Do you find it difficult to stay motivated and consistent with your workouts? I have been there too. Building muscle or losing fat is difficult, but having an efficient gym routine can make a huge difference in achieving your goals. There are hundreds of different workout splits floating on the internet, but no one really tells you how or which one to incorporate into your life depending on your lifestyle. And trust me, achieving your fitness goals requires you to commit to a workout routine for a long period of time with no shortcuts, unfortunately. In this article, I’ll share insights I have gained from my own fitness journey to help you find the most effective workout routine that works for you. So let’s lace up our sneakers and get ready to sweat it out!
Here are a few terms you need to know for a better understanding of the article
Volume: Volume is basically (sets * reps * weight). For example, if you do 3 sets of bench press, 10 reps in each set, and you are lifting 30 kgs, the volume will be 3*10*30 = 900. Higher the volume per week better the results eventually. But as they say, too much of anything is harmful.
Frequency of training a muscle: It is simply the number of times you train a single muscle in a week. The higher, the better.
1. Push/Pull/Legs (6 days a week)
This is by far the most effective routine anyone can follow and it’s not just me who is saying that but there are various researches and studies done on athletes which prove that. Before deciding if this routine is for you let me guide you on how this routine is followed throughout the week.
Monday | Push |
Tuesday | Pull |
Wednesday | Legs |
Thursday | Rest |
Friday | Push |
Saturday | Pull |
Sunday | Legs |
So there are 2 reasons why this routine is said to be the most efficient and they are increased volume and increased training frequency of each muscle. But is this routine for everyone? The answer is NO. The reason is because of such high volume there is increased fatigue. Since its 6 days a week routine the time to recover is a bit less. If you have a full-time job and you are not able to give much time to your workouts, you will most likely will burn out and give up. But if you are someone who is very serious about your fitness goals and is ready to in to put in those hours in the gym, this is THE routine for you! For others, there are alternatives I’ll be talking about in this article so stay tuned.
2. Upper Lower- Upper Lower ( 4 days a week)
This workout routine is perfect for intermediate to advanced lifters. This routine divides your training into 4 days per week with 2 focusing on the upper body and 2 days focusing on the lower body. Here’s how the routine is scheduled throughout the week.
Monday | Upper |
Tuesday | Lower |
Wednesday | Rest |
Thursday | Upper |
Friday | Rest |
Saturday | Lower |
Sunday | Rest |
As you can see there are 3 rest days and thus even though it is high volume you won’t feel fatigued since there is enough time to recover. For someone with a job who has been lifting for quite some time now, this routine can be perfect for you. After all, fitness is all about being physically and mentally fit.
3. Bro Split ( 6 days a week)
If you are someone who is just starting out this might be the routine for you. First, let’s see how is scheduled throughout the week and then we will talk about if it’s the right choice for you.
Monday | Chest |
Tuesday | Back |
Wednesday | Shoulder |
Thursday | Biceps |
Friday | Triceps |
Saturday | Legs |
Sunday | Rest |
On the internet, you’ll see a lot of negative things about Bro split but I feel it is a great way of starting out. Training one body part a day really helps you build a strong mind-muscle connection and that is much more beneficial in the long term. Yes, the results will be slow because there is less volume and each muscle is trained less frequently. Perhaps better than starting out heavy and then getting injured. This can be the perfect time for a beginner to learn the proper form of every exercise since you are training only one body part a day
Before ending this article one last piece of advice from my side. Choose a workout routine that you think you can follow for at least a few months. Choosing the right workout routine is crucial but staying consistent is even more crucial.
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