Welcome to another Try it out Tuesday. Today I have something special to try, it’s called… BREAKING OUT OF MIDDLE GROUND. You know, the one you might be stuck in with strength training or muscle development? Yes, that one. And Suzanne (my girl crush) is back to share her knowledge. I suggest you take notes because she is full of applicable information and knowledge. Take notes, try it out, then report back. Deal?
Increasing Muscle and Strength By Knowing the Difference
I couldn’t be happier to be back here at Cotter Crunch. True, I can get my fix of Lindsay’s sparkle by peeking at her Instagram account, but the golden goodness is right here at Cotter Crunch. So thanks to Lindsay for having me!
Once upon a time, I was a middle-of-the-road kind of gal. I pushed hard in the gym but my strength and muscles never grew appreciably. Pushing hard gave me some muscle definition, but I never progressed to that next level. I was stuck.
The problem was that I didn’t differentiate between building muscle and building strength. Ok, there were a few more problems than that – like doing the wrong exercises and training too often. But the first step in fixing these problems – and getting closer to damn girl! muscles and strength I could be proud of – was varying how I trained.
Many women who train in my online groups or one-on-one have been hanging out in no-man’s land of strength training – that is, always training in the 8-12 repetition range. Here’s how to get badass results by breaking out.
How to Train for YOUR Goal
Let me back up a little and explain why we even use different rep ranges for building strength and muscle.
If you always lifted the same weight and simply continued to increase the number of reps, you’d eventually be training for muscle endurance, not strength or muscle.
That’s because the number of repetitions you do (and thus the amount of resistance you lift) triggers either strength gains or muscle growth. There is overlap, of course, but each rep range elicits either mostly muscle growth or mostly strength increases.
To Break it Down:
- 1-5 repetitions trigger primarily strength gains
- 6-12 repetitions trigger primarily muscle growth
One more thing to know: The more reps you do, the fewer sets; the fewer reps you do, the more sets. For example:
Mid-to-High Reps for increased muscle
- 3 sets of 10 repetitions
- 60-90 seconds rest between sets
Low Reps for increased strength
- 4 sets of 5 repetitions
- 90-120 seconds rest between sets
As you can see, the lower the number of reps, the more you rest between sets. This is because you’re lifting heavier for lower reps and need more time to recover before you can perform as well for the next set.
Breaking Out of Middle Ground
So back to being a middle-of-the-road kind of gal.
You might think, “If I want muscle, I should always do 6-12 reps.”
But when you train in the same rep range day in and day out, your body adapts beautifully. Instead of growing stronger and building muscle to keep up with new stimulus, it simply adjusts and starts humming along without making any changes.
It’s easy – VERY easy – to get stuck in the middle rep range. Even now, if I don’t plan my workouts in advance, I will default to about 8 reps for every set. That’s just where my body is comfortable. Before I know it, months have passed when I could be a lot farther along that I am. Not good!
So how do you combat this?
Vary your rep ranges (but not randomly)
I like cycling my online clients’ training and I do this in several ways. For example, if you want to build muscle in your booty, here’s how you might approach squats:
- Alternate sessions or weeks
Week 1 – high reps, Week 2 – low reps, Week 2 – high reps, etc.
Session 1 – high reps, Session 2 – low reps, Session 3 – high reps, etc.
OR
- Train in 3-week phases
Weeks 1-3 – High reps
Weeks 4-6 – Low reps
Will you still see gains in the area you want if you work in both ranges? Absolutely, and much better than if you always trained for the same goal. You can also use a 2:1 ratio (e.g. 2x more high reps than low reps).
When deciding which exercises to do in what range, think about your goals and the exercises that target those goals. For example, to build muscle in your booty, you could alternate squats and hip thrusts in the high range (Session 1 – high reps for squats, low reps for hip thrusts; Session 2 – low reps for squats, high reps for hip thrusts).
You saw it coming – plan your workouts
Yep, this all means that you need to write down your plan and bring it to the gym. I’d never do a workout without a training log so you can remember what you did and what to do next.
There are a lot of other ways to progress yourself, but rep ranges are one of the most important. Get organized with rep ranges and you’ll be on the way to your goals!
Don’t hesitate to pick my brain if you have questions. Making gains is what it’s all about.
—
Suzanne Digre is a NASM-certified personal trainer who leads online training groups now open for registration: Fierce Definition (12 Weeks to Muscle Definition that Makes People Look Twice)and Lean & Strong. With over 15 years of lifting experience, Suzanne writes at workoutnirvana.com, where she shares her passion for and expertise in strength training and clean eating.
Suzanne loves to connect on social media. Find her at:
Thanks Suzanne! I’ll be sure to make my Strength and Sweat class lift heavier tomorrow. I’ll tell them to BREAK the MIDDLE GROUND!
Cheers,
LC
https://contentrally.com/top-10-muscle-strength-building-exercise-home/
All exercises are not treated equally. Some exercises are meant for building muscle and strength and most of us think that the only way we can do that is picking up a pair of heavyweights at the gym. But the truth is you can build muscle and strength at home too and without picking any weight, just picking up your own body weight can notch up your muscle building strength way higher!
strength building exercises
All exercises are not treated equally. Some exercises are meant for building muscle and strength and most of us think that the only way we can do that is picking up a pair of heavyweights at the gym. But the truth is you can build muscle and strength at home too and without picking any weight, just picking up your own body weight can notch up your muscle building strength way higher!
mohd shahnawaz
you have written a really great article.keep up the good work
Paul
I followed your blog on facebook and found this article. It’s an interesting read and workout routine is quite detailed. I will share this with my wife.
Edgar
A special appreciation for writing this post Lindsay 🙂
James
Great post as always. Most of the time I get too lazy with tracking my workouts though. Do you know if there is conveniently an iphone app that helps do this? Thanks!
Cotter Crunch
not sure. There probably is! Will have to look into that
Jenn Speer
I love this and perfect timing for a reminder as I work on building my own program. It’s time to get a bad ass body (that can run marathons, hehe). Great job of breaking it down to be easily understandable, a definite share with my followers.
John @ Garage Gyms
Tracking workouts is probably one of the best tools for making any gains in the gym. I think that anyone who has been at it a while knows this, and it’s the best advise you can give someone just starting out.
Giselle
So, should we be lowering our weight when we up reps? I am in the “lifting heavy without breaking form mode” right now and find that I can do 4 sets of low reps at a higher weight, but struggle doing the same weight with a higher rep range. Are we supposed to lower the weight slighlty when increasing reps or is the goal to still use the same weight regardless of reps?
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Hey Giselle,
Lower reps means you’re lifting more weight. Higher reps means you’re lifting lighter weight. Therefore, the number of reps you can do dictates the amount of weight you lift. So no, you won’t try to lift the same amount of weight every time. Varying the weight you lift (and thus the reps) ensures that you don’t overtrain and your muscles are continuously working to adapt :).
Sarah @ Beauty School Dropout
Suzanne, I learn so much every time I read one of your posts! Thank you for sharing this.
LCCotter
she is the best, isn’t she?!
Lucie@FitSwissChick
Thanks for these great tips!! I always plan my workouts but never really paid attention on reps – definitely going to change that!!
Laura @ Mommy Run Fast
Such awesome tips!! Marking this for future reference. Thanks, Lindsay!
Lydia
I’m currently working through a strength building routine (Wendler) so I loved reading this! Great post and great info!
Pamela Hernandez
I love shaking things up – high reps and low reps. I just hate it when I have to do high reps of lunges or step ups. Ugh they go on forever. 🙂
GiGi Eats Celebrities
I am completely jealous right now. I THOUGHT I WAS YOUR GIRL-CRUSH!! Haaaaaa RUMPH!
LCCotter
okay i have two crushes!!
jobo
Great post! I think it’s also really helpful to explain the differences, and to understand that there ARE differences, and it’s not all about lifting heavy all the time or high reps all the time per se, either.
LCCotter
agreed!!
Morganne @ Nut Butter Runner
This is incredibly helpful! Thanks so much for the insight and breaking it all down!
Cat
This was a really useful post – I knew a little about varying reps for strength or muscle but this really broke it down for me! Thank you
Laura @ Sprint 2 the Table
Love this! We do a lot of these in my training program. I’m on a 15 rep cycle right now and it is HARD! I much prefer the heavier weights and fewer reps, but confusing the muscle leads to growth!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
I hear that. 15 reps are my absolute least favorite, have to force myself ;).
Linz @ Itz Linz
very informative post! thanks for sharing! 🙂
LCCotter
how you doing mama?! been thinking about you!
Kim @ Hungry Healthy Girl
This was super helpful info! I’ve been concentrating on doing more reps. For the next three weeks, I’m going to shift my focus to lower reps and heavier weight. Squat day tomorrow!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Yes! Get it!
Kim
This is awesome!!! I think I’m sort of stuck in that middle ground and need to try some of the cycling tips shared here!
Kelly @ Cupcake Kelly's
I loved this post, had a lot of material I had never really heard, thanks for sharing this!
Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl
As someone who just started focusing more on strength training, this is SUPER helpful! Thanks so much for sharing 🙂
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
I’m so glad it helps Hannah!
Abby @ Change of Pace
Such a great guest post- thank you! Sometimes we all need the reminder to break out of the middle ground and push ourselves a little.
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Thanks Abby!
Brittany @ Delights and Delectables
love this! I’m starting a girl crush on her too!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Hehe, I love all you ladies. Generous and smart. Bam.
Heather (Where's the Beach)
Great post! I am most definitely in a rut with the 8 rep (sometimes 10 depending on the exercise) range. And the worst part is, I am a trainer and know better. I don’t set up clients’ rotations like that. Of course, that’s now my problem. I don’t really set up rotations for myself the way I should.
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Still so easy to slide into the 8-10 range! I do it myself, too.
Krysten Siba Bishop (@darwinianfail)
Suzanne is one of my girl crushes too!! So fierce so strong!!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Oh boy, that is totally mutual Krysten! <33
sarah@ feeeding the brain and body
This is a fantastic post with really original content. I especially enjoyed it because I know I need to increase my weight lifting!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Thanks Sarah!
Jody - Fit at 56
I love me some Suzanne!!! We are sistas from afar AND our bday is on the same day! How appropriate is that for us weight lifitng lovers!!!!
LCCotter
another reason i love you both!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Yep – weightlifting Scorpios.. look out!!
Meg @ A Dash of Meg
Great post Suzanne 😀 so up my alley and I couldn’t agree more 😀 I was always at 8 reps for the LONGEST time because, I too, am comfortable with that amount! It is in my comfort zone, but for the past 3 months I have been doing less reps more often and still throwing in some 8 – 10 reps here and there and have made more results than I have in the past 😀
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
So happy to hear that Meg!
Carla
I was just saying to a friend yesterday how AWESOME the Workout Nirvana is!!!
Yes muscle’y 🙂 but also articulate and smart.
LCCotter
could not agree more!!
Suzanne @WorkoutNirvana
Well that just completely makes my day Carla! And back at you both xoxo