You Have 3 Days to Strength Train but Don’t Know Where to Start…Start Here:
You’ve figured out your training frequency, 3 days per week. Now you need a structure to help plug in the fun stuff like exercises, sets, and reps. And the 3 day training split provides a lot of options for how you structure the training week. Here are 5 you can choose from:
Lower Body | Upper Body | Full Body
Upper Push | Lower Body | Upper Pull
Full Body (A) | Full Body (B) | Full Body (C)
Full Body (A) | Full Body (B) | Full Body (A) | Full Body (B)
Upper (A) | Lower (A) | Upper (B) | Lower (B)
What is the main difference between these 5 training structures?
The total volume (amount of work, sets x reps) a given movement pattern or muscle group receives in the week
The frequency (# of days, how often) a given movement pattern or muscle group receives in the week
The experience or “feel” of the workout
What splits are best for a beginner?
There are two considerations for the beginner:
They don’t need much volume or intensity to drive adaptations (make progress) and they recover quicker because of this. So they can handle greater frequency for a given movement pattern or muscle group within the week.
They are learning and refining movement patterns and we want to reinforce that practice more often. So an increased training frequency will help with that learning process.
For those two reasons I like the (3) Full Body A, B,C and (4) Full Body, A, B, A, B options best. With (1) Lower | Upper | Full being a good option as they move out of their beginner status.
What splits are best for a more experienced lifter?
Again there are two considerations for the more experienced lifter:
It takes greater volume and intensity (load) to drive adaptation and longer to recover. So they need a higher volume and intensity on a single training day and more recovery time so they can have less frequency.
They have already established proficiency and strength across movement patterns so they need for increased frequency to improve technique is not necessary.
For those two reasons I like the (5) Upper | Lower | Upper | Lower, (2) Upper Push | Lower | Upper Pull, and (1) Lower | Upper | Full options. But it should be noted depending on the training goals more experienced lifters can still train on the Full Body structures.
What splits are best if I want to train for strength, size, or athleticism?
There are 3 main physiological qualities we train for in the weight room. Strength, the maximum amount of force we can produce (think powerlifter). Hypertrophy (size), increasing muscle mass (think body builder). And power, the maximum velocity we can move (think athlete).
While you could train any of these physiological qualities in any of the 5 training structures there are some that lend themselves better to certain qualities:
Strength: (5) Upper | Lower | Upper | Lower is probably the most classic 3 day split for a program for an experienced lifter who wants to emphasis strength. This structure in a 4 day per week routine became a staple for Westside Barbell, one of the strongest gyms in the world. And adopting it to a 3 day per week structure has proven it still holds up for building maximum strength. (1) Lower | Upper | Full is another split that can work well for prioritizing strength. Both of these provide the opportunity for higher volumes and intensities on a given day and enough recovery between training sessions of similar movement patterns and muscles.
Size: (2) Upper Push | Lower | Upper Pull is the tried and true split for the experienced lifter looking to put on muscle mass. This is going to allow you to target a limited set of muscle groups and patterns with higher volume and intensity on a single day and provide enough recovery before training them again.
Athleticism: (3/4) Either Full Body structure will be your best bet for developing athleticism and leaving the session feeling like an athlete. Since you are targeting patterns across the whole body in a given session these structures lend themselves to feeling more similar to how it feels leaving the playing field. And if you are an athlete outside of the weight room then these structures will help keep overall volume a little lower to not feel as fatigued on your days outside of the gym. (1) Upper | Lower | Full is also used in the training structure of athletes.
Ultimately training for a specific physiological quality like strength, hypertrophy, or power is more about the set and rep schemes you use. So you could train for any of those qualities in any training structure. But again, the training stucture really dicates how much volume (amount of work) a given movement pattern or muscle will receive in one training day and one training week. Your training goal and your training experience will dictate what type of distribution of volume you need and that will influence the training structure that is best for you.
You also have to take into account your personal preference. What structure has you leaving feeling good and excited to come back on your next training day? My main goal is always athleticism, so I feel best on a Full Body structure that includes some speed, strength, and hypertrophy work each session. However, I don’t always stay on that. I am currently in a 3 month hypertrophy focused training program. I plan to train for a 100 mile MTB race next year and want to put on some muscle before starting a 6 month MTB training block. I’m currently on a 4 day training structure that is Upper (Chest & Biceps), Lower, Upper (Back & Triceps), Full ( Shoulders & Core), plus a dedicated mobility day. The truth is I don’t love training on this structure, but its the structure that best fits my goals at the moment. When I get into my MTB training block I will switch to a different structure to support those goals.
If you have settled on a training structure to guide your 3 day per week training split and want some help putting the rest of the program together feel free to email me (alex@evergreen-performance.com), I am happy to help!
Cheers - Al