How many muscle groups should I train a day: The complete guide, 2024

If you’re new to the fitness world or simply looking to build muscle and improve your fitness, you may be wondering how many muscle groups should I train a day to get the maximum muscle growth or to achieve your fitness goal.

While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as a fitness enthusiast myself with 7+ years of experience. I have seen firsthand the benefits and drawbacks of different workout routines.

In this article, I’ll share my personally used and practically done tips and tricks to answer your question, ‘How many muscle groups should I train a day, and why workout different muscle groups matter for your overall fitness goals’.

Why is muscle groups important

Before jumping to the question, ‘How many muscle groups should I train a day, we need to understand why is muscle groups important and why workout different muscle groups.

Prevents Injury

When you work out, you create small tears in your muscle fibers. Your body needs time to repair these tears, which is why rest and recovery are important.

When you work out too many muscle groups in a single session, you may not give your body enough time to recover, which can lead to injury or fatigue. By targeting a specific group at a time you are giving your body enough time to recover, which in return prevents injuries.

Increase Muscle Growth

Our body (recovers) makes muscles when we sleep(rest). If you keep working the same set of muscles every day, You are not giving enough attention to a specific muscle to grow. By working out specific muscle groups in detail, you can target them more effectively and promote muscle growth.

Improve Efficiency

Working out multiple muscle groups in a single session can be a time-saver, but it may not be the most efficient approach for building muscle or improving fitness. If you are targeting specific muscle groups in more detail, you can ensure that you’re getting the most out of your workouts.

Types of workout splits

Let us quickly understand the types of workout splits so that You get a better understanding of How many muscle groups should I train a day?

In general, Some people prefer to focus on one or two muscle groups per day, while others like to work out multiple muscle groups in a single session.

Here are three common types of workout splits:

Full body Workouts

As the name itself defines ‘full-body workout‘. It targets all major muscle groups in a single session. This approach is great for beginners or those who have limited time to spend at the gym. In fact, I personally have done this when I joined the journey and I still do this whenever I took a long break due to some reason and come back to the gym.

A typical full-body workout might include exercises like squats, shoulder press, bench press, pull-ups, and bicep curls. By targeting all major muscle groups in one workout, you can improve overall strength and endurance quickly.

Note: Do not do too many exercises of one muscle group in this Full-body workout. Just do one exercise per muscle group as a beginner.

Split Routines

A split routine involves dividing your workouts into different muscle groups on different weekdays.
For example, Monday- chest, Tuesday- Back, Wednesday- Shoulder, etc. This approach allows you to focus on specific muscle groups in more detail, which can be beneficial for building muscle mass.

Push-Pull-Legs

The push-pull-legs (PPL) routine is a popular option that involves targeting different muscle groups on different weekdays.

On “push” days, you work out your chest, shoulders, and triceps.

On “pull” days, you work out your back and biceps.

On “legs” days, you work out your lower body.

This approach allows you to focus on specific muscle groups while still getting a full-body workout.

How many muscle groups should I train a day?

Now, Finally answer your question, ‘How many muscle groups should I train a day?’. The answer depends on several factors, including your fitness level, your workout goals, and your schedule.

To help you understand more efficiently, I am going to divide this on the basis of your fitness level. Here are some general guidelines to help you determine the optimal number of muscle groups to work out per day:

Beginners

If you are a beginner, or new to working out and it is your first day in the gym. I would personally suggest going with Full body workout for the initial first month.

NOTE: Only do one exercise per body part and go with light weights. Focus, more on controlling the weight and techniques rather than lifting super heavy weights.

This will help your body to get used to weights, increase tolerance and increase stamina. Also, the most important thing is it will help you develop a muscle-mind connection in the initial stage itself.

After your body gets used to it(after one month), start with one muscle part per weekday. Like, Monday-Chest, Tuesday- Back and so on. This will allow your body to emphasize one muscle group at one time. You will learn more techniques and exercises for one specific body part. This will help increase muscle mass and you will get to experiment with different exercises and choose which works better for you. Also, your body gets enough time to recover.

Intermediate

If you have been working out for a while and have a moderate fitness level, you can work out up to 2-3 muscle groups per day.

You can try Push-Pull-Leg. Try experimenting with different exercises. Make sure to add one exercise per muscle group.

Example: If you are doing Push day and working on shoulders. Add one exercise for front delts like shoulder press, one for side delts like lateral raises, and one for back delt and traps like shrugs or something.

Advanced

If you have been working out for a long-long time and have an advanced fitness level, you can work out up to four or five muscle groups per day. Which I definitely not suggesting doing. I have tried this personally and it’s over exhausting and tiresome. I didn’t find any good results, I just felt tired all the time and couldn’t lift my best for every exercise.

I would not recommend doing this until you are on some kind of stuff (not natural). You may be able to do this naturally as well, but it completely depends on genetics and You can only do it if you are literally a professional bodybuilder and that’s your breadwinner.

Table: Optimal Number of Muscle Groups to Workout Per Day

Fitness Level	Optimal Number of Muscle Groups to Workout Per Day
Beginners	Initial one month, full body, one exercise per body part, Then 1 body part per day.
Intermediate	2-3 Body parts per day. You can try Push-Pull-Legs.
Advanced	4-5 body parts per day. Only when you are a professional bodybuilder.

Conclusion

In conclusion, How many muscle groups should I train a day? There is no specific answer to this question. In fact, as far as I have learned in my past 7 years of experience, there is no magical guideline that is 100% accurate on anything. Everything depends on every individual level and fitness goal. It’s important to work out a specific number of muscle groups per day to achieve the best results without risking injury or over-exertion.

As a general guideline, beginners should start with Full body for the first month and then shift to one muscle group per day, intermediate fitness levels can work out up to three muscle groups per day and try Push-Pull-Leg, and advanced fitness levels can work out up to four or five muscle groups per day. By following these guidelines, you can maximize muscle growth, prevent injury, and achieve your fitness goals safely and effectively.

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