Ideal rep range for hypertrophy?

[gbrice75]

From researching various books and websites, it seems that the 5-7 rep range is what's generally accepted as being best for muscular hypertrophy, based on the philosophy that this rep range utilizes fast twitch fibers more than slow twitch, and higher rep ranges would recruit slow twitch which don't have nearly the capacity for growth when compared to the fast.

However, I have seen some contradictions to this, some even suggesting the 8-12 rep range is best.

I am not overly concerned with strength; I don't care if i'm the weakest guy in the gym so long as I look the way I want to. Plus, it's hard to imagine that strength won't automatically come with size, which is what i'm after most.

I would like to hear your opinions on this.

[FireGuy]

Very seldom do I ever go below 8 reps these days. I work almost exclusively in the 8-20 rep range. But...I have pretty much resolved my days of putting on tons of muscle are long gone. It is more about longevity and being sure my joints and tendons are able to hold up. When I was in my 20's and 30's I lived in the 4-8 rep range doing heavy compound movements. It is what built the majority of muscle I have today and it is also why my joint and tendons dont like me much anymore.

[gbrice75]

Very seldom do I ever go below 8 reps these days. I work almost exclusively in the 8-20 rep range. But...I have pretty much resolved my days of putting on tons of muscle are long gone. It is more about longevity and being sure my joints and tendons are able to hold up. When I was in my 20's and 30's I lived in the 4-8 rep range doing heavy compound movements. It is what built the majority of muscle I have today and it is also why my joint and tendons dont like me much anymore.

FG - sorry to hear about the joints and tendons, hopefully what you're doing nowadays is more forgiving.

So from your reply it sounds like 4-8 is the ideal range to pack on muscle. Do you think it would be beneficial every few workouts to change it up and go with a higher range, or would it be best to focus on 1 range for some time? Again, my primary goal is to add lean mass. I don't necessarily care about strength or endurance for that matter.

[FireGuy]

4-6 may be the ideal range but you can still build quite a bit of muscle in that 8-15 rep scheme as well. I think varying your rep range is always a good idea.

[gbrice75]

Great, thanks! What i'll probably do is 2 weeks of the 4-6 range, then go 8-15 on the 3rd week, and keep rotating like that. This way, emphasis will be in the low range, but I will get a break every 3rd week and also stimulate other fibers.

[bigslick7878]

I was reading Fireguys week out thread on the other forum and read a couple of articles from a pro he quoted, Layne Norton about rep ranges.

Good stuff...

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/layne45.htm
http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wi...trophy_Routine

I am in the very low range for almost all of my work and have read conflicting things about rep ranges, that cleared it up a lot.

Bottom line is every one is beneficial in some way, I might switch up to a low medium high for every group and see if that works for me when I need a change.

[gbrice75]

Great articles, thanks for the links!

[rocheey]

I've always heard the window of 6-12 (including 8-10, 6-8, 10-12, etc) for hypertrophy. Less than that for strength, more than that for cutting. I try and cover all the bases and do a set of 10-12, followed by a set of 7-9, followed by a set of 4-6