Reps for Building Muscle - Determining Sets and Range to Build Your Body

Sep 10
08:21

2009

Dean Forster

Dean Forster

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Doing the correct number of sets, range of motion and reps for building muscle mass effectively

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The range of reps for building muscle is one concern that should be focused on by body builders. Determining the correct range will greatly help a body-building enthusiast achieve his or her goals. Added to this is the correct amount of sets for exercises and one will have a winning formula for muscle building.

Before we go into details on what is the correct range of reps and appropriate amount of sets,Reps for Building Muscle - Determining Sets and Range to Build Your Body Articles let us focus first on what exactly are reps and sets in exercises.

Range of reps

Reps in body building pertain to the range of repetition by which exercises are done. When doing exercises, one should start slowly and build on to a higher range of reps. The idea behind having the correct range of reps is to build muscle resistance. Gradually increasing rep range through progressive increase of the amount of work and weight of load will result in muscle stimulation.

Sets in exercises

Sets, in body-building terms, is the amount of work or exercise done by an individual. Determining the correct amount of sets when exercising depends mainly on how the muscles of the body react. Having higher number of sets does not directly correlate to higher mass of muscles built. The number of sets should be determined by how much resistance a person's muscles experience when exercising.

Tips on building muscles

Normally, a person should start an exercise routine by warming up. The load of exercise should be built gradually. Basically, the aim of exercising is to increase overload. This can be achieved by increasing muscle resistance; which, in turn, is done by increasing the amount of physical work. At the start of an exercise routine, lower reps are done and are gradually increased to achieve muscle overload. Ideally, a body builder should have a range of six reps for his or her heaviest sets.

Depending on the type of exercises being done or the routine being followed, the amount of heaviest sets is usually between one and three. The main thing to remember is that muscles are stimulated not by the number of sets or the number of repetitions, but by gradually building from a slow and lower amount to a higher intensity that is just about right for the body's muscles.

Reps for building muscle and sets for exercises should not be determined by numbers alone. A body builder should start slowly and build to a higher range and higher amount of work with his or her mind always focused on whether the muscles are feeling increased resistance and are able to tolerate the program being followed.