Review of Resistance Training Guidelines

Training

Review of Resistance Training Guidelines
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The goal of this article is to provide an overview and review of the resistance training guidelines we have been discussing in this article series on how to design your own program. We have discussed a lot so far, and I know that has been a lot to take in, but I hope you have learned a lot throughout the discussion.

Before you get stuck into this article, it would be helpful to read the following articles:

This will give you some background as to why exercise is important, what we are using exercise to accomplish, and they will also give you an introduction to resistance training and the exercise guidelines for resistance training.

Assuming you understand why resistance training is so important, the next step is actually designing your resistance training program. We have covered a lot in the exercise series, and I do realise that it can be difficult to keep all the nuances in your head, and you kind of just want an overview of the guidelines to at least serve as a starting point. So with that in mind, the following guidelines can help you design an effective resistance training program:

Exercise Guidelines

The most up to date exercise guidelines for health suggest that adults aim for the following: 

  • 150-300 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic exercise per week (half that for vigorous exercise). 
  • At least 2 resistance training sessions per week, strengthening all major muscle groups. 
  • Beyond formal exercise – move more, sit less (no specific recommendation, although we generally recommend getting at least 8,000 steps per day). 

So, at the very least, for resistance training, we want to be doing 2 resistance training sessions per week, that strengthen all the major muscle groups of the body.

Clear Goals

  • All resistance training guidelines are contingent on clear goals. If you don’t have clear goals, you can’t design an effective training program, as you are simply not working towards a defined goal.
  • In general, we are using resistance training as a tool to build muscle and/or get stronger. While other goals can make sense, there are usually much more effective ways to go about achieving them.
  • Even with these overarching goals, we still need to get more specific. What muscles do we want to grow? What movements or muscles do we want to strengthen?

If you haven’t already, I recommend reading the following article: Resistance Training For Muscle & Strength.

Exercise Selection

  • Exercise selection to be consistent with specific goals and individual anatomy.
  • Generally try to train all the major muscle groups through their full range of motion.
  • Try to stick with the same exercise for multiple weeks, so you can focus on mastering the movement and progressing the weight used over time.
  • Exercises can be swapped out over time, but this should not be done frequently. 
  • Exercise ordering both during a workout and across a week does matter to some extent, but generally isn’t something that needs overthinking other than ensuring recovery is in a good place.

If you haven’t already, I recommend reading the following article as it will give you a fuller picture of exercise selection: Exercise Selection, Variety and Ordering

Reps:

  • Somewhere between 6-15 reps is probably the most effective range for most people in most cases.
  • These sets don’t need to be taken to failure, and generally, something like an RPE 7-8 or RIR 2-3 is beneficial for the majority of training.
  • A controlled tempo is advised, with a slower eccentric. At the very least, the tempo should be standardised across reps.

If you haven’t already, I recommend reading the following articles to expand your knowledge of reps: Understanding Reps, RIR & RPE (Do You Need To Train To Failure) and Rep Tempo and Time Under Tension.

Sets:

  • 10-20 sets per major body part per week is generally a solid recommendation. 5-10 sets per small body part per week also makes sense. This doesn’t include warm up sets, unless they are being taken close to failure.
  • A minimum of ~2-3 sets per body part, per workout is generally good advice.
  • A maximum of ~8-10 sets per body part, per workout is also generally good advice.
  • Somewhere in the range of 60-120 sets per week total is generally sufficient to accomplish most goals.
  • Ideally, we want to train each muscle group 2+ times per week.
  • In general, 2-3 minutes of rest between sets is a good idea.

If you haven’t already, I recommend reading the following articles to expand your knowledge of sets: Training Volume (How Many Sets Should You Do) and Rest Periods.

Training For Strength Versus Size

There are some subtle differences between training for strength vs training for muscle gain, but we don’t need to focus on them excessively, as there is so much overlap.

What most people call strength is actually just a narrow type of strength, absolute strength. This is generally typified by low reps and heavy weights. However, you can actually get stronger in all the rep ranges. But I will just go along with convention for this discussion, so as not to confuse things further.

AspectTraining for HypertrophyTraining for Strength
Primary GoalIncrease muscle size (muscle hypertrophy).Increase maximal force production (strength).
Repetition RangeModerate to high repetitions (6-15 reps per set).Moderate to low repetitions (1-6 reps per set).
Load IntensityModerate to moderate-high intensity (60-80% 1RM).High intensity (75-95% 1RM or higher).
Rest PeriodsShorter to moderate rest periods (60-300 seconds).Moderate to long rest periods (120+ seconds).
TempoModerate tempo with controlled eccentric and concentric phases, aiming to maximise tension on the muscles.Controlled tempo, especially on the eccentric, with an explosive concentric phase.
VolumeModerate to high volume (10-20 sets per muscle per week).Low to moderate volume (3-15 sets per muscle per week).
Exercise SelectionEmphasis on isolation exercises targeting specific muscle groups. Generally training muscles, not movements. Emphasis on compound exercises targeting multiple muscle groups. Generally training movements, not muscles.
ProgressionProgressive overload with gradual increases in weight, reps, or volume.Emphasis on increasing load progressively.
Muscle Fiber RecruitmentEmphasises both fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscle fibres.Primarily targets fast-twitch muscle fibres.
AdaptationsPromotes muscle hypertrophy, increased muscle cross-sectional area, and endurance.Enhances neural adaptations, motor unit recruitment, and muscle strength.

Progression

Now, while I will be discussing this more in depth after we discuss cardio training guidelines, it is important to keep in mind that one of the main things we need to focus on with resistance training is progressive overload. You simply can’t continue to make progress towards your goals, if you only ever do what you have always done.

You must slowly increase the stress you place on your body, if you want to continue adapting and progressing. There are a number of ways to do this with resistance training, but the most frequently used method is simply adding more resistance (usually in the form of more weight). This is an important thing to consider with all exercise, and thus we will discuss this in more depth once we have put a cohesive program together. 

Resistance Training Guidelines Overview

And there you have it, an overview of the resistance training guidelines. This should hopefully help you to design your resistance training workouts to be more effective. You can visit our exercise hub if you want to see all of our content on exercise.

As with everything, there is always more to learn, and we haven’t even begun to scratch the surface with all this stuff. However, if you are interested in staying up to date with all our content, we recommend subscribing to our newsletter and bookmarking our free content page. We do have a lot of content on how to design your own exercise program on our exercise hub.

If you would like more help with your training (or nutrition), we do also have online coaching spaces available.

We also recommend reading our foundational nutrition article, along with our foundational articles on sleep and stress management, if you really want to learn more about how to optimise your lifestyle. If you want even more free information on exercise, you can follow us on Instagram, YouTube or listen to the podcast, where we discuss all the little intricacies of exercise.

Finally, if you want to learn how to coach nutrition, then consider our Nutrition Coach Certification course. We do also have an exercise program design course in the works, if you are a coach who wants to learn more about effective program design and how to coach it. We do have other courses available too. If you don’t understand something, or you just need clarification, you can always reach out to us on Instagram or via email.

The previous article in this series is about Rest Periods and the next article in this series is Why Do Cardio Training?, if you are interested in continuing to learn about exercise program design. You can also go to our exercise hub to find more exercise content.

References and Further Reading

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Paddy Farrell
www.triagemethod.com

Hey, I'm Paddy!

I am a coach who loves to help people master their health and fitness. I am a personal trainer, strength and conditioning coach, and I have a degree in Biochemistry and Biomolecular Science. I have been coaching people for over 10 years now.

When I grew up, you couldn't find great health and fitness information, and you still can't really. So my content aims to solve that!

I enjoy training in the gym, doing martial arts and hiking in the mountains (around Europe, mainly). I am also an avid reader of history, politics and science. When I am not in the mountains, exercising or reading, you will likely find me in a museum.