SIX KEYS TO INTENSITY

GO BEYOND BASIC SET-AND-REP SCHEMES VOLUMIZE YOUR WORKOUT AND YOUR PHYSIQUE

To some, working out is simply about numbers. Three sets of eight. Four sets of 10. Rest one minute between sets. Do 20 total sets. But beneath every tangible number and finite measurement used to define the amount of work you've done, there's the enigmatic — albeit ever-important — variable known as intensity. In fact, this might be the most crucial training variable of all.

Intensity isn't a number. It can't be written down in a training log nearly as succinctly as, say, a tally of sets and reps you do for an exercise. And a set of 50 reps isn't necessarily more intense than a set of six. Bottom line: Where training for gains in muscle size is concerned, intensity equals muscle failure.

If your muscles fatigue to the point that you can't do another rep (aka "failure"), that's an intense set. Stopping short of failure? Not as intense. Yet intensity goes far beyond just one set — each set affects the next set, every workout affects the next workout, every week affects the next week, and so on. How you manage your intensity from set to set and workout to workout goes a long way in dictating the effectiveness of your program. That said, there's a certain hierarchy to training intensity, and the best way to articulate it is to start small (with a single rep) and pull the layers back until you see the big picture. Hence, the following six levels of intensity.

1 INTENSITY OF A REP

To ensure adequate intensity in a set, and subsequently in a workout, you first need to make sure that each and every rep is ™ performed in an intense manner. Of course, the first few reps of a 20-rep set (in which you would use a relatively light weight) feel much different than those of a six-rep set — with the heavier weight, the reps feel difficult right away, whereas the first several reps with the lighter weight feel much easier. Yet the amount of weight you use and how many reps you plan to do in that set shouldn't affect each individual rep.

The first key to maximizing intensity at this level is to concentrate on the muscle group you're working, whether you're at the beginning or the end of a high-rep set and regardless of whether the weight feels heavy or light. This is what bodybuilders typically refer to as the "mind-muscle connection."

Second, make sure you emphasize the eccentric, or negative, portion of each rep just as much as the positive, or concentric, portion. Don't let the weight simply drop on every rep; rather, control the negative so it takes at least two seconds to lower the weight. Since it's possible to produce greater force during eccentric contractions than during concentric muscle actions, eccentric activity may be more important in producing muscle strength and size. Therefore, it's critical to control the weight's return or descent; don't just let it fall back down. Oftentimes, the negative is overlooked in high-rep sets, as well as when training heavy. Making a habit of both of these practices — concentrating on the working muscles and controlling the negative — ensures adequate intensity on each and every rep.

Third, consider the point of peak contraction (the top of the repetition where you squeeze the muscle for a moment or two before continuing through the rep). This squeezing creates more work for the muscle, driving more blood flow (aka "the pump"), which temporarily increases the muscle's size by placing a stretch on it. This stretch initiates biochemical pathways that signal the muscle to grow.

2 INTENSITY OF A SET

As mentioned earlier, how much weight you use for a given set doesn't define intensity; a set of 20 reps using 100 pounds can be just as intense as a set of five reps with 200 pounds. The measure of intensity for a set is whether it's taken to failure (the one exception being a set taken past failure, which we'll discuss shortly).

Training to failure is defined by being physically unable to perform one more rep in a given set on your own as a result of temporary muscle fatigue. This can occur by attempting one more rep and not being able to complete it — for example, a set in which you can get the 10th rep only halfway up is officially a set of nine reps to failure. However, failing on a set can also mean that the last rep was so difficult (you barely completed the rep) that you know for certain you couldn't complete another and therefore didn't try to continue the set. On the flip side, a set of 10 reps in which you could've done a few more was not taken to failure. Naturally, a set taken to failure is more intense than a set stopped short of failure, regardless of how much weight you used.

Occasionally taking sets to failure is a great high-intensity technique for producing serious results in size and strength; your body won't become bigger and stronger if you don't push it to its limits. At the same time, going overboard (taking every set to failure) is counterproductive because it leads to overtraining. That's why we recommend taking no more than 1-2 sets of each exercise to failure to find the happy medium between sufficiently overloading the muscles and not breaking down the muscle fibers to the point where adequate recovery in a reasonable period (a few days) becomes virtually impossible.

3 INTENSITY PAST FAILURE

Just as training to failure is more intense than stopping short of that point, training past the point of muscle failure is more intense than simply terminating the set upon reaching failure initially. Several techniques allow you to continue doing reps after failing, including: drop sets, in which you immediately decrease the amount of weight you're lifting and continue the set without resting; rest-pauses, where you put the weight down and rest anywhere from 15-30 seconds, then do 2-3 more reps with the same weight (typically not to failure) and repeat this process 1-2 more times; and forced reps, where a partner assists you in getting anywhere from 1-3 additional reps.

In a bodybuilding workout, such techniques are the best means of maximizing training intensity. But these intensity-boosters are a double-edged sword — using them breaks down more muscle fibers and thus elicits gains in size and strength, but using them too often leads to overtraining, which can result in injury, a compromised immune system and diminished results in the gym. For beginning trainees, as well as anyone coming back from an extended hiatus from the gym, taking sets past failure isn't recommended, at least not during the first several months of training. The muscles and nervous system have enough work to do adapting to straight sets; using intensity techniques such as drop sets,...