Gym workout routines: full body, push pull legs, upper/lower and hypertrophy
Four complete routines, each with its table of exercises, sets, reps and effort (RIR), and how to progress week to week. They are the templates the app offers when you start.
Pick your routine
Full body workout routine
A three-day full body workout routine with the six basic patterns in every session: exercises, sets, reps, RIR and rest times, plus how to progress week to week.
- Level
- Beginner-intermediate
- Days a week
- 3 (Mon-Wed-Fri)
- Session length
- 60-75 min
- Each muscle
- 3 times a week
Push pull legs routine
A five-day push pull legs routine —push, pull and legs, then upper and lower— to train each muscle nearly twice a week, with sets, reps and RIR.
- Level
- Intermediate-advanced
- Days a week
- 5
- Session length
- 60-75 min
- Each muscle
- Nearly twice a week
Upper lower split
A four-day upper lower split: each half of the body twice a week, one heavy session and one volume session, with exercises, sets, reps and RIR.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Days a week
- 4 (Mon-Tue-Thu-Fri)
- Session length
- 60-70 min
- Each muscle
- Twice a week
Hypertrophy workout routine
A four-day hypertrophy workout routine with a five-week mesocycle: how many sets per muscle, at what RIR, how to add volume and when to deload.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Days a week
- 4
- Block
- 5 weeks (4 + deload)
- Sets per muscle
- 10-14 → 14-18 a week
Which routine to choose
| Routine | Days | Each muscle | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full body | 3 | 3 times | You are starting out or short on time |
| Upper/lower | 4 | Twice | A few months in: the best all-round balance |
| Hypertrophy | 4 | Twice | Your goal is to build muscle |
| Push pull legs | 5 | Nearly twice | Over a year of training and time to spare |
How to read the tables
- Sets × reps
- 4 × 5, 3 × 8-12
- Working sets. Warm-up sets on the main lifts are extra.
- RIR
- Reps in reserve
- RIR 2: you end the set able to do two more with good form.
- RPE
- 10 − RIR
- RIR 2 = RPE 8. The same scale, read the other way.
- Rest
- 1-3.5 min
- Longer on heavy main lifts, shorter on isolation work.
Weekly volume is the engine, with diminishing returns
More weekly sets per muscle bring more hypertrophy, but each added set gives less than the one before. Most of the effect sits between 10 and 20 direct sets per muscle per week; with volume equated, training each muscle once or twice a week gives similar results.
Sources
- [1]Pelland JC, Robinson ZP, Remmert JF, et al. (2025). The Resistance Training Dose Response: Meta-Regressions Exploring the Effects of Weekly Volume and Frequency on Muscle Hypertrophy and Strength Gains. Sports Medicine.
- [2]Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Krieger J (2019). How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency. Journal of Sports Sciences.
Your routine, with your weights and your progress
Pick the template, log each set in seconds and let the app tell you when to add weight: PRs, volume per muscle and estimated 1RM, no spreadsheets.
