Mass Gains

[The Rose]

Can someone help me out?

Mass (big muscles) = low reps, heavy weights

If this is correct then what benefits will high reps, lower weights give you?

 

[THE_GAME]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think it's definition.

 

[The Rose]

The Game, I think definition can be achieved with isolation exercises even at lower reps, heavy weights!

 

[Mifody]

definition is achieved through proper diet, bringing your bodyfat level down.
higher reps like roughly12+ is for endurance though i'm not exactly sure what that means..

then again i've heard of people doing like 20 rep squats for gaining size and strength

 

[lwb357]

20 rep squats speed up your metabolism, but it only works for squats.

 

[w8lifter]

There's sort of a grey area as far as what you're talking about. Generally speaking, 85-100% of your 1RM for 1-5 reps will lead to greater strength gains. 70-85% for 8-10 reps will lead to hypertrophy. Below about 70% for greater than 12 reps will lead to muscle endurance.

However, there is a bit of an overlap....for example, a person could gain both size and strength doing 85% for 5-8 reps, though probably not as fast as if he/she trained for one or the other.

Other things also come into play, such as cadence, number of sets, number of exercises, etc.

 

[Mace]

High weight, low rep= mass and explosive strength.
Ex: Power lifters, wrestlers.

Low weight, high rep= tone and endurance strength.
Ex: Marathon runners, swimmers.

 

[gopro]

This is not a simple issue. Each muscle in our bodies is made up of several muscle fiber types and sub-types. Each of these fibers are stimulated by different rep ranges and training techniques. Although, in general, a rep range of 7-12 will produce the most hypertrophy, other rep ranges, lower and higher, will stimulate the growth of other muscle fibers. Muscles will also get larger by becoming more efficient at storing nutrients(cell volume), like glycogen, creatine, etc...and this is best accomplished through high rep training.

For complete development perform the majority of your work sets to failure in the 7-12 rep range, but don't neglect work in the 1-6 range and the 15-20 or more range.

 

[Arnold]

I agree with gopro.

For the most part, I believe that using lighter weight and higher reps is better for endurance training.

However, once in awhile I will perform some sets this way for a different type of stimulation.

 

[Orange357]

why not do a heavy weight set 1-5 reps then pull back weight and do a lighter set 6-10 or so bets of both worlds I have done it before adn will be doing it again once i get back into the gym..

 

[Arnold]

Originally posted by Orange357
why not do a heavy weight set 1-5 reps then pull back weight and do a lighter set 6-10 or so bets of both worlds I have done it before adn will be doing it again once i get back into the gym..

Sure, you can.

I do not think there is a black and white answer to this, experiment and find out what works best for you.

 

[GodLift]

Low reps do not mean more bulk (as commonly believed)