By Lauren Zedlar
Elm Staff Writer
One of the simplest and most popular workout routines is the push/pull/legs split. This routine involves splitting your body into three section and training each one on its respective day.
The “push” portion of the workout is training the upper body pushing muscles, which includes the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Examples of these types of workouts are bench presses or dumbbell shoulder presses.
The “pull” workout refers to the upper body pulling muscles, which include the back and biceps. Examples of these workouts include pull-ups or dumbbell curls.
The last portion, “legs,” refers to working out the entire lower body, which includes calves, hamstrings, quads, and abdominals. This workout includes squats, deadlifts, or leg presses.
According to experts at Ashton University, “the push/pull/legs workout is the most efficient workout split there is because all related muscle groups are trained together in the same workout.”
For example, on “push” day, someone could be using the bench press to train their chest. This movement works the anterior deltoids and triceps. Later in the workout, they could also train their shoulders because it again involves the triceps.
This makes the same muscle groups work on the same day for maximum results. It also allows the body to recover faster because there will be the minimum overlap of movements between workouts.
Ashton University recommends alternating these workouts over four training sessions each week. The order doesn’t matter as long as the same portion isn’t being repeated more than two days in a row. This allows the body to recover faster because there will be the minimum overlap of movements between workouts.
Ashton University experts also recommend this split workout to both the intermediate and advanced training individuals.
According to experts at Legion Athletics the push/pull/legs split workout routine is a “staple” among lifters and body builders because it spends the majority of the time doing compound exercises.
Compound exercises are any form of exercises that involves various muscle groups and uses most of the whole-body strength. For example, a squat involves using the knees, ankles, hips, and muscles in your back along with the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back.
According to Legion Athletics, “the reason Compound Exercises are so important is they’re far better than isolation exercises for gaining strength and size.”
Compound exercises allow your body to progressively build and develop muscles.
The only negative aspect, according to experts at Legion Athletics, is that “compound exercise can be very physically demanding during the workout and the energy needed for post-workout recovery.”
This is why the push/pull/legs split routine is so popular; it splits the upper body into two separate workouts and limits the amount of lower body training each week.
According to Legion Athletics, “this way, your muscles have plenty of time to recover between workouts and your nervous system isn’t being continually pushed to the red line, which allows you to perform better over the long term.”
The push/pull/legs split routine also allows the individual flexibility. It includes three basic workouts that can be customized to fit someone’s week.
According to experts at Ashton University, the push/pull/legs split routine is “an extremely effective method of training that is certain to give you exceptional results.”