How many reps
lin7604
Posts: 2,951 Member
Thinking of creating my own lifting routine to be done st home with Dumbbells. What is the best way rep wise. 8-10 reps or 15 reps? 4 sets of each exercise?
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Replies
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it depends on what exercise you are doing if it is your shoulders I would suggest a lighter weight with 8-10 reps if you are a beginner .... If you have the time it would be great if you could fit weight training in at least 3x a week let me know and I will write some thing out for you.0
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. Oh that would be so helpful. Yes I'm more on a re: beginner, lol, I like simple basic to the point exercises. I'd like to do 3 total body 30-40 min sessions a week and 2 cardio which I will do les mills combat for.it depends on what exercise you are doing if it is your shoulders I would suggest a lighter weight with 8-10 reps if you are a beginner .... If you have the time it would be great if you could fit weight training in at least 3x a week let me know and I will write some thing out for you.
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You nailed it. That's the correct amount.1
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Don't make up your own program. Get on an established program. I'm on mobile so can't link but if you go into the gaining weight section, there's a post on lifting programs and there are dumbbell programs available.9
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Emphatically second this advice. Designing your own program, or having somebody do it who doesn't know what they're doing, is a good way to waste time spinning your wheels getting nowhere.samanthaluangphixay wrote: »Don't make up your own program. Get on an established program.
It's here: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1samanthaluangphixay wrote: »I'm on mobile so can't link but if you go into the gaining weight section, there's a post on lifting programs and there are dumbbell programs available.
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I agree with the others who said follow an established program. When I first started lifting I kind of waffled around and my results were subpar. I really wish I would have done something structured from the beginning, my results would have been that much better.1
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I think the best option would be to not write your own program.7
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Hi Lin. What is your goal in lifting weights. Would you like to get lean toned with a six pack or gain weight and bulk up?0
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So not sure why everyone is against it? If u can follow a program online that gives you the exercises what is the difference if I write it out and follow it off paper vs online? I want it written down so I don't have to relay on the internet e.g. So when traveling I always will have my guideline to follow!
Plus many programs have exercises I can't do due to complicated moves etc. I want basic lifting moves.
Not sure why so many create their own programs and do just fine and so many on here are saying no?
Why is it that if a program like beachbody's body beast can plan out certain moves, that one can't do the same and follow their own similar plan???? That makes no sence!
Why creating a program doing squats, lunges, triceps dips, hammer curls, bicep curls, planks, over head press, chest press etc would not give someone a good result???0 -
. My goal is very simple, lose a little body fat and just be a tad bit leaner and stronger. Not looking for a 6 pack or major definition. Just a few inches slimmerHi Lin. What is your goal in lifting weights. Would you like to get lean toned with a six pack or gain weight and bulk up?
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But if you follow something that is targeting all areas how would you wAffle around?I agree with the others who said follow an established program. When I first started lifting I kind of waffled around and my results were subpar. I really wish I would have done something structured from the beginning, my results would have been that much better.
Whether someone else created it or you do it yourself?0 -
Thinking of creating my own lifting routine to be done st home with Dumbbells. What is the best way rep wise. 8-10 reps or 15 reps? 4 sets of each exercise?
I was going to ask what your goal is, but I saw the answer later on in the thread. You said you want to appear leaner and gain strength. These are somewhat contradictory when it comes to lifting. Gaining strength = gaining muscle and will make you not appear extremely "thin" but you will look "toned."
Next question, are you focusing on upper body, core or lower body? Or all? For lower body, most women like to do the heavy weight, low rep route for muscle growth. As for arms, I usually do 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps per exercise using a 15-20 lb. dumbbell. Core = bodyweight burn outs or low weight burn outs for best results.0 -
Emphatically second this advice. Designing your own program, or having somebody do it who doesn't know what they're doing, is a good way to waste time spinning your wheels getting nowhere.samanthaluangphixay wrote: »Don't make up your own program. Get on an established program.
It's here: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1samanthaluangphixay wrote: »I'm on mobile so can't link but if you go into the gaining weight section, there's a post on lifting programs and there are dumbbell programs available.
So exactaly! I looked at that link a while ago Nd looked at the m&s beginner dumbbell routine! How is that any different then. Creating your own program with those and other exercises?????
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Also, tons of people on here will give you crap for creating your own program. If that's what you want to do, then do it. But be willing to critique and change your program for quite a while before finding the "perfect" solution for your body. Personally, I stuck with the same program (I created based on trainer suggestions and some programs) for 8 months and recently improved it. Now I have a legit fully typed out program that I follow and it works PERFECTLY for my body. I do the same heavy, basic lifts that everyone does (curls, press, DL, thrusts, squats, etc.) and incorporate my own accessory work, variations and burn outs that I've found to create the most muscle activation and growth.3
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Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
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There's a significant difference between writing/creating your own program and tweaking existing programs.2
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But if you follow something that is targeting all areas how would you wAffle around?I agree with the others who said follow an established program. When I first started lifting I kind of waffled around and my results were subpar. I really wish I would have done something structured from the beginning, my results would have been that much better.
Whether someone else created it or you do it yourself?
There is nothing wrong with doing your own program, but it usually takes experience. If you have to ask how many reps and sets then maybe you are not ready to do it yourself, you know? Also just because a program targets all areas doesn't mean it is well rounded and tailored to specific goals.2 -
I would also like to add, this does not mean that you aren't intelligent and I am not suggesting anything insulting with my previous post.
I would say the same thing about many, many other people who attempt to design their own program and it turns out to be a big pile of crap.
Myself included prior to receiving a reasonable education on the topic from multiple sources.
I look back on old programs I designed back when my only resource was "things I did in the gym" And it was laughably bad.9 -
I think people are concerned that someone making up their own program doesn't know what they're doing. You stated you were unsure how many reps or sets to do, so that is probably why people are responding the way they are. It would benefit you to look at some of the established programs to make sure you're covering everything in the proper reps, sets, and progression over time. Lots of people make variations to the prescribed programs, so you could do the same.
The thing is, there are lots of different types of programs out there, some with more reps and some with fewer, some that include a range. So in the end, as long as you're targeting the body areas, I agree, I'm not sure it makes a big difference. There isn't just one way to train. All the jibber jabber about training a certain way for a certain goal is mostly that, jibber jabber, unless you have one and only one very narrow goal, like a power lifter, muscle man, or bikini competitor. Every program I've seen seems to think they have some secret strategy for achieving a goal. Truth is, many of us are looking for overall functional fitness, not only strength, not only bulk, not only appearance, etc. We want to look and feel better. I haven't seen a program with that as the stated goal, I guess it doesn't sell very well, LOL. Sorry for the rant.
PS Also look at this sticky post:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308750/so-you-want-to-start-lifting-great/p11 -
I'd say 15 - 20 reps1
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Whatever program you choose is fine as long as it follows basic guidelines for muscular fitness.
Work every major muscle group 1 to 3 time per week
do reps to the point of not being able to do any more
do 3 sets to break down both muscle fibers
also a nice little hint to get more benefit is to double the length of time of the negative part of the rep compared to the positive part of the rep. Also, don't jerk the positive part of the rep. Make it a nice smooth action for the entire normal range of motion.
less weight more reps will build more toward endurance, and more weight less reps will build more toward strength. Adjust the weight to what you want.
A good ratio of cardio to muscular is 1 to 3 muscular sessions per week, and 3 to 5 cardio sessions per week.
150 minutes of exercise per week to maintain fitness and double (or more) to improve fitness.
Hope this helps.2 -
Ok the reason why I asked is. Side there are so many programs that do 8-10 reps and then tons that do 12-15. Some even say you should max out 6-8. So I got a bit confused as to what is best. Miss reps with a bit lighter weight or heavy and less reps.Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
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bcalvanese wrote: »Whatever program you choose is fine as long as it follows basic guidelines for muscular fitness.
Work every major muscle group 1 to 3 time per week
do reps to the point of not being able to do any more
do 3 sets to break down both muscle fibers
also a nice little hint to get more benefit is to double the length of time of the negative part of the rep compared to the positive part of the rep. Also, don't jerk the positive part of the rep. Make it a nice smooth action for the entire normal range of motion.
less weight more reps will build more toward endurance, and more weight less reps will build more toward strength. Adjust the weight to what you want.
A good ratio of cardio to muscular is 1 to 3 muscular sessions per week, and 3 to 5 cardio sessions per week.
150 minutes of exercise per week to maintain fitness and double (or more) to improve fitness.
Hope this helps.
With all due respect I disagree with A chunk of this.
It's unnecessary to train until you cannot do any more reps for the majority of people and that can be quite detrimental to both progress and enjoyment of the program.
Training all the way to failure may increase injury risk, it will substantially increase muscle soreness post exercise, it will significantly increase levels of fatigue which may increase recovery time.
Training to failure may reduce both per session training volume and weekly training volume depending on how it is structured within the context of the overall program and so A better recommendation for most people most of the time would be to leave at least one repetition in reserve and even closer to 2 to 4 for many exercises.
Additionally it really depends on the exercise and the individual when it comes to assigning number of sets per exercise. Volume is primarily dictated by the recovery capacity of the individual, The amount of volume they need to make progress, and their individual goals.
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Ok the reason why I asked is. Side there are so many programs that do 8-10 reps and then tons that do 12-15. Some even say you should max out 6-8. So I got a bit confused as to what is best. Miss reps with a bit lighter weight or heavy and less reps.Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
The best rep range is going to be the one you prefer doing, because you'll enjoy it more. But, if you are looking to tone, you're probably going to want to go lighter, with more reps to feel the burn. But, like I said, if that's not your thing, do what feels best.1 -
mgalovic01 wrote: »
Ok the reason why I asked is. Side there are so many programs that do 8-10 reps and then tons that do 12-15. Some even say you should max out 6-8. So I got a bit confused as to what is best. Miss reps with a bit lighter weight or heavy and less reps.Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
The best rep range is going to be the one you prefer doing, because you'll enjoy it more. But, if you are looking to tone, you're probably going to want to go lighter, with more reps to feel the burn. But, like I said, if that's not your thing, do what feels best.
No. Lighter does not equal "toning".9 -
mgalovic01 wrote: »
Ok the reason why I asked is. Side there are so many programs that do 8-10 reps and then tons that do 12-15. Some even say you should max out 6-8. So I got a bit confused as to what is best. Miss reps with a bit lighter weight or heavy and less reps.Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
The best rep range is going to be the one you prefer doing, because you'll enjoy it more. But, if you are looking to tone, you're probably going to want to go lighter, with more reps to feel the burn. But, like I said, if that's not your thing, do what feels best.
No. Lighter does not equal "toning".
Come on, dude.0 -
bcalvanese wrote: »Whatever program you choose is fine as long as it follows basic guidelines for muscular fitness.
Work every major muscle group 1 to 3 time per week
do reps to the point of not being able to do any more
do 3 sets to break down both muscle fibers
also a nice little hint to get more benefit is to double the length of time of the negative part of the rep compared to the positive part of the rep. Also, don't jerk the positive part of the rep. Make it a nice smooth action for the entire normal range of motion.
less weight more reps will build more toward endurance, and more weight less reps will build more toward strength. Adjust the weight to what you want.
A good ratio of cardio to muscular is 1 to 3 muscular sessions per week, and 3 to 5 cardio sessions per week.
150 minutes of exercise per week to maintain fitness and double (or more) to improve fitness.
Hope this helps.
With all due respect I disagree with A chunk of this.
It's unnecessary to train until you cannot do any more reps for the majority of people and that can be quite detrimental to both progress and enjoyment of the program.
Training all the way to failure may increase injury risk, it will substantially increase muscle soreness post exercise, it will significantly increase levels of fatigue which may increase recovery time.
Training to failure may reduce both per session training volume and weekly training volume depending on how it is structured within the context of the overall program and so A better recommendation for most people most of the time would be to leave at least one repetition in reserve and even closer to 2 to 4 for many exercises.
Additionally it really depends on the exercise and the individual when it comes to assigning number of sets per exercise. Volume is primarily dictated by the recovery capacity of the individual, The amount of volume they need to make progress, and their individual goals.
It's only a basic guideline and is the way the military does it (at least back when I was a military fitness instructor back in the 1980's).
You could certainly adjust it to fit your personal goals.0 -
Thinking of creating my own lifting routine to be done st home with Dumbbells. What is the best way rep wise. 8-10 reps or 15 reps? 4 sets of each exercise?
This is not the greatest idea unless you have a fairly vast amount of knowledge...people who create program their own routines generally end up with muscular imbalances due to overtraining in some areas and undertraining (or not training at all) other areas. Also, results tend to not be as efficiently achieved as when following a structured program that has been tried and tested.
Judging by the question itself, you don't really have the requisite knowledge to program your own routine. There are plenty of good dumbbell routines out there.
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Ok the reason why I asked is. Side there are so many programs that do 8-10 reps and then tons that do 12-15. Some even say you should max out 6-8. So I got a bit confused as to what is best. Miss reps with a bit lighter weight or heavy and less reps.Sometimes with written communication things can come across more harsh than they are intended so I'd like to preface this by saying that I don't mean any of this maliciously and I am attempting to Point something out to help you better understand the issue.
The very fact that you asked how many reps you should be doing is precisely why you do not have the knowledge level required to design a reasonably effective and efficient program for your goals.
Generally speaking, heavier loads tend to promote strength. And heavier loads force fewer reps.
Lighter loads allow more repetitions to be done.
Generally speaking, training volume tends to promote muscle growth however the lower the weight relative your strength levels may require a disproportionate amount of volume to produce the same hypertrophic response.
For example you could do heavy sets of three and get very strong and you could also get larger muscles if you're doing enough heavy sets of three to accumulate training volume.
However, heavy sets generally require longer rest periods, they may be more demanding on soft tissues and so they may promote injury, and so in many cases it's not practical to do enough heavy and low repetition work to use it as a primary means of muscle growth.
Rep ranges that are closer to the 8 to 12 rep range at an appropriate weight for that rep range which is a key point, tend to allow you to accumulate training volume in a more efficient manner because you can get more done.
Fortunately, we are not required to only use one repetition range and so some programs include multiple ranges depending on the exercise.
I'm posting this from my phone hence the grammatical errors but you could look up some of Brad Schoenfeld's blog posts and research on this topic to get more detailed information if you would like.
Also consider that none of this is black-and-white on and off type of scenarios. While strength and muscle growth are not the same thing, there is a lot of overlap in between the two and so especially in someone who is untrained, you will see significant improvements to both in a wide range of rep targets.3 -
I think people are concerned that someone making up their own program doesn't know what they're doing. You stated you were unsure how many reps or sets to do, so that is probably why people are responding the way they are. It would benefit you to look at some of the established programs to make sure you're covering everything in the proper reps, sets, and progression over time. Lots of people make variations to the prescribed programs, so you could do the same.
The thing is, there are lots of different types of programs out there, some with more reps and some with fewer, some that include a range. So in the end, as long as you're targeting the body areas, I agree, I'm not sure it makes a big difference. There isn't just one way to train. All the jibber jabber about training a certain way for a certain goal is mostly that, jibber jabber, unless you have one and only one very narrow goal, like a power lifter, muscle man, or bikini competitor. Every program I've seen seems to think they have some secret strategy for achieving a goal. Truth is, many of us are looking for overall functional fitness, not only strength, not only bulk, not only appearance, etc. We want to look and feel better. I haven't seen a program with that as the stated goal, I guess it doesn't sell very well, LOL. Sorry for the rant.
PS Also look at this sticky post:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308750/so-you-want-to-start-lifting-great/p1
Thank you for that , you said that perfectly! I am not striving for a specific goal. Just for health in general!
I've done so many beach body programs and they all have have a different style. Clx was a mix, hammer is lots of reps in general , jnl fusion was lot of reps as befit in 90. But over all most of them do the same similar moves, so figured why spend money in a new DVD program when I can just create my own!0
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