Why You DON'T Need to Lift Heavy or Hit Failure to Build Muscle | Dr. Brad Schoenfeld
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- Опубліковано 12 лют 2024
- When you hit the gym, there's a lot to consider: What exercises should you do? How many sets & reps? How often should you train? It can be overwhelming. In this video, expect to learn:
• Why lifting heavy (1-3 rep sets) isn't necessary for muscle growth
• Why it's possible to gain muscle with 30+ rep sets
• How many reps short of failure you should stop (and whether hitting failure has any benefits)
• The minimum effective dose (sets per muscle group per week) for muscle growth
• Why volume is a driver of hypertrophy (and the optimal number of sets per muscle group per week)
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plz tell me will 15 to 20 minutes of indoor cycling will be enough if its performed at 60 % to 70% that is my heart rate maximum being 183 and during exerse for 20 m if its around 140 to 150 plz reply dear
I’m 48, at this point my goal is to do what I like. Most of the time it’s a lighter weight with high reps and sets. All that matters to me is getting to the gym and moving.
I'm 44, my problem isn't working hard enough, it's often working too hard then fighting days of fatigue afterwards.
I'm guessing that gym is PLANET FITNESS
I would recommend the channel anabolic aliens there are these 5min dumbbell workouts that just crank highly recommend
👍👍 all my workouts are feel good workouts now
@@dannyzuehlsdorf3697what's wrong with planet fitness?
4:30 "u need to challenge your muscles", is basically saying you need to approach failure.
it seems all what count is bringing your Muscle close to failure. But its not nescessary to bring you Muscle always to absolute Failure
@@whenisasnakeatail4933you are spot on. well said.
@@whenisasnakeatail4933 I agree with your general point but if you’re failing via your cardiovascular or pulmonary system from lifting, you are in very poor shape and possibly health. Like a super heavyweight powerlifter.
@@HkFinn83ur comment is void
Absolute Failure is like dropping weight in an unsafe way, so you should never reach 100% failure. But you MUST get close to stimulate the muscle to growth@@flow1188
I’m almost 55 and never train to failure now.
I was a highly competitive natural powerlifter in my 20’s. I ran around about 265-275 lbs. Every workout seemed near-death, looking back. My joints abandoned me long ago.
I now emphasize quality of whatever life I have left; I walk tons, run 150-200 flights of stairs a week and mix in whole body mobility/HIIT workouts. I’m in my best shape living my best life at about 185 lbs these days.
These conversations reinforce my new-found philosophy. I’m hoping to have the mobility to give grandchildren quality time in the future, as well as being able maintain the positive outlook being in shape gives me.
This is what it's all about as we get older. You made a smart adjustment and added quality and years to your life.
I can appreciate the honesty here.
Though I don’t think it has to necessarily be about failure or not. If you’re doing higher reps with a lighter weight, failure still mentally taxing, but probably won’t mess with your joints. Doing 3 reps that is a rep or two away from failure could still cause joint issues because the weight is so much heavier.
How tall are you?
I love to lift heavy, it makes me feel alive. Although, for me it’s not always practical. I feel the body is extremely adaptive so I feel I need to mix it up and do both.
I think mixing it up is key.
Periodization. A real deal
If you want to get bigger you must get sttonger. Cit:
Reg Park, Steve Reeves, Arnold, Mike Mentzer
@@ediri8354 yes for dense muscle you need to lift heavy in the 5-6 rep range and then switch to moderate weight 😊
I’m 67 and workout 7 days a week of weights, body weight exercises, endurance (rowing and running) , and seem to recover fine. The key variables for me are sleep and diet. As he said there is a spectrum of genetics etc for the population.
Unfortunately most of the population at the gym spends the majority of their time staring at their phones
maybe you arent training very hard at all. You seem to imagine it is superior genetics, which is quite amusing. Maybe you are just training in a really feeble manner.
57 here. I heartily agree on proper rest and diet being of paramount importance when training as you age. An extremely close second would be be technique. You can achieve great things despite having the worst technique imaginable when you’re young. However, your body is completely unforgiving of sloppy technique from mid-fifties onwards…I’ve discovered.
Agreed!
Im mid-40’s & get an hour in every day.
4 days a week - strength
2 days a week - pickleball & spinning
1 day a week - lazy…
Sleep & diet make me recover better & keep me energized/focused at work
@@E-Z-E_77
I made the most progress in both strength and muscle mass around my 30-th when I lowered frequency from 6, 7 to 3, 4 and even less when I felt I needed the rest.
you definitely need to throw in a rest day here and there... a body in some ways is similar to a machine... and you WILL grind it down over time... especially at your age... rest is difficult to figure out though for most people, because first of all, we are different and there additional variables in life that go even beyond the variance between people... but then on top of it, necessary rest is kind of like quenching thirst....
meaning, you're supposed to stay hydrated, not just drink when you're thirsty, because if you ever notice, once you've developed a true thirst, drinking doesn't satisfy it, it takes time to rehydrate and bring your body into equilibrium again... it's the same with rest... rest is a pre-caution, if you figure out what the proper intervals are for you specifically you will never get yourself to a point that your body just feels tired and worn out... because once you reach that state, taking a day off at that point is TOO LATE... you've crossed that line, now you have to take a much longer period for your body to get back to what is normal...
i've managed to get a real good feel for what my body requires and when and i have a 3 day training cycle that i repeat over and over... and my rest is WHENEVER i decide... so i might do 5 days straight then take a day off, then 3 more days training, then take one off then do 6 straight days and take a day or maybe even 2 off... i've learned to understand what my body requires to keep going and remain in a good state
never taking a day off is not good for anyone... even if your muscles recover (though i doubt it at the age you say) there is no way the connective tissues that bear the actual damage of friction do... cartilage, bones, ligaments, tendons, those are the things that wear out, it's not the muscles really
anyway, everyone work out and stay healthy and reach your goals
The toughest part of this for people new to lifting weights is understanding what 1 to 3 reps in reserve really feels like. Several studies have shown that people (especially the untrained with weight lifting) drastically under estimate when they are at failure on an exercise by 5 or more reps.
Learning what failure and approaching failure feels like is definitely part of the learning curve for new lifters. I don't think it's hard to pick up, though.
Always a good idea to test failure on machines if you are new
For me a set that goes all the way to failure feels very different if I am fresh or my muscles are already pre-fatigued by a tough set or two. Going to failure from fresh is typically pretty goddamn brutal. It’s because those last few reps are so slow and painful I think that noobs think they couldn’t possibly have a whole handful of them left in the tank. Now if my muscles are already fatigued it isn’t pleasant going to failure but the muscles will just kind of peter out at some point.
The best kind of exercise is the one you do.
Except if you do it wrong
Like my neighbor who rides his bicycle for five minutes on a flat road once every three weeks. 🤣
Definitely not. The best kind of exercise for you is the one that trains that thing that you want to be good at most effectively. That's pretty much it.
This comment has no meaning
better than nothing. a small step is better than no step. @@danielleal1037
The biggest problem with heavy loads is that you have to go to (or own) a gym (for doing bar exercises). Lifting light lets you work with dumbbells, which lets you workout at home, which removes a major hurdle for many people.
I agree. But even using dumbbells is prone to injury and they are not cheap either. Some people may find using resistance bands beneficial.
@@ScienceAppliedForGood Agreed. If you can do everything with resistance bands, you can bring your whole gym with you in a bag.
I have boulders all over my acreage and I use them to exercise - overhead presses, carries, bent over pulls, etc….I haven't been in a gym for almost two decades and I may be even stronger now. Of course the boulders are not symmetrical or evenly weighted, so I need to work even harder to work with them. Also, the air out here in the country is invigorating. 🍀
I just have a bench and I do shoulder press and bench press with a bar 110 kg
@@damo9961 I,m 69 and do the same , bit of arm work , and carnivore , feel great .
I think the problem with recommending that amateurs avoid failure is that they consistently underestimate the number of reps which are in reserve on any given set. Even experienced professionals often think they are closer to failure than they are, so it's generally best to train with the *intention* of reaching failure. In that scenario, the trainee is more likely to more likely to reach 1 - 3 reps close to failure consistently than to overtrain.
Even schoynfelt doesn’t train to failure. Find a video of him training and be amazed what he considers failure. Then consider if he is in any position to take a position on “reps in reserve” “volume” or anything else.
That's true. Having a couple months training to failure is good experience. But in the long term its unnecessary
Once your form breaks down you’re near failure. Continuing will just drain your energy and hurt the rest of your workout.
@@rzadigi nobody should be continuing with an exercise after form failure. But it can be good to switch to an easier variation or reduce the weight and keep on working the muscle with good form because form failure is very far away from muscular failure, and sometimes muscular failure is the shock you need to continue growth. A beginner might be able to grow muscle by stopping at form failure, but eventually you will need to work closer to muscular failure than stopping at form failure will allow.
At 61 I have found my muscles may be strong but I still have 61 year old joints. I have had to lighten my loads, increase my reps while increasing my workout time unfortunately. Rather be young and lift heavy but age has caught up with me.
Yep 69 here. Joints hurt like hell on heavy. Had to lighten the pounds. Still feels great.
Add isometric with light weight.. helped me a lot
Been going for pink dumbbells myself.. wow surprise.. I got shoulders for the first time. I Never did with any form of heavy exercise.
Glad to know you're doing the right thing and continuing to lift. Its proven to be good for your overall health in many ways. Make your light weights heavy by performing slow controlled reps and reduce your reps. Your joints will also thank you for this. High reps can cause the tendons and ligaments overuse, inflammation and pain. Most importantly, find what works for you and stick with it.
You might prefer resistance bands with gloves (e.g. Undersun fitness bands), they are supposed to be much easier on the joints.
I'm 70 and have been exercising with light weights about 4-5 days a week doing a total body routine for about 45 minutes a day. This includes stretching before and after. I do one set of 6-7 exercises, around 20 reps each, with some variation based on the exercise. I've been at it for four years. I take around 8 gms of creatine a day, not always when exercising. I'm eating healthier too, keeping junk food, starches and sugar low. And I can say that my body posture and physique have significantly improved. I also feel better emotionally and mentally.
i have never put on muscle or maintained muscle easily.
i had a bad leg break at 47 years old. it took years to make a comeback. at 56 what worked the best for rebuilding my muscles and strength and balance had been lots of protein and lifting heavy. i do this with a trainer and it’s been life changing
That's really inspiring, I'm 52 and recently lost a heap of weight and muscle from meds withdrawal, I've got a bit of a journey and need to start lifting, so stories like yours are very motivating 💪 🙏
Great stuff! As a senior of 64 , and a life long "go big or go home" lifter , my joints and thank you for this interview , Dr's Shoenfeld and Patrick
Just do a couple of medium weight sets, slowly, very slowly and deliberately. And warm up before that with one short set with a light weight and rest a minute. You will reach required muscular fatigue without hurting your joints and tendons and without the volume that causes inflammation and systemic exhaustion. Do not do more working sets than two per muscle group. Exercise every fourth day. When 100% fresh. Deliberately do not go back ti the gym before that. Even every fifth day if you are not 100% on day four. Try this for one month, and if things go well for you, keep it to yourself. No-one will believe that less is more, you will look stupid while moving your weights in slow-mo, but your enthusiastic comment in the wrong direction, I don’t want to see you disappointed again. Let the other fools do whatever the duff corporate sponsored ‘science’ tells them to do.
High intensity slow weight training rep speed 10 seconds up 10 seconds down. To failure with light weights set lasting 90seconds with about 6 compound exercises 1 set per body part once or twice a week as in doug mcguffs book body by science give it ago
Finally, some pragmatic perspectives on these topics. No hype, no supplement sales just solid info. Thank you.
For strength/hypertrophy it seems pretty clear now you don’t need to go to failure. However I still think it’s the best general advice. The problem with reps in reserve is the number of people getting it wrong. We’ve all seen the regulars at the gym who never make any progress and train with very low intensity. Meanwhile there’s a huge variety of training styles that do work as long as failure is regularly reached.
It's not the best general advice at all because it's just not necessary. The amount of "extra" muscle you MIGHT gain by always going to failure will be negligible.
It's also great news for people primarily using their bodyweight.
Pull-ups and chin-ups 💪
Not for leg training. It's too easy to do bodyweight squats.
@@ganjagangja
So, for one example, you can do 3-5 sets of 40 repetitions of pistol squats?
@michaelkulman7095 yeah after a short time that would be easy for most. The limiting factor in pistol squats will be balance and mobility . You will never overload your legs with anything bodyweight, without use of anything to add resistance. Show us your pistol squats legs then?😅
@@ganjagangja How about one leg sissy squats? Spanish squats, quad blaster squats?
Few were or have tried to exploit 30-40 reps for hypertrophy...
If that holds there's some potential, mostly unexplored because people thought it was like 12 reps or 15...at the top...
Along with weights of course, Tom Platz did two leg sissy squats without weights in addition to the usual things...
There's some potential for more strength and hypertrophy than people think...
As I said it's good news for those interested in such things...
I didn't say other things don't work...
I haven't personally seen people doing 3-5 sets of 40 pistol squats or sissy squats or one legged sissy squats...
If I had I'd say that was pretty impressive though and there is more potential in that than people previously thought and that it was "good news" for people interested in bodyweight exercises.
With trivial amounts of weight added, by leg standards, it seems like even extreme levels would be on the table, if they aren't otherwise.
Not everyone is interested in extreme levels anyway...and have different ideas about what that means...
I don't feel I said anything unreasonable.
No one said barbells didn't work.
"Good news" doesn't mean other things don't work, might work better, or be more efficient, convenient or optimal...
I mean as soon as you go on one leg at a time workouts take longer...
There's more opportunities to get more out of bodyweight exercises if 30-40 reps are on the table, that's what I said essentially and I think that's perfectly reasonable, defensible.
There is even more potential for legs than previously thought to quite a high level.
If you want to say legs are still potentially problematic at a VERY high level...,
okay...I guess...
but I've never seen someone do high rep one leg sissy squats either...
So...okay...whatever...my definition of "good news" or "quite a high level"
might be different than yours.
40 years ago my best friend had one of those old fashion sets of weights, plastic filled with sand or concrete maybe. He only had about 70 lbs total. He'd do sets of 50 or more for bench press. He built a hell of a chest. Have always known high rep light weight could build muscle.
wouldn't he just be better off doing push ups at that point?
@@notimportant3686 you'd probably be better off doing different variations of push ups not just a regular one. Planche, pike, elevated, decline. But it's just easier to sit on a bench and pump away. Push ups are a full body thing
I had one of those. I think it went up to 115 pounds.
I am happy to see this. I have multiple injuries in both shoulders and heavy loads create serious pain.
The "gurus" keep talking about How, When, Where, etc. & all you need is to just lift with good form on certain lifts and stop overcomplicating things other than that unless you are lifting for a specific sport, goal etc. JUST DO IT 😁 Thank you for the information 👍🏽
You don't need to learn any lift if you want to grow old. None of the centenarian populations do any exercise. They garden or walk around throughout their day, which is not exertion so doesn't fit the idea of "exercise."
At some point you need to get nerdy to make more gains. If you're in your newbie stage, of course you can do whatever and make progress. Later you'll have to start getting more technical
@@Jake_RF Not everyone is obsessed with "gains". Only so much you can gain anyway until you hit the roids. The point is to keep muscles functioning, strong, and healthy for life. All that obsession with "gains' is ridiculous and will not help anyone except someone with a fragile ego trying to impress themselves and others by appearing big and strong and thus superior. Basically it's an ego trip. "ITS THE GAINS, BRO" mentality is halarious
@@-whackd yes, it’s likely true that any of the current or past centenarians simply won the genetic lottery. There’s so much variation in their reported lifestyles, diet etc. However those of us interested in this topic, and I assume we all are because we’re here, want to find something ideal or at least better than simply hoping for the best or trusting to fate.
@@1122redbird if you want to stay mediocre this is a great mindset. Why be great when you can be average right? 👍 Most people have no clue what their genetic potential is, because they're too lazy to try.
Fascinating. This is very good to know. Thank you. Great video.
I’m 72, had 2 Rt rotator surgeries and 1 left rotator surgery.. always been athletic and worked out… ( only the left rotator injury was due to working out- dips!!!).
In September I noticed a tightness in my left rotator .. a few workouts later I was doing sets of pushups and than picked up a 45 lb dumbbell for curls- felt something pop in the left shoulder and thought …”.. damn another surgery!””
Took 2 weeks off and decided to try some light overhead presses with a 5 lb dumbbell to see what kind of damage I did… luckily done I could tell- might have been a tendon that slipped ( my guess- I’m not a doctor 🥴)
So NEW workout needed!!! Started doing yoga stretches every morning , plus at the end doing marching in place with overhead press with 5 lb dumbbell ( Lft leg & arm up/ etc). Did 40 at first (20 eac 4:13 4:13 h arm) and than built up to 100…. Plus 100 curls ( 50 each). Yup broke out in a sweat!!!
When I tried barbell press I found I hadn’t lost any power - this was 2 months after that injury…. So I did the same with 8 lb dumbbells everyday and found that I could actually barbell press heavier than before… Also wound up with bigger biceps which I didn’t expect.
Being 72+ I’m happy to realize that I can benefit from light weights / high reps ( yes it has to burn) and still gain some strength
Dips are extremely dangerous
Start hanging from a bar. Assisted at first if it is too painful. Work up to 30 sec...then the long term goal is 3 mins.
Hi reps with low weight may have strengthened the tendon as well as the muscle.
Big mistake people dont training the support muscles as rotator and loweback etc...than get inbalanced body
Fantastic info! TY!
Great to hear some sanity on this issue. I'm 54 and never go to failure. Always chuckle at all the influencers punting that without including the issue of injuring yourself then being off for weeks and months or never getting back to that level again.
Combining “long” periods of high repetition (20-25 reps) low load followed by equally long periods of low reps (6-8) high load have worked great for me. It has allowed me to improve technique, increase muscular endurance, increase strength
Always great information
As a body builder and sprinter, i focus solely on maximizing strength gains and muscular size, and I’ve tried all types of rep and set ranges as well as tempos, rest between sets and recovery time, I’ve found that for me personally, i make the most significant changes when i reach an apex of exertion in my training, whether I’m dumbbell pressing 85s for 25+ reps to failure, or trying to go as heavy as i could and generate the lost amount of force. If there isn’t a point in which my body isn’t screaming at me to stop, i don’t make nearly as much progress, but then again what i love lost about training is redlining and continuously pushing my body to it’s limits and then surpassing again
I experienced well the "neuromotor fatigue" is terrible in multijoint training. I use to write down my reps and in the next session I simply try to do one more. This limits the risk of injury and limit the fatigue shortening the recovery time. For me is essential, because I''m a karate master and I have no days off ( I train myself 6 days per week).
yep
Great clip! We coaches that have been doing this for decades have always know that because we have experienced a wide variety of clients- its great when researchers speak with us folks that are in the trenches doing the work every day and drive research around our work. Thanks Brad!
Does Brad even lift? He doesn't look like he does.
Good stuff as always from Rhonda
Personal experience, higher reps result in more irritation to connective tissue and cause more inflammation in previously injured joints. Of note, the injuries were not sustained while lifting. One very good alternative is to make light weights heavy by going through a very slow range of motion on each rep. Put the muscle under a longer time under tension. If you have high rep limitations due to connective tissue problems as I do, this is a good alternative.
Age 62, work out alone in my basement so definitely don't do crazy heavy lifts. Shoulder injury last Sept that took 5 month to be 100% but finally there. Been slowly increasing my weights but do think especially as you get older it is more about protein than weight. Muscle tone is getting good!
@@wendym2544 70 lbs on a single bar for shoulder presses
Both
as you age, your body tends to work smarter, not harder. it's good to hear an expert confirm what a lot of us already do, just by listening to our bodies. one day, i decided to mimic push-ups on the bench, instead of doing my usual bench routine, which was to warm up at 135, then 10 reps of 185, and two sets of 5-7 reps at 225, how about i just stay at 135 until failure. around the fifth set, it was just as challenging as heavy weight, so my new goal was to get to 10 sets of 10 at 135, and the results have been on par with my heavy lifting. plus, i'm sure this is also training my body to still lift heavy
Wow. I really hate going to the gym and exerting myself so hard I feel like crap. This gives me hope that there might be a method that is easier yet still gets results.
I am 66 and workout 6 days a week with weights, treadmill, and rowing machine. Each day I work a different body part (back, biceps, legs, abs, triceps, shoulders, chest) with abs 3x per week. For me, lifting lighter weights with high reps (20-25) for only one set works for me. Once I achieve 25 reps then I increase the weight by 5 pounds and repeat the cycle. Similar to what Mike Mentzer promoted.
The muscle only grows for about 2 days after a stimulus. So your results would probably double if you'd at least train each muscle group twice a week.
I wish they would have addressed training duration. Does it take weeks, months, years, decades? I know that depends on desired outcomes and determining what a finish line would be, but that would sure be a helpful discussion.
Intensity of effort and progressive overload!
I remember when I was 16 and started working out, I didn't have many weights so I just did curls until I couldn't do them anymore. I always felt I had decent gains doing so many. I have also always questioned why certain exercises, with heavy loads would always make me struggle doing the last few reps, but would never feel a burn like I would if I did lighter loads. I always question if I should feel burning in the muscles I worked.
The variables are Time over Effort...coupled with sleep and an ancesterally appropriate diet. You have to also have periodisation. Yes you have to lift heavy but set against the above background landscape.
True, especially cycling through periods of types of lifts and intensity. I never got the mesocycle thing but I have 4 cycles of 13 weeks where I change things up and find it’s psychologically easier, less stressful, enjoyable, and able to meet my goals.
In those cycles I have breaks and do fasting and that’s been key. Periodic resting and fasting is just a great reset for the mind, body, and soul.
What I like to do is leave 1-2 reps in reserve for all compound lifts and then take all isolation exercises to absolute failure doing one set per.
Going to failure on isolation doesn't tax the CNS and is a lot safer too. If you fail on a rep of barbell curls or lateral raises for example, there is zero danger. But failing on bench press is a different story. 😆
The one set failure training for all isolation is a game changer because you save so much time. The other day for my upper body workout, I was done after only 10 total sets.
How many reps and sets would you recommend for people 80 and older who do resistance training at least 5 days a week?
Good stuff!
Everyone is unique and needs a routine special for them
Train sensibly.
leave 10/15% in the tank on each exercise.
Heavier weights & less reps to increase strength.
Lighter weights and higher reps for hypertrophy.
Pay close attention to form and technique.
Listen to your body.
Don’t take drugs.
Heavy lifts have their place and create some incredible neuro adaptations if approached sensibly and you’re not hero lifting every session.
Your best workout is your next workout.
👊🏾
Squat to failure:
If you use belt squats or squat in a flywheel setup you don’t need a spotter because you can just exit in the bottom position, something which is harder with a bar on your neck
A sissy squat bench is also great, unless you have knee issues. It's a great way to squat to failure using a small amount of weight or body weight.
Zercher squats as well! I always do those in a rack to failure.
If you're not planning to be a professional powerlifter/strongman then I'd say stay away from one-to-few rep max. The probability of injury increases exponentially and for what?
Great info!! How about BFR’s ? I’m over 60 (gulp) & I still want to continue to grow muscles… 💪🏿 would do a few BFR training exercises once or twice a week do the trick? Thank you
As a Natural personal trainer n yoga instructor - after some years you hit a plateau, muscles won’t grow.
If you lift light weight high reps you’ll stay fit but muscles WONT grow.
You need to up the weight n lower your reps , gradually n safe. No ego lifting.
I'm 50 and train every day. Sometimes twice a day, but it's ALWAYS moderate weight with crazy high reps and NEVER to failure. I eat clean AF and sleep a ton! 🎉
I lifted for 30+ years: knowledge, good form, etc. Slipped a disk doing a leg press machine one day and it changed my life for the worse. I would suggest to not go heavy or go home. Your 80 year old self will thank me. Nice to hear this advice is science based.
When using lower weights you might as well combine it with BFR bands for better results, even lower weights and risk of injuries.
Need to get microphones to achieve better recording performance. Some of us are in settings where er have to use head phones and so the better quality of the recording makes a difference.
Well I'm happy to hear this because unfortunately I physically can't lift heavy anymore. I lost 40 lbs in 7 months last year but it came at great expense to my spine. Once I am allowed to do resistance training again it will be way less weight than I was doing that's for certain. I'm 54 (today).
Hey any exercise is better than no exercise. You can always increase intensity in other ways, to make up for the lighter weights. Good luck with the spine issues
Congrats on the weight loss. Check out exercises like the Jefferson curl which you can progress slowly from bodyweight to light dumbells to heavier weights. I learned it from youtubers like kneesovertoesguy and movementgems Good luck!
Happy birthday!🎉🎂🎉
@@rachael7060 lol thanks
Even without major injuries training lighter as we get older is the better and smarter way to go. At 48 I haven't done a 1 rep max in well over 5 years and still do all the big compound lifts without hurting myself by working between 8-15 slow/controlled reps, with excellent form and 90 seconds or less between sets. I rarely add weight and prefer to apply progressive overload by any other means which is just as effective and saves my joints. Admittedly training lighter also suits my preference for of lots of volume (3x90 min full-body session per week) and getting closer to failure than required, but personally it's more about enjoyment, fitness and training hard than optimising hypertrophy and strength (although I'm still growing and getting stronger too). Good luck with the spine.
Most bodybuilders will tell you the surest and quickest path to muscle growth is continuous progressive overload served mainly through adding weight to the bar. Obviously you do it appropriately - keeping rep ranges in check and good form.
I just discovered super slow weight training and the work of Dr. Doug McGuff, such a great presenter, consider having him on your channel! I've worked out consistently throughout my life with a few years off recently. What I've learned is that yes, you don't have to do short, one set, super slow to failure to build muscle, other ways work as well too. However, for those of us who LOVE the results of super slow and don't want to spend a lot of time working out, it's a no brainer to do that. I mean 15 min every 5 days to get the same results as hours and sets and reps at lighter weight and faster tempo.....don't know. I love it.
No….im guessing you’re a new convert because this super slow stuff has been proven to not be of any significance
What's significant is the time convenience. If you read my comment, what I said was that many forms of resistance training have been shown to produce muscle growth equally, the super slow just cuts down significantly on the time invested to get there.
@@IntuitiveCoachTheresa which is also not true
@@theelement6255Going super slow makes it more difficult: you cannot explode past sticking points. It can add a lot of intensity. And emphasize slow twitch strength.
@@geraldfriend256 oh, I know what it does. Here’s the problem 1: you are actually looking for more fast twitch movement to capitalize on fast muscle growth. 2) super slow movement can actually limit muscle tension as sub optimal amounts of weight are used are can be harder to standardize and progress. 3) unless your aim is fatigue resistance, or you just came back from an injury, there is zero reason to do super slow training
I think the trend to always "maximize efficiency" is ironically what leads people down the wrong path and causes them to blow out and quit, and seek another option only to do the exact same all over again. And what this tells me is that they really just want a quick one size solves everything fix-but the reality is, there isn't one. I remember Jean Claude Van Damme in the late 80's early 90's action hero era being asked about how much he lifted. He said the weight didn't matter, it was what you did with it and how often you did it that counted. People at the time laughed and took it that he was embarrassed that he couldn't life like other actions hero's like Arnie, Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, and to be fair it was too close to ridiculous 80's macho sexual inuendo to be taken seriously … but he was telling the truth! And most people would rather have looked like Van Damme "The Muscles From Brussels" back then(and now) and be able to do what he could physically, than Arnie. Van Damme's 63 and can still do all the stuff he did back then. Jackie Chan (creator of parkour?), he's 69, same. Insane what he can still do. Even Arnie was really all about lifting in the range that you can do huge volume at to win-it's just it was harder to notice, because he lifted heavy by default. Once the preserve of the best coaches only, it's surely common knowledge now: You might have one all out 10 "maximum efficiency" session and be exhausted for a whole week, but a 5 session 3 times a week totals 15 per week, an you're not exhausted at all, and 50% ahead. Even if Mr Efficiency's training was 45% more efficient for the same time per gains than yours, you're still 5% ahead, and fresh whilst he's exhausted. Multiple that by 52 weeks, you're 260% ahead and fresh. The result? You win. Volume always wins provided you are conscientious enough to work out the math's for your event, and dedicated enough to see it through. It clearly applies to flexibility, it clearly applies to cardio (I believe Norwegian runners are now doing mid-intensity interval training to hugely great effect-maximizing that grey area by creating huge volume without injury, via many intervals, whilst their competitors aren't). It clearly applies to hypertrophy too (Strength training-totally different beast however). In most scenarios, maximum efficiency is really an illusion for event day(best results in the shortest space of time), but in training, as in life-it just goes on; it's about continuous smart use of manageable volume to ensure that the numbers are tipped in your favour, and not big bangs and feeling exhausted all the time.
I'd bet money Van Damme was strong as hell and could have put up very high numbers on the bench, squat and deadlift. You simply cannot be muscular if you're weak by the standards of the general population. No one with an impressive chest benches 60kg for their working weight.
I agree that the heavy load doesn't matter as much as long as you are within 1-30 or so rep. Any more than that, your muscles may be able to recover during the set so that there is not a great enough stimulus for the body to need to adapt to that resistance.
For failure training - this is where I have issues - same with volume based on sets/reps/weight
By going to failure (which he describes well as being unable to do another rep in good form), you will activate as many motor units as possible to perform the set. individuals are VERY bad at knowing how many reps in reserve (RIR) they actually have left. If you stick a coach in front of them and push them vs when someone working out alone would end the set, the 2 are drastically different. The one with a coach will perform additional reps the individual did not know they had left in the tank.
This leads to problems where individuals are not doing 1-3 RIR, but instead, 3,4,5+. If you follow progressive overload, you should get to the proper resistance/rep to fail in the 1-3, but I would not use RIR if you workout alone as you are likely leaving more reps than you think on the table.
Also, we don't have any standardized "what is failure" when it comes to actually hitting that set end in these studies. From my review, each seems to be somewhat different from one another. If you watch videos of Dr. Brad Schoenfeld and what his set to failure looks like, it is not even close to what failure really is. This makes it impossible to accurately compare what failure does. There needs to be a standard set (rep speed and effort need to be quantified some way, in good form) in order to get an accurate reading.
Lastly, the notion you need multiple sets is flawed. You only need multiple sets if you are not activating all the motor units of a muscle and fatiguing it to a point where a stimulus is produced for muscle growth (to build stronger/large during rest). I do recommend most individuals train with multiple sets for the sole reason that I do not believe they actually train to failure. As stated above, I think you will need someone else pushing you past your "fail" comfort zone. You don't need partial reps, set extenders, drops sets, etc. but you do need to truly reach that failure point. Multiple sets may help you get there if you are not reaching it in your initial sets.
Also, doing lots of sets with high volumes will put more where and tear on the joints which could increase risk of injury and nagging pain in time.
Another issue is frequency and rest. If you are really training to failure, you will need more rest! This is great for those who are busy so they don't have to workout as often. Someone training to failure and someone doing RIR will need to adjust rest days and workout frequencies based on their ability to recover (lifestyle, stress, genetics). Do not workout as frequently if working out to failure as you will burn yourself out and see worse results. BUT, if you do rest appropriately, you will gain strength and muscle and improve in time, while working out less often, and spending less time in the workout itself.
To round things out, if you want to keep workouts relatively short, there needs to be a high amount of effort done in a safe environment. Machines are actually great for this despite what many podcasts, influencers, gurus, or whatever you want to call them say. Free weights and other options work as well, but other variables will come in to play such as momentum, friction, inertia, skill of an exercise, etc. Here is my best advice for training alone:
Find equipment where you can perform hard reps that target the desired muscle, as close to failure as possible in good form.
Slow down the rep speed to remove momentum if using free weights (somewhere between 4-10 seconds total rep with controlled change of direction).
When you reach what you think is failure, push that static hold position for 1-3 extra seconds to make sure you can't move it any more.
Do 2-3 sets of this to make sure you activate and fatigue the muscle.
Set frequency based on your ability to recover (this will depend a lot on the individual) - for this, just start somewhere, see how you feel going into the next workout, and adjust as needed to make sure you are seeing progress - note, strength and muscle progress will slow in time after newbie gains.
That should be a good start. Of course other factors like hydration, nutrition, sleep etc. play a big part, but the above are reasons why failure training is misunderstood. Someone who talks on a higher level about this is Jay Vincent, Drew Baye, and Dr. Doug McGuff. I hope this helps!
The problem with everything you're saying is you're arguing over negligible amounts of supposed "extra" muscle. Are you REALLY going to be much bigger if you always go to failure? Prove it.
@@brianzembruski5485 We're all going to hit up against our own genetic hypertrophy ceiling in the end, the real difference between effective training modalities is how long it takes to get there and how safe the journey is. Approaching failure is important, but actually reaching failure just creates too much fatigue to be worthwhile outside of special circumstances imo.
what??
@@brianzembruski5485 no I am not. I am arguing that you don't need multiple sets to build muscle if a stimulus to build muscle is achieved in the 1st set, and that most people will not train hard enough if training with reps in reserve to generate that stimulus. Some will, but the vast majority of people will not if doing workouts with that mentality.
Both multiple sets and a single set can build muscle, but only as long as enough effort/intensity is generated for a stimulus to build muscle is achieved. Once that stimulus is achieved, you don't need any more more sets in the workout for that body part as you are creating a greater inroad to recover from during rest. It is also the only way to know if all motor units (or as many motor units as you can) are activated to perform the exercise and fatigued. If you leave reps in reserve, you may only activate a segment of the motor units to complete the set as the others are not needed to do so (which then requires multiple sets to try and activate them).
Even so, most individuals are not good at gauging what momentary muscle failure is as they will stop short - including myself. A coach can help get a few additional reps the individual did not think they had in them. When training alone, you may give up early in each set, meaning, you actually trained with some RIR when you though it was failure. If you are training with RIR in mind, but not really reaching it (since it is impossible to actually know if you are really at the target RIR) then you might not get a stimulus to build muscle at all - body won't try to add muscle if it doesn't need too. Training to momentary muscle failure is the best gauge we have to know if we are actually in that RIR range in most cases.
This is why I recommend that if you workout alone, that you train to momentary muscle failure in 2-3 sets. If you have a coach though, you may only need one set to get the stimulus you need to build muscle, and then rest long enough for repair and muscle building to take place. Note, you will need more rest if you are really pushing each set.
Final point, if you are learning technique or skill of an exercise, then do multiple sets (not to failure) to learn that movement first, and only focus on greater intensity once form/skill/technique is good.
Sometimes less is more and more is less in fitness. I didn't get the results I wanted until I started eating MUCH MORE food AND lifting heavier, lower reps and total sets, and much shorter workouts!
What’s your workout ?
The problem with this kind of discussion, is that there are two very different kinds of hypertrophy. One builds new fibers and gives real performance gains, and the other super hydrates muscle cells and is virtually 100% cosmetic. JUST fatiguing a muscle fiber, even the fast twitch ones, is not very good at building new fibers, they have to be under enough tension to DAMAGE them. If you can rep a weight 25 times, it's not heavy enough for tension damage. As they say in the car world, there's no replacement for displacement.
Lift heavy, under 10 reps (that's max 10), closer to a 5 rep weight is better. Do 5 to 10 sets of that per week and see if that's too much/little volume, adjust as needed. Eat enough so you are not getting leaner (hit protein marker, like 1/1). Sleep extra. That's all you have to do and you will grow and get stronger.
Higher reps has disadvantages, such as aggravating “tennis elbow”- I’ll stick with 12 reps for most sets, sometimes one set in the 4-8 rep range, and for calves and calisthenics 20 or more reps for some sets- this is what works for me.
Training with weights you can only do 3 or 4 times bring a way higher risk for injury.
@@JCKeus-cx1wm That’s true, if I do 4 or 5 reps I make sure I have a few in reserve, so I don’t go to failure, then it’s ok.
I've found that while dealing with previous connective tissue damage, to note, not caused by lifting, muscle gain and strength was better achieved with lower weights and very slow repetition placing the time under tension greater for the targeted muscle groups. And it's much easier on the joints while fatiguing the muscle greatly.
Something that I hear far too little about are the two issues of variation in the force a muscle is capable of exerting at various points in the range of motion and maximising intensity. There are various pieces of fancy equipment designed to vary the load over the range of motion, but something that seems to have been forgotten is the simple formula, force = mass x acceleration. If you accelerate the weight all through the range as hard as you can, you are exerting as much force as you can all through the range. Using acceleration you can use lighter weights to achieve the same intensity as with a higher weights.
Brad is the best, great info Brad! He literally asked you to link to his study on the minimal effective dose for strength training per week for people who are limited on time. Drum roll please…it’s not linked in the notes! Major whiff on this podcast’s part.
50 chins, 50 dips, 50 lunges... 3 days a week...just bodyweight...works great for me
The video´s title is INCORRECT. You MUST get as closer as possible to failure, without reaching the failure
True for muscle gain but my reading says for the aged high load Is needed for “bone bending” for osteoporosis prevention.
That is not true. Maybe for optimum result. However, we know that for sedentary people just by doing for example a few jumps up and down on a flat surface one's bone health will improve. Thus, to improve one's bone health some kind of resistance or compression must happen.
Even jogging puts more load on your bones than a heavy squat.
@@samuele.marcora: that’s the best non study/trust me bro, bro science ever. Thanks.
They destroy your joints more than squats yes @@samuele.marcora. Squads put your soft and hard tissue under load without any impact/shock absorption, which is very good.
During Jogging/running your body, specifically your knees, have to absorb so much impact that it ends being a net loss.
Jumping on a trampoline offers a similar effect without the downsides.
Your reading of what studies? There are associational studies showing elderly women that do any weight bearing exercise have higher bone density. What studies are they making old women lift heavy? Lmao
You can have adequate bone density by walking/gardening outside (vitamin D) and getting enough fat soluable vitamins (A,D,K2)
Honestly what he is saying is that it doesn't matter the weight or the amount of reps, it's getting to the point where you are as close as possible ro failure or failure indeed.
So what's the point on doing 15 reps to feel something if you can load more, get stronger and feel something faster, lets say around 8, its just more efficient to lift heavy if your are not injured
Just do whatever maximizes potential for injury and a stroke or aneurysm while pretending it makes the time in the gym shorter.
@@-whackd you can get any of those by doing volume reps to failure if you're prone to have them! This example makes no real sense, we are not talking power lifting stuff here but regular weightlifting
I'm 40 and I've been lifting since I was 14/15. Just like 99% of guys in that era most available media pointed me to bodybuilding style workouts and rep schemes. By my mid 20s my body was wrecked. My knees, back, and elbows chronically hurt. I pulled my hamstring three times over 18 months. A friend of mine convinced me to do a program made for athletes by a former powerlifter. I was very skeptical because it was going to have me lifting heavier than I ever had and in lower rep schemes for compound lifts. I've been doing that style program for the 15 years since. I'm stronger than I was in my early 20s and my body feels a lot better. Lifting heavy is more about when you're going to go heavy than going heavy all the time. Single joint stuff should still be in the 8-12 rep range. You should also have a monthly deload week of lifting around 70% of the load you did the prior week.
@@joerapo sounds interesting
@@joerapo Equated for volume, there's no way heavier loads put less stress on your joints than lighter loads with higher reps. If it worked for you, all I can say is it's not generalizable to most people.
I can’t believe UA-cam promoted this to me. YT really wanted to give me a laugh this am 😆
As a 30-year trainer of folks-she doesn’t do the “last hard reps”-IMO. I’ve got scads of ladies who have arms way better than her. Plus-I’ve seen Brad do a “hard set” of pull downs on video with a trainer supervision and no it wasn’t: He flat gave up about 6 reps short.
I think it's pretty simple. To get bigger/stronger you just need to stimulate your muscles enough for them to need to grow/strengthen. I think of it as a percentage of effort/failure type of scale. If I can get 3.5 reps done with a weight to reach 100% failure, I am only going to be doing 3 reps and thus getting to ~86% failure. However, if I lower the weight and maybe will be at 100% failure at 9.5 reps, I am going to do 9 reps and thus reach ~95% failure. For this reason, higher reps can be and generally is better for stimulating muscle growth. In addition to that, with a lighter load I can actually get that 9.5 reps via a cheat rep. Whereas the weight I'd be using for a 3.5RM you probably wouldn't want to cheat and couldn't anyways. Though, this still needs to be managed, as not everyone has the endurance and recovery to complete sets until failure. Going until failure on say your first sets will put you in an unrecoverable state that will mean you can't do anywhere near as many reps on the second set and thus you actually get lower total reps done. At a certain point there is also too much damage done to the muscles that you will actually lose gains (overtraining) or even get rhabdo (deadly).
Strength is a little more complex though as it also depends on priming the CNS for heavy loads as well as managing fatigue through peaking. If I keep the weight too light, then my muscle might be capable of lifting a certain load, but my CNS will not be able to get my muscle to utilize fully. Also, if I am so close to failure all the time, I will be too fatigued and thus will not even be able to fully utilize what my CNS is capable of.
I understand this, however what about the progress resistance principle?
Progressive overload? Just try to add small weight or at least +1 rep to each exercise from week to week. If you can't progress for 2 weeks in a row, take a week of light training days to recover, then start again. If that still doesn't work, the exercise itself may have become stale for your muscles, try swapping it out for one you haven't used in the last 3-6 months.
Brad has the beast body and obviously knows what he is talking about.
In my mind, going to failure and then doing partial reps until u cant even move the weight an inch, should be the most hypothrophy the muscle can reach. Although at most 1-2 of thease partial sets each workout (rest of the sets 1-2 RIR sets) total 6-9 set each muscle/workout
The big question is whether or not the same applies to strength development. Yes you can build muscle with lighter loads but hypertrophy is not the same as strength development which to me is the most important part of strength training.
Can you build strength with lighter loads?
you can still become strong and not have muscle look at weight lifters.they are fat its because they train the nerve system by lifting heavy not to fatigue ,train for both that is the key it depends on your goal.
Arthur Jones and Mike Mentzer were associated with Nautilus. Thoughts!!
Arthur honestly founded nautilus lol. Public knowledge
Arthur Jones had training strength down to a science. He was abrasive at times. Dorian Yates used Jones training techniques.
Furthermore, it is imperative to note that the assertion made does not align with the main argument put forth nor is it in any way connected to the content of my initial statement.
I started weights with lighter loads and higher reps and have worked towards heavier loads.
so does 10 sets per week mean, say for pecs, 4 sets bench press, 3 sets incline press and 3 sets chest flies or does it mean ten sets per each exercise?
10 total
10 sets per muscle group per week ua-cam.com/video/_NW9ec9CWRw/v-deo.htmlsi=VmiZVy_FyWCM0MGa&t=839
I’m going to listen to this over thousands of bodybuilders who disagree completely??
Well, thousands of dudes on gear perhaps. Roids really distort training and growth potential.
The main problem here is what we define as “gains” are we talking hypertrophy of the muscles? Or ability to exert force on an external resistance?
Pavil Tsatsouline, greasing the groove. Go to failure twice a year, national and world championships.
Greasing the groove is one set of 1-2 reps. Great for progressing pull-ups. But Pavel has also been a big advocate for anti-glycolytic training, which is high intensity, low reps, high sets, long rest. Basically you burn your ATP and creatine but stop before detrimental metabolites (lactic acid etc) accumulate. And your aerobic system works with the recovery. It would be an interesting topic for a podcast.
what about really well performed singles as in clusters etc
Heavier you lift, the better bone health and additional benefits.
Based on 40 years of lifting, it seems that size depends mostly on weekly volume with reasonable loads.
How much volume do u recommend per Muscle per week?
@@paradoks7487 You just increase it gradually. Usually increase reps first then add some weight, etc. The bigger you want to be, the more volumen you do. Volume is weight X total weekly reps. Maybe work up to about 60 weekly reps with a weight, then add weight, back off to maybe 40 reps per week, build up to 60 again, and repeat.
failure is simple and it works. If you let your brain decide what 1 or 2 reps in reserve is, it always short changes you
failure on 1RM,3RM, 5RM is very different to failure on 10RM or 20RM in how it feels.
strain is a different matter, some people think its good, I dont its basically stress
Thanks a lot
I do a Body By Science routine. It works for me. Big advantage is you only need to go to the gym once a week. It also means you can’t cheat. 12 minutes and done. The message is basically the same. You still need to lift to failure or very close.
I think as soon a you feel the burning you better stop.With moving on too much you destroy too much and your body can't recover properly.Especcially if you are over 35-40...
@@beslemetoIf he is just lifting once a week im sure he will have plenty of time to recover
I'm 50. Lift weights everyday. 1hr cardio everyday.
Look late 30s.
Tall. Jacked. Tan.
It is clear he is talking about fitness lifters. He is not talking about powerlifters, strongmen or Olympic Weightlifting, where go heavy or go home is necessary.
Fitness and physique lifters, yes.
Rich Piana had enormous arms and was a big proponent of very high sets of light weights, eg 5kg x 100 reps
With the light load it takes longer time to get to the effective gain producing reps
Highly recommend you get starting strength on your show
It’s love to do 3 x half hour sessions and make good gains, as he says within the last 2 minutes of this video. I do 3 x 2 hour full body sessions going to form breakdown or using rest pause. I’d love to see noticeable gains, visually or as measured by bio impedance scans. 2300 - 2700 calories per day. Maybe being 63 has something to do with it.
If we use heavy weights, less reps, then this may result in less time spent in the gym as you will fatigue quicker. However, there is more risk of injury. Doing high numbers of repetitions works but means you will end up spending a lot more time in the gym to challenge the muscles
The important question is what is the point of creating a high demand physiological adaptation that offers little mechanical advantage?
I lift weights to become stronger.
I don’t want extra strain on my heart and lungs nor do I want to have to feed muscle that cannot serve the purpose.
Muscle gain therefore is a by-product of strength training.
So many people love to quote Schoenfeld as an expert on building muscle but the dude doesn't even look like he's lifted a weight.
😆 Pink dumbbells. Good demonstration. His bicep was looking flaccid.
They should have studied a multi joint structural exercise like squats then a single joint leg extension for gains comparison.
Leg extensions are inferior for muscular gains to begin with and a bad example to make comparisons.
I worked as a carpenter for years, I had huge arms, never trained. It's just blood flow, and activation of the limbs on the daily. So when training now I go for a great pump, creatine helps, lots of blood flow, lots of warming up reps, building up weight to 80 percent max. Then continue with burn out down slowly. Currently using a full body split working my legs more daily.. its just a matter of doing it 4 - 5 hours a week , and the body composition keeps getting better and stronger month by month.
Thank you. I usually use the butcher analysis but yup.
This also seems to be telling us that calisthenics (body weight resistance training) is every bit as effective (up to a point) for muscle-building as is weight lifting, but I'd guess that the only way you can get the extreme hypertrophy (the going beyond that point) of a body-builder is to use weights because the body's weight just cannot be increased as one can continually add on weights or dial up resistance on a machine. As for me though, I'll stick with calisthenics...can't see the health or physical-attractiveness benefit of using weights that's worth the added cost and time of going to a gym or buying all the equipment for weight-lifting.
Posterior chain and legs is hard to train with calisthenics. Weights are more easily loadable. If I can't do a pistol squat, it's hard to scale down. If I can't do a given weight on squats, I can simply remove some weight.
@@levirognejensen1745 As a believer that calisthenics are all you need to do, I'd say that they can be used to very adequately develop the posterior and legs. Pistol squats are a movement you can progressively work into if they're what you want to do...just start with lots of normal two-leg squats and then go to partial single-leg squats, finally to pistol squats. If you look around on the Tube, you'll find plenty of calisthenics experts-influencers who will show you numerous types of movements for legs and posterior.
@@levirognejensen1745Calisthenics includes weighted variations of things. I train in a playground and use a weight vest for weighted push ups, dips and pull-ups so you can certainly add a load and scale in calisthenics in a much safer way than free weights.
I prefer bodyweight always but ladies, we have lots of reasons to lift “heavy” (heavy for each person varies) I force myself to lift “heavy” once a week, and thats barely cutting it for us late 40s women. We cannot afford not to.
Lifting properly should not lead to postural issues
I remember a while ago hearing this guy say "anything more than 12-15 reps is cardio" and thinking he didn't know what the fuck he is talking about because decades of experience taught me otherwise. Here we are. Nerds with text books are one thing, but real experience is something else entirely.
Not to mention, the mistaken belief that cardio doesn't build muscle. It certainly can, especially in untrained individuals.
Research this guy. He is literally in the trenches with professional bodybuilders. Men who compete and make money from lifting. He is actually taking data from trenches and then testing those theories and has been doing so for years. Give this guy credit for changing his mind when research confirms otherwise. Most people stick to their guns and manipulate the research to confirm to their opinion. He, at least, has integrity. But suffice to say, some of the greatest coaches in the world listen to this guy's research because of his time in the trenches and his integrity.
No you don't remember this guy saying anything from over a decade ago.
@@takedownartist1 And yet he is dead wrong and I was right.
@@-whackd It wasn't that long ago
You all should study Mike Mentzer's style of training.