question on reps

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Dvst8or

New Member
Is the number of reps per set more important or just total reps.

For instance, last night I am doing 2 sets of 10's for my maxes. I grab the weight and can only manage 7 reps. Next set I can only manage 5 reps. Now should I realize its too heavy and just lower the weight or is it okay to do 4-5 sets of 6-7 reps so long as I get 20 total reps?
 
I think that depends on where you are in the cycle.. if you're in the first week of 10's you've obviously over-calculated your 10 max rep..However if you're nearing the end of the cycle I would say clusters would be fine and avoid going to failure.. If you've done a warm up set and can only get 5 good reps on the first working set.. simply deload the bar.. rest a few seconds and then push out the last 5 reps.. As long as the muscle is stimulated you'll be OK.. and there may not be a need to do 2 X's working sets..

you said 4 or 5 sets of 6 or 7 which would be between 24 and 35 reps? I'm guessing this was a typo ?
 
This was the last day of my 10's. Hence the reason I said that I was doing my 10 rep maxes.

And the reason that I said 4-5 sets of 6-7 reps is because thats how many sets I would have to do to complete the total 20 reps from 2 sets of 10's like I had anticiapted.

Is that as clear as mud?
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If its your last day of 10s, then I would say it was ok to do what you did. (do more sets of less reps per set)
Sets and reps are just ways to get the job done, they don't matter all that much. What matters is the principles: 1) you are increasing the load each workout or at least each week. 2) you are doing enough work (sets and reps) to stimulate adaptations.
2 sets of 10 reps is a quick way to get 20 muscle contractions done, but 4 sets of 5 gets it done also, especially if you are fatigued on your last day of 10s!
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(scientific muscle @ Nov. 01 2007,01:04)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">If its your last day of 10s, then I would say it was ok to do what you did. (do more sets of less reps per set)
Sets and reps are just ways to get the job done, they don't matter all that much.  What matters is the principles: 1) you are increasing the load each workout or at least each week. 2) you are doing enough work (sets and reps) to stimulate adaptations.
2 sets of 10 reps is a quick way to get 20 muscle contractions done, but 4 sets of 5 gets it done also, especially if you are fatigued on your last day of 10s!
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Cool. Thats the answer I was looking for. Just seemed like I was doing more of an extended 5's than 10's for the last day.
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But if the total reps is what matters than thats what I needed to know.

Thanks.
 
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(scientific muscle @ Nov. 01 2007,01:04)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">2 sets of 10 reps is a quick way to get 20 muscle contractions done, but 4 sets of 5 gets it done also, especially if you are fatigued on your last day of 10s!</div>
Or twenty sets of one rep each...

Try Max-Stim. It'll let you lift more weight more times with less fatigue. You get more TUT and less time in the gym.
 
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(RUSS @ Nov. 01 2007,13:13)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">4 out of 5 dentists recommend 6 triples and a double...
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And the other one, called Russ, recommends 10 triples or be damned!
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One other thing to bear in mind is that your ability to lift a certain load varies from day to day. Some days, for whatever reason (perhaps accumulated fatigue, lack of sleep, lower blood sugar levels etc.), you just won't feel as able to lift as much or have the endurance required to grind out all the consecutive reps you are after. So, if that's the case just cluster reps or take things to their logical conclusion and do MaxStim with m-time between individual reps.

As the others have pointed out, progressing load over the course of the cycle is important but you shouldn't find that you are suddenly unable to achieve any of your maxes for the designated rep count. That points to too much accumulated fatigue, especially if you can't achieve even your first work set for all your exercises.

Sometimes you might not achieve an RM lift if you have preceded that exercise with one that has fatigued common muscle groups (so if you did shoulder presses before bench or vice versa you will have pre-fatigued your tris). Just alternate the order from session to session so you get to see how your strength is doing in each case.
 
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(Dvst8or @ Nov. 01 2007,05:52)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">This was the last day of my 10's.  Hence the reason I said that I was doing my 10 rep maxes.

And the reason that I said 4-5 sets of 6-7 reps is because thats how many sets I would have to do to complete the total 20 reps from 2 sets of 10's like I had anticiapted.

Is that as clear as mud?  
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you must have miscalculated your 10s,or as lol said had a weak day.
IMO you would be better calculating correctly next cycle and save the clustering untill the 5s
 
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(Dvst8or @ Oct. 31 2007,19:27)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Is the number of reps per set more important or just total reps.</div>
You must do exactly 10 reps each set, not 9, nor 11, just 10 and not anything other than 10, for if you were to do 9 reps this would be less than 10 and if you were to do 11 reps this would be more than 10 and neither are equal to 10. Thus 10, it's the magic number
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(Dan Moore @ Nov. 01 2007,17:23)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE"><div>
(Dvst8or @ Oct. 31 2007,19:27)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Is the number of reps per set more important or just total reps.</div>
You must do exactly 10 reps each set, not 9, nor 11, just 10 and not anything other than 10, for if you were to do 9 reps this would be less than 10 and if you were to do 11 reps this would be more than 10 and neither are equal to 10. Thus 10, it's the magic number
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But should you proceed directly to 10? And what about the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch?  When should you use it? On the count of 10?
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(Dan Moore @ Nov. 01 2007,12:23)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">You must do exactly 10 reps each set, not 9, nor 11, just 10 and not anything other than 10, for if you were to do 9 reps this would be less than 10 and if you were to do 11 reps this would be more than 10 and neither are equal to 10. Thus 10, it's the magic number
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I know that you are being sarcastic. I also know that there is no magical number of reps. I just wasn't sure if I should be getting closer to the 10 rep range for it be the most affective for the stage of HST I was in. I mean if I am doing 4 sets of 5 because I can't muster 2 sets of 10 then I might as well be in the 5's right?

Thanks to everyone's answers here I know the answer to that question now. But what I just stated is why I asked the question.
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I think what's more important is that you're making some form of progression. Breaking out some 5's at the end of the tens hurts nothing IMO. You should be maxing and taxing at this point anyway. Oh, Sci said that, I stole it.
Dan was jokin' - we don't do a lot of sarcasm here due to our interest in our HST team...and that's YOU man!
 
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