Turn your training days into a weekly split — exercises, sets, reps, rest & recovery
Leave blank for auto by experience. Evidence band is 10–20 sets/muscle/week; clamped to 4–30.
Your recommended split
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Workout Split Planner — guide & how to use
What it does
This workout split planner turns four simple inputs — how many days you can train,
your goal, your experience, and your equipment — into a full weekly program: the right split
(full-body, upper/lower, or push-pull-legs), a 7-day calendar with rest days, per-session workout
cards with sets × reps & rest, and a weekly volume table per muscle. It is calculated privately
in your browser, free.
How to use it
Enter your training days per week (this drives the split).
Pick your goal and experience level — these set rep ranges, load, and weekly volume.
Choose your available equipment so every exercise is one you can actually do.
Optionally cap your session time or override weekly sets per muscle.
Read your split, calendar, workout cards, and volume table, then Copy plan or sign in to download a PDF.
Worked example
A beginner training 4 days/week for muscle gets a 4-day Upper/Lower split.
Default beginner volume is 10 sets per muscle per week. Each muscle is trained
2×/week (upper muscles on the two Upper days, lower muscles on the two Lower days), so each
session prescribes about round(10 ÷ 2) = 5 sets per muscle. Chest, for example, gets ~5 sets
across 2 pressing movements on each Upper day (bench press 3×6–8, incline dumbbell press 2×8–12),
resting 2–3 minutes on the compound and 60–90s on isolations, at roughly 65–80% of a 1-rep max. The
calendar spaces the two Upper and two Lower days so no muscle is hit on back-to-back days.
The numbers behind it
Split by days: 1–3 days → full-body; 4 → upper/lower; 5 → PPL + upper/lower (PPLUL); 6 → push/pull/legs ×2. Each muscle is hit at least 2×/week.
Weekly volume: 10 (beginner) / 14 (intermediate) / 18 (advanced) sets per muscle, clamped to the 10–20 optimal band (hard limits 4–30).
Sets per session: weekly volume ÷ how often that muscle is trained, capped at 8 sets/muscle/session.
Reps: strength 3–6, hypertrophy 6–12, endurance 12–20, general 8–15 — compounds biased lower in the band.
Time budget: ~3 min/set (strength), 2.75 (hypertrophy), 2.25 (endurance) minus a 10-min warmup; sets are trimmed to fit.
Accuracy & safety notes
This is general fitness education, not medical or individualized coaching advice. With injuries, heart conditions, pregnancy, or if you are new to exercise, consult a physician or qualified coach first.
Volume landmarks (10–20 sets/muscle/week; ~4 sets minimum effective dose) are population averages from meta-analyses — your recoverable volume varies with sleep, nutrition, stress, and genetics. Start at the low end and add only if recovery allows.
"Optimal" 20 sets is a practical display cap, not a biological ceiling; gains continue past it but slowly and with rising fatigue/injury risk.
Rep-range and %1RM bands are guidance, not exact loads — the tool collects no 1RM. Effort (RPE 7–9, last set near failure) drives results more than hitting an exact rep.
The exercise library is a reasonable default, not a personalized assessment of your mobility, limb proportions, or technique.
Frequently asked questions
Which workout split is best for my training days?
Days drive it: 1–3 days → full-body (each muscle ~3x/week); 4 → upper/lower (2x/week); 5 → PPLUL hybrid; 6 → push/pull/legs twice. The planner picks it automatically.
How many sets per muscle per week should I do?
About 10–20 working sets per muscle per week. Defaults are 10 (beginner), 14 (intermediate), 18 (advanced), distributed across your sessions. That 10–20 is a weekly figure, not a single-workout number.
How many sets and reps per exercise?
Reps follow your goal: strength 3–6, hypertrophy 6–12, endurance 12–20, general 8–15 — compounds lower, isolations higher. Sets come from weekly volume split across the sessions that train each muscle, capped at 8 sets/muscle/session.
How long should I rest between sets?
Strength/heavy compounds 3–5 min; hypertrophy compounds 2–3 min and isolations 60–90s; endurance 30–60s. Longer rest on compounds beats the old short-rest advice for both strength and growth.
Can I build a split with dumbbells or bodyweight only?
Yes — pick your equipment and the planner only prescribes movements you can perform. Bodyweight + strength flags that loading is limited and substitutes harder progressions and higher-rep work.