Upper Lower Split: 4-Day Workout Plan (+ 3, 5, 6 Days)

An upper lower split divides your training into two kinds of workout: an upper day for chest, back, shoulders and arms, and a lower day for quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves. Run it four days a week and every muscle gets trained twice, with a rest day built in after every pair.

The short answer: Train Upper, Lower, rest, Upper, Lower, rest, rest (for example Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri). Use two versions of each day: A days start with a heavy barbell lift at 5–8 reps, B days use different exercises at 8–12 reps. Do 5–7 exercises and 14–18 sets per session; each takes about 45–55 minutes. Add weight when you hit the top of the rep range on every set.

Below: the four workouts with sets and reps, schedules for 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 days a week, how many weekly sets each muscle gets (and how that compares with push pull legs), and how to make progress when the same lift shows up at different rep ranges. Every number here comes from a script.

What is an upper lower split?

Each muscle is either worked or resting on any given day, so an upper day after a lower day doesn't step on your recovery. That's the whole appeal: a simple structure, everything trained twice a week, and four sessions that fit a normal work week.

The catch is that upper days are crowded. Chest, back, shoulders and arms all need to fit into one session, so upper days run longer than lower days. The sessions below keep each one under an hour.

The upper lower split workout (sets and reps)

These are our sample sessions, not the only right ones. Swap any exercise for one that hits the same muscle and suits your gym. A days are heavier, B days use different exercises in higher rep ranges, so you get both heavy and moderate work on every muscle each week.

Upper A (heavy)

Lower A (heavy)

Upper B (volume)

Lower B (volume)

That's 16 sets on Upper A, 14 on Lower A, 18 on Upper B and 14 on Lower B. A few rules that make them work:

• Heaviest lift first, while you're fresh. Warm up with 2–3 lighter sets of it; those don't count toward the working sets.
• Stop 1–3 reps short of failure on most sets, closer on the last set of isolation work. Not sure how to judge that? See RPE vs RIR.
• Deadlifts sit on Lower B, three days after the Romanian deadlifts on Lower A, so your lower back isn't loaded hard two sessions in a row.
• Abs can go at the end of either lower day: 2–3 sets of a crunch or plank variation.

How long does it take? With 45 seconds per set, 2.5 minutes of rest after compound sets, 1.5 minutes after isolation sets, 2 minutes to move between exercises and an 8-minute warm-up, the sessions come to about 53 minutes (Upper A), 44 (Lower A), 56 (Upper B) and 52 (Lower B), counting both legs on the split squats. Short on time? Drop the last arm exercise on upper days, or superset biceps with triceps.

Upper lower split schedules: 2 to 6 days a week

Four days is the classic version, but the split works on any number of days if you keep the order going: Upper A → Lower A → Upper B → Lower B, then start again. When you miss a day, do the next workout in the order instead of skipping it.

4 days a week (the standard)

Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri is the usual choice, but any four days work as long as you don't do more than two in a row without a rest day. Sat/Sun/Tue/Thu (or similar) is fine if weekends suit you better.

3 days a week (rotating)

Each workout comes up 3 times every 4 weeks, so every muscle is trained 1.5 times a week. Some weeks are upper-heavy and some lower-heavy; over a month it evens out.

5 days a week (rotating)

6 days a week

Six days means every muscle three times a week. That's a lot of recovery to ask for with 14–18 sets a session; if you go this route, cut each session to 4–5 exercises.

2 days a week

Do one upper and one lower day, alternating A and B each week (Upper A + Lower A, then Upper B + Lower B). Each muscle gets trained only once a week and the weekly sets are low (see the table below). With two days, a full-body routine done twice usually gives each muscle more work for the same time.

How many sets does each muscle get?

We counted the sample sessions with the same rule as our push pull legs article: a set counts as 1 set for the muscle it mainly trains and half a set for a muscle that clearly helps (triceps on presses, biceps on rows and pull-ups, glutes on squats). Weekly sets per muscle, averaged over 12 weeks:

On the standard 4 days, legs, back and arms land at 8.5–10.5 weekly sets, which is a solid amount for most lifters. Chest sits at 6, and side and rear delts at 3–3.5: the price of fitting a whole upper body into one session. If chest or shoulders are a priority, add 2 sets of a press or fly and 2 sets of lateral raises to Upper A. That adds about 11 minutes.

Upper lower vs push pull legs: weekly sets compared

Same counting rule, using the sessions from our push pull legs split article (15 sets a day):

On four days a week, upper/lower gives your legs more work (half your sessions are lower days, versus a third on PPL) and every muscle is hit exactly twice every week, while PPL on four days rotates and gives pushing muscles a bit more. Six-day PPL beats both on volume, but it's six days in the gym.

Does training a muscle twice a week matter? The meta-analyses we covered in the push pull legs article found that when weekly sets are equal, how often you train a muscle makes little difference to growth. So choose the split by the number of days you can actually train: upper/lower for 4, PPL for 3 or 6.

How to make progress on an upper lower split

Use double progression: pick a rep range, and when you hit the top of it on every set, add weight next time.

• Upper A bench at 3 × 5–8: work from 185 × 5, 5, 5 up to 185 × 8, 8, 8, then move to 190 lb.
• Lower A squat at 3 × 5–8: same idea, from 225 to 230 lb once you get 8, 8, 8.

For barbell lifts, 5 lb (2.5 kg) is a sensible jump: 135 → 140 lb, 185 → 190 lb, 225 → 230 lb, or 60 → 62.5 kg, 85 → 87.5 kg, 100 → 102.5 kg.

Heavy day vs light day: how to tell you're getting stronger

On an A/B split, your heavy and light days use different weights and reps, which makes progress hard to eyeball. Is 165 × 11 on an easier bench day better or worse than 185 × 6 last week? Convert both to an estimated one-rep max (Epley: weight × (1 + reps ÷ 30)):

The light-day sets estimate a slightly higher max than last week's heavy set, so you're on track. In kg: 85 × 6 = 102.0, 75 × 11 = 102.5, 77.5 × 10 = 103.3, 87.5 × 5 = 102.1.

Notice the jump to 190 × 5 estimates lower than 185 × 6. That's normal for the first session after adding weight: one more rep next time (190 × 6 = 228.0 lb) puts you ahead. Estimates from different rep ranges never line up perfectly, so compare heavy days with heavy days for the clearest picture and use the estimate to check the overall trend. (More on the formulas in how to calculate your 1RM.)

None of this works without a record of every set. With four different sessions and 23 exercises, nobody remembers what they did on Upper B two weeks ago. If you'd rather write it down, our free workout log template has a column for each set; how to track progressive overload covers the rest.

How to run an upper lower split in Liftly

1. Log each workout as you go. Logging is free and works offline. Add the Upper A exercises the first time and log your sets.
2. Next Upper A, open an exercise. Liftly fills in last session's weight, shows last time's reps as grey hints, and "Same as last time" fills them in. Beat one number and you've progressed.
3. Check the estimated 1RM chart on Insights. It turns your heavy-day and light-day sets into one line per lift, so you see the trend without doing the math above. If bench, squat and row are all flat or sliding for three sessions, it may be time for a deload week.
4. Save your split (Pro). Save Upper A, Lower A, Upper B and Lower B as a workout split so each day's exercises are ready. Pro also suggests next-session weight targets when you hit the top of your rep range (+5 lb / +2.5 kg on a two-hand lift by default, and you can set your own step per exercise).
5. Keep upper and lower balanced (Pro). Muscle ranks (Newbie → GOAT) score each muscle from your logged lifts and bodyweight, so you can see whether your legs are keeping up with your chest and back.

Liftly's free app shows ads; Pro removes them.

Is an upper lower split good for beginners?

Yes. Four sessions a week, each muscle twice, and a handful of big lifts you repeat every week is a good way to learn the basics. If four days is too many to start with, run it 3 days a week on the rotation above, or do a full-body routine and switch after a few months.

Beginners can make the sessions shorter: keep the first 4 exercises of each day and drop the rest until you're recovering well.

Upper lower split for hypertrophy vs strength

The sample sessions already mix both: A days start heavy (5–8 reps), B days use more moderate weights (8–12+). To lean one way:

• More strength: move the main lift of each A and B day to 3–6 reps (bench on Upper A, overhead press or close-grip bench on Upper B, squat on Lower A, deadlift on Lower B) and rest 3 minutes.
• More size: keep the rep ranges as they are, add a set or two to the muscles you want to grow, and take isolation sets closer to failure.

FAQ

What is a good upper lower split for 4 days a week?

Upper A, Lower A, rest, Upper B, Lower B, rest, rest. Start each A day with a heavy bench press or squat at 5–8 reps and each B day with different exercises at 8–12 reps. 14–18 sets per session is enough for most lifters.

Is upper lower better than push pull legs?

Neither is better for growth when weekly sets are the same. Upper/lower fits 4 days a week and trains everything twice; push pull legs fits 3 or 6 days. On 4 days, upper/lower gives your legs more weekly sets than a rotating PPL.

Can I do an upper lower split 3 days a week?

Yes. Rotate the four workouts across your three days (Upper A, Lower A, Upper B one week; Lower B, Upper A, Lower A the next). Each muscle gets trained 1.5 times a week on average.

Can I do upper lower 4 days in a row?

You can, but it's harder to recover: the second upper and lower days come only 48 hours after the first ones. Two days on, one day off (Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri) is easier on your joints and usually leads to better sessions.

How long should an upper lower workout be?

The sessions here take about 45–55 minutes with normal rest. Upper days run longer because they cover more muscles; cut the last arm exercise if you need to save time.

Should abs go on upper or lower day?

Either. Many people put them at the end of lower days because those sessions are a bit shorter. 2–3 sets twice a week is plenty for most lifters.