Entering 5's - Question about Volume

[cricardoc]

Hello again,

Next Monday, I'll start 5's minicycle and after reading some more threads I have a doubt about volume.

Should volume be increasing together with load?

What I've done during 15's and 10's was to determine volume as Load x sets x reps.

I took as volume reference my 10's max. Example:

Example: 10kgs x 2 sets x 10 reps = 200 This is the volume I allways want to hit and during 15's, 10's and 5's. When it doesn't reach it, I increase some reps. Example when entering in 10's:

8kgs x 2 sets x 10 reps = 160 It is missing 40, so in that workout I do 5 or 6 more reps, something like 8kgs x 2 x 13 reps = 208 to keep volume constant.

But the question is: Should I also increase volume during the cycle? Is it better for hiperttrophy?

Tks Guys



Then, when entering in

 

[whistledixie]

Hello again,

Next Monday, I'll start 5's minicycle and after reading some more threads I have a doubt about volume.

Should volume be increasing together with load?

What I've done during 15's and 10's was to determine volume as Load x sets x reps.

I took as volume reference my 10's max. Example:

Example: 10kgs x 2 sets x 10 reps = 200 This is the volume I allways want to hit and during 15's, 10's and 5's. When it doesn't reach it, I increase some reps. Example when entering in 10's:

8kgs x 2 sets x 10 reps = 160 It is missing 40, so in that workout I do 5 or 6 more reps, something like 8kgs x 2 x 13 reps = 208 to keep volume constant.

But the question is: Should I also increase volume during the cycle? Is it better for hiperttrophy?

Tks Guys



Then, when entering in

I was looking through the HST ebook trying to find a good answer from Bryan himself for you, but there wasn't a definitive answer - it was more like a 'it depends' answer. He says:

Increase volume if:
You are never sore
You are never tired
You are not growing
Maintain volume if:
You are slightly sore most of the time
You are tired enough to sleep well, but not so tired you lose motivation to train.
You are noticeably "fuller"
Decrease volume if:
You are experiencing over use pain, and strain symptoms in joints and/or muscles.
You are tired and irritable all the time, yet don’t sleep well.
Strength levels are significantly decreasing.

I've done 2 strictly HST cycles, one where I tried to keep the volume consistent throughout and one where I allowed the volume to decrease as the load increased. Both were equally effective. I experienced significant strength gains and hypertrophy both cycles. But I'm still in the novice/approaching intermediate phase of strength training, so maybe I'm still experiencing newbie gains.

As far as priorities go, I'd say keeping the volume 100% consistent throughout the cycle isn't in the top 5. There are much more important factors like adequate rest/sleep, nutrition, progressive loading, training frequency, controlled movement/good form, etc.