Billy the bodybuilder says I should do high reps for toning, he says big weights will make me grow... This type of comment has been banded around for years amongst bodybuilders and is quite simply a myth.....both methods are effective at making a muscle grow. Heavier load and shorter sets target myofibril growth and lighter loads with longer sets target sarcoplasmic growth. Neither of these methods are designed to create tone. Dropping bodyfat and keeping muscle creates tone. Diet is the key variable. Eat a calorie surplus and you can accelerate growth. Eat a reduced calorie intake and you can accelerate fatloss. Which method of training you use needs to be varied as both end of the continuum from heavy through to light weights has its merits and deserves its place. Heavier loads are good for increasing strength and force production and core strength but can be demanding for the nervous system. Longer sets are great for conditioning as the heart rate is elevated for longer. Both will be great for stimulating a muscle growth response. I would encourage readers of this page to think not as a bodybuilder but as an athlete. Jessica Ennis trains heavy, so do sprinters and theyre low in bodyfat they dont do a high rep phase to drop their weight - they use dietary adjustments to achieve that. So why do bodybuilders still say high reps is what you need for fatloss? Its most likely due to the fact that traditionally they lift heavy in the winter when they also eat higher calories. When they cut calories and switch to high reps they lose fat.....yep, shock and surprise they lose fat when they eat less! And they dont lose fat when they eat a calorie surplus. Then it gets twisted that the rep scheme dictates gain/loss. Nope, caloric surplus/deficit does that. So take home point is consider the overall calorie demands of the workouts you do and the calorie intake required to achieve a change in body composition. You can either increase calorie output or decrease calorie intake or possibly both but without a deficit no rep and set scheme is the magic method to drop fat. Lets hope thats clearer now :-)
Posted on: Mon, 02 Jun 2014 13:15:23 +0000
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