Top 13 Bodybuilding Training Routines

Several bodybuilding routines have gained legendary status over the years, becoming widely recognized and practiced due to their success in building muscle, strength, and sculpting champion physiques.

In no particular order! Here are some of the most famous and time-tested routines that have had a significant impact on bodybuilding culture:

1. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint

• Background: Arnold’s routine is iconic due to his intense, high-volume approach that helped him win seven Mr. Olympia titles.
• Focus: High-volume training, with lots of sets and reps focused on each body part, sometimes twice per week.
• Example Split: Chest/Back, Shoulders/Arms, Legs, with rest and repeat days.
• Key Features: Supersets, forced reps, and high-rep burnout sets. Prioritizes muscle shape and size.

2. Dorian Yates’ Blood and Guts

• Background: Known for his incredible intensity, Dorian Yates revolutionized bodybuilding with his “low-volume, high-intensity” training, earning him six Mr. Olympia titles.
• Focus: HIT (High-Intensity Training) method with fewer sets but performed to failure.
• Example Split: Back, Chest/Biceps, Shoulders/Triceps, Legs with several rest days.
• Key Features: 1-2 warm-up sets followed by a single, all-out set to failure, often incorporating forced reps or negatives.

3. 5×5 Routine by Reg Park

• Background: Popularized by Reg Park (Arnold’s idol), the 5×5 is a strength and hypertrophy routine that remains popular today.
• Focus: Compound movements with progressive overload.
• Example Split: Full-body, three days per week.
• Key Features: Five sets of five reps, usually with heavy compound lifts like squats, bench presses, and deadlifts.

4. Frank Zane’s “Zane Experience”

• Background: Known for his aesthetic physique, Frank Zane focused on precision, symmetry, and proportion.
• Focus: Moderate-volume workouts with an emphasis on muscle control and shape.
• Example Split: Typically a three- or four-day split targeting specific muscle groups.
• Key Features: Light to moderate weights with high reps for shaping, using techniques like peak contraction and posing.

5. Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty

• Background: Mentzer’s Heavy Duty system evolved from HIT principles and focuses on ultra-low volume and high intensity.
• Focus: Minimal volume with all-out sets to failure, designed to stimulate maximum growth in minimal time.
• Example Split: Full body split across the week with multiple rest days.
• Key Features: Often only one set per exercise, going to absolute failure with long rest periods between workouts.

6. The Push/Pull/Legs Split (PPL)

• Background: PPL is a versatile split used by bodybuilders and powerlifters to focus on pushing, pulling, and leg exercises.
• Focus: Balanced training across the week with each muscle group targeted through movement-specific sessions.
• Example Split: Push (chest, shoulders, triceps), Pull (back, biceps), Legs (quads, hamstrings, calves).
• Key Features: Flexibility in rep range and exercise selection; often done 3-6 times per week depending on frequency.

7. Layne Norton’s PHAT (Power Hypertrophy Adaptive Training)

• Background: PHAT was created by Layne Norton, a bodybuilder and powerlifter, blending strength and hypertrophy.
• Focus: Combining strength (power) days with higher-rep (hypertrophy) days.
• Example Split: Upper body power, Lower body power, Rest, Upper body hypertrophy, Lower body hypertrophy, Rest.
• Key Features: Power days use lower reps and higher weights; hypertrophy days use moderate weights with higher reps for muscle growth.

8. Vince Gironda’s “8×8”

• Background: Gironda was known for his unique training philosophy, with an emphasis on muscle “density” and aesthetics.
• Focus: High-intensity, high-volume, low-rest routines.
• Example Split: Full body or split routine, usually four to five times a week.
• Key Features: 8 sets of 8 reps with minimal rest between sets to maximize muscle pump and definition.

9. The German Volume Training (GVT)

• Background: GVT, or the “10×10” method, was popularized in the 1970s by German weightlifters.
• Focus: High-volume sets to overload the muscles.
• Example Split: Two main lifts per workout, repeated multiple times a week.
• Key Features: 10 sets of 10 reps with a moderate weight, focused on building muscle size quickly.

10. Arnold’s Golden Six

• Background: Arnold’s “Golden Six” was a routine he used as a beginner, focusing on compound lifts.
• Focus: Full-body workout aimed at beginners or intermediates looking for balanced growth.
• Example Exercises: Squats, bench press, rows, overhead press, barbell curls, and sit-ups.
• Key Features: Basic compound exercises performed multiple times per week, ideal for building foundational strength and size.

11. Max-OT (Maximum Overload Training)

• Background: Developed by Skip La Cour and AST Sports Science, Max-OT is a strength and hypertrophy program emphasizing progressive overload with high-intensity training.
• Focus: Short, intense workouts with heavy weights and low reps to build strength and muscle quickly.
• Example Split: Typically five days a week, each focusing on one or two muscle groups.
• Key Features: 4-6 reps per set with heavy weights, minimal volume, and long rest periods. Each workout is kept under 45 minutes to maintain intensity.

12. Starting Strength

• Background: Created by strength coach Mark Rippetoe, Starting Strength is designed for beginners to build foundational strength using a few core lifts.
• Focus: Fundamental compound movements to develop strength and size, with an emphasis on technique and progressive overload.
• Example Split: Full-body workouts, usually three days per week (often Monday, Wednesday, and Friday).
• Key Features: Three sets of five reps for each exercise, focusing on core lifts like the squat, deadlift, bench press, and overhead press. Ideal for beginners looking to build a solid base.

13. Mountain Dog Training (John Meadows)

• Background: Created by the late John Meadows, Mountain Dog Training combines a mixture of hypertrophy, strength, and functional movement exercises.
• Focus: Balancing hypertrophy with joint health and longevity, making it ideal for lifters over 35 or those with joint concerns.
• Example Split: A customized weekly split focusing on various muscle groups with a mix of high-rep pump work and low-rep heavy lifting.
• Key Features: Variety in exercise selection and volume, heavy compound lifts combined with isolation moves, and frequent use of supersets to improve intensity and conditioning.

FAQ