Push/Pull/Legs/Full Body Routine: 4-Day Workout Split

If you want an effective 4-day workout split you can use to build muscle, this page will show you exactly what to do.

There are many different ways to set up a 4-day workout routine, such as the push/pull and upper/lower split, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.

The one I want to talk about today combines a push/pull/legs routine with a full-body workout, creating a push/pull/legs/full-body hybrid.

What is the Push Pull Legs Full Body Routine?

The push pull legs full body routine is a training split suitable for intermediate lifters who want to gain muscle.

It involves training the major muscle groups in three different workouts:

• Push workout
• Pull workout
• Lower body workout

Then in the full-body workout, you train the whole body in a single session.

Here’s what it looks like:

• Monday: Push
• Tuesday: Pull
• Wednesday: Legs
• Thursday: Off
• Friday: Full-Body
• Saturday: Off
• Sunday: Off

In the push workout, you train the muscles involved in pushing movements for the upper body, typically the chest, shoulders and triceps.

The pull workout, on the other hand, focuses on the muscles involved in pulling movements for the upper body, typically the back and biceps.

The lower body workout revolves around the quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings and calves. Depending on the exercises you use, a lower body workout may also hit the spinal erectors, muscles running up both sides of your spine.

Push/Pull/Legs/Full Body: Workout Schedule

Workout 1: Push

• Bench Press 4 sets x 5-8 reps
• Incline Dumbbell Press 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Cable Crossover 2 sets x 12-15 reps
• Overhead Press 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Lateral Raise 3 sets x 15-20 reps
• Overhead Triceps Extension 3 sets x 10-15 reps

Workout 2: Pull

• Neutral Grip Pull-Up 4 sets x As Many Reps As Possible
• Seated Cable Row 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Wide Grip Front Lat Pulldown 2 sets x 8-12 reps
• Bent-Over Lateral Raise 3 sets x 12-15 reps
• Dumbbell Shrug 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Incline Dumbbell Curl 3 sets x 8-12 reps

Workout 3: Legs

• Squat 4 sets x 5-8 reps
• Leg Press 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Leg Extension 2 sets x 12-15 reps
• Seated Leg Curl 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Romanian Deadlift 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Standing Calf Raise 4 sets x 8-12 reps

Workout 4: Full Body

• Dumbbell Bench Press 3 sets x 10-15 reps
• Leg Press 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Close Grip Underhand Lat Pulldown 3 sets x 10-15 reps
• Leg Curl 3 sets x 8-12 reps
• Face Pulls 3 sets x 12-15 reps
• Incline Hammer Curl 2 sets x 8-12 reps
• Triceps Pressdown 2 sets x 8-12 reps

You can throw in some work for your abs as and when time allows.

How to Warm Up

The number of sets listed are the actual work sets only, and don’t include warm-up sets.

It’s always a good idea, especially if you’re using heavy weights, to do several progressively heavier warm-up sets. This will prepare the joints, the muscles and the nervous system that controls those muscles for the heavy work to come.

In most cases, somewhere between 1-3 warm-up sets will do the job. However, the exact number of warm-up sets you do will vary depending on a number of factors, including the temperature of the gym you’re training in, how your joints feel, the amount of weight you’re lifting, and where that exercise is placed in the workout.

There have been times when I’ve been training in a cold gym, it’s early in the morning and my joints are feeling a bit stiff, where I’ve ended up doing 7-8 warm-up sets before getting into the heavy stuff.

On the flip side, with some of the exercises that come later in the workout, the muscles being worked are already warm, so you won’t need many, if any, warm-up sets.

What about stretching?

In most cases, there’s very little benefit in stretching, be it dynamic or static, as part of a warm-up.

While the adverse effects of stretching on strength and power have been exaggerated, most studies show that pre-exercise stretching does little for injury prevention and has no beneficial effects on lifting performance.

Can you stretch as part of your warm up? Yes. Do you have to? No. It’s certainly not mandatory, and many people will do just as well without it.

You can read more about how to warm up for weight training here.

How Long To Rest Between Sets

Take 2-3 minutes rest between sets. If in doubt, err on the side of giving yourself too much rest rather than not enough.

As a rule, I’d suggest resting for longer between sets of compound exercises that work a large amount of muscle mass, such as squats, rows, deadlifts, leg presses and so on. 

You won’t need as much rest between single-joint exercises, such as dumbbell curls, lateral raises and pressdowns.

Don’t try to save time by cutting your rest periods short and racing from one exercise to the next. The hypertrophy stimulus generated by a given workout will be that much greater if you get a decent amount of rest between each set before tackling the next one.

How To Progress a PPL Full Body 4 Day Split

No matter how your training split is set up, it’s important to train hard and focus on improving your performance in the gym over time.

Do the same exercises, for the same number of sets and reps, while lifting the same amount of weight, for the next five years. Nothing much is going to happen.

That’s because the training you’re doing is a challenge your body has already adapted to. As a result, no new muscle mass will be gained.

I’m not saying you’ll make progress every time you go to the gym. To do so indefinitely would be impossible, and there’ll be times when you end up lifting the same amount of weight, for the same number of sets and reps you did before.

However, you should be pushing yourself to increase the amount of work your muscles are doing in the gym, whether that’s lifting heavier weights, doing more reps with the same weight, or doing more sets.

You need to give your muscles a reason to get bigger, or you’ll remain stuck at the same size you are right now.

So make sure to keep a training journal, write down your numbers, and always try to beat your previous workout in some way.

You’ll notice that the workouts use rep ranges, such as 5-8 or 8-12, rather than a fixed number of reps in each set.

For example, let’s say that the prescription for a particular exercise is 3 sets of 5-8 reps.

The idea is that you select a weight that allows you to perform at least 5 reps in each set, but no more than 8.

Every time you go to the gym, you try to do more reps than you did the workout before. Once you’re able to do 8 reps in every set, increase the weight for the following workout.

It’s a form of progression known as the double progression method. Here’s an example of how it might look in practice:

Workout 1

• Set 1: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 2: 100 pounds x 7 reps
• Set 3: 100 pounds x 5 reps

Workout 2

• Set 1: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 2: 100 pounds x 7 reps
• Set 3: 100 pounds x 7 reps

Workout 3

• Set 1: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 2: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 3: 100 pounds x 7 reps

Workout 4

• Set 1: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 2: 100 pounds x 8 reps
• Set 3: 100 pounds x 8 reps

Workout 5

• Set 1: 105 pounds x 7 reps
• Set 2: 105 pounds x 6 reps
• Set 3: 105 pounds x 5 reps

As you can see, in workout four, once you’re able to do 8 reps in all 3 sets, you add weight in the fifth workout and repeat the cycle. 

This simple double progression method can work well for most exercises, and will produce decent gains in muscle mass over several months, just as long as you stay consistent and work hard.

It’s also important to make sure that your technique remains solid from one workout to the next. Don’t kid yourself into thinking that you’ve gotten stronger, when all you’re doing is cheating on those last few reps to get the weight up.

The exact number of workouts it takes to reach this point will vary from person to person, and from exercise to exercise.

It might take 10 workouts or it might take 5. But wait until you can do 3 sets of 8 reps before adding weight.

Why does this particular 4-day split workout routine work so well?

On the training frequency side of things, you’re hitting each muscle group twice a week, which usually works better for hypertrophy than training a muscle once a week.

Having separate push, pull and leg days also lets you focus on a few areas of the body in each workout. 

For many people, this is a more enjoyable way to train.

When the workout is over, their muscles feel pumped up and ready to explode. It’s a good feeling.

Some thrive on the variety of training different muscles on different days, which can help from a motivation point of view.

Building a decent amount of muscle mass takes many years of hard work and effort. And a big part of staying consistent is feeling like you actually want to go to the gym.

If following some kind of split routine means you’re more likely to put the work in, that’s a big advantage. 

This or that training program might well be optimal for hypertrophy from a physiological point of view.

But if you don’t like the program, it’ll be a constant battle to motivate yourself to go to the gym.

Other 4-Day Workout Routines

• nSuns 5/3/1 Program
• Push/Pull Workout Routine: 4-Day Split for Muscle Gain
• Upper/Lower Split: Best 4-Day Workout Split for Hypertrophy
• 4-Day Full Body Workout Routine