You will often hear bodybuilders discuss how they split their training. Just as everybody has a unique body and personality, everybody also prefers to train a certain way. This includes exercise selection and the way the body parts are split. No one system can be said to be superior because so much is dependent on individual preferences.
The most basic split is a 3 day a week routine. This is popular because it leaves the weekends free if you choose to train on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. With this split you can train your total body each workout. If you do this you must change the exercises you select from workout to workout to increase the effectiveness and prevent overtraining.
Another way to approach a 3 day a week program is to train upper body one workout and lower body the next. You just keep alternating between the two workouts so that one week you would train upper body on Monday and Friday and legs on Wednesday. The next week you would do lower body on Monday and Friday and upper body on Wednesday. This routine allows for excellent recuperation between training sessions and only puts you in the gym 3 times per week which is great for busy professionals and family types.
A classic training split is a 4 day a week routine which generally involves doing two days on and one day off. This will also free up the weekends if performed on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. A great way to split up the workouts on this program is to do upper body one day and lower body the next. This allows for training each muscle group twice per week. This can be quite effective since studies show that increasing the volume or frequency of training can elicit an excellent response.
Many bodybuilders prefer, however, to train each body part only once per week. Following this protocol on a 4 day a week routine, you could train chest and triceps on Monday; back and biceps on Tuesday; shoulders and abdominals on Thursday; and legs on Friday. There are many potential combinations that can work here, depending on one's personal preferences.
An all-time favourite training routine is the push/pull/legs split. This is popular and efficient because the muscle groups are trained according to function which builds strength and size while simultaneously preventing overtraining. This split can be performed on a three day on, one day off system or on a two day on, one day off split.
When doing a push/pull/legs program on a two day on, one day off split, you simply do two workouts, take a day off and then resume where you left off. Hence, if you did pushing (chest, shoulders, triceps) on Monday and pulling (back and biceps) on Tuesday and then take Wednesday off, you would come back on Thursday with a leg workout. Friday would then be another pushing today with Saturday being on off day. Then on Sunday you would come back and do a pulling routine and start the cycle again.
If you have the time and dedication to train 5-6 times per week and enjoy training one body part per session, there are many ways that you can split up your workouts. One example would be to do chest on Monday; back on Tuesday; shoulders on Wednesday; off on Thursday; legs on Friday; and arms on Saturday with Sunday off. The possibilities here are endless, again depending on personal preferences.
An important thing to remember, no matter how you split your routines up, is that you must always listen to your body and take days off when necessary. Resting your body will not only give your muscles the opportunity to recuperate, repair and grow, it will also rest your joints, tendons, ligaments, connective tissue and your mind. Resting your mind is vital to keep you motivated and to maintain a fresh approach. Try different training splits and see what works best for you.
