💪 Heavy or High Reps? Let's Talk About Building Muscle (The Smart Way!)
Hey everyone! As many of you know, I absolutely love lifting and helping you all get stronger, whether you’re my client, a friend, or family. I often get asked: Do I have to lift super heavy to build muscle?
The short, simple answer is: Absolutely not.
But, as with anything in fitness, the full picture is more interesting. Let me break down what truly matters for your progress.
What You Need vs. What You Don't
The core goal in building muscle (what we call hypertrophy) is gaining strength and achieving progressive overload.
What you don't need to do is limit yourself to the low-rep ranges that often come with maximum loads. The research is very clear: whether you use heavier weight for fewer reps or lighter weight for higher reps, if you train hard and consistently, the muscle-building results are pretty much equal!
My Personal Take (And Why It’s Not Necessarily Yours!)
Personally, I gravitate toward heavy lifting. I can handle the low-rep grind, but high-rep sets? They absolutely wipe me out! I’m talking about panting for ten minutes straight after squatting 150 lbs for 12 or stiff-leg deadlifting 200 lbs for 20. The cardiovascular demand is insane, and frankly, sometimes it makes me feel nauseous!
In contrast, low-rep training is often kinder on my lungs, even if it can be a bit tougher on the joints over time.
This brings me to my main point for all of you:
The ideal lifting strategy is to choose the rep range you prefer most for that specific movement.
For me, I love 1-6 reps for big lower body lifts, but 10-20 reps for smaller upper body movements. This is what feels best for me. You will be different, and that’s perfectly fine!
Your Progress, Your Way
I know that super heavy, low-rep sets don't make sense for everyone. You might be:
Dealing with an old injury.
Working out from home without a huge amount of equipment (load).
Simply not comfortable or confident working in those lowest rep ranges yet.
That’s why I want to make sure you know that gaining strength and improving your body composition can be achieved just as effectively without going super heavy.
Here are two options you can implement right away:
1. Skew the Reps Higher
If I program a set of 5/3/1 (my personal preference for strength), and you don't feel like loading up that heavy, increase the reps for each set.
The key is that you still need to train close to failure (the last few reps should be challenging).
Instead of: 5 reps Try: 12 reps
Instead of: 3 reps Try: 10 reps
This maintains high intensity while keeping the load manageable.
2. Make Sets Harder Without Adding Weight
You can increase the difficulty of your sets using technical adjustments rather than heavier plates:
Add Pauses: Pausing at the bottom of a squat or bench press.
Increase Range of Motion (ROM): Going deeper or utilizing deficit deadlifts.
Switch to Unilateral: Doing a single-leg hip thrust instead of a bilateral one.
The Bottom Line
The main goal is simple: get stronger and make progress in some way over time.
Whether you achieve that by using more reps with the same load or more load for the same reps, you are reaching your goal without putting yourself in an uncomfortable or potentially dangerous situation.
Just remember this: when your strength goes up, your physique improves. Stronger glutes, stronger legs, stronger upper body... it all carries over. Strength is the foundation, and we'll build it safely, together!
Have any questions about what rep range is best for you? Send me a text or bring it up at your next session!
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