Each body part once per week.

[Tennisballz]

This was my very first workout program back in the day.  I would workout after school with friends 5 days a week for about 45 minutes.  It was super basic but I had great results.  It was:
Mon -  chest
Tue - back
wed - shoulders
Thu - legs
Fri - arms

The nice thing about this program is that you aren't usually sore and your workouts are pretty fast.  The downside is you only directly hit each bodypart once a week.  I've thought about trying this again.  Being as though I'm not in the beginniner stage anymore, you guys think I would progress on this?  My goal is not powerlifting or bodybuilding.  I just want to preserve good strength and continue to look good naked. 

[TheShape.]

I’m a natural and I workout very similar to what you posted.
Only 3 days a week, but it looks like this.
-chest/back
-legs
-arms/shoulders
(Calves and abs every workout)
I am thinking about switching over to a full body workout but I feel my best side and strength gains come from giving my muscles a few days to recover.

[Desolate]

Intensity.

It truly is what matters.

It's strange for beginners when they learn that they must do more than advanced lifters.

They need to be able to recruit all fibers.

It is something that one learns to do over time... and if the body is willing.

[BBSSchlemiel]

I’m a natural and I workout very similar to what you posted.
Only 3 days a week, but it looks like this.
-chest/back
-legs
-arms/shoulders
(Calves and abs every workout)
I am thinking about switching over to a full body workout but I feel my best side and strength gains come from giving my muscles a few days to recover.

Muscles don't have to be recovered to train them again. However your nervous system does need some recovery to make gains. Some of my best lifts were done with some residual soreness.

[IroNat]

"Everything works for 6 weeks." -- Dan John

[TheShape.]

Muscles don't have to be recovered to train them again. However your nervous system does need some recovery to make gains. Some of my best lifts were done with some residual soreness.

If I really blast them one day they will still be alittle sore the following week. Although it seems to hinder my workout rather than help it.

[Powerlift66]

This was my very first workout program back in the day.  I would workout after school with friends 5 days a week for about 45 minutes.  It was super basic but I had great results.  It was:
Mon -  chest
Tue - back
wed - shoulders
Thu - legs
Fri - arms

The nice thing about this program is that you aren't usually sore and your workouts are pretty fast.  The downside is you only directly hit each bodypart once a week.  I've thought about trying this again.  Being as though I'm not in the beginniner stage anymore, you guys think I would progress on this?  My goal is not powerlifting or bodybuilding.  I just want to preserve good strength and continue to look good naked. 

Im actually doing this exact thing, with cardio thrown in after (only 20 mins of cardio) but enjoying it...

[Henda]

Do the same with exception of upper back which hit twice. Much Prefer once a week training occasionally try more frequency but always go back to this

Sat - chest and upper back
Sun - legs inc deadlifts

Wed - shoulders and upper back
Thus - arms

[dj181]

that split started in the mid-90s and is still pretty much what most do nowadays

back in the 70's to mid-90's they did a 4 day rotation

something like this.... Day 1: push
                                Day 2: pull
                                Day 3: legs
                                Day 4: off

or instead of push/pull they did chest and back one day and arms and delts the other day

[heenok]

Once a week per bodypart doesnt cut it when you are advanced and need a lot of volume to make progress.
Or you can do a marathon session like a lot of pros do, but being natural you cant really do that.
Split your volume over 2 sessions per bodypart over the week.

[mazrim]

More and more is coming out that it is mostly overall volume that is the driving factor for muscle growth and not necessarily frequency so (as Heenok stated) it is usually easier to get higher volume twice a week but if you like once a week there doesn't appear to be a huge difference as long as volume is similar.

[Tennisballz]

Once a week per bodypart doesnt cut it when you are advanced and need a lot of volume to make progress.
Or you can do a marathon session like a lot of pros do, but being natural you cant really do that.
Split your volume over 2 sessions per bodypart over the week.

I've heard that you only actually grow for 24-48 hours after training as well.  This would mean it's best to hit a bodypart every third day and keep the volume relatively low, with the idea that you will be working it 2-3 times per week, always be growing and keeping the weekly total volume high.  My issue with this is I'm just not interested anymore in working out every day and hitting each muscle 2-3 times per week.  I'm willing to train in a way that gives me slower progress, I just don't want to regress. 

[Tennisballz]

that split started in the mid-90s and is still pretty much what most do nowadays

back in the 70's to mid-90's they did a 4 day rotation

something like this.... Day 1: push
                                Day 2: pull
                                Day 3: legs
                                Day 4: off

or instead of push/pull they did chest and back one day and arms and delts the other day

Basically everyone I knew back in the day was on some sort of variation of this.  It usually somehow worked out to hitting each bodypart once per week.  On occasion maybe twice.  We all made good progress on it.  I personally think this would work for advanced trainees although it may not be the most optimal.  Splits were the only way to train back then, now it seems like everyone is overthinking it and trying to scientifically maximize their gains with some sore of perfectly timed full body pseudo split.  To me the training has to be enjoyable.  As an advanced trainee, you mighy gain 1-2 pounds of muscle per year so does the perfect split really matter that much?

[IroNat]

I've heard that you only actually grow for 24-48 hours after training as well.  This would mean it's best to hit a bodypart every third day and keep the volume relatively low, with the idea that you will be working it 2-3 times per week, always be growing and keeping the weekly total volume high.  My issue with this is I'm just not interested anymore in working out every day and hitting each muscle 2-3 times per week.  I'm willing to train in a way that gives me slower progress, I just don't want to regress.  

For natties only...

This is the logic behind training full-body 2-3 times per week, but only do 1-2 exercises per bodypart.

The problem for most when they train full-body is they do too much in a workout.  They bring their split volume to the full-body routine.  Too much.

You only need 1-2 exercises per bodypart, 3-5 sets per exercise, 20-40 sets or so total per day.

There are let's say 8 bodyparts...quads, hamstrings, calves, chest, back, delts, biceps, triceps (not including abs).

Squats
Leg curls
Calf raises
Dips
Pullups
Dumbbell press
Barbell curls
Tricep pushdowns

3-5 works sets each.  24 to 40 work sets per day.

This is the way bodybuilders trained up to mid 1950's before D-bol came around (except for pre-contest more volume to lean up).  The old timers had a lot of mass (reasonable) even though they trained this way.

Drug users, on the other hand, can go crazy with the volume and recover.  All the 5-6 day mega volume split routines in the mags/interwebs are for drug users.  The "Arnold" routines are for drug users.  The 1-day per week mega blast routines are for drug users.

[PJim]

For natties only...

This is the logic behind training full-body 2-3 times per week, but only do 1-2 exercises per bodypart.

The problem for most when they train full-body is they do too much in a workout.  They bring their split volume to the full-body routine.  Too much.

You only need 1-2 exercises per bodypart, 3-5 sets per exercise, 20-40 sets or so total per day.

There are let's say 8 bodyparts...quads, hamstrings, calves, chest, back, delts, biceps, triceps (not including abs).

Squats
Leg curls
Calf raises
Dips
Pullups
Dumbbell press
Barbell curls
Tricep pushdowns

3-5 works sets each.  24 to 40 work sets per day.

This is the way bodybuilders trained up to mid 1950's before D-bol came around (except for pre-contest more volume to lean up).  The old timers had a lot of mass (reasonable) even though they trained this way.

Drug users, on the other hand, can go crazy with the volume and recover.  All the 5-6 day mega volume split routines in the mags/interwebs are for drug users.  The "Arnold" routines are for drug users.  The 1-day per week mega blast routines are for drug users.

I think the common theme here is recovery. You can only improve if you can recover. But, more importantly, you have also got to lift pretty fucking heavy to stimulate any significant growth as a natural. Anybody who tells you otherwise is full of it. "Pump" type workouts might cut it when you are on a boatload of gear, that shit will only work up to a point as a natural. You've got to get pretty strong if you want to see exceptional gains as a natural.

After 15 years of training I still see the same guys, at the same gyms, who, 15 years later look pretty much exactly the same, doing the same bullshit workouts day in, day out. No real gain in strength, no significant muscle, no focus on progressive overload.

[IroNat]

I think the common theme here is recovery. You can only improve if you can recover. But, more importantly, you have also got to lift pretty fucking heavy to stimulate any significant growth as a natural. Anybody who tells you otherwise is full of it. "Pump" type workouts might cut it when you are on a boatload of gear, that shit will only work up to a point as a natural. You've got to get pretty strong if you want to see exceptional gains as a natural.

After 15 years of training I still see the same guys, at the same gyms, who, 15 years later look pretty much exactly the same, doing the same bullshit workouts day in, day out. No real gain in strength, no significant muscle, no focus on progressive overload.

Well, "heavy" is relative to the rep range you train in, and yes, progression is necessary.

"Heavy" in the 2-5 rep range is a different "heavy" than in the 8-12 rep range.  Progression can take place in both and growth can take place in both.

You don't have to kill your joints to build muscle and strength for bodybuilding purposes.  

Unfortunately there are natural limits (for natties) to what you can achieve and everybody's limits are different.  You just can't keep on gaining forever no matter how you train.  We all know this but some of us can't accept it.

[benchmstr]

Miserable..I used to do that nonsense when I was a teenager..but it’s horsehit

Bench

[tres_taco_combo]

Intensity

that is the answer

[benchmstr]

that is the answer

No..explosiveness is the answer..you can be as instense as you want...but if you are grinding out reps and not exploding and working fast twitch? Your not doing shit!

Explosiveness and diet are everything

Bench

[oldtimer1]

I think if you are training heavy with low sets resting between sets till you regain strength then once a week per body part is the way to go.  There is so much over lap too. On back day deads are working your thighs again. On back and chest you are working arms both biceps and triceps. I could go on.

If you are training for muscular endurance with moderate weights resting little between sets then it hitting it again for two or three times a week works better.

Now which is best for muscle growth. More have used the last one with greater results than the HIT model. Maybe using both for different training cycles is optimal.

 

[Desolate]

No..explosiveness is the answer.

Bench

Intensity and explosiveness are essentially the same here.

Grinding out reps is not intensity nor explosiveness.

Going through the motions is the worst thing to do. The body adapts.

Until the stimulus exceeds what the body can handle (homeostasis), there will be no growth.

Volume is the worst thing to do, even for a drug-aided athlete.

What you do, and how you do it, is far more important than how much you do.

Explosiveness and diet are everything

Bench

Don't forget proper rest and recovery.

Growth comes during rest, not training.

Training is destructive. That is the whole point of it.

[Desolate]

Also, when in doubt, it is far better to undertrain than overtrain.

[acloda]

Just wanted to give my 2 cents. 54 and I feel like I'm in better shape than the past 5 years. For the past year I've been using our work gym with dumbbells that only go up to 50lbs and a cable machine. I was fed up with going to the gym at 2:30am and now work out twice a week at work at ~2:30pm. Because of the light weights I decided to do 'everything' at a slower pace. Press, stop, down, stop. Squat with dumbbells on my shoulders, down stop, up stop. Every lift is that way and it took at least 4 months to get used to that darn slow pace. Before doing that I was pressing (military press) the 50lb dumbbells for 7 - 9 reps, now I use the 45's for ~14 reps. Thought I was feeling stronger so about 2 months ago I went back to the 50's with my slow pace and got 11 reps!
Not trying to gain size but I still really enjoy lifting and wanted to do it in a safer manner and this has been working very well for me. If anyone had tried to tell me this was a good way to work out 5yrs ago I would've laughed at them and done my usual bodybuilding workout. Legs are 20-30 reps and upper body is between 14-20 reps and I'm loving it. I work out as fast as I can and only do 4 sets with two different lifts for each body part (Mon & Thur). Because it's at work I can stretch and warm up before hitting the gym so I always start with heaviest weight, which really isn't very heavy.
Used to work out 6 days a week! Now our 17yr old takes president while he trains for soccer 4 days a week and looks better than I did at his age, good times.

[Trev]

I switched to only training at weekends ( Chest/Back Saturday & Delts, Arms & Legs Sunday ) 5 years ago and have put on over 15 pounds of muscle in that time. Always been natural as never interested in competing. I'm now 215 pounds at 5ft 11 whilst being lean enough to show abs, serratus, vascularity etc etc  ....

When natural you grow best when training hard once a week. I'm sore for 3-4 days.

Don't listen to all the bullshit from "experts" trying to sell you stuff. Same with supplements - YOU DON'T NEED THEM. A genetic freak on drugs only needs the extra protein in half an egg to grow the muscle he can put on in a day.

If you bust your bollocks in the gym for 2 hrs a week and eat healthily, you can live your life properly rather than waste all that time and money

[PJim]

I switched to only training at weekends ( Chest/Back Saturday & Delts, Arms & Legs Sunday ) 5 years ago and have put on over 15 pounds of muscle in that time. Always been natural as never interested in competing. I'm now 215 pounds at 5ft 11 whilst being lean enough to show abs, serratus, vascularity etc etc  ....

When natural you grow best when training hard once a week. I'm sore for 3-4 days.

Don't listen to all the bullshit from "experts" trying to sell you stuff. Same with supplements - YOU DON'T NEED THEM. A genetic freak on drugs only needs the extra protein in half an egg to grow the muscle he can put on in a day.

If you bust your bollocks in the gym for 2 hrs a week and eat healthily, you can live your life properly rather than waste all that time and money

x2

I've trained once or twice a week at most (depending on work) for the past 10 years and progress in strength and size year on year. As you say, as a natural, your recovery is probably one tenth of that of someone on a heavy cycle, so it really is key. I'm the same height as you and a decent level of leanness (decent abs and vascularity/beach-ready type look) at 230lbs so goes to show it's working for at least some of us!