Skip to content
programming · training splits

The push pull legs split.

Push pull legs (PPL) is one of the most popular ways to organize a training week - three days grouped by movement: push, pull, and legs. This guide explains what it is, who it suits, what a week looks like, and how to program it for clients at both 3 and 6 days, with the honest caveat that the split is the container, not the magic.

By Markus Evers · Updated June 2026

the short answer

A push pull legs split (PPL) organizes training into three days grouped by movement: push (chest, shoulders, triceps), pull (back, biceps), and legs (the whole lower body). It runs as a 3-day week, training each muscle once, or a 6-day week, training each muscle twice. It suits clients training 3 to 6 days a week who want a clear, repeatable structure - the 3-day version is the entry, time-crunched option.

The split is a way to deliver weekly training volume - it is not what builds the muscle on its own. The honest version: total weekly volume and progressive overload drive growth, and the best split is whichever one your client recovers from and keeps doing.

the structure

How the three days are grouped.

PPL groups muscles by the job they do. Push day trains everything involved in pressing weight away from the body. Pull day trains everything involved in pulling weight toward it. Legs day takes the entire lower body in one session. The logic is that muscles working together share fatigue, so you train them together and rest them together - a tidy way to fit a lot of work into a week.

Because each day blends big compound lifts with smaller isolation work, the split naturally covers a wide range of movements. If you want the difference between those two clear before you write the day, see our breakdown of compound vs isolation exercises - it shapes the order you put them in.

Day Muscles trained Typical lifts
Push day Chest, shoulders, and triceps - the muscles that extend the arm and press weight away from the body. Bench press, overhead press, incline press, lateral raises, triceps extensions.
Pull day Back and biceps - the muscles that pull weight toward the body and flex the arm. Rows, pulldowns, pull-ups, face pulls, biceps curls, rear-delt work.
Legs day Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves - the whole lower body in one session. Squats, hinges, leg press, lunges, leg curls, calf raises.
who it fits

Who PPL suits, and a sample week.

PPL is at its best for clients who can train 4 to 6 days a week and want a structure they can repeat without thinking. It is a natural fit for intermediate lifters chasing muscle growth, because the six-day version delivers high weekly volume with each muscle trained twice. For a client who can only train 2 to 3 days, the split spreads the week too thin - an upper-lower split or full body usually delivers their volume better. Our guide on how to choose a workout split walks through that decision.

3-day PPL week

  • Mon - Push
  • Wed - Pull
  • Fri - Legs
  • Each muscle once a week. Lower volume, easy recovery, fits a busy life.

6-day PPL week

  • Mon - Push · Tue - Pull · Wed - Legs
  • Thu - Push · Fri - Pull · Sat - Legs
  • Sun - Rest
  • Each muscle twice a week. Higher volume, demands real recovery and adherence.

The two versions are not equal for growth. Training a muscle about twice a week tends to beat training it once a week at the same total volume, which is why the 6-day version often edges out the 3-day - more on that in our guide to training frequency for muscle growth. But that only holds if the client recovers from and actually does the sixth day.

the trade-offs

Pros and cons of the split.

Every split trades something off. PPL is clean and scalable, but it is not the right answer for every client. Here is the honest balance sheet.

Pros

  • Logical grouping - synergist muscles train and recover together.
  • Scales cleanly from 3 to 6 days without redesigning the program.
  • Plenty of room for both heavy compounds and isolation volume.
  • Easy for clients to understand and repeat week after week.

Cons

  • At 3 days, each muscle is trained only once a week - not ideal for growth.
  • The 6-day version demands real recovery and high adherence.
  • A missed day can leave a muscle group skipped for the week.
  • Wrong fit for clients who can only train 2 to 3 days.

None of this makes PPL better or worse than the alternatives in the abstract. It is one option among several - our overview of workout splits explained sets PPL alongside upper-lower and full body so you can match the structure to the client rather than defaulting to the most popular name.

step by step

How coaches program a PPL split.

Programming PPL is less about the day labels and more about delivering the right weekly volume the client can recover from. Five steps take you from a blank week to a program that actually drives growth.

  1. 01

    Set the client weekly volume target

    Decide how many hard sets per muscle the client needs each week before you pick days. Volume - the total number of challenging sets you take close to failure - is the main driver of muscle growth, so the split exists to deliver that volume, not the other way around. A rough starting band is around 10 to 15 hard sets per muscle per week for a developing lifter, built up over time and adjusted to their recovery and history.

  2. 02

    Choose 3-day or 6-day based on availability

    PPL scales cleanly anywhere from 3 to 6 days a week. The 3-day version (push, pull, legs) is the entry, time-crunched option - it trains each muscle once weekly, with lower frequency as the trade-off. Six days (push, pull, legs, repeat) trains each muscle twice weekly and fits clients who can commit and recover. Pick the version the client can actually show up for, week after week.

  3. 03

    Order each session by priority

    Open each day with the heaviest compound while the client is fresh, then move to secondary compounds and finish with isolation. On push, that is press first, lateral raises and triceps last. This sequencing protects the lifts that drive the most growth and lets fatigue land on the smaller work.

  4. 04

    Build in progressive overload

    A split is just a container - growth comes from doing more over time. Add weight, reps, or sets week to week, and log every set so the client and you can see the trend. Without a deliberate progression, even a perfect split stalls. This is the single habit that separates a program that works from one that just keeps the client busy.

  5. 05

    Track, review, and adjust

    Watch adherence, recovery, and the numbers in the log. If a client is missing the sixth day or stalling on every lift, that is a signal to drop to a lower frequency or trim volume - not to push harder. The best split is the one the client recovers from and keeps doing, so let the data tell you when to change it.

For hypertrophy, most working sets sit in the 6 to 15 rep range, with heavier compounds toward the lower end and isolation work toward the higher end. The deeper logic of why volume - hard sets per muscle - is the lever, and how to build the climb week to week, lives in our guides to training volume, progressive overload, and hypertrophy training. When you are ready to write the full plan, our walk-through on how to write an online coaching program shows how the split fits into a larger structure - and how periodization moves volume and intensity across a block.

building the program

Programming PPL for clients in Coachway.

Once you have the structure, you have to deliver it - and at 6 days across multiple clients, that is where a spreadsheet falls apart. A dedicated workout builder lets you write push, pull, and legs once, save them as reusable templates, and assign the week to each client in their own language.

Build the three days

Pull exercises from a large library, then set supersets, dropsets, AMRAP finishers, and warm-up sets to shape each session. Order each day heavy-to-light, exactly as the programming calls for.

Drive the overload

Progressive-overload tools and per-set logging let clients record every set, so the numbers climb week to week and you can see at a glance whether a lift is moving. A rest timer keeps recovery between sets honest.

Coach the execution

Attach exercise video so clients see the movement, and add RPE or tempo guidance as notes on the exercise. The client follows the full PPL week in a branded app, not a PDF.

The point of building it once is reuse: a strong push, pull, and legs template becomes the backbone you adapt per client instead of rebuilding every week. One honest note on scope - RPE and tempo live as coaching notes on each exercise, not as separate logged fields, so write them where the client will read them. See the full toolset on the workout builder page.

questions coaches ask

Frequently asked questions.

What is a push pull legs split?

A push pull legs split (PPL) is a way of organizing training into three workout days grouped by movement pattern: a push day for chest, shoulders, and triceps; a pull day for back and biceps; and a legs day for the whole lower body. It runs as a 3-day week (each muscle once) or a 6-day week (each muscle twice). It groups muscles that work together so they share fatigue.

Who is a PPL split best for?

A PPL split suits clients who can train 3 to 6 days a week and want a clear, repeatable structure, especially intermediate lifters chasing muscle growth. The 6-day version fits people who can commit and recover; the 3-day version is the entry, time-crunched option, with once-weekly frequency as its trade-off. For clients limited to 2 days, a full-body split usually delivers their weekly volume better.

Is push pull legs better than other splits?

No split is magic - total weekly volume, hard sets per muscle taken close to failure, is the main driver of growth, and the best split is whatever lets a client hit that volume, recover, and keep showing up. PPL is a strong, efficient way to organize volume, but an upper-lower or full-body split grows muscle just as well at equal volume. Choose what fits the client, not a label.

How many days a week is push pull legs?

Push pull legs runs at either 3 or 6 days a week. At 3 days you train push, pull, then legs and hit each muscle once weekly. At 6 days you run the cycle twice and hit each muscle twice weekly. Training a muscle about twice a week tends to beat once a week at equal volume, so the 6-day version often edges out the 3-day for growth.

How do you program a PPL split for clients?

Set the weekly hard-set target per muscle first, then split it across 3 or 6 days based on what the client can commit to. Open each session with a heavy compound, finish with isolation, and build in progressive overload so the numbers climb week to week. Log every set, watch adherence and recovery, and drop frequency or volume if the client stalls. The split delivers the volume - the volume drives the growth.

What rep range should you use on a PPL split?

For muscle growth on a PPL split, most working sets sit in the 6 to 15 rep range, taken close to but not always to failure. Heavier compounds at the lower end build strength and tension; isolation work at the higher end adds volume with less joint stress. The exact number matters less than total hard sets per week and steady progressive overload across the rep range you choose.

This article is general training information for coaches, not medical advice. Individual capacity, recovery, and injury history vary - program within the client's ability and refer medical questions to a qualified clinician.

The split is the easy part - delivering it well across a full client list is where the work lives. Our guide on how to write an online coaching program shows how to turn a structure like PPL into a program clients actually follow.

Keep reading

all guides
Platform7 min

Workout Splits Explained: Types & How to Program Them

What a workout split is, the main types (full-body, upper/lower, push/pull/legs, body-part), and how coaches choose one - by training days, weekly volume, and frequency. No split is magic; total volume drives growth.

Read the guide
Platform7 min

Upper Lower Split: What It Is & How to Program It

The upper lower split for coaches: what it is, a four-day structure, who it suits, a sample week, and how it compares to push pull legs and full-body. It trains each muscle about twice a week - but total weekly volume is what drives growth.

Read the guide
Platform7 min

Training Frequency for Muscle Growth: How Often to Train

Training frequency is how often you train a muscle each week. At equal volume, twice a week tends to edge once - but total weekly volume, not frequency, is the real driver. How it interacts with your split, and how to program it.

Read the guide
Platform7 min

Compound vs Isolation Exercises: The Difference

Compound exercises move multiple joints and train several muscles at once; isolation exercises move a single joint to target one muscle. The difference, examples, pros and cons, and how to order them.

Read the guide

See what Coachway can do for your coaching business

Coachway was built after working with 150+ coaches who all had the same frustrations - slow platforms, clunky workflows, wasted hours. Book a demo and see what we fixed. 15 minutes, and you'll know if it's the right fit.

Built for efficiency 6 languages DenmarkNorwaySwedenFinlandGermanyUnited Kingdom
The coaching platform you've been waiting for