It's a question that many people in fitness programs ask themselves, and I think it's a very valid question. If you do a little research on this topic, you'll probably find all sorts of answers on both sides to find out which is best for you. The real answer is, think about it! Both strategies can be very effective and both have their advantages and disadvantages. I've used both strategies to get results for my clients, but it can be difficult to decide which one to use. Here's a breakdown that may help you make your decision.
If you're going to do a full-body workout, you might as well do a full-body workout.
Familiarity
A full body workout is best for those who are training for the first time or starting again after a fairly long break. Their muscle endurance is low and needs to be rebuilt. Most people can achieve good results in the first two to four weeks with only one or two exercises per muscle group.
There's no consistency in sticking to a training schedule.
The last thing you want to do when following a fitness program of any kind is to create muscle imbalances due to inconsistent training. If you start neglecting to train different parts of your body (e.g. chest/triceps on one day, legs on another), you risk muscle imbalances because not all muscle groups are trained the same way. For example, if you work your chest every week and forget to work your back, your routine will stagnate and you could develop postural issues that could lead to further injury.
Looking for a quick and easy way to get a full body workout in every workout?
Many people lead active lives and have limited training time, so they like the feeling of using their time in the gym efficiently. There are many ways to do a full body workout and this offers a lot of variety for most people.
They only have two or three days a week to focus on resistance training.
Similarly, if you are only doing resistance training two or three days a week, then full body training is preferable; although it is possible to split up the parts over three days, it is more beneficial to train the whole body three times a week than once a week.
If you want to divide your body parts, you need to do so.
You want to do resistance training three to five times a week.
If you're like me, you like to lift weights and do it most days of the week. By splitting up your body parts, you can break down your muscle groups in 3-5 days and really focus on one or two muscle groups at a time.
You just want to focus on a few muscle groups during each workout.
After you've been training for a while, you may decide that you need more attention to your muscle groups than just one exercise per workout. In a split-body workout, you'll do 2-6 exercises per muscle group, depending on the muscle group you're training.
You have been training regularly and have been following a plan for at least 3 months.
If you've been consistent enough for 3 months (and by consistent, I mean you're training at least 4-5 days/week each week), then you'll likely have the discipline to start training a body part. This is very important because if you don't have this discipline, you're more likely to lose your muscle balance by not training.
As you can see, there is no right or wrong way to do these styles, and it's important to know which style is right for you. Some people go back and forth between training their entire body and separating their body parts, but this is a great way to really get your fitness program up to speed and accelerate your results.
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