Workout Summary
- Main GoalBuild Muscle
- Workout TypeSplit
- Training LevelIntermediate
- Program Duration8 weeks
- Days Per Week4
- Time Per Workout55 minutes
- Equipment RequiredBarbell, Cables, Dumbbells, EZ Bar, Machines
- Target Gender Male & Female
- Workout PDF Download Workout
Workout Description
As requested by you guys, we've added Doug Lawrenson's 4 day split muscle building workout to our database of workouts. This workout was designed by Doug and is aimed at muscle growth. It's important that you follow the correct diet program if you want to get the maximum results out of this program.
Workout Notes:
- Warm up with cardio for 5-10 minutes.
- Stretches and flexibility exercises for 5-10 minutes.
- Stretch the worked muscles at the end of the workout, and cool down 5-10 minutes.
- Abdominals on Monday and Thursday
Workout Schedule
- Monday - Shoulders and Triceps
- Tuesday - Back
- Wednesday - Rest
- Thursday - Chest and Biceps
- Friday - Legs
- Saturday - Rest
- Sunday - Rest
Doug's 4 Day Split Workout
Monday - Shoulders and Triceps
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Smith Machine Shoulder Press | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Dumbbell Reverse Fly | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Dumbbell Shrugs | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Lying Tricep Extension | 3 | 10,8,6 |
| One Arm Cable Extension | 3 | 10,8,6 |
| One Arm Dumbbell Extension | 3 | 10,8,6 |
Tuesday - Back
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Wide Grip Pull Up | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Close Grip Pull Down | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| One Arm Dumbbell Row | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Bent Over Barbell Row | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
Thursday - Chest and Biceps
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Barbell Bench Press | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Incline Dumbbell Flys | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Cable Crossovers | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 3 | 10,8,6 |
| Preacher Curl | 3 | 10,8,6 |
| Standing Hammer Curl | 3 | 10,8,6 |
Friday - Legs
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Squat | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| 45 Degree Leg Press | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Leg Extension | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Stiff Legged Deadlifts | 4 | 12,10,8,6 |
| Seated calf Raise | 3 | 10,8,8 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 3 | 15,12,10 |
925 Comments
Can I do this workout three days a week instead of four days?
You would likely be better off finding a three day program. Try this one out.
https://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/shaun--s-3-day-muscle-buildin...
Can i add 4 sets of deadlift on back day and make it 20 total sets?
I suggest doing them at the beginning, Mantello, but yes, you could do that. Let us know how it goes.
Solid split. Thanks for sharing it for other readers to consider.
It’s goes well i did
Chest and biceps on Monday
Legs on Tuesday
Back on Thursday
And shoulders and triceps on Friday
What’d you think?
Hello roger, is it okay to add deadlift 4 sets of 12,10,8,6 on back day and there is a problem doing 20 total sets? Thanks in advance!
Hey Mantello, yes, that would be okay. Just don't take all four sets to failure. Save failure for the last one. 20 total sets for back would be okay.
Hello, can i replace incline db curl with barbell curl, and can i do 4 sets instead of 3!?
Yes and yes, Dean.
Hi , Which sets should we work in which rpe?
Hi, Atakhan. I would say take the final set to RPE 9 or 9.5. The others could go in a range of 6-8, depending on how you're feeling.
Five weeks into this and out of all the routines I’ve worked on this site this is the one that’s given me results so quickly in both appearance and strength going to run it another 5 weeks.
Hi,
I normally do a decent 12-20k trail run on Sundays, so would like to swap the leg day to either Monday or Tuesday.
What would be the best suggestion order with the switch around?
Kind Regards,
Chris
I like the structure and layout of this workout. But how do I prevent stalling?
You can only add reps and more weight for so long, usually for me its like 3-4weeks.
Do I just change exercises every 8 weeks and change up the rep scheme? Instead of 12/10/8/6 then do sets of 8-12?
Hi is there a food plan to go with this
Hi Alan,
Start Here: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/tools/bmr-calculator
Go Here: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/how-to-calculate-perfect-macros
Finish Up Here: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/how-to-create-a-bodybuilding-...
Hi Doug
Is it fine if I sort the routine like that:
Monday: chest.calves
Tuesday: back.biceps
Thursday: shoulders.triceps
Friday: legs
Hi, are you supposed to increase the weight as the rep range goes down ? Thanks.
Hi Simon,
Yes, that is correct.
After doing this 4 three or four weeks is there any other Ford a plan that Doug has made or a changeup I try to follow is Sue the most I can sometimes I do ad and another thing if I'm just completely exhausted I skip one of the exercises for the day. If you do can you give us a link
Is it fine if I sort the routine like that:
Monday : chest.biceps
Tue:shoulders.triceps
Thu:back
Friday:legs
What would you recommend for ab exercises on Tuesday's and Thursday's?
Situps, Crunches, Leg Raises, Decline Leg Raises, Plank. Pretty much anything you feel like that train upper & lower parts of your abs. I do lower abs on tuesdays and upper abs on thursdays.
For lower you can do crunches and leg raises.
For upper I do cable crunches, bicycle crunches, overhead situps with weight, rollouts with a barbell.
I'd like to do the close grip bench press what tricep excersice should I replace that with
I work overnights starting 12am Fri, sat sun, and i don't like lifting after my midnight shift, so can i do monday-thur without break and within my 3 days off, i will do some cardio?
I'd like to do the close grip bench press what tricep excersice should I replace that with
what is the recovery time between a series and the other?
so im in to this 2 weeks now. i did it to change things up. i work construction ind it isn't conducive to power lifting now. i like the split i think it would be awesome for a beginner.
but i think i want to lean out a little and still be good to work, so ive added some reps and active recovery sets for the previous says session. any thoughts?
Matt,
Alot of the answer to your question is: "it depends". Your additional volume and "recovery sets" might actually be deleterious in the long run if you can't recover from it given the demands of your job.
Hi Steve
Sorry if this is shown somewhere on the workout but in the introduction to the workout it says "make sure you follow the correct diet program"
Is there a link to the diet program somewhere?
Thanks
Hey Doug, been training about 7 years now and just wondering if I can throw in a set of deadlifts on back day? been doing the stronglifts 5x5 the past month, squats were going through the roof but started losing upper body size especially in my arms(and I want big ****ing arms) so thought i would give this a go plus training three days a week wasn't enough for me.
The Military Press and Bench both use Triceps as a secondary.
Mon - Shoulder and Tri's -----------Thursday - Bench and Bi's.
The workout is set up to get the most muscle gains. You will get less for your effort if you change it.
The D4D split is well thought out. I do it "as is" so I get the best results for my efforts.
You definitely get more bang for your buck with this one.
whats the reason
Is it okay to change the order of days in the program. ex: Switch Thursday and Monday
no
It is only in the hopes of distribution of work so you have ample time to recover from every workout
is there a reason it should not be switched ?
Steve,
Why do you recommend using the smith machine for the OHP here yet bash it so hard in your article here, https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/10-reasons-never-build-muscle .Does it work better with the surrounding exercises or something in this case?
Thanks,
Chris
Chris,
This isn't my workout. It's created by Doug Lawrensen.
Gotcha, thanks for the quick reply!
Any recommended or suggested supplements to go with this workout to encourage muscle gain and fat loss ?
Hi there, when do this workout should I stick to it constantly and just increase the weight as usual or change it now and then? If so when is a good time to alternate workouts in order to increase size?
Thanks
I am 5'6" and weigh around 188. My goal is to get lean but muscular. I am finding it a challenge to figure out if I should lose weight while weight training to eat to maintain my current weight? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
How would you recommend working pushups into the routine? I'd like to do them on more than just chest day (about 200 per day, 3 days per week)
sorry about my english but my question is in every set i have to add more weight?
Hi, would it be okay to do this routine Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs and rest Fri, Sat, and Sunday?
Hi! In training we got folds of outcome, progression and regression. Resting 3 days in a row is leading to regression.
A good 4 day split workout goes like this
M chest/tri
T legs
W rest
Th shoulders
Fri back/bi
Sat n sun rest
Been lifting for over 2 years n the best 4 day split that I have seen progress from goes like this monday chest/tri tuesday legs wednesday off thursday shoulders friday back/bi sat n sunday off