How to Find a Workout that is right for You
Different workouts work for different people. There’s nothing impressive about choosing an optimal program you can’t sustain. We all want fast progress, but we can guarantee that if you take a suboptimal program that you love, you’ll put more effort into it and make better gains than if you take an optimal program that you don’t enjoy.
So What is the Best Workout?
The current research gives us a pretty good idea of what’s optimal for strength and muscle gains:
• 40-70 reps per muscle group per workout (overlap included)
• Doing those reps in the 5-12 rep range
• Training a muscle group about twice a week
• Doing about 80% of your volume on big compound exercises
• Long rest periods between sets (1-3 minutes depending on the exercise and load)
• Main goal of training is Progressive Overload
What you’ll notice is that even these strict recommendations allow for many different programs. Because of that there is no way to know what the “the best workout program” is. No matter how you train you will always be able to convince yourself you should be progressing faster and this mindset leaves you susceptible to program hoping.
DID YOU KNOW?
MORE THAN 65% OF AMERICANS WHO OWN A GYM MEMBERSHIP DON’T USE IT
MORE THAN 38% OF GYM-GOERS SAY THEY LACK TIME TO WORK OUT
MORE THAN 54% OF U.S. BODYBUILDERS TAKE STEROIDS
What do these statistics mean to you?
Consistency is what makes progress rather than perfection. Some people are better suited for high intensity and low volume. Other people do better with moderate intensity and higher volume. so you gotta know what best for you and what do you really love doing because what you love to do will make it sustainable for the long term.
How to Choose The Right Training Program for You
Ultimately, all training routines work if they fit the principles we listed at the top of the page. And we’d argue that what you enjoy most is also what will work best for you. There are three training styles fit the preferences and lifestyles of most people:
1. Moderate Intensity, Higher Volume
2. High Intensity, Low Volume
3. Bodyweight Training
Key Components to your Muscle Building Journey
#1 Adherence
Because muscle growth is a slow process, sticking to your training and nutrition program long-term is what matters most. If one guy trains with a perfectly optimal program for six months and another guy trains with a good but inferior program for one year, the latter will make better progress.
An optimal program executed poorly is inferior to a decent program executed well.
#2 Train for Strength and get stronger!
Lifting heavier and heavier weights over time is the biggest driver of muscle growth. No matter what training style you choose, progressive overload is always the main goal you should focus on.
For example if a guy lifts 165 lbs for 6 reps on bench press today and a year from now he lifts the same 165 lbs for 6 reps he’ll be the same size. However if he progressed to 205 lbs for 6 reps his chest would be significantly bigger. The same is true for bodyweight training. In order to get bigger you have to progress through harder and harder exercises and build strength.
#3 Use the Right Volume, Intensity and Frequency
The amount of reps you do in the gym, the weights you’re using and how frequently you train are the three pillars of your training routine. Making sure those three variables are set correctly for your level will ensure you make optimal progress.
Volume = The total number of reps you do per week
Intensity = How heavy those reps are
Frequency = How often you train a muscle group
Like we stated before, there are many ways you can set these variables to create a good training program. But you can also make a bad program by setting them incorrectly.
#4 Eating in a Calorie Surplus with Enough Protein
Muscle growth is maximized when we gain weight because new tissue is created for excess nutrients. We must eat a surplus of calories and enough protein to support muscle growth.
Some guys take this too far though. There is only so much muscle the body can create in one day and giving it more nutrients than it can use won’t speed up the process. optimal protein intake can go between 0.8-1.3 grams per pound of bodyweight. if you are maintaining your weight or trying to gain muscle, 0.8-1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight will be more than enough. however, if you are trying to lose weight/fat and maintain as much muscle mass as possible i would suggest to go between 1-1.3 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight.
#5 Allowing Proper Recovery
Muscle growth has two parts:
1) Creating the stress that stimulates adaptation
2) Allowing our body to recover from it and improve.
When your recovery capacity is good you can handle more training which translates into better progress in long term. Our body reacts to all types of stress very similarly. Although lifting weights, the death of a loved one, or tight deadlines at work are different, your body copes with them using the same reservoir of recovery. In other words mental stress can actually make you physically weaker.
To keep your recovery high you must get enough good quality sleep and reduce life stress as much as possible.
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” HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT WORKOUT FOR YOU? “
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