The fundamentals of training program design – volume
Nikola Man
So far we have used a definition according to which volume is the product of sets, reps and weight and I have always made sure to leave a note that it isn’t the best definition out there. The reason for this is because it is practically impossible to compare volume between exercises. For example, imagine comparing leg extension machine and squats. The squat involves almost the entire musculature of the body whereas the leg extension isolates your quads. This difference makes a different method of comparison necessary. Just to make everything perfectly clear, 3 sets of 5 reps with 120 kg on the squat gives you a volume of 1800 kg which is not comparable to the same 1800 kg volume which you will most likely get by doing 4 sets of 10 reps with 45 kg on the leg extension machine. The fatigue and exertion are not the same, the load your muscles feel is not the same so it is not particularly practical nor is it wise to use this type of volume tracking when trying to determine to the total volume for a muscle group. It is also not the best option if you’re trying to compare two individuals as one of them might be a heavier and more experienced lifter which means that this person would be able to do way more volume in terms of tonnage than his less experienced, lighter counterpart.
For the reasons above we’re introducing a new way of looking at volume and that is through the lens of heavy (effective) working sets. If you are fairly close to failure RIR 1, 2 or 3 you can count that as a sufficiently heavy set which will produce hypertrophy or strength adaptations. According to this new definition, volume is represented as a number of sets which is significantly easier to track and compare in contrast to tonnage-based volume.
Volume is one of the two most important factors of muscle growth. The story, obviously, isn’t that simple. In this piece we will take a closer look at one model which can help us build a better, more optimal training program
An omnipresent phenomenon in practically every gym is the picture of zero progress. You will always be able to walk in and see the same guys, looking more or less the same, lifting the same weight without a clue in the world why they are not getting bigger and naturally they will claim to be doing everything correctly. My observation is that this stems from a complete lack of understanding as to what causes progress and also a gross underestimation of the importance of recovery and nutrition. We will take a more detailed look at the effects of recovery and nutrition in a future post and we will stick to the causes of progress here. In the post on the fundamentals of training program design we found out that we need volume and progressive overload in order to ensure hypertrophy. What happens in practice is that people either do too much and can’t recover properly or they do too little. RIR scale is an excellent tool to help you ensure a great workout. You can read more on that if you click the highlighted text above.
The following content pertains to people who train without the assistance of steroids and it represents the average perspective of the scientific literature which means that there are people who will find themselves at both extremes.
We have to differentiate between total body volume and volume per muscle group. Overtraining can happen from both. In other words, you can exhaust a single muscle group too much, but you can also train too much in general and that can lead to recovery issues for your central nervous system and your body. In the paragraphs below we will be talking about volume per muscle group.
Minimum volume (MV) – this represents the number of sets in a microcycle which is enough for you to keep your size. This volume should be used if you want to let a muscle group recover in one or more mesocycles so that you can focus on other muscle groups. Most commonly we use MV for our genetically strongest muscle groups so that we can work on lagging body parts and this helps us ensure that we are not overdoing it with total volume. For some muscle groups that’s 8 sets a week, but there are also some which do not require any direct work provided that the rest of the program is sound. For example, hitting back with 8 sets a week is enough to maintain size whereas triceps can be maintained with 0 sets per week as it is active during most exercises for chest and shoulders.
Minimum effective volume (MEV) – represents the number of sets in a microcycle which will be enough to elicit some growth. As the name suggests, the effect will be minimal thus it is wise to begin a mesocycle with this volume and then to increase it with each subsequent microcycle. For big muscle groups that’s usually 6 to 10 weekly sets. Obviously there are some “odd” cases here as well, those are biceps, triceps and the front deltoid because it can be enough to do between 0 and 4 sets in order to achieve growth.
Maximum recoverable volume (MRV) – you probably should not be doing more than this because it can lead to recovery problems. MRV is the amount of work which will generate great results but also cost a lot of fatigue and it will no doubt increase injury risk. For the majority of muscle groups this amount of work lies between 18 and 25 working sets a week.
You’re probably asking yourself (quite correctly): Why in the universe would I choose to work at anything below MRV every week. While it is a good question and there are programs which have given results this way, it is not about getting just any kind of results, it’s about going for optimality. Volume is only a part of the equation and you have to factor in progressive overload as well. It is much easier to attain progressive overload and then sustain that in the long run if you go through lighter and heavier mesocycles. This is because your muscles adapt and they become “saturated” with volume so they need recovery and they need to resensitize to resistance training. Additionally, working at high volumes constantly will take a toll on your joints which can lead to injuries and nagging pain which will make training an unpleasant experience. It is obviously much harder to recover from more volume which means that it will not be easy for you to stick to a high volume program for a single macrocycle, let alone a period of 5 or 10 years.
The final concept is volume overlap and you could have spotted it all throughout this piece. When you start making a program you have to take into account that there is overlap between muscle groups otherwise you will overdo the amount of work. The best example of this is the anterior deltoid (front delt) which is heavily involved in any form of pressing for chest and that is the reason behind the 0 to 4 sets value for MV and MEV. For most people the MRV of 15 sets a week is already too much. I am sure you’ve seen guys hit 3 different shoulder exercises within a single session as they often do a machine press, a dumbbell press and a barbell press for the shoulder. Let us take a quick look at what happens to the front delt in that scenario. The condition that has to be met of course is that all sets are taken sufficiently close to failure and loaded adequately. Just for argument’s sake, take the aforementioned 3 exercises done with either 3 or 4 sets, that gives us a volume of between 9 and 12 sets which is already close to the MRV border for a small muscle group like the front delt. If that person does a single chest exercises for 4 sets in that week we’re already talking about 13 or 16 sets which for most people will be slightly above the MRV limit. In all seriousness, who on earth does one exercise for chest a week? In reality this will be well over 25 sets per week which will work for a very, very small number of people but it will be counterproductive for the majority. That being said, even those that get results which such ridiculously high volumes would be better off if they took a more moderate approach. I advise you to calculate the number of working sets carefully because a set of chest pressing is a set for 3 muscle groups: chest, shoulders and triceps.
The ultimate goal of these big words and sciency-sounding terminology is to get you closer to your genetic potential, and the only way to do that is if you’re happy with your workouts, satisfied with your progress and if you stick to your plan long-term. I’ve already made my case why consistency in adherence is the most important factor when it comes to exercise because a good program over a 10-year period will give you drastically better results than a “perfect” program over a 3-month period, or a year or two years so do whatever you feel works best for you and apply principles of progress.
I will leave you with several points to round out this post:
If you’re stagnating in terms of your physical appearance and progress in terms of the weights you’re lifting than you are either overtraining and need a deload week or you need to increase the volume
Minimum volume will maintain your size
Minimum effective volume will give you minimal progress
MRV will give you the best results but it will demand a lot so it is best that you do this much volume for one or two microcycles before a deload week
Increasing volume from MV to MRV is only one of many ways to build a program
Watch for volume overlap between exercises by taking into account indirectly active muscle groups during an exercise (front delt and triceps during a pressing movement for chest, biceps with back movements)
Fitness, training and nutrition have a great degree of individual variability so do not take these numbers for granted, test on yourself and then adjust accordingly