High Frequency PPL
Push / Pull / Legs twice a week — each 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.
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What is High Frequency PPL?
High Frequency PPL is the six-day push pull legs routine as the evidence-based crowd actually writes it: every muscle trained twice per week, 15–22 working sets per muscle spread across those two sessions, and each day anchored by one heavy compound worked hard through a tight rep range. It is the training pattern that Schoenfeld's volume research and the Nuckols/Helms school of programming converge on — 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 intermediates 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 — 10–12 on the secondary compounds, 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 an 10–12 rep accessory on the other, each role holding its own weight. With roughly forty sets to account for across two visits per muscle, 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 — every session's weights are computed automatically from your training maxes and logged AMRAP sets.
High Frequency PPL — every set, every session
Percentages are of your training max (TM). AMRAP = as many reps as possible on the final set.
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 | 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, AMRAP ranges of 6–8 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?
Every 6–8 weeks, or as soon as two of the three heavy anchors miss their AMRAP minimums in the same week while sleep and appetite are getting worse. Take one week at roughly two-thirds of your usual loads with half the accessory sets, then resume where you left off.
Session length on a program with this much volume?
About 60–70 minutes. Only the day's first lift uses long 3–4 minute rests; the accessory tiers run on 60–90 seconds, so six or seven exercises move quickly. Deadlift day is the outlier — the 4-minute rests between 4–6 rep sets push it toward 75 minutes.
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 the AMRAP progression rule assumes lifts that load in small, predictable increments and express strength honestly.
Source: Evidence-based — Schoenfeld, Nuckols, Helms
Durata is not affiliated with or endorsed by the program's author. The program structure (sets, reps, exercise selection) is presented as published methodology.
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