Split vs. Full Body Routine (what’s better?) 

I train only one set to failure full body along with extended set say 2 second rest. My workouts last 3O Min. This workout won me major titles and took me to the 2008 Natural Olympia. What I learned it's about the diet to get shredded just eating healthy choices grains fruits vegetables and fish chicken moderation mostly lacto vegetarian. Years ago I was fortunate to train under Mike Mentzer full body MWF I was years younger so I recovered fast. These days it's lighter. I take a weight and make it lighter by controlling the monentum and saving my joints. I tried it all and yes crazy high volume and trashed by joints. I know what works and doesn't. I am proud to be a lifetime drug free bodybuilder. Much appreciation for Jay Vincent's wisdom

It works well for me with a partial split routine 3 times/week. Do 5-6 exercises 1 set to max. Tried now for 12 weeks and has gained 3-3.5 pounds of muscle at age 75 and 181cm (5ft 11). Have previously trained sporadically for 3 years with dumbbells and body resistance. It's a completely different feeling in the muscles after training. Not pumped up like before but hard and firm muscles. Thanks Jay for giving tips on this type of exercise. Efficient and fast, only 30-35 minutes each time. Swedish greetings

Love it. I'll keep going to the gym twice a week for a full body, slow, one-set workout. Works great for me and I don't have time to go 4-6 times a week.

I do the exact same as Jay Upper body Push up Push out Pull down Pull towards Tricep push down Side lats 3 days rest Legs Squat Ham curl Quad extension Calf raises Bicep curl Forearms 3 days rest and repeat

Hi Jay, I'd love to see you train a high volume guy your way and measure the results and then maybe you go high volume and train the other guys way and measure results. Sure would be interesting. Great content, thanks for your work ❤️

My Routine: 1st day Back, Triceps, and Rear delts. 4th day Chest, Shoulders, and Biceps. 7th day Legs. I rest 2 days sometimes 3. Then I start over. More rest better results. Yes, one set to failure.

This rings true with what I've found. I'm by no means an advanced lifter. I'm 42 and come from a martial arts/boxing background. Most of my work was usually done on bags and with calisthenic sort of methods. There have been a few periods in my life where I started going heavier on the weights and put bag work to the side. I tended to usually do things like lat pull-downs, pull-ups, shoulder press and cable rows, usually in the 8-12 rep range. Recently started Ripletoe's Starting Strength program and it's been awesome to learn basic lifts like squats, bench, OHP, and deadlift, but it's also taken a toll on my aging joints....elbows and shoulders in particular. I've personally found that two heavy days on the basic big compound lifts is great, then spending 1 day on isolation things that don't get proper attention from the big lifts. For example, Sunday: squat, bench, deadlift, neutral grip pull-ups, leg raises. 2 days rest. Wednesday: squat, overhead press, deadlift, neutral grip pull-ups, leg raises. Then on Friday I may do some calve raises, BB rows, farmer's carry, lateral raises, shrugs, rack pulls, etc. I just kinda pay attention to my body and what feels like it's ready for more abuse or needs more attention as a weak link in the chain and give it some love. About every 3 weeks of work, take off a week from the heavy lifting and do some jogging/heavy bag work to tie everything together and give my tendons and ligaments some rest, and that approach has me seeing development in muscles I've never really considered as prominent in my physique.

Thank you Jay. Guys like you and Kevin Richardson who has Naturally Intense on RU-vid are both advocate of high intensity and very short workouts. Kevin also like you has a fantastic physique. Keep up the good work !!

I love that you have the tree in the shot. Merry Christmas!

I used to make a 3 days fullbody and I increase to 4 days and I kept the same intensity. If plan well, you will never feel too sore to make the next day workout and still trigger muscle growth.

I subscribed due to you having a “no nonsense” answer and not trying throw products at us.

I’ve done both for years and I absolutely saw better results from splits. That doesn’t mean that full body doesn’t work just as good for someone else. It all depends on the individual..

I'm short on time and that's why I use a split routine. I have 10 minutes to work out every morning. Just enough time to do one set to failure, a bit of pacing, and off to work without too much pain. You're right about accumulating systemic fatigue, I find myself taking a day off here and there when the body just seems to say "nope" in the morning.

I like periodization of a sort. Most of the year I do a split - based on one Mike Mentzer recommended early after his break with Jones ... but for 6-8 weeks once or twice per year, I like shifting to an Arthur Jones style full-body workouts (just without the machines I don't have access to, swapped out for simple pulley or free weights) - - like the old Jones workouts, I power through with no rest breaks and try to finish before fatigue catches up to me... and then try to get good sleep. I do this twice per week (I've done 3 times per week, but felt burned out and over-trained after just a few weeks - - twice is enough). In 6 -8 weeks, I might start feeling overly wiped out(not feeling recovered after even 2 or 3 rest days) or have sleep disruption, which signals me it's time to go back to the split... but I make more mass gains, do more body-re-composition, and feel just more overall athletic during the times I do full body - - it's not sustainable, for me, long term, but is great for a short term burst of improvement...It's also a good way to sort of test yourself(I tend to switch to full-body before a birthday), or to push yourself outside out of a rut, or plateau. As soon as it stops feeling effective, go back to a split. I don't believe in "muscle confusion", but do think it's good to shake things up a bit, once in a great while. I'm 52, been training for a few decades, am pretty big, so have figured out what works for me (which might not work for you).

I prefer splits, but i never liked PPL or Bro splits My split is like Chest / Tris / Calves Back / Bis / Trapz Rest Day Shoulder/ Legs Rest Day Start Cycle Again

what about more frequently workouts ? 1-2 sets to failure per day / single muscle group / , training everyday/5,6 days per week/?

I base it on how busy my life is. My preference is a completely standard Body by Science Big 5 once a week. BUT, if my life is really busy I'll split it up into 3 workouts per week to reduce the max amount of metabolic stress at any one time. Doug McGuff talks about this in a video called "Flying under the radar" or something.

Full body, rest, rest, repeat was nice to start with but after a while I just ended up spending two hours in the gym and had little energy left for the isolation exercises at the end so it's been more practical to split it. I don't really feel systemic fatigue from upper body day, and lower is followed by a rest day so it's better for me to do back to back training than trying to fit everything into one day.

Gotta love Jay, man. Never lets us down haha. Also, I was wondering if I could get your advice on something Jay. Have you ever tried any of these new custom meal plan tools? I just got one from Next Level Diet to help me burn some fat and I like their plans. Was just wondering if you've heard of or tried anything like that out. Thanks again man!

Week 1:Chest/arms, legs, rest. Back, shoulders/arms, rest, hamstrings/abs. Week 2: back/shoulders, arms/abs, rest, legs, chest/arms, rest, back. Week 3: Legs, chest/back, rest, shoulders/arms, rest, rest, legs. Week 4: Chest/shoulders/arms, legs, rest, rest, back, chest/shoulders, rest. (Every workout has sets to build up the weight for 1 topset with max ammount of reps - over 10 reps. and is followed by a lighter set for over 15 reps. usually no more than 3 movements pr part, so arms is 6 movements, chest is 3, back 3-4, legs 4, shoulders is 4. I also do supersets on all bodyparts, somewhere in the workout.) This made me increase my weight from 145 to 240 peak weight, competing at around 205 last time, aiming for 220 on stage.

How do we know that we reached the level to do splits ? I mean how do we know that we quit the level of beginner ?

Thank you

I've found a PPL works well for me. I have decent gym equipment at home, and I work from home, so I do legs Monday, push Wednesday, and pull Friday. I find I can go really hard for 3 or 4 exercises on each day. I may have to try a couple of full body workouts instead for a bit though. Thanks as always, Jay 👍

This is literally the only sound explanation of split vs Full body in existence.

I do a Monday, Wednesday and Friday routine with one strong core lift like squatting or benching then 2 hypertrophy exercises for the rest of the full body at 80 percent intensity. Tuesdays and Thursdays I do sprint interval training and conditioning/ growth hormone release. I also do heavy sled work and heavier functional circuit training some days. The conditioning is for firefighting which helps a lot. The theory from doing a full body workout is that it is supposed to release the chemical signal of growth more often especially needed if you are a natural. I do all of this and I have been the strongest and biggest/best conditioned I have looked so far. Diet and stretching is heavily needed as well. people say this it is too much and im crazy/ props for doing it. well....this is what sets people apart from others...sorry. look at Special Forces, Top Athletes, First Responders. Most do full body functional workouts/ conditioning and they still have competitive good natural physiques. Just have to be willing to push yourself and get your body to adapt and it will become more normal. I was skeptical myself always liking the typical bro split for optimal growth but now doing all these different types of exercises while improving in multiple categories has made me realize more is possible. My point is don't be afraid to try new things and go against the social norm and do your own research/ testing. You never know what may really benefit you more.

I do full body for psycholigical reasons. I don't like the idea of using one part of my body and then the other on a different day. Of course, I end up crushed

So basically for a full body workout mix Mike mentzer day 1 and day exersizes in one day. Then 4 days later mix his day 3 and 4 exersizes together. And reapeat every 4 days ?

Your content and your delivery has been improving, Jay. Love the recent videos

That's why I split my workouts. As the workouts are systemic & won't be able reach the results I would want to reach doing a full body in one session

One of the best bodybuilding RU-vidr who's spitting facts

Tbh Upper/Lower/Rest or Upper/Rest/Lower/Rest has been the best for me. Full body washes over into my later exercises more often than not. If I do full body I have to heavily abbreviate it and I don't enjoy that for certain muscles like delts, chest, back, quads.

3:40 Well, you can interpret that in two ways. Since the whole body is affected when working, one muscle group, then you won’t be able to produce enough force in the consecutive muscle groups worked after that first initial muscle group

I do the same, split 2 times x week. At my age, with family, work and sometimes poor sleep due to children is more than enough.

Just listened to the Relax Me Daily channel, for true relaxation after my full body workout.

Personally i suck at recovery, MD here working 70 hours per week and so on , so i do prefer a push pull legs in the span of approximately 10 days period, meaning each muscle group is trained 3 times per month. Individualise your workout based upon the certain needs of your body. Huge respect to those who can do whole body workouts , i envy you 😅

I've been doing a Workout A and Workout B, each once a week. Day 1 Squats Front Squats Dips Rows Day 2 Deadlift Overhead Press Chin-ups It's very similar to Mentzer's consolidation routine in his last book.

I do full body three days a week off Saturday and Sunday.

Solid advice. Keep it coming! 👌🏻

Funny. I *started* with a split (2, 3, and finally 5-workout split) and only when I couldn't progress that way anymore I went to a consolidated routine (I guess there is a difference between full body workout and consolidated workout?). While the workouts became tougher I now only needed 3 sets for the entire body compared to 12 sets on the split.

I love going to the gym every 2 days I feel fully healed and primed for another Mike mentzer workout

Fullbody dont train beyond failure. Split routines train beyond failure. To me it makes no difference. High frequency fullbody for the win . Its ok if you miss 2-3 days why? Because you done hit everything

5:36 how are you going to maintain the muscle mass you created through a certain stimulus if you don’t exceed or at least keep the stimulus, the same. lessening the volume will result in a loss of muscle or at work or at best just maintenance

We don't deserve Jay

But on the split you can do more exercise is probably what most people think

First Leg session today with Golden. Smoked.

i think it all depends on your current life demands/schedules and goals. For me, i strength train full body 2-3 times a week, mostly low-rep ranges with higher/max loads from anywhere between 25-35 minute duration. I'll also do some form of cardio (stair climber, walking, treadmill, jogging/running outdoors, playing basketball or soccer w/ my son) 1-2 days a week which is mostly lower intensity. I typically take off 1 to 2 days a week from focused training/exercise. On those days, i'll still go for an easy walk or bike ride around the neighborhood because i have an office job where i tend to sit a lot, so i prefer to do some movement daily to try and offset that.

In my opinion split training is more advanced users (bodybuilders, e.t.c.) while full body is for beginners

Who here does full body twice a week and like it?

I can not tolerate a full upper body in 1 workout!. I'm 40, been working out for 5,6 years and I go hard! Hard to failure! so it's not something for me it's just to much. I can only workout in weekends and Mondays. So I do PPL for 3 days in a row and then take the rest of the week off.

I do one full body 3 days off and repeat.

I thought you said there was no perceivable difference in results from split training and full body workout training

Mike Mentzers arms were amazing.

Have u tried more frequency but going let’s say 90% to failure? U might get same results without the fstigue

What about If were not natural trained

Great Great great info. I don't think I could do a full body each time either. I used to do hundreds of reps so I know how to push myself but at this intensity..I can barely handle doing every muscle group.. it's so brutally taxing on the whole body like you said here. So i don't feel I have as much to give to the upper body if my legs are trembling. Lol.

ty bro ❤

Quick question on the execution of the single set. What type of warmup should one be performing? Is there a % ballpark range/rep range that is considered optimal in terms of injury prevention?

You make a very good point Couple years ago when I used to train full body workout I saw a massive gain and now I’m training split workout. I’m not seeing as much result. I’m definitely going back to full body workout four times a week.

Mike Menzers recommendation was - from the video/audio - chest/back - shoulders/arms - Legs every third day with 5 exercises a day. He also recommends 4 cardio sessions a week at 25 minutes in what we would call zone 2 training (60-70% or your maximum heart rate). I am on both sides of the fence with cardio. I think it’s necessary for health and wellness reasons but isn’t mandatory.

How about upper and then a leg day?

That being said what if you're combining the method and philosophy of PPL with H.I.T. and spacing them out rather than 3 days consecutively? That way you're training with intensity but you've got 1-2 days in between to recover from any systemic fatigue and having "a bit" in the tank to give your workout your all?

Your point just proves a split is more effective than the entire body.

Can you define overtraining?

What about competetive bodybuilder workout

Mike split it to 3 to 4 days a week split routine

Splits can make the workouts shorter as well, allowing more intensity to parts trained. Full Body is more legit when you are weak. Or reach a result with it that satisfies and then only concern is maintaining. I have worked in construction whole life, always preferred workouts daily right after work, short and intense. Took days off as needed more than scheduled. To say you can not grow from splits 100% natty, and working construction, just proves gross inexperience.

I recently bought the golden arrow system, where do I find out my workout?

Can someone please link me to a video about this guys training method/ideology? I just came across him and have a small glimpse of what I think he’s saying but want to hear him clearly explain what method he preaches. Thanks in advanced.

Great content 👌

“Still affected” doesn’t mean “still stimulated”.

Hi, i still dont know what Jay propose......full body workout once or twice a week? Because sometimes he says you do just two workout a week like upper body and then lower body that means body part just once a week. I am pretty confused

Liked and shared. Thanks for promoting truth even if it is uncomfortable for most to hear and accept. 🍒

Same here, NO WAY i could handle doing squats (especially one slow set to failure, like I"m doing now). I'd like to do deadlifts as well and they are very taxing so a split routine is my only option. I'm doing Mentzer's HIT program now so I'm hoping that is going to work better for me than the train every other day system I had going before. Anyway, like your approach and everything seems to make a lot of sense.

Mr well rested over here

2:29 You just contradicted yourself. This is the reason you do a split workout. You give your body time to recover in order to get a more effective fuller workout for the target muscle.

Problem with HIT is the recovery. Takes too much toll on the system.

Fitness is frustrating, bodybuilding is literally built around performance enhancing drugs, and as a normal guy i will stop right here, no more researching, i found the only variable for me is safety, everything literally works. So why not stick with the safest option which is what i found in this wonderful channel

3:25 I cried when he locked out

I do my push pull and legs in one day. But I rest a long time in between exercises because if I do them all back to back to failure. I’m toast. Useless for the rest of the day.

I was worried by listening to the first half, thinking I’d have to disagree. Luckily, he explained the rest in the second half and he’s 100%. I only split because I can’t get through a full body workout anymore at full intensity (I used to be able to) not because I like the gym. I have to split the exercises AND add days in between because even if I do push on Monday I won’t be able to apply maximum effort on Tuesday in any other muscle “group”, just as he explained. I have my records on time and weight that clearly show this. Where I’m at with my development, each muscle “group” gets trained every 12 days. The days in between split days are literally just so my nervous and energy systems can be restored to the point where I can apply maximum effort in another “group”, but certainly not the same group, because those muscles will still not be recovered and ADAPTED (two different things). For me, muscle “groups” individually recover and adapt currently at around 12 days. How do I know it’s 12 days? Because if I train a “group” in less than that, say 7 days, all of my times under load with the same weight will go down a lot. If train at 11 days I may be able to repeat my time under tension but I wouldn’t expect any increase. I could probably go longer than 12 days but why. Recently I was sick and went on vacation and had about a month off and I did lose time under tension on almost all exercises but was still within my time ranges. I also noticed a loss in my ability to apply maximum effort. I can really only say that I knew there was deeper to go but I just wasn’t capable. It’s like my nervous system didn’t think we needed to push hard anymore. Hard to explain. I do notice that my entire body continues to get a “pump” to some extent, no matter which split day I’m on. I can do leg day and notice a little pump in my arms, for example. I always trip on this, but it’s cool.

If what you say is true, and can be proven by science, then why don’t all the studies point to the same conclusion. Why is it only a fringe select few that have this mentality of a minimalist training?

Full body, 7 exercises, 2 sets per exercise, positive failure, 7 days a week..sh*t has me sore and growing like a fkn madman!

You can look like this working out twice a week? Ain't no way. You working out 6 hours those two days and running 10 miles the other 5 days?

Full body or split, makes no difference. The overwhelming limiting element of success in your program has nothing to do with working FB or a split routine.

Had best results doing full body 💪💪😎😎

Believe it or not

Brian S 😂😂😂

Thank you Mike Mentzer

Bs!!