What are your thoughts about this?
DO you ever do 20 + reps..
In the article bellow writen by Charles Poliquin, states that you can build hypertrophy
When 20 + reps are indicated for the bodybuilder.
By: Charles Poliquin
Yes there are some instances where sets of 20 reps or more are indicated;
1. sets of 20 reps or more work extremely well in certain form of squats and deadlifts, and of course in the leg press, they are very effective at creating hypertrophy . These given above exercises make full use of the stretch shortening capability of the muscle involved.
For example, sets of 20 in the dumbbell deadlifts is one of the quickest ways to pack on pounds on a lean frame. Studies have also shown that for example in the bench press a load of 70% of maximum will permit only 12 reps while at the same percentage of his leg press maximum the same individual will perform 40 reps.
Twenty reps squats are the foundation of many quick mass development programs of years ago. Entire books centered around this methodology have been written, and they are result inducing for the ones willing to work hard at them.
You also have to keep in mind that these exercises train muscles that tend to have a greater proportion of lower threshold fibers than other muscle groups, hence the need for higher reps.
2. For most individuals, hypertrophy comes mainly from doing repeated efforts of 40-70 seconds of time under tension per set.
Therefore, depending on the range of motion and the tempo at which each rep is executed, sets of 20 can create hypertrophy. Calf and forearm training are perfect examples that come to mind.
3. Periodic phases of 20 reps of more sets allows the central nervous system and the joints to recover from all the pounding it gets from normal workouts.
For example, if you just did a 12 week peaking program to achieve a new max weight in the front squat and in the power clean, doing a few weeks of sets of 20 will leave you refreshed to go for a new strength cycle aiming at personal bests lets say, in the power snatch and in the squat.
These phases of high reps do not need to be long. Usually one to three weeks does the trick for most individuals.
4. Another method to use high reps effectively, is to conclude each workout with a twenty rep set for that bodypart.
My colleague Bill Starr, is also a fan of this method. It is a great way to knock off the lower threshold motor units once you have done your quality heavy work. This a very good plateau buster for hypertrophy training. Make sure that the back off set is done with an exercise that involves a lot of motor units. For example, in triceps training, the close grip bench press is a much wiser choice than the rope pressdown.
DO you ever do 20 + reps..
In the article bellow writen by Charles Poliquin, states that you can build hypertrophy
When 20 + reps are indicated for the bodybuilder.
By: Charles Poliquin
Yes there are some instances where sets of 20 reps or more are indicated;
1. sets of 20 reps or more work extremely well in certain form of squats and deadlifts, and of course in the leg press, they are very effective at creating hypertrophy . These given above exercises make full use of the stretch shortening capability of the muscle involved.
For example, sets of 20 in the dumbbell deadlifts is one of the quickest ways to pack on pounds on a lean frame. Studies have also shown that for example in the bench press a load of 70% of maximum will permit only 12 reps while at the same percentage of his leg press maximum the same individual will perform 40 reps.
Twenty reps squats are the foundation of many quick mass development programs of years ago. Entire books centered around this methodology have been written, and they are result inducing for the ones willing to work hard at them.
You also have to keep in mind that these exercises train muscles that tend to have a greater proportion of lower threshold fibers than other muscle groups, hence the need for higher reps.
2. For most individuals, hypertrophy comes mainly from doing repeated efforts of 40-70 seconds of time under tension per set.
Therefore, depending on the range of motion and the tempo at which each rep is executed, sets of 20 can create hypertrophy. Calf and forearm training are perfect examples that come to mind.
3. Periodic phases of 20 reps of more sets allows the central nervous system and the joints to recover from all the pounding it gets from normal workouts.
For example, if you just did a 12 week peaking program to achieve a new max weight in the front squat and in the power clean, doing a few weeks of sets of 20 will leave you refreshed to go for a new strength cycle aiming at personal bests lets say, in the power snatch and in the squat.
These phases of high reps do not need to be long. Usually one to three weeks does the trick for most individuals.
4. Another method to use high reps effectively, is to conclude each workout with a twenty rep set for that bodypart.
My colleague Bill Starr, is also a fan of this method. It is a great way to knock off the lower threshold motor units once you have done your quality heavy work. This a very good plateau buster for hypertrophy training. Make sure that the back off set is done with an exercise that involves a lot of motor units. For example, in triceps training, the close grip bench press is a much wiser choice than the rope pressdown.
