Strength training programs, explained set by set
Each guide gives you the schedule, the progression rules and a plan for stalls. Every program has a free spreadsheet that calculates your weights, and you can load it into Symmetric Strength to track it.
Arnold split
Advanced · 6 days a week · Ongoing, in blocks of 8 to 12 weeks
A six-day bodybuilding split from Arnold Schwarzenegger's own book. It trains every muscle twice a week and asks for more time and recovery than most lifters have.
Conjugate method (Westside Barbell)
Advanced · 4 days a week · 3 weeks
A four-day powerlifting system built around heavy, fast and high-rep work. It suits experienced lifters and takes real judgement to run well.
Cube Method
Advanced · 4 days a week · 10 weeks: three 3-week waves, then a test or meet week
A four-day powerlifting plan for experienced lifters who want one heavy lift a week, with speed and rep work filling the other two days.
DC Training (DoggCrapp)
Advanced · 3 days a week · 6 to 8 week blasts, each followed by a 10 to 14 day cruise
Dante Trudel's low-volume bodybuilding system for lifters with three or more hard years behind them: one all-out set per body part, each muscle trained three times every two weeks.
German Volume Training
Advanced · 3 days a week · 6 weeks
A 10x10 block for experienced lifters who want a hard push on muscle size. Two small trials found 5 sets did as well as 10.
PHAT (Power Hypertrophy Adaptive Training)
Advanced · 5 days a week · 4 to 6 week blocks, repeated
A five-day plan for experienced lifters: two heavy power days, then three size days that each open with six fast, light sets of 3 on a power lift.
Smolov Jr
Advanced · 4 days a week · 3 weeks
A three-week block that raises squat volume and intensity together, for experienced lifters who want a new squat max and can let everything else drop to maintenance.
Where to check your numbers first
Most programs ask for a one-rep max or a five-rep weight. Use the one-rep max calculator to estimate yours, then see where you stand on the strength standards.