What does approach mean in training? like 3 sets of 15 reps? and got the best answer
Answer from Dmitry Pavlov[guru]
Yes, three sets of 15 reps means doing 15 reps, rest, then 15 more reps, rest again, then 15 more reps.
In foreign literature, the concept of "set" is used, it seems to me that it is more obvious. 3 sets of 15 reps.
The meaning of the approaches is that during classes we train muscles. And muscles train while they work. But 15 repetitions is not enough for the muscle training you need, at the same time, do the exercise more than 15 times at a time (namely this exercise), it will be hard, because it will overload the muscles, and the heart. Therefore, approaches are used. This is a very common technique in bodybuilding and fitness.
Also, depending on what the goal is (for example, gaining muscle mass or gaining muscle relief), there may be approaches with an increase or decrease in the number of repetitions, as well as a change in the weight of the shells if they are used. In the complex of exercises, this should be written, if necessary.
Answer from Maxim Turchinskiy[active]
Pohpod is the repetition of this or that exercise several times
Answer from AndRUS[guru]
If each "time" is 50 grams .. Hmm, yes, that workout is needed, what else! 🙂
Answer from Timm Rott[expert]
Yes. approach - it came up and squeezed the barbell 15 times. rested a little and came back again.
Answer from Denis Gruzdev[guru]
Yes, approaches are like separate mini-workouts with the same number of repetitions (although they also practice ladder and reverse ladder - this is when the number of repetitions in the approach increases and decreases from time to time).
If you are not told how long to wait between sets, this is an occasion to think about the professionalism of the instructor. Rest between sets, together with the duration of the set, determines the function being trained.
For example, repetitions of 10-15 seconds after 5-10 minutes have a good effect on the creatine phosphate capacity of the muscles.
30 seconds after 30 seconds on circulatory system(method of circulatory interval training).
2-6 minutes through the same interval - the supply of oxygen to the muscles.
Answer from Matvey Ryumin[guru]
It's simple: we approached the projectile (simulator), did the required number of repetitions, rested, this is one approach. According to the American tradition, the approach is also called a set. And it is abbreviated as follows: 3x15 (three by fifteen).
Answer from Vladislav[guru]
Yes, you understood correctly 15 times, do rest again 15 times, and so on by the number of approaches
Answer from Andrey Klipikov[guru]
An approach is an approach to a projectile. Repetition - one repetition, that is, for example, one lifting of the barbell.
Answer from senya bakhmetiev[newbie]
Damn this is easy
Answer from 3 answers[guru]
Hello! Here is a selection of topics with answers to your question: what does approach mean in training? like 3 sets of 15 reps?
How to start playing sports and not become disabled
Many people start doing fitness to improve physical form or reset overweight, and end up with injuries and disappointment in sports. Most often this happens due to a lack of understanding in what quantities and with what intensity the exercises should be done. Our freelance trainer explains why to repeat exercises, how to do proper warm-up and calculate the load that is right for you.
IN training programs the number of repetitions is almost always indicated: push up 20 times or do a maximum of squats in 30 seconds. It is clear what to do, but why so? Everyone who begins to engage in self-care needs to understand how many repetitions are needed, in what exercises and for what purpose. Otherwise, there is a risk of training according to a program that will not lead you personally to the desired result. If it is promoted by a fitness businessman breaking into the market, and not by a competent coach, then there is a danger of injury and forgetting for a while about any improvement in the figure.
There is no magic or super complicated calculations in choosing a rep range. Everything is determined by understandable logic related to the reactions of our body to the load. It should be remembered that overall result It also depends on other training parameters: working weight, movement speed, rest between sets, etc. But now let's look at what number of repetitions is better in different exercises and for different purposes.
healthy approach
The main selection criterion, as always, remains health: the right load strengthens it, the wrong one destroys it.
Multi-joint ones are more physiological, movement in them is more natural for the body, so you can perform any number of repetitions in one approach - from one to tens and hundreds. An exception should be made for exercises that strain the spine: back squats and deadlifts. In them, it is better to start with the average range (6-12) even with low weight. Although multi-rep squats and deadlifts are very effective, the lower back must be accustomed to them gradually.
Everything is different with single-joint exercises: since the movement is isolated in one joint and often puts it in a less than optimal position, you need to reduce the load and do more repetitions: 15-20 or more. Never do isolating exercises in a strength style - with a maximum weight of five repetitions, three or even one. Trying to set a record will only lead to damage to the joints, ligaments and tendons.
Warm-up and training
When you first enter the gym, the body is not ready for training and needs to be awakened. To do this, a warm-up is performed, first a general one (jogging on a track, an exercise bike or light gymnastics), then specific - in the exercises themselves. Start with minimal weight and high reps, then gradually increase the load by decreasing the number of repetitions. Let's take the barbell squat as an example.
First warm-up approach- 20-30 squats without weights.
The second warm-up set is 10–15 bodybar or empty bar squats.
The third warm-up set is 8–12 squats with a warm-up weight on the bar.
If you have problems with your knee joints or lower back (but the doctor allowed you to squat), then you may need an additional warm-up before squats: extension and flexion of the legs on the simulator or extension of the back (hyperextension). In them, too, do more repetitions - 15–25 with a minimum load to warm everything up, pump blood into the working muscles and lubricate the joints.
After warming up, start working sets of 6-10 repetitions with training weight. The first few months you need to master the technique of the exercise, not thinking about the intensity. If you can’t control the movement in this range, then do fewer repetitions in the approach, for example, three to six. At the same time, do not particularly increase the weight: it should be felt for correct execution, but do not spoil the technique. The better you learn how to do exercises at the very beginning of classes, the more strength, mass or harmony will be in the end.
Reps for Strength
Now fast forward six months: you have learned how to do the exercises correctly, the whole room is going to look at you and bow to the divine technique. What to do next? Let's say your goal is pure strength, you're going to compete in powerlifting, climbing, martial arts or ballet. In cases where you need to become stronger with a minimal increase own weight, you should increase the load in a small range of repetitions. In the warm-up, leave everything the same - you still need to warm up the muscles and lubricate the joints, but in working sets, do five to six repetitions. At the same time, do not bring to failure: the last repetition in the approach should be difficult, but clean. When you have completed all planned repetitions, on next workout add two 0.5 kg pancakes to the bar and again beat to ensure that every movement is of high quality. Want to do more? Add approaches. Sometimes try the maximum load for five, three and one repetition, but not too often - once every few weeks.
If isolation movements are required, such as arm extensions for a lagging triceps, then add them at the end of the workout in a medium-high number of repetitions - 12-20.
Reps for Mass
You can often hear in fitness clubs that for mass you need to do 8-12 repetitions, and for those who are afraid to pump over, this range scares away. The thing is, they don't hear about important nuance: in these repetitions you need to work all the way - 8–12 lifts of a cup of coffee will not add any mass. Muscles in general can grow from different ranges if sufficient training volume is gained and a certain overload occurs. So what do you do when your dream is muscle growth? Choose the most mass-gaining exercises and increase the weights in the middle range, as well as add isolation with a large number of repetitions. In deadlifts, squats and standing presses, taking care of the spine, it is better to stay at 6-10 repetitions. But in lunges, bench presses and pull-ups, you can increase to 12-15 - this will bring more mass. In bench presses and deadlifts on simulators, you can reach up to 20–25 repetitions, reaching muscle failure, and in single-joint exercises, do 30, 40, even 50 repetitions, finally finishing off the muscles so that they no longer have the right not to grow.
How much to do, so as not to pump up?
Now that we have figured out a little about the features of muscle growth, let's move on to workouts that do not increase mass, but vice versa. In order to lose weight, you can do endurance, increasing the time of work of individual muscles and developing cardiovascular and respiratory system. Let's say you need leg endurance for a long run. Marathon every day is not the healthiest solution for knee joints, but some volume of squats will help. Start with light squats and increase the number of repetitions gradually, for example, five or even one per workout. When you hit 100 reps per set, you can continue and get to 200, or you can pick up dumbbells and do sets of 20-50 reps. It’s better not to do so many times with a barbell on your back, the lower back will fail.
Another option is general endurance, developed by circular or interval training. Choose a few multi-joint full-body exercises that you can do very well and do them one after the other without rest pauses - rest when you finish the whole circuit. Work at medium to high reps (8-12 or 15-25), but with half as much weight as you can handle in this range. The meaning of such a scheme is in long-term work with a change of exercises: individual muscles do not get enough load for growth, but the heart and lungs work intensively, and a lot of calories are spent.
Now you know why programs and specific movements have different reps, and you can start meaningful training. First learn how to clearly do the exercises, then take on the technique that leads to your goal. Try not to break the execution technique for the sake of the protocol: if you feel that you do not control the weight and the movement deteriorates, stop the set. It’s better to miss some reps than to finish everything, getting injured and losing the opportunity to train. remember, that healthy body will always look better.
Jerry Brainum
Regular readers of IRONMAN magazine are already familiar with the high-intensity training system proposed by ex-Mr. Universe Mike Mentzer. In addition, Mentzer used to be an assistant to Arthur Jones, the inventor of the Nautilus simulator. Over the years, Jones has lauded high-impact, low-volume workouts—and often in a rather blunt style. He did not hesitate to brand those who did not agree with his system. Scientists specializing in this field were often the targets of his literary attacks.
According to his theory, and later to Mentzer's theory, for every person, regardless of his or her experience, one well-executed set in any given exercise is quite enough. And if a person does more approaches, then, in their opinion, this is simply an excessive load, which only brings harm, increasing the recovery time. Jones has often said that there is an obvious logic to such abbreviated training programs to failure.
Critics of the high-intensity system, after all, called it a "cunning trick" that only panders to natural human laziness.
Few would deny that only the most zealous adherents of this sport take pleasure in pumping iron for hours on end. gym. And the idea that it is possible to achieve the same gains in size and strength with much less effort has intrigued many.
Bodybuilders actually tend to over-load themselves, the traditionally accepted build-up formula muscle mass requires big weights and lots of hard approaches. Yet, many bodybuilders who switch to a low-volume, high-intensity system are surprised to find that their congestion disappears as a result. And all this is happening because they now have the opportunity to recover, which is what they needed in order to grow volumes.
Despite the inherent logic of this system, only a few of the competing bodybuilders still adhere to it. However, many have developed all sorts of versions based on limited training volume that include no more than 6-8 sets per muscle group. The difference is clearly visible compared to the 15 or even more sets favored by the rest of the competing bodybuilders. But personally, I do not know a single bodybuilder who would do just one approach per exercise.
In fact, the question is, is it possible to achieve the same results with one set of each exercise as three sets bring?
According to the available scientific literature, the answer depends on your goals. If you just want to look good and are not going to compete, then one approach is enough for you to achieve and maintain results. But those who are thinking about competing should prioritize more training volume.
For beginners, one set is enough, because the initial growth in resistance training is due to neuromuscular adaptation. In short, your brain begins to communicate better with your muscles, which leads to their rapid growth.
Those who criticize training system, designed for one set per exercise, they say that if you want to achieve any success, you need to move on to multiple sets.
A study was conducted, the subject of which was this problem. The study group consisted of 42 adults average age who was 39 years old, with about 5 years of training experience. They trained for a year on the same program, consisting of 9 exercises, one approach each. Based on the goals of the study, some of the participants increased the number of sets to three. All exercises were designed to work to failure.
After four months, the results showed that, regardless of the number of sets, the same changes were observed in both groups as in muscle tone as well as in body composition. However, upon closer examination of the results, it becomes clear that the group doing more sets achieved more than those who continued to do one set. For example, in terms of body composition, those who did three sets had a noticeable increase in chest and arm circumference, they lost more fat compared to the rest. In terms of endurance, the one set performers found a 48.2% increase in quad endurance, while the three set group experienced a 58.4% increase. The results in the bench press in the first group increased by 49.5%, while in the second - by 66.7%. However, the researchers considered this difference insignificant.
Other studies that have compared the results of workouts involving one, two or more sets of each exercise show that more training volume, i. more sets leads to a greater release of anabolic hormones such as testosterone and growth hormone. This explains some of the difference in the results of the study described above. For example, the fat loss in the high-volume group is due not only to increased calories burned, but also to the release of anabolic hormones. Both growth hormone and testosterone have a positive effect on body composition.
The one-set group took about 25 minutes to complete the workout, while the three-set group took an hour to complete the entire program. The authors of this study believe that participants in the low-volume training group will be more likely to approach exercise simply because they spend less time in the gym. Of course, one cannot disagree with these words, but in my opinion hour workout unlikely to negatively affect the psychological state of most people.
Based on my observations in the gym, I believe that doing one set of each exercise is quite suitable for beginners - and, of course, it is better than not training at all. But still, it seems to me that the probability of hitting the target with three shots is much greater than with one.
Another of the most popular questions power form sports, especially among beginners, how many reps and sets to do. In order to study it most effectively, you first need to ask yourself a number of other equally important questions, the answers to which will help you understand the basic principles of drawing up a training program - correct and effective. You will be armed with scientific data that will help you improve and allow you to intelligently guide the less experienced in the gym.
And here is the list itself:
- Your level physical training?
- Body type?
- What are your goals?
Each of them has direct relationship to the answer, how many approaches and repetitions need to be done. Let's start with the very first question and analyze each of them in order to better understand its importance and significance.
Your fitness level
This is a very simple question. Do you have any experience in physical activity And strength training in particular? At this stage, you need to clearly define your level: unprepared, beginner, amateur, professional.
If you have been training for 45 minutes 3 times a week, then you are a beginner. Maybe you visit the gym 4-6 times a week for 45 minutes? Then you are an average bodybuilder (amateur). When you participate in workouts lasting more than 45 minutes, more than 6 times a week, then you are participating in competitions and are considered a professional athlete.
Completely "green" must start with aerobic exercise and some strength exercises with lighter weights to prepare your body and mind for more extreme workouts. It is very important to be patient and start small. The most unrestrained risk getting to know overtraining and injuries, after which they are unable or simply unwilling to continue to improve. Training is effective only when the body has time to adapt and recover. Beginners need to work at near-limit intensity in order to recover from physical activity. For the first 3-4 weeks, you should leave the gym feeling like you could have done so much more.
Beginners with little experience in bodybuilding should adhere to a large number 10-15 reps and 2 sets per muscle group (1-2 exercises per muscle group - mostly basic). This is necessary to create muscle coordination and chemical reactions in tissues. After 3 weeks, it's time to move on to the next step.
body type
Our bodies are divided into 3 main shapes: lean, muscular and full. In fact, they have scientific names, but for a change, let's leave it as it is. Most people who have a muscular physique will benefit the most from doing 6-8 reps. Naturally skinny people will benefit by only doing 6 reps. Well, the last group, full people, it is better to do 12-20 repetitions.
To find out how many approaches and repetitions you need to do, you need to decide on goals - they must be achievable and measurable.
There are three important moments that need to be taken into account:
- Strength and endurance cannot be optimally developed at the same time, as they are opposite to each other.
- By developing maximum strength, you increase the potential for maximum endurance.
- Strength takes longer to develop than endurance.
The repetitive continuum has STRENGTH at one end and ENDURANCE at the other. Strength is achieved by performing heavy reps in a low quantitative range, where 1 rep produces the most strength. Endurance, on the contrary, is achieved by performing repetitions with small weights in a high range, where the ability to do, for example, 100 push-ups - will be great example extreme endurance.
- The program, aimed at developing strength, consists of 1-5 repetitions in the approach. This range allows you to use the maximum weight of weights and perfectly load the muscles. This type muscle growth called myofibrillar hypertrophy.
- If used in a set of 9-12, then sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is maximized, which causes an increase in muscle volume.
- Beyond 12 repetitions, anaerobic endurance is mainly developed, and muscle hypertrophy is reduced to a minimum.
- Ideally, a muscle building program should be 6-8 reps per set. Such training has an excellent balance between myofibrillar (strength) and sarcoplasmic (mass) hypertrophy, developing both types. muscle fibers(fast and slow) and perfectly raise testosterone levels.
- To maintain good shape, it is enough to train the whole body 3 times a week, doing 2-3 sets (from 2 to 3 exercises per muscle group) of 12-15 repetitions. You will get a basic level of fitness, become more experienced and be able to set new, higher goals to achieve.
All of the above figures are generally accepted, well-established and have proven their effectiveness in bodybuilding more than once. But science does not stand still and offers us new knowledge about muscles, forcing us to reconsider our views on certain things. And this is true for reps and sets. Therefore, on this topic, you can talk for a long time, and study even longer.
From this follows a completely legitimate question - "So what to believe?". Basically, it's not that important. After all, there are NO USELESS repetitions and approaches! Each person is unique and differently genetically arranged and gifted. So, don't get carried away with theories, focus on strenuous and varied workouts in the gym, experiment and make mistakes, because that's how you can find out what works best for you.
Beginning athletes are not always well aware of what programs and types of training are most effective for gaining mass. Many beginners are also looking for the answer to the question regarding what range of approaches and repetitions must be performed for mass gain. It makes no sense to set any boundaries on your own. You need to rely solely on time-tested and practiced research, recommendations of specialists.
To date, it is generally accepted that the optimal number of repetitions in each training approach for mass gain varies from 8 to 12. This “standard” appeared back in 1954, and was proposed by Ian McQueen, who was not just an English surgeon, but also a bodybuilder. Even after half a century, the relevance of this approach leaves no doubt. According to the results of research from one of the American universities, in order to build muscle mass, you need to do about 4-6 repetitions.
Over the past decades, many new useful information about the features of the processes occurring in the human body, as well as about the muscles. Based on half a century of history, we can safely say that the effectiveness for mass gain comes from a combination of different ranges of repetitions.
The expediency of wave-like periodization
The results of the American study showed that the strength indicators of athletes who changed the number of repetitions once a week were twice as high as those who did not, that is, they were engaged in the same range.
The experiment, lasting three weeks, consisted in the fact that athletes changed the intensity of repetitions every seven days: low, high, medium. Through wavy periodization, a result was achieved that demonstrates that repetitions have a certain role in muscle growth, but each range has its own separate task.
There are three main ranges of repetitions for mass growth:
- Low - from 1 to 5 times. It involves working with maximum weight and high load on the muscles. This training affects, first of all, myofibrils - the connecting threads of muscle fibers, contributing to the formation of their more. The higher the number of myofibrils, the more force can be regenerated by the muscles. The low range is great for strength gains, which invariably results in volume gains, though not as pronounced as with medium reps.
- Medium - from 6 to 10 times. For thirty seconds, the muscles are subjected to a moderate degree of stress. This is the reason why most professionals consider this range to be the most effective in terms of mass building. However, working only with this number of repetitions, without resorting to alternation, will cause neither strength nor endurance to develop.
- High - over 11 times. The load on the muscles turns out to be a much longer period of time than with the low and medium range. This allows you to increase the concentration of mitochondria - the energy-producing structures present in muscle tissue. The higher their number, the greater the endurance indicator. During this training, muscle tissue fluid volume increases, which leads to muscle growth. This type of range is most often used to achieve pumping.
To avoid muscle adaptation to one approach or another, the use of a different number of repetitions in training for mass gain used to allow. Today, this is not necessary. To prevent the muscles from adapting, a huge number of methods have been developed, including super- and additional sets, failure reps, and much more. Thanks to a variety of tricks, you can choose for yourself the best range option that gives maximum effect mass gain, and do 8-12 repetitions.
How many approaches do you need to do when doing mass training?
Experienced bodybuilders recommend doing at least three to four sets for one exercise, which must be completed at least three for each muscle group. Because the various exercises focused on different areas muscle groups, due to which growth occurs, it is necessary for each to do at least 9-12 approaches in one workout.
Work on muscle growth lower extremities differs from training process upper muscle groups, requires an increase in the number of approaches and repetitions. When training is aimed at gaining leg mass, over 15 repetitions are done per set. Many professional bodybuilders recommend doing 20 or more repetitions. Not only the range of the exercise performed increases, but also the number of approaches used. It equals four or five.
