Strength and hypertrophy workout techniques

Introduction

Strength and hypertrophy training are two popular workout techniques that can help you achieve your fitness goals. Whether you want to build muscle mass or increase your overall strength, understanding these techniques can be beneficial. In this blog post, we will explore the key differences between strength and hypertrophy training, as well as provide some effective workout strategies for each.

Strength Training

Strength training focuses on increasing your body's ability to exert force against resistance. This type of training is commonly associated with powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting. The primary goal of strength training is to enhance your maximal strength, which is the maximum amount of weight you can lift for a given exercise.

Workout Strategies:

To effectively train for strength, consider incorporating the following techniques into your workouts:

• Lift heavy weights: Focus on using weights that are around 85-95% of your one-rep max (1RM).
• Low reps, high sets: Perform fewer repetitions (around 1-5) per set, but complete multiple sets (around 3-6).
• Compound exercises: Include exercises that target multiple muscle groups, such as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses.

Hypertrophy Training

Hypertrophy training, on the other hand, aims to increase muscle size by inducing muscle growth. This type of training is commonly associated with bodybuilding. While strength gains can occur during hypertrophy training, the primary focus is on maximizing muscle hypertrophy.

Workout Strategies:

If you're looking to build muscle mass, consider incorporating the following techniques into your workouts:

• Moderate weights: Use weights that are around 65-85% of your 1RM.
• Moderate reps, moderate sets: Aim for around 8-12 repetitions per set and complete 3-4 sets.
• Isolation exercises: Include exercises that target specific muscle groups, such as bicep curls, lateral raises, and leg extensions.

Combining Strength and Hypertrophy Training

While strength and hypertrophy training have different focuses, they are not mutually exclusive. In fact, combining these two techniques can lead to optimal results. By incorporating both heavy compound lifts and targeted isolation exercises into your training program, you can enhance both strength and muscle growth.

Workout Strategies:

To combine strength and hypertrophy training effectively, consider the following strategies,still these are very general advice,

• Periodization: Alternate between phases of heavy strength training and hypertrophy-focused training.
• Progressive overload: Continuously challenge your muscles by gradually increasing the weight or intensity of your workouts over time.
• Varied rep ranges: Incorporate both low-rep, high-weight sets and moderate-rep, moderate-weight sets into your workouts.

Techniques used for progressions

Progression can be a very vast adjective when talking about resistance training,you can plan progress on the overload,progress on time of execution,progress on the rest time,progress on workout's volume or total intensity or partial intensity etc.Today we will tallk about some techniques used for moving ahead on progressions.

Super Sets:

These are consecutive sets, no rest in between. You can do them for any muscle group.

I love Super Sets for their efficiency. By working these muscles in a bam-bam, no-rest pattern, you can blow through a challenging, butt-kicking routine pretty quickly. It also keeps your heart rate up and boosts growth hormone levels by boosting lactic acid production. And depending which muscle groups you superset, you can activate a lot of muscles in a short period of time.It's perfect to exhaust your muscle and if you don't hav 2 hours to spend in the gym.

Example: 1 set of tricep dips, 1 set of tricep extensions with a dumbbell. Repeat two more rounds.

Jump Sets:Pretty symillar to super sets,but in this case we involve different muscles groups,for example chest+back or shoulders+chest or back+legs etc. Remember on jump sets and uper sets, no rest in between sets.

Example 1 set of tricep dips followed by 1 set of bicep hammer curls. Or 1 set of deadlifts, followed by shoulder presses. 

TriSets:A tri-set is like the superset but with one more exercie. Three exercises that stimulate the same muscle group in slightly different ways and are performed back to back without rest.

Giant Sets: Again as superset but in this case we are talking about 4 or more exercises,these sets target one muscle group by doing 4 exercises quickly, one right after the other, to failure/fatigue using challenging weights and mid to high reps. 

Drop Sets: This is when you perform an exercise to failure, then quickly reduce the amount of weight and push out as many more reps as you can with the lighter weight. You can start really heavy, do just 4 to 6 reps, strip some weight, do as many reps as you can, and then strip more weight off and push out more reps.

Example: Do 4-6 reps of leg presses at the heaviest weight you can manage. Quickly take off some of the weight, then bang out as many as you can. Take off more weight, and bang out more until your legs reach total fatigue. 

Pyramid Sets: These are similar to drop sets, except you start light and build up to heavy, then drop the weight back to light. A typical pyramid is five sets of one exercise, with reps usually at 12, 10, 8, 10 and 12 (give or take a couple - 10, 8, 6, 8, 10 works too if the weight is heavier). The first two sets are meant to warm up the muscles worked, so the weight is light to medium. The 3rd, or middle, set is the working set so your weight should be the maximum you can do for those 6 to 8 reps. Then you drop back down in weight for the final two sets.

Rest Pause:Rest-pause training breaks down one set into numerous mini-sets, with 10- to 30-second rests in between. This technique not only helps fatigue the muscle fibers, but can also help break through challenging strength and growth plateaus.

Example:perform 12 reps,rest 20 secs,perform other 8 with same weights,rest 20 secs and perform other 5to8 until you reach the total reps planned

Strength and hypertrophy training techniques offer different benefits, but they can be combined to achieve optimal results. Whether your goal is to increase strength, build muscle mass, or both, incorporating these strategies into your workout routine can help you reach your fitness goals.Remember there is not one technique better then another one but every technique you choose must have a properplan behind. Remember to consult with a fitness professional to tailor a program that suits your individual needs and abilities.