Determining the amount of reps and sets a person performs will vary on the individual and factors such as age, height, weight, goals, etc. For most of us, determining how many reps we do per workout depends on whether we are looking to bulk or cut up. Deciding the amount of reps you want to do would be pointless if you did not understand the basics of a repetition. You are going to learn what a rep is and the three phases that make up a repetition.
A repetition is defined as the act of lifting or lowering a weight once in a controlled manner. The number of reps per set will depend on the goals of the individual performing the exercise. If you are unfamiliar with the term, set, it basically consists of several repetitions performed with no break in between them. It is also important to know that sets with fewer reps must be performed with heavier weight if you are looking to get an effective workout.
The first of three vital phases of a rep is the concentric phase. The concentric phase`s main purpose is actually lifting the weight, and it is associated with the shortening of muscle fibers. During this phase of a rep, the working muscle shortens, pulling the bones on each side of the muscle together. If the weight being lifted is fairly light, a large percentage of muscle fibers will remain inactive. However, if the weight is heavy, the muscle will accept as many fibers as possible to meet the stressed placed on it. You also must exhale properly during the concentric portion of a rep to perform the exercise at its maximum potential.
The peak contraction or transition phase is the mid point contraction of a rep. This phase of contraction is best associated with myofibrillar damage and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). While doing the transition phase, you should pause for a half second to contract the muscle and achieve peak contraction. Along with heavy weights, you should rely on training principles such as isolation, supersets, and peak contraction. This will stimulate the maximum amount of muscle fibers possible.
The second half of a rep is known as the eccentric phase. This phase is just as important as the concentric phase, but many bodybuilders feel that it is not as important. Out of all the forms of muscle contraction, the eccentric phase is most widely researched. Most eccentric based training regimines result in large amounts of muscle stiffness, so it is important that you balance your exercises between eccentric and concentric movements.
The toughest part of balancing these three phases are determining which exercises actually promote the biggest muscle gains. That is the beauty of bodybuilding. You must try different training methods for months, even years, to know which workout routine suits you best. I hope you`ve learned a great deal about the breakdown of a repetition. If you enjoyed this article, make sure that you check out one of my future articles that will give you the basic anatomy of a set. Until next time, later.
*http://weightlifting.cowebz.com/
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weight_training
*http://iai.asm.org/cgi/content/abstract/74/3/1528
*[http://www.naturalstrength.com/weightroom/detail.asp?ArticleID=874]
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