Push / Pull / Legs for Hypertrophy

Overview

If your goal is size — genuine muscle mass, visibly more of you — Push / Pull / Legs is the split that has produced more gains in more people than any other format. It groups movements by pattern, gives each muscle group two sessions a week, and scales from beginner-friendly to brutal depending on how much volume you pile in.

This 12-week plan assumes you have gym access, can already squat, deadlift and bench with competent form, and can commit to 6 sessions a week. If 6 feels unrealistic, a 4-day variant is at the bottom — same principles, less volume.

Golden Rule: Hypertrophy is driven by progressive mechanical tension accumulated over enough volume — not by how destroyed you feel after a session. Progress the logbook, not the soreness.

Prerequisites

• 6-12 months of consistent gym training under your belt
• Comfortable executing squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, row, pull-up
• Realistic understanding that muscle gain is slow — expect ~0.5-1 kg of lean mass per month at best, less once you're past your first year

The Six-Day Split

Day	Focus	Primary Lifts
Mon	Push A — heavy	Bench press, overhead press, dips
Tue	Pull A — heavy	Deadlift, barbell row, weighted pull-up
Wed	Legs A — heavy	Back squat, Romanian deadlift, walking lunge
Thu	Push B — volume	Incline dumbbell press, lateral raise, cable fly
Fri	Pull B — volume	Pull-up, chest-supported row, face pull
Sat	Legs B — volume	Front squat, hip thrust, leg curl
Sun	Rest

Heavy days: 4-6 reps, lower volume, focus on load. Volume days: 8-15 reps, higher volume, focus on pump and time under tension.

The Programme

Push A — Heavy

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Barbell bench press	4 × 5
Standing overhead press	3 × 6
Weighted dips	3 × 6-8
Close-grip bench press	3 × 8
Cable tricep extension	3 × 12
Rear delt fly	3 × 15

Pull A — Heavy

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Deadlift	3 × 5
Barbell row	4 × 6
Weighted pull-up	3 × 6-8
Barbell curl	3 × 8
Hammer curl	3 × 10
Face pull	3 × 15

Legs A — Heavy

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Back squat	4 × 5
Romanian deadlift	3 × 8
Walking lunge	3 × 10 each leg
Leg press	3 × 10
Seated calf raise	4 × 12
Hanging leg raise	3 × 12

Push B — Volume

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Incline dumbbell press	4 × 10
Seated dumbbell shoulder press	3 × 10
Cable chest fly	3 × 12
Lateral raise	4 × 15
Overhead cable tricep extension	3 × 12
Tricep rope pushdown	3 × 15

Pull B — Volume

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Pull-up (bodyweight)	4 × AMRAP (as many as possible)
Chest-supported row	4 × 10
Lat pulldown	3 × 12
Dumbbell curl	3 × 12
Cable curl	3 × 15
Reverse pec-deck fly	3 × 15

Legs B — Volume

Exercise	Sets × Reps
Front squat	4 × 8
Hip thrust	4 × 10
Bulgarian split squat	3 × 10 each leg
Leg extension	3 × 15
Lying leg curl	4 × 12
Standing calf raise	4 × 15

Progressive Overload — The Only Thing That Works

Every session, try to beat the last. In priority order:

1. More reps at the same weight — if you did 5 reps last session, aim for 6
2. Same reps at more weight — if you hit 6 reps in a target range, add 2.5kg next session
3. More sets — when rep/weight gains stall, add a set
4. Better technique — slower eccentric, fuller range, same numbers = more tension

Track every working set in a notebook or app. Memory is unreliable; the log is truth.

Weekly & 4-Week Structure

3 weeks build, 1 week deload. In deload week:

• Same exercises, 60-65% of working weights
• One fewer set per exercise
• 48-hour rest between sessions

Over 12 weeks you'll do 3 build-deload cycles. Don't skip deloads — joints and CNS need them even if muscles don't feel it yet.

Nutrition for Hypertrophy

Surplus. You cannot build muscle in a deficit past the first few months of training. You need 200-400 kcal above maintenance consistently.

Bodyweight	Maintenance estimate	Surplus target
70 kg	~2,400 kcal	2,700 kcal
80 kg	~2,700 kcal	3,000 kcal
90 kg	~3,000 kcal	3,300 kcal

Protein. 1.6-2.2g per kg of bodyweight. Spread across 4-5 meals.

Carbs and fats. After hitting protein, fill the rest with roughly 50% carbs / 30% fats of remaining calories. Carbs fuel the training; fats support hormones.

Expect some fat gain. A clean bulk at 300 kcal surplus should put on mostly muscle with a small amount of fat. Plan a cut every 3-6 months to stay recomposition-friendly.

Sleep — The Hidden Programme

Muscle growth happens during sleep, specifically during deep and REM phases. Six hours or less consistently will blunt gains no matter how hard you train.

• Target 7-9 hours
• Consistent bedtime matters more than total hours
• Screens off 30 minutes before sleep

The 4-Day Alternative

For those who can't do six sessions:

Day	Focus
Mon	Push A
Tue	Pull A
Thu	Legs A (combined with lower-volume Legs B movements)
Sat	Upper body (Push B + Pull B highlights)

Progress will be slower but steadier. Consistency at 4 days beats three weeks at 6 days followed by burnout.

Measuring Progress

• Logbook numbers trending up every 4 weeks (not every session — variance is normal)
• Body composition via waist + arm + chest measurements every 4 weeks
• Photos in same light, same pose, every 4 weeks
• Scale trending up 0.25-0.5kg per week — faster than that is probably fat

Common Mistakes

• Chasing soreness. Soreness is not a reliable signal of muscle growth.
• Changing the programme every 2 weeks. Hypertrophy rewards consistency — pick a plan, run it 12 weeks, evaluate.
• Always training to failure. Failure sets cost recovery. Leave 1-2 reps in the tank on most sets. Take the final set of the main lift to near-failure.
• Skipping legs. Leg training drives systemic growth — upper-body-only plans top out fast.

What's Next

After 12 weeks on PPL, you'll have a lot more muscle if nutrition and sleep cooperated. Options from here:

• Another 12-week block with heavier loading (4-6 rep ranges on volume days too)
• Switch to an Upper/Lower 4-day split for a change of stimulus
• Start a strength-focused phase with the Powerlifting Big-3 plan