5X5 vs 3X10: Which Is Better For Muscle Growth? What is this? While both rep schemes are used in programs to grow new muscle, 3×10 is the best answer when hypertrophy is the goal. That said, this is only true if you are properly controlling for volume, frequency, consistency, and intensity.
You will not build muscle by performing 3 sets of 10 during your weight training workouts. You must do many more reps and sets to build muscle and strength.
Doing around 6–20 reps per set is usually best for building muscle, with some experts going as wide as 5–30 or even 4–40 reps per set. For bigger lifts, 6–10 reps often works best. For smaller lifts, 12–20 reps often works better.
Here's what you need to know... 10 sets of 3 reps doesn't just work for hypertrophy. It can work for fat loss too. With only 3 reps per set you'll need to lift heavier, but unlike mass phases, don't go all the way up to 80% of your 1 RM.
Therefore, during a long training period, 5 sets per exercise is superior to 3 sets per exercise and 3 sets per exercise is superior to 1 set per exercise to cause increases in upper-body strength, local muscular endurance, and hypertrophy.
The 5×5 is a simple and effective barbell training program that's well suited for beginner and intermediate lifters. The 5×5 focuses on key barbell movements for a full body workout that will build strength and muscle, as well as your athletic performance and a host of other benefits.
The most effective rep ranges for hypertrophy are 6-12 reps, for 3-5 sets, per exercise. Depending on your exercise level, begin with a higher rep range with moderate intensity or weight load, then, decrease the reps and increase the intensity.
The 5x5 workout is primarily for hypertrophy, or, muscle growth. For beginning to experienced lifters, 5x5 is appropriate for those who want to increase both upper body and lower body strength, and also muscle mass.
It all depends on what exercises you pick and how the workout weeks are structured. The 3X3 protocol is also a great prelude to the 5X5 program. Why? The 3X3 program will get you very strong, and the stronger you are the more effective the 5X5 program will be.
Lift By the Rule of 5. This old-school protocol is a classic for a reason: it'll help your gains. The default set and rep scheme for most gym goers seems to be 3 sets of 10 reps. That's too bad, because you'll gain more muscle and strength with 5 sets of 5.
Up to about 10–20 reps per set (~60% of 1RM) is moderately effective for strength, but any lighter than that and the strength gain is small.
The 5x5 program can't be beat for increasing strength, breaking plateaus, and adding muscle. Try out this classic lifting routine and see results! One of the most popular muscle and strength-building programs of all time is the 5x5 protocol.
For hypertrophy (building muscle), the sweet spot is 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 12 reps. And if your objective is muscular endurance, shoot for 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 20 reps. In each case, the key is to use the heaviest resistance that will allow you to complete all of your reps and sets with good form.
The 8x3 method is awesome because you are still using heavy weight, which contributes to strength gains, but you are putting achieving hypertrophy by doing a large amount of sets (8). You find a weight that you can perform 4 reps with but stop at 3.
Doing 3x10 is better for volume where as a 5x5 is better for strength. Volume will help increase the size of the legs more. Increasing your strength on the other hand will allow you to work with higher weights for volume. So doing a mix of both is good.
High protein foods such as chicken, salmon, Greek yogurt, skim milk, and beans are some of the best foods to help you gain lean muscle (67).
SL 5X5 uses compound lifts.
These exercises work large numbers of muscles at the same time, which means they also stimulate growth in all of those muscles. The bench press, for example, is going to build muscle not just in the chest, but the deltoids and triceps as well.
The best rep range for building muscle
Numerous research studies show that high-volume resistance training is the best method for building muscle. According to the American Council on Exercise, the eight to 15 rep range holds the most muscle-building potential.
Training 3 days per week. Three workouts a week is a common go-to for beginners and those looking to get lean, but works great for muscle gains as well as it provides more exposure to a training stimulus than most are used to.
The most common figure I see is that a 5×5 workout is best done with about 81% of your 1RM. That works out to about 90% of your desired 90% intensity.
On the heavy 5x5 day, you're using 80-85% of your 1RM. This means all of your reps are maximally effective reps. That's 25 maximally effective reps and that translates to a great muscle-growth day.
With all that said, you can expect a workout with two or three exercises done 5×5 style to last anywhere from 30–60 minutes. One popular method of employing 5×5 is to do three exercises in a session, using 5×5 to train the whole body.
While both rep schemes are used in programs to grow new muscle, 3×10 is the best answer when hypertrophy is the goal. That said, this is only true if you are properly controlling for volume, frequency, consistency, and intensity.
Linemen: 30-39. Tight Ends and Linebackers: 25-30. Running Backs: 20-25. Defensive Backs and Receivers: 15-20.