Bigger is Better

Simple Rules of Thumb for Hypertrophy

1. Progressively increase your mechanical load
     For example follow an 11-week cycle such as this: week 1 - use 70% of your 1 rep max load; week 2 - 75%; 3- 80%; 4- 65%; 5-85%; 6-75%; 7-80%; 8-85%; 9-70%; 10- 90%; take a break

2. Full body workouts 3 times a week

3. One warm-up set followed by one working set for each exercise

4. Use compound exercises

5. Keep total workout time under 1 hour per session

6. Maintain a slow, 4-second pace for the eccentric contractions 

7. Eat a balanced, nutritious diet

***** But, see the American College of Sports Medicine Recommendations and Position Stand

They say:

4-5 days per week for advanced training.

Hypertrophy training

• 1-12 RM in periodized fashion
  • emphasis on the 6-12 RM zone
• 1- to 2-min rest periods between sets
• moderate contraction velocity
• higher volume, multiple-set programs