I find the idea of training purely for aesthetics and neglecting strength very bizarre, but that's a whole different debate that we've done 100x already. That said, the method of training you guys are endorsing doesn't make sense to me, even from a purely "bodybuilding" standpoint.
****ty reading comprehension eh? WHO SAID ANYTHING ABOUT NEGLECTING STRENGTH?!?!?!? I literally told the guy in my first posts in this thread to either increase reps or weight in his WORKING SETS (especially for complex movements) any time he can. Food and getting stronger in a higher rep range is what's going to get him the SIZE/muscle density he wants.
You just train for strength woopdeeedoooo you're a "BADASS" WE GET IT already ...
Guess what us bodybuilders aim to do? Place our muscles under longer tension using moderate to heavy weights and working to increase reps or weight like I mentioned.
Say you want to train with higher reps for "the pump" or whatever. And your max squat is 250. So you'll be doing reps with about 185- 200 lbs. Doesn't it make more sense to get your max higher, and THEN do reps with heavier weight? If you got your max squat to 400, you could do reps with 300+ lbs instead of 200. Wouldn't doing reps with much more weight be better for getting bigger?
Going back to my first post here.....longer time under tension is needed. He can very easily get his 185-200 lbs for 6-10 reps to 350+ for 6-10 reps after a long while of training. he'll have some huge legs when he's reppin' 350+ for reps like it's no ones business. Again you're assuming most us bber's don't care at all about strength. Alongside nutrition and proper training/exercises, getting stronger is all a part of the equation. It all interconnects.
Plus, if you're a beginner, you can grow very quickly with sets of 5. In fact, for a pure beginner, I doubt higher reps will make you grow any faster than sets of 5, since at that level almost anything will make you grow and studies show that beginner do best with sets of around 5 reps. And sets of 5 are the best way for a beginner to get strong as quickly as possible. So for a beginner, it seems like you get the best of both worlds by simply doing a basic low rep strength program. I define "beginner" as anyone who hasn't exhausted their limits on a simple linear progression program. Obviously when you're no longer a beginner you have to use more complicated programming depending on your goals.
I know of many people who didn't have a "simple linear program" at the start and they just learned from all the serious lifters/bodybuilders in their gym and went at their own pace. Guess what?? they all made great gains regardless. Also link references to these "studies". I call bull****.
A beginner could be mentored by a bodybuilder from the beginning and another one could get mentored by a powerlifter. Both are going to put on size. Yet who's going to put on the most and have it done proportionately? ? ?
Example: I can squat a little over 400 and deadlift around 500 at a bodyweight of about 200, and I STILL haven't exhausted linear progression. I'm still making progress (although at a very slow rate now) with the basic Starting Strength program, I've gained ~50 lbs on this program, most of it has been muscle (if not all of it; it's possible my bodyfat % may actually be lower than when I started) and I have below average genetics. So now, if I wanted to train purely for size, I could squat 300+ and deadlift 400+ for reps. Wouldn't this make me much bigger than if I had started (and stalled out quickly) with an overly complicated, high rep, light weight program in the first place?
@ "overly complicated"...This is your biased opinion. Still waiting on pics!!!!
My buddies who train like bodybuilders and also for strength and who are squatting 400 lbs+, deadlifting 500 lbs all have great physiques.
It just makes more sense to me to build up a strength base before you try high rep stuff, even if your goal is just looking good at the beach or whatever it is you guys are trying to accomplish.
