With the objective of increasing overall strength and size, your task is to apply the greatest intensity (weight) and volume (number of sets/reps) that you can sustainably recover from. When novice lifters are underserved in one or the other, their rate of progress is woefully stagnate. The Axios PPL program is designed to address this deficiency and provides a very simple means to increasing total strength and overall muscle mass.
PPL (Push / Pull / Legs) as a general template has risen in popularity due to its effectiveness in both strength and hypertrophy, offering a simple method balancing movement patterns across a training week. Its structure makes it a favorite among intermediate and seasoned lifters. The split is a deviation from more generic body part split programs and emphasizes general movement patterns (Upper Body Push / Upper Body Pull / Legs and Lower Body) for each training day. This movement-pattern framework is an optimal means of combining barbell training with calisthenics and specific isolation work. What results is an easy to execute Powerbuilding-style program that develops both strength and muscle size with relative ease.
What makes the Axios PPL distinct is the use of barbell compounds, calisthenics, and specific isolation-based exercises to optimize training stimulus and time efficiency in the gym. Each day uses a barbell-compound as the primary strength emphasis and builds to a significant volume of working sets. Secondary and accessory work is filled in with focused calisthenics work and complementary supersets for specific muscle group isolation. The combination of these training methods provide a broad range of stimuli that cover strength, size, and local muscular endurance, a perfect blend for anyone who just wants to hit it all.
Each session should take roughly 40-50 minutes at maximum, providing a time efficient means of increasing total strength and muscle mass. More or less total sets in the primary, secondary, or accessory exercises can be applied as needed to address demands for additional volume. In the example template, you’re given the prompt to choose one or multiple of each primary, secondary, or accessory. This optionality provides room for customization as well as potential variation progression if used in a block or weekly undulation.
PPL as an organizing framework allows for the sequence of training to be naturally complimentary to the stress / recovery / adaptation curve for the majority of lifters. Each training day carries a primary, secondary, and accessory exercises that fall within the themed pattern-focus for the day. For the goal of strength and size, sufficient intensity must be accomplished while also satisfying the need for adequate volume. Organizing your training week along the PPL framework gives you a simple layout to emphasize a specific movement pattern and gain significant recovery until that movement pattern is stressed again. This model is organized in such a fashion that you can work hard and not worry about the risk of overtraining or overuse.
Specific to the Axios PPL, its design straddles the line between a pure bodybuilding program and a barbell strength program. Advancing beyond this program will come once you’ve hit a requirement for more intensity or have a desire to chase a bit more raw strength. In the Axios Training Club, I usually recommend the PPL as a template to guys prior to taking on something with a more strength-focused outcome (CENTURION / DEIMOS).
The PPL training split offers a robust, adaptable framework for muscle and strength development. It's well-suited for those looking to streamline their training while ensuring all muscle groups are addressed effectively. However, like any training method, it requires customization based on individual goals, recovery capacity, and equipment availability.
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