{"id":109992,"date":"2023-08-03T14:23:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-03T18:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=109992"},"modified":"2023-08-07T12:22:43","modified_gmt":"2023-08-07T16:22:43","slug":"double-progression-method","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/double-progression-method\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Use the Double Progression Method in Your Workouts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How many reps and sets should you do during your workouts? Why is double progression effective?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Personal trainer Michael Matthews recommends a workout program based on progressive overload\u2014a workout approach that maximizes muscle growth. One way of applying progressive tension overload is double progression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to learn about the double progression method and why it works so well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Use Double Progression for Effective Workouts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Part of planning your workouts is to determine how many reps and sets should you do. A repetition (or \u201crep\u201d) is a single movement (such as one pull-up). A set is a group of reps you do in succession (such as 10 pull-ups).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Matthews, you need to do nine to 12 hard sets for each major muscle group per week for optimal gains.<\/strong> He recommends doing nine to 12 hard sets per session (with each session focusing on one muscle group) to achieve this. <\/strong>For example, you might do three sets of four different pushing exercises in one workout. He suggests this because there\u2019s an upper limit to the number of sets you can do to maximize muscle growth per workout. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: If you do too many reps or sets, you\u2019re likely doing junk volume<\/em><\/a>\u2014any rep or set you do that doesn\u2019t benefit strength or muscle gain. Junk volume not only wastes time but can delay recovery and lead to overtraining. For most people, any set beyond 10 sets for a single muscle group (or 20 for all muscle groups) per workout will likely be junk volume.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Determine what a \u201chard set\u201d is for you by using a method called double progression<\/em>, which is a way of applying progressive tension overload. Progressive tension overload means that you apply an increasing amount of stress to your body by incrementally using heavier weights. This method forces your body to adapt and bear heavier loads, which boosts your muscle gains, writes Matthews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The double progression method requires you to do exercises within a range of reps to determine when to add more weight to your exercise. If you reach the upper limit of your repetition range, you add 10 pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n