How come sometimes I do 25 reps of an exercise and other times I only do 8?

Trainer Tuesdays

Welcome back to the weekly edition on Trainer Tuesdays. Make sure to check in at our blog every Tuesday evening to learn the expertise of our great staff. Aside from being fantastic exercise coaches, they are also extremely knowledgeable in many aspects of health and fitness; so, it's time that you get to know them a little better! Each week, we will post a frequently asked, or sometimes just a fun fitness related question followed by the answers of each of the trainers at Fitness Together Brecksville.

How come sometimes I do 25 reps of an exercise and other times I only do 8?

Adam Teplitz:  There are a number of factors that influence how many reps you should be

completing.

Age is one of these factors. If a client is over the age of 60 or 70, it is best to focus on lower weight and higher repetitions. It is best to advance the exercise program by reducing rest instead of increasing the weight used.

Fitness level is another factor. For beginners, it is best to start with higher repetitions. Anywhere between 15 and 25 reps is ideal. This is necessary to build muscular coordination and conditioning.
Another factor is your body type. Muscular individuals will benefit from 6 to 8 repetitions with heavier weight. Most individuals whom are skinny will benefit from only doing 6 reps.

Your main goals are one of the more important factors. If your goal is to improve your strength and power, 6 repetitions or less is ideal. If your goal is increased muscle mass, 6 to 12 reps is ideal. Finally, to improve muscular endurance, you want to stay in the 12 to 20 rep range.
Yet another factor is the sport you're participating in. The number of reps completed should directly relate to the amount of strength or endurance required for your particular sport. Football players will often train with 6 to 10 reps. A tennis player will benefit from 20 to 30 reps.

It's always beneficial to switch the reps up so your body doesn't adapt. Keep your muscles guessing..

Taylor Burns: When thinking about repetitions, the program designed for you all depends on your goals. High rep training works the slow twitch fibers in our muscles which are built for endurance and fatigue less quickly. Low rep training on the other hand, works the fast twitch fibers which are more explosive and fatigue more quickly. Low rep (strength training) typically refers to 1-5 repetitions while high rep work (endurance training) typically refers to 12-15+ reps. The middle ground, 6-12 reps is referred to as hypotrophy or muscle building.  It all just depends on your goal whether it is fat loss, strength and power or muscle building.  

**Keep in mind that sometimes in order to eventually reach your main goal, it will sometimes take a combination of these different rep ranges to get you there. For example, sometimes you will need to build up your muscular endurance before you are able to add more strength.

 

Steven Madden: The amount of reps done of a particular exercise is dependent on the goal of a particular routine.  Traditionally, reps in the range of 1-5 are for building power, 6-12 for building strength, and 13 or higher to build muscular endurance.  Also, as the reps go up, the weight should go down.  Studies have shown that all rep ranges are good for building muscle, but through different pathways.  If you just did 25 reps of something, you should definitely be feeling the burn, while doing 8 heavy reps may have had you working hard for a little, you'll find that you'll recover faster.  No matter what your goals, you want to be cycling through different rep ranges in different programs to help fight imbalances and weaknesses.

Justin Traft: How come sometimes I do 25 reps of an exercise and other times I only do 8? There is a reason to different rep counts . One being depending on the desired outcome of the purpose of the rep count . Meaning if you are going a low number say 12 your going for strength. Higher numbers like 15 your looking more at getting cut . More muscle endurance doing higher reps. That may be for someone just looking to tone but doesn't want to add a bunch of muscle . Keeps you looking lean. Sometimes your trainer may have you mix reps in one session that's just because there are exercises that are geared towards strength and some that are working on keeping you lean. Nothing wrong with that at all. Muscle confusion is the bodies best friend . Changing rep counts keeps body guessing therefore produces results day and day out because it can't get comfortable to the exercise or number of reps. Lastly if you are using low rep count of 8 to say maybe 6 don't be a alarmed reps may be low but probably using a little more weight to help the body gain some muscle . Usually lower reps your going for muscle strength low reps to concentrate on really working that one muscle. To help gain I that area.

Kelly Bailey: The number of reps you perform often depends on your goals, or the particular phase of

your program. Low reps (1-5) couple with heavy weight usually yields gains in strength, middle rep ranges (8-12) with moderate weight tend to increase muscle size, and high reps (15-20) with light weight is often used to increase muscular endurance or during stabilization work. Though your main goals may fall into only one category (i.e. gaining strength or muscular size), it is important to include work in all three categories to maximize development.

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