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DAVE'S UPPER/ LOWER SPLIT (DULS)

Recommend Supplements For This Workout:

Whey Protein (pre/post workout)
Creatine (daily/post workout)
Simple Carbs (post workout only)
Multi-Vitamin (every morning)

Workout Summary:

Training Level:	Intermediate
Main Goal:	Build Muscle
Days Per Week:	4
Workout Type:	Fullbody
Designed By:	Dave Herber

Description of Workout:

When it comes to designing an upper/lower body split workout, people fail on three fronts:

Too Many Sets Per Body Part
Too Many Isolation Movements
No differentiation between workouts if performed twice in a week.

Here’s an upper/lower body split that hopefully addresses those shortcomings and allows for decent muscle growth. It will probably work best if you have over 6 months training experience and are somewhere between an intermediate and advanced lifter. If you have been making steady growth gains for over 3 years and are almost at your most muscular, this routine is probably not for you. Everyone else, Have a Go At It!

THE WORKOUT ROUTINES

Lower Body Workout A:

Lower Body A	Warm Up Sets		Work Sets
Exercise	Sets	Reps	Sets	Reps	Rest
Squats	2	12-15	3-4	6 – 8	2-3Min
45 Degree Leg Press			2-3	10 - 12	1-2Min
Romanian Deadlifts (SLDLs)			3-4	6-8	2-3Min
Leg curl			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Smith Machine Standing Calf Raise			3-4	6-8	2-3Min
Seated Calf Raise			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
		Total Sets Low End	17	Estimated Workout Time	45Mins
		Total Sets High End	23	Estimated Workout Time	60Mins

Upper Body Workout A:

Upper Body A	Warm Up Sets		Work Sets
Exercise	Sets	Reps	Sets	Reps	Rest
Barbell Row	2	12-15	3-4	6-8	2-3Min
Reverse Grip Pulldown			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Bench Press	2	12-15	3-4	6-8	2-3Min
Incline Bench Press			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Tricep Dips			1-2	AMAP	1-2Min
Preacher Curls			1-2	10-12	1-2Min
		Total Sets Low End	16	Estimated Workout Time	35Mins
		Total Sets High End	22	Estimated Workout Time	50Mins

Lower Body Workout B:

Lower Body B	Warm Up Sets		Work Sets
Exercise	Sets	Reps	Sets	Reps	Rest
Squats	2	12-15	2-3	10-12	1-2Min
45 Degree Leg Press			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Romanian Deadlifts			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Step Back Lunge			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Smith Machine Standing Calf Raise			2-3	8-10	2-3Min
Seated Calf Raise			2-3	12-15	1-2Min
		Total Sets Low End	14	Estimated Workout Time	30Mins
		Total Sets High End	20	Estimated Workout Time	40Mins
What's Different? Less Volume than Lower A workout, Step Back Lunge substituted for Leg Curls.

Upper Body Workout B:

Upper Body A	Warm Up Sets		Work Sets
Exercise	Sets	Reps	Sets	Reps	Rest
Pull Ups			2-3	AMAP	2-3Min
One Arm Dumbbell Row			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Bench Press	2	12-15	2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Incline Bench Press			2-3	10-12	1-2Min
Lying Tricep Extensions			1-2	10-12	1-2Min
Incline Dumbbell Curls			1-2	10-12	1-2Min
		Total Sets Low End	12	Estimated Workout Time	30Mins
		Total Sets High End	18	Estimated Workout Time	40Mins
What's Different: Less Volume than Upper A workout, Pull Ups substituted for Barbell Rows, if you can't do a pull up, then try Inverted Body Rows, One Arm DB Row Substituted for Close Grip Pulldowns, Lying tricep extensions (Skullcrushers) substituted for Tricep Dips and Incline DB Curls substituted for Preacher Curls.

PUTTING THE WEEKLY WORKOUT PLAN TOGETHER

As it is designed, this is a 4 Day Split and looks like this:

4 Day Split:

Monday - Lower A
Tuesday - Upper A
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Lower B
Friday - Upper B
Saturday - Rest
Sunday - Rest

But if your schedule doesn’t allow this, or your tolerance for a 4 day program is small, then it can be arranged it a 3 Day Split like so:

3 Day Split:

Week 1 Monday – Lower A
Week 2: Monday – Upper A
Week 1: Tuesday- Rest
Week 2: Tuesday – Rest
Week 1: Wednesday – Upper A
Week 2: Wednesday – Lower A
Week 1: Thursday – Rest
Week 2: Thursday - Rest
Week 1: Friday – Lower B
Week 2: Friday – Upper B
Week 1: Saturday – Rest
Week 2: Saturday – Rest
Week 1: Sunday – Rest
Week 2: Sunday - Rest

LOADING PARAMETERS

The rep ranges outlined should follow the corresponding loads:

6 reps – Approximately 85% of 1 Rep Max
8 reps – Approximately 80% of 1 Rep Max
10 reps – Approximately 75% of 1 Rep Max
12 reps – Approximately 70% of 1 Rep Max

Q: Do you have to test 1 Rep Max on all exercises?

NO! But it will take a fair amount of experimentation to get the proper weight for the proper rep range, see “Progression” below.

PROGRESSION

Over the course of 8 weeks, the first two should be "Test" weeks where the above loading parameters are discovered so that by week 3 you’ll be ready for “Full Work” weights.

After the first week of “Full Work” weight (Week 3), you should try to increase the weight moved on the big compound moves (Squat, Deads, Bench, Incline Bench) each week after being able to perform all reps for all sets at the same weight.

After the 6th week of “Full Work” weight (Weeks 3 – 8) you will have to DELOAD.

DELOADING

A deload is when we take a break from hard training. A deload helps us to give our body a rest, give our mind a rest , prevent overtraining, increase our chance of getting stronger, prevent injury and increase motivation by preventing our program from becoming stale .

During the deload it is recommended that you cut your volume from 1/3 at the least to 2/3rds at the most. So whatever your total volume (Total Sets) multiply it by .3 or .6 and then reduce the sets per exercise according.

Q: Should I reduce the weight, during a deload?

Typically if we are going for mass gains, we want to keep the weight the same as our “Full Work” weeks. So reducing the volume (Total Sets) will be enough for the deload.

Questions?

If you have any other questions, please post them in the workout section on the forum!

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