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Topic starter
08/05/2025 5:36 am
In my studies, and working with some MD's in sport medicine, about the only thing we can agree on (as far as weight lifting goes) is the amount of rest a person needs after lifting, and to build muscle you have to get the muscle to hypertrophy.
We can agree that a person needs between 5 and 7 days of complete rest to repair the muscle fiber disruption, depending on the person and their ability to recover.
But with that said, it is perhaps the most controversial element of any training program is the optimal number of sets required to increase muscular hypertrophy. It concerns whether one set to failure is a sufficient stimulus to induce maximum hypertrophic adaptation or if multiple sets are required to elicit maximal muscular gains.
Personally I think optimal hypertrophy training protocol uses a set of six to eight rep performed to the point of muscular failure using the heaviest possible load. The best stimulus for inducing maximum muscular hypertrophy is to lift a weight equal to 75 to 80% of your 1RM repeatedly to failure, until you can no longer complete another repetition. It's during the last all-out effort, the muscle is forced to contract all of its fibers, so at that point of momentary muscular failure, the max stimulus has been achieved.
So with using this training protocol, I usually start with a 12 rep warm up, increasing the weight after that to get to a 6 rep-to failure- for each body part i work that day.
So for example- if i'm working on the chest- I would do a 12 rep warm up with a weight that is relatively light, next set i would do 10 reps with a little heavier weight, then 8 reps, again with a heavier weight, with the last set of 6 reps with a weight that would bring me to failure with good form.
I believe in doing it this way, you are working the 2 biggest muscle fibers (the slow twitch, and the fast twitch) to failure causing max stimulus, in which causes max hypertrophy, in which causes max muscle growth.
So this is the base of where I get my work out routine, Monday working the chest, shoulders and tri's. Wednesday working the quads, hams, and calves and friday working Back, Bi's, and forearms.
This sequence groups together body parts that share similar exercise biomechanics. The push exercise for the chest also recruit the deltoid and triceps muscle. In working the larger muscle first it serves as a warm up for working the smaller group, which follows later in the same work out. Having worked both of these muscle groups together in one work out, adequate rest is given before moving on to the pull exercises with the leg day splitting the two.
Like wise, the pull exercises for the back also recruit the biceps.
So the full week work out would look like;
Mon- push (chest, shoulders, tri's)
Wed- legs
Fri-pull (Back, Bi's, forearms)
This also gives the max amount of rest for each body part.
So... well.... ok.... I may talk a lot....sorry
Topic starter
08/05/2025 6:04 am
I have heard and read so many things on cardio, from "you should not do any while trying to bulk up", to cardio is so" important that is should be done every day."
And like most every things else in my life I seem to have an option regarding this as well.
The cardiovascular system plays an important part of weight lifting/body building. In the basic principle, the blood carries the necessary nutritional elements to the various body parts that are being work. Under stress, the blood carries oxygen to the muscle, and carries the by product of lactic acid away, during the recovery process the blood carries the necessary building blocks to help muscle grow. The heart pumps this blood, the lungs exchanges carbon dioxide for oxygen. Now that's a pretty basic out look.
Now as a person who looks to build up the outside of the body, why wouldn't they also look at building up the function in which allows the outer part to build up. Cardio in it self works the heart, and the lungs, after all these are smooth muscle. Making the cardiovascular system stronger with cardio, makes sense to me.
08/05/2025 6:32 am
Plt, I will weigh in on the topic of number of reps. I am a firm believer in the 6-8 rep range and its ability to build muscle. However, I only use this rep range as a standard base, and I intersperse weeks of much higher reps (15-20) and slightly lower reps (4-5). My muscles adapt very quickly if I stay at a certain rep range week after week. I have to trick my muscles, or I stop seeing gains.
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08/05/2025 6:50 am
I have heard and read so many things on cardio, from "you should not do any while trying to bulk up", to cardio is so" important that is should be done every day."
And like most every things else in my life I seem to have an option regarding this as well.
The cardiovascular system plays an important part of weight lifting/body building. In the basic principle, the blood carries the necessary nutritional elements to the various body parts that are being work. Under stress, the blood carries oxygen to the muscle, and carries the by product of lactic acid away, during the recovery process the blood carries the necessary building blocks to help muscle grow. The heart pumps this blood, the lungs exchanges carbon dioxide for oxygen. Now that's a pretty basic out look.
Now as a person who looks to build up the outside of the body, why wouldn't they also look at building up the function in which allows the outer part to build up. Cardio in it self works the heart, and the lungs, after all these are smooth muscle. Making the cardiovascular system stronger with cardio, makes sense to me.
Quick though on this, because I am at work and supposed to be working: I don't need to do all that much cardio off cycle. 1-2 days a week for 45 min-hr. I stay very lean, but am able to still gain muscle. On-cycle is a different story. I throw on weight quickly, and if I am not doing 4-5 moderate cardio sessions (min 30-40 min) per week, I find myself out of breath, and generally not feeling energetic. I think my frame 5'9" 180lbs is only designed to carry so much mass, and when I push that boundary my cardio needs to be dialed in so my heart can support the additional load.
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Topic starter
08/05/2025 7:11 am
I tend to agree with you- keeping muscle confusion high seems to promote the greatest gains. I tend to change things about every six months or so
08/05/2025 7:37 am
I use the same schedule as pit 3 days a week. I preffer to do 3 warm up sets and increase weight till my muscle is tired, than a lite set for more reps till failure. This seems to give me the most burn. Cardio is important for health and should be done always. I get my cardio thru sports and always feel more energetic during the week when I have a good cardio.
08/05/2025 8:05 am
I am a fan of low reps myself. I just feel im pushing myself more with more wieght.
08/05/2025 8:27 am
I am a fan of low reps myself. I just feel im pushing myself more with more wieght.
Low reps are definitely my mainstay as well. However you gotta admit there is nothing like 15+ rep days and the ridiculous pump you get from doing it!
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08/05/2025 8:44 am
Low reps are definitely my mainstay as well. However you gotta admit there is nothing like 15+ rep days and the ridiculous pump you get from doing it!
Yeah i once did a 4 week stretch of 15-20 reps. That shit was crazy good. I switch up routines every 4 to 8 weeks to keep my body guessing.
08/05/2025 9:10 am
I like the 5 to 6 rep range, compound movements. I only switch it up when I'm forced to, like I have no spotter on chest day, I will work in a much higher rep range. During summer thou I find myself just trying to survive, not to let any of my lifts go down.
08/05/2025 9:38 am
muscle confusion is def. a must. i like to mix it up all the time. I work all muscle groups twice a week and rest at least 2 day per week.
08/05/2025 9:59 am
I like the 5 to 6 rep range, compound movements. I only switch it up when I'm forced to, like I have no spotter on chest day, I will work in a much higher rep range. During summer thou I find myself just trying to survive, not to let any of my lifts go down.
Sounds a lot like me.
08/05/2025 10:28 am
summer is when i pump the hardest
08/05/2025 10:46 am
yea summer is when i want to look my best.winter are tuff for me.
08/05/2025 11:17 am
yea summer is when i want to look my best.winter are tuff for me.
Or you could go shirtless when you do your groceries in winter.
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