At age 75, Arnold Schwarzenegger still trains hard and writes a regular newsletter, daily pumpIn a recent edition, Schwarzenegger addresses the myth that lifting heavier is always better, citing the following example. One of his idols is Eugen Sandow, the legendary bodybuilder who helped popularize strength sports in the early 20th century.
“He was the strongest man in the world, made incredibly famous on multiple continents for his body, and was known for doing 125 reps with very light dumbbells,” he said. “So if heavy weights make you happy, go for it. But if small weights make you happy, you have good company! Do whatever you like to train.” please.”
“The big mistake is to think you can grow with endless repetitions of light weights,” the newsletter continues. You have to work towards failure, which means you can do 20 or 30 repetitions sometimes.”
But he continues, it’s not just a matter of churning out lightweight, high-volume reps.
“Simply doing lots of reps isn’t enough. You need to push yourself to the limits of what your body can do, and that’s when your body grows,” he adds. “So every time, no matter how many reps, sets, or weights, you have to add more. That’s the gradualness of progressive resistance.”
He also clarifies which exercises are worth lifting lightly, explaining that for several reasons not all movements have the same qualities and limitations.
“A high-repetition approach doesn’t necessarily make sense for more complex exercises. You might think a set of 30 repetitions with a 100-pound squat is ‘better’ than 300 pounds with 10 repetitions.” , is not so simple. Those his 30-reps his squats can cause fatigue in other ways, making him more prone to injury (probably his back) or causing bad reps that leave results on the table. A range of 5-12 reps is best. On the other hand, more isolation moves (think lateral raises, calf-he raises, bicep curls) may be safer to push in a higher rep range. ”
Philip Ellis is a freelance writer and journalist from the UK covering pop culture, relationships and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared on GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV.
