no burn...?

[NiceGuy]

I just started working out again, but it is the first time I am really trying to build up though. And I know that Im supposed to do low reps with heavy weight. The first couple days I did curls(reps of 5, 5 times with 160lbs).

For the first couple of days I felt the burn, but now I dont. It is probably the 4th day doing 160lbs. For instance, I did reps the other day, my regular set of 5, but then I decided to keep on going, so I did 10 reps of 5( I stay at the gym along time so, I guess Im trying to say that I have to push myself to get the last one up). I should still feel the burn right? I skip days when working out with my arms so I dont get burnt out(every other day I work out arms). Should I start doing more weight? or is it possible that I dont feel the burn is because I am "burnt out" which I dont think I am. What are your suggestions?

-Nice Guy

 

[Skib]

I never really feel a burn when I work out my biceps... especially when I do curls with a BB... try doing preacher curls, or hammer curls... if you have a buddy to work out with, try doing pyramid curls... I usually feel the burn from those 3 exercises...

 

[Skib]

also, i don't know how big you are but 5 reps at 160 lbs is nothing really...

 

[Fit Freak]

The answer IMO is simple...overtraining...training your arms every other days is ridiculous! Once per week is fine...stop and think how small the bicep is compared to larger muscles in the back and legs.

Also make sure to utilize different exercises and work on gradually increasing weight. Second thought...keep rests to about a minute or so when training arms...this will also help keep the blood localized in the arms thereby intensifying your pump.

 

[NiceGuy]

Ok, now that I know Im overtraining the arms, I have another question. I would like to build up and I ask advice from just about everyone on what would be a good routine, and they usually give me different answers. For example some say I should do low reps of 5 with heavy weight, and some say I should do reps of 15 with lighter weight. What has worked for you all?

 

[ZECH]

Originally posted by Skib
also, i don't know how big you are but 5 reps at 160 lbs is nothing really...

That is a 45, 10, and 2.5 on each side of a regular Bar! I don't know too many guys that could do that! Not with good form!

 

[spire]

I know that drop sets really make my arms burn.

 

[Fit Freak]

Drop sets are good but doing them frequently also leads to overtraining.

Everyone gives different info because we're all different...you have to take the info and try it out...see what works BEST for YOU

For my...my arms respond well to working sets in the 8-12 range. I'm not a big fan of anything less than 8 reps for arms...excepts maybe the odd set here and there...maybe like 5 or 6 reps. I almost always work through all rep ranges...15, 12, 10, 8, and as I said never lower than 5 or 6.

I can't stress this enough though...experiement...see what works for U!

 

[Mudge]

High reps allow for lactic acid build up which is the burn you feel, which means most of the time that your either doing your reps very slowly or doing high reps, neither of which normally are claimed to gain lots of muscle mass.

Ride a bike as fast as you can for 10 minutes and you'll get a burn, but it wont make you beefy. Do some curls with 20 pound dumbells as many times as you can and you'll get a burn too.

I'm 6'2" and even at 240 could never curl 160 for even 1 good rep.

 

[Skib]

Originally posted by dg806
That is a 45, 10, and 2.5 on each side of a regular Bar! I don't know too many guys that could do that! Not with good form!

LOL

whoops!

i read that as 60 lbs

posting in the morning 5 minutes after you get out of bed will do that

 

[Skib]

if there's any good advice anyone will ever give you it's this

Originally posted by Fit Freak
Everyone gives different info because we're all different...you have to take the info and try it out...see what works BEST for YOU

don't ever accept someone else advice as being the only way or the best way for you... experiment a little and see what gives YOU results...

i know what works for my biceps and it's as follows:

80 lb preacher curls at 3 sets of 8 reps
25 lb hammer curls at 3 sets of 8 reps

that's pretty much all i ever do for biceps... they get worked enough indirectly when i train other muscle groups...

if i feel like giving them a little bit more of a pump i may just do a few sets of standing standard BB curls...

 

[Freeman]

I read somewhere that Lee Priest curled 315lbs for one rep once...

is it wierd that I can do that single-arm??
jk

 

[olusco]

You can not go heavy every week workout. If go heavy you might be bulky and not have the definition of a bodybuilder. The theory is that you go heavy some weeks and light weight in other weeks. That means you body will be at a shock. For example doing shoulder you have to use lighter weight and more reps likewise in other parts of the body.

 

[Mudge]

The record a number of years back for the 1 arm was 185, I am not sure of the diameter of the bar but powerlifters use that also to classify several lifts. I have seen pix of a bodybuilder doing 315 pound curls, thats friggin madness. Achim Albrecht who later became a wrestler, dont know what he's doing now. He was originally an amateur boxer.

 

[perfecto]

try doing supersets with biceps, for example a set of 10-12 reps of cable bicep curl, followed by a set of 10-12 reps of db curls - seems to give a very nice burn

 

[ZECH]

Originally posted by olusco
You can not go heavy every week workout. If go heavy you might be bulky and not have the definition of a bodybuilder. The theory is that you go heavy some weeks and light weight in other weeks. That means you body will be at a shock. For example doing shoulder you have to use lighter weight and more reps likewise in other parts of the body.

Going heavy will not make you bulky with no definition!!! Not sure where you got that? It will build big muscles! Definition comes from diet! I do agree about not going heavy all the time. It is hard on your joints and tendons. You need a break every so often.

 

[Mudge]

Bulky or cut is diet

 

[Fit Freak]

Bulky or cut is diet

EXACTLY.....

 

[eskimo515]

I try to stay in the 8-10 reps for biceps. Going really heavy only once in a while because it is not as effective. I have seen more development on my bis in the last month when I have working mod weight for 12-17 reps than I did trying to stick to 5-8 rep range. But FF is right, you can learn here but you have to apply it specifically to what your body needs. Took me a while to figure that out!

 

[perfecto]

is it correct to say that smaller muscles such as bi's, tri's, abs, traps, etc need higher number of reps rather than larger muscles like chest, back, legs which need heavier sets of lower reps?

 

[Freeman]

sounds good in theory, but I mean, I htink it's all a matter of preference..you can go up to 10 different pro body builders and get 10 different responses when asking about their workout routines. I am trying to add mass and strength so I have been trying to go heavy with everything..but I still try to hit higher reps as well..for example, I'll do bb curls with high weight low reps...and then some dumbells or preacher curls doing the same thing...then, I'll do concentration curls or stand cable curls (arms raised, pulling towards head) for higher reps at the end of my workout to get the peaks built up.

 

[Mudge]

Originally posted by perfecto
is it correct to say that smaller muscles such as bi's, tri's, abs, traps, etc need higher number of reps rather than larger muscles like chest, back, legs which need heavier sets of lower reps?

Opinions will differ, but actually I hear and see the opposite. 20 rep squats are commonplace again, 20-30 reps for calves is typical.

Now look at the really big guys, and most of thier bicep movements are 6-8 reps, like http://www.bodybuilding.com/bodybuilders/francois.htm Mike Francois (retired now).

So it would seem if the above is optimal that larger and/or more stubborn muscles need more reps, what does this do for the body I can't say, is it TUT that does it, fiber type, a combination of factors or who knows. Some people also like to change up rep speed from one workout to the next, perhaps even one bodypart to another.

A generic theory I read was that TUT should be 45-60 seconds in the set for hypertrophy, does this apply honestly to all muscle groups I would not see how, since most people doing a 6-8 rep set of curls would be under that figure.

 

[ZECH]

I have always went on theory that heavy weight in 6-10 rep range will build size. More reps than that will build endurance, but not necessarily size. I have seen where calves take higher reps 15-20 because it is such a tough muscle!

 

[Freeman]

Originally posted by dg806
I have always went on theory that heavy weight in 6-10 rep range will build size. More reps than that will build endurance, but not necessarily size. I have seen where calves take higher reps 15-20 because it is such a tough muscle!

I agree.

 

[olusco]

It seems everyone should try all the theory of building mass or strength, endurance with low and high rep afterward to see which one is going to give good result. In my gym, I have seen guys doing bench presses pounding 5 plates each side and have no definition of bb. Honestly not all of them are effective in our body.

 

[Mudge]

What I found says, that certain larger, more stubborn muscles require higher reps "due to thier ability to re-oxygenate rapidly." So since calves and legs are walked on all day, this is what would make them "stubborn."