Five-day workout split: more focus, not more filler.

A five-day hypertrophy split that distributes work without adding junk volume, with progression and schedule options.

DIRECT ANSWER

Five-day workout split: more focus, not more filler. This template is for an experienced lifter who consistently has five training days and benefits from shorter, more focused sessions. Monday upper, Tuesday lower, Thursday push, Friday pull and Saturday legs.

Who this is for

An experienced lifter who consistently has five training days and benefits from shorter, more focused sessions.

Most sessions should take roughly 50–75 minutes when rest periods and equipment access are predictable.

Weekly schedule

Monday upper, Tuesday lower, Thursday push, Friday pull and Saturday legs.

The sessions

Warm up for the movement and load in front of you. The listed sets are working sets.

  • Upper: press, row, pulldown, lateral raise, arms
  • Lower: squat, hinge, leg curl, calves
  • Push: incline press, machine press, lateral raise, triceps
  • Pull: pulldown, two row angles, rear delts, biceps
  • Legs: leg press, split squat, leg extension, leg curl, calves

How to progress

Progress movements before adding sets. The fifth day should distribute productive work, not justify extra exercises with no clear role.

Keep one to three repetitions in reserve for most working sets unless the programme gives a different, deliberate target.

Substitutions

When recovery or attendance slips, collapse back to a four-day upper/lower structure rather than cramming missed sessions together.

Common mistakes

Do not add exercises simply because the session felt short. Avoid changing several variables at once, and do not carry a missed session into the next day if that destroys the rest of the week.

Use it in Bulk Coach

Recreate the session as a saved workout, assign its weekday if the schedule is fixed, and choose each catalogue exercise by its intended movement role. One-click import is not claimed; review exercise names, sets and rep ranges before the first session.

Sources and further reading

  1. ACSM progression models for resistance training
  2. Proximity-to-failure systematic review
Updated 7 August 2026Reviewed by James Wood, founder