PPL × 2 (6 days)
Advanced lifters can run the split twice a week. Rotate heavy / light days to manage joint stress.
Guide · 10 min · Updated · By Erwan Alliaume
How to build a push / pull / legs split in Personal Trainer
TL;DR. A 3-day push / pull / legs split is the most efficient hypertrophy template for intermediate lifters training 3–4 days a week. Build it in Personal Trainer in under 10 minutes: create a 3-day plan, add 4–5 movements per day, set rep ranges, and let the progressive-overload engine handle weight progression after each session. Deload every 4–6 weeks.
What is push / pull / legs?
Push / pull / legs (PPL) groups training days by movement pattern. Push covers chest, shoulders, and triceps. Pull covers back and biceps. Legs covers quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves. Running PPL three times a week gives each muscle group 72+ hours of recovery — long enough to rebuild, short enough to keep frequency high.
PPL works because the natural muscle pairings share warm-ups, share equipment, and don't overlap on recovery. It scales: 3 days a week is the maintenance dose; 6 days (PPL × 2) is the high-volume version for advanced lifters.
Step-by-step setup
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1
Create a new training plan
Open Personal Trainer, tap Plan → New plan. Choose a 3-day weekly split and name it Push / Pull / Legs. Pick days you can train consistently — Mon / Wed / Fri or Tue / Thu / Sat both work well.
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2
Build the Push day
Exercise Sets Reps Bench press 4 5–8 Overhead press 3 6–8 Incline dumbbell press 3 8–12 Lateral raise 3 10–15 Triceps pushdown 3 10–15 Rest 2 min on compounds, 60–90 s on isolation. Set in Personal Trainer's per-exercise rest timer.
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3
Build the Pull day
Exercise Sets Reps Deadlift or barbell row 4 5–8 Pull-up or lat pulldown 3 6–10 Seated cable row 3 8–12 Face pull 3 12–15 Barbell or EZ-bar curl 3 8–12 -
4
Build the Legs day
Exercise Sets Reps Back squat 4 4–6 Romanian deadlift 3 6–10 Leg press 3 8–12 Leg curl 3 10–15 Standing calf raise 4 10–15 -
5
Set body weight + plate increments
In Profile, set your body weight and unit (kg or lbs). Personal Trainer's suggested-load engine uses bodyweight as a baseline for novice / intermediate / advanced multipliers, and rounds next-set targets to standard plate increments so the bar is always loadable.
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6
Log sets during training
On each working set, log weight, reps, and a difficulty rating: Easy, Just right, Hard, or Failed. The rating drives the next-session suggestion — Easy bumps the load, Hard or Failed pulls it back. PRs are detected automatically.
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7
Review PRs and recovery every Sunday
Personal Trainer pushes a Weekly Digest on Sunday at 19:00 local time. Open the dashboard, check the 72-hour recovery dial across all 15 tracked muscle groups, and inspect new PRs. If a group stays red for two weeks, swap the lift or reduce volume.
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8
Deload every 4–6 weeks
Schedule a deload week every 4–6 weeks: keep the same lifts, drop working weight to ~60%, and cut volume by one third. Personal Trainer keeps the structure but the lighter inputs will recalibrate the suggested loads on the next cycle. Use it to clean up form and let connective tissue catch up.
Common variations
Upper-focus PPL
Cap legs at one day, add a second push for lagging chest or shoulders.
Home-gym PPL
Swap barbell rows for dumbbell rows, back squat for goblet squat or split squat, leg press for hip thrust.
Related
Build your PPL split in 10 minutes.
Download Personal Trainer, create your plan, log your first session offline.