Does the Number of Reps I Do Really Matter?

 A few months ago I posted an article "How Many Reps Should I Do?"

If you want to understand why you would do 6 reps verse 20 reps, check out "How Many Reps Should I Do?"


A Story of French/Italian Cuisine

 One day Mary Jane and Watson (you caught that didn't you) decide to learn to cook. Mary Jane researches so she has the best technique and has all the right utensils. She knows how to roast a duck. She even has that fancy French cooking thing with the doohickey! Mary Jane practices all the right techniques when she feels like it.

Across town Watson only researches the essentials of cooking like don't leave food out for days and make stuff that should be browned brown. He knows how to use his crusted-over-so-much-that-you-can't-tell-what-color-it-is oven that came with his house and his one chef's knife from WalMart. But he practices hours every day. He pours his heart and soul into his food. He has guests over to try his new creations and he gets feedback. He tracks what is delicious and what should never have been drempt about.

Who do you think will be the better chef in a few years?

Answer: Watson gets so proficient with his culinary skills that he earns an internship at that fancy Italian/French hybrid restaurant, learns from the best of the best, opens his own restaurant and gets the fancy French cooking thing with the doohickey! And he makes a mean pb and j!


Reps vs. Effort

This is going to be short, bitter-sweet, and to the point.


The number of reps you do doesn't matter if you don't push to fatigue!


Done. Good bye. We could really stop there but let me explain to make this more concrete.

Simply put, doing 20 reps with 100 pounds and challenging the muscle is going to make you stronger than doing only 5 or 6 reps with 100 pounds when you are capable of 20 or more!

Just like Mary Jane and Watson, you can have all the right equipment and techniques but if you don't improve on the the basics and put in some effort, you get little, if any, results.

Scientifically, the mechanisms that actually make your muscles stronger, more toned, and shaped are only triggered when you push your muscles to fatigue. Ya know that moment when the weight starts feeling heavy and you just want to stop, that's when you see what you're made of and what you can do with God! Of course, never compromise good form - videos to come!

Unfortunately, we don't have a fitness savior who we can be justified and perfected through.

  

The Gist
 
The number of reps you do DOES matter and there are factors to take into consideration such as how long you've been training and what your goals are. However, all too often I see people get caught up in the relatively minor details and forget the big picture. There is cross-over between each rep range and you can improve muscle strength, tone, and shape in all ranges. Lastly, the number of reps doesn't matter as much as the level of effort and fatigue. So, here's what you do:

1. Push yourself
2. Track your progress and try to improve each workout (i.e. 1 more rep or 2.5 - 5 more pounds)
3. Ask for help from a qualified professional (we got into this industry to help you)

 

 

"I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13 NKJV)

Love God, love people.

-Chris