Let me get this straight…
Nominal Prospect says (1) strength (defined: the ability to exert or resist force) doesn’t exist, using this point to jumpstart an argument that (2) adding weight to the bar and progressing is completely uneccessary for hypertrophy. He then backs up [I]this[I] claim by drudging up a whole host of quotes, many by well-known authors, saying that (3) training in the higher rep ranges (say 8-12) is better than training in the lower rep ranges (say 3-5) for maximal hypertrophy. Am I following this train wreck correctly?
Working backwards:
(3) - Why is this such a revelation? Common knowledge. However, training in the lower rep ranges in turn increases maximal strength much more quickly, which is very important if one wishes to progress as fast as they can.
(2) - This is where you fail. Are you trying to say that years upon years of training for the pump with TUT techniques using the same damn weight will produce even the same amount of growth as training in the same rep range but gradually adding weight to the bar??? This is beyong ludicrous, and ties into…
(1) - …this moronic assertion. So the kid that adds 200 lbs to his bench and 300 to his squat over a period of time just really, really nailed his technique, huh? Or maybe the growth and/or weight gain he experienced that reduced his ROM by maybe an inch were all he needed for massive increases? Give me a fucking break.
If you drill down training into the very bare-bones, core of it, lifting weights is simply a controlled breaking down of the muscle, which then repairs and rebuilds itself bigger and stronger than before, in order to better meet the demands placed upon it. It is an adaptive mechanism. Using heavy-ass weight for low reps tells the body that the muscle must be rebuilt stronger, but not necessarily bigger, although some size will be added. Extra glycogen is not needed, as TUT in this rep range is short enough to not require it. Using relatively lighter weight for much higher reps tells the body that rebuilding the muscle [I]bigger[I] is more metabolically important, although again some “strength” will come as well. Why? because the latter - sarcoplasmic hypertrophy - adds fluid to the muscle in the form of glycogen, myoglobin, etc, that is be needed to fuel the muscle should this demand be placed on it again, as high-rep, high-TUT will deplete muscle glycogen, unlike lower-rep training.
So if Bob curls the 30-lb DB for 12 reps and hits failure, then repeats this workout on arm day for 5 straight years, he won’t get much bigger than he did in the first 2 months or so. Why? [I]Because the demand on the muscle is exactly the same.[I] Why would it need to rebuild itself bigger (more fluid) or stronger? The body won’t adapt unless we make it adapt.
FINALLY - despite all the science and experts and all the other bullshit, lifting heavy-ass weight, even for low reps, will still produce considerable hypertrophy. Maybe not as much as lifting heavy-ass weight for HIGH reps, but you WILL get big. The proof? Dave Gulledge.