3-day body-part split workout plan

The plan, week 1

Week 1 is calibration: pick a weight for the bottom of each range with one more rep in reserve than later. The RIR column shows week 1 → week 2 onwards; the grid below shows what changes in weeks 2-8.

Tempo 3-0-1-0: 3 s lowering, 0 s pause in the stretch, 1 s lifting, 0 s pause in the squeeze. X: lift as fast as you can while staying in control.

What RIR means →How to read tempo →How supersets work →

B3fx3×6–10 · RIR 2

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Exercise	Sets × reps	RIR	Tempo	Rest	Notes
2	WUWarm-up sets	2 × 5	–	–	1:00
3	ABarbell Bench Press	3 × 6–10	3 → 2	2-0-X-0	3:00
4	BIncline Dumbbell Bench Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	2-0-1-0	2:00
5	CCable Middle Chest Fly	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
6	DDumbbell Lateral Raise	4 × 12–20	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	1:00	Pick a weight that keeps all four sets at 12 reps or more with a minute's rest.
7	ECable Triceps Pushdown	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
8	FCable Overhead Triceps Extension	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	3-0-1-0	1:00

18 working sets · ≈40 min · → Superset: go straight to the next exercise, rest after the pair

B3fx3×6–10 · RIR 2

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Exercise	Sets × reps	RIR	Tempo	Rest	Notes
2	WUWarm-up sets	2 × 5	–	–	1:00
3	ABarbell Bent Over Row	3 × 6–10	3 → 2	2-0-1-0	2:30	Torso well forward and still, pull to the lower ribs. If you have to swing the bar up, it is too heavy.
4	BCable Lat Pulldown	3 × 8–12	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	2:00	Pull-ups instead if you can do 10 or more strict reps.
5	CSeated Cable Row	3 × 8–12	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	2:00
6	DCable Rear Delt Fly	3 × 12–20	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
7	EDumbbell Biceps Curl	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	1:00
8	FDumbbell Hammer Curl	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	1:00

17 working sets · ≈40 min · → Superset: go straight to the next exercise, rest after the pair

B3fx3×6–10 · RIR 2

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Exercise	Sets × reps	RIR	Tempo	Rest	Notes
2	WUWarm-up sets	2 × 5	–	–	1:00
3	ABarbell Squat	3 × 6–10	3 → 2	2-0-X-0	3:00
4	BRomanian Deadlift	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:30	One lighter set of about 8 reps first helps. Bar close to the legs; stop before the back rounds.
5	CLeg Press	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	2:00
6	DSeated Dumbbell Shoulder Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	2-0-1-0	2:00	One lighter set of about 8 reps first: the warm-up sets were for the squat.
7	E1Seated Leg Curl	4 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	→	Set up the leg extension first. If it is taken, do straight sets with 90 seconds of rest: about 6 minutes longer.
8	E2Seated Leg Extension Machine	4 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:30
9	FCalf Leg Press	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-2-1-0	1:00

21 working sets · ≈50 min · → Superset: go straight to the next exercise, rest after the pair

Chest & TricepsBack & BicepsLegs & Shoulders

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Week by week

Week 8 is a deload: about 60% of the sets (4→2, 3→2, 2→1), the same weights and rest, stop at RIR 4. Why a deload helps →

Saved only in this browser. The app keeps your weights and reps.

How to progress on this plan

The simplest method that works on any plan: double progression. Keep the weight and add reps while you finish your sets with the reserve in the RIR column. When every set reaches the top of the range, add one step and build the reps up again.

• Barbell Bench Press 3 × 6–10 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 10 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 3 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2 kg next session.
• Barbell Bent Over Row 3 × 6–10 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 10 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Cable Lat Pulldown 3 × 8–12 at RIR 1: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 1 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Seated Cable Row 3 × 8–12 at RIR 1: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 1 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Barbell Squat 3 × 6–10 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 10 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Isolation exercises (10–20 reps) follow the same rule. With light dumbbells, the next pair can be too big a jump: use the in-between weight, or stay and go 1-2 reps above the range for a week or two.
• Every exercise comes once a week, so it gets one chance a week to add a rep. On the bench press, barbell row and squat (6-10 reps, 2.5 kg steps), expect about one rep a week: the bar often keeps its weight all block while the reps climb, and the next run starts heavier. Don't add sets to make up for it.
• The two dumbbell presses go up a whole pair at a time. If the next pair drops you below 8 reps, keep your pair and go 1-2 reps past 12 first.
• The leg curl and leg extension share a superset but progress separately: raise only the one whose four sets reach 15 reps at RIR 1.
• After the week-8 deload, start again from week 1 and enter a week-7 set, not a deload set, in the starting-weights calculator.

The full guide: how to progress →

Your starting weights

Enter a recent set of the exercise: weight, reps and how many reps you had left. You get the week-1 weight for the bottom of the range with one rep more in reserve, from the widely used RPE chart (RTS).

1RM calculator →

Weekly volume per muscle

Working sets per muscle in a regular week, counted the way the app counts them: a set is 1 for a muscle the exercise trains directly and 0.5 for one it trains indirectly. Warm-ups don't count.

Abs and calves are optional. From 10 sets a week the app labels a muscle "High volume": above its default target and still productive.

Count your own sets →

Substitutions

Choose your substitute in week 1 and keep it for all 8 weeks: the app tracks progress per exercise. Each substitute trains the same muscles directly, so the volume above stays the same.

Adapt the plan

Short on time

Legs & Shoulders is the long day, about 50 minutes: skip the calf press first (about 4 minutes). On the upper days, superset the chest fly with the pushdown and the rear delt fly with the biceps curl, resting a minute after each pair: about 3 minutes less, with every set kept.

Bulking or cutting

Keep the plan as it is in both. On a cut, aim to hold your weights: reps that drop by one or two are normal, and you can skip the last set of the isolation exercises if recovery suffers.

Bringing up one muscle

Each muscle has one day here, so put the extra sets on another day: for glutes, 2 sets of hip thrusts at the end of Back & Biceps (about 6 minutes; glutes go from 7 to 9 sets); for biceps, curls at the end of Chest & Triceps; for side delts, lateral raises at the end of Back & Biceps.

Over 40

Warm up a little longer, keep one more rep in reserve on the heavy barbell lifts and take the full rest. Joints decide the pace, not the calendar.

Training at home

This split needs a barbell, cables and leg machines. At home with dumbbells and a bench, take the 4-day dumbbell upper/lower plan.

The same plan in the app

The app opens exactly this plan: all 8 weeks, the same targets, week 1 calibration included. Its description in the app:

A classic 3-day body part split (bro split) for intermediates: Chest & Triceps, Back & Biceps, Legs & Shoulders on Mon, Wed, Fri, about 60-70 minutes per workout. Each big muscle group gets one session a week; “Full body · 3 days” trains each one 3 times a week and usually progresses faster. 8 weeks: week 1 is calibration (one more rep in reserve than the target), weeks 2-7 at RIR 2 on free-weight compounds and RIR 1 on the rest, week 8: deload, about half the sets, RIR 4. Progression: add reps first, then weight once every set reaches the top of its range at the target RIR.

Free: the plan, logging weight, reps and RIR, the rest timer, history, previous results and the calculators.

This page teaches the manual method. With Premium, the app suggests the weight and reps for every set after each workout, from the weights, reps and RIR you logged, including week-1 calibration and the deload. Its suggestions can differ from this simple rule because it uses more of your data.

Track this plan for free in SmartWorkout

The same exercises, sets, reps and RIR, ready in the app. Logging, rest timer and history are free. Automatic progression suggestions: Premium.

In the app: Plans → Body part split · 3 days