Mike Sommerfeld has moved from an upper-lower split to a four-day training split.
Classic Physique standout Mike Sommerfeld is intensively preparing for the 2025 Arnold Classic, which will take place from February 27 to March 2 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. Last year, he teamed up with four-time Mr. Olympia champion Jay Cutler for an intense leg workout. Sommerfeld has transitioned from an upper-lower split to a more focused approach as part of his evolving training regimen. Recently, he highlighted his updated push day routine, giving fans a glimpse into his strategy for peak performance.
| Full Name: Mike Sommerfeld | ||
| Weight | Height | Date of Birth |
| 232-243 lbs (106-110 kg) | 5’8” (172.72 cm) | 11/13/1994 |
| Division | Era | Nationality |
| Classic Physique | 2020s | German |
The German bodybuilder secured a second-place finish behind Chris Bumstead at the 2024 Olympia. With Bumstead announcing his retirement, Sommerfeld has emerged as a leading contender for the coveted 2025 title. His journey began in 2014 at the amateur level, but he made his presence known in 2019 with a standout debut at the Romania Pro. Since then, Sommerfeld has won events like the Xtreme Bodybuilding & Fitness Pro and the Poland Pro Supershow. He’s gearing up for his next challenge — facing reigning Arnold Classic champion Wesley Vissers this March.
Watch his full chest, triceps, and shoulder workout below:
Sommerfeld’s Push Workout
Mike Sommereld’s new split, “Arnold’s Classic Four-Day Split,” is shifting gears from a high-intensity upper-lower training protocol to a four-day split with higher volume. For muscle growth, he credits the upper-lower split as the best training plan he’s done. However, since he’s focusing more on fat loss now, he believes separating his muscle groups into more days will help him burn more energy and allow him to do more sets per muscle group.
Below are the chest, shoulder, and triceps exercises Mike Sommerfeld did:
| Exercises |
| Peck Deck Fly |
| Machine Incline Chest Press |
| Machine Flat Chest Press |
| Machine Shoulder Press |
| Machine Dip |
| Cable Overhead Triceps Extension |
| Machine Seated Side Lateral Raise |
| Single Arm Rope Extension |
Pec Deck Fly & Machine Incline Chest Press
The pec deck fly is one of Mike Sommerfeld’s favorite exercises for stretching the chest fibers. Sommerfeld advises not to go until complete failure and stops a couple of rep shy. “This specific exercise is one of the best to first warm up. Secondly, you get a slightly pre-stretch, so we have the full range of motion already trained, so our brain, our muscle, our neurological system is already primed to do a full range of motion,” Sommerfeld said.
Sommerfeld says you can perform this with dumbbells, but he prefers the machine variation “because the chest muscle fibers get activated more as your arms travel in the middle.” He brings the weight to the bottom and presses as far as possible to fully contract and lengthen his pec muscles.
Machine Flat Chest Press & Machine Shoulder Press
Mike Sommerfeld uses the machine flat chest press to target his mid-pecs. He suggests avoiding the Smith machine and barbell, as they won’t allow you to press the load towards the middle. Moreover, he recommends a medium rep range — not too high or too low — and avoids training until failure with the higher volume workouts for the best results. Sommerfeld discussed the importance of recovery.
“If you do too much, your body is not able to recover, and you won’t grow.”
The German bodybuilder isn’t the biggest fan of the shoulder press. However, he still thinks it’s essential for deltoid and pec activation. He layed prone on an incline bench to perform the machine shoulder press since it felt more comfortable.
Machine Dip & Cable Overhead Triceps Extension
Sommerfeld likes dips on push day because they activate all the targeted muscle groups: chest, deltoids, and triceps. However, he doesn’t go too heavy on them because his triceps are fatigued from the prior movements.
He then transitions to more triceps isolation movements to engage different triceps heads, starting with the cable overhead triceps extension, which hits the bottom of the arms. At the same time, the extensions in front of the body hit the outside of the triceps.
“I like my triceps big. This is the reason why I choose three different exercises,” Sommerfeld stated.
Hitting all the different triceps heads will help Sommerfeld’s triceps muscles be more noticeable during poses.
Machine Seated Side Lateral Raise & Single Arm Rope Extension
Sommerfeld opts for the machine variation of the lateral raises. Studies show that the shoulder press and lateral raise activate the anterior and medial deltoids to a greater extent than the bench press and dumbbell fly (1). He goes all out on this one, believing the shoulders recover fast. “Shoulders are able to recover incredibly fast. You can basically train them every day, and they will grow.” Therefore, he trains his deltoids every other day with at least two exercises.
The single arm cable rope triceps extensions are one of Mike Sommerfeld’s favorite triceps movements. He likes how you can train each arm unilaterally to help correct imbalances. He notes that it’s essential in bodybuilding to grow each muscle group equally without one side being bigger than the other.
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Reference
- Campos, Y. A. C., Vianna, J. M., Guimarães, M. P., Oliveira, J. L. D., Hernández-Mosqueira, C., da Silva, S. F., & Marchetti, P. H. (2020). Different Shoulder Exercises Affect the Activation of Deltoid Portions in Resistance-Trained Individuals. Journal of human kinetics, 75, 5–14. https://doi.org/10.2478/hukin-2020-0033
