3-day push pull legs 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 →

B3fx3×8–12 · RIR 2

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Exercise	Sets × reps	RIR	Tempo	Rest	Notes
2	WUWarm-up sets	2 × 8	–	–	1:00
3	ADumbbell Bench Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:00
4	BSeated Dumbbell Shoulder Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:00
5	CMachine Chest Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:00
6	DDumbbell Lateral Raise	3 × 12–20	3 → 2	2-0-1-1	1:00
7	ECable Triceps Pushdown	3 × 10–15	3 → 2	2-0-1-1	1:00

15 working sets · ≈40 min

B3fx3×8–12 · RIR 2

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Exercise	Sets × reps	RIR	Tempo	Rest	Notes
2	WUWarm-up sets	2 × 8	–	–	1:00
3	ACable Lat Pulldown	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-1	2:00
4	BSeated Cable Row	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-1	2:00
5	CChest Supported Machine Row	2 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-1	2:00
6	DMachine Reverse Flyes	3 × 12–20	3 → 2	2-0-1-1	1:00	Light weight, long arms; move from the shoulders without shrugging.
7	EDumbbell Biceps Curl	3 × 10–15	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	1:00
8	FSeated Incline Biceps Curl	2 × 10–15	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	1:00	Let the arms hang straight down behind the body: the stretch at the bottom is the point of this curl.

16 working sets · ≈40 min

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	3-0-1-0	2:30	The plan's only barbell lift. Not confident with the bar yet? Take the dumbbell sumo squat from the substitutions and keep it for all 8 weeks.
4	BDumbbell Romanian Deadlift	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-1-1-0	2:00	Hips back, dumbbells close to the legs; go down until the hamstrings stretch and stop before the back rounds.
5	CLeg Press	3 × 10–15	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:00
6	DSeated Leg Curl	3 × 10–15	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	1:30
7	ECalf Leg Press	2 × 10–15	3 → 2	2-2-1-0	1:00

14 working sets · ≈40 min

PushPullLegs

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Week by week

No planned deload: beginners recover between sessions at this volume. If two sessions in a row go backwards, take an easy week.

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.

• 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.
• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 3 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2 kg next session.
• Machine Chest Press 3 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Cable Lat Pulldown 3 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Seated Cable Row 3 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when all 3 sets reach 12 reps at RIR 2 or easier, add 2.5 kg next session.
• Chest Supported Machine Row 2 × 8–12 at RIR 2: when both sets reach 12 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.
• Each lift comes once a week, so you get one attempt a week to add a rep. The squat climbs one rep a week for several weeks before each 2.5 kg step. Don't add sets to make up for it.
• Push and Pull give one muscle two exercises: the machine chest press after the dumbbell bench press, the chest-supported row after the cable row, the incline curl after the standing curl. The second one starts lighter than it would fresh; it has its own history and progresses on its own.

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

Each session takes about 40 minutes. To shorten them, drop the calf raise on Legs and the chest-supported row on Pull, and do 2 sets instead of 3 of the lateral raise and the pushdown on Push. That saves 4-6 minutes a session, and every major muscle stays in the growth zone.

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 add the 2-3 extra weekly sets on another day: lateral raises or curls at the end of Legs, a leg curl or calf raise at the end of Push. The sessions stay about the same length and the muscle gets a second session a week.

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

With dumbbells and a bench, swap each machine for a dumbbell exercise from the substitutions that trains the same muscles, and keep it for the whole 8 weeks.

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:

Push, Pull and Legs (PPL) on Mon, Wed and Fri for beginners who want a split, about 55 minutes per workout, mostly on machines and dumbbells with the barbell squat. Each muscle gets one session a week, so “Full body · 3 days · Beginner”, which trains every big muscle group 2-3 times a week, teaches the lifts faster. 8 weeks: week 1 is calibration (pick weights that leave 3 reps in reserve, RIR 3), weeks 2-8 at RIR 2. 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 → PPL · 3 days

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	CSeated Dumbbell Shoulder Press	3 × 8–12	3 → 2	2-0-1-0	2:00
6	DCable Middle Chest Fly	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
7	EDumbbell Lateral Raise	4 × 12–20	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	1:00
8	FCable Triceps Pushdown	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
9	GCable Overhead Triceps Extension	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	3-0-1-0	1:00

21 working sets · ≈50 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 at about 45 degrees or lower, and still. If you have to swing the weight 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	CChest Supported Machine Row	2 × 8–12	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	2:00
6	DCable Neutral Grip Lat Pulldown	3 × 8–12	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	2:00
7	ECable Rear Delt Fly	3 × 12–20	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:00
8	FDumbbell Biceps Curl	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	1:00
9	GSeated Incline Biceps Curl	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	3-0-1-0	1:00

20 working sets · ≈50 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	4 × 8–12	3 → 2	3-0-1-0	2:30	Bar close to the legs, hips back; stop before the back rounds. Four sets after the squat: keep every rep clean.
5	CLeg Press	2 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-0	2:00
6	DBarbell Hip Thrust	2 × 8–12	3 → 2	2-0-1-1	2:00
7	E1Seated Leg Curl	4 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	→	Set up the leg extension before the first set, so the superset runs without waiting.
8	E2Seated Leg Extension Machine	4 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-0-1-1	1:30
9	FCalf Leg Press	3 × 10–15	2 → 1	2-2-1-0	1:00

22 working sets · ≈55 min · → Superset: go straight to the next exercise, rest after the pair

PushPullLegs

Print / save as PDF

Track this plan for free

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.
• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder 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.
• Chest Supported Machine Row 2 × 8–12 at RIR 1: when both sets reach 12 reps at RIR 1 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.
• The bench press, barbell row and squat run at 6-10 reps and RIR 2, once a week each. With one attempt a week, the bar can stay at the same weight for most of the block while the reps climb from 6 toward 10. That is progress, and the next run starts heavier.
• Free-weight compounds run at RIR 2; machines, cables and isolation exercises at RIR 1. Take the flyes, raises and curls closer to failure, and keep two clean reps in reserve on the barbell lifts.
• Pull has two pulldowns, a regular grip and a close neutral grip. Each keeps its own history, so don't copy the weight from one to the other.

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 is the long day, about 55 minutes: drop the calf raises first (about 6 minutes), then the hip thrust (about 5 more; hamstrings and glutes keep 8 sets). On Push skip the overhead triceps extension, on Pull the chest-supported row: each saves 4-5 minutes, and the big muscles stay in the growth zone.

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

Legs is already the long day, so add the 2-3 extra weekly sets for arms and shoulders at the end of the other upper day (lateral raises on Pull, curls on Push) and those for legs at the end of Push or Pull. The muscle then gets a second session a week.

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

With dumbbells and a bench, swap each machine for a dumbbell exercise from the substitutions that trains the same muscles, and keep it for the whole 8 weeks.

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:

Push, Pull and Legs (PPL) on Mon, Wed and Fri for intermediates, about 70 minutes per workout: bench press, barbell row, squat and Romanian deadlift. Each muscle gets one session a week; “Full body · 3 days” trains the big muscle groups 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 → PPL · 3 days