If you want to make the most of your training you should choose the right amount of reps to do. Depending on the amount it can change the results you get. There is an overlap, but it’s still best to be sticking to the amount which will give you the outcome you want. Doing hundreds of reps isn’t going to do much for your size if that’s what you want.
When you’re standing on a beach during your summer holidays you don’t want to be thinking you could have done better. Even worse, you might not want to take your t-shirt off if you don’t have the body you want. Choose which type of body you’re going for and carry out the correct rep range.
As strong as a bull
Do you want to be so strong you can lift a car of the ground? Well maybe not that strong, but still strong enough that you can out lift 99% of the population. You’re going to need to lift in the lower rep ranges. This means between 1 and 5 reps. Sticking to 5 reps will ensure you get stronger and bigger at the same time. If you don’t want to get a lot bigger you should definitely stick to about 3 maximum.
With these types of reps you should stick to big compound exercises. Things like squats, deadlifts, chest press and chin-ups. These are the ones you can lift the most weight with. Big compound lifts take a lot out of the body, so you only need to be doing between 3 and 5 sets.
As big as Conan the Barbarian
So you want to put on size? To be so big that people stop and stare at you. People turn around and look at you when you enter a room. If that’s the kind of thing you are looking for you need to lift in the medium rep ranges. Between 6 and 10 to be more specific. Sticking to something like 8 reps will give you great size and some strength.
In order to see the maximum results you want to be doing a huge mixture of exercises here. Obviously you will need to do the big compound exercises. These will put on the most mass, but you will also need to do the isolation exercises that work more of the smaller muscle groups. Targeting these single muscle groups will improve the results of the compound lifts. For these you only need to stick to 3 sets.
Get the Brad Pitt Fight Club look
There’s nothing wrong with just wanting a purely toned look. You won’t be huge and you probably couldn’t throw an elephant more than the length of an ant, but you will drive all the girls crazy down the beach. In order to burn the most fat you should keep your body moving a lot. This means upping the reps to between 12 and 15.
Again you should choose the big compound lifts. You want to be using the exercises which use the most energy. That doesn’t mean you can’t do any isolation ones, but it shouldn’t be your main focus. The trick is also to keep your rest times as short as possible. Something like 30 seconds rest in between each set, of which you should do 3 to 4. You’ll be ready for the beach in no time.
This post was written by guest blogger Allen Herbert. Allen recommends that you choose weights and repetitions carefully after considering your fitness goals. You may also want to read this excellent quest bar review so that your diet supports training and exercise routine.
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