How Often You Should Include Push Pull Legs in Your Workout?
Push-pull legs workout, or push pull legs split, weightlifting routines are designed to exercise muscle groups that alternately expand or contract. By starting the workout regimen, individuals benefit by increasing strength and losing fat while building muscle.
Three different workouts put muscles in the upper body and lower body through their normal range of motion actions. A schedule for the push pull legs workout routine is easily customized to meet the needs of individuals having different fitness levels.
Push Pull Legs Frequency
According to Legion Athletics, splits must be “programmed properly” in order to provide optimal effects. Fitness specialists recommend incorporating the routine at least weekly. But, there are many different ways to schedule a push pull legs workout routine.
For example, when initially adopting a schedule, individuals might perform the first leg of a push routine on Monday. Rest on Tuesday, then perform the second leg of the push workout on Wednesday. Rest on Thursday and perform the pull leg of the exercise program on Friday. Take the weekend off to recover and repeat the process the next Monday.
Once the body becomes accustomed to the workout, the program may be upgraded to complete the three legs in three consecutive days. The final four days should include a rest/recovery phase and may include other forms of exercise.
As an individual’s fitness level increases, they may opt to perform the push-pull legs split twice weekly. The upgraded regimen involves performing the workout for three days, taking a day of rest and completing the routine again within the same week. The six-day option provides quicker results. However, it is not recommended for beginners.
What the Push Pull Legs Workout Entails
The first leg of the push-pull routine exercises the pushing shoulders, triceps and chest muscles. Weightlifting techniques implemented during this phase commonly include:
- Horizontal barbell and dumbbell bench presses
- Vertical components include standing barbell overhead presses, dumbbell shoulder press and seated shoulder presses
- Isolation exercises include dumbbell chest flys, dumbbell pullovers and triceps pushdowns or overhead triceps pushovers
- Calisthenic options might include pushups or dips
The range of pull muscle phase exercises includes:
- Lat pulldowns or resistance band pulldowns
- Horizontal pulls might include bent-over dumbbell rows, barbell rows or t-bar rows
- Isolation pulls include rear deltoid flys, hammer curls or bicep curls
- Vertical calisthenic choices include chin-ups or pull-ups
The leg phase of the routine works the quadriceps, the hamstrings, the glute muscles and the calves. Workout options include:
- Deadlifts, hip thrusts or back raises for the hips
- Squats or lunges for the knees
- Isolation exercise choices include leg curls, leg extensions, and calf raises.
- Calisthenic options might involve step-ups, glute bridges or single-leg deadlifts
For each phase of the workout, fitness specialists recommended including one or two exercises for each muscle group.
The push-pull legs workout routine was popularized in the 80s and 90s as a simple means of getting a balanced regimen. By taking the time to create and schedule and select the appropriate exercises, individuals are more likely to stick to the program and achieve the desired results.