The effects of strength training volume on recovery?

Asked by: Dave Bishop

Does volume matter in strength training?

Studies have generally confirmed that volume is one of the primary concerns in training for strength and hypertrophy. That is, as volume increases, we tend to get bigger and stronger unless something else is holding us back. As we do more and more work, we get more jacked.

How much does training volume affect the rate of strength gains?

A recent meta-analysis by Ralston et al found that higher weekly set volumes (5+ sets per exercise, per week) led to ~20% larger strength gains than lower weekly set volumes (<5 sets per exercise, per week).

Is High volume better for strength?

Most research indicates that higher volume training does cause a greater increase in strength gains, compared to lower volume. However, this relationship is not one to one. You might put in 50% more volume, and only increase 5% faster than someone doing much less.

What happens when you increase volume in your workout?

Increasing volume slowly allows the body to make appropriate adaptations such as increased strength of connective tissue which could reduce the risk of injury in the long term. Staying healthy is just as important as increasing volume. Training for strength is a marathon, not a sprint.

What is the best volume for strength?

Generally speaking, the more volume we can perform and recover from, the faster we will achieve strength and muscle growth. For most intermediates/advanced, 10-20 sets per week per muscle group is considered optimal.

Is volume better than intensity?

Intensity proponents claim that using heavy weights for low reps produces more tension on your muscles, which is ultimately what makes them grow bigger and stronger. Volume boosters contend that the total number of sets and reps you do is what drives muscle growth, not the weight on the bar.

Does more volume mean more gains?

The research is clear: more volume means more muscle. So if you want to grow, adding more total volume per week will do it. Here’s how to manipulate it in order to get what you want out of lifting: muscle mass, improved body composition, and a metabolism like a furnace.

How much training volume do you really need?

Most evidence-based fitness professionals recommend a training volume of 10-15 sets per muscle group per week.

Is volume the key to hypertrophy?

Gains increase rapidly at small volumes and there is diminishing returns as you get to higher session volumes. On average, hypertrophy appears to increase with increasing volumes of up to 6-8 hard sets in a single training session when taking long rests between sets, with a plateau at higher volumes.

What is the benefit of high-volume training?

Doing this number of sets and repetitions using a high volume ensures you’re working your muscles to their full capacity, which helps build strength and mass. You can vary which exercises you do on different days. Some protocols call for fewer sets or repetitions for certain exercises.

Is high volume good for muscle building?

Simply put, more volume equals more muscle mass. At least until you get to 10 sets or more per week. The relationship between weekly volume and hypertrophy (Schoenfeld et al.

Does too much volume affect strength?

To these guys too much training volume is literally killing your gains! High-intensity bodybuilders believe that you have to push yourself really, really hard on a smaller number of sets for optimal results. High-intensity bodybuilders usually only perform 1-10 sets per week for each body part.

Is volume better for muscle growth?

Volume is the key for muscle growth, but the same can’t be said for strength. If your primary goal for lifting weights is to get stronger, then you need to focus on lifting heavier weights over time.

Is volume or intensity better for muscle growth?

Volume is key for muscle growth (hypertrophy) as well as muscular endurance. It’s one of the best ways to progress and keep seeing results in your hypertrophy goals.

How much volume is strength training?

Most evidence-based fitness professionals recommend a training volume of 10-15 sets per muscle group per week. I’ve recommended 10-30 sets in my interviews the past years for most individuals with some outliers using higher volumes, like IFBB Pro Nina Ross.

Is high volume better than high-intensity?

There are lots of variations but overall, the underlying premise of HIT is that weightlifting sessions should be brief, intense and infrequent – basically, it’s low volume/high intensity. Followers of HIT believe that this is the most effective way to stimulate gains in both muscle strength and size.

Is it harder to recover from volume or intensity?

Intensity plays off of the idea that a muscle is either recovering or tearing down. It is rarely ever at stasis. It does just enough to stimulate growth and then stimulation is reapplied as soon as recovery is repeated. Volume is more forgiving in what happens to a muscle.

Is volume the key to hypertrophy?

A clear dose-response relationship between volume and hypertrophy has been established. In fact, assuming that an intensity threshold of >60% of 1 rep max is met, it appears that volume is the key determinant of success when it comes to gaining muscle mass.