Full body workouts VS Split Routines

For beginners though, Full body all the way until you can lift 1x body-weight on bench, 1.5x on squat and 2x on deadlift.

Personally, I have too many exercises that are upper/lower specific. A 3 x week full body session would take me 3 hours. I like to split into upper and lower days, alternating.

There are some good reasons to start with FB. The main one is that it you utilise much more muscle overall per workout. You will also gain strength a lot quicker and your muscles will develop together. When you want to build individual muscle groups then you will need a split routine to get the volume you need to get buff!

i do splits

kuftae wrote: »

For beginners though, Full body all the way until you can lift 1x body-weight on bench, 1.5x on squat and 2x on deadlift.

what?? i guess i'm not ready for a split.

i agree full body is great and its great for beginners and all levels, but splits are great, too, no matter what your level. Do whatever makes you feel good and keeps you going back to the gym. I generally prefer splits because my workouts are so hard i need those extra rest days. But i've done plenty of full body just to maintain when i don't have the time for a hard core training cycle.

Gonna depend. How long have you been lifting (and what program) and are you lifting more for strength or hypertrophy? Full body (or full body with assistance work) tends to be more time-efficient, but there are a number of situations where you're better with split.

DreesPerformanceTraining wrote: »

I would say about 9/10 people would see better results using a full body or a upper/lower body routine. A lot of people use a split routine because that's what bodybuilders use, but very few people actually need that much volume.

Beat me to it...this is pretty much exactly what I was going to say.

If you want to put on mass like a body builder, a split is the way to go for the volume...also probably competitive power lifters. On that same note, if you're a beginner in the weight room, all of that volume is not going to serve you well.

Outside of actually bodybuilding or some other kind of competitive lifting, a 3x full body workout is plenty good for any level.

kuftae wrote: »

The science goes against bro-splits but the results don't.

The science supports fullbody 3x/ week but I don't see anyone with a great physique doing them.

I know lots of people with great physiques doing them. My trainer trains his clients pretty much exclusively with full body programming...everyone from his run of the mill clients like me to his pro and amateur level athletes. Those guys look pretty damned good.

ASKyle wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

DreesPerformanceTraining wrote: »

I would say about 9/10 people would see better results using a full body or a upper/lower body routine. A lot of people use a split routine because that's what bodybuilders use, but very few people actually need that much volume.

Beat me to it...this is pretty much exactly what I was going to say.

If you want to put on mass like a body builder, a split is the way to go for the volume...also probably competitive power lifters. On that same note, if you're a beginner in the weight room, all of that volume is not going to serve you well.

Outside of actually bodybuilding or some other kind of competitive lifting, a 3x full body workout is plenty good for any level.

kuftae wrote: »

The science goes against bro-splits but the results don't.

The science supports fullbody 3x/ week but I don't see anyone with a great physique doing them.

I know lots of people with great physiques doing them. My trainer trains his clients pretty much exclusively with full body programming...everyone from his run of the mill clients like me to his pro and amateur level athletes. Those guys look pretty damned good.

To all of you- If you're doing a full body routine, how many times a week would you recommend?

What about an upper/lower split- How many times a week?

When I did FB: 3x week with a day of accessories only

Upper/Lower: 2 upper days a week and 2 lower days a week

I prefer an upper/lower split.

ASKyle wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

DreesPerformanceTraining wrote: »

I would say about 9/10 people would see better results using a full body or a upper/lower body routine. A lot of people use a split routine because that's what bodybuilders use, but very few people actually need that much volume.

Beat me to it...this is pretty much exactly what I was going to say.

If you want to put on mass like a body builder, a split is the way to go for the volume...also probably competitive power lifters. On that same note, if you're a beginner in the weight room, all of that volume is not going to serve you well.

Outside of actually bodybuilding or some other kind of competitive lifting, a 3x full body workout is plenty good for any level.

kuftae wrote: »

The science goes against bro-splits but the results don't.

The science supports fullbody 3x/ week but I don't see anyone with a great physique doing them.

I know lots of people with great physiques doing them. My trainer trains his clients pretty much exclusively with full body programming...everyone from his run of the mill clients like me to his pro and amateur level athletes. Those guys look pretty damned good.

To all of you- If you're doing a full body routine, how many times a week would you recommend?

What about an upper/lower split- How many times a week?

I do full body 3x weekly.

For a split I wouldn't do anymore than 2 days upper and 2 days lower unless you had some very specified reasons crazy volume.

ASKyle wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

DreesPerformanceTraining wrote: »

I would say about 9/10 people would see better results using a full body or a upper/lower body routine. A lot of people use a split routine because that's what bodybuilders use, but very few people actually need that much volume.

Beat me to it...this is pretty much exactly what I was going to say.

If you want to put on mass like a body builder, a split is the way to go for the volume...also probably competitive power lifters. On that same note, if you're a beginner in the weight room, all of that volume is not going to serve you well.

Outside of actually bodybuilding or some other kind of competitive lifting, a 3x full body workout is plenty good for any level.

kuftae wrote: »

The science goes against bro-splits but the results don't.

The science supports fullbody 3x/ week but I don't see anyone with a great physique doing them.

I know lots of people with great physiques doing them. My trainer trains his clients pretty much exclusively with full body programming...everyone from his run of the mill clients like me to his pro and amateur level athletes. Those guys look pretty damned good.

To all of you- If you're doing a full body routine, how many times a week would you recommend?

What about an upper/lower split- How many times a week?

If you can handle it, 4x a week. Did me well in my Olympic lifting.

DreesPerformanceTraining wrote: »

I would say about 9/10 people would see better results using a full body or a upper/lower body routine. A lot of people use a split routine because that's what bodybuilders use, but very few people actually need that much volume.

Agree with this ^ I don't do full body and prefer splits, but would definitely recommend full body to the OP....for now anyway.

I think it depends a lot on how much time you are willing to dedicate to the gym. If it's three days a week. You could do full body, splits, or circuits. You could do full body for a month, then splits for a month, etc. I have had better results by not sticking to one routine for more then a month. Experiment, and find what works best for you.