Reps question

[gary2p]

When lifting weights, how many reps should I aim at?Should I use a fixed weight, or I should lift as much as I can for acertain amount of reps? If so, how many reps will help me grow?

 

[SteveMobsterG]

It's much argued so I'll reply in the simplest way. It's muscle vs power vs endurance.

I train for strength so I rarely go past 8 reps and sometimes as low as 4 reps (even singles). I work well with a high percentage of my 1 rep max others do not so I'll generalize.

Muscle: 8-12 reps
Power: 4-8 reps
Endurance: 12-15 reps or more.

The other aspect which makes a BIG difference is rest between sets.
Muscle: 1-2 minutes is ideal.
Power: 2-5 minutes
Endurance: 30-seconds to 1 minute (again ideally)