Training8 min readAll levels
Push pull legs for beginners
Ask ten lifters how to structure a week and several will say push pull legs. It is the best known training split in the gym, and it can work well for a healthy adult beginner as long as the number of days is realistic. This guide explains how it is organised, gives a full routine, and is honest about when a simpler full-body week is the better bet.
The short answer
Push pull legs splits the week into a pushing session for chest, shoulders and triceps, a pulling session for back and biceps, and a legs session. Run once it needs three days; run twice, six. Three days suits most beginners, though a full-body week trains each muscle more often.
- Push, pull and legs, each once or twice a week
- Three days works; six days is for later, not day one
- Each muscle is trained once a week on a three-day PPL
- Full-body training hits each muscle more often on the same three days
How the split is organised
Exercises are grouped by what the body is doing. Push covers chest, shoulders and triceps. Pull covers back and biceps. Legs covers quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and calves. Nothing overlaps, which is why the split is popular. This guide assumes a healthy adult already comfortable with basic gym exercises.
| Day | Muscles | Typical exercises |
|---|---|---|
| Push | Chest, shoulders, triceps | Bench press, shoulder press, pushdown |
| Pull | Back, biceps | Row, lat pull-down, curl |
| Legs | Quads, hamstrings, glutes, calves | Squat, leg press, hip hinge, calf raise |
A three-day push pull legs routine
Step 1
Push day
Bench press or chest press 3 x 6-10, shoulder press 3 x 8-12, incline dumbbell press 2 x 10-12, cable pushdown 3 x 10-15.
Step 2
Pull day
Seated row 3 x 8-12, lat pull-down 3 x 8-12, chest-supported row or face pull 2 x 12-15, dumbbell curl 3 x 10-15.
Step 3
Legs day
Squat or leg press 3 x 6-10, Romanian deadlift 3 x 8-12, leg curl 2 x 10-15, calf raise 3 x 12-20.
Leave at least a day between sessions where you can, stop each set two or three reps short of failure, and add a small amount of weight whenever you hit the top of the rep range on every set.
Three-day beginner plan
Leave at least one rest day between sessions. You complete every set at the top of the rep range with clean technique — add the smallest available increment next session and expect the reps to drop back towards the bottom of the range.
Session A
Squat, push, pull
- Leg press or goblet squat — 3 sets of 8–12
- Chest press machine or dumbbell bench press — 3 sets of 8–12
- Seated row machine — 3 sets of 8–12
- Romanian deadlift with light dumbbells — 2 sets of 8–12
- Dumbbell shoulder press — 2 sets of 8–12
- Plank — 2 holds of 20–40 sec
| Set | Weight | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||
| 2 | ||
| 3 |
Session B
Hinge, vertical pull, single leg
- Romanian deadlift with light dumbbells — 3 sets of 8–12
- Lat pulldown or assisted pull-up — 3 sets of 8–12
- Split squat or step-up — 2 per leg sets of 8–10 each side
- Incline dumbbell press — 2 sets of 8–12
- Triceps pushdown or lateral raise — 2 sets of 8–12
- Dead bug or cable rotation — 2 sets of 8–10 each side
| Set | Weight | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||
| 2 | ||
| 3 |
Session C
Repeat the Session A patterns with slightly more load
- Leg press or goblet squat — 3 sets of 8–12
- Chest press or push-up variation — 3 sets of 8–12
- Seated row or single-arm row — 3 sets of 8–12
- Hamstring curl or hip thrust — 2 sets of 8–12
- Bicep curl or lateral raise — 2 sets of 8–12
- Side plank — 2 holds of 15–30 sec each side
| Set | Weight | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||
| 2 | ||
| 3 |
A general beginner programme for healthy adults aged 18 and over. It is general information, not personal or medical advice. Stop and get proper advice if an exercise causes pain.
Three days or six days
A six-day push pull legs week trains each muscle twice, which suits somebody with time, experience and reliable recovery. Very few beginners keep six sessions a week going for long, and a plan you abandon in a month beats nothing only briefly.
- Three days: each muscle once a week, easy to sustain
- Four days: rotate the three sessions, so the order shifts each week
- Six days: each muscle twice a week, high time commitment
- Missing a day matters more on a split than on a full-body plan
When full-body training is the better choice
| Full-body x3 | Push pull legs x3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Times each muscle is trained | Three times a week | Once a week |
| Best suited to | Beginners wanting practice and faster feedback | Lifters who prefer variety session to session |
| Cost of a missed session | Low — the muscle is still hit twice | Higher — a whole muscle group is skipped |
Whether push, pull, legs suits a beginner
Push, pull, legs is a good structure with one catch for beginners: on three days a week, each muscle group is trained only once. That is fewer exposures than a full-body plan gives, and repetition is how technique is learned early on.
| Plan | Times each muscle is trained weekly | Practice per movement |
|---|---|---|
| Full body, 3 days | 3 | High, ideal for learning |
| Push, pull, legs, 3 days | 1 | Low for a beginner |
| Push, pull, legs, 6 days | 2 | Good, but a big time commitment |
| Upper/lower, 4 days | 2 | A sensible middle ground |
So if you can only train three days, full body first and push, pull, legs later is the smoother path. If you can genuinely manage five or six days, push, pull, legs comes into its own.
Making the rotation work in a real week
The most common mistake is treating the days as fixed to the calendar. Push, pull, legs is a rotation, not a timetable. If you miss Wednesday, you pick up the next session on the next day you train rather than skipping it.
Step 1
Keep the order, not the dates
Push, then pull, then legs, then repeat, whichever days you make it in.
Step 2
Put the leg day where you have most time
It is usually the longest and the one most often cut short.
Step 3
Avoid two hard days back to back late in the week
Fatigue tends to pile up towards the weekend.
Step 4
Do not add arm work to every day
Arms already work on push and pull days; extra sets on both leaves them constantly sore.
Step 5
Review after six weeks
If sessions are being missed, drop to a shape that fits your week rather than forcing this one.
Common questions
- Is push pull legs good for beginners?
- It can be, but only if you train four or more days a week. On three days, a full-body plan trains each muscle more often and progresses faster.
- How many days a week is push pull legs?
- Three days for one cycle, or six for two cycles. Four or five days a week works if you rotate the sessions rather than fixing them to weekdays.
- What order should push pull legs go in?
- Any order works. Push, pull, legs is the usual sequence, but starting with legs is fine if that is what your week allows.
- Can I add abs or cardio to a PPL routine?
- Yes. A few minutes of core work at the end of any session, and cardio on non-training days or after lifting, both fit without disrupting the plan.
- What if I miss a push pull legs session?
- Carry on from where you left off rather than skipping ahead, so each session still gets trained roughly evenly across the month.
References
Every figure in this guide traces to one of these documents. Open them and check.
- How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximise muscle hypertrophy? — Journal of Sports Sciences
- UK Chief Medical Officers' physical activity guidelines — Department of Health and Social Care
- Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults — American College of Sports Medicine
Educational information for adults aged 18 and over. It does not diagnose, treat or manage any medical condition. If you have a health condition, or symptoms that worry you, speak to a qualified clinician.