Introduction:
The purpose of this blog is to briefly highlight the purpose of hypertrophy training when it comes to building a program. Hypertrophy is a form of training that is used when an athlete is looking to build muscle. In other words hypertrophy training is for the athletes that want to look better naked.
What is Hypertrophy?
Hypertrophy is defined as the enlargement of skeletal muscle fibers in response to being recruited to develop increased levels of tension. Hypertrophy training focuses on developing muscles.
Types of Hypertrophy Training:
Intensity: (load)
Reps correlate to intensity as low (1-5 reps), moderate (6-12 reps), and high (15+). The use of higher repetitions has been proven to be inferior to those with moderate repetitions
Volume:
The product of total repetitions, sets, and load performed in a training session. Volume should be progressively increased over a given periodized cycle. This allows the body to accumulate a brief period of overreaching.
Exercise Selection:
Multi-joint exercises recruit large amounts of muscle mass to carry out work, i.e. squatting not only recruits the quadriceps femoris and hip extensors but also most of the lower body muscles. Single-joint exercises allow for a greater focus on individual muscles, such as a bicep curl.
Rest Interval:
The time that is taken between sets. Short (30 seconds or less), moderate (60-90 seconds), and long (3 minutes or more). Short rest intervals generate significant metabolic stress which heightens the anabolic process that is associated with metabolite buildup. Long rest intervals allow for full recovery of strength between sets, which allows the ability to train with maximum force capabilities. Moderate rest intervals allow a satisfactory compromise between long and short rest intervals.
Muscular Failure:
Can be defined as the point during a set when muscles can no longer produce a necessary force to concentrically lift a given load. When a lifter becomes fatigued, a progressively greater number of motor units are recruited to continue activity. Training to failure may also enhance exercise-induced metabolic stress.
Conclusion:
A hypertrophy program should include a repetition range of 6-12 reps per set with a rest interval of 60-90 seconds. Multi-planar, and multi-angled exercises should be used to ensure stimulation of all muscle fibers. Some of the sets should result in concentric muscular failure.
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