Number of reps for mass?

R

Roonaldo

0
I'm looking to build mass and not bothered about strength, in all areas of my body really, but mainly my arms and chest.

For my arms i do:

triceps:
tricep extension - 4 sets of 12
double handed tricep extension - 4 sets of 12
french press - 2 sets of 12

then finish with double handed tricep extension to failure

biceps:
dumbell curl - 5 sets of 12
hammer curl - 5 sets of 12
barbell curl - 5 sets of 12

then finish with dumbell curls to failure

My question is... do you think I should lower the number of reps per set?
I've read a lot of conflicting views on what increases mass and what increases strength, with more people seeming to recommend high reps at around 80% of failure.

So do you think I should lower my reps to say 10?

Thanks..
 
training to failure promotes failure. your body will learn that once it fails you will stop exericising it. it will then begin to fail sooner and sooner.

here's a workout that will help you gain size in the areas you want, but i regret to inform you that there will be a side effect..you'll get stronger, however, you will gain mass like non other

you're going to find that the bench press is a dear friend of yours.

day 1
bench press 50% of 1rep max for 8 sets of 5 giving 30 seconds to 2 minutes of rest. finish off with three sets of WIDE grip bench press and let it be known that this will build your biceps. do 3 sets of 6 reps at a heavy weight. in total its 11 sets on the bench

rest 2 days and get back to the bench except add 5 lbs onto what you benched last time and hit out 8 sets of 5 reps in the same fashion. now, instead of wide grip, do the french press. hit out 3 sets of 6. there are three heads to your tricep muscle and two of them won't fire (operate/get bigger/stronger) until they are loaded heavily. thats why kickbacks only hit one head, if the french press is loaded enough it will fire all 3 and you will have some GINORMOUS arms in 4 weeks.

rest 2 days and go at adding 5lbs to the bench and finishing with the wide grip bench. i can imagine you know where this is going. stop it after 4-5 weeks and take a week off and let me know how much size gained. dont do any other arm/ chest or shoulder work while doing this. on the days in between your workouts do a light leg and back lift and get PLENTY of REST. some light squats and chin ups. the next 4-5 weeks is all about your arms and chest.

In reguards to dieting, eat something loaded in protein every 3 hrs and wake up once during the night and eat a (tuna, turkey, roast beef, grilled chicken) sandwich.

now go to it and be sure to let me know how much size you gained, post it on the board in 5 weeks.
 
thanks for the reply.

the thing is I've spent ages putting together a routine of my own, and so wanna check that out first:

mon: rest
tue: chest + abs
wed: legs + hiit
thu: back + triceps
fri: rest
sat: shoulders + abs + hiit
sun: biceps

I've been told by people on here its a good routine, so i wanna see how it goes.

One thing I found VERY interesting is what you said about all three parts of your tricep not getting worked unless you use heavy weights. This seems to make sense because I've been using pretty light weights and have only seen improvements at the top of my arm. So should I keep the weight very heavy for my triceps?


do you suggest 8/10/12 reps for mass?
 
h

go heavy for the tricep, certain exercises wont let you go heavy. like the dumbell kickback, you can load your triceps with 30lbs for that...or 150lbs with the french press, the french press is the better choice.

as for reps, size gains are made best with lots of sets. people seem to disreguard the number of sets but that plays into things a lot. if you got to 12 reps you are most likely going to get a "burn". This creates fatigue and you will quickly get tired and not be able to work for as long. The high volume training, which I recommended will having you pressing 1000lbs in total per workout without getting tired. If you were to go higher with the reps and get close to fatigue or "burn" you won't be able to get that high volume which builds mass.

So in conclusion, you want high volume for mass. By pacing yourself with few reps (5/also notice how you are starting out with a light weight so you won't feel fatique) you will be able to achieve more volume in your workout.

Although I know that over 5 reps induces hypertrophy (the mass builder) 6-12 reps will most likely burn you out in 5 sets.
 
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