Push day workout: chest, shoulders and triceps.

A practical push-day workout with exercise order, sets, rep targets, progression and substitutions for chest, shoulders and triceps.

DIRECT ANSWER

Push day workout: chest, shoulders and triceps. This template is for a gym-based lifter who wants one focused push session inside a broader week. Run once weekly in a three-day PPL week or twice when a six-day PPL rotation is genuinely recoverable.

Who this is for

A gym-based lifter who wants one focused push session inside a broader week.

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

Weekly schedule

Run once weekly in a three-day PPL week or twice when a six-day PPL rotation is genuinely recoverable.

The sessions

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

  • Barbell or machine press — 3 × 6–10
  • Incline dumbbell press — 3 × 8–12
  • Cable or dumbbell lateral raise — 3 × 10–20
  • Machine or dumbbell shoulder press — 2 × 8–12
  • Cable triceps extension — 3 × 10–15

How to progress

Keep the load until every working set reaches the top of its range at the intended effort, then add the smallest practical increment.

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

Substitutions

Swap the press variation for equipment or comfort while preserving its purpose. A machine press can replace barbell bench press; a cable lateral raise can replace dumbbells.

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