Bodybuilding Article 8

Welcome to Bodybuilding Article 8 in our comprehensive series. Here we'll look at the role of lifting repetitions in building lean muscle.

Bodybuilding article 8 will contend that there is much more to the simple rep than meets the eye. And don't forget, you can get the best deals on a huge range of bodybuilding supplements at Bodybuilding.com

The role of repetitions in your muscle building program

Repetitions are the basic building blocks of any strength or muscle building program but it is something that many lifters take for granted. How often do you see people at the gym speed through their reps, breathe haphazardly or fail to complete each rep correctly from a technical perspective? There is much more to the simple rep than meets the eye.

The first thing to note is that a repetition consists of three elements - namely lower, pause and lift. The speed at which this is achieved depends on the desired outcome, but to maximize muscle growth a slow, controlled tempo is required. The process should never be rushed, jerky or bouncy but instead should be controlled and smooth.

The second consideration relates to how many reps need to be performed. Once again, this depends on what you hope to achieve but you can use the following as a basic rule of thumb:

1. A single repetition maximum (1RM) increases muscle strength.

2. A six to eight repetition maximum increases muscle size.

3. A higher number of repetitions will have more effect on muscle endurance and little impact on size or strength.

Your aim therefore should be to complete six to eight reps of a load equivalent to 75-80% of your 1RM. This will maximize your muscle building potential, provided you complete each lift with perfect form in a smooth controlled manner.

Note to publishers

Don't forget to check out this week's recommended bodybuilding article entitled What causes muscle growth? 1. Stimulus - exercise is needed to make the muscles work, use energy and cause microscopic damage to the fibers. 2. Nutrition - after intense exercise the muscles need to replenish their stores of fuel. 3. Rest - it is during the rest or recovery phase that the muscles repair the microscopic damage and grow. Muscle size increases due to hypertrophic adaptation and an increase in the cross section area of individual muscle fibers. Intensive exercise impacts more on the strength influencing fast twitch type II fibers, therefore the increase in muscle size is accompanied by greater strength. . . . For the best supplement deals currently available, shop at Bodybuilding.com

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Comments	Date
By Jim	2008-08-23 04:28:42
Another common rep range advocated is 8-12. But I've experienced training plateaus in both the 6-8 and 8-12 rep ranges (very frustrating). Which range do you feel is best for stimulating hypertrophy? And how many sets per exercise? Sometimes, one set doesn't feel like it's enough. But when I've added sets, I often don't see an increase in performance the next time around (I always train to failure). I always try to increase in either the weight used or # of reps achieved each workout.

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