Low reps VS Lots of Reps

nturner612

i have always done lots of reps (ex: 3/15/50 lunge ea leg) and in the past it has worked. however now that im on this site, i see lots of lower rep successes. which seems to be the best way to go about it?

waldo56

The best way - both.

However beginners will progress much faster by focusing on only low rep work.

jacksonpt

They affect the body differently, so depending on yoru goals, one may be more effective than the other.

But most people should be doing both, generally 1 day of high reps, 1 day of high weight.

lacurandera1

It depends on what you want. Endurance? Or strength? As a chick who lifts heavy weights for low reps, that's what I would recommend...but...to each their own.

I think that lifting heavy and low reps, you're going to change your body way more than lifting something light 40 times ever will. it's not that light weight high rep won't do anything to your body. It will, and it's not a "bad" thing to do. But lifting heavy is a real game changer.

KirstenTheFamilyCoach

I agree with all of ^^ this ^^ with one addition. Stick to lower weights until you are SURE you have good form. Poor form and heavy weights are a recipe for disaster.

JenMc14

It depends on your goal. Low weight, high reps is only going to build muscle endurance. It's not going to really shape or build muscle or increase strenght.

For hypertrophy (muscle mass gain), one should lift a weight heavy enough to fatigue the muscles in 8-12 reps for 2-3 sets. If you can do 12 reps for all sets, go up in weight.

For strength gains, one should do a weight that fatigures the muscles in 3-5 reps for 3ish sets. Once you hit 5 reps for all sets, go up. There's also 5x5 programs that are good for increasing strength. I'm just starting that now.

Both of these require eating at a caloric surplus (or, at the minimum, maintenance for a slow recomp) in order to gain muscle and really increase strength. You will also, very likely gain fat, but that is what bulk/cut cycles are for.

If your goal is weight loss, the best thing you can do is get your diet in check and create a caloric deficit. Choose either a hypertrophy or strength gain plan, whichever you prefer, and lift that program. you won't gain mass or a lot of strength eating at a deficit. Add in some cardio and there you go.

concordancia

Trainers will almost always tell you low reps. Some folks will tell you that low builds strength while high builds endurance or low builds mass while high lengthens...

If you like science, there was a recent study in which they had the subjects do 3 sets of low reps on the left leg and 3 sets of high reps on the right leg. Their muscles ended up being the same size on both legs. The only thing that didn't work was a single set of low reps.

lacurandera1

I agree with all of ^^ this ^^ with one addition. Stick to lower weights until you are SURE you have good form. Poor form and heavy weights are a recipe for disaster.

QFT. Watch lots of vids on form, or have someone who knows show you good form, especially especially if you ever plan on using heavy weights.

JenMc14

Trainers will almost always tell you low reps. Some folks will tell you that low builds strength while high builds endurance or low builds mass while high lengthens...

If you like science, there was a recent study in which they had the subjects do 3 sets of low reps on the left leg and 3 sets of high reps on the right leg. Their muscles ended up being the same size on both legs. The only thing that didn't work was a single set of low reps.

Do you have a link for that study or any further info? How many reps is "high" or "low"? What was the percentage of the participants 1 rep max that was being used? Were they monitoring caloric intake? Deficit, maintenance or surplus? was cardio being used as well? What lifts were being done? Has it been peer reviewed? So many questions! I'd be interested in seeing it.

_noob_

anything over 3 reps is cardio.

lacurandera1

Trainers will almost always tell you low reps. Some folks will tell you that low builds strength while high builds endurance or low builds mass while high lengthens...

If you like science, there was a recent study in which they had the subjects do 3 sets of low reps on the left leg and 3 sets of high reps on the right leg. Their muscles ended up being the same size on both legs. The only thing that didn't work was a single set of low reps.

I'm pretty sure that the low rep for women myth came because we have more slow twitch muscle fibers. And while the muscles in the study may have been the same size, I'm curious if they did any research into whether the amount of slow and fast twitch muscle fibers differed.

Here's a link talking about the roles of different muscle fibers. http://www.sensible-health-related-fitness.com/fast-twitch-muscle-fibers.html

jzammetti

I am in week 2 of the workouts in New Rules for Lifting for Women - it focuses on reducing reps and increasing weight to increase strength. I don't have results yet, of course, but the book makes a lot of sense and shares a lot of research (and has about 6 months of a training plan built in).

lacurandera1

anything over 3 reps is cardio.

LOL! Idk, dude. Some of my low rep lifts feel like cardio, especially when I'm panting at the end and sweating!

jacksonpt

It depends on your goal. Low weight, high reps is only going to build muscle endurance. It's not going to really shape or build muscle or increase strenght.

For hypertrophy (muscle mass gain), one should lift a weight heavy enough to fatigue the muscles in 8-12 reps for 2-3 sets. If you can do 12 reps for all sets, go up in weight.

For strength gains, one should do a weight that fatigures the muscles in 3-5 reps for 3ish sets. Once you hit 5 reps for all sets, go up. There's also 5x5 programs that are good for increasing strength. I'm just starting that now.

Both of these require eating at a caloric surplus (or, at the minimum, maintenance for a slow recomp) in order to gain muscle and really increase strength. You will also, very likely gain fat, but that is what bulk/cut cycles are for.

If your goal is weight loss, the best thing you can do is get your diet in check and create a caloric deficit. Choose either a hypertrophy or strength gain plan, whichever you prefer, and lift that program. you won't gain mass or a lot of strength eating at a deficit. Add in some cardio and there you go.

While I generally agree with most of this, you can most definitely do strength programs on a deficit and see significant gains. Recovery might be slightly slower on a deficit due to the reduce calories, but one can make significant strength gains on a deficit, especially people new to lifting.

waldo56

For hypertrophy (muscle mass gain), one should lift a weight heavy enough to fatigue the muscles in 8-12 reps for 2-3 sets. If you can do 12 reps for all sets, go up in weight.

This oft repeated recommendation is rarely given by someone who themselves have achieved a significant amount of hypertrophy.

If you want your muscles to get bigger, eat a calorie surplus and work hard when strength training. Pretty much everying harder than the aerobic threshold works, high rep-low weight, low weight-high rep, and everything in-between. If the effort is there, the results will be too.

High rep work won't get you stronger though.

JenMc14

anything over 3 reps is cardio.

My husband would agree with you.

BackTatJIM

I KEEP THIS SAVED FOR THREADS LIKE THIS :
The lower rep range (1 – 5) causes neurological adaptations, which is your body developing its
ability to activate muscle fibers by increasing the frequency of neural impulses sent to the
brain as well as improving intra- and inter-muscle coordination.
Basically it makes you stronger but does has a lesser impact to your muscle mass.


The mid rep range (6 – 12) the impact is more on the metabolic and cellular level where you gain
muscle mass but strength gains are not as significant as you would get in the lower rep ranges.
This is the general rep range for hypertrophy, or mass gains.

The higher rep ranges (13+) stimulate muscle endurance primarily with only a small amount of
hypertrophy and very little strength and as such is not considered strength training in the
strict sense of the word.

Note, that there is no hard and fast line between the effects of the above, but rather a continuum.
Also, the number of sets plays into how much is strength v hypertrophy v endurance. For example,
you can do 5 sets of 6 reps for a total of 30 lifts, or you can do 10 sets of 3 lifts for a total
of 30 lifts. If you do them to an equivalent level of failure, the time under tension will be the same.
The number of sets does not automatically turn it from strength to hypertrophy due to the rest periods
between sets, but it does have a bearing on where in the continuum the routine lies.

So, in summary:
1 – 5 reps = strength
6 – 12 reps = hypertrophy
12+ = endurance

waldo56

^^^High rep squats, high rep pushups, and high rep pullups most definitely cause strong hypertrophy^^^

Do a few thousand pullups (obviously over time, not at once) in a calorie surplus and you'll develop a fine cobra hood.

navydentalchic

BUMP FOR LATER READING!

HASW

What do you do between sets? Rest? Stretch? For how long?

Hezzietiger1

It depends on what you are doing and where you are physically. If you have never lifted before or done much exercise.. it is better to go lighter loads, more reps in an environment that builds stability. So.. using a balance ball for a chest press with dumbbells. Once stability is there, more weight, less rest, longer rest periods in a more stable environment to increase muscle endurance, muscle size, then max strength decreasing reps to 1-5. But progression is key to long term success.