Are you getting huge?

Anybody can be a jackass who does a lot of weight for one rep or who does 200 reps with the pink weights. Those that have lost their gym training wheels, discontinued bragging about their 145 lb bench, and decided to stop wearing wife-beaters/sleeve-less tee’s until there is something to show off are decidedly more interested in some more substantial gains. The question beckons, how many reps should I be doing?

There seem to be different schools of thought in the general lifting crowd on the proper amount of repetitions to perform for optimal hypertrophy (muscle growth). Obviously if you have just begun lifting 10 reps x 3 sets is perfectly fine. As with all types of exercise (regardless of aerobic or anaerobic), when you go from doing nothing to doing something, there will be quick initial improvements in performance/physique. After you’ve been lifting for a little while, let’s say after 16-20 weeks or at least two full varied weight lifting routines, it will be time to modify your repetition numbers. There are various types of increases that you can be made from lifting: hypertrophy based, strength-based, neural strength, and endurance based. These different types of increases are naturally not independent of each other, but different rep ranges have different impacts. From the data that I have gathered the optimal range for those interested in both strength and mass is 6-12 reps. The goal should be 8-10 reps which promote both strength and hypertrophy. The weight should be approximately 70 %( 60-80%) of your 1 repetition max (1RM) or “moderate” intensity.

Avoiding technical lifting jargon as much as possible, 1-5 reps will create neurological adaptation and muscle fiber strength, facilitating slow twitch muscles that create dense, strong muscles (hence why there are kids who can bench 250 but look like they bench 110). Lifting anywhere from 13 to 20 or more reps will give you some muscle gains but primarily boost endurance as your body adapts to a repetitive difficult motion. This explains why your summer job one year lifting heavy items/boxes/furniture/groceries didn’t provide the massive muscle gains perhaps you believed it would(naturally personal experiences may vary). Although optimum range for hyper trophy sits around 6-12 reps, hitting all sides of the spectrum does have massive benefits in your training regimen and will improve your overall physique as well as increase strength to go along with those new fancy guns.

Doing higher repetitions will create harder fuller muscles and hitting the lows will prepare you for heavier weights for your optimal hypertrophy range. Now go yonder…get jacked…and stop drinking twelve cups of cytogainer….you bum. Below is a sample 3-day workout split incorporating the entire spectrum of the repetition range and effectively hitting all parts of each muscle group: