High Frequency PPL
Durata Original
Push / Pull / Legs twice a week — each major muscle group trained with 15–22 sets over two sessions. A compound strength set anchors each day; accessories complete the hypertrophy volume. The split used by the majority of modern evidence-based bodybuilders.
Free to use · auto progression, rest timers & PR tracking built in
What is High Frequency PPL?
High Frequency PPL is Durata's own six-day push pull legs routine: every muscle trained twice per week, 15–22 working sets for each major muscle group spread across those two sessions, and each day anchored by one heavy compound worked hard through a tight rep range. It follows what the published hypertrophy research points to — frequency high enough to keep quality per set, volume high enough to drive growth.
The six days are not two identical halves. Push A leads with barbell bench at 4×6–8 and emphasises chest; Push B leads with the overhead press and shifts the accessory work to delts. Pull A is built for back width around heavy rows; Pull B goes after thickness with deadlifts at 3×4–6 and weighted chin-ups. Legs A hammers quads from the squat down; Legs B flips to the posterior chain with Bulgarian split squats, hip thrusts and Romanian deadlifts. Same structure, different angle, every time a muscle comes back around.
Is High Frequency PPL right for you?
This program assumes hypertrophy is the goal and six days are genuinely available — there is exactly one rest day, and skipping sessions unravels the twice-a-week frequency the whole design leans on. It fits experienced lifters who recover well, sleep properly and are eating at maintenance or above. If strength numbers are the priority, the heavy anchors will still move, but a powerbuilding split with dedicated low-rep days serves that goal more directly. And if you are torn between this and a 5-day PPL/Upper/Lower hybrid, the question is simply whether the sixth day exists in your week: this program is the higher-volume answer when it does.
How progression works
The heavy anchors — bench, row, squat, overhead press, deadlift, weighted chins — progress the strict way: land the top of the rep window (6–8 on the barbell lifts, 4–6 for deadlift, 6–10 on chins) on every single set and the weight rises next time that day comes around. All accessory volume runs double progression through tiered rep ranges — 8–10 or 10–12 on the secondary compounds, 10–15 or 12–15 in the middle, 15–20 on laterals, face pulls and rear-delt work. Bench and overhead press each appear twice weekly in different roles, heavy on one push day and as a lighter accessory on the other (8–10 on the press, 10–12 on the bench), each role holding its own weight. With about 120 working sets a week to account for, Durata's per-slot progression tracking and rest timers carry the admin — the 3-minute heavy rests and 60-second pump rests are pre-set per exercise.
Durata runs this progression for you — there are no percentages to work out, so each session's target carries over from what you logged last time and the weight moves when you hit or miss the prescribed reps.
High Frequency PPL — every set, every session
Push A — Chest Emphasis
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 4×6–8 | 3:00 |
| Incline Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 3×10–12 | 2:00 |
| Cable Fly Crossovers | 3×12–15 | 1:30 |
| Overhead Press (Barbell) | 3×8–10 | 2:00 |
| Lateral Raise (Dumbbell) | 4×15–20 | 1:00 |
| Triceps Pushdown | 3×12–15 | 1:15 |
| Skullcrusher (Barbell) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
Pull A — Back Width
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bent Over Row (Barbell) | 4×6–8 | 3:00 |
| Lat Pulldown (Cable) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
| Seated Cable Row - V Grip (Cable) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
| Face Pull | 4×15–20 | 1:00 |
| Bicep Curl (Dumbbell) | 3×10–12 | 1:15 |
| Hammer Curl (Dumbbell) | 3×10–12 | 1:15 |
Legs A — Quad Emphasis
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 4×6–8 | 3:00 |
| Leg Press (Machine) | 3×10–15 | 2:00 |
| Leg Extension (Machine) | 3×12–15 | 1:15 |
| Romanian Deadlift (Barbell) | 3×8–10 | 2:00 |
| Lying Leg Curl (Machine) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 4×10–15 | 1:00 |
Push B — Shoulder Emphasis
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Overhead Press (Barbell) | 4×6–8 | 3:00 |
| Incline Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 3×10–12 | 2:00 |
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 3×10–12 | 2:00 |
| Lateral Raise (Cable) | 4×15–20 | 1:00 |
| Rear Delt Reverse Fly (Dumbbell) | 3×15–20 | 1:00 |
| Triceps Extension (Dumbbell) | 3×12–15 | 1:15 |
Pull B — Back Thickness
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Deadlift (Barbell) | 3×4–6 | 4:00 |
| Chin Up (Weighted) | 3×6–10 | 3:00 |
| Seated Cable Row - V Grip (Cable) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
| Face Pull | 4×15–20 | 1:00 |
| Bicep Curl (Barbell) | 3×10–12 | 1:15 |
| Rear Delt Reverse Fly (Machine) | 3×15–20 | 1:00 |
Legs B — Posterior Chain
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bulgarian Split Squat (Dumbbell) | 4×8–10 | 2:00 |
| Hip Thrust (Barbell) | 3×10–12 | 2:00 |
| Romanian Deadlift (Barbell) | 3×8–10 | 2:00 |
| Leg Extension (Machine) | 3×12–15 | 1:15 |
| Seated Leg Curl (Machine) | 3×10–12 | 1:30 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 4×10–15 | 1:00 |
High Frequency PPL — common questions
Is 15–22 sets per muscle per week too much?
It sits at the upper end of the productive range in the meta-analyses, which is the point — this is a volume-driven program. If you are coming off lower-volume training, treat your first two weeks as an on-ramp: run the top sets shy of failure and add the last accessory sets back gradually rather than diving into all of it at RPE 9.
How is this different from the Reddit PPL?
Metallicadpa's PPL is a linear-progression program wearing a PPL structure — its 5s drive everything. High Frequency PPL is a hypertrophy program first: more sets per muscle, rep ranges of 6–8 on the anchors instead of straight fives, six distinct workouts instead of three repeated, and emphasis rotation (width/thickness, quads/posterior) between the paired days.
When do I deload?
Durata deloads each lift for you: two sessions under the bottom of its rep range take 10% off that lift. There is no scheduled deload week. If several lifts stall together while sleep and appetite are getting worse, take an easy week at about two-thirds of your usual loads with half the accessory sets, then pick up where you left off.
Session length on a program with this much volume?
About 45–60 minutes. Only the heavy anchors use long 3–4 minute rests; the accessory tiers run on 60 seconds to two minutes, so six or seven exercises move quickly. Deadlift day is the long one, with 4-minute rests between its 4–6 rep sets.
Can I swap the barbell anchors for machines?
The accessories, freely — a machine row for the cable row, a Smith calf raise for standing calves. The six anchors should stay barbell (or weighted chin) movements, because their progression rule assumes lifts that load in small, predictable increments and express strength honestly.
Is there an app that runs High Frequency PPL for you?
Yes. Durata runs High Frequency PPL as written, free: the 6-day-a-week schedule, every set and rep, and the progression built in. Log your sets and the next session's weights are worked out for you, with the stalls and deloads the program calls for; a tap on any lift shows why the weight moved. It is on iPhone and Android, works offline, and your history from Hevy or Strong imports free.
Source: Durata original — six-day push pull legs, every muscle trained twice a week.
This is an original program designed and maintained by the Durata team.
Run High Frequency PPL in Durata
Automatic progression, plate calculator, rest timers and PR tracking — the whole program, ready to log.
