My favourite workout splits

Workout splits describe how you organise your exercises across the week. On this page, I’ll list exercise categories or slots for each day. This means you can add any exercise that fits that category.

Having templates like these offers simple starting points. It’s just a matter of plugging in the exercises and getting started. Over time adjust as needed.

Here are my favourites:

Upper/Lower Split

I’ve always enjoyed upper-lower splits. This grouping is great if you want more recovery, as you’ll always have at least two days of rest before hitting the same muscle groups.

Squatting and deadlifting on the same day will polarise people. For some, it works well; for others, it’s too taxing. Personally, I like getting it all done in one go.

The downside of this split is that the upper body can do more sets than the lower body so the session lengths can get unbalanced. It also limits upper body frequency. For this situation, consider full-body workouts or a 5-day upper-lower split (U,L,U,L,U).

Day 1 – Lower

• Squat
• Secondary Deadlift
• Quads
• Hamstrings

Day 2 – Upper

• Bench
• Secondary Bench / Overhead Press
• Row variation
• Vertical Pull Variation
• Triceps
• Biceps

Day 3 – Lower

• Deadlift
• Secondary Squat
• Lower Accessory
• Abs

Day 4 – Upper

• Bench
• Push Accessory / Overhead Press
• Vertical Pull
• Row variation
• Triceps
• Biceps

Adjusting to a upper/lower biased split

• If the upper days are too long you can move the rows on lower days
• When you need higher bench frequency, then you'll have to add another bench slot to one or both lower days.

Full body (4-day)

Instead of piling all the work done to each muscle group into one or two days, full-body splits spread it across the week. This allows for higher overall performance. This is good for powerlifters who need to bench 3-4 times a week to make progress.

This template is loosely based on Reactive Training Systems.

Day 1

• Squat
• Bench
• Push Accessory
• Triceps
• Biceps

Day 2

• Deadlift
• Bench Secondary
• Squat Accessory (eg. Bulgarian split squat)
• Row variation

Day 3

• Secondary Squat
• Bench
• Push Accessory
• Triceps
• Biceps

Day 4

• Deadlift Secondary
• Push Accessory
• Deadlift Accessory (eg. RDL for reps)
• Vertical Pull

Full body (3-day)

he one is great for when you have limited days to train.

If you are focusing on powerlifting (eg. improve bench, squat and deadlift) then:

Switch the Overhead Press for an additional Bench slot Add a Secondary Deadlift to Day 3 if you need a second exposure.

Day 1

• Squat
• Bench
• Vertical Pull Variation
• Triceps
• Biceps

Day 2

• Deadlift
• Overhead Press
• Lower Body Accessory
• Delts

Day 3

• Secondary Squat
• Bench
• Row Variation
• Triceps
• Biceps