Building MORE Muscle from LESS Work

The more years I accumulate in the gym

The more I get from doing less.

Let me explain.

As I've gained training experience – from both knowledge and consistent practice from 15+ years of lifting weights – I've been able to do less while getting better results.

When I was still in the early stages of lifting (first 5 years) I had this belief that in order to continue to progress, or even to prevent regression, I would need to continually do more.

More reps, more sets, more exercises, more frequent training sessions.

But the truth is actually the opposite. Well, sort of, at least.

Technically, I do more. It's just not the more I had anticipated.

I use more weight.

I lift with more intensity.

I'm able to stimulate my muscles more effectively (which means I don't need to do as much work from a sets, frequency, and exercise standpoint).

Whereas I used to do 4-6 sets per exercise and trained 7+ exercises per session, spending 1-2 hours in the gym 5-6 days per week, I now spend 30-40 minutes in the gym 3-4 days per week.

The funny thing is, my results have improved. Dramatically, even.

There are a couple reasons for this. 

First and most obvious: 

I was doing way more than is necessary to progress. The amount of work and time I was spending training was actually holding my potential gains back because my body was never able to recover from session to session. I was digging holes without ever filling them back up.

Everyone has different abilities to recover from training and handle varying workloads. Those that can recover from frequent, high volume, and intense training aren't necessarily destined for better gains than someone that  recovers more slowly. It's just important to figure out your own ideal training frequency and volume that will provide best results. There is no one size fits all with this. But you need to find the balance between training and recovery, for YOU.

I'm definitely somewhat of a "Hard Gainer" (contrary to popular belief for those that have only known me for the last 5-7 years – a testament to the fact that I found what works, optimally, for me). I have more finite recovery resources than many other gym bros, so a lower to moderate volume and moderate frequency approach works best for me. 

When I dialed back my workload and focused more on:

1. quality sets

2. fewer exercises that were better suited for me (and more enjoyable)

3.  Shorter, more time efficient sessions

4.  allowing myself a few days of rest per week...

...my progress catapulted.

Here's the second reason I get more from less as I've gathered more sweat equity in the gym: 

I have better lifting skill. Meaning: I'm better at contracting the targeted muscles for a given exercise with greater intensity. This allows me to use a higher percentage of muscle fibers during sets which allows me to fatigue the muscles more quickly. 

What used to take 4-6 sets to stimulate and fatigue a muscle now takes just 2-3 sets.

Third reason:

I'm better recovered because I do fewer sets and fewer sessions, which allows me to train harder during my working sets.

Fourth reason:

I have a better understanding of what positive failure feels like, so I'm able to lift with greater intensity per set getting more out of the muscle each set, decreasing the need to do additional sets. Again, 2 sets is usually the sweet spot for me. Sometimes I'll go crazy and do 3 sets.

Wrapping it up

So, if you're like I was, and you're wondering how you'll continue to progressively overload and increase the demands on the muscle, rest easy and understand this:

Getting stronger is how you will continue to build muscle. 

Becoming a more skilled lifter who stimulates the muscles more effectively will help you build more muscle. 

But this increased stimulus also requires more recovery. 

Therefore, more frequency, more exercises, and more volume via increased sets is unnecessary – and probably even ineffective – for the experienced lifter as they continue to accumulate years in the gym.

Stop stressing and wasting time.

Focus on getting consistent, quality sessions completed and give yourself 2-4 days per week for recovery from hard lifting. (You can still workout a little bit every day, but you shouldn't be doing strenuous strength and muscle building workouts every day. 3-5 days per week is enough. If you want to exercise on other days, do shorter, easier, daily movement or cardio sessions that aren't as systematically fatiguing. These active rest sessions can even help the recovery process by promoting blood flow, but that's an option and a discussion for another article).

I hope this helps!

-Benen