How to build a four-day upper/lower split
A four-day upper/lower split alternates two upper-body sessions and two lower-body sessions, with one heavy and one higher-rep day in each half. Every muscle trains twice a week and receives between 10 and 16 effective sets, which is the range most people progress in. The heavy session works in 5 to 8 reps at 2 RIR, the volume session between 8 and 15 at 1 or 2. Each day runs 60 to 75 minutes.
At a glance
- Days per week
- 4 days
- Session length
- 70 min
- Level
- Intermediate
- Weekly sets
- 79
- Distinct exercises
- 24
What it needs
A full gym: barbell, dumbbells, cables, leg press, leg curl and leg extension.
Who it is for
Someone with at least a year of continuous training and four fixed days. It is the split that returns most for the majority of clients who are past the linear-progression stage.
Who it is not for
Someone who only sustains three days: if one session drops, half the body sits at frequency 1 that week. Nor for an absolute beginner, who progresses just as well on fewer sets and needs the patterns more often per week.
The whole week
Day 1: Upper, heavy
Horizontal push and pull first, at the week's heaviest upper-body load. Accessories close with high reps once the strength is spent.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | RIR | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bench Press | 4 | 5-6 | 2 | 3 min |
| Barbell Row | 4 | 6-8 | 2 | 150 s |
| Barbell Shoulder Press | 3 | 6-8 | 2 | 150 s |
| Neutral-Grip Lat Pulldown | 3 | 8-10 | 2 | 90 s |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raises | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
| Barbell Biceps Curl | 2 | 8-10 | 1-2 | 60 s |
Day 2: Lower, heavy
The squat opens and the Romanian deadlift follows while technique is still intact. What is left is machine work, where fatigue does not change the risk.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | RIR | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back Squats | 4 | 5-6 | 2 | 210 s |
| Barbell Romanian Deadlift | 3 | 6-8 | 2 | 3 min |
| 45-Degree Leg Press | 3 | 10-12 | 2 | 2 min |
| Lying Prone Leg Curl | 3 | 10-12 | 1-2 | 90 s |
| Standing Calf Raise Machine | 4 | 10-15 | 1 | 60 s |
| Plank | 3 | 40-60 s | 1-2 | 60 s |
Day 3: Upper, volume
Same upper body, different angle and rep range. The incline press and the seated row load what the flat bench and the barbell row covered least.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | RIR | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 4 | 8-12 | 2 | 2 min |
| Seated Cable Row | 4 | 10-12 | 2 | 90 s |
| Band Assisted Pull-Ups | 3 | 8-10 | 2 | 2 min |
| Low-to-High Cable Fly | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
| Dumbbell Reverse Fly | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
| Cable Rope Triceps Pushdown | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
Day 4: Lower, volume
Unilateral first, while there is still coordination to hold it. The hip thrust takes the place of the heavy bilateral load without the lower-back cost of a second squat day.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | RIR | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dumbbells Bulgarian Split SquatPer leg. The set ends when the first leg fails, not the second. | 3 | 8-10 | 2 | 2 min |
| Barbell Hip Thrust | 4 | 8-12 | 2 | 2 min |
| Leg Extension | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 75 s |
| Standing Leg Curl Machine | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 75 s |
| Standing Dumbbell Calf Raise | 4 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
| Cable crunch | 3 | 12-15 | 1 | 60 s |
Weekly volume per muscle
| Muscle | Sets per week |
|---|---|
| Back | 14 |
| Chest | 11 |
| Quadriceps | 10 |
| Hamstrings | 9 |
| Shoulders | 9 |
| Calves | 8 |
| Glutes | 7 |
| Abs | 6 |
| Triceps | 3 |
| Biceps | 2 |
Direct sets per muscle group, counted across the whole week. It excludes indirect work: the triceps a bench press trains counts in the volume calculator, not in this table.
How to progress
On heavy days the load moves once the sets reach the top of the range at the prescribed RIR. On volume days reps climb to the top of the range on every set first, and only then the load. The two schemes coexist because they measure different things: one strength, the other volume tolerance.
When to change routine
After eight to twelve weeks, with a deload in the middle if performance per set started falling. If the stall survives with volume already at its ceiling, the next step is spreading the same work across five or six days, not adding sets to these four.
Frequently asked
- Upper/lower or push/pull/legs — which is better?
- The number of days decides it. On four days, upper/lower leaves every muscle at frequency 2; push/pull/legs across four days breaks the symmetry and leaves one group at frequency 1. Push/pull/legs starts winning at six days, where each pattern repeats twice.
- In what order do the four days go?
- Heavy upper, heavy lower, rest, volume upper, volume lower. What matters is not the exact order but that the two heavy sessions do not land back to back and that at least 48 hours separate the two lower days.
- How many weekly sets per muscle does this routine give?
- The weekly volume table on this page counts it exercise by exercise, crediting indirect work at half. The large groups land between 12 and 16 effective sets and the small ones between 8 and 12, which is where most intermediate clients progress.
