Reps make a difference in how much you grow. Don’t f*ck it up.

For years, I followed the same old advice that everyone else did in the gym. Low reps for mass and high reps for cutting. I wish I had known sooner that this is nonsense.

It turns out there’s absolutely no truth to this. So, what rep range should you be working in to build muscle? Let me explain.

How Muscles Grow

Muscles grow from the stress applied to them consistently over the course of months and years.

When I say consistently, I mean you have to train consistently, not keep that stress the same. The stress needs to increase as the muscles adapt to them.

You have to push yourself to a new extreme to get results.

You have to train hard for your muscles to respond and grow. That means pushing yourself harder than you ever have before, every single time you step foot in the gym.

But what about overtraining?

You’re more likely to not be training hard enough than overtraining. And if you are overtraining, you can always dial it back.

The simple truth is that most people are just not training hard enough.

When you go to the gym, your mentality needs to shift towards inflicting pain on yourself to make your muscles grow.

These 3 things need to happen to grow your muscles:

Increase stress on the muscles.
Adequate protein intake.
Consistency.

Just keep in mind that there is no universal answer for everyone. Figure out what works best for you by testing different training styles.

Now that our mind is in the right place, let’s talk about sets and reps.

The Truth About Reps

Rep ranges are mostly talked about in the same way. 1-5 reps for strength, 6-12 reps for hypertrophy, and 12+ reps for muscular endurance.

You need to put this old way of thinking away in order to grow.

Getting our muscles to grow comes from how much damage we inflict on them and then how we let them recover afterward.

In my two decades of training, I’ve learned something interesting. The best rep range to grow muscle is between 15 and 20 reps.

20 Rep Sets for Hypertrophy

The more time your muscles are under tension, the more they’re going to grow. How do we place our muscles under more tension?

More reps and slowing down the movement.

Let me break it down this way.

When I start an exercise, I pick a weight I know I can do for 15 reps with good form. Then, I push past 15 reps and go for 20. Those last reps are painful and ugly, but this is where the growth happens.

But this isn’t enough so we’re not stopping there.

To make real progress, the stress needs to increase over time. There are a few ways to make this happen.

Go Beyond 20 Reps

That’s right. Pushing past 20 reps is going to grow muscle.

This has nothing to do with muscular endurance and everything to do with introducing even more stress to the muscle.

Ever heard of century sets? We’re talking sets of 100. It’s painful and grueling. That’s why it works.

Here’s how to do century sets. Use a weight you can do around 30 reps with. You should be near failure at 30. Take a breath and do another 20-30. Continue this until you get to 100. Lighten the weight as needed (you’ll definitely need to).

Drop Sets

Pick that weight you know you can do for 15 reps and go for 20. You barely make it to the 20th rep and you’re gassed.

Great, now lower the weight and do another 20. Question your sanity as you make it to the end of that set.

Drop the weight again and do another 20. This is pushing the muscle past the normal point of failure by lowering the weight and continuing to pump out reps.

Slow it Down

There are few things more excruciating than doing an exercise as slow as possible. Your muscles will scream and your body will convulse.

But you’ll be putting your muscles under tension for longer and you will grow muscle this way. Guaranteed.

One of my favorite exercises to do this on is side lateral raises for shoulders.

Grab a pair of light dumbbells and do side lateral raises taking 10 seconds to bring the dumbbells up and 10 seconds to bring them down. Do this 20 times.

Good luck.

Quality of Each Rep

Think less about adding weight and more about connecting with your muscles.

The most important factor in how much you grow is not the number of reps. It’s important, as I’ve made my case for my preferred rep range, but it’s not as important as the quality of your reps.

Each repetition should be done with proper control. Deliberate movement of the weight up and down with a strong connection to the muscle you’re targeting.

Mind-muscle connection often gets made fun of, but if you’re trying to grow, don’t overlook it.

Properly isolating a muscle means removing the ability of other muscles to jump in and assist the movement.

Avoid using momentum to propel the weight. If you’re bench pressing, don’t bounce the weight off your chest. If you’re squatting, don’t bounce off the bottom.

Stop, pause, flex.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are 6 reps good for hypertrophy?

If the quality of your reps and the weight you’re using is enough to induce stress, 6 reps are enough for hypertrophy.

This doesn’t mean that 6 reps are the optimal rep range for muscle growth, so don’t get married to it. Experiment with different rep ranges and measure the results you’re getting.

How many reps and sets are good for building muscle?

The short answer is that 3-5 sets of 15-20 reps are the best for building muscle.

But this is a complex question without a definitive answer. What works for one person may not work for you.

Here’s what you should do. Test several different rep ranges for a few weeks.

Try these rep ranges for 3-4 weeks each:

3 sets of 6-8
3 sets of 8-10
3 sets of 10-12
3 sets of 12-15
3 sets of 15-20
3 sets of 20-30

The key factor in growing muscle comes when we test different ways to stress our muscles and then consistently train with the intensity necessary to induce growth.

Give this video by Ryan Humiston a watch.

Do high reps build muscle?

High reps will build muscle just as well as low reps if you apply the right principles to induce stress on the muscles.

High reps, performed with good form, heavy enough weight, proper isolation, and a good mind-muscle connection will place your muscles under enough stress for them to grow.

But remember, muscle growth doesn’t just come from the stress they’re placed under.

You must rest and recover properly. You need a sufficient protein intake (1 gram of protein per pound you weigh, minimum). And you have to train consistently for years.

Check out our dumbbell-only training series to ignite new growth with the training principles I’ve outlined here.