PHAT stands for power hypertrophy adaptive training, a 5-day plan written by Layne Norton. The PHAT workout plan opens the week with 2 heavy days for strength, then runs 3 higher-rep days for muscle, each on its own body parts. Every muscle gets trained twice a week, once heavy and once for size. Below you get the week, all 5 workouts with sets and reps, the speed work, and how to add weight.
Who PHAT is for
PHAT suits lifters with a year or 2 of steady training who want strength and size at the same time, and who can get to the gym 5 days a week. It is a lot of work: close to 120 sets a week, 18 of them light speed sets. Norton, a natural bodybuilder and powerlifter with a PhD in nutritional sciences, built it to train like both at once.
If you have 4 days, PHUL runs the same heavy-plus-volume idea with less work. If you want one muscle group a day and no heavy days, the 5-day bro split is simpler. Our PHUL vs PHAT comparison goes through the choice in detail.
How the week looks
| Day | Focus |
|---|---|
| Monday | Upper power |
| Tuesday | Lower power |
| Wednesday | Rest |
| Thursday | Back and shoulders hypertrophy |
| Friday | Lower hypertrophy |
| Saturday | Chest and arms hypertrophy |
| Sunday | Rest |
Hypertrophy means muscle growth. The power days use low reps and long rest. The hypertrophy days use more exercises, higher reps and shorter rest. You can move the rest days to fit your week, as long as the order of the 5 workouts stays the same.
The workouts
Upper power
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Pendlay row | 3 | 3-5 |
| Pull-up, weighted | 2 | 6-10 |
| Inverted row | 2 | 6-10 |
| Dumbbell bench press | 3 | 3-5 |
| Chest dip, weighted | 2 | 6-10 |
| Seated dumbbell shoulder press | 3 | 6-10 |
| Barbell curl | 3 | 6-10 |
| Skull crusher | 3 | 6-10 |
Lower power
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Barbell back squat | 3 | 3-5 |
| Hack squat | 2 | 6-10 |
| Leg extension | 2 | 6-10 |
| Stiff-leg deadlift | 3 | 5-8 |
| Lying leg curl | 2 | 6-10 |
| Standing calf raise | 3 | 6-10 |
| Seated calf raise | 2 | 6-10 |
Back and shoulders hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Pendlay row, speed work | 6 | 3 |
| Inverted row | 3 | 8-12 |
| Seated cable row | 3 | 8-12 |
| One-arm dumbbell row | 2 | 12-15 |
| Neutral-grip lat pulldown | 2 | 15-20 |
| Seated dumbbell shoulder press | 3 | 8-12 |
| Upright row | 2 | 12-15 |
| Dumbbell lateral raise | 3 | 12-20 |
Lower hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Barbell back squat, speed work | 6 | 3 |
| Hack squat | 3 | 8-12 |
| Leg press | 2 | 12-15 |
| Leg extension | 3 | 15-20 |
| Romanian deadlift | 3 | 8-12 |
| Lying leg curl | 2 | 12-15 |
| Seated leg curl | 2 | 15-20 |
| Leg press calf raise | 4 | 10-15 |
| Seated calf raise | 3 | 15-20 |
Chest and arms hypertrophy
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Dumbbell bench press, speed work | 6 | 3 |
| Incline dumbbell press | 3 | 8-12 |
| Machine chest press | 3 | 12-15 |
| Low-to-high cable fly | 2 | 15-20 |
| Preacher curl | 3 | 8-12 |
| Concentration curl | 2 | 12-15 |
| Spider curl | 2 | 15-20 |
| Dumbbell overhead triceps extension | 3 | 8-12 |
| Rope triceps pushdown | 2 | 12-15 |
| Dumbbell triceps kickback | 2 | 15-20 |
Where Norton’s original names a lift many gyms lack, the tables use the nearest common one: inverted rows for rack chins, a barbell curl for the cambered bar curl, lying leg curls for glute ham raises, the leg press for donkey calf raises, and dumbbell versions of the cambered bar triceps extension and the cable kickback. On pull-ups and dips, hang a plate from a belt once 10 reps come easily.
How the speed work works
Each hypertrophy day opens with the main lift from the matching power day: 6 sets of 3 reps at 65 to 70% of the weight you use for 3 to 5 reps. Move every rep as fast as you can with clean form. The sets should feel light, because the point is bar speed, not fatigue. Rest about 90 seconds between them.
Row 100 kg for 5 on Monday, and on Thursday the speed sets use 65 to 70 kg. Some versions online swap the speed work for 4 sets of 8 to 10 at about 85% of the power-day weight. The original uses the speed sets.
Rest and workout length
On power days, rest as long as you need to hit your reps on the 3 to 5 rep lifts, usually 3 to 5 minutes, and 2 to 3 minutes on the rest. On hypertrophy days, rest about 2 minutes on the early lifts and 60 to 90 seconds on the isolation work at the end. Power days take about 75 minutes. Hypertrophy days take up to 90, and chest and arms, with 10 exercises, is the longest.
How to add weight
Treat the first week as a test: work up to weights that leave you near the top of each range. After that, the power lifts use double progression. Once you get 5 reps on every set, add weight next week: 2.5 kg on the row, the next pair of dumbbells on the press, 5 kg on the squat. Row 80 kg for 3 sets of 5, and next Monday it is 82.5 kg for 3s.
The speed sets follow the power day. When your 3 to 5 rep weight goes up, take 65 to 70% of the new number. Do not add weight to them just because they feel easy.
On the hypertrophy days, work up to the top of the range on every set, then add the smallest jump and start again at the bottom. Leave 1 to 2 reps in reserve on the power lifts and 0 to 2 on the rest. Reps in reserve means how many more clean reps you could have done.
What to do when you stall
The power days stall first. If a heavy lift drops below 3 reps on a set 2 weeks in a row, take 10% off and build back up. If the bar slows down on the speed sets, take weight off them.
Norton’s own advice is a lighter week every 6 to 12 weeks, at 60 to 70% of your usual weights. Take it sooner if every workout feels flat. Our guide to the deload week explains how to tell when one is due.
Run this plan in Trackist
Trackist writes a plan from 14 questions about your goal, experience, equipment, joints, schedule, session length and age, rather than handing out a named template. Ask for 5 days of up to 90 minutes and a strength or muscle goal, and it writes the plan with the sets, rep targets and rest decided. In the plan editor you can reorder, swap, add or remove any exercise, so you can shape it into PHAT. Every exercise in the tables above is in Trackist’s library of 240 movements.
At the gym, each set logs weight, reps and RPE. RPE is how hard the set felt, on a scale of 1 to 10. Last workout’s numbers sit under each field, a line above each exercise suggests today’s weight, and the rest timer keeps counting on the Lock Screen. The suggestion adds weight when you hit every rep, which suits every lift here except the speed sets. Set those yourself from the power day.
If the 5 days run too hard, say so. Trackist notes the first report, and if you report it again, Trackist rewrites the day or rebuilds the rest of the plan. Each exercise page shows your estimated one-rep max over time, so you see whether the power days are working. When the plan ends, Trackist writes the next one from what you lifted.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
Is PHAT good for building muscle?
Yes. Each muscle gets trained twice a week, and 3 of the 5 days are high-volume work of 8 to 20 reps aimed at size. The 2 power days build strength, which lets you use heavier weights on the hypertrophy days over time. The volume is high, so it works best with good sleep and enough food.
Is PHAT good for beginners?
No. PHAT asks for 5 days and close to 120 sets a week, plus heavy sets of 3 to 5 reps that need solid technique. It fits best after a year or 2 of steady training. If you are new, start with a 3-day full-body plan, then move to a 4-day plan before PHAT.
PHAT vs PHUL: what is the difference?
Both mix heavy power days with lighter days for muscle. PHUL, by Brandon Campbell, runs 4 days: 2 power days and 2 hypertrophy days, split upper and lower. PHAT, by Layne Norton, runs 5: 2 power days, then 3 hypertrophy days for back and shoulders, legs, and chest and arms, each opening with speed work. PHAT has more volume. PHUL fits a 4-day week and is easier to recover from.
Can Trackist build a PHAT plan?
Trackist writes a 5-day plan from your answers and chooses the layout itself. In the plan editor you can reorder, swap, add or remove any exercise, so you can lay it out as 2 power days and 3 hypertrophy days. Set the speed-set weights yourself from your power days.
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Answer 14 questions and Trackist writes a plan around your gym and your week, ready for a first session today. Log every set, and the next session shows the weight to lift. On the App Store now. Android is coming.
