Confused on reps for cutting...

[Darion]

It seems that every source I read, they have different opinions on the subject. Some say never to go above about 15 reps per muscle whereas some say do tons; I've seen a report that went as far as saying that very few reps with huge weight is best when combined with cardio because it helps maintains density of muscle as well as strength while cutting.... I'm not going to be able to do cardio because I can't swim and I've recently had a knee injury so I need to cut with just the weights.. I'd really like someone to finalize all this cutting speculation stuff for me.

Thanks,
Darion

[RJstrong]

I have always been convinced that you have to have muscle to see first... and by that I mean building muscle up by progressively training heavier and heavier... do your high rep sets as you pyramid up to your heavier sets 75-90% of your max (or at least moderately weighted sets 65-75% of your max) where your reps will drop considerably... and as far as looking cut... it's all diet.

[Darion]

Can you break that down into like how many sets and reps I do and with what percentages..? Also, how many sets per muscle/muscle group would be appreciated as well.

Thanks,
Darion

[Bigpup101]

this is all up to you..you don't neccasarily have to change your reps (although i would keep them in a higher range 8-15 IMO) ai would just change the rest periods between sets, reason for this is you keep your heart rate up which in turns speeds up your metabolism and burns more calories..so i would keep your rest rates to uner 60 seconds if you're cutting

[Darion]

Thanks bigpup, you look about as lean as I wanna be so I guess you know what you're talkin' about I'll keep 'em down.

[znak]

It seems that every source I read, they have different opinions on the subject. Some say never to go above about 15 reps per muscle whereas some say do tons; I've seen a report that went as far as saying that very few reps with huge weight is best when combined with cardio because it helps maintains density of muscle as well as strength while cutting.... I'm not going to be able to do cardio because I can't swim and I've recently had a knee injury so I need to cut with just the weights.. I'd really like someone to finalize all this cutting speculation stuff for me.

Thanks,
Darion

Weight loss (cutting) is a function of intensity, not reps. It is the amount of weight you move per time. You can do it with heavy weights, low rep, short interval or high reps, lower weight and short intervals, super high weight, low reps, slightly longer interval, etc...

It is actually pretty simple-- add up the weight that you move per session now and divide by the time, then up the intensity (either add weight or more sets in the same time) and viola, you are burning more calories.

The BIGGEST factor in cutting is the ratio between you calorie intake and your calories burned.

Hint: it is easier to control and measure you calorie intake.

[S.P.G]

Weight loss (cutting) is a function of intensity, not reps. It is the amount of weight you move per time. You can do it with heavy weights, low rep, short interval or high reps, lower weight and short intervals, super high weight, low reps, slightly longer interval, etc...

It is actually pretty simple-- add up the weight that you move per session now and divide by the time, then up the intensity (either add weight or more sets in the same time) and viola, you are burning more calories.

The BIGGEST factor in cutting is the ratio between you calorie intake and your calories burned.

Hint: it is easier to control and measure you calorie intake.

spot on