Building a training split your clients will actually follow
Adebola Ali · 2 min readThe best programme on paper is worthless if a client stops doing it in week three, and the single biggest reason that happens is a split built for an ideal week rather than the client’s actual one.
Here is how to build a split, made up of days and exercises, that survives contact with a real schedule instead of falling apart the first time life gets in the way.
Design around their worst week, not their best one
Ask how many days they can realistically train on a bad week, then build the split around that number. A four-day split that becomes two days every other week trains far better than a six-day split that gets abandoned entirely when things get busy.
Reuse days across the split
A split built from a small number of well-designed days, reused and progressed over time, is easier to build and easier for a client to learn than one made entirely of unique sessions. Familiarity helps adherence more than novelty does.
Start from a template when the client is not particular
Not every client needs a fully bespoke split from day one. Starting from a template and adjusting exercises for equipment, injuries, or preference is often faster, and just as effective, as building from a blank page.
Build in an easy week before they ask for one
A planned lighter week every four to six weeks does more for long-term adherence than waiting for a client to burn out and ask for a break. It also gives you a natural point to check in on how the split is actually going.
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