This 2-Day Weightlifting Split Will Train Your Entire Body

Weightlifting is a fantastic form of exercise. But what’s the best program to train your entire body?

Full-body training is important for optimal muscle development and aesthetic symmetry. While some people struggle to target all muscle groups effectively, it’s easy with proper grouping.

The answer lies in knowing which muscles work together to perform major movements and selecting exercises that activate these muscles most efficiently. With the program discussed here, you can get a full-body workout without spending hours and hours in the gym each week.

This program is designed for strength, balance, and symmetry. The best part? This entire routine can be completed in a two-day rotation!

Understanding the Basics of the 2-Day Weightlifting Split

This program will draw on a classic formula: the push-pull split.

Push muscles include the chest, triceps, and shoulders. These muscles work together when performing their namesake motion, meaning they can easily be worked out together with the right exercise selections. Pull muscles include the biceps, forearms, and back. Likewise, they also work together effectively and can be simultaneously targeted.

This covers the upper body completely. But what about the lower body? This program will split leg and core exercises evenly between the two days. Many lifters add more reps to leg exercises due to this muscle group’s larger size. In dividing legs across both days, we’ll reduce the risk of overtraining while also adding variety to each workout.

Benefits of a Balanced Weightlifting Split

Even though you’ll be targeting different muscles across different days, rest is important to recover from the systemic effects of the workout, which is the impact the workout has on your entire body, including your circulatory and nervous systems.

The two-day rotation provides the lifter with an opportunity to rest in between workouts while still hitting all muscle groups once or twice per week. Such a rotation provides an optimal balance between consistent muscle activation and sufficient recovery periods.

The Push-Day Workout: Chest, Triceps, Shoulders

The push-day workout is full of classic exercises, most of which have a few variations so you can experiment and find your perfect push-day fit. These selections are designed to target the chest, shoulders, and triceps safely while facilitating synergy between them.

Chest Press: The first exercise is the classic chest press. You have a few options here, including barbell bench press, dumbbell bench press, and chest press machine. Each has its advantages. Beginners may want to use the press machine because the upright angle feels more stable and less disorienting. Barbell press is easier for heavier lifting, especially on a Smith machine where safety hooks are present. Dumbbell press is often seen as a comfortable medium between the two, allowing for a greater range of motion and putting the lift in greater alignment with the scapular plane.

Shoulder Press: While the chest press will provide some activation of the front (anterior) deltoids, a dedicated shoulder press will provide additional stimulation for optimal growth and strength building. This exercise can also be done on a press machine, with a barbell, or using dumbbells. It should also be mentioned that both the chest and shoulder press provide triceps stimulation, as does the next entry on our list.

Cable Crossovers: While the chest press engages the upper, middle, and lower pectoral muscles, adding cable crossovers helps target the inner chest for enhanced definition and symmetry. To perform this exercise, hold two cables and press them forward, slightly lower than a standard chest press. Allow your hands to cross over each other, maximizing inner pec activation with each rep. For an alternative, the pec fly machine offers a similar movement pattern while providing additional support and stability.

Side Raises: The final exercise targets the side (lateral) delts, which contributes to the highly sought-after v-shape that many gym-goers crave. Hold two dumbbells parallel to your feet, and raise your arms to the sides. Form is very important here. Ensure you keep your thumb above your pinky to avoid potential shoulder impingement. Imagine the weight is a bottle of water you’re trying not to spill. Limit the range of motion to about the height of the shoulders or just slightly below.

Leg and Core Exercises to Supplement the Push-Day Workout

The following exercises should be done for more reps than the upper-body exercises above. Because of the muscle structure of the legs, they often need around 10-20 reps whereas other muscles would take approximately 6-10. Those new to these lifts may consider a lower weight level to balance the added reps.

Squats: The motion of squatting low with a barbell across your shoulders and pushing it up with your legs and core is perfect for push day. This compound movement effectively targets multiple muscle groups, including the quadriceps, glutes, and core, offering an excellent return on investment for both energy and time. Additionally, squats mimic natural movement patterns and promote muscle synergy.

Calf Extensions: These simple exercises can be done on a calf extension machine, or any slightly elevated surface. Simply place your toes on it and then push up, feeling the flex in your calf. Hold weights for added resistance and greater muscle stimulation.

The Pull-Day Workout: Biceps, Forearms, and Back

The second half of the program brings in more classic and carefully chosen exercises to target the remaining muscle groups. This part of the routine will provide you with a powerful base for lifting and may even leave you wanting to flex your arms after you’re done.

Chin Ups: The first exercise is one of the best exercises not just in the pull-day routine, but in all of fitness. Grab a bar with an underhanded grip, and pull yourself up so your chin is above the bar, then repeat. This simple exercise uses the body’s own weight to build resistance while targeting the entire back and providing top-tier biceps activation. Some gyms have machines that counterbalance an amount of the weight of your choosing, making it easier to complete the movement. Alternatively, you could perform the close-grip palms-up pulldown, a pulldown variation with a modified grip that bodybuilding champion Mike Mentzer called “the best biceps exercise you can do.”

Biceps Curls: A staple in any exercise program, the biceps curl is an exercise you can do in multiple variations. However, you can’t beat the classics. For this program, we’ll be using a standard dumbbell curl that’s performed with the arms about shoulder-width apart. The reason we choose dumbbells rather than barbells, machine curls, or the EZ bar, is because dumbbells allow you to angle the weights if necessary to ensure the wrist isn’t strained by the palms being forced upward.

Face Pulls: While chin-ups and pulldowns target the back muscles, we’ll engage a good portion of them again with this underrated exercise. Form is crucial here, as many people make the mistake of pulling straight back as if they’re performing rows. If done correctly, the motion will conclude with your arms at right angles and your hands over your elbows. This exercise is a very effective way to build your lats. It also targets the posterior (rear) delts, proving there is a bit of overlap between the push-pull split.

Shrugs: While face pulls do target your trapezius muscles, it’s good to have a dedicated exercise for this body part. These are the muscles on your upper back that are seen beside your neck, often confused for shoulder muscles. Hold a pair of dumbbells with a bit of a diagonal angle, like they’re pointing in front of you. Then bring your shoulders up in a shrugging motion to get a good squeeze on these muscles. This simple yet effective isolation exercise enhances upper-body aesthetics and overall posture.

Leg and Core Exercises to Supplement the Pull-Day Workout

Deadlifts: The classic deadlift is a favorite for weightlifters of many backgrounds because it targets many muscles in the legs, core, and back. For this lift, squat low and grab a barbell with both hands. Keeping your back straight and chest forward, extend your legs and stand upright, pulling the weight at an even pace as you rise. Like the squat, this exercise is one you may want to lower the weight for, especially if you’re new to it.

Farmer’s Carries: Possibly the most unique exercise on the list, the farmer’s carry gets your feet moving while engaging muscles across the legs, core, and back. To perform, grab a pair of dumbbells and hold them by your sides, then walk at a steady pace. This underrated exercise is excellent for building grip strength, strengthening the core and legs, and engaging the back and forearms, providing a full-body workout with lasting benefits.

Build Strength and Body Symmetry with This 2-Day Workout Split

With this simple rotation of a couple workouts, anyone can increase the strength of their body while targeting all muscle groups effectively.

The simplicity of this program isn’t its only strength. The synergy that supporting muscle groups generate means that each workout is designed to improve muscle activation, resulting in added strength or even muscle growth depending on how hard you train.

Once you’ve tried this program out, feel free to alter it, modify it, group different muscles together, and experiment. The fun of exercise is pushing our bodies to new limits. With a well-designed program, you’ll gain the physical strength and mental confidence to reach new heights in your fitness journey.

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