Each and everyday I’m asked the question, “How many sets and reps do I need to be doing?” This question can only be answered after you know what your goal is. Different rep ranges will have different outcomes for your body.
When I talk about rep ranges, I’m talking about three different categories. There are low reps of 1-5, medium rep range of 6-12 and higher reps at 12 or greater. Each of these rep ranges have a different effect on your muscles and neurological system.
A low rep range of 1-5 with heavy weight will cause your body to adapt by adding strength. When you are lifting these heavier weights at a low rep range, your body will learn to recruit more muscle fibers to take part in the movement. These muscle fibers have a higher threshold that don’t come into play with a lighter weight and higher reps. Your muscles adapt to coordinate together in one movement as well. A higher rep range will focus on isolating the main muscle used in the exercise. You can try this by performing a heavy low rep set of bent rows and do a high rep low weight set. On the higher rep set, your biceps will fatigue. Lower reps will not have such an effect on your muscle size.
Bodybuilders use the 6-12 rep range for a reason. This rep range is optimal for muscle development and hyptertrophy but won’t have as great an effect on strength as a lower rep range. This explains why you’ll see bodybuilders who aren’t as strong as they look and smaller individuals with much greater strength. It’s all about the sets and reps used.
The muscles don’t have to call upon the higher threshold fibers to complete the 6-12 reps. Your body will adapt by increasing the size of the components muscles are made of. This effect is more cellular than neural.
The high range of 12+ reps are going to have the majority of effect on your cell components and very minimal strength gains. This rep range is great for building muscular endurance and to increase injury prevention. A higher rep range is usually recommended for a beginner so that the body can adapt slowly and efficiently so they can transition to heavier weight without injury.
So now that you know what the different sets and reps do, which rep range should you do? Look at your goals and have the majority of your exercises use the rep range that’s appropriate for either muscle gain, strength gain, or endurance. It is wise to use all of these rep ranges in a routine so that you can get all the effects.
Learn more about building quality muscle and developing your body into that ideal shape by taking a look at No Non-Sense Muscle Building.
Travis
I was just now searching around about this when I found your blog post. I’m only stopping by to say that I definitely enjoyed reading this post, it is really clear and well written. Are you planning toblog more on this? It seems like there is more depth here for later posts.
Thanks for the comment. Keep checking out the blog. I’m sure I will be doing more articles on rep ranges.
Thanks for posting, I really liked your newest post. I think you should post more frequently, you evidently have talent for blogging!
Thanks a lot for the kind words. I try my best lol. I will hopefully be able to post more topics more frequently as the blog becomes more popular.