reps and sets

[snakemw]

i think i am about to change up my routine a little bit and was wanting some advice. my split is
mon- back
tue- chest
wed.- off
thurs- arms
fri - shoulders legs

what i was wondering is on average how many sets most of you do per body part and how many reps per set. i want to put on some mass if that helps. i was thinking 12-15 sets for back, chest and shoulders and legs. and 8-10 sets for bis and tris. let me know what you think.

thanks for the advice

[wedgylx]

Sun - Cardio
Mon - Shoulders and traps (Delts 5 sets) (traps 3 sets)
Tue - Arms (Bis 9 sets) (Tris 9-12 sets)
Wed - Legs (Quads - 9-11 sets) (Calves - 4 sets)
Thur - Cardio
Fri - Chest (12 sets)
Sat - Back (11-13 sets)

[Love 2 Lift]

You guys mean to tell me that you ONLY work some muscle groups (ie: chest) once a week?? MAN! I do a circuit:

Mon, Wed, Fri: Upper body
Tues & Thurs: Cardio and Lower body
Sat & Sun: Off

I do 2 exercises (3 sets of 10) for each muscle group. Is that wrong?

[italionstallionl]

if it has been working for you, than no, its not wrong. but it seems for most people that working the same muscle group every other day is too much and doesnt give you ample time to grow and recover. try it how someone above pointed out for a month or two and see how it works for you

[wedgylx]

You guys mean to tell me that you ONLY work some muscle groups (ie: chest) once a week?? MAN! I do a circuit:

Mon, Wed, Fri: Upper body
Tues & Thurs: Cardio and Lower body
Sat & Sun: Off

I do 2 exercises (3 sets of 10) for each muscle group. Is that wrong?

the problem lies in muscular ratios. There are three main types of muscle: slow oxygenated, fast oxygenated, and fast glycolitic. The oxygenated contains myoglobin so its "red muscle" or "dark meat". The glycolitic is often referred to as "white muscle" or "white meat".

red muscle fibers are great for endurance exercises, white muscle fibers are good for explosive short movements. As Bodybuilders we want to have as much white muscle fiber as possible. Its possibe to have your fibers tested in labs but its probably expensive. I know I seem to have white muscle fibers so low volume does wonders for me.

[shuttaLCD]

You guys mean to tell me that you ONLY work some muscle groups (ie: chest) once a week?? MAN! I do a circuit:

Mon, Wed, Fri: Upper body
Tues & Thurs: Cardio and Lower body
Sat & Sun: Off

I do 2 exercises (3 sets of 10) for each muscle group. Is that wrong?

the problem lies in muscular ratios. There are three main types of muscle: slow oxygenated, fast oxygenated, and fast glycolitic. The oxygenated contains myoglobin so its "red muscle" or "dark meat". The glycolitic is often referred to as "white muscle" or "white meat".

red muscle fibers are great for endurance exercises, white muscle fibers are good for explosive short movements. As Bodybuilders we want to have as much white muscle fiber as possible. Its possibe to have your fibers tested in labs but its probably expensive. I know I seem to have white muscle fibers so low volume does wonders for me.

ahh..i get it know...I have good endurance but the day after i run i will be more sore than the day after i work out..I never get it....

also another probelm i encounter is when i work upper body i really dont get sore..no matter how hard i work out..I just dont get sore..And when i dont get sore i think that there is no good being done...is there explanation for this??

[wedgylx]

You guys mean to tell me that you ONLY work some muscle groups (ie: chest) once a week?? MAN! I do a circuit:

Mon, Wed, Fri: Upper body
Tues & Thurs: Cardio and Lower body
Sat & Sun: Off

I do 2 exercises (3 sets of 10) for each muscle group. Is that wrong?

the problem lies in muscular ratios. There are three main types of muscle: slow oxygenated, fast oxygenated, and fast glycolitic. The oxygenated contains myoglobin so its "red muscle" or "dark meat". The glycolitic is often referred to as "white muscle" or "white meat".

red muscle fibers are great for endurance exercises, white muscle fibers are good for explosive short movements. As Bodybuilders we want to have as much white muscle fiber as possible. Its possibe to have your fibers tested in labs but its probably expensive. I know I seem to have white muscle fibers so low volume does wonders for me.

ahh..i get it know...I have good endurance but the day after i run i will be more sore than the day after i work out..I never get it....

also another probelm i encounter is when i work upper body i really dont get sore..no matter how hard i work out..I just dont get sore..And when i dont get sore i think that there is no good being done...is there explanation for this??

some people just don't get sore. Soreness isnt necessarily associated directly with growth. For example, my shoulders almost NEVER get sore, yet i always see great growth

[ghostwheel]

You should be able to get sore if you focus on bombing/destroying ONE body part per workout.
I noticed that it takes 48 hours for delayed onset muscles soreness to kick in, unless I workout with chains for explosive neurological training. (see chains thread) Than i am sore the next day.

Lift heavier weights, less reps and go until failure.

Could be your body is telling you to lift more weight.

[shuttaLCD]

You should be able to get sore if you focus on bombing/destroying ONE body part per workout.
I noticed that it takes 48 hours for delayed onset muscles soreness to kick in, unless I workout with chains for explosive neurological training. (see chains thread) Than i am sore the next day.

Lift heavier weights, less reps and go until failure.

Could be your body is telling you to lift more weight.

I'll try going until failure then..How many sets should i do? I am thinking around 7ish???

[ghostwheel]

Depends which body part you a bombing.

For biceps (small body part) you need LOTS of sets and you need to get them done in an under one hour. Start with strict preacher curl type stuff then incline bench curls for the stretch than finish off with alt. standing curls so you can cheat and go past failure. If it hurts so bad you can't do any more KEEP CURLING!. Take the pain. Some pro's who are on roids do like 25 plus sets.

Larger body parts are different. Bench presses: I do Four flat bench, 3 decline on a smith machine so I can lift heavy with the safety stops to protect against accidents, and some peck deck type stuff. Incline DB curls are great if you have a strong back. Remember DB's let you cheat. Use them at the end. Just up the weight and lower the reps.

Hope this helps.

[shuttaLCD]

Thanks Ghost...very very helpfull

[ghostwheel]

Please post back how it works for you OK? Everyone is different, but this works for me.
:)

Oh and I meant incline bench dumbell presses for the chest. Curls don't help the chest last time I checked, but are great for biceps though.