5 Day ULPPL Split – Upper Lower (UL) x Push Pull Legs (PPL)
Hit a plateau with the bro split but still want to train 5 days per week? Gym Geek's ULPPL split starts with upper body and lower body sessions, followed by your ordinary push pull legs (PPL). More volume = more gains! Learn how it works...
5 days per week • Intermediate to advanced • Also known as: PPL x UL, PPL x Upper Lower
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The ULPPL (upper, lower, push, pull, legs) split divides your workouts into five types of exercise: upper body, lower body, push exercises, pull exercises and legs. It combines a 2-day upper-lower (UL) split with a 3-day push-pull-legs (PPL), which is why this routine is sometimes called UL x PPL or PPL x UL.
In this type of split, you work chest muscles both on upper body and push days, back muscles on upper body and pull days, etc. In other words, you hit each muscle group twice during the week, increasing the frequency and volume of your workout routine.
This increase in frequency and volume is the key advantage of ULPPL over bro splits, since it promotes greater muscle hypertrophy and uses your training time more efficiently.
A typical ULPPL split will be structured like this:
Day 1 - Upper body day: Chest, back, shoulders, biceps and triceps.
Day 2 - Lower body day: Quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves.
Day 3 - Rest day.
Day 4 - Push day: Chest, shoulders and triceps.
Day 5 -Pull day: Back, biceps and rear delts.
Day 6 - Leg day: Quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves.
Day 7 - Rest day.
Tips
Don’t forget to include some abs training into your routine! Strong abs can increase your core strength and trunk stability, which is beneficial in other exercises. Add a 10 minute abs session at the end of 1-2 workouts each week (usually including leg day).
Simple exercises like planks, crunches, leg raises and rollouts are all great choices to train your abs.
Avoid training your abs on consecutive days, since your muscles need time to rest and recover.
Allow 2-3 minutes of rest between sets for your muscles to recover and to prevent injuries.
When lifting heavier weights with a lower rep range, you will need a longer rest period than with high-rep, low weight exercises. Compound exercises typically need a longer rest period than isolation exercises.
Frequently asked questions
The ULPPL or UL x PPL (upper lower push pull legs) split is a 5 day workout routine that programs an upper lower split (UL) with a push pull legs split (PPL) into the same week. In the ULPPL split, you work each muscle group twice per week. For example, you work chest muscles on both upper body and push days, back muscles on upper body and pull days, and leg muscles on the two lower body days.
An upper lower split divides your routine into two workout days. On the upper body day, you train your chest, back, shoulders, biceps and triceps. And on the lower body day, you train your quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves. In a traditional upper lower split, you can repeat the workouts up to 3 times per week. But you can also combine the workout with a push pull legs split to create a 5 day workout routine.
A push pull legs split divides your routine into 3 types of workout. On push days, you train your chest, shoulders and triceps with exercises like bench press and shoulder press. On pull days, you train your back, biceps and rear delts with lat pulldowns and pull-ups, for example. And on your leg days, you do exercises that work your lower body, including deadlifts, squats and lunges. You usually perform a traditional PPL split 3 or 6 days per week.
To effectively train your upper body, you need to program your workout routine to target your chest, back, shoulders, biceps and triceps, as well as your abs and core. It's popular to split your upper body workout into push and pull days. A push-pull split divides your pushing exercises, like bench press and shoulder press, from your pulling exercises, like rows and pull-ups.
Our ULPPL split includes a dedicated upper body day, as well as separate push and pull days. This maximizes the frequency of your upper body exercises, while ensuring more time for rest and recovery compared to an upper lower split.
Alternatively, you can consider a body part split that divides your workouts into specific body parts. Although a body part split allows you to focus on specific muscles, it will limit the frequency and volume of your workout routine.
On your upper body day, you'll want to program exercises that train your chest, back, shoulders, biceps and triceps. We recommend 3 compound exercises focusing on your chest and back, and 3 isolation exercises for your biceps, triceps and deltoids. It’s a good idea to start with bench press because it engages multiple muscle groups and will prepare your muscles for the other exercises that follow.
For your lower body day, you only need 4-5 exercises. Try to include 3 compound exercises, including deadlifts (alternating variations), squats, leg press and lunges. You can follow this up with isolation exercises like calf raises and leg curls.
Don't repeat the same exercises on each day of your workout routine. For your compound exercises, train with different variations - for example alternating between flat and incline bench press. You should also alternate your isolation exercise to ensure balanced development in your arms and legs.
You should train your abs 1-2 days per week. Add a 10 minute abs session to the end of two workouts per week, for example your leg days. Simple exercises like crunches, Russian twists and planks are all great choices to train your abs. Avoid training your abs on consecutive days, since your muscles need time to rest and recover.
What is the ULPPL split?
The ULPPL (or UL x PPL) workout split is a popular 5 day workout routine for building muscle and strength. This split maximizes the frequency and volume of your training routine, working each muscle group twice per week. Compared to the 5 day bro split, a ULPPL split can help advanced trainees more efficiently build muscle.
Problems with the bro split
The bro split structures your workout routine so you work one muscle group per day. This split allows you to concentrate on a major muscle group on each training day and means, roughly speaking, there’s a full week of recovery time before you hit the same muscle group again.
A typical bro split might look something like this:
Bro splits are a simple and flexible workout routine, allowing you to safely combine different exercises without compromising recovery time. This makes them a popular choice for many strength training beginners.
This way of training, however, has a major drawback. The fact you are hitting only one muscle group each day means you are minimizing your training frequency.
Muscle growth is driven by a process called muscle protein synthesis. Studies show that the protein synthesis process peaks 24 hours after you exercise and returns to normal after about 36 hours. Since a bro split waits a full week before hitting the same muscle group again, it leaves a lot on the table!
You can see then how a bro split constrains your training frequency and overall volume, and makes it difficult to progress if you are at an advanced level of training.
Why train 5 days per week?
If you are at an intermediate or advanced level of training, a 5 day split can enable you to increase your training volume. This in turn can lead to fast improvements to your muscle growth and strength. If you are a beginner, or have limited time to workout through the week, a 5 day split is probably not a suitable routine for you.
Compared with a 3 day full-body routine or 4 day push/pull splits, a 5 day split can adds volume without overtraining any particular muscle group. But a 5 day split needs careful planning to ensure you have adequate recovery time between workouts.
Bodybuilders in particular can benefit from 5 day training, since their goals are to gain muscle mass and build a sculpted and well-defined physique. This requires a high volume of weight-lifting exercises throughout the week and a 5 day split makes it easier to achieve the balance.
References
MacDougall, J. D., Gibala, M. J., Tarnopolsky, M. A., MacDonald, J. R., Interisano, S. A., & Yarasheski, K. E. (1995). The time course for elevated muscle protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise. Canadian Journal of applied physiology, 20(4), 480-486.
Schoenfeld, B. J., Ogborn, D., & Krieger, J. W. (2017). Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of sports sciences, 35(11), 1073-1082.
Changelog
13 November 2023 - ULPPL split first published by Jane Litfin.
26 January 2024 - Update by Brendon Boshell to ensure article matches the Gym Geek content style guide. Replaced the workout routine carousel with a simple list of exercises for each day of the routine.
9 February 2024 - Update by Brendon Boshell. Added a knowledge quiz to the end of the workout routine article.
28 February 2024 - Update by Brendon Boshell. Added a ULPPL infographic carousel, with each image representing a day of the routine. Edited stock photography to align with Gym Geek brand colors. Updated link to cable crossovers (covered by chest flys article).
21 March 2024 - Fact checking update by Jane Litfin. Added fact checks for "High volume training leads to greater muscle hypertrophy" and "Muscles need up to 48 hours of rest between workouts". Minor tweaks to the print version.
21 March 2024 - Minor content update by Jane Litfin. Added a description and bullet point info to the routine header.
28 October 2024 - FAQs added by Jane Liftin. Minor fixes in content. Added links to push day routine.
2 January 2025 - Substantial content update and layout change by Jane Litfin. Adopted a more user-friendly content layout, by including the routine carousel, the workout days, structure, tips and FAQs at the top of the page.
13 January 2025 - Added alternative name for this routine. ULPPL is also known as UL x PPL or PPL x UL, since it combines an upper-lower (UL) split with a push-pull-legs (PPL) split.
