Bro Split Workout Routine: 5 Day Plan for Muscle Size

A bro split workout routine trains one muscle group per day, chest on Monday, back on Tuesday, legs on Wednesday, and so on, across 5 training days a week. It lets you pile a large amount of volume onto a single muscle in one session, at the cost of training that muscle only once a week.

This guide gives you the full 5 day plan and an honest look at when a bro split beats the alternatives. For how it stacks up against every other split, see workout splits explained, compare it with our dedicated 5-day workout split for muscle gain or 6-day gym workout schedule, or take our workout split quiz if you’re not sure this is the right one for you.

Who This Split Is For

A bro split suits intermediate to advanced lifters who already have 6 to 12 months of consistent training, know how to push a muscle to near failure safely, and want to specialize volume onto individual muscle groups rather than spread it across movement patterns.[1][2]

It is a poor fit for beginners. Training each muscle only once a week means fewer total practice reps on the big compound lifts, which slows down the technique gains that drive early strength and size. Start with a 3 day full body workout plan or a 4 day upper lower workout plan first, then move to a bro split once your form is solid and you can genuinely push each session hard.

The 5 Day Bro Split Workout Routine

Train 5 days a week, resting whenever needed, for example Monday through Friday with weekends off. Rest 2 to 3 minutes between heavy compound sets and 60 to 90 seconds on isolation work. If you prefer targeting movement patterns over isolated body parts, check out our push day workout, pull day workout, and leg day workout guides.

Day 1: Chest

Day 2: Back

Day 3: Legs

Day 4: Shoulders and Abs

Day 5: Arms

For a deeper breakdown of biceps and triceps head-specific training and superset options, see our full arm day workout guide.

Why It Is Less Popular Now

Training each muscle only once a week falls below the frequency most current hypertrophy research supports. Splits that hit each muscle twice a week, like push pull legs or upper/lower, tend to produce more consistent growth for the same weekly time investment, because they spread quality volume across more sessions instead of relying on one all-out effort.

A bro split can still work if you genuinely hit 12 to 20 hard sets per muscle in that single weekly session and progress the load over time. It falls apart when the “one muscle group per day” structure becomes an excuse to coast through sets rather than a deliberate specialization choice.

Bro Split vs Upper/Lower vs PPL

If you have 4 or 5-6 days and want more consistent frequency, read 4 day upper lower workout plan or push pull legs vs upper lower split instead.[1]

Bro Split vs PPL

The core difference is frequency: a bro split trains each muscle once a week with a single high-volume session, while PPL trains each muscle twice across a 6 day week. For a detailed breakdown of volume distribution, recovery rates, and which split matches your training age, read our full bro split vs PPL comparison.

How to Progress Each Week

Because each muscle only gets one session a week, make that session count with progressive overload:[1]

1. Start each exercise at the bottom of its rep range with a weight you could lift for 2 to 3 more reps than prescribed.[1]
2. Add a rep each week until every set hits the top of the range.[1]
3. Add weight and restart at the bottom of the range.[1]

Not sure what weight to start with? Our one rep max calculator estimates your working weights for each rep range so day one is not a guess.

Make the Plan Fit You

A bro split is a specialization tool, not a universal answer. Our free workout plan generator builds a plan around your actual training days, equipment, and goal, whether that means a bro split, upper/lower, or PPL, and adjusts the sets and reps automatically as you progress.