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The Ultimate 4 Day Push Pull Workout Routine (PDF)
Here’s a resistance Push Pull training program that you can do in a fully-equipped, commercial gym, or in your own garage gym at home…
…and get noticeable results… by working out 4 days a week.
This program hits the upper and lower body twice a week. The Push Pull format makes this possible.
Jump to the workout plan now!
Alternatively, you can download the free PDF version of the program using the link below:
The 4 Day Push Pull Workout Routine In a Nutshell
| Program style | Resistance training + bodybuilding |
| Program structure | Push Pull |
| Workout duration | 1-2 hours |
| Scheduling | 4 days a week |
| Goal | Body transformation |
| Level | Beginners to advanced |
| Target Gender | Male and Female |
Program Overview
For this program, a fully equipped gym with plate-loaded or selectable weight machines is preferable. However, there are suitable alternative built-ins to accommodate garage gyms
- You don’t have to fit the entire program into a single calendar week, although it’s recommended.
- Days of the week aren’t dictated. Hey, if you don’t like Monday workouts, no problem. Start Sunday…or Tuesday.
- You’re able to work out really hard with lots of focus.
- Rep and set volume may seem surprisingly low. The science now supports lower volume combined with higher intensity.
- The program works for women and men, of any age group.
- No cardio is specified; you can add low-intensity cardio if you like.
- Rest days aren’t specified either. Use your head.
- There are no diet recommendations here. If you’re looking to lose fat, reduce your daily calorie consumption, and don’t expect lightning-fast results.
I’ve studied resistance training my entire adult life. The exercises, split, and rep schemes apply lessons I’ve learned through research–and the hard way.
Follow this program, and you’ll see results.
What To Expect
If you follow the program as written, you can expect muscular hypertrophy. Ladies–for emphasis–this does not mean you’ll get “big”.
It’s kind of a shame that we still have to say this, but the falsehood tragically lives on, so it’s necessary to emphasize.
Beginners will see results almost immediately.
More advanced lifters will find the results more subtle and gradual, although if any of the exercises are new to you advanced folks…
- You’ll enjoy a period of neuro-muscular adaptation, during which you’ll find you can increase the weight appreciably week-to-week.
- After those initial adaptations, you’ll find that you may need to adjust your rest days to allow for adequate recovery…
- Because if you’re training as hard as you need to, you’ll be taxing the muscles intensely.
You can also expect to work out at least three times a week.
Don’t turn this into a 6-day program where you do each routine twice. If you’re doing the program right and as intensely as you should, more than three days a week will lead to overtraining.
Symptoms of overtraining include sleep disruption, irritability, and a lowered immune system.
Got a cold you can’t ever seem to shake? Another hidden side effect of over-training is loss of enthusiasm. If you’re one of those people who loves iron and steel like I do, and there are days you just couldn’t care less about it…that’s a sign you’re overtraining.
Recovery is as important as working out.
Workout Routine Structure
As previously said, this is an A-B Push-Pull split.
There’s nothing magic about Push-Pull splits, other than their ease of application
Gym geek fact: all muscles pull in actuality. Muscle contraction is what creates movement, and all contractions are caused by muscle fibers pulling at their ends. “Pushing” happens when the joint being acted on by the “pulling” muscle forces an object away from the body
The A-B split allows for a wider array of exercises and recovery between workouts. It provides for additional days and exercise variety. Variety isn’t important by itself.
It does expose you to several different exercises that accomplish fundamentally the same objectives. This helps prevent overtraining while getting the nuanced benefits of similar exercises.
Here is the program in the A-B split structure:
| Day | Muscles |
|---|---|
| Push A | Quads, Chest, Anterior shoulders, Triceps |
| Pull A | Glutes, Hamstrings, Back (Lats, Trapezius, Posterior shoulders) |
| Push B | Quads, Shoulders, Chest, Triceps, Calves |
| Pull B | Hamstrings, Glutes, Biceps, Delts, and Traps |
Scheduling
The rest day application is up to you. You can alternate days, one-on-one off (which obviously doesn’t follow a calendar week). Or, you can do all 4 in a row with 3 days off if that works for you.
Side note: Being sore isn’t the goal here. If an exercise is new to you, there is a good chance you’ll be sore from it a day or 2 later. This will probably not last if you’re spacing your workouts wisely.
Here’s an example weekly schedule you can apply:
| Day | Split |
|---|---|
| 1 | Push A |
| 2 | REST |
| 3 | Pull A |
| 4 | REST |
| 5 | Push B |
| 6 | REST |
| 7 | Pull B |
Exercises have been carefully selected and placed strategically within the program. For instance, Push Day A has pec-specific push exercises, whereas Push Day B biases the shoulders more, allowing for full recovery from Push Day A.
The 4 Day Push Pull Workout Routine
Here’s a summary of the program. It uses the example 7-day weekly schedule described above. The downloadable PDF program goes into detail.
The first two sets of each exercise are intended as warm-ups. Sets 3 and 4 are your “working sets”. Take these sets to failure or near failure. Your Reps In Reserve (RIR) decrease and the weight goes up.
Day 1: Push Day A
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pendulum Squat, or Hack Squat, or Leg Press, or Heel Elevated Squats | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Hip Thrusts | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Chest Press | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Pec Flyes | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Thumbs Up Front Raises | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Triceps Extensions, Attachment of Choice | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
Day 2: REST
Day 3: Pull Day A
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romanian Deadlifts (RDLs), Biped or Single-Leg Offset Stance (aka B Stance) | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Lat Pulldowns, or Pull-Ups | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Seated Low Row | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Kelso Shrugs | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
Day 4: REST
Day 5: Push Day B
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leg Extensions | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Bulgarian Split Squats (Rear Foot Elevated) | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| High Incline Chest Press | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| DB Pullovers | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Close Grip Chest Press | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Lateral Raises | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Calf Raises | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
Day 6: REST
Day 7: Pull Day B
| Exercise | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 | Set 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seated Leg Curls | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Kickbacks, or Hyperextensions or Stiff Leg DLs | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Biceps Curls | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Hammer Curls | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Upright Row | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Barbell Plate Raises, Or Dumbbell “I” Raises | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
| Rear Delt Flyes | 12-15 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 6-8 |
Application Notes
Application is half of a routine. Exercises alone mean little if not put in the context of the entire workout and lifestyle.
Some things just work all the time. Observe all the resistance training basic rules of thumb for the ectomorph program as for any other resistance training routine.
These include progressive overload, judicious attention to Reps In Reserve (RIR), rep cadence, rest, and recovery.
1. Always Observe Progressive Overload
For this program, once you can perform a set within the specified rep range plus a rep or 2, increase the weight…
…so that you’re back at the lower end of the rep range with the heavier weight.
2. Keep Reps in Reserve
Keep a couple of reps “in the tank” for sets 1 and 2–your warm-up sets.
Sets 3 and 4 should be all-out. Your goal with these sets is muscle fiber recruitment, which is accomplished with reps that require a lot of effort to move.
3. Focus on Rep Cadence
Do not apply tempo. If you want to slow down the eccentric portion of a rep, that’s fine, as long as your goal is to keep the weight under control.
4. Get Necessary Rest
If you’re training hard, you’ll need those rest days. Yes…four rest days per week isn’t extreme.
Clinical evidence supports two rest days, with the inside range being 1 day and the outside being as many as 3 days between workouts.
If you find that you’re fighting for gains, there’s a good chance you’re either (a) not working out hard enough, or (b) you’re not recovering enough. Often, it’s the latter.
It’s better to skip a day and rest so that you can come back the next day and kill it in the gym, instead of limping through a workout for the sake of saying you worked out.
Rest between sets
Rest a minute or two between warm-up sets. Rest 3 to as many as 5 minutes between your hard, working sets.
Read the evidence supporting longer rest times between sets.
So how should you spend that time?
Checking your text messages and Likes, right?
NO!
Spend that time analyzing the set you just did. Ask yourself:
- Was my form perfect?
- How about my intensity? Could I really have done another rep?
- Any discomfort that signals a problem?
Then, visualize your next set. How can it be better?
5. Eat to Gain
No specific diet direction here, other than to follow a balanced diet and aim for a minimum of .8g/kg of highly bioavailable protein daily. At least. You can ingest more than that if you prefer, up to about 2.5g/kg of body weight.
Beyond that, the body will store excess as fat, just as it will other food sources…regardless of what the bro science says. (Individuals on anabolics can ingest more due to the drugs’ effects.
I am not advocating for these although I have personal experience with them.)
Generally speaking, protein from animal sources will provide more bioavailability than from plant sources.
Taking a creatine supplement isn’t a bad idea either. Read up on the research into it, recommended doses, and then the product reviews to find a brand that has been certified by a credible outside lab and corresponds to the science.
I recently changed my mind about creatine in a big way. After reading the clinical research, I decided to give it a try. Accounting for any placebo effect (which is real by the way), I can tell a noticeable difference in my ability to squeeze out those final, difficult reps.
Final Thoughts
The 4 Day Push Pull program follows a methodology used by the best pro bodybuilding coaches today. The days of lots of sets/lots of reps for 6 or 7 days a week for a muscular hypertrophy objective are over.
Now, if your goal is something other than hypertrophy, then that’s another discussion. This program won’t do much for your VO2 max or vertical jump or grip strength or whatever. This is engineered toward muscle density, size, and shape.
If you have any specific questions about the program or any of the exercises, drop a message in the Comments section and I’ll get back to you.
Download our 4 Day Push Pull program PDF here:
We offer customized programs. If you like what you see here in the downloadable program and would like it customized for your specific gym equipment or body type, we can do that. Comment or Drop us a line!.
