[quote]guaglione wrote:
hardcoreukno0359 wrote:
hypertrophy has never really been linked to strength. use volume and work per unit time as your performance indicator and strive to always increase, that way your muscle will have no choice but to adapt.
but the key is make sure you are progressing. if in a month you arent doing more than u were the previous, why would your body have reason to grow
I partly agree here, in the sense that u can increase strength without incerasing size. I’ve also read a few theories in regards to time under tension, such as that a set should never last less than 20 secs and never longer than 60. Do u agree with this? (I guess this 20-60 secs means roughly a rep range of 6-12, maybe even more reps per set…)
Also, if i decide to pick ur approach for hypertrophy, i got a few questios on what u recommend. E.G. what number of sets should i begin with per bodypart? Do u suggest i go to failure on each set? What about the ideal frequency etc… I’d be glad if u could talk more about ur ideal version of hypertrophy training.
TO RAMO: I also believe strength to be very important and i value strength gains alot because
1)Strength is by itself a benefit
2)It is an easily measurable variable factor as far as atheletic and/or hypertrophy goals are concerned.
Also it takes some dedication to increase total work per workout, but it’s definitely easier doing it while working at 50-80% of ur 1RM, but working with 70-90% is way harder, especially taxing on the CNS.
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training for strength is fine for people that would love to be strong. what has been shown so far is low rep training will get you strong, but not necessarily big.
so training in that hypertrophy zone 10-12RM or as low as 5rm. the 5x5 program has been tested to be effective at building strength and size. from Zatsiorsky’s book science and the practice of strength training, 5RM and 10Rm cause the most significant protein breakdown. for hypertrophy, your body reacts to damage for its growth. If you dont train with enough volume, you cant really do the needed damage for your body to over compensate.
strength is an easily measureable guideline, but there are many definitions of strength. also, part of your bodies response in adaptation is an eventual plateau in strength an or growth.
volume is very easy to measure reps x weight, and you can control it, gains in strength are not always measureable, but you can manipulate volume, even if you are not stronger the next time you workout.
for a hypertrophy program my number 1 recommendation and a mistake that i make often is check your ego at the door. lift the weight with the intended muscle. with fiber recruitment, the body will recruit muscle fibers not even in the muscle you are trying to work if you use more weight than the muscle can handle.
If you are in the gym to grow, lift the weight on each exercise with the muscle intended for use. dont pack on the most weight you can possibly manage without good form. contrary to belief I see the bigger guys at my gym are the ones with great form and you can just see the concentration that they use to squeeze the muscle.
It depends on your goals, do you want the bodybuilder physique or the thick power/lifter strong man look.
the problem with giving recommendations is that you need to experiment. its your body and you need to find what works for you. start out with the basics, 4-5 days between muscle groups for rest, that is if you blast them with the intensity and volume you need. I took from one of poliquins Q and A articles, use muscle soreness as your gauge.
the body will adapt to what you are doing, so you need to manipulate order, volume and intensity. but it will take about 4-5 workouts,start out with lets say 10 sets per body part, at the 10-12RM. with your first set warm up to a 5RM and do a first work set with that, to failure.
then the rest of your sets use the 10-12RM but cycle failure say every other workout. you have to use these variables for you body, write down everything and analyze the soreness, and change what you need to get that back, weather its going to failure or doing more work.
as to exercises theres no set to what will work, try everything, but throw away anything that hurts and keep what you feel deep in the muscle with good contractions.
everybody is built different so the tensions is placed at different points along the muscle for everyone. but dont let anyone tell you what works for you or what the mass builders are.