What is most important for strength: frequency or volume?

Asked by: Tito Listner

Strength, however, is primarily a function of load and frequency, not volume—the distinction being that it is about training with near-maximal loads as often as possible without overtaxing the Central Nervous System.

Is volume or frequency more important?

Volume is the key driver of hypertrophy.

The major benefits of increased training frequency for hypertrophy is that it better distributes your training volume throughout the week. Higher frequency training allows you to do less junk volume and more effective volume.

Is 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.

Does frequency increase strength?

Across most analyses, higher frequencies seem to lead to 20-23% faster strength gains, in both trained and untrained lifters, and there seems to be a fairly linear increase in the benefits of increased frequency, with 1<2<3<4+.

Should I train volume or strength?

If you want to maximize muscle strength, choose strength training: Reduce the exercise volume, increase the intensity, and lengthen the rest period between sets.

Is volume better for muscle growth?

Simply put, more volume equals more muscle mass. At least until you get to 10 sets or more per week.

Does volume training build strength?

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.

Can you gain strength but not size?

Some people’s muscles tend to get stronger over time – but not bigger. There are several possible causes for this. But, usually, the underlying reason is all the same: they don’t have a good understanding of the differences between training for strength vs hypertrophy.

Is volume more important than intensity?

Although your muscle fibers don’t contract quite as hard on any individual rep, they do so for twice as long, producing about the same amount of total tension. Thus, technically, volume is the primary driver of muscle growth, because it’s the volume of tension over time that makes your muscles bigger.

Should I build muscle or strength first?

If you are a beginner, you should always train for hypertrophy first. By using the hypertrophy rep range in your early career, you will be building muscle AND gaining strength. Take your time to develop some muscle mass, learn the proper technique, and gain confidence under the bar.

Is hypertrophy better than strength?

While both hypertrophy and strength training build muscle, the general consensus is that hypertrophy based training allows for greater increases in muscle size and growth than heavier, strength based training.

Should strength and hypertrophy mix?

Add Hypertrophy Training Into A Strength Program

It is recommended to train your strength lifts first, when you are fresh, and then transition into hypertrophy training with emphasis on the key markers above rather than how heavy you are lifting.