What is the Arnold split in powerlifting?

Author: Armand Kertzmann DVM  |  Last update: Sunday, September 7, 2025

In a PPL Arnold split, muscles are grouped by function. That is, your upper body pushing muscles are grouped together (chest, shoulders, triceps) for one training day and your upper body pulling muscles are grouped together (back, biceps) for another, while your lower body has its own day.

What is the Arnold workout split?

The Arnold split is a six-day workout split in which you train the chest and back, shoulders and arms, and legs twice per week. It's a muscle-building program that's designed to help you increase muscle mass and improve your physique.

What is the best split for powerlifters?

The basic Conjugate Method training split calls for a four-day training week, with max effort lower being performed on Monday, followed by max effort upper on Wednesday, then dynamic effort lower on Friday, and dynamic effort upper on Saturday.

What is the Arnold 1 10 method?

1-10 METHOD

After a warm-up set or two, find a weight you're only able to get 1 rep. After you perform that 1 rep, take just enough weight off to perform 2 reps. From there, do the same for 3 reps and 4 reps, going all the way up to 10 reps. This is brutal because you take no rest in between sets.

Is Arnold split better for strength?

Hence, the Arnold Split is best suited for intermediate-to-advanced bodybuilders that want to focus more on hypertrophy than strength. Athletes, powerlifters, and beginner gym-goers will probably fare better following a Push-Pull-Legs training split, which we've outlined in our Guide to Push-Pull-Legs Workout Routine.

Ranking The Worst and Best Training Splits

How many reps did Arnold Schwarzenegger do?

"I make a point of never doing less than 6 repetitions per set with most movements, and nothing higher than 12. The rule applies to most body parts, including calves," Arnold said.

What are the disadvantages of the Arnold split?

It's time-consuming. The Arnold split has you training 6 days per week, and each workout is lengthy, comprising between 7 and 11 exercises. When your workout routine requires such a significant time commitment, it can be challenging to maintain, especially if you have limited time for training.

What is the 5 4 3 2 1 training method?

In this workout you will complete 5 minutes of cardio (5 exercises for 1 minute each), 4 minutes of lower body (4 exercises for 1 minute each), 3 minutes of upper body (3 exercises for 1 minute each), 2 minutes of core (2 exercises for 1 minute each), and 1 minute of cardio (1 exercise for 1 minute).

Did Arnold train 5 hours a day?

Schwarzenegger used to workout for five hours a day

Even though Schwarzenegger is still very active by most people's standards, his current regime isn't a patch on how the former Mr. Olympia used to train — as a competitive bodybuilder, he would lift weights for five hours a day, he said.

What is the Arnold rule number 6?

And that takes me to rule number six, which is a very important rule: it's about giving back. Whatever path that you take in your lives, you must always find time to give something back, something back to your community, give something back to your state or to your country.

What is 5 3 1 for powerlifters?

The 5/3/1 workout is a powerlifting program designed by powerlifter Jim Wendler. The key concept is to slowly build strength through four barbell weightlifting exercises: the parallel squat, bench press, deadlift, and the shoulder press, also known as overhead press or military press.

What is the best split for max gains?

The push/pull/legs split is probably the most efficient workout split there is because all related muscle groups are trained together in the same workout. This means that you get the maximum overlap of movements within the same workout, and the muscle groups being trained get an overall benefit from this overlap.

Do powerlifters train 6 days a week?

Currently, and always citing average figures, a beginner powerlifter can train three days a week on non-consecutive days; an intermediate powerlifter will increase by one or two days a week, training four or five times; and an advanced powerlifter typically trains five or six days a week.

Did Arnold Schwarzenegger do deadlifts?

Arnold Schwarzenegger Just Shared His Heaviest Lift PRs

"My best bench press was 525, my best deadlift was 710, and my best squat was 610," he said.

What is the super set?

In mathematics, a superset is a set that contains all the elements of another set, which is called the subset. We know that if B lies inside A, then it means that A contains B. In other words, if B is a subset of A, then A is the superset of B. More precisely, if set B is a subset of set A, then A is a superset of B.

How much sleep did Arnold get?

Arnold Schwarzenegger's “sleep faster” strategy

The former Mr Olympia sleeps just six hours a night so that he has at least 18 hours of productive time during the day. The seven-time bodybuilding champion reportedly spent as much time in the gym as he did in bed during his early career.

Did Arnold do a bro split?

Everything from your classic “bro split” to even training twice a day, Arnold did it. However, one of his favorite workout splits has been dubbed the Arnold split.

How many sit ups did Arnold do a day?

Arnold Schwarzenegger's dad made him do 200 sit-ups and push-ups every morning as a kid, he said. He wasn't allowed to eat breakfast until he'd worked out, and this made exercise a daily routine.

What is the 3-2-1 method of powerlifting?

The 3-2-1 refers to your weekly split of workouts - three strength training sessions, two Pilates sessions, and one cardio session. All up, that's six sessions per week, leaving you one full rest day, too.

What is a 54321 run?

54321 Interval Training

Five minutes of running followed by a 10-second rest period. Four minutes of running followed by a 20-second rest period. Three minutes of running followed by a 30-second rest period. Two minutes of running followed by a 40-second rest period.

What is the 6 12 25 method of training?

The numbers 6-12-25 represent the number of repetitions in each set, so the method is six reps followed by 12 reps followed by 25. Crucially, the number of reps should also affect the weight, so six reps is a weight you can just about lift six times, rep number six should feel barely achievable, and so on.

What is a bro split?

The Bro Split is the OG of gym routines! Each session zeroes in on one muscle group—chest, back, shoulders, arms, or legs—spread over 3 to 5 days. It's perfect for gym-goers who love to focus hard on one area while enjoying golden recovery time for maximum gains.

What was Ronnie Coleman's workout routine?

Coleman himself, it was all about hard work and dedication. He typically trained six days per week, focusing on one muscle group per day. For example, he would start his week with chest and triceps, followed by back and biceps. He would then take a rest day before hitting his legs twice a row.

Should I train my arms and chest together?

Training biceps with chest allows you to attack biceps from a fresh poison every workout. If you pair the biceps with the back or triceps with the chest, the smaller arm muscles will start their first primary exercise in a fatigued state as they assist the larger muscle group in its exercises.

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