Upper Lower Split: The 4-Day Workout Plan That Works

An upper lower split divides your training week into upper body days and lower body days — typically four sessions per week — so every major muscle group gets trained twice with enough recovery between sessions to actually grow.

It is one of the most research-backed splits in strength training, a favorite of coaches who write evidence-based programs, and the natural step up from three-day full-body training once you are ready to add frequency.

Here is how to set it up and make it work.

What Is an Upper Lower Split?

The upper lower split is a training structure built around two session types:

• Upper days: chest, back, shoulders, biceps, triceps — everything above the waist
• Lower days: quads, hamstrings, glutes, calves, core — everything below the waist

A standard week looks like this:

Day	Session
Monday	Upper A
Tuesday	Lower A
Wednesday	Rest
Thursday	Upper B
Friday	Lower B
Saturday	Rest
Sunday	Rest

Four training days, three rest days, every muscle hit twice. The A and B sessions differ slightly — Upper A might lean toward horizontal pressing (bench press, rows), Upper B toward vertical movements (overhead press, pull-ups) — but both sessions train the full region.

Why the Upper Lower Split Works for Building Muscle

The scientific case for training each muscle group twice a week is strong. A meta-analysis in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that twice-weekly training produced greater hypertrophy than once-weekly training, with three times weekly trending higher still for advanced lifters.

Upper lower hits the frequency sweet spot with four sessions — fewer than the six required by a full push-pull-legs week, and more than the one hit per week you get from a traditional bro split.

The big advantage: you train more often without cramming more volume into a single session. Each workout stays focused — 45 to 60 minutes of solid work — while your weekly total volume remains high enough to drive muscle growth.

Recovery works in your favor too. Training upper body on Monday gives your lower body 48 hours of rest before Tuesday. Your upper body then gets two full days off before Thursday. The structure builds recovery in automatically.

Upper Lower Split for Beginners and Intermediate Lifters

For Beginners

If you have been training consistently for three to six months and are comfortable with the major movement patterns, an upper lower split is a reasonable step up from full-body training. You are adding a fourth weekly session, so the jump is manageable.

Start with the A and B sessions identical — run the same upper workout and lower workout each week until progress stalls. Beginners respond strongly to any well-structured program with progressive overload, so consistency matters more than complex periodization at this stage.

For Intermediate Lifters

Once you have 12-plus months of consistent training, differentiate Upper A from Upper B meaningfully. A solid intermediate layout:

Upper A — horizontal focus

• Barbell bench press 4×5–8
• Barbell row 4×5–8
• Incline dumbbell press 3×10–12
• Seated cable row 3×10–12
• Lateral raises 3×15
• Tricep pushdown 3×12

Upper B — vertical focus

• Overhead press 4×5–8
• Pull-ups or lat pulldown 4×5–8
• Dumbbell shoulder press 3×10–12
• Cable pullover 3×12
• Face pull 3×15
• Barbell curl 3×12

Lower A — quad focus

• Back squat 4×5–8
• Romanian deadlift 3×10–12
• Leg press 3×12–15
• Leg curl 3×12–15
• Calf raise 4×15

Lower B — hip and hamstring focus

• Conventional deadlift 4×3–5
• Bulgarian split squat 3×8–10 per leg
• Hack squat or front squat 3×10–12
• Nordic curl or glute-ham raise 3×8–10
• Calf raise 4×15

Upper Lower vs Push Pull Legs: Which Split Is Better?

Both splits are excellent with strong research backing. The decision comes down to your schedule and training age.

Choose upper lower if:

• You can train four days per week reliably
• You want to squat and bench press twice a week without a six-day commitment
• You are moving up from a three-day full-body program and want a logical progression

Choose push pull legs if:

• You can consistently hit six days per week
• You want dedicated arm and shoulder sessions that do not feel tacked on
• Your recovery handles higher weekly volume without issue

You can also run a three-day upper lower rotation — Upper / Lower / Upper in week one, Lower / Upper / Lower in week two — if four sessions per week does not fit your schedule. This keeps twice-weekly frequency for most muscles while reducing the weekly session count.

Upper Lower Workout Schedule and Progression

The schedule only works if the weights move. Every session, aim to beat your previous performance — one more rep, 2.5 kg more on the bar, or a tighter form with the same load.

This is progressive overload, and it is the engine underneath every effective program. Without a record of what you lifted last session, it is easy to coast at the same weights for months.

A simple progression model: target a rep range like 5–8 reps for compound lifts. Once you hit the top of the range on all four sets, add weight at the next session and drop back to five reps. Grind back up to eight. Repeat. This double-progression approach works for most lifters through a year or more of consistent training.

Log every set in a workout tracker so you always know exactly what you need to beat. When you hit a PR on the bench press or squat, the record is there — Upper A bench press up 5 kg from four weeks ago is the kind of visible progress that keeps you coming back.

Tracking Your Upper Lower Split in GainLogger

A four-day upper lower split has a clean structure that a workout logger handles perfectly. Create one template for each session — Upper A, Upper B, Lower A, Lower B. Each time you open a session, your previous weights and reps auto-populate. You walk into the gym knowing exactly what you need to beat.

GainLogger logs every set with reps and weight, tracks personal records automatically, and sends milestone notifications when you break a PR. Connect the Apple Watch or Wear OS companion and your session starts the moment you pick up the bar — no phone needed between sets.

Share your Upper A template with a training partner so you run the same training block together and compare progress session by session. The streak system keeps the four-session-per-week target visible: every completed session marks a dot on the calendar, and gaps are impossible to ignore.

The Bottom Line

Upper lower split is the most efficient four-day structure for building muscle and strength at the same time. It trains every major muscle group twice per week, keeps individual sessions under an hour, and scales cleanly from beginner to advanced with small adjustments to exercise selection and loading.

Set up the four-day schedule, log every session, and add weight whenever you hit the top of your rep range. That is the whole system.