So now you are ready to start building some serious muscle. You’ve completed the beginners’ workouts and your body is now conditioned and ready to start lifting heavier weights. One of the main workout criteria required for building muscle is volume of work. To build serious muscle size you must increase the volume of work that you do which split routines allow you to do.

This workout is aimed at advanced beginners who have been training for at least 3 months and have experience with free weight exercises. They are ready to advance into split weight training routines and start serious training for muscle size. They will already have seen some gains in size, strength and overall fitness with there initial workout routines.

1 - What is a split workout?

A split workout is a multiday workout program where each day is dedicated to certain body parts. You still get a full body workout each week, but you train each muscle group more intensely during a single session.

2 - What are the benefits of split workouts?

Split workouts allow you to get the volume of work required to build muscle size, within reasonably timed workout session. You also get the appropriate rest between workouts to enable optimum muscle growth. Trying to fit in the amount of work within one full body workout session would be very difficult to do.

3 - Does it matter what order I do the workout routines in?

No, as long as you get each one in per week then that’s fine. But once you have an order then stick to it. Don’t swap and change because you prefer a particular routine over another. It’s important that you fit in all the routines to get the full benefit from the workout.

4 - How many splits can you add to a workout?/h3>

You can split a workout up in to many routines. It’s not uncommon to have 4 or 5 even 6 splits for very experienced gym goers. However the workouts need to be designed very well so that you are not working the same muscle groups on consecutive days otherwise this can lead to over training and compromise any gains you might have made. As a guide, exercisers new to muscle building should stick to 2 or 3 days splits to start with.

5 - Can I miss out one of the routines if I don’t like it and do one of the others instead?

This could seriously compromise results. Split routines are designed to allow the exerciser to get in the required amount of work within a suitable time frame by splitting a total body workout into shorter manageable routines and also providing the appropriate recovery time. Missing out a certain routine will create an unbalanced workout which can inevitably lead to an unbalanced physique. It’s fine to replace exercises with suitable alternatives that work the same muscle groups, but the workout must remain balanced.

6 - What are the disadvantages of split routines?

• Split routines require dedication as missing one routine in the week could lead to an unbalanced workout.
• Split routines take careful planning and forethought. For example shift workers or busy people might find split routines difficult to manage, so take care to pick the correct routine for you.
• Including extra training sessions during the week, even of a different activity type can lead to overtraining if you’re not careful.

Do each routine from this workout once per week (a total of 3 routines). Allow at least 48 hours between each routine for adequate recovery.

It is suggested to continue with this workout program for a period 12 weeks. By the end of this initial period the exerciser should start to see serious results in muscle size. To continue to make progressions it’s recommended to change some of the variable elements such as recovery time between sets, number of sets and reps, the weight etc. for continued gains.