For many years there has been a lot of debate on which is best, a full body workout, or a split routine. If you don’t know, a split routine workout is a workout that separates the muscle groups that are exercised throughout each day of the week. For many, this may seem like the only way to do it. The split routine has been around for a while now and has become very popular in the past few decades. It started in the bodybuilding world, and I think a lot of it’s popularity has to do with the early movie careers of guys like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Sylvester Stallone. These guys and others like them, inspired a new generation of action movie stars. Of course Arnie, was a bodybuilder as well, and I think his generation of bodybuilders did a great thing for modern fitness. However, once modern bodybuilding began to take over the fitness scene, everyone and their grandma started doing a bodybuilding split routine. I’m not saying that this is horrible. From time to time, I myself follow split routines. But I don’t think that they’re the best for everyone. They can be effective, especially when trying to build muscle. So, it all depends on the goals of the individual.
Functional Fitness
Bodybuilding didn’t always have such a high emphasis on split routines. In fact, a long time ago the sports of bodybuilding, strongman, powerlifting, and olympic lifting were all essentially rolled into one. These athletes are what we refer to today as the oldtime strongmen. Many of these strongmen were also boxers and or wrestlers. People would admire their muscular bodies as well as their feats of strength and endurance. Back then these guys could lift massive amounts of weight, look muscular and they used full body workouts. That doesn’t mean that tremendous strength and athleticism hasn’t been built with split routines, but full body routines seem to work better. Full body workouts are about utilizing each muscle and getting them to work together. This works especially well for real world tasks such as moving furniture. Think about it. You wouldn’t try to lift a couch with just your biceps, would you? Integrating the muscles while you work out develops what is called functional fitness. By now you can see which type of workout I favor, so let’s look at the good things that split routines have to offer.
Muscle Focus
The idea of the split routine spawned from the desire to give each muscle it’s own time and attention. It actually makes a lot of sense, and in many ways it actually works. By setting aside a specific day for 1-3 muscle groups, you can focus on those muscles much better than if you workout the entire body. Like I said earlier, this works particularly well for muscle building. If you look at bodybuilding throughout modern history, you’ll see the influence that this type of training has had. The split routine allows the trainee to focus on each individual muscle. This way you can also hit a few muscle groups with alot of work and then allow them to grow while working other muscle groups. It is evident that through the years, bodybuilders have become more muscular, and well proportioned. However, this does have a lot to do with steroids as well. So essentially, the split routine allows us to do more. This works great if you’re a bodybuilder, but what if you’re an athlete? Leg day once a week means that you need to really work those legs on that one day. The next day you may feel accomplished because you can barely walk, but how fast will you be able to sprint down the field, or how high can you jump to stop a basket from being made? Think of a police officer that needs to chase down a criminal, or a firefighter that needs to carry someone to safety. These types of people rely on their strength and endurance at all times.
Which to Choose
In conclusion, I just want to say that I’m not against split workouts. I do prefer full body workouts, but still think that it’s better to follow a split workout than no workout at all. Essentially, the idea behind a split routine is that you subject the muscle to a lot of work, tear it down, and then give it plenty of time to repair. The idea of a full body workout is more of a practice. You subject the muscles to a small to moderate amount of work, and do it on a more regular basis. Think of a boxer that trains 6 days a week. Not one of those six days goes by that that boxer doesn’t throw a punch. The specific workout that he or she does may change slightly, but it’s still going to involve the entire body. And yes, some days can be harder than others, and I do think it’s important to get sore from time to time. However, some splits are better than others. An upper, and lower body split that allows you to exercise both groups twice a week works well for many, even athletes. A push/pull routine is great, and even 6 day split where you hit each group twice a week can be effective. The trick is to not completely destroy the muscle when you workout. And split routines have worked well for many. I’ve seen great gains on them, so if that’s what you prefer then I say go for it. It is just my opinion that full body workouts are better for overall health and function. Whichever you choose, I invite you to look at working out as a form of practice. Not just tearing the muscles down, but learning a skill. In order to master a skill, we must practice it often.
