How to Build an Upper–Lower Workout Split

The basic structure

An upper–lower split alternates training for the upper body and lower body. A common week is upper on Monday, lower on Tuesday, rest Wednesday, upper Thursday, and lower Friday. This gives each muscle group two weekly opportunities without repeating the same session on consecutive days.

The split is a structure, not a fixed exercise list. Your equipment, joint comfort, experience, and goals should decide the movements inside it.

Build each day around patterns

Upper days should normally include a horizontal push, horizontal pull, vertical push or pull, and optional arm or shoulder work. Lower days can combine a squat pattern, hip hinge, single-leg movement, and calf or trunk work.

• Upper A: bench press, cable row, pulldown, lateral raise, triceps pressdown.
• Lower A: squat, Romanian deadlift, leg curl, calf raise.
• Upper B: incline dumbbell press, pulldown, shoulder press, chest-supported row, curl.
• Lower B: leg press, hip thrust, split squat, leg extension, trunk work.

Keep both days distinct

You do not need to repeat every movement twice. Using slightly different exercises or repetition ranges can spread stress across joints and make the week easier to recover from. Keep at least a few stable movements long enough to measure improvement.

If four days becomes difficult, do not cram missed sessions together. Continue with the next workout in sequence. Consistency across months matters more than matching weekdays.