How often should I train each muscle group? How many days should I be lifting weights? Should I do cardiovascular exercise before or after weight training?
These are just a few of the questions I get on a daily basis. So, in this blog I am going to try to clear a few things up and hopefully help some of you (or most!) understand how to structure your weight training workouts to maximize your time in the gym and ensure adequate recovery time so that you can build muscle, lose body fat, get stronger and see the results you want from your hard training.
First, there are a few things you have to ask yourself before you create your program:
1. What are your goals?
• Maintain muscle mass, continue to shape and define
• Gain lean muscle and increase strength
2. How long have you been training?
• 6 months or less
• 6 months to 1 year
• Over a year
3. How many days per week can you realistically commit to weight lifting?
GOAL: Maintain Muscle Mass, Continue To Shape & Define
Maybe you are happy with where you are at, or maybe you just don’t have more time to devote to the gym right now, and that’s perfectly ok. Remember, you train to be your best self based on your individual lifestyle needs and priorities. Doing something, and doing that something consistently, is much much better than being unrealistic, biting off more than you can chew and ending up doing nothing at all.
When setting up your workout split for these goals, total body workouts, upper/lower splits (as listed below) or 2 push/pull days with one lower-body only day are all great programs for maintaining muscle mass and continuing to shape and define.
A sample push/pull workout split would look something like this:
Monday Pull Day (Back/Biceps/Rear Delts)
Tuesday Rest
Wednesday Lower Body (Quads, Hamstring, Glutes, Calves)
Thursday Rest
Friday Push Day (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps)
PUSH DAY VIDEO
PULL DAY VIDEO
GOAL: Gain Lean Muscle, Increase Strength
If you are looking to build more muscle mass, I recommend splitting your workouts into split body parts – i.e. one or two muscle groups each day. This allows you to hit each muscle with higher volume since you will have more time to focus on that one area rather than only one or two exercises per muscle group when added as part of a total body workout.
LEVEL: BEGINNER
If you have been weight training for less than 6 months
I would consider you a rookie to the weights. At this point, your focus needs to be on:
– The FEEL of the movement and developing the mind-muscle connection. Do you know what muscle each exercise is supposed to be working and do you actually feel it? Or
– The RESISTANCE – are you lifting heavy enough or are you just going through the motions to get 15 reps?
– The FORM of the movement, which to me is most crucial. Make sure you are completing the exercise all the way up and all the way down in a slow, controlled fashion and are isolating the muscle you are training.
To begin creating your workout split at this level, I recommend starting with total body workouts 3x per week with at least one day in between each session. In each workout, be sure to hit one exercise for each muscle group. So your split would look like this:
Monday Total Body
Tuesday Rest
Wednesday Total Body
Thursday Rest
Friday Total Body
Saturday/Sunday Rest
TOTAL BODY WORKOUT VIDEO
AT HOME FAT BURNING CIRCUIT VIDEO
LEVEL: INTERMEDIATE
If you have been weight training for 6 months to 1 year:
You are now ready to take it to the next level. By this, I mean training each muscle group with higher volume (more exercises, more sets and more repetitions) during each workout. At this phase, you now have a better understanding of how to adjust machines, what exercises work each muscle group, whether or not your form is good and if you can feel the muscles working when performing the exercises. You are also ready to kick up the intensity of your workouts so you can keep getting stronger.
To begin creating your workout split at this level, I recommend committing to at least 4 days a week, breaking down the days by upper and lower body. In each workout, you can perform two exercises for each muscle group. So your split would look like this:
Monday Upper body
Tuesday Lower body
Wednesday Off
Thursday Upper body
Friday Lower body
Saturday/Sunday Off
LEVEL: INTERMEDIATE TO ADVANCED
If you have been training for over 1 year
You are now ready to advance to hard core training mode 😉
At this phase, you are now strong enough to withstand an even higher amount of volume per muscle group since you have good base strength and a better understanding of weight training. By higher volume, I mean doing 4-6 different exercises for one muscle group instead of just one or two each workout. Through your year(s) of experience you have built up a good database of exercises and can think of at least 5-6 different ones for each muscle group. You are also ready to kick up the intensity and build more muscle.
At this level, I recommend committing to AT LEAST 4 days, but preferably 5 per week. In each workout, you will perform 4-6 exercises for that one particular muscle group. This allows you to hit that area of your body from many different angles. I also recommend starting your week off with the area of your body you want to improve the most or the one that is the hardest to complete. Here are some examples of how to set up your split:
LOWER BODY FOCUS
Monday Quads/Glutes/Calves
Tuesday Shoulders
Wednesday Off
Thursday Back/Triceps
Friday Hamstrings/Glutes
Saturday Chest/Biceps
Sunday Off
BACK FOCUS
Monday Back (focus on pulldowns for width)
Tuesday Legs/Calves
Wednesday Shoulders/Abs
Thursday Off
Friday Back (focus on rows for thickness and detail)
Saturday Chest/Arms
Sunday Off
SHOULDER FOCUS
Monday Shoulders heavy
Tuesday Legs and calves
Wednesday Off
Thursday Back and triceps
Friday Shoulders light
Saturday Chest and biceps
Sunday Off
As you can see, when focusing on a specific body part that you feel needs to be brought up, hitting it on more than one day a week can help you build muscle as long as you allow adequate recovery between workouts. Hopefully this helps some of you develop a plan of attack as far as how to structure your workouts based on your your training level and your individual goals.
Keep working hard!
Thats what i was waiting for , great post!
was also waiting for a post like this! awesome so helpful to know how to approach training based on experience with weight training. Great post Nicole!
Exactly why I subscribe to your site – it’s the best thing going!
Thank you!
I know I’m late to the party…but wanted to say this is an amazing site! You give such great insight to all aspects of training, nutrition and contest prep and even your mindset. Loving it!
For the over 1 year leg focused, when should i do cardio and how much? I am a new member and so far i love your site! I log on every night to plan my workout for the next day and it gives me the confidence i need to to train myself! You are so gorgeous and perfect and a huge inspiration!
I usually recommend doing cardio at a separate time from weights if possible. That way you have more energy for both sessions. I do cardio in the morning and then weights in the afternoon or evening after I have had a few meals in me.
This is an AWESOME post! Love it and thank you. 🙂 🙂
And sleeeep – sleep is sooooooooo important. ai yai yai – this grasshopper is still learning that. Going to book mark this blog, is a great one to refer back too.
Thanks Nicole, great post! do you always have delayed muscle soreness after your workouts? How important is it to have delayed muscle soreness for muscle growth?
I am sure she mentions that in one of the Q&A segments. She says your muscles may feel a bit tender the next day or 2, but when you workout for a long time your muscles are very good at recovery so they don’t feel sore as in the beginning, and often not at all. Just lift as heavy as you can and mix it up xx
Thank you so much, i appreciate your help Milena
I am not ALWAYS sore, but usually feel fatigue the next day. If you are not sore every time that is ok- your body is most likely recovering efficiently. If you are never sore, then I would bump up the intensity and try to change up your workouts.
Thank you for this Nicole!!
What your thoughts are on people who have worked out for more than a year but stopped for a period and lost the body strength and fitness but not the knowledge? If they are considered as the “below 6 months” or as the “over a year”?
Thank you! <3
Depends on how long you have been out. I would start with the ‘below 6mo’ and then work your way back up. It doesn’t only have to do with knowledge in the gym- it has to do with not overloading your muscles when the strength isn’t there.
SHOULD YOU EVER DO ARM FOCUSED??
This is awesome! Thanks Nicole! 🙂
Thanks Nicole – your videos and posts are so helpful! I’ve been lifting for a little over two years now and I’m trying to build more muscle mass in my legs/glutes, back, and shoulders. Would you recommend hitting all of these muscle groups twice a week – maybe one heavy day, lower rep and one light day, higher rep – or would you recommend focusing on legs one week, shoulders the next, and back the following, then repeating? Thank you! (P.S. can’t wait to meet you at Phat Camp in a few weeks!)
Nicole, during contest prep do you write up your own workouts and only use a coach for diet/cardio or does Hany do both your diet/cardio and training?
I always write up my own workouts in and offseason. During contest prep, Hany has a handle on my diet.
awesome! so much info! Thank you Nicole?
random question – where is your pink top from last video from? love it x
AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS NICOLE
this is awesome!!! Thank you!! so worth it being a member!
I believe the push/pull muscles are switched. Pull days focus on back, biceps and rear delta. Push days focus on chest, triceps and shoulders.
This is so awesome! Thank you!
Question: I hit the gym Monday thru Friday at lunchtime for about an hour to hour and a half. Is it possible to skip the rest day midweek?
Yes, just make sure to have at least one full day of rest during the week.
Yes just make sure you have at least one full day of rest during the 7 day week.
This is amazing! Thank you so much for the help, Nicole! 🙂
Please I need you help, I’m doing everything, cardio 3 times a week, I lift weight and heavy weight 6 times a week, upper body and lower body, i change my routine every 3 or 4 weeks, my diet is clean well some time chocolate like 4 times a week and I did not lose weight and I did not burn my fat arms and I have cellulites. I’m so sad and I want to give up and some times I eat just because I’m mad. I do not know what can I do,I’m 43 years old, 143 pounds ,5,5 feet please I do not have money for pay personal trainer and I love your body, your arms are perfect please help me. Thank you so much for you time
I loved this blog post…thanks
So glad that I became a member ! Watching a person train is so much better than a piece of paper you see the form , determination , focus & commitment ! Even better that it’s Nicole Wilkins
i pay a ridiculous amount to another trainer that doesn’t do half of what this has done for me. you’re the best! besides diet, how would this type of workout compare to a contest prep?
Thank you! Contest prep is for advanced- I would recommend split body part training.
What exercise can you advice for more “thickness” and roundness in the shoulders?
Check out the shoulder videos I have posted. I always recommend starting with presses- lifting heavy and making sure you are fueling your body properly will help you gain muscle.
Do you have a sample week of workouts for the back focused split? Or how many exercises and sets would you do each day?
Yes there are a lot of workouts listed in the members section for back only.
Thank you Nicole!! I am really enjoying your website.
Hi Nicole, I have 3 body parts I’d like to focus on- legs, shoulders and back. But i was wondering how long should i follow each body part workout split? Thank you so much!
I follow a 1 1/2 – 2 month schedule where I do the same routines for each body part and then I have my trainer give me a whole new workout and mix that in. When I change, I can be pretty sore for 3-4 days for each body part the first couple weeks of the new routine. When leg day comes back around and I am still wishing for a bathroom genie to carry me in, should I still do my planned workout at my planned intensity?
It depends on how sore- if you can’t walk, then wait a couple more days. If you can walk but it is just slightly tender, go ahead and train.
This is excellent!
Why chest with biceps and back with triceps? I’ve seen chest and triceps and back with biceps usually…
This has helped me a great deal, and renewed my excitement to train..thank you Nicole!
Hello Nicole,
Thank you for posting this information!
Quick question, in the last section “Training over one year”, when you say ” In each workout, you will perform 4-6 exercises for that one particular muscle group” , does it mean 4 exercises for biceps and 4 for chest, when working these two groups?
Kind Regards,
Diana
Can you put together some workouts that demonstrate each of those splits??
This is a great post and I am excited to execute this strategy!
As a busy mom of 3 and working 40 hours a week – squeezing a workout in is almost an afterthought – but I’ve been doing the beginner full body training videos as both can be done at the gym or home and it is a killer! I keep thinking.. ”
What did I get myself into?”- but I am seeing results!
Thanks Nicole for continuing to inspire and I love all the videos – they really help me understand how to exercise properly.
As a busy mom of 3 and working 40 hours a week – squeezing a workout in is almost an afterthought – but I’ve been doing the beginner full body training videos as both can be done at the gym or home and it is a killer! I keep thinking.. “What did I get myself into?”- but I am seeing results!
Thanks Nicole for continuing to inspire and I love all the videos – they really help me understand how to exercise properly.
Oh my goodness how have I not come across this post before now?? Thanks for the info and suggested splits!! Super helpful. 🙂
OMG!
I’ve been waiting for you to post some type of routine/schedule. Thank you so much for finally doing it. If I’ve watched a few of your videos and they’ve helped with my work outs.