What’s the best split routine for building muscle? A 2-, 3-, 4- or 5-day splits? The truth is there are many effective ways to train. In this article, I break down the pros and cons of each option, explains when body part splits make sense instead of full body workouts, and help you choose the right split routine based on your goals
If you’ve ever read a weight training article or a muscle building (hypertrophy) science review and thought, “Wait, what does that word mean?” then this glossary is for you. In this resource, I chose the most important and frequently used terminology in hypertrophy research and practice and defined them in the simples way possible. I also added extra tips to help you with the application of all the popular principles and techniques. From AMRAP to concurrent training to volume load, this is your quick-reference guide to understanding the language of building muscle...
You may have heard of drop sets before because they've been around a long time and drop sets are one of the most popular high intensity muscle building methods. Arnold famously used drop sets on barbell curls to build some of the best biceps of all time. Today you see recreational lifters doing drop sets every day in every gym. Maybe you already do them too. But if so, are you sure you're doing them right? If you're doing them wrong, or not doing them at all, you're missing out on major gains...
How many sets should you do to build muscle? Some say one all-out set to failure is enough, while others swear by higher-volume training. What does the latest science actually show? This article breaks down decades of research to reveal how many sets per muscle group per week deliver the best results - and why more isn’t always better when it comes to muscle growth
If you’ve been lifting but your muscle gains have stalled - or never really took off - this post is for you. Discover the 7 biggest training mistakes that sabotage progress and how to fix them fast. From poor intensity and lack of progressive overload to ego lifting and inconsistent programs, these are the real reasons you’re not seeing results. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned gym-goer, this checklist will help you break through plateaus and start building serious muscle, starting today...
Once you’ve planned out a weight training routine that follows all the best practices of good program design, the single most important thing you can do to gain muscle is consistently apply the principle of progressive overload. But how do you keep increasing the load without getting hurt?
There's probably no topic that has been researched and debated more in the last ten years than resistance training volume. That is, how many sets is optimal for muscle gains. Previous research suggested that gains are optimized at somewhere between 10 and 20 sets per muscle per week. However, there are still some unanswered questions about how many sets you should do, including whether women should do the same amount as men and whether you need the same amount of sets for small muscles and big muscles. See what the latest research says in today's Burn the Fat Blog Post...
So you're wondering, "Should I bulk or cut?" Maybe you're not sure because you heard out there in social media and blog world that you're not supposed go on a muscle building diet if your body fat is a little high. Then you wonder, "Well, how low does my body fat have to be before it's ok for me to bulk? When is it okay for me to go into a calorie surplus for bulking? The answer is here!
The "Shocking" truth about electrical muscle stimulation (EMS). Shocking. Get it? Sorry, bad pun - I couldn't resist. But this deserves to be poked fun at. "Attach electrodes to your belly, turn on the current, [...]
One of the biggest training debates in recent years is about the ideal training frequency: If your goal is building muscle, should you train each muscle group once a week or twice a week? (Or somewhere in between?) If you listen to most trainers today, you'll probably hear them say it's ideal work each muscle twice per week. However, based on recent research as well as observation of what's working for top bodybuilders, the answer about training frequency may not be so cut and dried. In today's post, Tom Venuto gives a unique and open-minded answer to a reader's question on this topic.
