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Hypertrophy methods

This is an excerpt from Individualized Training by Tom Sheppard.

There are no “secret” or “magic” hypertrophy methods. Rather, there are methods better suited for a lifter in their specific context. The end goal of almost every hypertrophy method remains the same: accrue maximally effective reps (MERs) in the most efficient way possible while managing fatigue.

As it so happens, most of the best hypertrophy methods are not groundbreaking or “sexy,” and many have existed for a long time. Why? Because they work. Conversely, there are some popular hypertrophy methods that, when viewed through the lens of accumulating MERs, are no more effective than doing traditional straight sets.

Unfortunately, how effective a method feels when you perform it has little to no correlation to how effective it is at accumulating MERs. So, we cannot depend on how fatigued or pumped a hypertrophy method makes us feel to determine what is effective for growth. If things worked that way, we would all be doing tri-sets and widow-maker sets for every muscle group.

Recap of MERs

Before we go any further, remember the barometer we are using to assess the effectiveness of hypertrophy methods is how well it accumulates MERs. For a rep to be maximally effective, it must satisfy two criteria:

1. Recruit as many HTMUs and fast-twitch muscle fibers as possible
2. Impose a high degree of mechanical tension per fiber via a slow rep speed, which is enforced by the load or difficulty of the rep at that moment

These criteria mean that, at best, we are going to accumulate 5 or 6 MERs per work set because only the last 5 or 6 reps of a set are difficult enough to satisfy both criteria and create a meaningful stimulus. Any reps performed before those final 5 or 6 reps proximal to failure serve to build enough fatigue to facilitate HTMU recruitment and slower rep speed. Table 6.1 illustrates what a typical set could look like for accumulating MERs.

What matters when it comes to choosing methods is balancing the efficiency at which it allows you to accumulate MERs (how many MERs we gain versus the total number of reps performed) versus the fatigue that the method causes. A method may allow you to accumulate only MERs, giving you 100% efficiency, but if it is incredibly stressful on the nervous system or the joints, it may not allow you to perform enough volume to stimulate maximal progress. Likewise, a method may not be particularly stressful, but if it gives us a poor ratio of MERs, the number of sets we will need to perform to get the required number of MERs may exceed our recovery capacity.

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