Beginners Guide for the Gym- Sets and Reps

The idea between sets and reps. A repetition(REP) is every time you perform one motion of an exercise. For example, if you do a bicep curl, the complete motion of curling the weight up and lowering it down is one rep. A SET is a grouping of repetions that are done without rest. Example being doing 10 barbell curls without stopping. Now the number of sets and reps you should do all depends on your goal. If you ever ask a trainer how many sets and reps should I do, they should always ask, "what is your goal?". If they do not ask you this then what they say is skewed because what they say might not be good for your goal. For general guidelines however to gain strength reps should be kept low(2-6) with heavy weight , for muscle growth(Hypertrophy) a moderate weight should be used with reps between 7-12, and for endurance/ fat loss a lighter weight with reps in the 13+ range. I always recommend 3 sets whenever anyone asks. Doing 1 set limits the amount of stress your muscles get and your gains and losses wont be as great, and while 2 will give you a greater stress than 1, 3 sets give you the greatest amount of upside while still giving your body the ability to recover in a timely manner. Although these are only general guidelines for sets and reps and only in regards to general fitness, there is much more that can be said about how many and how much. In the next post I will talk about Weight selection. Stayed tuned and dont forget to email me with a question or suggestion for a friday topic.