STRENGTH, ENDURANCE, HYPERTROPHY

WHICH ONE BEST ALIGNS WITH YOUR FITNESS GOAL?

Everyone has specific fitness goals, and one of the beginning steps to making sure goals are being met is following a program/routine that is customized to those goals. For example, a marathon runner looking to improve their endurance, and stamina, wouldnt want to be following a program that focuses on a lower rep range and heavier weights. While incorporating more than one training style can be beneficial, it may not be necessary. The key variables when choosing between strength, hypertrophy, and endurance are:

1. Intensity

Intensity deals with how quickly muscles reach fatigue. To be effective, intensity should generate stress while also allowing enough reps to reach fatigue.

2. Rest

Rest periods vary per training focus. Strength incorporates longer rest periods, between 3-5 minutes. Without adequate rest you wont be able to reach the intensity for strength gains. Hypertrophy rest periods are between 60-90 seconds.

3. Reps

Reps are the number of times you perform the exercise action within a set. For example, 8 reps of a bench press while during a chest day, within a set. As intensity increases, reps should decrease. Meaning when training for strength lower reps, between 1-6, at a higher intensity (85-100% of 1 rep max) is optimal. For hypertrophy more reps with less intensity is best, staying in a range of 6-12 at 75%-85% of 1 rep max. Endurance training uses a rep range of 12+ reps.

4. Sets

The number of times you perform the same exercise is sets. Going off of the example above, you do 8 reps within a set then perform 3 sets of bench press, with 60 seconds of rest between sets.

5. Exercises

Exercise selection is also vital in a training program. Both strength and hypertrophy benefit from multi-joint exercises that incorporate multiple joints and muscle groups within the same movement. These are exercises such as deadlifting, or squats.

Strength:

Simply put, strength training is focused on increasing strength/force production, build muscle, and also improve durability with heavier load bearing activities. This means incorporating fewer reps, with heavier loads, with a rep range optimally of 1-6. Due to lifting heavier loads the rest time when training for strength is between 3-5 minutes, longer than when training for hypertrophy or endurance.

- Generating as much force/power

- Rep Range: 1-6

- Powerlifter

Hypertrophy:

- Gaining muscle mass/size

- Rep Range: 8-12

- Bodybuilder

Endurance:

- Building stamina/longevity

- Rep Range: 12+

- Marathon runner, Cyclist