You know what’s overwhelming? (at least it was for me when I first started my fitness journey) Trying to figure out what the best workout split is. It felt like every person I followed was doing a different split and all of them spent time explaining why THEIR split was the best. So… who was I supposed to believe?
Well, now that I’m further into my journey and a CPT myself I can finally tell you what the best workout split is: there isn’t one.
“What?! CHLOE, how does that help me!??!?” Let me explain.
The best workout split for you will depend on YOU
Sure, Sally’s split might look the most intriguing to you… but are your lives similar? She’s a single child-less 20 year old living in a big city. Whereas you’re a 28 year old mom to two living in a rural town. Maybe your gym is 20 minutes away while Sally’s is two blocks from her apartment. She can easily get 5 days of workouts in per week while you’re excited to get 3 in.
Does that mean you can’t do the same split as her? Of course not! But it is important to recognize what your day-to-day life looks like so you can pick a split that works the best for you, your schedule, and your goals.
And spoiler alert: BOTH you and Sally can see results even if you have different splits. There’s no such thing as a ‘magical’ split.
How to decide what split is best for you
When picking out your split, you have to sit down and set a realistic goal for how many times you want to workout per week. If you can realistically do 3 but want to do 4, pick a 3 day split. Because it’s easier to add an extra day on than it is to miss and try to make up for a day.
So, do you need a 3, 4, or 5 day split? I wouldn’t suggest 6 days as your body really needs time to rest and recover, but if you really want to do 6 days I’d have the 6th day be a cardio only day.
You don’t have to marry a split
This is important! When you pick a split you’re not marrying it. You can switch it up whenever you want! The split itself doesn’t matter as much as making sure you’re hitting each muscle group every week.
Personally, with my program Bicah Body, we change our split every month! I like switching things up every month to avoid feeling bored or burnt out with a plan. And every month we’re hitting every muscle group within the week, so how we hit them doesn’t matter much!
3 Day Split Choices
Working out three times a week? Maybe you’d like one of these three day splits!
- Full Body, Upper Body, Lower Body
- Push Day (chest, shoulders, triceps), Lower Body, Pull Day (back and biceps)
- Full Body, Full Body, Full Body
- Lower Body, Upper Body, Lower Body
4 Day Split Choices
- Lower Body, Upper Body, Lower Body, Upper Body
- Glutes and Hamstrings, Push Day (chest, shoulders, triceps), Glutes and Quads, Pull Day (back and biceps)
- Glute Focused, Upper Body, Quads and Hamstrings, Cardio and Abs
- Full Body, Lower Body, Full Body, Upper Body
- Shoulders and Back, Glutes and Quads, Bi’s/Tri’s/Chest, Glutes and Hamstrings
5 Day Split Choices
- Glutes and Quads, Push Day (chest, shoulders, triceps), Glutes and Hamstrings, Pull Day (back and biceps), Full Body
- Lower Body, Upper Body, Lower Body, Upper Body, Full Body
- Glutes and Abs, Chest and Back, Quads and Hamstrings, Shoulders/Bi’s/Tri’s, Full Body
- Cardio and Abs, Full Lower Body, Back and Shoulders, Full Lower Body, Chest/Triceps/Biceps
- Glutes and Hamstrings, Bi’s and Tri’s, Cardio and Abs, Glutes and Quads, Chest/Back/Shoulders
