Which is better: few reps with heavy weights or lots of light ones
Sport And Fitness / / December 30, 2020
If you want to increase strength
To get stronger, that is, to lift heavy weights to the limit of your capabilities, it is not enough just to build a mountain of muscles.
The point is that our muscles are made of fibers, and not all of them are simultaneously tense to produce strength. In order for you to lift really heavy weights, you need to train your nervous system to engage as many muscle fibers as possible.
For this purpose, heavyWhy strength depends on more than muscle sets of 2-5 reps. In this case, the weight should be 85–95% of the one-repetition maximum (1RM) - the weight that you can lift only once.
Despite the fact that such training is the bestDifferential Effects of Heavy Versus Moderate Loads on Measures of Strength and Hypertrophy in Resistance-Trained Men, Effects of different volume ‑ equated resistance training loading strategies on muscular adaptations in well ‑ trained men.what you can do to build strength, you shouldn't practice them all the time. Especially when it comes to complex movements in which many joints and muscle groups are involved: squats, deadlifts,
bench press, snatch and clean and jerk.Such exercises greatly fatigue the central nervous system (CNS), and working with large weights only increases the load.
As a result, you will recover for a long time, and the accumulated fatigue can result in injury or overtraining. Even if your goal is to get strong, periodically insert lighter weights into your workout to relieve muscle and brain stress.
If you are going to pump stamina and health
If you don't need bench and squat records and prioritize health and endurance, go for more than 15 reps with light weights - roughly 30-50% of the weight you can lift once.
This intensity works well for beginners, injured and elderly people, and those returning to strength training after a long break.
By working with light weights, you reduce the risk of injury from technical errors and reduce stress on your joints and spine.
Strength work 20-25 times in the approach increasesAerobic Endurance Training Strategiesendurance muscles - the ability to work longer without fatigue. And it improves intermuscular coordination - the ability of your body to strain and relax the right muscles in time. This helps to improve performance and reduce the risk of injury in endurance sports.
Many people think that working with light weights eliminates muscle building. This is not true. In fact, doing multi-reps can build muscle just as effectively as with a heavier barbell. But only under certain conditions.
If you want to build muscle
For muscle building the samePumping iron: Lighter weights just as effective as heavier weights to gain muscle, build strength , Strength and Hypertrophy Adaptations Between Low- vs. High ‑ Load Resistance Training: A Systematic Review and Meta ‑ analysis. 2–6 heavy reps in the approach, and 6–2 times with medium weights, and even 20–25 with light weights work well.
The main factor for muscle growth is not reps and weight, but muscle fiber fatigue.
In other words, you have to tire the muscles so much in each set that you get close to their rejection - a state in which you cannot do it even once. With a heavy weight, five times will be enough for this, with a light barbell you will have to suffer longer, but the essence of this does not change. If there is fatigue, there will be growth.
However, in bodybuilding, sets of 8-12 reps are considered the gold standard. And they really work great. The fact is that our body is constantly adapting to stress. Today, five 50kg barbell squats will tire your muscles enough to kick start their growth, but after 1–2 weeks, this will not be enough.
The muscles adapt and you will need to increase volume again - do more weight, reps or sets. And this is where the average number of repetitions has its advantages.
It is difficult to increase the volume by working 2-5 times with heavy weights. The strength does not grow so quickly, and the load on the joints and the central nervous system is simply enormous. Having inadequately assessed your capabilities, you run the risk of injury or burnout.
It is not easy to increase the volume when working with light weights: sets that are too long will become exhausting and waste a lot of calories. As a result, it will be more difficult to gain muscle mass.
By doing 8-12 reps at 75-85% of 1RM, you can increase the volume easier and safer, without the risk of injury and the prospect of spending three and a half hours in the gym.
If you want to build muscle, have no joint problems, and don't chase strength, 8-12 reps per set is best for you.
However, this does not mean that different training intensities will be useless. You can mix them together to avoid stagnation and pump all aspects of your fitness. Here are some examples of how you can do this:
1. Within one workout. For example, do a heavy squat for 2-6 reps, a dumbbell press, and push-ups on the uneven bars for 6-12 reps, as well as setting dumbbells for 15-20 reps.
2. Splits. Work on upper body strength one day (2-6 reps at 85-95% of 1RM), the second day on strength the lower part, the third day - for the volume of the upper part (8-12 reps with 75-85% of 1RM), the fourth - for the volume bottom.
3. By training cycles. Work on strength for 2–4 weeks (2–6 reps), the next 2–4 weeks on muscle volume (8–12 reps), and for 2–4 weeks on endurance (15 or more reps).
Listen to your body, track your progress, and decide what works best for you.
Read also🧐
- Why muscle size and strength are not the same
- 10 strength exercises for runners from the master of sports in athletics
- Is it worth training to muscle failure