There are all kinds of different opinions on how to build lean muscle mass. To be honest with you, any strategy can work if you do it for the right amount of time. The catch is that even the greatest strategy will ultimately stop working over time. The smart strategy is to have not just one, or even two, but have 3. Let’s get into the top 3 strategies of lean mass building.
Muscle size will increase as you become stronger. The reason for this is because your body has to adapt to heavier weight . A good example of strength training would be to 5 sets of 5 reps. The idea is that you stick with the same amount of sets and reps, but week after week you increase the amount of weight.
5×5 @ 135 lbs
Rest 2-3 mins between each set
5×5 @ 155 lbs
Rest 2-3 mins between each set
5×5 @ 175 lbs
Rest 2-3- mins between each set
5×5 @ 195 lbs
Rest 2-3- mins between each set
This strategy can work for a few consecutive months, as long as you include deload weeks. For those of you who don’t know, a deload week is a training week where you significantly reduce training intensity to recover from training stress. Basically just lift light that week. Ultimately though, this strategy will stop working due to the fact that strength progress will slow down and it will become impossible to continue adding weight to the bar.
Muscle size will grow in order to accommodate a greater training volume. Your training volume basically implies the quantity of repetitions you do rather than the quantity of weight you lift. A good example of this training volume strategy would be increasing the amount of sets you do with a given weight from week to week.
5×8 @ 135 lbs
Rest 1-2 mins between each set
6×8 @ 135 lbs
Rest 1-2 mins between each set
7×8 @ 135 lbs
Rest 1-2 mins between each set
8×8 @ 135 lbs
Rest 1-2 mins between each set
This strategy can work for a few months as well, but eventually you will have to change strategies because it will be impossible to continually keeping adding sets. Attempting to do so will result in workouts being excessively long and over training which leads to a decrease in muscle mass as well as performance.
This strategy is an alternative way to increase training volume. The goal with this strategy is to gradually increase the amount of reps you do in a given set. Unlike strategy number two, this method doesn’t require you to increase the amount of sets you do. The amount of sets you do should actually decrease, which would serve as an indication that you’re strength and muscular endurance is improving. This strategy especially works with body weight exercises like push up and pull ups. Its also a very effective way to train arms, or any single joint muscle.
100 rep goal
Complete in 6 sets
Rest 15-30 secs between each set
100 rep goal
Complete in 5 sets
Rest 15-30 secs between each set
100 rep goals
Complete in 4 sets
Rest 15-30 secs between each set
100 rep goal
Complete in 3 sets
Rest 15-30 secs between each set
Before you try this strategy, BE WARNED, this is an intense method and takes tremendous will power. Squeezing out every last rep you can, burns like crazy. Eventually though you’ll have to ease off of this type of training because it can lead to over-use injuries because of the build up in inflammation in the muscle tissue.
Driving muscle is a matter of manual transmission. You gotta know when to switch gears. One of the most common things I’ve seen people do is stick with a certain training method to the point that their progress stalls. The easiest way to avoid this is to track your progress really closely. Typically the first 3 months that you follow a given strategy, you’ll see pretty good results. After that 3 month mark, things can start to slow down. That slow down in progress is an indication that its time to make a change.
In my experience, using two different strategies from opposite ends of the spectrum yield the most results, with minimal sacrifice. The way I would advise you to do this is by splitting your workouts up into 2 phases. The 1st phase would be the low volume heavy lifting, and the 2nd phase would be the higher volume with lighter loads. In most cases this is best way to get the most benefit out of every training session. Here’s what it would look like.
Phase 1 (Low Volume/Heavy Weight)
Barbell Back Squat
Phase 2 (High Volume/Low Weight)
Dumbbell Goblet
Prone Leg Curl
Phase 1 (Low Volume/Heavy Weight)
Barbell Bench Press
Phase 2 (High Volume/Low Weight)
Dumbbell Incline Press
Seated Row
Phase 1 (Low Volume/Heavy Weight)
Barbell Deadlift
Phase 2 (High Volume/Low Weight)
Barbell Hip Bridge
Prone Leg Curl
Phase 1 (Low Volume/Heavy Weight)
Barbell Overhead Press
Phase 2 (High Volume/Low Weight)
Lat Pull Down
Face Pull
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