Strength & hypertrophy combo

[anzel]

I spent all last year training a 5x5 powerlifting routine (natural). 3 days a week all body routine. Made good strength gains.
For the last 4 months prior to my 1st cycle I switched to a body building routine. 4 day split / 3 sets with a rep range of (12,10, 8). One month before my cycle started (as I became more conditioned) I added an additional 4th set of 6 reps. Once my cycle started (almost 3 weeks ago) I combined the 5x5 with the 4 day slit routine..
Example: Back day.

Deadlifts- 2 warm up sets followed by a 5x5 of heavy weight. Rather than (12,10,8,6) of a lighter weight.

then for the rest of my workout 4 sets (12,10,8,6) on my rows and other secondary excercises.

By doing this I am able to go alot heavier on the core excersizes (squat, deadlift, press) while getting a hypertrophy type work out doing higher reps in my other excercises.

I am now considering as I get further into my cycle and heavier in the weight to change my rep range from (12,10,8,6) to (10,8,6,4)

Whats your thoughts?

 

[Larrybird]

I think you will see slightly (very slight) better gains in strength if you switched to the 10/8/6/4.

Personally, I'm a HUGE fan of pyramiding down. Like you said, by doing this, you train for both hypertrophy and strength. Usually though, I like to keep my big 3 lifts heavy, heavy, so I can gain the most strength there. So, I'd do something like this:

Bench: 12 (warm-up), 10 (warm-up), 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 1.
Then, all exercises thereafter get the pyramiding routine (10, 8, 8, 6, 4), e.g. incline DB, flys, cable cross, etc..

 

[anzel]

Yeah man thanks for the input, I`ll try lowering my rep count and see how that goes.

 

[shainesboostin]

I think you will see slightly (very slight) better gains in strength if you switched to the 10/8/6/4.

Personally, I'm a HUGE fan of pyramiding down. Like you said, by doing this, you train for both hypertrophy and strength. Usually though, I like to keep my big 3 lifts heavy, heavy, so I can gain the most strength there. So, I'd do something like this:

Bench: 12 (warm-up), 10 (warm-up), 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 1.
Then, all exercises thereafter get the pyramiding routine (10, 8, 8, 6, 4), e.g. incline DB, flys, cable cross, etc..

When you go down reps each set, are you adding weight? or taking weight off? Or.....keeping it the same?

 

[Rougen123]

When you go down reps each set, are you adding weight? or taking weight off? Or.....keeping it the same?

I'd assume he's making it heavier, which is why he would be doing less reps

 

[cdn_guy_4]

I start higher weight and then go lower. My fav is to max out and then immediately continue the set at a lower weight and max out again. Seems to push me well.

 

[MuscleGuru]

I think you would find benefit in learning the science behind each type of training method, and what it is actually do inside the body.
For example, I notice you keep saying "Strength and/or Hypertrophy" as if they are two different things. This is not the case. Both strength and size are attained through musclular hypertrophy. The dominant results achieved are determined by the type of training you follow to induce a specific type of muscular hypertrophy.

Powerlifters train for power. Their goal is to attain the highest amount of muscular energy output in the smallest amount of time. The type of training they do is aimed at inducing myofibrillar hypertrophy, in which actin and myosin contractile proteins increase in number and add to muscular strength as well as a small increase in the size of the muscle.

Bodybuilders train for overall size and muscular development. Their main goal is to add as much mass to the targeted muscles, with no real goal towards strength gain. The type of training they do is aimed at inducing sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, in which the volume of sarcoplasmic fluid in the muscle cell increases with no accompanying increase in muscular strength.

So you are hopefully training in a way in which you achieving some type of muscular hypertrophy. Your end results will be determined by what type of muscular hypertrophy you induce.