Push pull legs: 3 or 6 days a week?
At equal weekly volume, meta-analyses show no meaningful difference in muscle growth between training each muscle group once or twice a week. So PPL on 3 days works as long as each muscle gets enough sets. 6 days mainly make it easier to fit in a high volume.
What 3 and 6 days mean for frequency
In the push pull legs split, each muscle group is trained on one of the three days. With 3 sessions a week, each muscle is trained once a week; with 6 sessions, twice.
| Version | Frequency per muscle group |
|---|---|
| PPL 3 days | 1× per week |
| PPL 6 days | 2× per week |
The evidence on training frequency
An early meta-analysis by Schoenfeld et al. (2016) with 10 studies still favoured training each muscle group at least twice a week. The larger follow-up by the same group, with 25 studies, reached a different conclusion: when volume is equated, frequency does not significantly or meaningfully affect muscle growth. The authors conclude that frequency can be chosen based on personal preference (Schoenfeld et al., 2019).
Newer work confirms this. The meta-regression by Pelland et al. (2026) with 67 studies finds only a negligible effect of frequency on muscle growth. And according to the ACSM Position Stand (2026), training 1 day versus more than 5 days a week did not influence hypertrophy when total volume was equated.
Where 6 days still have advantages
Strength. Unlike for muscle size, Pelland et al. (2026) find a positive effect of higher frequency on maximal strength, albeit with diminishing returns.
Volume per session. If you aim for 12 to 20 sets per muscle per week, on 3 days you have to fit them into a single session. That makes workouts longer. A meta-regression (Remmert et al., 2025, preprint) finds no reliably measurable extra benefit beyond about 11 sets per muscle per session. High volume is therefore easier to spread over 6 days.
Which version fits?
What matters is how many days realistically fit into your week. In 2009 the ACSM gave 2 to 3 training days per week for novices, 3 to 4 for intermediates and 4 to 5 for advanced lifters as a guideline. The 6-day version goes beyond that and requires plenty of time and recovery. With only 3 days, you can run through PPL once a week and plan more sets per session instead.
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- Schoenfeld, B. J., Ogborn, D. & Krieger, J. W. (2016). Effects of Resistance Training Frequency on Measures of Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine, 46(11), 1689–1697. PubMed
- Schoenfeld, B. J., Grgic, J. & Krieger, J. (2019). How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency. Journal of Sports Sciences, 37(11), 1286–1295. PubMed
- Pelland, J. C., Remmert, J. F., Robinson, Z. P., Hinson, S. R. & Zourdos, M. C. (2026). The Resistance Training Dose Response: Meta-Regressions Exploring the Effects of Weekly Volume and Frequency on Muscle Hypertrophy and Strength Gains. Sports Medicine, 56(2), 481–505. PubMed
- Currier, B. S., et al. (American College of Sports Medicine) (2026). Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical Performance in Healthy Adults: An Overview of Reviews. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 58(4), 851–872. PubMed
- American College of Sports Medicine (2009). Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 41(3), 687–708. PubMed
- Remmert, J. F., Pelland, J. C., Robinson, Z. P., Hinson, S. R. & Zourdos, M. C. (2025). Is There Too Much of a Good Thing? Meta-Regressions of the Effect of Per-Session Volume on Hypertrophy and Strength. SportRxiv (Preprint). SportRxiv