups? You will find out the answers to these questions by reading the article. You will also learn a lot of useful information, including specific program examples.
4 day split for bulking
For people working out in the gym, the question often arises, how many days a week to train? Many people think that the more, the better, but as practice shows, this is not always the case. Most people use three-day and four-day splits, which is better? In this article we will look at the advantages of a 4-day split. Let's consider options for dividing muscle groups by day of the week. We will also touch on nutrition issues during the mass-gain period.
Split - translated from English. split. That is, we will split muscle groups on different days.
For a long time, bodybuilders trained their entire body in one workout, they had to perform a huge number of exercises and approaches per workout.
Of course, the effectiveness of such training was low, because imagine your chances after 5 exercises of fully working on your muscles in the last two or three exercises.
This is funny, and such training lasted a very long time (2 hours). Knowing what we know now, all those bodybuilding workouts were flawed. Therefore, the system of one workout was replaced by split training programs (training separate muscle groups).
Advantages of split training over regular training
- The duration of the workout is shorter: 30-45 minutes than the usual one (1.5-2 hours).
- The intensity of the workout has increased because there are fewer muscle groups (1 max 2), and before the whole body at a time. As a result, we have more strength and we can fully work on a specific muscle more thoroughly.
- Mood. Quite an important point, but I put it in 3rd place. Whether you want it or not, you have to. Agree, train for 2 hours and survive like a lemon and get absolutely nothing but, or train for 30-45 minutes intensely, thoroughly and powerfully and get much more? Here's your advantage.
Types of splits
Many beginners, as well as advanced athletes, often like to change their training programs, thinking that they have found something better. I know what I’m talking about, that’s the way it is, because I myself did it before and thought about it exactly like that. But I want to disappoint you, your running back and forth will give you absolutely nothing. Below, I will give specific examples of training programs for gaining muscle mass. Split for beginners A competent split for beginner athletes is as follows: There should be no less rest days per week than the training itself.
- Legs-back
- Chest, shoulders, arms
After each workout, there is a day of rest. That is, if on Monday you trained your legs and back, on Wednesday there will be chest-shoulders-arms, on Thursday rest, and on Friday again legs-back. For this split, it is important to work out for at least 10-12 weeks. And it’s better as long as progress is visible. After which you can switch to a three-day split, which might look like this:
- Back-biceps
- Chest-arms
This is one of my favorite splits I've ever used.
Then I switched to a four-day split:
- Mon. Breast
- Tue Back
- Thurs. Shoulders-arms
- Fri. Legs
After a 4 day split, I started training 5 days a week.
- Breast
- Back
- Shoulders
Specific examples of training programs for these splits
Two-day split
Legs-back
- Seated leg extension 4xMAX (to warm up the knee joints)
- Squats 1-2x10-15 (warm-up) + 3x10 (working sets)
- Lying leg curl 3x10 (working)
- Pull-ups (if you can) or vertical block rows to the chest 4X8-10
- Bent-over barbell row 4X8-10
Chest-shoulders-arms
- Bench press on an incline bench 1-2x10-15 (warm-up) + 3x6-12 (working)
- Dumbbell press on a horizontal bench 4x6-12
- Barbell press, standing from the chest or from behind the head 1-2x10-15 (warm-up) + 3x6-12
- Barbell curl for biceps 4x6-12
- Bars 3x6-12
Three-day split (legs, back-delts, chest-arms)
Mon. Legs
- Squats 4x8-10
- Bench leg press 3x8-10
- Seated leg extension 3xMAX (finishing exercise)
- Calf raises, standing 3x8-10
Wed. Back deltoids
- Pull-ups 3-4x6-12
- Bent-over barbell row 4x6-12
- Horizontal thrust 3x6-12
- Bench press standing behind the head 3x6-12
- Broach 3x6-12
- Abduction of arms with dumbbells to the side 3x6-12
Fri. Chest-arms
- Bench press lying on an incline bench 4x6-10
- Incline Dumbbell Press 4x6-10
- Bars 4x6-10 (emphasis on triceps)
- Barbell curl for biceps 4x6-10
Four-day split (chest, back, shoulders-arms, legs)
Mon. Breast
- Push-ups or dips on parallel bars 4x6-12
Tue Back
- Wide-grip chest pull-ups
- Bent-over barbell row 4x6-12
- Horizontal thrust 3x8-12
- Deadlift 10,8,6,3.
Thurs. Shoulders-arms
- Bench press or seated dumbbell press 4x6-12
- Broach (barbell pull to the chin) 4x6-12
- Swings to the side (dumbbell abductions to the side) 4x6-12
- Barbell curl
- Close grip press
- Squats with a barbell 4x6-12
- Leg press 4x6-12
- Seated leg extension 4x6-15
- Calves, standing 4x15-20
- calves, sitting 4x15-20
Five day split
Mon. Back
- Pull-ups 4x6-12
- Bent-over barbell row 4x6-12
- Horizontal thrust 4x6-12
- Gangways with rod 3x12-20
Tue Breast
- Incline barbell press 4x6-12
- Incline Dumbbell Press 4x6-12
- Push-ups 4x6-12
- Cross Over 3x15-20
- Calves, standing in the 4x12-20 machine
- Squat with barbell 4x6-12
- Leg press in the simulator 3x6-12
- Seated leg extension 3x8-15
- Calves sitting in the 3x10-20 machine
Thurs. Shoulders
- Seated dumbbell press 4x6-12
- Broach 4x6-12
- Dumbbell swings to the sides 4x8-15
- Bent-over dumbbell swings 4x8-15
- Trapeze with barbell
- Biceps curl 4x6-12
- Close grip press 4x6-12
- Hammers with dumbbells 4x6-12
- Extension of arms while standing at a block 4x6-12
These splits are very effective. I personally went through each of them, at the moment I am doing the last one (5 days a week). Instead of doing something haphazardly, get busy.
