That's reps right? I just tend to do 8-16 reps and as many sets as possible. So I might start at 8x3, build up to 16x3 and then go to 8x6 and see if I can hit 8x7 or 8x8, then build up reps again till I can bump up the sets and reset the reps. Gives me a bit of a sine like difficulty curve with a steady gain but it feels really rewarding for me.
Managing fatigue should definitely be discussed more in fitness circles. A lot of fitness RUclipsrs seem to assume everyone works a white collar job that puts little to no physical demand on them day to day.
Ya i work hard at work, enough that any added activity outside of work leaves me with muscle soreness. Adding the gym onto that is like working out really hard for another 1-2 hours after working out all day for 8 hours. To clarify, I work construction in a luxury tiny home production plant, where I build, sheetrock, and move all the interior walls. I estimate that I myself move 1200-2000lbs every day in increments of 40-80 lbs.
I used to lift extremely heavy, compared to my stature, then one week everything changed where the maxs I was hitting weren't even close, I was eating the same got my rest I needed. But didn't realize that REST MONTHS like slowing down and doing a little less than what I can do, consistently, was necessary for me to start lifting heavy again. If you are stuck and feel like you're losing strength but doing everything right. Try to just take a break legit a week, or month (with low weight) and just chill. Our body's really aren't suppose to flip a switch and just start doing a lot suddenly. Sure that initial motivation feels nice, but there are times where you need to just feel weak for a bit, to turn around and get even stronger.
Thanks for the information I had modified my plan from this week after reflecting my previous workout, and felt that I do need to take rest from HIT... Did some research but was not fully sure until I see results on me Anyway thanks
That's called deload week . Basic periodization, you can't go 100% all the time . 1 week doing light weight and low volume is enough to recovery. Or take 1 week completely off, go to vacation
I've switched down to 3 sets per workout. I do a 2 day full body split with 1 day a week focused on compounds. I find this shortens the workout a lot more, which is better for my time, and I push to near failure with each set so my volume is pretty decent.
@@ItsBrown__see I’m only doing 1-2 sets per group per week, with most nights largely focussed on one muscle group. Mainly due to time constraints but it’s working great for me. As long as your maxing out your sets and getting the rest you’ll be good, but it does show how different this is for each person
@@Greg_Chock Sean Nalewanyj and Jeff Nippard, I like all three of them because they use research and cite the research they use which I can then go read for fun (I am studying Physics currently so it should add up why the science and research part is valuable for me personally)
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:00 🏋️♂️ *Understanding Training Volume* - Training volume's impact on gains: greater volume leads to gains but with diminishing returns. - Sets as the major contributor to volume increase. - Adjusting volume for efficiency and gains. 01:20 💪 *Factors Influencing Number of Sets* - General recommendation: 10 to 16 sets per muscle group per week. - Individual considerations for the "best" number of sets. - Specifics for muscle gains versus strength gains. 02:17 🕒 *Factors Affecting Training Efficiency* - Importance of training close to failure for effective sets. - Impact of rest time between sets on volume and performance. - Training frequency and its distribution for optimal gains. 03:38 🔄 *Set Ratios and Individual Variation* - Understanding set ratios for compound exercises. - Considerations for muscles worked differently in compounds. - Acknowledging individual variability in response to volume. 05:25 🧬 *Personalized Approach to Sets* - Individual response determining the ideal set range. - Experimentation, tracking progress, and allowing time for adaptation. - Starting point of 10 to 16 sets per muscle group with room for adjustments. 06:19 💡 *Strategies for Set Modification* - Adjusting sets based on training intensity and rest periods. - Spreading sets across multiple workouts for efficiency. - Managing volume increase and recovery considerations. 07:18 💤 *Managing Recovery with Increased Volume* - Recovery strategies for handling increased volume and fatigue. - Approaches: complete break, deloading, and cycling set volumes. - Emphasizing the importance of managing fatigue for effective training. Made with HARPA AI
I literally scrolled through the comments to see if anyone else was going to point that out. I love it because it's so cute and funny at the same time.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation 00:00 🏋 *Training Volume Basics* - Training volume defined as total load. - Sets have the most impact on efficient training. 00:27 🧠 *Importance of Sets* - Sets significantly impact training volume and gains. - Balancing sets crucial for efficiency. 01:20 📏 *Recommended Sets* - 10 to 16 sets per muscle group per week generally sufficient. - Strength gains depend on heavy training. 02:17 ⚖ *Factors Affecting Set Count* - Training close to failure crucial for effective sets. - Adequate rest between sets impacts volume. 03:38 🔄 *Set Ratios and Compound Exercises* - Set ratios address uneven workload in compounds. - Critical thinking needed for individual engagement. 05:25 🧪 *Individual Volume Variability* - Individual responses to volume vary significantly. - Experimentation and patience determine ideal sets. 06:19 📊 *Adjusting Sets* - Weekly 10 to 16-set range is a good starting point. - Adjust sets for plateaus or muscle imbalances. 07:18 🔄 *Managing Fatigue and Recovery* - More volume means more fatigue; proper recovery crucial. - Options include breaks, deloading, and cycling set volume.
Done about 6-10 Compounds, 10-15 isolations with some heavier and lighter work mixed in For like 1.5years and bulked still going, now im switching to 2-3months of modified PHAT and start cutting after new years to Be Lean by at 2 years lifting to see whats there💪🏼 Been getting great size and real good strength. Got a few prs on RUclips 😍
It bums me out at times, that we have not come to some more exact science on this. I’m nearing 24 years of weight training (natty). I’m lucky because I respond well to lifting weights, even at 2 to 4 sets per muscle per session. This is more of a me-problem. But I see virtually no programs with my low volume (advanced/high level programs), and I see all these young guys spending hours on a single session, because they are scared sh**less of putting in too few sets. So they over-compensate. I did the exact same thing for years, before I learned to experiment on my own. Yes yes, thus is the journey that lies ahead… But the fact that this is where most start out, still… bums me out…
So when training for pull ups I figured out that basically the most important thing is just how many pull ups you do on a training day. I used to do just 3 sets to failure and had almost no progress. Now I do sets where I stay about 2 reps away from my max, start with 5 sets and increase by one per training day up to 10 sets. (2min rest) After I got to 10 sets I just take a couple reps from the last sets and put them in my first sets until eventually I have 5 sets again with twice as many reps. And then I start adding sets again.This works so damn well for pull ups. I had so much more strength and muscle gains than with my stupid 3 sets to failure protocol. I even think that going to failure is not really neccessary. As long as I can increase the volume I gain muscles. And it makes sense.. no way your body will just be able to do twice as many pull ups without gaining some muscles. (Although my last set I often just go to failure) But for the rest of my training I just do the usual 3 sets and increase by a couple reps until I get to a certain amount of reps per set and then increase the weight. Works also good enough for me. As long as there is some progress I am content.
I also figured this out.. back then, i just can do 3 reps x 3 sets and cant pull my weight again even i rested for 5 minutes. After many many training, i decided to do many sets with 2 reps.. today i tested my RM i get 13
*Summary:* 8-16 sets per muscle group per week (but as always, it depends) e.g. if you exercise a muscle group 2 times per week, you'd do 4-8 sets that day divided into 2 or 3 different exercises, you'd do about 2-4 sets per exercise
Thanks for doing this. I really enjoy the information you put out there. I have a request. Is there anyway you can breakdown muscle groups practically in exercise? The reason I ask is because I hear you repeat this concept over and over again about how we should train 10-16 sets per muscle group per week. But I feel like there is a lot of missing information. You kind of started touching on it in this video about how certain exercises don’t max out all muscles equally. So this leaves me with the thought “even though a bench press includes my triceps as well as my chest, should it not count towards my weekly tricep sets since it’s imbalanced?” I just feel like this is a missing, yet critical, piece of information that we could benefit from understanding.
Yeah, I'm a bit lost there too. I'm a beginner and love the science part of taking care of myself. I know, for example, that the trapezius has three portions. Then, should I train each portion 8-16 sets per week? That's like 6 exercises (2 per portion) with two sets each spread over my week. In the end I had a program with 52 different exercises for targeting each muscle portion, what seems too much when reading references across the web. I already learned that newbies fail by overthinking, but I really like to understand what am doing...
@@KleptusTDK the crazy thing is you can actually under think 💭 it as well. Because there so much controversy and lack of study/research for fitness. Don’t get me wrong, it’s gotten a lot better. But it’s surprising how long it’s taken. I guess because this kind of question isn’t an faq, it kind of gets lost at being covered in depth.
I used to train 5-6 times a week (PPL style). Now I only train 2 times a week (upper lower split). Notice way faster gains in both strength and size. Also I generally feel much better training just twice a week. When I train, I only do 1 to 3 working sets per exercise. Though I go pretty close to or to failure every time. All this to say: train in a way that is effective for YOU.
I personally am finding the best results working in a 5-8 or 6-10 rep range and 2 sets to failure, sometimes 3 depending on exercise. Hit each muscle group twice a week.
I respond well to increase in weight, then targeting for very high volumes levels, then increase so much the weight that it's nearly one rep max, and go for volume from there
I've always wondered: when you (or other YTbrs) say "10-16 sets per muscle group", what exactly counts as a muscle group? Is "legs" a muscle group? Or do you need 10-16 for quads AND 10-16 for hammstrings? What about Shoulders? Are side delts and rear dealts different muscle groups?
Legs would be a muscle group, and shoulders is another muscle group. Your rear and lateral delts are not separate muscle groups, separate muscles yes, but not group.
I'm one of those individuals that needs to rest 2-3 minutes on medium compounds-isolations and like 5-6 minutes on the heavier compounds like squats, deadlifts and so on.
it depends where ur at also im new/intermediate, and picking heavier and heavier weights each time 4/5 sets in a session 6 reps down to even one or two keeps me increasing my weights. now i can hold 30kg in each hand for dumbell press, took me a couple of months but it works
LOL I liked 5:52 It feels like me. Even though I'm short and skinny I feel I require more sets to get stronger from the years I've missed out on unlike other fks who have started early. If knew I could have this happy life of self confidence for myself and appreciate myself all strong, I would have done it sooner.
@picturefit question about rest: Is the 2-3 min of rest for the muscle groups, or for entire body? In interest of efficiency, is it equally viable to do a set on one muscle group, move to another muscle group, maybe resting 30-60 seconds between each muscle group, but still maintaining 2-3 minutes between each set on a specific muscle group? Hope this question makes sense. We could then fit a good volume into our 45-60 minute morning workout, still reach failures, and get the idealized gains by resting muscle groups 2-3 mins between sets.
I stopped watching at 3:30 cause I have something to do. You may have touched on it but myoreps are a good training modality to save time. The idea is reps done near failure are more effective for muscle growth than reps not near failure. First you choose how much volume you want total. Something typical would be like 15 reps from the starting set with 30 additional reps. After doing the set of 15 you would rest for 7-10 seconds, start again, and crank out 4-8 more reps, you stop, wait 7-10 seconds and do it again until you have all 30 addtional reps.
My every set ends in failure. What I noticed is that 5 failure sets, i grow very well, both strength and muscles. 6 failure sets, im super sore, i get bruises on the muscles i train and my strength drops, so i guess 5 sets is perfect for me, i might even try 4 failure sets and see where it brings me. but I definitely need an easy week next week for my bruised muscles to heal.
"Supersetting" is a good efficiency strategy. If you're dealing with a lot of fatigue, saving supersets for isolations/accessories that are less fatiging might help.
he suggests 8-16 sets per bodypart per week, and we should train each bodypart 2-3 times per week. so say we pick 12 sets per week, exercising each bodypart 3 times per week. we would go to the gym and just do 4 sets for a bodypart? so you go to the gym and just do 1 exercise for each bodypart youre working that day? thats like going to the gym and doing 2-3 exercises then going home. what am I missing here?
I don't get the suggestions of training 2-3x per week per muscle group. Might be because I'm older now but I'm sore for like 4-6 days normally. But even when I was younger, I would be sore for longer periods of time as well but did my workouts regardless of soreness. Nowadays, as with life and lack of time, I train each muscle group once a week and feel happier about not over working and have potentially wasted gains.
If it works for you then great id stick with it. If you're an experienced gym go-er and still sore 4-6 days after either you're training extremely hard or you're changing your training up a lot so it's novel. Been training for 20 years and I am only really sore when I train super hard or change my workout up. A few famous bodybuilders did well training less frequently too, Tom Platz for example (he trained ridiculously hard). 2-3x per week is best for most but there will always be outliers due to other factors.
I think it applies only to calisthenics (not weighted) and for people who don't work hard enough. I had the best gains when after training session I had muscle sore for almost one week or even above that. Mike Mentzer suggested that even 1 set to absolute failure can skyrocket gains, for example Dorian Yates won Olympia few times training like this. I think you should go with higher amount of sets especially when you like your workouts but the main reason that going beyond absolute failure can bring a lot of injuries. Still, if you don't have muscle soreness ONLY IF you don't progress (I don't think you should training to failure at the beginning) then probably you don't work hard enough.
Soreness sucks, but it doesn't mean you cannot train while still sore (slightly). That said, if you are running into continuous problems with soreness, I'd dial your volume back just a tad until your muscles becomes accustomed to it and soreness becomes less of a problem. The biggest culprit of soreness is introducing a novel stimuli/exercise, so if you're changing your exercises constantly, it can be result in more soreness.
I'm guessing it means muscle groups not doing 12 sets of standard curls instead of pull-ups are another curl type that just works that type of muscle group
I do 14-20 sets per group, but they're not all heavy compound lifts (most are). I.e. 4 sets bench, 3 sets dips, 3 sets cable flys on push day 1, same thing with variations on push day 2 for the week. Total 20 sets of chest. I do the same thing for almost all muscle groups. Except calves. Fuck calves. They only get 8 sets per week.
doesnt research support that drop sets offer the same progress as volume training. So doing 1 rep max and dropping consequently until total failure is achived. Ultimately if muscle stimulus and failure is achived doesnt matter how many set or reps are done. So in summary what truly matters is just going heavy no rest that way everything is completely at failure and then taking longer rest periods say 1 excerise per week. By following the principle of high intensity training you should see significant results espically when focusing on priortizing excerises and partial in the lengethed position which helps exhaust a muscle even more. i do know that many people mention that needing to lower the intensity/volume of excerise is a byproduct of overcompensation in the first place therefore you are already training too much instead it is better to let your muscle fully rest by taking more rest and eating more protein + taking supplements that aid in recovery. This way you are seeing consistent progress between every workout. if you are not progressing then there is a problem either you are not eating right, not training hard enough, or you maxed out your possible natural gains which is possible if you have been training properly for many years. While i know that using anecdotals is not a strong argument, personally following this principle helped me more as again I was able to rep more or lift heavier as progressively overload my excerise. That way every 2 months i was essentially repping heavier weights on the higher end as my drop sets increse in intensity. I only do in total a week 3-6 sets of just pure high intensity. But again maybe i am just someone who responds very well for low volume training.
Reaching failure is really only one part of the equation. Your anecdote has been popular lately actually. What I think a lot of people are realizing is that with their previous training strategies, volume-based or not, it was likely that the issue was indeed training hard enough or to failure. Maybe consider a volume approach while implementing more sets to failure and see if it can make a bigger impact for you.
1) you sound a bit like Billy West 2) big fan of 5x5 with 2m rest between sets and 3m between exercises. I feel like it lets me lift for longer and increase weight at a gradual enough pace that I dont injure myself
I've been primarily lifting heavy, in the 5x6 rep range and at the same time have been gaining some size from it. Though I wonder if I can add in some sets for size as well to get some gains there as well so my workout would look like this: 5x6 heavy then 3x15 light. Would I still be able to maximize strength and gain more size while doing so?
Generally, it will be the muscles involved in a specific joint movement. That's the reason it's usually "muscle group" and not muscles specifically. eg. four muscles make up the muscle group for quads and trained through knee joint extension and hip joint flexion.
do 3-5 exercises per main muscle group. in these exercises do 2-4 sets of 6-20 reps. (depending on exercise) exercise at least every main muscle group 2 times a week. if you're doing this, you'll be doing an average of 24 sets/8 exercises per main muscle group per week. main muscle groups are shoulders, abs, arms, legs, chest and back. you can divide exercises in major muscle groups into exercises per minor muscle group. like for the Arm, do 2 bicep exercises, 2 tricep exercises and a forearm exercise
Can you do one for optimal sets for a single exercise per session. When does the performance drop off and or diminish returns. E.g. after 6 sets of squats , sets 7, 8, 9 is junk and therefore better to switch to a different exercise or be done for the day
How many muscle groups are being considered here? Like upper body, coreand lower body? Or like arms, shoulders, chest, back, core, upper legs and lower legs? Cause ish
A legit definition of volume is the number of sets taken to failure or near-failure. Period. Multiplying weight x reps x sets calculates a number that has no legit use. It's also not a "relative" number because, for example, doubling the weight and cutting the reps in half does not keep the stimulus the same because weight and reps are not inversely proportional.
Yep, I mentioned the importance of training near failure in the video. As for doubling weight and taking half reps/sets? Well, in some cases, we do see the same growth.
@@PictureFit C'mon now, taking 120lb BP to near-failure with 12 reps (120x12) is nowhere close to the stimulus of 240 lbs with 6 reps (240x6). They are galaxies apart. This is why the weight x reps calculation for "volume" is invalid. The only legit way to count volume is counting the # of sets taken to near-failure. In essence, the near-failure aspect is what makes sets equivalent to each other.
I do better doing 3-6sets per week (3 for small muscle groups and 6 for compounds) and I hate it. I like training and doing sports but I can't handle medium or heavy volume, no matter what sport I'm doing.
Is it okay to workout in the morning and work afterwards. I’m worried that since I will still be awake for quite some time, I may not be maximizing the gains than when I sleep after my after gym meal. What is more recommended? Workout in the morning and continue on with my day in work or workout after work and then sleep after my post workout meal? I’m flexible with tike and just want to maximize the gains since I’m just started working out
It doesn't really matter too much either way when you do it, as long as you stay consistent and get the rest you need to recover. I'd say do it in the morning when your fresh and energized for the day, get out of the way at full strength, and then get a good meal in afterwards and go on with the rest of your day, already having got the workout out of the way. 💪
Again I will say this, everyone is DIFFERENT. Six days a week training...chest and back Mon eve, Weds eve, Fri eve, 20 sets each muscle group. Legs and legs Thurs eve and Sunday morn 20 sets, shoulders Tue and Sun morn - 20 sets. I will often just work rotator cuffs and do a lot of stretching on a Sat. That is the routine that I followed for most of my 44yrs training.
If it works for you then great. Mike Mentzer style eh, and possibly Dorian Yates too? Can't remember. I have tried this and ended up going back to a more "conventional" 2 times per week and a total of roughly 12 sets per week (2 exercises per session of 3 sets each)
I train to failure when I do the first exercises for each muscle which is like 3-4 sets, what should I do to get more exercise sets in? should I decrease the weight? or should I keep going with the same weight but less reps due to muscle fatigue.
I do 4 seats of 12 I been wondering if that’s enough or do I need to increase or decrease my reps/sets, I feel like I’m not doing enough I used to do 100 reps per workout for a while I knew your not supposed to do so bud I did anyway because it felt like I was doing a lot. But then switched to 4 seats of 12 and lowered my weights and got more proper form.
What?? 10-16 sets per muscle group? This highly depends on how experienced you are. 10-16 sets per miscle group per week will be way too much for beginners.
Chest, lats, upper back, biceps, triceps, quads, hamstrings, calves, abs and so on. Delts is a bit more ambiguous and could be split into front, side and rear delts as individual muscle groups, but as a beginner you shouldn't worry about that yet.
Summary : it comes down to you experimenting and comparing your progress (basically it depends) 8-16 is basically advisable
So 8-16 sets? Nice, thanks!
That's reps right?
I just tend to do 8-16 reps and as many sets as possible. So I might start at 8x3, build up to 16x3 and then go to 8x6 and see if I can hit 8x7 or 8x8, then build up reps again till I can bump up the sets and reset the reps.
Gives me a bit of a sine like difficulty curve with a steady gain but it feels really rewarding for me.
thats weird @@StiekemeHenk
It really don’t matter really doesn’t just train and be consistent
it does matter@@nicholasingratta423
Managing fatigue should definitely be discussed more in fitness circles. A lot of fitness RUclipsrs seem to assume everyone works a white collar job that puts little to no physical demand on them day to day.
Ya i work hard at work, enough that any added activity outside of work leaves me with muscle soreness. Adding the gym onto that is like working out really hard for another 1-2 hours after working out all day for 8 hours.
To clarify, I work construction in a luxury tiny home production plant, where I build, sheetrock, and move all the interior walls. I estimate that I myself move 1200-2000lbs every day in increments of 40-80 lbs.
Poetry.
I used to joke to my colleagues that work IS my gym, now I'm new to the gym I need to manage both
@@barryallen5507i've always believed manual labour should get paid more than it is
Most of them assume people don't work and can spend half the day in the gym like them
@@barryallen5507W flex tbh
Man your videos turn hard concepts into something simple & easy for most people to understand!
Thanks, that's my main goal.
I used to lift extremely heavy, compared to my stature, then one week everything changed where the maxs I was hitting weren't even close, I was eating the same got my rest I needed. But didn't realize that REST MONTHS like slowing down and doing a little less than what I can do, consistently, was necessary for me to start lifting heavy again. If you are stuck and feel like you're losing strength but doing everything right. Try to just take a break legit a week, or month (with low weight) and just chill. Our body's really aren't suppose to flip a switch and just start doing a lot suddenly. Sure that initial motivation feels nice, but there are times where you need to just feel weak for a bit, to turn around and get even stronger.
is this scientific... no, but it has helped me a lot, and if it works for you thats what matters the most.
Thanks for the information
I had modified my plan from this week after reflecting my previous workout, and felt that I do need to take rest from HIT...
Did some research but was not fully sure until I see results on me
Anyway thanks
That's called deload week .
Basic periodization, you can't go 100% all the time .
1 week doing light weight and low volume is enough to recovery.
Or take 1 week completely off, go to vacation
@@thehotdog8402Deloading is covered by Dr. Israetel.
That's interesting, thanks for sharing
I've switched down to 3 sets per workout. I do a 2 day full body split with 1 day a week focused on compounds. I find this shortens the workout a lot more, which is better for my time, and I push to near failure with each set so my volume is pretty decent.
Nice, I do 3 sets per muscle, 9 sets a week for 3 days a week, and have seen good progress
@@ItsBrown__see I’m only doing 1-2 sets per group per week, with most nights largely focussed on one muscle group. Mainly due to time constraints but it’s working great for me. As long as your maxing out your sets and getting the rest you’ll be good, but it does show how different this is for each person
You've already become one of my three trusted weightlifting RUclipsrs, and I've been watching the other two guys for years now
what are the other two?
Actually there are 4 (him, house of hypertrophy (ultra underrated) , sean nalewanyj and Jeff nippard
@@Greg_Chock Sean Nalewanyj and Jeff Nippard, I like all three of them because they use research and cite the research they use which I can then go read for fun (I am studying Physics currently so it should add up why the science and research part is valuable for me personally)
@@doggo64 Yeah, as I said, I was talking about Sean and Jeff only, I'll check House of Hypertrophy out
MindPump should really be on that list.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:
00:00 🏋️♂️ *Understanding Training Volume*
- Training volume's impact on gains: greater volume leads to gains but with diminishing returns.
- Sets as the major contributor to volume increase.
- Adjusting volume for efficiency and gains.
01:20 💪 *Factors Influencing Number of Sets*
- General recommendation: 10 to 16 sets per muscle group per week.
- Individual considerations for the "best" number of sets.
- Specifics for muscle gains versus strength gains.
02:17 🕒 *Factors Affecting Training Efficiency*
- Importance of training close to failure for effective sets.
- Impact of rest time between sets on volume and performance.
- Training frequency and its distribution for optimal gains.
03:38 🔄 *Set Ratios and Individual Variation*
- Understanding set ratios for compound exercises.
- Considerations for muscles worked differently in compounds.
- Acknowledging individual variability in response to volume.
05:25 🧬 *Personalized Approach to Sets*
- Individual response determining the ideal set range.
- Experimentation, tracking progress, and allowing time for adaptation.
- Starting point of 10 to 16 sets per muscle group with room for adjustments.
06:19 💡 *Strategies for Set Modification*
- Adjusting sets based on training intensity and rest periods.
- Spreading sets across multiple workouts for efficiency.
- Managing volume increase and recovery considerations.
07:18 💤 *Managing Recovery with Increased Volume*
- Recovery strategies for handling increased volume and fatigue.
- Approaches: complete break, deloading, and cycling set volumes.
- Emphasizing the importance of managing fatigue for effective training.
Made with HARPA AI
05:51 - Everyone´s a gangster until the little girl cries.
I literally scrolled through the comments to see if anyone else was going to point that out. I love it because it's so cute and funny at the same time.
The underlying principle that stimulates muscle growth is intensity of effort. Sets and reps are mere symptoms of the intensity at which you train.
Not me watching and knowing that the answer for the question is: IT DEPENDS!
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation
00:00 🏋 *Training Volume Basics*
- Training volume defined as total load.
- Sets have the most impact on efficient training.
00:27 🧠 *Importance of Sets*
- Sets significantly impact training volume and gains.
- Balancing sets crucial for efficiency.
01:20 📏 *Recommended Sets*
- 10 to 16 sets per muscle group per week generally sufficient.
- Strength gains depend on heavy training.
02:17 ⚖ *Factors Affecting Set Count*
- Training close to failure crucial for effective sets.
- Adequate rest between sets impacts volume.
03:38 🔄 *Set Ratios and Compound Exercises*
- Set ratios address uneven workload in compounds.
- Critical thinking needed for individual engagement.
05:25 🧪 *Individual Volume Variability*
- Individual responses to volume vary significantly.
- Experimentation and patience determine ideal sets.
06:19 📊 *Adjusting Sets*
- Weekly 10 to 16-set range is a good starting point.
- Adjust sets for plateaus or muscle imbalances.
07:18 🔄 *Managing Fatigue and Recovery*
- More volume means more fatigue; proper recovery crucial.
- Options include breaks, deloading, and cycling set volume.
Done about 6-10 Compounds,
10-15 isolations with some heavier and lighter work mixed in For like 1.5years and bulked still going, now im switching to 2-3months of modified PHAT and start cutting after new years to Be Lean by at 2 years lifting to see whats there💪🏼 Been getting great size and real good strength. Got a few prs on RUclips 😍
It bums me out at times, that we have not come to some more exact science on this.
I’m nearing 24 years of weight training (natty). I’m lucky because I respond well to lifting weights, even at 2 to 4 sets per muscle per session. This is more of a me-problem. But I see virtually no programs with my low volume (advanced/high level programs), and I see all these young guys spending hours on a single session, because they are scared sh**less of putting in too few sets. So they over-compensate.
I did the exact same thing for years, before I learned to experiment on my own.
Yes yes, thus is the journey that lies ahead…
But the fact that this is where most start out, still… bums me out…
So when training for pull ups I figured out that basically the most important thing is just how many pull ups you do on a training day. I used to do just 3 sets to failure and had almost no progress. Now I do sets where I stay about 2 reps away from my max, start with 5 sets and increase by one per training day up to 10 sets. (2min rest) After I got to 10 sets I just take a couple reps from the last sets and put them in my first sets until eventually I have 5 sets again with twice as many reps. And then I start adding sets again.This works so damn well for pull ups. I had so much more strength and muscle gains than with my stupid 3 sets to failure protocol. I even think that going to failure is not really neccessary. As long as I can increase the volume I gain muscles. And it makes sense.. no way your body will just be able to do twice as many pull ups without gaining some muscles. (Although my last set I often just go to failure)
But for the rest of my training I just do the usual 3 sets and increase by a couple reps until I get to a certain amount of reps per set and then increase the weight. Works also good enough for me. As long as there is some progress I am content.
I also figured this out.. back then, i just can do 3 reps x 3 sets and cant pull my weight again even i rested for 5 minutes. After many many training, i decided to do many sets with 2 reps.. today i tested my RM i get 13
for all the people with adhd or anything like that it is extremly easy to follow along with your videos and i appreciate you for that
*Summary:* 8-16 sets per muscle group per week (but as always, it depends)
e.g. if you exercise a muscle group 2 times per week, you'd do 4-8 sets that day
divided into 2 or 3 different exercises, you'd do about 2-4 sets per exercise
Amazing. Very clear information. Thanks!
Love your content! Super informative
Thanks for the upload
8-12 weekly sets per muscle group. If you're training to failure and resting 2+ minutes
You are a very good RUclipsr, I love your videos.❤
I like the way you explain these fitness facts..🎯💯
Thanks for doing this. I really enjoy the information you put out there.
I have a request. Is there anyway you can breakdown muscle groups practically in exercise?
The reason I ask is because I hear you repeat this concept over and over again about how we should train 10-16 sets per muscle group per week.
But I feel like there is a lot of missing information. You kind of started touching on it in this video about how certain exercises don’t max out all muscles equally. So this leaves me with the thought “even though a bench press includes my triceps as well as my chest, should it not count towards my weekly tricep sets since it’s imbalanced?”
I just feel like this is a missing, yet critical, piece of information that we could benefit from understanding.
Yeah, I'm a bit lost there too. I'm a beginner and love the science part of taking care of myself. I know, for example, that the trapezius has three portions. Then, should I train each portion 8-16 sets per week? That's like 6 exercises (2 per portion) with two sets each spread over my week. In the end I had a program with 52 different exercises for targeting each muscle portion, what seems too much when reading references across the web.
I already learned that newbies fail by overthinking, but I really like to understand what am doing...
@@KleptusTDK the crazy thing is you can actually under think 💭 it as well. Because there so much controversy and lack of study/research for fitness. Don’t get me wrong, it’s gotten a lot better. But it’s surprising how long it’s taken. I guess because this kind of question isn’t an faq, it kind of gets lost at being covered in depth.
Very attractive presentation.
I used to train 5-6 times a week (PPL style). Now I only train 2 times a week (upper lower split). Notice way faster gains in both strength and size. Also I generally feel much better training just twice a week.
When I train, I only do 1 to 3 working sets per exercise. Though I go pretty close to or to failure every time.
All this to say: train in a way that is effective for YOU.
I personally am finding the best results working in a 5-8 or 6-10 rep range and 2 sets to failure, sometimes 3 depending on exercise. Hit each muscle group twice a week.
I have been training for almost 2 decades. So I do 15-20 sets per muscle group, Once per week. Do what works for you.
I respond well to increase in weight, then targeting for very high volumes levels, then increase so much the weight that it's nearly one rep max, and go for volume from there
I found 2 sets until absolute failure with 2 min rest in between, twice a week, works best for me.
Fatigue is big here. And nobody responds to training the same. Some require more rest regardless of training output.
This is top tier fitness advice!!!!
I've always wondered: when you (or other YTbrs) say "10-16 sets per muscle group", what exactly counts as a muscle group?
Is "legs" a muscle group? Or do you need 10-16 for quads AND 10-16 for hammstrings? What about Shoulders? Are side delts and rear dealts different muscle groups?
Very Good Question! I also don't know what he means. Or anyone else for that matter
Legs would be a muscle group, and shoulders is another muscle group. Your rear and lateral delts are not separate muscle groups, separate muscles yes, but not group.
I'm one of those individuals that needs to rest 2-3 minutes on medium compounds-isolations and like 5-6 minutes on the heavier compounds like squats, deadlifts and so on.
it depends where ur at also im new/intermediate, and picking heavier and heavier weights each time 4/5 sets in a session 6 reps down to even one or two keeps me increasing my weights. now i can hold 30kg in each hand for dumbell press, took me a couple of months but it works
hey man, yoy should 100% do a video about the "best tecnhical gym workout" or smth like that, i would instantly try it!
LOL I liked 5:52 It feels like me. Even though I'm short and skinny I feel I require more sets to get stronger from the years I've missed out on unlike other fks who have started early. If knew I could have this happy life of self confidence for myself and appreciate myself all strong, I would have done it sooner.
@picturefit question about rest: Is the 2-3 min of rest for the muscle groups, or for entire body? In interest of efficiency, is it equally viable to do a set on one muscle group, move to another muscle group, maybe resting 30-60 seconds between each muscle group, but still maintaining 2-3 minutes between each set on a specific muscle group? Hope this question makes sense. We could then fit a good volume into our 45-60 minute morning workout, still reach failures, and get the idealized gains by resting muscle groups 2-3 mins between sets.
no, because of cns fatigue
Per session, I do 2 for warming up, then 3 fully and then 3 more until I can't lift it/have to deload.
This dude's voice makes me think of Jeff Nippard and Dr. Michael Greger combined. 😂
Your videos are very good
This is obviously working for you, I can’t get the triangular arms no matter how hard I workout.
I stopped watching at 3:30 cause I have something to do. You may have touched on it but myoreps are a good training modality to save time. The idea is reps done near failure are more effective for muscle growth than reps not near failure. First you choose how much volume you want total. Something typical would be like 15 reps from the starting set with 30 additional reps. After doing the set of 15 you would rest for 7-10 seconds, start again, and crank out 4-8 more reps, you stop, wait 7-10 seconds and do it again until you have all 30 addtional reps.
My every set ends in failure. What I noticed is that 5 failure sets, i grow very well, both strength and muscles. 6 failure sets, im super sore, i get bruises on the muscles i train and my strength drops, so i guess 5 sets is perfect for me, i might even try 4 failure sets and see where it brings me. but I definitely need an easy week next week for my bruised muscles to heal.
2-3 sets per exercise
6-18 sets per muscle group per week
Can you do sets of unrelated muscle groups in between your sets if your not hitting systemic fatigue?
"Supersetting" is a good efficiency strategy. If you're dealing with a lot of fatigue, saving supersets for isolations/accessories that are less fatiging might help.
he suggests 8-16 sets per bodypart per week, and we should train each bodypart 2-3 times per week.
so say we pick 12 sets per week, exercising each bodypart 3 times per week. we would go to the gym and just do 4 sets for a bodypart?
so you go to the gym and just do 1 exercise for each bodypart youre working that day? thats like going to the gym and doing 2-3 exercises then going home. what am I missing here?
just commenting to boost your engagement
I think this will help in calisthenics bodyweight too
I don't get the suggestions of training 2-3x per week per muscle group. Might be because I'm older now but I'm sore for like 4-6 days normally.
But even when I was younger, I would be sore for longer periods of time as well but did my workouts regardless of soreness.
Nowadays, as with life and lack of time, I train each muscle group once a week and feel happier about not over working and have potentially wasted gains.
@PictureFit, thoughts? (Not sure how to tag on RUclips lol)
If it works for you then great id stick with it. If you're an experienced gym go-er and still sore 4-6 days after either you're training extremely hard or you're changing your training up a lot so it's novel. Been training for 20 years and I am only really sore when I train super hard or change my workout up. A few famous bodybuilders did well training less frequently too, Tom Platz for example (he trained ridiculously hard). 2-3x per week is best for most but there will always be outliers due to other factors.
I think it applies only to calisthenics (not weighted) and for people who don't work hard enough. I had the best gains when after training session I had muscle sore for almost one week or even above that. Mike Mentzer suggested that even 1 set to absolute failure can skyrocket gains, for example Dorian Yates won Olympia few times training like this. I think you should go with higher amount of sets especially when you like your workouts but the main reason that going beyond absolute failure can bring a lot of injuries. Still, if you don't have muscle soreness ONLY IF you don't progress (I don't think you should training to failure at the beginning) then probably you don't work hard enough.
Soreness sucks, but it doesn't mean you cannot train while still sore (slightly). That said, if you are running into continuous problems with soreness, I'd dial your volume back just a tad until your muscles becomes accustomed to it and soreness becomes less of a problem. The biggest culprit of soreness is introducing a novel stimuli/exercise, so if you're changing your exercises constantly, it can be result in more soreness.
Can u make video on weight lifting over 40s and 50s, thank u
I'm guessing it means muscle groups not doing 12 sets of standard curls instead of pull-ups are another curl type that just works that type of muscle group
Make sure you have technique, intensity, and rest times figured out before you worry about how much volume to do.
Pic, could we have a video on how to best balance strength/mass gains with training martial arts?
10-16 sets per muscle group per week, with 2-3 minutes rest between sets.
I'm lost how many sets do I do for big mucle like chest and small like biceps triceps all I do between 10 16 sets?
I do 14-20 sets per group, but they're not all heavy compound lifts (most are). I.e. 4 sets bench, 3 sets dips, 3 sets cable flys on push day 1, same thing with variations on push day 2 for the week. Total 20 sets of chest. I do the same thing for almost all muscle groups.
Except calves. Fuck calves. They only get 8 sets per week.
I didn’t really get the part about recovery. Aren’t rest days enough?
Could you pleas do a video on low reps high intensity because I personally have gotten a lot of strength from it
I follow a mix of dog crap, Mike Mentzer and high frequency sessions. It's given me the best results so far.
doesnt research support that drop sets offer the same progress as volume training. So doing 1 rep max and dropping consequently until total failure is achived. Ultimately if muscle stimulus and failure is achived doesnt matter how many set or reps are done. So in summary what truly matters is just going heavy no rest that way everything is completely at failure and then taking longer rest periods say 1 excerise per week. By following the principle of high intensity training you should see significant results espically when focusing on priortizing excerises and partial in the lengethed position which helps exhaust a muscle even more.
i do know that many people mention that needing to lower the intensity/volume of excerise is a byproduct of overcompensation in the first place therefore you are already training too much instead it is better to let your muscle fully rest by taking more rest and eating more protein + taking supplements that aid in recovery. This way you are seeing consistent progress between every workout. if you are not progressing then there is a problem either you are not eating right, not training hard enough, or you maxed out your possible natural gains which is possible if you have been training properly for many years.
While i know that using anecdotals is not a strong argument, personally following this principle helped me more as again I was able to rep more or lift heavier as progressively overload my excerise. That way every 2 months i was essentially repping heavier weights on the higher end as my drop sets increse in intensity. I only do in total a week 3-6 sets of just pure high intensity. But again maybe i am just someone who responds very well for low volume training.
Reaching failure is really only one part of the equation. Your anecdote has been popular lately actually. What I think a lot of people are realizing is that with their previous training strategies, volume-based or not, it was likely that the issue was indeed training hard enough or to failure. Maybe consider a volume approach while implementing more sets to failure and see if it can make a bigger impact for you.
this video will blow up...
Please make a video on Kettlebells and how effective they are in increasing strength and muscle.
1) you sound a bit like Billy West
2) big fan of 5x5 with 2m rest between sets and 3m between exercises. I feel like it lets me lift for longer and increase weight at a gradual enough pace that I dont injure myself
I've been primarily lifting heavy, in the 5x6 rep range and at the same time have been gaining some size from it. Though I wonder if I can add in some sets for size as well to get some gains there as well so my workout would look like this:
5x6 heavy then 3x15 light.
Would I still be able to maximize strength and gain more size while doing so?
When and how would you know that it is time to increase the weight based on Sets and Reps?
thanks mitsubishy man !
how do you define a muscle group? is it like all of legs is a muscle group or just quads or hamstrings are each separate muscle groups
Generally, it will be the muscles involved in a specific joint movement. That's the reason it's usually "muscle group" and not muscles specifically. eg. four muscles make up the muscle group for quads and trained through knee joint extension and hip joint flexion.
0:28 Thats tonnage not volume. Volume is sets x reps.
do 3-5 exercises per main muscle group. in these exercises do 2-4 sets of 6-20 reps. (depending on exercise) exercise at least every main muscle group 2 times a week.
if you're doing this, you'll be doing an average of 24 sets/8 exercises per main muscle group per week.
main muscle groups are shoulders, abs, arms, legs, chest and back.
you can divide exercises in major muscle groups into exercises per minor muscle group. like for the Arm, do 2 bicep exercises, 2 tricep exercises and a forearm exercise
What's a muscle group?
Can you do one for optimal sets for a single exercise per session. When does the performance drop off and or diminish returns. E.g. after 6 sets of squats , sets 7, 8, 9 is junk and therefore better to switch to a different exercise or be done for the day
I have question I was doing exercise then shoulder has begun pain in the past 6 month ago so is there any exercise for shoulder pain or any advice.
RUclips shoulder impingement exercises
@@JesusChrist_IsTruth-LoveForALL is there video tutorials or can you list the exercises and thank you for reply
@@Light13378 Yes. Just type into RUclips search "Shoulder Impingement Exercises" and watch a few videos.
What if I do 3 sets of bench press and 3 sets of cable flies for chest in 1 circuit. Would that be 6 sets for chest? Or 3?
Can you define these muscle groups? I'm not sure how specific these muscle groups you're referring to are.
How many muscle groups are being considered here? Like upper body, coreand lower body? Or like arms, shoulders, chest, back, core, upper legs and lower legs? Cause ish
I do different exercise and come out to a total of 9 sets for glutes and 6 sets for legs and this 3 times a week.
Is this unhealthy?
All gets a bit complicated. I'll just keep going and enjoying what I do lol
The best program is the one you stick to for years
A legit definition of volume is the number of sets taken to failure or near-failure. Period.
Multiplying weight x reps x sets calculates a number that has no legit use. It's also not a "relative" number because, for example, doubling the weight and cutting the reps in half does not keep the stimulus the same because weight and reps are not inversely proportional.
Yep, I mentioned the importance of training near failure in the video. As for doubling weight and taking half reps/sets? Well, in some cases, we do see the same growth.
@@PictureFit C'mon now, taking 120lb BP to near-failure with 12 reps (120x12) is nowhere close to the stimulus of 240 lbs with 6 reps (240x6). They are galaxies apart. This is why the weight x reps calculation for "volume" is invalid.
The only legit way to count volume is counting the # of sets taken to near-failure. In essence, the near-failure aspect is what makes sets equivalent to each other.
I do better doing 3-6sets per week (3 for small muscle groups and 6 for compounds) and I hate it. I like training and doing sports but I can't handle medium or heavy volume, no matter what sport I'm doing.
Me before watching the video:
*It depends*
What if you cant increase volume? Can increasing reps can halp?
Whats a muscle group?
1. Chest 2. Back 3. Arms 4. Legs 5. Shoulders
What does compound or accessory mean?
Whats the forulma
You lost me. If I can do my first set of pullups at 11 reps to failure, should I do three sets of 7 rep pull ups instead?
Is it okay to workout in the morning and work afterwards. I’m worried that since I will still be awake for quite some time, I may not be maximizing the gains than when I sleep after my after gym meal.
What is more recommended? Workout in the morning and continue on with my day in work or workout after work and then sleep after my post workout meal? I’m flexible with tike and just want to maximize the gains since I’m just started working out
It doesn't really matter too much either way when you do it, as long as you stay consistent and get the rest you need to recover. I'd say do it in the morning when your fresh and energized for the day, get out of the way at full strength, and then get a good meal in afterwards and go on with the rest of your day, already having got the workout out of the way. 💪
damn 10 sets is wild lmao
I just lift the weight.
Again I will say this, everyone is DIFFERENT.
Six days a week training...chest and back Mon eve, Weds eve, Fri eve, 20 sets each muscle group. Legs and legs Thurs eve and Sunday morn 20 sets, shoulders Tue and Sun morn - 20 sets. I will often just work rotator cuffs and do a lot of stretching on a Sat.
That is the routine that I followed for most of my 44yrs training.
10-16 sets a week per muscle group?? i do 28 to 30, per muscle group a week since i do 4-6x12
I'm quite new to this and not a native english speaker. Can someone explain to me what compounds are?
One set to absolute failure per muscle group per week. I swear to god it works just as fine. Like magic.
If it works for you then great. Mike Mentzer style eh, and possibly Dorian Yates too? Can't remember. I have tried this and ended up going back to a more "conventional" 2 times per week and a total of roughly 12 sets per week (2 exercises per session of 3 sets each)
if i train 3 times at week how many sets per day?
You figure out?
I train to failure when I do the first exercises for each muscle which is like 3-4 sets, what should I do to get more exercise sets in? should I decrease the weight? or should I keep going with the same weight but less reps due to muscle fatigue.
Add another set with the same weight.
I do 4 seats of 12 I been wondering if that’s enough or do I need to increase or decrease my reps/sets, I feel like I’m not doing enough I used to do 100 reps per workout for a while I knew your not supposed to do so bud I did anyway because it felt like I was doing a lot. But then switched to 4 seats of 12 and lowered my weights and got more proper form.
2:43
How many times can you curl a 2lb dumbell? 1000? That's a pretty high volume.. try it and see how big your muscles grow /s
There's definitely a baseline. Anything below 30%1RM becomes severely inefficient.
Till failure till you actually cannot do another rep
What?? 10-16 sets per muscle group? This highly depends on how experienced you are. 10-16 sets per miscle group per week will be way too much for beginners.
i dont think if you train your chest for only 5 sets of each 2 days of chest/push days will be too much for beginners.
What are the "muscle groups" ? Really I don't know. Arms are one od them or biceps are one od them for example? Can anyone help?
Chest, lats, upper back, biceps, triceps, quads, hamstrings, calves, abs and so on.
Delts is a bit more ambiguous and could be split into front, side and rear delts as individual muscle groups, but as a beginner you shouldn't worry about that yet.
@@ItsJakeTheBrake thanks
Doing extra sets of the compound wouldnt help with the ration as then certain muscle groups would get overworked, Set ratio waaaaayyyy to complicated