The Conventional Wisdom on Volume
For decades, the principle of progressive overload has been the foundation of strength training. The logic is simple: to get bigger and stronger, you must continually challenge your muscles by doing more over time. This has often been interpreted as adding
more volume—more sets, more reps, more weight. Bodybuilding culture, in particular, has championed high-volume routines, with marathon 'chest days' or 'leg days' involving 20 or more sets for a single muscle group. The assumption has always been that this intense approach is the fastest route to maximising muscle growth, or hypertrophy. This belief created a gym environment where longer workouts were often seen as better workouts, pushing many to train for hours in pursuit of gains.
What the New Research Suggests
Recent scientific analyses are painting a more nuanced picture. A growing body of evidence, including several meta-analyses from the last few years, confirms that while volume is a key driver of muscle growth, it follows a dose-response relationship with a distinct curve. Gains increase as you add weekly sets, but only up to a point. After this point, each additional set provides progressively smaller benefits. The consensus emerging from current research places the optimal range for muscle growth somewhere between 10 to 20 hard sets per muscle group, per week. While some individuals might benefit from slightly more, going far beyond this range often leads to a plateau where the extra effort doesn't translate into meaningful extra muscle.
Understanding 'Junk Volume'
This is where the concept of 'junk volume' comes into play. Coined by the fitness community, junk volume refers to any training that adds fatigue without providing a significant muscle-building stimulus. Think of it as the point in your workout where your muscles have already received the signal to grow, and any subsequent sets are just tiring you out. Research suggests there's also a limit to how much productive volume you can handle in a single session, often estimated to be around 6 to 10 effective sets per muscle. Pushing past this in one workout means those extra sets are likely becoming 'junk,' accumulating fatigue that can hinder your recovery and performance in subsequent sessions. This is why cramming 20 sets for your chest into one Monday workout is less effective than splitting that volume over two separate training days.
Why Quality Trumps Sheer Quantity
The focus on hitting a certain number of sets can sometimes distract from what truly matters: the quality of those sets. A productive set for hypertrophy is one that is taken close to muscular failure, typically with 0 to 3 repetitions left in reserve. Many people perform sets that are too easy, stopping well short of the intensity needed to trigger significant growth. Instead of simply adding more sets to your routine, a better strategy is to ensure the sets you are already doing are sufficiently challenging. Focusing on excellent form, controlling the weight, and pushing yourself close to your limit within that 10-to-20-set weekly range will almost always yield better results than performing dozens of half-hearted sets.
How to Structure Your Weekly Workouts
So, what does this mean for your routine? It means you can likely achieve great results without spending endless hours in the gym. The key is to be strategic. Aim for a weekly total of 10 to 20 hard sets for each major muscle group. It's crucial to spread this volume out, training each muscle group at least twice a week rather than annihilating it in a single session. For example, if your goal is 16 sets for your back per week, you could perform 8 sets on Tuesday and 8 sets on Friday. This approach allows for better quality on each set and gives your body adequate time to recover and adapt. Beginners can often see significant progress on the lower end of this range (around 10 sets per week), while more advanced lifters may need to push towards the upper end to continue making gains.
