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what does lifting light weights actually do to your muscles?
- Thread starter LeeJunFan
- Start date
wnt2bBeast
New member
heavy is relative..Johnnie jackson is one strong mofo yet he says he does heavy bench for 15 reps well for him thats not really heavy if hes getting 15 reps..when the average gym rat sees him benching 405 for 15 they say damn thats heavy..i dont see why you wouldnt be able to increase your size using 8-10 reps..unless you using a weight that is too light and you can really get 15+ reps with..whether or not people agree with this it has to do with the different types of muscle fibers...
LeeJunFan
Well-known member
take bruce lee for example, I have pictures of him before he touched weights and he was really skinny but the same size as he was when he was ripped, so what happened to his muscles over the years he did weights, did they get more density or does it just seperate you muscles?
Thanx for the reply!
Thanx for the reply!
Tom Treutlein
New member
Lifting weights will have the same general benefits regardless. If you progress in load, then there will be an increase in muscle size and strength. Like wnt2b said, heavy is relative. If you can squat 200 for 15 reps one year, then the next 270 for 15, don't you think you must've gotten bigger as well as stronger? Maybe it's not so cut and dry, but I don't see any reason to complicate it.
Synpax
Well-known member
*sigh*
Strenght training 101:
Muscles grow because you tear them, and your body overcompensates by repairing more than was there in the first place. If you aren't lifting heavy weights, you aren't tearing your fibres as much.
High volume / lower weight is good for muscle endurance.
Strenght training 101:
Muscles grow because you tear them, and your body overcompensates by repairing more than was there in the first place. If you aren't lifting heavy weights, you aren't tearing your fibres as much.
High volume / lower weight is good for muscle endurance.
LeeJunFan
Well-known member
ok let me rephrase the question, forget I said heavy, if your muscles aren't getting bigger then what is happening to them, does your body rebuild them the same size and if so what is the piont of that?
The thing I wanna know is why my mate has a body fat of something around 4%-5% yet you can't see any of his muscles, he is about the same size as bruce lee and you can see all of bruces muscles, am I making any sense?
Thanx for the info!!!
The thing I wanna know is why my mate has a body fat of something around 4%-5% yet you can't see any of his muscles, he is about the same size as bruce lee and you can see all of bruces muscles, am I making any sense?
Thanx for the info!!!
Tom Treutlein
New member
Right, thus, progressive load will give size gains, even in the higher rep ranges. Progression is key.
lee - u consider 8-10 reps lite? lol.. i did a set today, of squats with 315 for 10 reps, that was my failure point and it was by no means light 
i felt like ed corney in pumping iron when he fell down after squatting, which i think was 315 for 11 reps.
my thoughts - like tom and everyone else is saying, progression of weight that continues to tear down the muscle = new, bigger and stronger muscle tissue.
i felt like ed corney in pumping iron when he fell down after squatting, which i think was 315 for 11 reps. my thoughts - like tom and everyone else is saying, progression of weight that continues to tear down the muscle = new, bigger and stronger muscle tissue.
InTraining
New member
Let me make a comparison here...Honestly I have always stayed in the 4-12 rep range and size gains were plentiful when doing 5 reps or 10 reps...so I don't know if there is a "one size fits all" rep range...
Anyways in DC training trainees are often use rest pause sets...that is one all out set to failure and two rest pause mini sets....sometimes the 15-30 rep range RP is used for smaller muscles such as biceps and triceps...and I don't hear anyone of those trainees complaining about those high reps aren't translating to size gains...
Also look at the 20 rep squat..20 REPS!!Most people I know will swear by the 20 rep squat as a great mass builder...also very taxing cardiovascular wise...
Gotta agree with Wnt2 here as well you can do a HARD set of 15 reps and still gain size ...or a HARD set of 5 reps and still gain size....the problems occur when people do sets with a weight they can easily do for 20 reps and then use it for 15 reps....
It all comes down to preference really...if you are used to lifting in the 6 rep range try going up to 10-12 reps and see what happens..most likely you will gain some size...
Sorry for the long post! I really need to abbreviate these
Anyways in DC training trainees are often use rest pause sets...that is one all out set to failure and two rest pause mini sets....sometimes the 15-30 rep range RP is used for smaller muscles such as biceps and triceps...and I don't hear anyone of those trainees complaining about those high reps aren't translating to size gains...
Also look at the 20 rep squat..20 REPS!!Most people I know will swear by the 20 rep squat as a great mass builder...also very taxing cardiovascular wise...
Gotta agree with Wnt2 here as well you can do a HARD set of 15 reps and still gain size ...or a HARD set of 5 reps and still gain size....the problems occur when people do sets with a weight they can easily do for 20 reps and then use it for 15 reps....
It all comes down to preference really...if you are used to lifting in the 6 rep range try going up to 10-12 reps and see what happens..most likely you will gain some size...
Sorry for the long post! I really need to abbreviate these
The Red Dragon
New member
What Synpax said, you destroy the crossbridges when you go heavy and more myofibrils are added into the muscle cell thereby increasing the volume and contractile strength.
TRUEsoldier
Banned
LeeJunFan said:
I think what they are saying bro, is that if you are working out properly, then whether it is in the rep range of 5 or 15 you will get the same results =muscles tear and build bigger...if you are working out whether it is high rep or low rep, and you are not getting bigger, then you are doing something wrong!!!
I dont think there is any such thing as working out and not gaining if you are doing it correctly. I personally cant stand to do more than 8 reps, I get bored, some peopel cant stand to do less than 10 cuz they feel it doesnt accomplish anything, the thing to focus should not be on the rep range, it should be to "failure" if at the end you are crumbling!!! good shit, if you get up thinking "man that was easy" then your not pushing yourself, so quit fucking around and add some weight!!! LOL
I hope that awnsers your question better
Deathbydefault
New member
the real question here is if they aren't getting bigger how do you know they are rebuilding leejun? muscles only get bigger/more dense when they need to, if the resistance isn't there they will just stay the same size or even decrease in size
LeeJunFan
Well-known member
Deathbydefault said:
so you are saying that they can either get bigger or become more dense?
that's what I wanted to know, so if you are doing light(er) weights and higher reps your muscles aren't getting bigger but are getting more dense?
And if that is the case how do your muscles become more dense?
Basically, if I did weights every week for 5 years but did not gain any muscle size, how would my muscles differ from when I started until after the 5 years, would they be more dense keeping in mind I won't have gotten any bigger.
p.s. I am asking the question because I wanna know what I am doing to my muscles when I weight train, I personally don't want to get any bigger that I am now so I work in the 8-10 rep range, I play a lot of squash and being to muscular would hinder performance.
Many thanx for the info and comments!
Sammy Sosa
New member
A trainer that is seeking for density and strength should stay between 1-5 reps. Where as if you are looking more for size, a person would do higher reps.
Since you are looking to stay the same size I would suggest staying in the 1-5 rep range with only a few sets per exercise.
Since you are looking to stay the same size I would suggest staying in the 1-5 rep range with only a few sets per exercise.
Deathbydefault
New member
1-5 reps is the range a powerlifter would be lifting in..i would just stick with 8-10 but try and add weight..high reps / low weight has not been proven to make your muscles more dense, i don't think there is a rep range/weight range that is specifically for making your muscles more dense, i'd just lift hard and heavy for years if you want dense muscles..
bluetwistedsteel67
New member
if you are working out properly and not growing that does not mean your muscles are getting more dense. Sometimes they do in fact stay the same. It's called maintenence. If you up your cals they grow if you drop them you shrink.
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