Research

Mixed

Equating total training volume, resistance training performed 2 days per week produces similar increases in muscular strength and hypertrophy compared to 3 days per week in resistance-trained men.

If you are an experienced lifter, you do not need to train every muscle group 3+ times a week to maximize gains. As long as you are hitting the same total number of hard sets per week, splitting those sets across 2 days (e.g., Upper/Lower or Push/Pull/Legs) works just as well as hitting them 3 times. Focus on getting your total weekly volume in, rather than obsessing over high frequency.

GoodRefutesHIGH confidence
In conclusion, a training frequency of 2 versus 3 days per week produces similar increases in muscular adaptations in trained men over a 10-week training period.
Thiago Lasevicius et al. · Journal of Human Kinetics · 2019

Why this rating

Randomized controlled trial with volume equated, site-specific measures, and trained population, though limited by short duration (10 weeks) and small sample size (n=28).

Source

Similar Muscular Adaptations in Resistance Training Performed Two Versus Three Days Per Week

Thiago Lasevicius et al. · Journal of Human Kinetics · 2019

DOI 10.2478/hukin-2019-0062

rct · n=36Cited 24×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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