Want to get into shape, build lean muscle and burn fat? Upgrading the efficiency of your hypertrophy program by factoring these golden rules may do the trick:
1. There are three main assets of a great hypertrophy program: Total volume (work done during a session/week/month), muscle fibre damage (the reason why you can’t sit down after your leg session) and the variety of movements (working muscles in different planes of motion).
2. Time under tension is another variable which should be taken seriously. Around 40 to 50 seconds is an ideal time scale per set when training for hypertrophy. Some good programs will have you complete an exercise not for the subscribed number of reps as usual, but for time. So, you may complete back squats with strict form for 50 seconds rather than trying to hit 12 reps.
3. Make sure you prioritise lifting tempos. For building muscle, its crucial to use a slower tempo on the eccentric portions of your lifts as this triggers hypertrophy the most. Using a tempo of 4 seconds lowering the weight and one second lifting the weight is recommended.
4. When choosing what load to use, 70% of your one-rep max is the sweet spot for increasing lean muscle.
5. Keep your rest periods between 45 and 75 seconds. If you rest longer than this, you’re training for strength. However, since you would have picked a load of around 70% of your 1RM, it won’t be heavy enough to sufficiently increase your strength levels anyway. On the other hand, rest periods shorter than 45 seconds would mean you are training metabolically, not giving your nervous system enough time to recover.
6. When in doubt, 4-5 sets of 8–12 reps with a 4-0-1-0 tempo is a great choice.
7. Body part splits are more effective in this phase than any other. Same goes with isolation movements.
8. For more advanced-stage people, consider using pre-exhaust and post-exhaust techniques.
9. Training 3 out of every 5 days works very well for hypertrophy (2 days on, one off, one on, one off, repeat) as it sets a good balance between getting adequate volume and enough recovery.
10. As a general rule, you should not opt for sets to failure when training for size. Leave one or two reps in the tank to ensure you can achieve appropriate total volume and recovery.
Tom Winterbottom personal trainer St. John’s Wood, personal trainer Marylebone