If you’re struggling to gain size and strength it’s highly likely that you’re just doing too much total work each week.
When your training volume (total sets and reps per week) exceeds your capacity to recover you get no bigger or stronger.
The worst-case scenario is that you start regressing and getting weaker.
When most guys come to me they are in a somewhat “overtrained” state, but not necessarily because they are doing what I would consider high volume training.
Yes, the sets and reps are more than they can handle at the given time, but it’s usually not something that only Superman would be able to tolerate.
Most skinny guys are over-trained because they have poor work capacity and are doing too much at the current time.
They’re also training with balls-to-the-wall intensiveness, taking every set to failure and using forced reps on the regular. That’s what causes the over-trained stated.
When To Use Low Volume
When you first start lifting you’re coming from a previous weekly training volume of zero sets. So theoretically, one set per muscle group should be enough. And it will, however, you won’t get good at technical lifts such as squats and deads with such a low volume. A better approach is to do 3-5 low rep sets to practice the skill.
Your total weekly training volume can be quite low and you’ll still get bigger. This will work for a quite a while, but not indefinitely.
You’ll still make strength gains but muscle growth will eventually start lagging behind. Then there’s the issue of achy joints, which could also present itself.
Low volume training works so well for increasing strength that you almost have to get away from it for a little while, at least, just because the rapid gains tend to leave you feeling a bit beat up.
That’s when you’ll want to bump up the volume.
For skinny hardgainers I use low to moderate volume and the sets get bumped up systematically throughout the program in waves. This is what I do with MGS 2.0 and it’s the best approach for the skinny hardgainer.
read the entire article at The Renegade Rules
