Perhaps you're travelling and you can only get to the gym twice a week or you're going through a hectic period at work and can't spend the quality time you normally do in the gym.
"You can't build or maintain muscle with only TWO workouts a week!"
I beg to differ.
The 2 day split workout can be used to both maintain and build muscle for both the newcomer to lifting as well as the seasoned veteran that's spent years smashing the iron.
The 2 day split workout although brief is still highly customizable based on your goals... whether you're looking to increase your squat or add mass to your arms we can make a number of tweaks in the two workouts per week to account for this.
Want to know more about the 2 day split workout? Read on.
2 Reasons Why The 2 Day Split Workout Is Great For Building Muscle Mass & Strength
You're probably thinking "SJ, isn't the 5 or 6 day split better as you're able to dedicate more time and effort to individual muscle groups... the 4 day split is basic!"
You'd be right, the 4 day split is basic.
There's no need to complicate it - we don't need to dedicate an entire day to training biceps like the typical gym rat on a 5, 6 or 7 day split.
1 - It's Simple & Effective
The 2 day split workout is extremely manageable, the 4, 5 and 6 day split workout regimes often complicate things, require too much in terms of time commitment and just generally overwhelm newcomers.
A 6 day split may seem exciting & enjoyable for the first day or week, but it won't take long until you're beat down, de-motivated and ready to throw in the towel - not the attitude we want to cultivate in our first few weeks with the iron.
The 2 day split only requires 2 workouts per week on non consecutive days totaling around 1.5 hour per workout.
Regardless of whether you're a parent, student, full time employee or entrepreneur anyone can find or make that time.
The occasional missed workout can easily be re-scheduled as there's plenty of time in the week to make a day change here or there (any good routine should be flexible enough to accommodate your life).
2 - You're Not Going To Overtrain Or Burn Out!
More workouts, more sets and more exercises are not necessarily beneficial for the beginner...
It's quite the opposite actually.
Newcomers take longer to recover between workouts, their bodies haven't quite adapted yet - the seasoned gym-goer can train five or six days a week and hit the same muscle group 48 hours after initially training it, the newcomer cannot.
This is the #1 reason why a 6 day split workout isn't best suited for beginners.
It's a great workout style, I'm personally following one right now - but if I had less than a year of time spent in the gym under my belt I would steer clear of that volume.
The two day split can be structured in many, many different ways - hitting each body part either one or twice per week.
2 Mistakes Most Guys Make With Their 2 Day Split Workout
1 - Focusing On High Volume Instead Of High Intensity
If you’re able to hit 50 sets per body part per workout you’re not lifting heavy enough and you’re not pushing yourself hard enough.
Each workout should consist of roughly 20 sets, with the majority of your lifts being performed in the single digit rep range.
4 – 6 reps.
3 – 4 sets.
3 – 4 exercises per body part.
The 2 day split should not be a high volume ‘pump up’ style workout regime.
If you want size and strength focus on your compound movements and focus on applying progressive overload with heavy weight.
2 - Poor Scheduling Of Exercises
As you're only going to be training twice a week you cannot afford to structure your workouts wrong.
You'll be shooting yourself in the foot if you opt to perform your isolation exercises before hitting your big compound movements.
For example...
You should ALWAYS perform your back exercises (e.g. pull-ups) before delving into biceps curls.
You should ALWAYS perform your chest exercises (e.g. bench press) before delving into triceps dips.
You should ALWAYS perform your barbell squats before delving into leg extensions.
These big exercises will provide the best bang for buck in terms of both size nad strength gains - don't fatigue yourself and under perform on these exercises by hitting the insignificant isolation exercises first.
2 Day Split Workout Examples
Below are three 2 day split workout routines that WILL have you stacking on both size and strength regardless of whether you're a newcomer or a seasoned gym-goer.
Strength Oriented - 2 Day Split Workout
Workout A
- Barbell Bench Press - 4 x 10 reps
- Incline Dumbbell Press - 4 x 10 reps
- Military Press - 3 x 10 reps
- Pull-Ups - 3 x 10 reps
- Barbell Biceps Curl - 4 x 10 reps
- Weighted Triceps Dips - 4 x 10 reps
Workout B
- Barbell Back Squat - 3 x 10 reps
- Barbell Front Squat - 3 x 10 reps
- Leg Press - 3 x 10 reps
- Leg Extension - 3 x 10 reps
- Leg Curl - 3 x 10 reps
Hypertrophy Oriented - 2 Day Split Workout
Workout A
- Barbell Bench Press - 3 x 6 reps
- Incline Dumbbell Press - 3 x 6 reps
- Military Press - 3 x 6 reps
- Weighted Pull-Ups - 3 x 6 reps
- Barbell Biceps Curl - 3 x 6 reps
- Weighted Triceps Dips - 3 x 6 reps
Workout B
- Barbell Back Squat - 3 x 6 reps
- Barbell Front Squat - 3 x 6 reps
- Leg Press - 3 x 6 reps
- Walking Lunges - 3 x 6 reps
Bodyweight Oriented - 2 Day Split Workout
Workout A
- One Arm Push-Up - 3 x F
- Chin-Ups - 3 x 10 reps
- Chest Dips - 3 x 10 reps
- Handstand Push-Up - 3 x 6 reps
- Pistol Squats - 3 x 6 reps
- Hollow Holds - 3 x 30 seconds
Workout B
- Decline Push-Ups - 4 x 10
- Pull-Ups - 3 x 10 reps
- Triceps Dips - 3 x 10 reps
- Handstand Push-Up - 3 x 6 reps
- Pistol Squats - 3 x 6 reps
- Dragon Flags - 3 x 8 reps