To
Gain
Muscle Weight, All Pros Do Only 1 Set Per Exercise
Every pro bodybuilder
does only 1 set per exercise to failure to gain muscle mass.....whether
they
say so or not.
I'm going to answer one of the most asked, most contradicted questions
about how to train to gain weight
around:
"How many sets does it take to gain muscular size and development?"
Now, I'm referring to sets per exercise.
When
you perform a set in a "certain" manner, with the correct amount of
weight and for a very "specific" rep range, you will have induced the
maximum growth in that muscle.
Anything above and beyond that is just a waste.
The
problem today is that when you pick up any bodybuilding or weight gain
magazine / book, they all recommend several sets per exercise.
Not
only is this very misleading to us average, skinny "hardgainers", but
when you see every top pro doing set after set after set, it's no
wonder that 99.9% of the average weight training population feels that
it takes many sets to get the job done.
Well, to get straight to my point, look very closely at how the pros
train, not what they say.
An excellent example is Jay Cutler.
If
you ever read his articles, Muscle-Tech ads, or watch his training
dvds, you see he follows a very high volume, high set training routine.
He does anywhere from 15-25 sets per muscle!
So, anyone looking at that might say, "Jay's a beast. If he does a ton
of sets, then so will I!".
Well, I want you to go and read for yourself an ad that's running in
some of the mags, the one titled "A Legacy In The Making".
In there he discusses his training routine.
In there he says, quote, ".....Obviously, you can't train to failure on
every set.
I try to put in 100% effort on the last set of each exercise.
For
example, if I'm doing chest, I usually do a weight I can handle for 8
to 10 repetitions for 3 sets and maybe a forth set where I go all
out........the fourth set is the only set where I go to failure."
So, if he is doing 4 sets for an exercise, the first 3 are pretty much
a bunch of warm-ups.
Only the fourth and last set is the one where he goes all-out, 100%, to
failure.
As a matter of fact, I remember reading in Muscular Development that he
calls these first sets "feeler" sets.
Well, "feeler" sets have got nothing to do with gaining muscle mass, it
just serves as a warm-up.
This is the same case with every other pro.
They may say they do 3, 4, 5 sets per exercise, but they only go
all-out, to failure on the last set.
In
other words...............1 set per exercise to failure.......the one
and only set that puts the muscle weight gain wheels into motion.
Observe, my friend, real closely what people do, not what they say,
because it can be very misleading.
You
may read in an article in a mag and see an individual's training
routine, usually inside of a box, containing the name of the exercise,
the number of sets and reps.
Well, if you didn't know any
better, you would assume that these guys are going all-out, to the max
on each and every one of these sets.
That only leads to over-exhaustion, over-fatigue, and overtraining for
you and I.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Perez
Cleveland Firefighter
Certified ACE / IAFF / IAFC Firefighter Peer Fitness Trainer
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jonathan Perez has
written many articles exposing the many weight training and diet myths
being spread about in the bodybuilding industry and on the internet.
His eBook, "From Skinny
To Muscular!", has helped many naturally skinny individuals gain
muscle size and weight by detailing the training strategies and eating
techniques that actually work at building muscle, instead of strength.
Many of Jonathan's other articles are located here: Read These
Articles To Help You Gain Weight.
Learn
how to gain weight with FromSkinnyToMuscular.com.
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