Are you wondering how to schedule your workout routine?
Do you go the gym without a plan?
Do you follow the latest “trendy” workout from an influencer on social media?
Or, maybe you go to the gym without a clue in what the hell to do so you alternate between any open machine.
Listen, I have nothing against random workouts.
If that’s what gets you going to the gym then I’m all for it.
But, if you’re frustrated with your lack of results then that shit needs to stop.
Sorry for being harsh but its the truth.
If you want to achieve better results like getting stronger, leaner, and more toned/defined than those random workouts and exercises aren’t going to be your solution.
Instead, you’re going to have to learn how to schedule your workout routine so you can build muscle, get stronger, and lose fat.
And that’s what I’m here for.
I’m going to show you the best workout routines that work for my 1:1 online coaching clients.
Before that, let’s breakdown what a workout routine/split is and why they’re important.
If you want to get stronger, lose fat, build muscle, and have all the guess work taken out for you, then sign up for my email list. By signing up, you’ll also receive 30 Free Workouts You Can Do From Anywhere :).
How to Schedule Your Workout Routine: What is a Workout Routine?
A workout routine or workout split is the organization of your workouts throughout the week.
They can be divided by:
- Body part
- Specific movements
- Body regions
- Intensity (How heavy you want to lift for that day)
Basically, it’s the opposite of doing random shit – something you see many trainees and trainers do.
Instead of chasing a feeling of working hard and sweating through random exercises, you’re chasing results with heavy strength training and progressive overload over time.
How to Schedule Your Workout Routine: Why is a Workout Routine Important?
A workout routine keeps you organized by making sure you’re hitting all of the major muscle groups enough (volume), hard enough (intensity), often enough (frequency), while making sure you have enough rest/recovery in order to make progress.
I know… That probably sounds like a lot. But, a workout routine is simple.
Think of a workout routine as your manual to get you the body you want to achieve – You’ll know what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and have directions on how to do it.
For example:
Is your goal to build muscle?
Get stronger?
Work on your endurance?
A hybrid of all three?
Or, maybe you want to work on your chin-ups to so you can finally get your first one without assistance.
(That would be bad ass)
Whatever the case may be, an individualized workout routine will allow you to make progress towards your goal.
How to Schedule Your Workout Routine: Main Exercises to Focus On
The exercises you perform are a big component of how to schedule your workout routine.
No matter which workout routine you choose, compound movements should make up the majority of your workouts.
Compound movements are big exercises that work multiple muscles at once. Therefore, they are the most bang for your buck in terms of getting results.
The only difference will be how many movements you can perform and the variations of those movements depending on your abilities, schedule, and equipment – which will have an effect on how to schedule your workout routine.
For example, maybe you have low back issues so you have to do a Bulgarian split squat instead of a barbell back squat.
Or, maybe a conventional deadlift is too difficult so you start with a trap bar deadlift.
The same muscles are being worked. You’re changing the variation so it’s more comfortable to you.
Here are the main compound movements to focus on:
- Squats
- Deadlifts
- Presses
- Bench Presses
- Chin-ups
- Rows
- Lunges
- Carrys
(I have a whole article that goes over these movements here)
These movements are going to:
- Help you build the most strength and muscle
- Boost your metabolism
- Make you faster
- Help you become more mobile and flexible
- Improve your balance
- Improved overall quality of life so you can live life pain free
- Burn the most calories
Why Compound Movements?
Why are compound movements prioritized over isolation movements?
Let me explain…
A leg extension machine only works your quads. Therefore, it’s considered an isolation exercise.
The problem is there’s only so much weight you can lift on this machine.
On the other hand, a squat involves your whole body from your legs up to your trunk. You have to use your quads, glutes, stabilizer muscles, and core to perform the movement. If you couldn’t tell, that’s a lot of muscles working at once.
As a result, you can load the squat with 100’s of pounds while hitting all the muscles at once – something you can’t do with a machine. Therefore, you’re going to build more muscle and strength from one exercise.
Another reason why compound movements are great is because they’re hard to learn which forces you out of your comfort zone.
You have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. By choosing the easy route you’re never challenging yourself as a person and therefore, won’t make as much long term progress. Not a good mentality to have in the gym and throughout life in general.
Do hard shit and watch what happens.
(Sorry, small rant over)
That said, that’s not to say you shouldn’t do isolation exercises – You should.
But, your main focus should be on the compound movements than you can include isolation work for specific muscle groups as a “dessert” if you’d like – something that’s optional but not necessary.
Alright, now that you know why exercise splits are important and the best exercises for them, how do you schedule your workout routine?
How to Schedule Your Workout Routine: The Best Routines To Follow
The thing is, there is no “best” workout routine.
What matters most is the principles within the workout routine: volume, frequency, intensity, exercise selection.
Research shows that the optimal volume per muscle group is 10-20 sets. Furthermore, it’s best to split up that volume per muscle group 2-3 times a week.
When you’re lifting the weight, you want to make sure you’re lifting heavy enough so that you fall 1-3 reps shy of failure – something that I will dive deeper into another article.
Therefore, they all work when done correctly.
However, the best workout routine is going to be individualized to you depending on your ability, schedule, experience, and what you enjoy.
If you can’t stay consistent with a routine then its not the routine for you.
The more advanced you are, the more days you should go to the gym and vice versa.
If you’re a busy person, then obviously you’re going to schedule less days.
So, it may take some trial and error to figure out how to schedule your workout routine.
Each routine has its pros and cons. Don’t overthink it. Pick one, try it out, and adjust if needed.
3 Days a Week: Full Body or Upper/Lower/Full Splits
These are two of my favorite splits to program – especially for beginners and those who are short on time with busy lives.
The cool thing is beginners don’t need much to build muscle and strength.
As a beginner, you’ll build muscle practically by looking at weight. Going too hard too soon can lead to you being sore and being like “fuck this I’m out…” So, sticking with a 3 day workout routine will allow you to get a good workout with enough rest.
Both routines are simple, require less time in the gym, and every muscle group is worked multiple times a week. Therefore, they’re great if you’re a beginner and wondering how to schedule your workout routine.
Full Body
A full body split consists of hitting your full body 3 days a week.
This means hitting both your legs and upper body within the same workout.
This is a great split if your main goal is strength and/or you don’t have much time to go to the gym. You can keep the workouts relatively short by focusing on the main compound movements.
Furthermore, unlike other splits, if you miss a day its not a big deal because you’re already hitting full body the next workout.
The problem though is that it could lead to more soreness since you’re working every muscle 3 times a week. If you love being sore (like me), then this isn’t a problem for you.
That said, it’s important to rest at least 1-2 days in between workouts so your body can recover and be ready for the next full body workout.
Benefits:
- Greater increase in strength from an emphasis on heavy compound movements.
- Louder and more sustained muscle building signal since you’re working out the full body multiple times a week.
- Great way to practice the movements which will lead to more strength, more muscle, and less injuries in the future.
- Focuses on movements rather than muscle groups.
- Gets your heart rate up and burns more calories since your performing big movements that involve a lot of weight and muscles.
| 3 Day Full Body Split | |
| Monday | Full Body |
| Tuesday | Rest/Cardio |
| Wednesday | Full Body |
| Thursday | Rest/Cardio |
| Friday | Full Body |
| Saturday | Rest/Cardio |
| Sunday | Rest/Cardio |
Upper/Lower/Full Body
Sometimes a full body routine can be too much for some people.
The difference here is that your splitting up lower and upper body into two separate days then finishing the week with a full body workout.
The upper and lower days can be back to back if you need them to be. However, make sure to have at least one rest day before your full body workout so that you’re fully recovered and ready to hit it hard.
So, if you’re someone who can be in the gym for a longer workout, wants to train specific body parts more, and hates getting sore, then this split works for you.
Benefits:
- Hits each muscle group at least two times per week.
- This can allow more time for recovery for beginners which will lead to less soreness. As a result, you can go a bit harder on the split days since you now have more time to recover before hitting that body part again.
- You can still get really strong with this split by performing big compound movements at the beginning of your workouts.
- More room to isolate specific muscles on your upper and lower days.
| 3 Day Upper/Lower/Full Body Split | |
| Monday | Upper Body |
| Tuesday | Rest/Cardio |
| Wednesday | Lower Body |
| Thursday | Rest/Cardio |
| Friday | Full Body |
| Saturday | Rest/Cardio |
| Sunday | Rest/Cardio |
Note: The problem is if you’re more advanced than it can be tough to get enough volume in a training session without being at the gym for 2-3 hours.
4 Days a Week: Upper/Lower/Upper/Lower
This is another one of my favorite splits to program for my clients who have more experience and time to go to the gym.
You’ll split up 2 upper body days and 2 lower body days with a rest day in the middle.
This allows you to work your upper and lower body muscles two times a week with more volume (more exercises per body part).
This split may be too challenging for most beginners. That said, some beginners may also respond very well. So, it depends on the individual.
Benefits:
- Includes more volume to make progress but also enough rest.
- Great balance of compound movements, accessory, and isolation movements which allow you to get strong and build more muscle.
- Allows you to place more emphasis on specific body parts throughout the week.
- Great balance for being at the gym enough but not being too busy.
| 4 Day Upper/Lower Split | |
| Monday | Upper Body |
| Tuesday | Lower Body |
| Wednesday | Rest/Cardio |
| Thursday | Upper Body |
| Friday | Lower Body |
| Saturday | Rest/Cardio |
| Sunday | Rest/Cardio |
Note: If you’re schedule changes frequently it may not be the best option because you may not be able to train certain muscle groups
5 Days a Week: Upper/Lower/Upper/Lower/Specific Goal
I’ll be honest – I rarely program clients in the 5 days a week category.
That said, if you’re advanced or have specific goals, the extra day provides an opportunity to work more on your goal.
So, the beginning of the week is the same as the 4 day upper/lower split, except the last day is to place extra attention on your goal.
That may mean extra back work for chin-ups or extra arm work. Maybe you want to work more on your upper body so you throw in an extra upper body day. Or, maybe a metabolic workout for your conditioning.
There’s not right or wrong way to do it. It’s going to depend on your goals.
| 5 Day Upper/Lower/Body Part Split | |
| Monday | Upper Body |
| Tuesday | Lower Body |
| Wednesday | Rest/Cardio |
| Thursday | Upper Body |
| Friday | Lower Body |
| Saturday | Body Part/Goal |
| Sunday | Rest/Cardio |
How to Schedule Your Workout Routine: When to Change Your Routine?
Ok, now that you know how to schedule your workout routine, when, if at all, should you change it?
Well, you want to workout with the same split for a period of time so your body can adapt.
If you keep switching your workout routine for the hell of it, you won’t make progress.
On the other hand, if you’ve stuck with a workout routine for a few months and notice that your progress is stalling or you’re getting bored, then its ok to switch it up.
Again, don’t over think it. Focus on going to the gym, following the same split, performing the main compound lifts, and lifting heavy.
Also, different splits add in different volumes and frequency’s which play a role in building muscle and strength.
So, as you continue to advance, playing around with different splits that change up the frequency and add in more volume (how much you’re doing) will allow you to continue to make progress.
Wait…What About Body Part Splits?
You may be wondering “where in the hell are the body part splits, Bob????”
Well, I’m not a big fan of body part splits, aka “bro” splits” – a routine that I use to follow religiously.
It would look something like this:
- Monday: Legs
- Tuesday: Chest
- Wednesday: Shoulders
- Thursday: Back
- Friday: Arms
The problem is these workouts are fucking lonnggggggg. Like so long that you have to plan everyday around going to the gym.
Since these long workouts require a ton of volume, a lot of stress is placed on your joints which can be a recipe for disaster.
By the time you’re on your last few exercises, that body part is going to be toast and you won’t be able to lift as much weight and therefore build as much muscle.
And when you fatigue, your form breaks down. As a result, your joints aren’t in a safe position and therefore can get inflamed and injured.
Another huge issue when performing a body part split you’re only working each body part one time per week.
When you train a muscle, your body creates a muscle building signal that lasts 24-72 hours or 1-3 days per week.
Therefore, you won’t have a muscle building signal for the other 4-6 days of the week.
So, more frequency is optimal so that you can keep that muscle building signal activated.
That said, training a muscle once per week can work for bodybuilders, but its not the best for the average person in my opinion.
Instead, splitting that volume up throughout the week to work on a muscle group 2-3 time is the most optimal according to research.
If you want to try a body part split then you do you. Personally, I’m not a big fan for the majority of people.
Final Thoughts:
Hopefully this gave you a better idea of how to program your workout routine.
Remember, choose one and follow the main principles of exercise selection, lifting heavy, having enough volume, and lifting often enough.
If you do this, you’ll get amazing results.
Any questions, let me know how I can help.
-Coach Bob
Ps. If you want help to get you started with a workout routine to build muscle, get stronger, and boost your metabolism than download your 30 Free Fat Burning Workouts Here.