If you’ve been curious to try a Mike Mentzer split, but are unsure of its effectiveness, then let me tell you from first-hand experience: IT WORKS.

It’s tough, but it works… 🥵

Over eight weeks, I embarked on a Mike Mentzer training program (albeit, slightly adapted), and charted my progress for Men’s Fitness magazine.

The full article is in the May 2024 edition of Men’s Fitness UK and I suggest you pick up a copy to read it.

If you can’t, then I will highlight some of my findings in this article.

Want to make positive changes to your body without constant dieting? Check out my new book! 👇

1. Who was Mike Menzter?
2. What is the Mike Mentzer split?
3. The results of following a Mike Mentzer split
4. Am I still following this training program?
5. The final word on Mike Mentzer’s split

Who was Mike Menzter?

Chances are, if you are looking for details of a Mike Mentzer split, then the great man probably needs no introduction.

However, just in case: Mike Mentzer is regarded as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time.

He was Mr. Olympia Heavyweight champion in 1979 and the only Mr. Universe in history to achieve a perfect score.

Intelligent, hard working and a little eccentric, Mentzer was a true legend of bodybuilding and sport in general.

His training style was seen as highly unorthodox at the time – and still is today.

He advocated high-intensity lifting, paired with low volume and low frequency.

In short, his message was: train hard, train less, recover more – and grow. 💪

Sadly, he died in June 2001 from heart complications. But it’s amazing that we are still discussing his life and philosophy all these years later.

What is the Mike Mentzer split?

Off the bat, there is no single training split that Mentzer prescribed.

He gave guidance and offered different splits throughout his career as a coach.

Many of these splits were highlighted in his book called High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way, which I highly recommend.

The book was co-authored by John Little, who I had the fortune of speaking with when writing the Men’s Fitness article.

The Mike Mentzer split I opted for during my eight weeks was adapted from a workout Mentzer highlighted in his book:

WORKOUT A – Legs, Chest, Triceps
WORKOUT B – Back, Delts, Biceps, Abs

You would perform one set for each body part.

So, for legs, it would be one set of leg extensions to complete failure, then straight into one set of leg press to complete failure. That was the entire leg workout for the week.

After that, it would be straight onto chest, for one set of chest flyes to complete failure, followed by one set of incline press to complete failure.

Make no mistakes about it – this is hard work.

The sessions are short, but they are brutal. If you have ever maxed out on leg press, you’ll know what I’m talking about.

If you perform the plan as prescribed by Mentzer, you shouldn’t be in the gym for more than an hour all week.

The rest of the week should be spent recovering, because this is when your muscles repair and grow.

While this is a simple way of working out, there is a lot more to it. This is why I recommend you buy his book, for a more in-depth look at the philosophy and science behind this style of training.

The results of following a Mike Mentzer split

I followed the Mike Mentzer training program for eight weeks and yes, I did put on muscle mass.

Considering I was working out just an hour a week, this was crazy.

What Menzter teaches very much works.

However, as I discussed in my Men’s Fitness article, I found it was difficult on my mental wellbeing in two ways.

One of these was that I wasn’t able to engage in my usual social interaction.

I enjoy gym culture and use fitness as a social tool as much as a physical one. Following the two-day Mike Mentzer split, I was barely in the gym, which meant I began to feel a little more isolated.

This certainly highlighted the fact that, long term, perhaps I needed more social hobbies than simply heading to the gym or a fitness class.

But in the short term, it was difficult.

Additionally, I sometimes struggled to approach the sessions with the same siege mentality of Mentzer. Maxing out on leg press didn’t always work for me, and sometimes I may have given the movements 90% instead of the full 100%.

Still, I saw noticeable gains in my chest and arms. After eight weeks, I was happy to declare Mike Mentzer’s style of training a great success.

Am I still following this training program?

As I type this article, no.

However, I will return to a Mike Mentzer split later in the year.

The reason I am currently not following it is because I began to feel a bit stale in my training and fancied something that felt more dynamic. This is why I have returned to the Built Like a Badass program.

While I enjoyed the brevity of the sessions and the results, I also enjoy the gym and like doing some high-intensity cardio.

As we return to winter or I require shorter sessions for efficiency, I will jump back onto this style of training.

The final word on Mike Mentzer’s split

There’s a reason Mike Mentzer is still a much-discussed figure today. By reading my article and his own words in his book, you will understand why.

If you want to gain muscle, save time, or both, then I highly recommend you give the Mike Mentzer split a try.

It’s not easy, but who said building muscle was? 🤔